Saturday, June 11, 2011

Thought-Provoking

Hello all! I am very sorry that my blogging has not been as frequent as I wanted it to! Work and school has (as usual) taken over my life, DC style. But I am not lacking in blogging goodies.

As far as updates are concerned, work is going well. The Jon Stewart angle fell through, which was pretty depressing. But I still got some years left and hopefully the world won't end in 2012, so there are still chances!
Exploring DC is getting more and more fun! Last night, Mahssa and I explored Dupont Circle, which is so far my favorite part of the city. I love how the historical architecture and the commercialization of America come and meet in one place. I know how weird that sounds, but you'll just have to come visit me and experience it for yourself. :)

The biggest thing I have been doing lately is a lot of thinking; I know, I am too exciting. But this thinking is apart of this whole experience; this trip was meant to test my abilities and think hard about my future, while in the meantime trying to find a husband.
A friend of mine here brought up a very interesting point the other night; with the give and take of American politics, Washington DC never really stays the same. Administrations change, political parties fight for control, and interns come and go with every season. There is really no strong core of a community or city soul here. Most people come here to work at their job for four and five years and then move on. The only thing that is really concrete is the buildings, literally and figuratively.

I mulled over this constantly for several days before I finally asked a girl at the office. I asked her how the city really responds to political change. Her response confirmed my friend's observations. My co-worker considers herself a native DC-er, which is apparently a rarity. She noted that with each presidential election, the social landscape of DC changed drastically. She noticed her school friends moved out into the suburbs, and new ones moved in. It had nothing to do with bitterness over the particular president-elect (it was no "I hate Bush, so I'm gonna leave"), but it had everything to do with new people being brought in with the new administration. It was a mutual decision reached between the new people and the old people; the old people had done their time, and now they were making way for the new people. This constant change is aided by the fact that nearly 20,000 new interns invade the city every year.

At first, I was slightly upset over learning this. Washington DC was THE place I was planning on spending graduate school and at least a great majority of my working career. Everywhere I went, I noticed signs of this shuffling metropolis. At this particular moment, I am not upset anymore by this fact; instead I have found that its causing me to alter my dreams, perhaps making them even bigger than I thought. Maybe DC is supposed to be a stepping stone for something else I didn't realize.

I feel like this was a slightly dour post, so I'll cook something else up to cheer up this page! :)

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