I'll start off by saying that this trip was one adventure after the next from start to finish and we were able to get the great shots below thanks to A. and his boss' awesome (and way expensive) digital camera.
Flying Out From JFKSo maybe we were running a little too on time for A.'s liking (and maybe it was partly my fault), but as always I left all the worrying to him.When he gets anxious, I have to keep the cool, calm and collected vibe 'cause God forbid we both start freaking out. Luckily, everything went through smoothly and before long we were buckling into our seats and all smiles about our little getaway.
While we were waiting on the tarmac, the TVs came on and we started flipping through the news channels, most of which were reporting live about the escorted Emirates plane that had just landed...in JFK. A few minutes in, we look out the window to our right and what do we see? That same plane slowly making it's way off the runway surrounded by a fleet of blinking lights. At that point, official only suspected that the aircraft could be carrying explosives in two packages sent from Yemen and meant to be delivered to two synagogues in Chicago. A. and I kept watching our tiny screens and then looking out our window, our eyes wide with curiosity and growing nervousness (for me anyway). We took off some minutes after that, but kept tabs on the news until we finally learned that the aircraft did in fact hold explosives. Needless to say it was surreal to watch the news developing in front of you and playing out right outside your window. For a while I was scared I'd see something I'd never be able to forget and still, I just couldn't stop staring. A., on the other hand, wondered if the whole thing wasn't a political stunt to begin with.
RedditI should step back now and give a brief history on how the rally supposedly came to be and why A. booked this trip the minute it was announced. It's safe to say that
Reddit.com is this man's beloved site, a place where members post content, links, pics and such and then up- or down-vote submissions to create a cool (and addicting) guide to what's new and hot on the web. If you ever come across a popular page, site, news, anything that's been making the rounds, it's safe to say that it appeared on Reddit long before it reached you. Before the rally, I didn't really understand A.'s obsession, but now I see the good things that can result when those redditors mobilize.
After Glen Beck's DC rally last August, a redditor posted about a vision he couldn't shake off: a counter-rally hosted by Stephen Colbert. The idea quickly gathered up votes and momentum until a strategy developed: grab Colbert's attention through his favorite charity,
DonorsChoose.org. Within the first 48 hours the organization received $200,000 from Reddit users and in the 46 days that followed that number went up to $400,000+. Obviously that got some attention and the rally was announced. Even though Jon Stewart and Colbert say this had been in the works since March and didn't give Reddit credit for the idea, Colbert still sent his sincere thanks to all who donated and Reddit is just happy to have been a part of it.
Friday Night Meet-UpAfter we checked out our hotel room at the Hilton in Arlington, VA, A. and I met up with some other redditors in the lobby (one guy scored a bunch of rooms to offer us at a discount) to go make rally signs together. We set up shop in a mall bar and went to town with the poster boards and markers supplied by another lovely redditor. Our sign was a joint effort: he came up with the words, I made it happen. As geeky as the whole encounter sounds (and was), I have to say that everyone was incredibly nice. This goes for the entire trip and everyone we met over the weekend. It was just a bunch of cool people from around the country, happy to participate and have a great time. I guess I won't give A. too much crap for spending so much time scrolling through that damn site now. Maybe.
Rally to Restore Sanity and/or FearWe left for the National Mall around 8 am and the train station was already filling up with rally goers and signs. Once we arrived in DC a half hour later, you could feel the energy around you. Masses were coming in from all sides, music booming from the speakers and the weather was perfect: a bright and sunny 60-something degrees. Once I caught sight of the Washington Monument piercing the sky and the Capitol Building looming ahead of us, I squealed, "We're really here!" and ran off towards the crowd.
An
estimated 215,000 people gathered on the mall that day and we were lucky enough to have secured great spots in the first penned-off area with a small group of redditors. (Those guys were awesome, by the way. One even brought along spoons and a jar of Nutella!) The pre-show started on the jumbo-trons at 10:30 with taped musical guests and clips of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report chronicling how the rally came to be. At noon, The Roots took the stage, soon accompanied by John Legend. Other musical guests included Sheryl Crow with Kid Rock, Tony Bennett, The O'Jays ("Love Train") and others. There was even an odd battle between Yusuf Islam, the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens, and Ozzy Osbourne that was cacophonous to say the least and would've been awesome if it ended in a mash-up of the two, but alas, that didn't happen.
