Monday, April 10, 2006

The Virus Strikes Back (UPDATED)

Sooooooo, did I mention I got sick whilst I was traveling recently? Oh, I did. Well, I was feeling better Friday and Saturday and then today the virus organized and stuck it to The [Wo]Man - that is, my poor miserable body. I feel, how you say, yucky. And it's really too bad because I had such a good weekend, and I wanted that feeling to last. It's Monday, WHAT ELSE HAVE I GOT?

Friday night I did not much of anything and tried to recoup from the busy week of travel and then catching up on WAY TOO MUCH work. Saturday I got my hairs cut in the morning, and then got my professionally-styled coiffure sopping wet in the rain when I went grocery shopping. Worst. time. ever. The rest of the evening, I spent intermittently watching HGTV and cleaning. I vacuumed the floors and hung all the pictures in the kitchen. I got some good ideas for other rooms in the house. Also, I now want to live on a $1-million houseboat made of wood with copper accents and shaped like a wave breaking on the shore. Just FYI, there.

My health plan provides Advice Nurses via phone to its members, and they told me to eat a diet composed entirely of bland food, I tried to stick to that all weekend. It's like a death sentence - no wait, they keep you alive but you only eat gruel. They said once I was feeling better, I could reintroduce dairy and spices by eating yogurt for the good bacteria and then slowly amping up the levels of non-bland food. Apparently I either failed at that, or the virus was not yet done with me. BLAST! It might have had something to do with yesterday. See, I got up for church and everything went well. Our Palestrina piece started out sloppy but came together as we sang. Also, the church did some good things with the liturgy and readings to make the service really powerful. Alls well there. I came home, ate lunch and headed out for Mr. T's and an afternoon of Cherry Blossom Festival fun. Oh, and food. Which I would pay for today. BUT ANYWAY.

We had a really good chat. I've known him since the high school days, but I've never been all that close to him as a friend. It was nice to hear how college affected him and the kinds of struggles he overcame whilst telling him all about my own troubles. Plus, IT WAS GORGEOUS. It may be all about Autumn in New York, but I highly recommend Spring in DC. After the rain of the previous day, there were few petals left on the trees, but everything else was coming alive, so it was a delight to walk around and wield my camera. Exhibit A:


Kite-flying fans love Spring by the Washington Monument.

We also passed through the Smithsonian's Haupt Garden which is located near the famous castle (their information center), and through this stretch of land with patch after patch of tulips of many varieties. There was a sign that labeled it the Tulip Library. Odd name, lovely sight. Check it:


After wandering around for a while, it time for good food. I had chicken penne which had a surprisingly light sauce (no dairy to speak of) and reasonably non-spicy flavors. I took a chance on a little wine (it was Half-Price Bottles of Wine Sunday). We got this wine (PDF with lots o' technical wine speak), a Petite Sirah (as they spell it) 2003 from Bogle Vineyards in California. It was labeled as a $24 bottle, so we paid $12. Dude, you can barely get a single glass a piece for that at a restaurant! The moral of the story: Clyde's, Sundays, Wine, Mmmmm. So, I had a glass and a bit and today my body is MOST NOT PLEASED. This is gonna be a long week without cocktails.



UPDATE: How could I forget? Mr. T and I gawked at Steve Carell as he and a camera crew filmed a scene for Evan Almighty on the steps of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. I've got the pictures to prove it. He's even wearing a similar suit in his IMDB profile, so THERE. Or rather, HERE:

4 comments:

Mair said...

We had a Steve Carrell sighting last week in Charlottesville! We met some friends for dinner at a swank Mexican joint called Mono Loco...and there he sat with Lauren Graham. Crazy.

Did you get my email?

Mair said...

P.S. Oh - and at the point when we first noticed him, we were standing like 2 feet from him waiting to be seated at our table...while he was eating at his! If I had my camera on me, I could've had a close up!!! (not to be competitive or anything, I mean, afterall you are the one with the picture to prove it, even if the picture doesn't prove anything other than there were people holding up filming equipment on the steps and a man in the suit by the door. I'm snotty, I know).

Plankiest said...

I love Steve Carrell!

I do not love the fact that you bug is haunting you.

E.A.P said...

Mair, you show-off! With Lauren Graham, too? I saw her episode of Celebrity Poker Showdown, and she's just charming. Still, I've got pictures and you don't, so NYAH! Oh and I also got your email, but because I'm a horrible, HORRIBLE person, I've yet to respond. I'm totally gonna do that soon.

Plankiest, I'm not the biggest fan, but he has his moments. Miss you already, btw. Hug all your sweet/crazy animals for me!