Back To Basics

I've painted myself into a corner.

Somewhere around January I took this whole thing off track. I was so fascinated by the sociological implications of Facebook, Twitter, iPhones, and the countless other digital distractions that I thought I could do a commentary on them. I don't know why I thought I could be an authority when I didn't really do much other than read about them. Learning about them is really just a Google Search away.

Ironically the iPhone entered my life at the end of June and Twitter became very useful shortly after that (thanks to Tweetie.) In mid-July I took a week to analyze Facebook and hunt for old Marine Corps friends (with little success.) Alas, it was a great experience, but in the end I realized there is absolutely nothing wrong with Facebook...it's just not right for me.

I'm not sure why I wanted to write a long essay on the risks and rewards of these variable digital distractions. At this moment I realize that it's not the devices or websites that can be a problem, but the way people use them.

For those of you who have been waiting for this Facebook, Twitter, iPhone mega post...it's not going to happen. I'm not the expert. I love to talk to people in person on how I "feel" about social media, but I don't feel comfortable making blanket statements here. Lastly, I want the content of this blog to be unique and I'm okay with it not following any rhyme or reason.

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So it has been nine months since I have written about the real world things going on in my life. I can tell that my writing is rusty and I need to write more even about the seemingly small stuff.

We moved to Washington D.C. in June in pursuit of "Better Living" and we are really happy to be here. The Northwest will always be where our hearts are, but we needed to move to an area that provided an "education" that we could take back with us. Most conversations that we get into with others (from new friends to strangers on the Metro) lead to learning something new. Since we've been out here, Nicole and I have been inspired in many directions that otherwise wouldn't have happened had we stayed in the Northwest. We're calling this chapter of our lives "The D.C. Internship."

Just yesterday we took the Metro to D.C. for Vegfest. While Nicole was volunteering at a booth there, I went searching for protesters that were marching to the Capitol. On my walk, I found a group of people playing roller hockey behind the White House. When I say behind, I mean literally behind...on the pedestrian-only street that runs behind it. It was a little surreal.

Meanwhile, there was a protest somewhere, but I must have missed it. I walked to Freedom Square only to find trash blowing in the wind and a handful of city workers cleaning up. It was really weird because I could almost feel the warmth of the thousands of people still on the bricks yet it was quiet (by then they must have reached the Capitol.)

Following my failed photo shoot I returned to Nicole only to hop on a shuttle bus to the Kennedy Center for an open house. We arrived to find clusters of people surrounding various street performers from all over the world. They were performing on various stages around the building. One thing about Washington D.C. is that there seems to be plenty of high quality free entertainment. This was no exception. I enjoyed watching the kids laugh and smile even more than I enjoyed watching the various performances of jugglers, unicyclists, and pantomime performances. A street performer can really grab the attention of a child (and an adult's "inner child".)

We left the Kennedy Center and headed to our favorite downtown theater, the Landmark E-Street Theater. Located just a few blocks away from the White House, it is a great theater for seeing foreign, documentary, and independently produced films. So far we have seen "Food Inc." (3 times), "In The Loop", and yesterday "It Might Get Loud". This last movie was great if you love guitar and Jack White-The Edge-Jimmy Page.

We returned to our place greeted by our full-bladder dog who was very happy to see us.

I hope to write more often on a daily basis. I will write about technology, simplicity, and perhaps the incredible things that happen to us while we're out here.