A couple skits dragged on a bit too long, but for the most part I was rolling. Colbert stayed in character the entire time leaving Stewart to be the sole voice of reason. The high point? Stewart's "Moment of Sincerity," a moving speech that came straight from the heart. No gimmicks, just earnestness. At that moment, I realized how lucky and proud I was to be standing there listening to him speak to us, hundreds of thousands from all walks of life, with unique experiences and viewpoints all rallying for the same thing: reason.
Like many others, I can't bear to watch the news when all they promote is fear and anxiety. I don't want to be bombarded with all the badness that's supposedly seeping through the world. Yes, there are troubles, but are they really as bad as we hear they are? Instead of messages of dispair, maybe it'd be best to share how we are or could be thriving. Give us solutions, not more problems. We are a people constantly under attack not by terrorists and bombs, but by sensationalized stories blaring through the airwaves. No wonder we're so hypersensitive and guarded; we're too terrified to see the similarities and the good that lies in the person beside us. "You know, in 15 years I'll be able to tell my kids, 'I was there when Jon Stewart gave his Let's Be Reasonable speech,'" A. said over dinner that night. And I hope by then those kids will have felt some impact from it.
The MonumentsLike I mentioned in my previous post, I'd only been to DC once in the sixth grade and cannot for the life of me remember anything about it. This is why, although we were dead tired from standing around for 6.5 hours, I just needed to walk what felt like 5,000 miles (but really only two) across the National Mall to see the Smithsonian, the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial and finally the Vietnam Memorial. We even saw a bit of the White House along the way, but alas, from afar. We were just too pooped to walk any more, but still we had another Reddit party to get to at Dupont Circle...1.5 miles away. We stopped along the way for dinner at
Nooshi, a noodle and sushi restaurant that made me miss Republic a wee bit (we ate there on Halloween though) before continuing our journey, hanging out for a bit and then calling it a night. I passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow, but was woken up much too quickly after.
Returning HomeIt seems that A. and I can't manage flights without some sort of close call excitement. This time we owe it all to our bus driver, a nice young lady with a twang in her voice and a lovely penchant for NOT KNOWING WHERE THE DAMN AIRPORT IS LOCATED! I mean seriously, you'd think the driver in charge of taking a bunch of people somewhere would at least know how to get there, but apparently not. It was wrong turns after missed exits and time was just ticking right by. I was actually in my own little world (read: nodding off) for most of the ride and didn't even think we were in trouble until I caught A.'s face from across the aisle. "We're f---ed!" he mouthed. Indeed. After we finally reached Dulles International Airport (albeit at the wrong drop-off area), someone asked the bus driver if she could just let us off.
"Why sure!" she replied all too sweetly. "Where would you like to get off?"
"RIGHT HERE!" we all cried out in unison.
And oh the running we did. We ran along the sidewalk, we dashed to the nearest kiosk and tried to get our boarding passes, but it was too late - we'd missed the cut-off time. Thank goodness for the lady at the counter and her shortcut to the special security line. Otherwise, we wouldn't have made it into the plane with only a single minute to spare. The doors were locked as soon as we reached our seat. Curse words of frustration were pouring out of A. the whole way there, but once we were safely buckled in, we just looked at each other and laughed, still breathless from our sprint to the gate. We made it somehow, but then again cool, calm, collected me knew we would anyway.
How adorable is this camera cozy? Makes me wish I had a nice DSLR to go with it instead of this 35 mm SLR I'm about to sell via Craigslist. But I must resist! Besides, I already have a long enough wish list for my budding business ventures.
On this uber-chaotic day, here's to feeling light, airy, thankful, focused and hopeful.
