A great friend of mine invited me to attend a pre-screening of the documentary, Arabia 3D, in the Museum of Natural History. While on my lunch break from work, I visited House of Kabob in Dupont. The above plate was only $7.10!! So much food, no waiting for it to be given to me, it tasted great and it was cheap. This place is def a winner in my book.

Anyways after work, I met up with my friend at the museum and I enjoyed the film. It was excellent! I felt as  though I visited it myself. The sand seemed as if it was right within reach. The effects, graphics, transitions, entire cinematography was on point. The material was informative yet entertaining, the artist definitely achieved his goal. Go see it, if you can!

After the film and our great middle eastern dinner (gotta keep the theme goin!) we took the good ol 70 bus uptown. Remember my previous gripes about this damn bus? There was a nut case in front of me and one behind me. The one in front happens to be the woman in the center background of my photo above. These two young innocent ladies in the photo sat between her and I. below is the dialogue that ensued:
Chick to the left is chick 1 and one to the right is chick 2. The crazy lady is Elmo.

Chick 1 goes on about the bus driver flirting with her...Chick 2 jokingly tells her to tap that, chick 1 of course laughs and is like hell no. Elmo enters the scene.

Elmo: "blababababwehdefhugfybbendkhdxlhefgwefnkg!! aaaagbiwegfkeuberkygfnkegflkgurgfbkuhk!!!!"(shouting gibberish like the tasmanian devil at Chick1)
Chick1: "oh my god why the fuck did i come on this bus?"
Elmo looks at her in utter disgust and says: "bdfgksnufkufgtdkjrg.mldhhk,jkhik!!! dukfhkdnhgdfhkjgfj,vhkjmhrjk!!! dkufhukjgjrfhnfgdfkjgdngkgjjh!!! dgfefghkm,hjltjkjbkm,!!!"
Chick 2, my friend and I laugh sooo hard we couldn't breathe.
Chick1: "can we move to the back?"
Chick2: "no! we gotta stay here"
Chick1: "oh c'mon! we can take the train, look there's the stop!"
Elmo: "bsdlfhefihnukfthfkyvuk!!!! dkfgrukngteruvhrklhrhl!!"
Crazy man sittin behind me: "Yall done did it now! she put the ghost on you!"
(Crazy man continues talking foolishness but we were laughing so hard, its inaudible at this point)
Chick2: "no, the bus gets us much closer than the train, you know that"
Elmo: "wkehnrjchgtcjhvjvvhm,jghkghm,kjhmfkjnmkjhbghmhhk,jhmgjhfjhg,jhmjmjmjjgjfgnbghjn,jb,j" 
Chick1: "come oooonnn!"
Chick2: "nope" (struggling to keep a stern voice)
Elmo: "kfugdufgnughrihvlimvhill!!!!" "dfugkhfgvkfjngkhn!!" "kdugfberhgejgefgrejgnrmgrngbrjgbmjgrnmgru!" "kuehnukwehncrhjrghrkrmgk,hm,kfhgmfjnrgvjhfkjghfmkjhkghghmfkghkhnkfnhmkfhkvhkmhvrihthrth!!!"
We are all in stitches laughing so damn hard!!
Chick1: "wtf! I'm one of the only 3 white people on this bus AND i'm standing while everyone's sitting. Fuckin Elmo over here hates me and everyone's staring. So fucking transparent. Its just a big fuckin show!"
We all laugh sooooo much harder at this point!! Tears are streaming down my face now. She notices, laughs and fans my face for me to get some air.
Elmo: "bdfuwrngfukcr,hmu!!" "eurnhfu,jnh!"
The Chicks start saying a photo needs to be snapped. In between laughs, I tell em I got it and pull my phone out to snap the photo you see above.

We finally calm down and Elmo exits stage right err I mean gets off the bus. The chicks and I talk and realize we are all from New England and they tell me they want to start a blog about DC life. I told em I already have one and they will def get featured next! Hopefully they see this! I don't even know if this post captures the hilarity but hey I tried!

On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, I took a stroll with some friends through downtown to the Sculpture Garden

 We have arrived!!

