#23 The corner of Monroe and 14th, in front of the liquor store

On this special corner in DC, in front of Casa de Furniture, prime real estate which has been vacant for over 2.5 years, a new tenant has put up shop. And with his wares of umbrellas, incense, Tupaq t-shirts, and saute pans, he pumps hot 90s jams. Tonight he was playing Push It, need I say more. Thank you sir for adding an extra bounce to my step on so many occasions. I hope if someone ever does put something at Casa de Furniture, that they hire you for marketing.

#22 Jury duty

I know its been awhile, don't take it personal DC.

Most people hate jury duty, which I must assume is because they've never been picked, because being a juror is awesome. Now I know I did say my job is one of the things I love about DC (refer to post 1) but I would gladly miss it to serve on a jury. This last year both my roommate and I got picked on the same day and we both were selected on juries. For a whole week we got to call each other #2 and #6 and watch National Treasure during our breaks, okay I realize that doesn't sound so awesome, but seriously there's something about getting to be on a jury that all fans of Law and Order can hopefully appreciate. Getting to know the other jurors is also fascinating. I happened to be that juror that bullied the others in the deliberation room (in my defense they weren't following the judges directions and were letting their emotions get involved). One of the great things about DC is they have the smallest juror pool of any jurisdiction, so you get the opportunity for jury duty much more frequently than anywhere else. I just wish there was a way I could slip my name back in the pool to make another go at it before I leave....

#21 Farms

I don't own a car, which I love, but if you do own a car, there are so many opportunities to visit local DC farms. This weekend I went to farmer's markets on Saturday (see #20), and then went to local farms Sunday and Monday (thank you job for giving me the day off, see #1). Sunday I went pumpkin picking with my friends Sylvia, Jenna, and Brad, and my little friends Leo and Charlie (the real reason of the adventure). There's something about bright sunshine, hay rides, live animals (goats and chickens (sheep, I'm ready for you in NZ), cider, and pumpkin rides that makes the autumn. Way better if you're with a three year old (Leo). While I think Butler's Orchard is running a racket, I had a great time and came with a pumpkin and (free) pumpkin flowers, which I immediately filled with goat cheese and herbs and fried up. Then today, I went apple picking and wine tasting and learned about organic farming. I can't wait to Woof on farms in NZ, but while I'm here I'm really enjoying all of the Capitol districts many farms and the opportunity to get out of the city all within an hour's drive.

#20 Farmers markets

So this weekend I was enrolled in an Iron Chef competition, where I had planned to make a dish with zucchini flowers, little did I know how hard they were to find. I set out early on Saturday morning, having high hopes for the Mt Pleasant Farmers market, but was sad to find out they didn't have them. However, I was happily rewarded with the farmer's market camaraderie and beautiful produce, and my friend weren't too upset with the cute volunteers. There's something about paying double for what you would at the grocery store, but you get the feel of supporting local farmers and a public market atmosphere. So no zucchini flowers lead us to two more farmer's markets, both within a mile, which is awesome in DC that we have so many public markets to choose from. While going to the many markets, there was a lot of strolling (see #18) and no zucchini flowers found, but lots of appreciation for the local farmers that trek there products into DC for our enjoyment/enlightenment. Thank you local farmers and DC permits for allowing our public markets

#19 Small random latins

Now a few of my friends say how do you classify a Latin? Well, now what I mean are people of the hispanic/latin origin, depending on how you like to classify. And, Mt Pleasant/Columbia Heights has a fair share. And I love the randomness of little Latin kids running around playing with a soccer (futbol) ball and waylaying them and trying to get in on the game, just while you're out walking around. I love you Latin children!! Please cross my path every weekend I'm left here and make my day, I will miss you

#18 Crumbs and Coffee

Situated very conveniently at Ontario and Columbia Road, Crumbs and Coffee is a gem in the rough. And by rough I mean the myriad of random dollar stores or weird check cashing places, secretly I think a cover for laundering money. But anyway, I used to live at Ontario and Euclid, so when I discoverd Crumbs and Coffee it was like an, ahhhhh moment. So this past weekend, went awalking and realized, yes! I get to stop at Crumbs and Coffee for a coffee and stroll around. Well, little did I know it was even better with an expanded menu. They now have an Egg Grap. Yes thats right, and I know you're wondering what it is. When I asked, the salesperson said, "You know its an egg sandwich in a tortilla wrap". Oh of course, the Egg G(w)rap. Well, I love you C and C, especially for lasting with all the chains and mayhem. Glad I can still come visit, even though I'm not in the neighborhood, and when I'm in the mood for a Grap, I know the only place to find it.

#17 Walkability

Again as you know, I was just in San Diego, where having a car is mandatory. I love that when I moved here five years ago I was able to sell my car, because the city is so easy to get around via public transportation (see #5) or just plain walking. I frequently walk to and from work, which takes about as long as the normal bus (not the Circulator, thats much faster than my walking). I should however state that when I saying "DC" is walkable, what I really mean is Northwest DC, or one quadrant, one fourth of the city. Now I've never tried walking to Northeast or Southeast DC or walking within either quadrant, which probably has a lot to do with me still being alive, but if anyone would like to correct me on this (you know all of you reading this blog), comments are welcome. Remember my good friend Stephanie, well she even walks to Northern Virginia (typically only late at night along the GW parkway, but...), thats how walkable this city is.

#16 The Zoo

Sorry for the long time lapse. I've been in San Diego, which coincidentally is home to, some would say, the best zoo in the world. I grew up going to the San Diego Zoo and just went back this past week for the first time in awhile. It is still as awesome as ever, if not even better, but you know what - its expensive! Luckily I went with my Dad (yes, I'm seven years old) and he treated, I did buy my own popcorn however. Anyway, while I will admit DC's zoo is not quite to the level of San Diego, its FREE! And we have had a baby panda and baby tigers in the last five years that I've lived here. There's something about going to the zoo that makes you feel like you're a kid again and makes you forget about your high stress job or family drama or how you're a little groggy from the night before, and what's great about DC is that you can do that everyday if you want. My friend Dave was visiting recently, and the one thing he wanted to do while he was here was visit the zoo, which just reminded me how lucky we are to be able to go for free. Thank you DC for letting me live a childhood moment and make monkey faces and animal noises everyday if I please.