JJ!

Holy moly, is this little guy ever cute!!!!!! He makes my heart melt! 

Georgetown's beloved (albeit slothlike) mascot, Jack, has been on the DL since his ACL surgery a short time ago, and it looks like the university has already chosen his replacement, this adorable little Jack Junior, or "JJ."  It's really a shame that bulldogs can't stay that cute and little forever...sigh.

Happy weekend everyone!!!!

Islamophobia and the Failure of Integration

I wrote my college thesis on "l'affaire du voile," or the Headscarf Affair, a decades-long disagreement in France over whether or not, and to what extent, it is permissible for French women of Arab descent to veil themselves in public.  The issue is fascinating, being that there can be any number of reasons, as stated in my 75-page thesis (in French!) that women veil themselves: 1) It could be a personal affirmation of one's commitment to God; 2) It could be something that male members of a woman's family force her into, based on cultural and religious traditions forged in the home country; and 3) It could be a way for a woman to connect with the culture of her homeland, a sort of nostalgia, if you will, based on the fact that full integration of Muslims in France is nearly impossible.

God knows that I love France (heck, I spent a semester studying there, multiple trips there, and dream of living there someday), but the unwillingness on the part of France's administration to admit that there is a serious problem dealing with lack of integration and exclusion of immigrants, especially North African and Arab immigrans, in the country is deplorable.  The shooting rampages committed by Mohamed Merah in Toulouse within the past few weeks which killed three French soldiers, three children and a rabbi represent the failure of the French state, are a prime example of the failure of integration.  Yes, this man, and others, may have been prone to religious extremism and the attacks are inexcusable (not to mention, they give the world all the more reason to stigmatize Arabs and Muslims and brand them all as terrorists), but I have to think that much of the issue lies with how immigrants are treated in France.  Above all, loyalty and allegiance to the French republic are the highest values in the country, so, when immigrants arrive with a strong allegiance to the religious and cultural institutions of their homelands, that creates a problem for the French.  They sense that these immigrants have no interest in integrating into French society, and, as a result (although, perhaps it is the other way around), these immigrants are forced to live in tenement-style housing with immigrants of similar origin in areas on the periphery of cities called banlieus.  They are stigmatized by members of French society, many of whom still bear the prejudices of the colonial era, and, as a result, they feel neither a part of their culture/country of origin, from which they are physically removed, or of France, in which they are physically present. 

I could obivously go on about this issue for the rest of time, but another incident that also occurred recently highlighted the fact that the United States' integration of Arab and Muslim immigrants is far from perfect.  The brutal murder of Shaima Alawadi, who emigrated from Iraq decades ago and raised her five children in the United States along with her husband, emphasizes the still-lingering deep-seeded feelings of resentment and distrust towards Americans of Arab origin in the post-9/11 world.  I am not at all trying to say that what happened on 9/11 wasn't wrong, because it was deeply, deeply wrong.  However, continuing to marginalize, and openly target, American citizens, does not correct that wrong.  It would make me so happy to see that immigrants of all shapes and sizes be able to integrate into a new country as seamlessly as possible, while still retaining some of their cultural traditions.  Maybe I'm just naive, but I think that part of what makes America great is the fact that we are such a melting pot.  That is what our country was at its founding, so I think that that's what it should continue to be today.

Okay, now I'm getting off my soapbox.  This stuff just makes me so upset!  To counter this rather heavy post, will be posting a cute video momentarily :-)

Why I Blog

I was thinking earlier today about why I have chosen to become a blogger.

I first began blogging out of necessity when I went abroad so that family and friends would have some way to follow my goings-on in France and Spain.  Even with those friends and family members with whom I was able to Skype, I think it was nice for them to be able to read more in-depth about my many adventures.  I found that, when I returned to Georgetown for my senior year, I really missed blogging.  Spurred by Kate's (my roomate at the time) decision to start a new blog, I decided to give it another shot, particularly since I was about to enter such a large transition period in my life.

I do not pretend to have a far-reaching audience, but I do it as a sort of online diary for myself and for those close to me (in fact, one of my friends, with whom I am not able to Skype as often as either of us would like, always knows what is going on with me, and vice-versa, because of my blog).

Above all, I get such a deep creative satisfaction out of writing.  Dan and I were talking the other day, both about what our ideal job would be, all circumstances excluded, but also about what we wanted to be when we were little.  I spent much of my childhood yearning to be a writer, and, since I lack both the formal training and the raw talent to be a writer, I enjoy having my little blog as a creative outlet.  Some of my writing, like journaling, I do just for me, so that I can remember exactly how I was feeling at a specific moment in time.  The truth is that memories fade, but I take comfort in the fact that I have been able, thus far, to document the more important moments in my life.  It is through blogging that I can write through an audience, however small, and that brings me a great deal of satisfaction.  My job does not involve any creative writing...literally, none.  So this blog is my mode of creative expression.  Plus, I'm not going to lie, I like the power that comes with feeling like you can write about whatever you want to :)

As much as I love blogging myself, I also really enjoy discovering new blogs!  If anyone has any interesting blogs that they've found, I would love to hear suggestions!  I'm always looking to get hooked on another blog!

My Best Birthday Yet!

One of my friends asked me on Saturday night which of my birthdays has been my favorite, and I have to say that it was this one, my 24th!  There is something about each birthday that makes it special, and before this birthday, I would have said that my 23rd was my favorite, since all of my closest college girlfriends came in to town for a mini-reunion.  However, a lot of changes have happened in my life over the past year that contributed to making this birthday such a wonderful one.