 The photo above is a giant spider...its not showing up as well due to shadows cast by the trees

 This is of whatever you think its of...

 This is the cafe at the Garden, clearly a work of art itself

That concludes the trip! In addition to the sculptures, there is a cafe and ice skating available to enjoy.

Crazy title huh? Yup I know. Life is so interesting sometimes, so entertaining...its just too good to be  scripted. I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried.

MY WEEKEND WAS EPIC!!

Friday after work, I strolled through China Town and discovered Pho DC, a vietnamese bar and restaurant that makes a slammin pho soup!! I ate my heart out! You already know my greedy ass was in bliss. The service was awesome too! Everyone was so polite and it def helps that both the bartenders were hot!... If only I had my hair done that day... smdh.  Then I mosied on home and collapsed in bed.

 The top photo is of the bowl they give you with onions, peppers and mint you can add to the soup below.

 Pho Ga is a Vietnamese soup that has noodles, chicken, cilantro, scallion and whatever else you want. You can add mushrooms, mint, lemon, pepper, onions, its all up to you.


Saturday I watched people march to the White House for Egypt. My horrible attempt to get a photo of it is below...

Then after work I went to (drum roll please) GAY MILITARY RUMBA NIGHT AT COBALT! lol! Well to be fair, Cobalt is a gay club/lounge in Dupont Circle soooo its always gay night but unbeknownst to me before I entered it was military night as well. So there were topless buff men in camouflage pants n combat boots with war paint on their faces (sooo sexy!!) There was a drag queen show as well, they did the Beyonce better than Beyonce herself! I tried to capture some of it on my phone too but im short sooo we'll see how that goes when I upload the video here. If no video gets loaded, then u know I failed miserably. And yes the rumba element...there was latin night on the 3rd floor (theres 4 floors there). I tried but between my heels, two left feet and the crowded dancefloor it wasn't happening but it was comical at least! lol! Lucky for me, they switched to reggae for a lil bit then I went down to the second floor and enjoyed the pop and techno. After dancing til my feet hurt I limped to the metro just in time to see the drunken exodus of people catching the last trains for the night. Lots of staggering, stumbling, passing out, a lil vomit and the whole dupont station platform singing "everybody! shots shots shots shots..." (u know the song) and two guys having a dance off! Im talkin pulled off their coats and everything! did the lawn mower and all. It was hilarious! Of course my phone was dead by then so I couldn't record it (booo!! yea I know I suck).

Btw, it would be nice if lil walls or curtains were put up by the urinals...I felt really awkward using the men's room. (there's no ladies room in gay bars, go figure!). But I survived after quickly tip toeing to the nearest stall with my hand over my eyes.

Thats it for now folks!! Talk to ya later! Enjoy the rough videos below...

 

 

So much time has gone by guys! Sorry! So much has happened...I don't even know where to start. Heres a quick rundown of the adventures I remember...
 
hmmm lets see...there was the Halloween celebration. My girls and I dressed as Disney Princesses and had a photo shoot by the Smithsonian Castle in addition to a beer run in Georgetown.

Imagine five seemingly normal young women walking into the museum then re emerging as what you see above! We looked like we were about to sing its a small world lol! In fact tourists kept asking what time our performance was! lol! That was a hilarious day! Detangling wigs on the train, undressing in the museum, trying not to fall in the fountain,and getting rushed out of the bushes by a rent a cop...yea good times.

Of course there was the John Stewart Rally. It was amazing! Soooooooo many people everywhere!...I'm speaking as if I attended the rally! lol! Hey, hey don't get your panties in a bunch! I planned to go but ended up getting called into work last minute.  But I did get to experience tidbits of it-the rallyers (sp?) and I got up close and personal on the overcrowded train. Saw lots of costumes-people dressed as cows, crayons, even saw a lego costume.  A viking ship playing techno music drove down Pennsylvania Ave too. At work, (restaurant job downtown) there was a line of people waiting 45 mins to get onto our 45 minute waiting list. Luckily the bar is near the door so those waiting enjoyed a fear/sanity party while waiting to be seated. We played the rally on the televisions and everyone just drank beer and hung out. I almost lost my voice shouting names on the list (we have no mics or buzzers) so I could seat people but was saved by a customer who let me borrow his megaphone. I loved using that thing! Def a memorable day.

