State dinner for the Chinese President -- Washington socializing evolves...
Ever since I first lived in Washington, right out of college, I casually track guest lists for White House state-dinners. (It's always in the next day's WPost "Style" section -- and is required reading in certain circles...)
Once upon a time, I actually attended just such a fancy fete, honoring the then-prime minister of Israel -- accompanying a guy I worked for. (We weren't a couple by any means, though he may have had ideas...) I actually got to read my own name in the next morning's paper. Thing is, they list only the names of those attending, not their titles -- so my name was linked to his: "[guy] and Justine _____."
Fast forward about thirty years: this morning I was happy to read, near the top, "Caroline Atkinson and Grace Lamb-Atkinson." A proper "sign of the times"! Lezzies on the list!
Well, while it used to be hard to dope out names you didn't recognize, nowadays, we have Google. So I quickly established Caroline is Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics, while Grace is a research assistant for the TV news show "Meet the Press." I even found a photo of the couple; Grace had quickly put one up on a social media site. (Thinking of their privacy, I'm refraining from reposting it.)
Once upon a time, I actually attended just such a fancy fete, honoring the then-prime minister of Israel -- accompanying a guy I worked for. (We weren't a couple by any means, though he may have had ideas...) I actually got to read my own name in the next morning's paper. Thing is, they list only the names of those attending, not their titles -- so my name was linked to his: "[guy] and Justine _____."
Fast forward about thirty years: this morning I was happy to read, near the top, "Caroline Atkinson and Grace Lamb-Atkinson." A proper "sign of the times"! Lezzies on the list!
Well, while it used to be hard to dope out names you didn't recognize, nowadays, we have Google. So I quickly established Caroline is Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics, while Grace is a research assistant for the TV news show "Meet the Press." I even found a photo of the couple; Grace had quickly put one up on a social media site. (Thinking of their privacy, I'm refraining from reposting it.)