Advent, Days 11, 12 and 13

Today looks like another Christmas movie: A Christmas Story, this time - apparently the most-rented holiday movie on NetFlix. I've seen it before, but remember very little. I suppose I feel it's one of those classics I ought to know, because it's quoted so often. Also, I think quite possibly I'll find it amusing. And who doesn't need a little more laughter and fun in life?

This weekend will most likely resemble a holiday marathon. The family (at least, the women, who are all within less than two hours distant) have plans to congregate and bake, for friends, coworkers (and family, I do insist). Holiday cookies in my family come in at least four varieties - mostly because we love baking, decorating, and most especially (in my case) eating them.

Sunday equals Christmas Tree Day. Unfortunately we no longer drive out to a farm to cut the quote-unquote "best" tree. These days, we go in for much less exciting, but easier tree shopping. I.e., we go to the nearest garden center to pick one out. Then there's getting it home, setting it up in its little tray, and the funnest part of all - putting on the lights. That last is said only partly in jest...

Sunday I will also be going to the Zoolights at the National Zoo. Sunday is evidently "young professionals night" which should make things interesting. It's cheap, at $8 for a non FONZ member ticket. According to About.com, "Throughout ZooLights, the Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat will be open for extended hours for those who wish to bid farewell to Tai Shan before he departs for China in early 2010." - so I guess it's also a good time to see the panda.

Zoolights Schedule:
December 4-13, 2009 (Friday through Sunday nights) and December 18-January 2 (every night except Dec. 24, 25, and 31) from 6-8:30 p.m.

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.

Advent, Day 5: Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend

It's already 1 December (Happy Advent everyone!) and although I have a freebie tonight (per the Nutcracker ballet I saw last Friday), I'm already behind on planning my Advent Calendar Events.

So let's just get right down to it, shall we?

First big event: the Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend, in downtown Alexandria, Va. Hosted by the Campagna Center, whose programs help young children in academics. This weekend is one of the largest fundraising opportunities for the non-profit organization. Events from the 3rd to the 5th of December include:

Christmas Marketplace (frustratingly only available on Friday, 9-5pm, leaving those of us with day jobs out of luck)
Heather and Greens Sale (Saturday at The Campagna Center, 418 South Washington Street, Alexandria)
Children's Tea Party (sold out)
Taste of Scotland ($100, it's really a scotch tasting)...

...and, most importantly of all (perhaps), is the parade: 11am-1pm Saturday morning, representing 100+ Scottish clans dressed in clan tartan. It will be followed by a massed band concert at King and Royal Streets.

Although I won't be attending this, for anyone interested in interior decorating/designer homes, the weekend includes a tour of select homes in Old Town, Alexandria, decorated for the holidays. It starts at 11, runs until 4pm in the afternoon on Saturday. Tickets in advance are $30, at the door are $35. So I'll be there on Saturday, I hope to see at least some of the parade and maybe stop by the band concert. And grab some Scottish munchies, if possible. Because that's the most important thing. ;)

Advent, Day 3: The National Christmas Tree

Okay, I know. Not only did I completely fail this past week to do anything seriously Christmas-related, I also failed to write.

At any rate. Thursday of last week I did unintentionally almost do something that I'll put on my advent calendar. I got a ride home from the hockey game (a unique experience, not taking the Metro), and as we drove down Constitution, we glimpsed the white lights and green ... I'd say foliage, but we weren't so close... of the National Christmas Tree. Of course, we had to look past all the white tents and trailors there for the celebration.

Advent, Day 2: U.S. Botanic Gardens Christmas Display

Okay, so this business of blogging about my plans (every day) for the next month or so, before the plans actually play out, takes more effort than I expected. And more time. Whoops!

So, briefly: Tomorrow I'm going to arrive at work just a bit early so I can leave a bit early, and go walk around the U.S. Botanic Gardens, that has put on a holiday display from November 26-January 10. Details here. If an hour's not enough, a repeat trip will at least make one day's planning much easier.

This weekend (or Monday) look for reviews of all the holiday activities I've been up to.

A Mid-Day Cultural Experience - Would You Skip Lunch?

So this is interesting. WaPo's Going Out Guide has put out a list of 5 things to do during lunch hour - they call it "Power Lunch", aptly named for this most powerful city.

If you can skip your sandwhich + chips any day of the week (one day? all days? It only depends on how centrally you're located and how much time you have), there are multitudinous opportunities for cultural enlightenment and just plain fun.

How many of us would rather stay in the office/cubicle for lunch when there are so many reasons to leave during lunch?

One of my favorites is Ford's Theatre's mid-day offering: two one-act history plays focusing on the era just after President Lincoln's assassination.