Thanksgiving was awesome! My friends and I had a potluck dinner. Food for ddaaaaayyyyysssssss!!!! Laughter til my belly and face hurt. Jokes all night. Yea I have the coolest friends in the world. By the way the top photo is a section of our bountiful spread and the bottom is the baking pan I used as tupperware and my large cup of soup. I brought it all home and ate for almost a week :)

White Elephant Party- well, the thanksgiving potluck was so nice we had to do it twice!  oooh wait a sec...i was so caught up in the evening I forgot to take pics of this one! lol! oh well, just know that a great time was had by all ten of us. It was our first time playing white elephant and the presents ranged from a harmonica to a  crayon shaped piggy bank to body souffle and a book "joy of sex". lol! quite a range huh?



Well, that's all for now folks!

As you already know I love DC though I hate it sometimes...overall I love it. I also love my fellow man so whenever I get a chance, I do community service. Two recent activities included participating in the Aids Walk. I got to join my fellow Bison (u knoooowwww!!), raise funds and walk for a great cause. It was pretty fun and I definitely look forward to next year. We got there pretty early in the morning, and were greeted by many smiling faces. We warmed up with the "DC Cowboys?" I think they are called...and grooved to some great music then walked our hearts out. There were many cheerleaders along the way to keep us pumped and at the end we were entertained by dance performances. Although we had a blast, we do hope that HIV/AIDS gets stomped out.

I also had the honor of assisting at an after school program- after they finished their homework, we played games like pictionary and mancala :) I also served them supper. It was an awesome experience! I totally love kids and as you already konw-im a kid magnet so this totally worked well.

I absolutely love this!! It totally sums up my daily metro ordeal. hahaha!!

Columbus weekend was filled with many adventures!! I partied it up at a Nigerian party in Adams Morgan, watched a idiot wild out in jumbo slice (after I got my pizza thank God), stopped by my fave hole in the wall-Timehri to get my reggae fix, did a late night run from HU campus to the diner for some pancakes (literally jogged there), slept in late and....the grand finale....went to the GORILLAZ concert!!! It was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!! (not enough exclamation points to show how cool it was) N.E.R.D opened the show, then Snoop performed via satellite, Bobby Womack, Mos Def, Kano, Damon Albarn and Bashy and GORILLAZ (cant do it without caps)! lol!

During Pharell's performance, there were some dudes in the front who were rockin out hardcore even to the slower songs. They pushed the chairs around and everything...they even threw their shirts onstage. Pharell was not pleased. He gave them a look (you know the one, the look that says WTH?) lol!

But yea, it was an awesome night overall and above is a video clip from my phone.

Below is a videoclip from Kano's camcorder, he brought onstage. I got it from Youtube.

Ever felt like your day has been so bad or boring you wanna hop on a plane right now? Need to just get away?
 We all feel this way sometimes...I have had some friends say they feel this way and well I do sometimes too. You wanna know what I do when I feel like this? I leave. I hop on a cheap china bus to New York and see my family or I go to a friend's house and chill.

On the days when i'm either broke or dont wanna see or speak to another human being...I put my cellphone on silent (keywords here, take notes--your phone must go off or silenced to achieve peace). Don't worry it's only off for a few hours til you feel a lil less crazy. And I TAKE A WALK.

Simply walking alone in silence with no real destination in mind...just looking at all that's around you, engulfing yourself in the moment no thought concerning your past or future...or present. Just walk.

If you're not a walker:

• Stay home and watch tv/surf the net/be lazy simply cuz you can
• Excercise
• Read a book you've been meaning to
• Go get your hair/nails/eyebrows done (or do it yourself)
• Write a bucket list and,on there, create one thing you can do right now
• Write about a magical place you would rather be than here (sounds corny but it works)
• Clean/redecorate/reorganize your living space
• Clean up your computer/email inbox
• Take yourself on a date with yourself (im serious) (movies, dinner, the works)
• Pray to whoever you believe in and trust them.

