A Colbert weekend and a hitchhiking ladybug...

After surviving the jump-drive debacle of 2008 (and hopefully the last one I'll ever have to deal with), I decided that it was high time to take a stress-relieving trip to visit my friend Bonny in Rockville. Now, this trip had actually been decided on for a little while-- it just became necessary after the crazy couple of weeks I had and I actually looked forward to spending some time with someone who is as low-key as I often like to be.

I also figured that since I was going to be in the D.C. area... I would also take the time to visit the Stephen Colbert "exhibit" that was detailed in a different blog entry. :) As you can see by the picture, I was actually successful at making it to the National Portrait Gallery and happened to pass by the bathroom on the second floor. (Just thought I'd share where it is in case you're interested in seeing this for yourself Colbert fans) The visit was actually a good one, if I say so myself. Bonny and I got to catch up on a lot of things... some good, some bad. But, it's my story-- and this is a friend of mine who I've been bad about not keeping up with. I find that occasionally, I leave out bits and pieces with various people. Not that I really want to do this, or even do it intentionally, I just forget who knows what sometimes. And, when you happen to be as busy/stressed as I've been lately, there comes a point when you want to talk about someone or something else!

While in D.C., we did lunch at Gordon Biersch-- which although a little pricey, had a great crab cake sandwich and an excellent apple bread pudding. So yummy! But, I digress. The point of the visit was not about the food, but the company. Our adventure continued through D.C. by heading to Clarendon where we did a little shopping for her home and for ourselves. There's this great area where you can find a Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, Ann Taylor Loft, and some other cool shops-- and it made great fun for some window shopping and actual shopping. The unfortunate/funny part of this all was that it was quite an ordeal attempting to get to Clarendon from the George Washington Parkway-- and I wasn't such a great navigator. (How can you be when you're more concerned with taking pictures as it's all going by???) Luckily, my friend is very patient and I hope that my chiming in about not being in any hurry didn't frustrate her.

(Or, at least relieved some of the frustration she was feeling...)

Unfortunately, all good things (times?) must come to an end and before I knew it, Sunday was upon us. That meant that it was time to pack up my things for Happy Valley and head home. The fun wasn't over just yet though! After waking a little earlier than I would have liked (thanks to a long night of giggling over bottles of Riesling!), we headed out to lunch with my friend Julie in Bethesda where we would later go to paint pottery. I actually like doing this believe it or not; although, we all agreed that when you are as much of a perfectionist as well all happen to be (me, Bonny, Megan, and Julie)... this can become a little tedious. While Julie patiently pasted a bowl that grabbed quite a few people's attention (why does that sound wrong?), I painted a dish to drop my jewelry in before bedtime. Turns out, I'm pretty careless with this sometimes and I'd hate for something bad to happen to pieces that really can't be replaced very easily. All in all, it was the end to a really good weekend...

Now, I'm sure you're wondering where the "hitchhiking ladybug" comes in to play. Well, I'll tell you. As I was driving away from Rockville, I noticed that there was a bug on my windshield-- and honestly, I thought it was dead. (Even though you don't see too many bugs on windshields here in the winter time...) Upon a closer glance, I realized it was actually a ladybug... who was clinging for dear life to my windshield. I definitely slowed down a little-- and I noticed that apparently, her destination was Frederick, MD... because when I stopped for gas, she took off on her merry way!

I hope her visit/presence means that there are good things in store for me from now on... I've had enough drama & stress to last a LONG time honestly.

Next adventure: LENT! Ash Wednesday is coming soon and guess who's giving up the following things:
1. MySpace
2. The Facebook
3. Eating out more than once a week (sorry, it's hard to go cold turkey!)

That would be me!

Be sure to stay posted on how it goes... especially since yours truly is quite the MySpace/Facebook addict! (Hopefully this will mean productivity on the Dissertation will SKYROCKET!)