15 Passenger Van

Joe's last day was bittersweet, for both of us. I will surely miss sharing the tiny cubicle and chatting about whatever seems fitting at the moment. I'm sure I'll struggle through a few afternoons during my last few weeks, because I won't have my partner in crime. However, grabbing a drink with the people who have been giving us all of our work for the past 3 months was a good experience...especially since Joe was the one being put on the spot.

Let's back up a bit to the work day--I asked permission to sit in on the Judiciary Committee hearing with the Delta and Northwest CEOs, and I was granted permission to go. The line to get in the room was wrapped around two hallways, so I had to act like I was someone really important in order to sit behind the dais. I really had no idea what I was doing, and I had to be rescued from sitting on the wrong side of the bench, but it all worked out in the end. The hearing was quite interesting for me, especially since I had met the CEOs on Wednesday. Although the hearing lasted two hours, nothing was really resolved. I'm not positive on how the hearing will effect decisions regarding this merger, but it was a great experience nonetheless. (Minus being the only person on the dais not constantly checking the blackberry.)

Fast forward to after farewell drinks with Joe--I walked home and was chatting with Luke on the steps when Pat and Mike came over to the house with two extra tickets for the Wizards playoff game, which just so happened to be starting in 22 minutes. I had just enough time to throw on jeans and run with the guys to make for tip off. Everyone in the crowd got towels and free t-shirts for the *white-out* game. It was really exciting watching the game from the box seats, through the first half at least! The Wizards stole the show after that, and we ended up leaving a few minutes before the game ended. I'm glad I rashly decided to join the guys though. However, going straight to Union Pub after the game probably was not the best decision. Not eating anything after lunch caught up to me, and this morning was a little rough.

Our FOUR HOUR van ride to Philly didn't exactly make me feel better either, especially the first hour where 14 of us were crammed into a 12 passenger van. Commute aside, our day trip was well worth it. We got to see the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall (where the Constitution and Declaration were both signed), and the first Capitol building. After doing all of that in about an hour and half, we walked to one of the most famous cheese steak diners for dinner. The sandwich was delicious, but extremely filling. I have no idea how nearly everyone else had room for DQ on the way home!

The commute back wasn't much better than our ride there. Doug only drove us as far as the Greenbelt Metro stop, so we had an hour Metro experience tacked on to our 3 hours of driving in the van. Although I really enjoyed the 3 hours of tourist time in Philly, the 8 hours of commuting took away from the experience as a whole. I'm so glad I got to continue living history (as well as National Treasure), and I will remember sitting in the House of Representatives chamber for the rest of my life, but I'm currently still a bit overwhelmed.