Remember you're crazy just like everyone else so dont feel bad. Theres no such thing as normal. We all have bad days and well, now you have ideas of what to do.

Some artists use paint and canvasses. Others use clay and water. Some spend days at the theatre in costumes. Some are in recording studios singing or rapping their hearts out. Yet still there are those who put on tutus and leap across the stage. And then there are artists like me who write and film and create videos for everyone to see. Above, you will see a documentary film I created which explores the definition of and relation between Caribbean and Caribbean American Identity. Unfortunately...the conversion of it downplayed the awesome editing I did (I dont like the way my transitions look on here) but then again I always overanalyze and end up rambling on like I am doing now...sorry! Enjoy!

As a continuation of my birthday festivities, I spent the night (friday) partying it up at Muse Lounge then the  saturday afternoon calmly kayaking on the Potomac with a few lovely friends :)

We claimed land and pretended to be explorers on a mini island nearby, took awesome photos, collected sea shells and made our way back to the "main land" (boat house dock).

The main land had a plethora of meal choices to take advantage of, as we were pretty hungry once docked. Decided on Chadwicks since it was closest to the boat house and of course it was HAPPY HOUR! The food/drinks were prreeetttyyyy good. We had sliders, wings, fries...you know, all the good greasy stuff.

Ok so its time to get you up to speed! I turned 24 yesterday! Yes thats right- the big 2-4! Im so happy :)

The friday beforehand-I had breakfast and played bingo with a friend. There were (go figure!) many senior citizens in attendance. All I can say is do not mess with seniors and their bingo.  I asked a couple questions during the game and they were NOT pleased. haha! I swear someones head was about to turn around like in the Exorcist movie.

 Plus there were a million versions of bingo I never saw before. Who knew it was so complicated? There's cross, kite, 4square, 6square, whole card, picture frame, lightning...i cant even remember the rest. Unfortunately I didnt even win a game :(  But it was definitely a fun experience.

 I went to dinner with a few friends later at Macaroni Grill in Silver Springs. The service was so-so but the food was delicious and portions were hearty. I ended the evening on U street at a lil spot dancing the night away with my friends :)

Saturday-I watched Batala perform, and cleaned my house before mom arrived. Batala is an awesome all female percussion band known internationally. I will def join it as soon as spots open up! I tried to include a video at the end of the post buuttt there are tech issues. So here's a photo instead.

Mommy came! We had tons of fun together all weekend. I got to give my mommy a tour of DC, shopped til we dropped, watched a movie and just sat in bed talking and laughing.

Next up on the bday celebration list is a party friday night at Muse Lounge and then kayaking in Georgetown. Stay tuned folks!!

  I'm totally loving life right now. Ever woke up and its like your on the best side of the bed possible? The sun seems brighter, you feel super sexy and you're just really happy? I have my bills in order even though my bank account is coughing, my hair is doing what I want it to, my clothes didnt need ironing (i hate irons)... My bday is also around the corner. I've taken more of my awesome long walks through the District, had sushi with the girls in Dupoint, Indian brunch with the girls in Chinatown and also learned to cook Pho Soup and egg rolls!! Oh yea I also attended Georgetown's Fashion Night Out :) Fashion Night Out was awesome! We strolled through the cobblestone streets and watched live mannequins pose in the stores. We were treated to some great techno music and there were drinks! Who can argue with a night of discounts on hot fashion, warm weather and music!

Every so often, I stroll through the District and it hasn't gotten old for me thus far...

Now I know I make fun of DC a lot but hey the place warrants it! However I love this place...hello! why else would I have stayed here after school? I mean, this place is so vibrant and quirky AND you can literally have the best time of your life for free! Im serious! Being in college in DC has taught me how to be broke and make the most of it. There are a gazillion free things to do: from walking throughout the district, bike riding in the District and there are trails in Rock Creek Park and near the Potomac. You can play softball or frisbee or whatever you want right on the national mall!! If you don't wanna be outside-you can always catch free shows at the Kennedy Center (ballets, musicals etc) and you can join in at one of the many cultural festivals downtown. Don't believe me still??? How much you think I paid to attend this concert you see in the video?

