Well, if everybody's doing it...
I shall update too!
So DC is a really great city, though it has rained a few times since I've been here, but there's tons to see and do. The embassy's right at the heart of downtown DC, only about a block from the Capitol Building and just across the street from the National Mall (grass, not shopping- common misconception!) and all the museums that run along it. That being said, I haven't actually seen all that much as I've just been going back and forth to work.
Also, I have no one to see it with! My dad's driver's very friendly, and he's always asking me what my plans are for the evening, weekend, etc... and every time I have to remind him that I don't have friends and therefore will be doing nothing. But you can always count on my being on MSN at night! I don't really mind that much... there will be 25 summer students working at the embassy by July, and there are 18 interns there already, but it's a huge maze of a building, so I've really only seen about 6 people anywhere close to my age. I get along well with the intern in Cultural Affairs (which is where I work... including me and Madeleine, the intern, there are 5 of us) but she's just finished her Master's degree and is very hardworking-- for me this is a great summer job, but for her it's potentially a career starting point (they hire some of the interns full-time if they're good). Plus I live in the suburbs and the interns mostly live downtown, plus I can't drink... I think if they were to have some sort of gathering of interns and summer students I could easily make friends, but as of yet I haven't had enough exposure to any of them. There's a girl who's going into gr 11 who I share my office with, and we talk all day (since we both often have nothing to do) and that's cool, having some sort of human interaction... and Konn, who is also in Cultural Affairs, is pretty funny. We hang, he helps me figure stuff out, I distract him from his work (don't get any ideas, he's 29 and has a wife).
I'm basically a personal assistant for my boss, the head of Cultural Affairs, and Anna, the Cultural Affairs officer. My boss just started in September, but Anna's been at the embassy for 27 years, so if anyone needs to know something, they ask her! She can also apparently get you tickets to anything because she's got all the connections. My first day I helped out with their Stanley Cup party, where they invited the winners of a radio contest plus a bunch of Canadians living in DC. These guys from Maryland were actually shocked at how much us girls knew and liked about hockey. I mean, I'm barely a fan but I know what's going on and I can get into it! Apparently girls in the States don't appreciate the game like we do. :D Sometimes I don't have much to do at work, but I've been helping Carolyn organize her contacts, finding Canadian bands, theatre and other events happening in the area for our Events Calendar (which is so much fun... there are a crapload of good concerts here!! And no one to go with...) Yesterday I designed a guide for the Ambassador and his wife to the art that was just installed in their house, and next week I get to do the same for the art on the Ambassador's floor in the embassy and the at gallery. Konna and Madeleine just helped install a bunch of Group of Seven and other Canadian artists' paintings in those three locations. I've seen the ones upstairs in the embassy and they're gorgeous.
My mom was here this week to bring the plants, booze and cat down, and she's planning a big touristy family summer. I hate to say it, but even a summer spent with only my family is looking better than just sitting around all weekend. And there IS a ton of stuff to see here, it would be a shame to be here all summer and not see any of it. And then I have Christmas to look forward to, because Brian, Denise, and Paige are thinking of coming to visit and also take a trip to New York with us. We shall see.
The house is totally empty-- I have a table and chair with my cmputer on it in my parents' sitting room thinger upstairs, and an air mattress, and my dad is sleeping in my sister's room with the twin beds that came ith the house. We have some kitchen chairs and a desk downstairs, the dining room set and a piano, and a few couches in the basement, but that's it. The house echoes alot! My dad's coming back to Ottawa next weekend to help with the move, and they should all be here by July 2nd or 3rd. And that's just about when I get paid!!! Oh man, I can't wait. I actually have like no money right now too, so it'll be nice to pay my credit card bill and go to the most amazing mall ever, Tyson's Corner's, which is a short drive from our house. What does suck is that I'm not on the insurance here so I have to be driven everywhere... or in the case of going to work while my dad's away, taking two metro trains and a bus. Bah. I still don't see what the big deal is to have Bill (his driver) drive me while he's away, but apparently "Bill and the car are only for official business for me or your mother." But it is kinda cool to know the Metro system and be able to get around. I already have disdain for tourists!!
One of my friends from school is working at a camp in upstate New York starting in July, so he's gonna try to come down here on one of his weekends off and see the sights. It'll be nice having someone here from home, even though he'll be the only one all summer. We have a lot of rooms, beds, and couches here if any of you are interested in a road trip!
Seriously though, I know how impossible it is to get work off and get down here, especially since it takes a day driving, so don't feel bad that you won't see me. I should be in Ottawa for a day or two at the beginning of September, and if not a drive to Kingston is only 2 hours instead of 10!!
Oh I have to tell you this funny story, we had a gr. 6 class in to learn about Canada last week and they were asking me all these questions ("What's your favourite food?" "Do you have carnivals there?" "Do you like wrestling?") but first Konn told them I was from the capital of Canada and did they know what city that was? Their reply: "Ot- ahhhh-wahh!!" (ie emphasis on the middle of the word, not the beginning like we say it) It was hilarious. Then one of them was soooo shocked and awed that I spoke French but I didn't have an accent when I spoke English! They were totally adorable. And to give you an idea of the diversity here, it occurred to me afterwards when I was telling my sister about it, there wasn't even one white kid in the class. So like Barrhaven, but the opposite! I like it here, but man do I miss Canadian beer. :(
There's a lot more to tell, but it's all little anecdotes that will take forever and ever, so I'll save them for later.
