DC Challenge

Eric smiling at the Arboretum because he caught a frog by the leg and accidentally let him go.

Yesterday, Eric and I attempted the DC Challenge. We were all pumped up and excited to read the 12 challenge clues. Using his smart phone and knowledge of D.C., Eric was able to crack a lot of the clues quickly and offer up possible leads for other clues. We had a bunch of sites lined up and decided to go to the National Arboretum first because of this clue:

"When you visit this garden-within-a-garden, we bet you don't realize you're actually standing on the roofs of several different subterranean galleries. To complete this clue, replace "water" with "moon" in DC scandal lingo and you'll find the name of your objective. Take a photo with your team inside the two 9 foot tall, pink granite namesake objects."

So, obviously, we were looking for a moongate. Eric immediately skipped over all of the other details when he realized where he had seen a moongate near a "garden-within-a-garden" before. I had thought that since it said "standing on the roofs of several different subterranean galleries" that it was probably the bontanic garden instead of the arboretum. However, Eric insisted that it was at the arboretum because the moongate he was thinking of was by a bonsai garden within a larger garden. Okay. Eric has been living in D.C. for longer than I have and I should trust his opinion...

However we got there eventually (it was near no metro, and a very long walk which was suspicious of our inevitable failure because there was a time limit for the scavenger hunt and it was beginning to seem impossible to complete the rest of the clues if one was being asked to walk all the way over to the arboretum) and ran to the bonsai garden. It was so beautiful! Sorry for that intolerable run-on within those parenthesis back there...

Eric led me to the moongate but there was no sign of the "two 9 foot tall pink granite namesake objects (moongate)". Those would be pretty hard to miss. We searched around some more and went to the information desk in a small trailer building to ask a man for help. After some more deducing we looked at each other crazily and realized that we should have been at the Botanic Garden all the long, which would have made a lot more sense because it was much closer to the rest of the items on the scavenger hunt list. So, I was right.

Eric felt absolutely terrible about wasting a couple hours of our time and admitted to me that even though his competitive side felt defeated and embarrassed about not returning to the competition to look for other clues, his logical and nature-oriented sides felt it was probably best to enjoy the rest of the afternoon slowly looking at the flowers at the arboretum because there were eleven more clues and only a couple hours left to make it to the finish line. So, for the next hour or so, we walked through the arboretum hand in hand and took lots of photos of ourselves in front of beautiful trees and flowers instead of in front of random clues in the D.C. area.

Love,

Monica

P.S. Yes, those are blue and orange lizards. Long live the head band.

P.P.S. My fish were adopted this past week by a nice lady with some kids and a new pond. Orange and Julius have both out grown their 55 gallon tank and I no longer have the time to visit them and take care of them (they were living with my parents). Orange was about 8 inches long and Julius was about 5 inches long. Now they are the two biggest fish in their new pond called "home" and have made new friends in three little (comparatively) koi fishies. When Eric and I went to the Arboretum there was a big pond with many, many koi. A lot of them were very big and it made me sad/happy about my two koi. I've had them for almost three years and one day they will be the size of a cat. I had always thought I would keep them and one day make a pond for them. It didn't work out that way, though. I feel good for having given them a chance to live outside in a big pond and I will hopefully get to visit them as they grow bigger and happier.

Zombie-themed name

My lovely trivia team finally has a family photo. And it's totally not like one of those awkward family photos or anything.

Valentine's Day

Eric and I weren't supposed to see each other yesterday (because of our late work and class schedules). However, we both got out a little earlier than expected and raced over to our Monday night trivia hot spot to visit our friends (because we love them). We were both a little late and therefore did not get to be on an actual trivia team (there is a six person limit and the game had already started). So, how did I spend my valentine's day? Well, there is a pacman arcade game in the back of the bar, and Eric and I alternated playing and watching the other play for about an hour (so many quarters lost). My valentine's gift was a big, gooey blister on my middle finger from holding the joystick to tightly. I don't know if anyone of you remember how I obsessively played pacman in college, but I get pretty into it.

Also, my "Art and Special Education" class was very cool this week. We were doing and lesson on blindness and my professor put blindfolds on everyone in the class, handed us an item and then some clay. We got about 15-20 minutes to sculpt what we felt (smelled or tasted, etc.) and upon the great reveal I was pleased to see that my mini pumpkin looked exactly like the one she had given me (I ingeniously counted how many ridges were around the pumpkin's physique). Next, we got a partner and had to lead the other (blindfolded) around the school. That was really fun. My partner and I tried it two different ways. 1) As the blind person, we held onto the arm of our guide and walked at their pace through the school. 2) As the blind person, we did not hold on to anything and, instead, touched and felt our way around the school. Number 2 was a little scarier, but my partner and I both felt as if we had more control that way since we were setting our own pace and translating the space through our finger tips instead of depending on the voice of someone else.