Thats right! I attended a free Jazz Concert! And that was after my free trip to the Smithsonian National Gallery of Art!

Now of course you, my dear fans, also know that I wasn't going to end this blog without a lil bit of silliness. A petite blonde Bette Midler-esque lady sat beside me at the concert and was tooootally drunk. She talked through most of the show (which while annoying was also pretty funny). You can actually hear her a little in the videos. She spoke about everything under the sun-from giving me (uneccessary) dating advice to telling me we are soulmates because her mother and I share the same birthday and her boyfriend and I are both virgos-go figure! She even got up and danced...(mind you this was a dimly lit, sit down on the couch and chill type of concert). Her bf got upset and told her to sit. awww Mindy you are quite the riot!
During an intermission- the jazz vocalist told us a joke:
A priest went fishing, caught a "dam" fish and brought it back home. He then asked the maid to clean the dam fish. She was taken aback by his words, he explained it's a technical term. She brought it to the chef and asked him to cook the dam fish. He said "maam we are by the church, watch your language". She explained it's a technical term as the priest told her. He said ok. At dinner, a young dude hopin to be a priest came by. The priest said  to the maid, "bring the the dam fish I caught". The maid turned to the Chef and asked if the dam fish she cleaned was ready". Chef replied "yes, i cooked the dam fish." Young dude shouted "im gonna love workin wid yall motha lovas!"

Haha! Told you DC is crazy fun...Hope you liked my post as much as I liked typing it :)

Police: Gunman inside Discovery building - wtop.com

I hope and pray that everyone is okay. As humans we always have a notion that we are safe because we have so many protective forces but the honest truth is we are just as vulnerable as anyone in any other place. Let's not take life for granted.

Its really sad that this happened and quite a strange event for a tv production company. My heart goes out to all who were affected and kudos to the security forces who ended the hostage situation.

I only hope nothing like this ever happens again.

BTW if you dont know what incident I'm referring to, feel free to click on the subtitle above, its a link to the news articles.

Go-Go has made very little headway (2 songs) in popularity nationwide with a song by Chuck Brown-Doin the Butt and Amerie's Just One Thing. (youtube it) however its very huge in DC.
Back in undergrad I, like most savvy college kids, hopped on (legal) chances to make money. I got a gig as an extra in a DC Lottery commercial and the concept was to pretend we were at a Go-Go.

Imagine being only 18, you're still new to the DC scene and have barely left your college campus in the couple months you've been there. You somehow manage to get a gig as an extra in a lottery commercial. You google map how to get to the venue, throw on your flyest outfit  cuz ur gonna be in a commercial and head through the door.  You arrive at the nightclub its supposed to be shot at on time, wondering exactly what you will be doing as you quietly stand on the sideline waiting to begin doing whatever it is...a little anxious, curious and most definitely excited. You notice there is a large crowd of older (emphasis on older) folks. Its clear you are the youngest person there (whomp whomp). A person gets on the stage and tells everyone to crowd around the stage and start applauding and dancing as soon as the music begins. Hmmm you wonder what kind of music will it be? You wonder if its a celebrity you know of... All of a sudden an old man in a cool hat and sunglasses (Chuck Brown) and his band gathers on the stage and start to perform. People are cheering all around you. The music begins and its deafeningly loud. The drums and the brass are just going and there doesnt seem to be a consistent beat or rhythm. The crowd around you starts stomping and rocking all around you, loving every second of it. You are hearing this music for the first time and really dont know how to move to it. You are toooootally confused. But of course you're in the middle of the crowd and cant escape just yet. So you suck it up and try to keep up! Mimicking everyone around you until the Director tells you to stop.

After a long interesting day I returned to my dorm, tired but quite entertained by my new DC experience.

Needless to say...when I first heard it-I hated it and was quite confused but now it has grown on me. I like a couple songs: Sexy Lady, Pretty Girls, and the one below by a group called Mambo Sauce (i'll have to explain what that is to you later). So even though I probably wouldn't go to a "go-go" again, I do have a better appreciation for the music genre. Enjoy the video below!

Rice stir fried in curry sauce with vegetables (made by me) and Crab Wontons (bought)

Pizza!!! olives, artichokes, and ham!!