So DC is a really great city, though it has rained a few times since I've been here, but there's tons to see and do. The embassy's right at the heart of downtown DC, only about a block from the Capitol Building and just across the street from the National Mall (grass, not shopping- common misconception!) and all the museums that run along it. That being said, I haven't actually seen all that much as I've just been going back and forth to work.
Also, I have no one to see it with! My dad's driver's very friendly, and he's always asking me what my plans are for the evening, weekend, etc... and every time I have to remind him that I don't have friends and therefore will be doing nothing. But you can always count on my being on MSN at night! I don't really mind that much... there will be 25 summer students working at the embassy by July, and there are 18 interns there already, but it's a huge maze of a building, so I've really only seen about 6 people anywhere close to my age. I get along well with the intern in Cultural Affairs (which is where I work... including me and Madeleine, the intern, there are 5 of us) but she's just finished her Master's degree and is very hardworking-- for me this is a great summer job, but for her it's potentially a career starting point (they hire some of the interns full-time if they're good). Plus I live in the suburbs and the interns mostly live downtown, plus I can't drink... I think if they were to have some sort of gathering of interns and summer students I could easily make friends, but as of yet I haven't had enough exposure to any of them. There's a girl who's going into gr 11 who I share my office with, and we talk all day (since we both often have nothing to do) and that's cool, having some sort of human interaction... and Konn, who is also in Cultural Affairs, is pretty funny. We hang, he helps me figure stuff out, I distract him from his work (don't get any ideas, he's 29 and has a wife).
I'm basically a personal assistant for my boss, the head of Cultural Affairs, and Anna, the Cultural Affairs officer. My boss just started in September, but Anna's been at the embassy for 27 years, so if anyone needs to know something, they ask her! She can also apparently get you tickets to anything because she's got all the connections. My first day I helped out with their Stanley Cup party, where they invited the winners of a radio contest plus a bunch of Canadians living in DC. These guys from Maryland were actually shocked at how much us girls knew and liked about hockey. I mean, I'm barely a fan but I know what's going on and I can get into it! Apparently girls in the States don't appreciate the game like we do. :D Sometimes I don't have much to do at work, but I've been helping Carolyn organize her contacts, finding Canadian bands, theatre and other events happening in the area for our Events Calendar (which is so much fun... there are a crapload of good concerts here!! And no one to go with...) Yesterday I designed a guide for the Ambassador and his wife to the art that was just installed in their house, and next week I get to do the same for the art on the Ambassador's floor in the embassy and the at gallery. Konna and Madeleine just helped install a bunch of Group of Seven and other Canadian artists' paintings in those three locations. I've seen the ones upstairs in the embassy and they're gorgeous.
My mom was here this week to bring the plants, booze and cat down, and she's planning a big touristy family summer. I hate to say it, but even a summer spent with only my family is looking better than just sitting around all weekend. And there IS a ton of stuff to see here, it would be a shame to be here all summer and not see any of it. And then I have Christmas to look forward to, because Brian, Denise, and Paige are thinking of coming to visit and also take a trip to New York with us. We shall see.
The house is totally empty-- I have a table and chair with my cmputer on it in my parents' sitting room thinger upstairs, and an air mattress, and my dad is sleeping in my sister's room with the twin beds that came ith the house. We have some kitchen chairs and a desk downstairs, the dining room set and a piano, and a few couches in the basement, but that's it. The house echoes alot! My dad's coming back to Ottawa next weekend to help with the move, and they should all be here by July 2nd or 3rd. And that's just about when I get paid!!! Oh man, I can't wait. I actually have like no money right now too, so it'll be nice to pay my credit card bill and go to the most amazing mall ever, Tyson's Corner's, which is a short drive from our house. What does suck is that I'm not on the insurance here so I have to be driven everywhere... or in the case of going to work while my dad's away, taking two metro trains and a bus. Bah. I still don't see what the big deal is to have Bill (his driver) drive me while he's away, but apparently "Bill and the car are only for official business for me or your mother." But it is kinda cool to know the Metro system and be able to get around. I already have disdain for tourists!!
One of my friends from school is working at a camp in upstate New York starting in July, so he's gonna try to come down here on one of his weekends off and see the sights. It'll be nice having someone here from home, even though he'll be the only one all summer. We have a lot of rooms, beds, and couches here if any of you are interested in a road trip!
Seriously though, I know how impossible it is to get work off and get down here, especially since it takes a day driving, so don't feel bad that you won't see me. I should be in Ottawa for a day or two at the beginning of September, and if not a drive to Kingston is only 2 hours instead of 10!!
Oh I have to tell you this funny story, we had a gr. 6 class in to learn about Canada last week and they were asking me all these questions ("What's your favourite food?" "Do you have carnivals there?" "Do you like wrestling?") but first Konn told them I was from the capital of Canada and did they know what city that was? Their reply: "Ot- ahhhh-wahh!!" (ie emphasis on the middle of the word, not the beginning like we say it) It was hilarious. Then one of them was soooo shocked and awed that I spoke French but I didn't have an accent when I spoke English! They were totally adorable. And to give you an idea of the diversity here, it occurred to me afterwards when I was telling my sister about it, there wasn't even one white kid in the class. So like Barrhaven, but the opposite! I like it here, but man do I miss Canadian beer. :(
There's a lot more to tell, but it's all little anecdotes that will take forever and ever, so I'll save them for later.