I wonder how many other cities have cultural events during the day, not only accessible to tourists but also locals who need a break from the work day. It could be well worth the time to check out your favorite cultural institutions, or to find the closest SmartBike rack to the office to take a short ride. Once the idea has been presented (or maybe you knew about it all along), how could you not be interested? There must be nearly endless possibilities.

NoVa's Screen On The Green

In place of the District's Screen-On-The-Green program (on the National Mall between the impressive, phallic Washington Monument and the equally-impressive-but-less-phallic Capitol, which doesn't appear to be on this year, Northern Virginia hosts its own: the Rosslyn Outdoor Film Festival. Bring on the 80s this summer!

Every Friday evening at dusk (make that 8-9pm), at Gateway Park, 1 May - 4 September. And don't forget the blanket or the picnic basket!

It's going to be totally tubular.

Earth Day

I'm a slacker. I know this, which I hear is half the battle. And yet, there must be a will to change, and that I fear I lack.

At any rate, today is Earth Day! I don't know about other places of Business, but here on the Navy Yard there are plenty of activities going on, despite the rain. One I missed, but would have been happy to volunteer to participate in were it not for the rain, was the cleaning up of the Yard, i.e. picking up trash. Takes me back to my elementary school days, when in day care every now and then we'd be forced to walk around the school grounds and pick up trash that others had left behind. I never liked the prospect, but can't remember that the experience itself was that terrible.

In honor of Earth Day, I've already bought a styrofoam cup of coffee and a commercially-baked muffin. A great start, I think. Seriously though, I'd much rather be out planting a tree today than sitting in my office which smells of plastic because the windows are being re-filmed (that's UV filter film).

I did find an Earth-related article today via Twitter. (I love Twitter, don't you?) It's about the Lake With The Longest Name Ever. Short, but sweet. Unlike my blog entries.

Happy Earth Day and try to celebrate it with more honesty and enthusiasm than I've managed so far. It won't be hard.

The Washington Post Goes Green All Over

Attended an event this past Wednesday at the Washington Post, a Q&A session with Post writers. Only stayed for the first half, which was quite interesting. But I'm jumping ahead.

When we arrived, we received a green publication, and a bingo-like card to fill as we walked around each of the tables, which were set up as a small Going Green expo. Everyone who visited every table got a raffle ticket. There were too many window companies, in my opinion, but at one of the window companies' tables I got a free reusable shopping bag!

Ironically, most of the tables were handing out half a dozen pamphlets and brochures each.. most of them white paper, which is easily recycled, but some not - and the first step is to not create that paper, so that it doesn't need to be recycled, which unsurprisingly uses more energy than not having anything to recycle in the first place.

I found the panel session to be fascinating. Firstly, the MC asked a question, which made for a great ice-breaker, IMO. Not only that, it was a pertinent question: Is this new green consciousness a fad, or is it here to stay? The members of the panel almost unanimously agreed that trends show it seems to be here to stay. Although on trips up to Massachusetts over the Labor Day weekend, they noticed just as many cars speeding (which uses more fuel than going the speed limit) there were, they mentioned, fewer cars on the road than in previous years. (I took the train). More effort is being made by companies to create big changes, like NASA, which is moving toward eliminating coal plants in the near future. Furthermore, Jura Koncius, writer for the Home section, mentioned that green labels are selling more. Incandescent lightbulbs are being phased out, and apparently will soon be outlawed in the US (haven't checked up on this and am a bit sceptical). Also on the rise are farmers markets.

The last point made in answer to this question was the one main motivating factor: Greed. It all comes back to money. If green products become cheaper, or even if they're statistically cheaper over the long run, consumers will start buying them, and corporations are going to market what sells.

Question number two asked why all the focus is on consumers. One panel member responded that it is also a political question (hint hint: if you're not already involved in politics, get started!!). Marc Kaufman put it this way: Obama says environmental policies are going to change, McCain says they're going to change, Biden wants change, Palin doesn't.

One attendee asked why green products like Seventh Generation detergents aren't on the shelves, and the answer was: Speak to the store manager. If that doesn't work, write the company itself. Also, Proctor and Gamble (according to a panel member not the most environmentally conscious company) has started packaging its detergents in more concentrated forms, which cuts back on transportation emissions and materials used in the packaging itself.

Lastly, a lady asked if organic food, which evidently sits on shelves longer, isn't less healthy than normal produce. One panel member's opinion was that organic food, no matter how long it's sitting on the shelves (I wouldn't buy fuzzy vegetables) is healthier, because there are no pesticides. Statistically the produce that gets the most pesticide treatment is the peach, followed by apples and lettuce. I'm never going to not wash my produce again, and when I wash my lettuce you can bet I'm washing the insides of the leaves, too. No doubt.

Some useful websites:
Environmental Working Group (for lists of produce that are grown with pesticides)
Green Pages (lists of companies that sell green products)