My creation! Scalloped potatoes and turkey chops with corn, diced peppers and diced tomatoes

One of my fave past times-eating!

Anyone who doesn't know me would think I was pregnant. However if that was the case I would have been pregnant for the past 23 years of my life! I love food and what can i say? I have cravings all the time...like this morning I craved eggs and cheese and giant fluffy waffles. The best waffles I have ever had were from my alma mater. Howard U has amazing waffles in the caf. They make them for you nice and fresh, per request, on that huge stainless steel waffle iron complete with the HU monogram in the center. Right now however-I REALLY REALLY want some Georgetown Cupcakes. I love them! I've eaten em twice. The red velvet is great and that yellow one with the cream cheese is good too! mmmmm would so love a box right now!

While on the subject of cravings...know what else is good? Philly cheese steaks in Philly! lol! Random I know but I went there back in 2002 (8 yrs ago). I had only half of one and I'm telling you-the deliciousness has imprinted itself in my memory.

Another great thing to do is to eat in the southern Italian section of Boston! Had the best pizza there! It had sausage, pepperoni, onion, mushroom, green peppers, olives(the works!) The best cheese pizza Ive ever had? That was at the Pizza Hut in Kingston, Jamaica. Its right by my grandma's house and boy is it good!

Another great pizza stop-jumbo slice in Adams Morgan. I love stopping there after a night of partying and indulging in the gigantic greasy pie. If you're partying on U street-head to Ben's Chili Bowl! You can thank me later :)
I'm a total foodie!

Sorry its so long but trust me, its entertaining....

Woke up this morning, it was sunny and nice. I went to shower (fast forward)stepped out of the tub, heard a loud bang! My house was pitch black and so was outside...I slowly made my way to find the light switch, all the while,praying I wouldn't bump into anyone and drop my towel (u know how my luck is). I got to the switch and the light came on for a minute then all power went out. Forced to get dressed by cellphone light-I decided its a jeans n hoodie type of day. I stuffed my feet into my trusty rain boots and left. Rushing to the metro station, I realized my feet hurt but ignored it and kept sloshing through the puddles.

(fast forward) I got into the office elevator and I hit the button over and over...no movement! I took a deep breath, got off and told the security by the door. No help. Agitated and running low on time, I took the stairs (my first time ever in this place so it was a little confusing). My boots were now killing me so I stopped and looked to see-they were on the wrong foot! Stupid black out! But I couldn't fix it, I needed to get to my desk. I found the office suite door. I rummaged through my purse and didn't find my office key!  I knocked on the door and pressed the door bell-NO HELP! Defeated I trudged up the stairs with my sore feet....The lobby was empty. I asked the parking attendant outside for help-apparently, he doesn't speak English.

I looked around the parking lot and alas! The janitor was on a cigarette break! I ran to him and asked him to let me in to my office. Even though I hate cigarettes, today I am VERY glad someone smokes!

I was in the metro station waiting for my train home. I noticed a group of young hooligans on one side of the platform and a lil ol lady on the other. Naturally, I decided to wait near the old lady.
Sitting on the bench in silence...

"I was in lock down you know?!". Silence is broken. Not wanting to egg her on, I quietly stare at the train tracks. "yes girl I was in lock down mhm n I just got out. They had them some bed bugs too. I was glad when I left. I can do whatever I want. Go where I want, when I want." (I pray for God to send my train. I look at the monitor it says 12 more minutes.)

"2012, thats the year. You know whats gonna happen?" She pauses for me to respond...(not wantin to piss her off, I answer) "umm no, no I dont." "Well lemme tell you girl, the planets are gonna line up. On one side of earth we gonna freeze and the other half gonna blow up." (oh dear god. where is my train??) " you should research it for me. find out the day and come report it to me" (train get over here now!!). Desperate to shut her up without upsetting her, I compliment her. "you know what? Im not as smart as you. clearly you already know whats gonna happen in 2012, why dont YOU go and find out the day?" (im a genius! She smiled) "yeaaaaaa u right... imma do that" (train pulls up, thank you jesus!)

I wait and see what train car she gets on and hop on a different one.