At 11 months, it's time to say that A. and I have moved on from the rose-colored honeymoon stage and onto the "Grrr! I love you, but ugh!" phase where sometimes we just cannot see eye-to-eye. Don't get me wrong, we still constantly shower each other with affection and enjoy spending time together, but sometimes, well, it can be a bit trying. There have been moments when we've had to step back and put some effort into understanding where the other person is coming from, whereas before, we were simply flying on the downy wings of lust and love, wrapped up in the fuzzy newness of it all.
I just couldn't bear to suffer alone. How yummy does this dish look?! (Divine, no?)
A Print a Day free notepad and to do list downloads: Fairy Tale, Little Jellyfish, Holiday, Doilies, Feathers, Mushrooms, Butterflies, Matrioshka, Kokeshi, Lace, Watercolor Hearts, Folky Birds, Dreamcatcher, Garden Bunny and Orange Blossom
I don't know about you guys, but this week was way hectic on my end so major hollerations for the weekend! Tonight, I'm taking A. to a free dance class and show. Bless his heart for being into randomness like this without putting up any fuss. What about you guys? Can you believe Thanksgiving is next week?! Anywho, here are a few webby and non-webby stuffs that caught my eye this week. Enjoy :)
'd been avoiding writing this post only because 12 days later it still hurts to think about. It happened quickly with no real time to process what I was about to do. She called to say she was in the area and within 30 minutes, he was gone.
'Cause right now my body is STILL aching from a crazy/awesome zip lining tour three days ago. And oy vey this to-do list that just keeps growing and growing. Why must reality always smack you in the face upon your return from bliss?
I just had to post another waterfall picture after today's tour that included a trip to La Paz Waterfalls Gardens. There, we walked a trail that led through its aviary, serpentarium and a felines exhibition (I squealed when a jaguar rolled over and and then kept pawing at me through the glass). There was also a frog and butterfly garden where I witnessed a couple newly-fledged butterflies attempting to emerge from their cocoons. And only a few feet after that we found ourselves surrounded by hummingbirds zipping here, there and all around us only stopping for a brief second to feed and allow us a mesmerized glimpse (and endless attempts to take their photo). It felt like a fairy tale. Or at least that Shrek scene where Fiona sings with the unfortunate little blue bird.
This time I'm off to Costa Rica with a crazy cousin of mine who asked if I would tag along and I said um...YES. Sure, I'll be waking up at the crack of dawn to meet up with her in Miami before flying out to Central America, but after the rough weekend I had, I think it'll be nice to get away for a bit. More details on that and the trip upon my return. With all the plane time I'll be clocking in and my limited Internet access (aaack!), I'll be sure to get a lot of writing done down there. Hope you all have a lovely rest of the week!
Reddit
Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear
The Monuments
Returning Home
Remember when my computer crashed last year and I lost pretty much everything? Well now at least I'll get some of my old pictures back thanks to one of Facebook's newest features. Last month, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that users will soon be able to download all their info - profile, events, messages, wall posts, friends list and yes, photos and videos - onto their computer. Just go into your account settings, click "Download your Info" and a copy of all the data you've put on the site will be saved on your computer in a .zip file. It'd been rolling out slowly, but now it's finally reached me! And here I thought I'd have to right click and "save image as" for 500+ photos...
Pop quiz: If you get caught in a downpour without an umbrella, your likelihood of catching a cold will sky rocket correct? Not really and if you thought this common myth was true then don’t worry, you’re not alone. These beliefs usually start out as hearsay and assumptions and are spread until they settle in as fact. (‘Fess up: how many came from your own parents?) So with the help of Kent Holtorf, M.D., founder of Holtorf Medical Group, we debunk six medical myths you might believe in the hopes that the truth will set you free.. to go run in the rain.
When I was given the assignment to write about diabetes for Latina's November issue, I was eager to dive into it and find out more about the disease and any developments in the field. You see, this is one that hits close to home. My grandmother passed away 15 years ago due to complications from diabetes and just a couple years after that, one of my close cousins was also diagnosed with the disease. Since then it's been one health complication after the other, but still she remains the life of the party, smiling and yelling through every obstacle that's come her way.