Also, sorry for the serious lack of updates. I am working about 5 days a week and have 6 classes and my sanity to manage this semester.

Love,

Monica

Bleep Bloop

Many of you know that I never sleep. Here is one of the many things I try to fall asleep to: Average comedians playing and commenting on their playing of video games...

Oh, and just came back from seeing Arabian Nights with Eric, his Mom and Joe..

It was AMAZING! Pretty much the best thing that has happened to me since I came home to a brand new puppy at the age of 10 years.

Love,

Monica

Costume Karaoke

Tonight I went to Karaoke with Bob, Cailtin, Joe and Eric (Eric's roommate). It was AWESOME! I sang "I walk the line", "Zombie" and "I should have known better". I got off the stage and everyone was cheering and high-fiving me. It was an amaaazzzziiinng feeling. A group of people even found me well after I had finished singing to tell me that they loved me or something. It was like valentine's day or something without all the stupid candy.

November Camping photos

Here are some highlights from our November camping trip to Lake Anna, VA. All stolen property (Eric took the pictures).

Karaoke

Last Wednesday, Rachael, Christian, Eric, Eric (yes, two Erics) and I went to Solly's to partake in their karaoke extravaganza. I lost my voice singing "Single Ladies" with Eric, "Friday Night" with Rachael and "Gay Bar" with Joe and Christian dancing in the background. The only person who didn't sing was the remaining Eric. Here are some pictures, courtesy Rachael's blackberry, from the night:

Pumpkin Pictures

Here are some pictures from the weekend (I stole them from Eric...hope he doesn't mind, but they are too cute not to share).

Can you guess which pumpkin I carved?

Pumpkin Carving

Eric came over today and we spent a lovely afternoon/evening carving two, giant pumpkins (by one get one free at Safeway). It was really fun and messy (we saved all of the pumpkin seeds and got all slimy in the process). He described my pumpkin as something out of a Tim Burton film (which I think is a compliment) and his pumpkin was really cool (he did the surface carving where one carves away the bright orange rind and leaves the pumpkin meat really thin so that candlelight can be seen through it). I don't think I did a really good job explaining it, so you can just look at pictures that I will post in the next few days.

Tomorrow is Monday night trivia. I can't wait because my team won for the first time EVER last week (and I wasn't there to share the glory because I was sick as a dog at home). So one might deduce that my team won BECAUSE I wasn't there to screw things up. Anyway, that means that I have to prove my worth to my teammates tomorrow but helping them win instead of causing their downfall.

In other news, school is great. My grades are good. Teaching is great. Because of scheduling issues I had to stop working as a therapist and am currently looking for a new job (but I have an interview for a cool position this week). So, work is potentially great too. And I am also moving in exactly one week to a new place that will be much more close to school and work (wherever that may be). Woohoo!

The only way that life could get any better would be if I could get inspired in the medium of metal. Raya introduced our next project and objectives and I am officially uninspired. Copper? Aluminum? Any ideas? What should I do for this project? I have to make two sculptures and all I can do is punch holes into things, bend and roll metal and cut into it. I just don't know what to do. The gauge of the metal has to remain relatively thin too, due to the machinery and equipment we are using. Gah! Any ideas? Someone inspire me, please!

So...

...this blog is NOT dead. I've just been very, very busy. Even though grad school, work, friends and the new boyfriend are keeping me plenty busy, the thing that is keeping me the busiest by far is commuting to the four aforementioned items. I can't wait until November 1st, which is the day that I get to move into my new studio apartment (much, much, much, much closer to school and work). It is soooo efficient that the kitchen is kept inside of a tiny closet. You know you are jealous. In other news, I am having extreme clay withdrawal. In the MAT program, we need to have taken specific types of studio courses to earn our licensure for D.C. public schools. Because I studied ceramics in undergraduate school so studiously, it is, unfortunately, NOT one of those studio courses that I need. Instead I need things like printmaking, painting, digital art, sculpture, metal-smithing and textiles, among other things. So, I am officially saving up for a kiln, wheel and clay (it'll probably take me ten years). My life is simply fantastic, but amidst all the joy, excitement and new obstacles, I have begun to realize that something is missing in my life: THE CLAY, MAN! I am the poorest I've been in years and, yet, I am 100% positive that I would take a block of clay over United States currency any day these days.