Advent, Day 4: With stories from Days 2 and 3

To "begin at the beginning and go on till [I] come to the end, then stop":

December 2 turned out to be cold, wet and rainy, and my determination to go to the US Botanic Gardens to see their Holiday Magic display wavered. I did go, however, and even though the walks to and from Metro stations were wet and dreary, it did not rain. Skip ahead to the foyer, whereupon entering I was given an unnecessary brochure (at the exit they have a basket to recycle brochures - how neat is that?).

The minute I walk into the first courtyard, with trees and flowering plants lining the edges and two pools in the middle on either side of the enormous Christmas tree (decorated with a train running round its base), I take a deep breath. I continually forget how relaxing botanical gardens are. I figure it's the higher oxygen content of the air, mixed wtih greenery all around and above...

To get back to the point, an artist has created miniature models of all the most important monuments and buildings on and around the Mall, including the Capitol, the Supreme Court, the Smithsonian Castle, the Washington Monument, Jefferson and Lincoln memorials .. etc. out of resin and bark and flowers, leaves and mushrooms! Each one is burnished bronze in color, with amazing detail. Then I moved on to the West Gallery, which holds the trains. 45-foot train tracks, the scent of cedar and pine, fairies made out of twigs and leaves, and little villages - the three little pigs holding off the big bad wolf, little red riding hood walking unsuspecting into the forest, fairy homes, and Santa's Village. All in miniature. I walked around happy and wondering for awhile before heading out.

Yesterday, my efforts to create my own Advent calendar failed - or at least, what I did followed more along the lines of simply opening a paper door and either reaching inside for a tasty bite of chocolate or glancing at a picture. I listened to holiday music. Yep, that's it! No time for more because I had tickets to the hockey game. Even without Ovechkin, the game was a rout, Alexander Semin putting up 2 goals and at least one assist, and Fehr, Bradley and others contributing to the SIX goals scored by the Caps! I also rediscovered why I don't eat any but kosher hot dogs. It was Dollar Hot Dog Night, so I tried one. Bleh. Not an experience I need to repeat. On the way home we caught a glimpse of the National Christmas Tree, or whatever they're calling it... it looks slightly boring to me, but you didn't read that here.

Tonight, it's a movie called Merry Christmas, about international soldiers on the front on Christmas Eve during World War II.