I started off Birthday Weekend with a nice little cupcake party thrown by my colleagues, which was perfect, since I was planning on breaking Lent and eating sweets for the occasion of my birthday.  I'm lucky to work in an office where we take some time out to celebrate everyone's birthday, so it was nice to have that time out of our Friday to relax and eat some yummy treats.  And, what's more, my boss let us leave at 4, right after the party, so my weekend got to start early!

Dan and I had a pretty low-key evening on Friday night, which was exactly what I needed since I had had a long week.  He also had to be up at the crack of dawn (6:30, yikes!) to be a dutiful cousin and go to his younger cousin's swim meet, so we watched some basketball and were asleep at an old people-early time.  On Saturday morning, I got a nice "Happy Birthday" wakeup before Dan had to run out the door, and then I met up with my dad for a nice breakfast and daddy/daughter time. It was so nice to have that time to catch up with him.  He then drove me to pick up my cake from a DELICIOUS DC-area bakery chain Cake Love, and I got my Cookies & Cream cake (and yes, it is as good, if not better, than the picture makes it look!).  The rest of the day was pretty relaxing; I went for a nice run, baked a second cake, and generally got the apartment ready for people to come over.  Dan came over a little bit earlier than everyone else, and then a few of us got Indian takeout (quickly becoming a yearly birthday tradition) before the rest of the guests arrived.

This is the part of the post where I tell you how wonderful Dan is: there were about 10 girls there, and one Dan, and he was such a champ about sitting around chatting with a bunch of girls.  How did I get this lucky??? I made sure to express, on multiple occasions throughout the night and afterward, how grateful I was that he was there, despite being the lone male representative (it hadn't been planned that way, but our few male friends were unable to make it).  I felt terrible for him at multiple points throughout the night, but he hung in there (and even went out dancing, which he hates, for a little while).  I think I owe him one (okay, more than one).  That's how you know that someone loves you, when they're willing to do lots of things they don't want to do for you.  I am the luckiest girl in the world :)

Anyway, since we sat around doing all of that talking, we didn't actually make it to karaoke, which had been our original plan.  We left the apartment at around midnight, and Dan, Lauren, Molly and I went dancing for a bit at Front Page before heading home.  All in all, it was a great night, and I was so happy to have been surrounded by so many wonderful friends.

On Sunday, after a relaxing day, I met up with my parents and Dan for dinner at Filomena, a FANTASTIC Italian restaurant in Georgetown.  It was the perfect end to the perfect birthday weekend, and I was so grateful throughout the weekend to be able to spend time with family, friends and Dan.  A huge thank you to all of you who were either present at some point during the weekend or sent your love.  I feel this way every day, but I am so blessed to have the loved ones that I do!

Lucky to be a Washingtonian

Every spring, I fall in love all over again with this fabulous city that I call home.  Something about seeing everyone outside walking, running or biking, basking in the increasingly warmer spring sunshine and gazing at the cherry blossoms that surround the Mall brings a huge smile to my face.  It is very seldom that I do "touristy" things in DC (mostly because tourists kind of get on my nerves- seriously, stand right, walk left, people!!!!), but once a year, I try to take an excursion over to the Tidal Basin to marvel at the cherry blossoms.  The Jefferson Memorial is my favorite of the city's memorials, and seeing it surrounded by a sea of delicate pink flowers makes me love it even more.  Yesterday, Lauren and I trekked downtown after work and boy, was it worth it!  I don't think I had ever gone during peak week before, but the flowers were even more stunning than usual!  My handy little iPhone definitely served me well when photographing the beauty, and I even got to Instagram a few of the pictures (Instagram is my new obsession).

Maybe it's the fact that the flowers (and people) are all out and the weather is really pleasant, but I'm definitely in the midst of one of those "God, I'm so lucky to live here" phases.  I think that it is easy to become so driven by daily routines of going to work, class, happy hour, spending time with those you love, that it isn't always the first thing on your mind to stop and appreciate the city you live in.  But I am so, so blessed to live in a place with so many incredible cultural opportunities, and DC is definitely a place where I can see myself staying here for a long time :)  Every day, I feel like I discover something new about the city, and, when I have the opportunity to explore a new neighborhood, I try to walk there and take in all that there is to see about the neighborhood (for better or worse; a recent walk led to an uncomfortable encounter with an old man who catcalled me)

 Beautiful blossoms!

Love this city of mine!

My very favorite picture :) Thank you Instagram!

And, can't leave out the big event on Sunday...Mad Men, one of my very favorite shows, is FINALLY resuming new episodes!!!! Dan initially got me hooked on the show last spring, and I watched 4 seasons worth of episodes at a blistering pace!  I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!

Source: AMC

In the meantime, I am looking forward to lots of fun birthday weekend festivities!  Holy crow, I'm almost officially in my mid-twenties!!!!! How did this happen???

Spring Has Sprung!!!

Happy first day of spring, darlings!!!! I hope it's a beautiful day wherever all of you are (it's kind of gray here in D.C. today, and we had a freak thunderstorm at 6:30 this morning- I guess spring started with a bang, literally?)!  Sorry for being such a delinquent blogger, but I have had ZERO free time recently to churn out a post, so congrats, you get one of my signature long posts! ;)

This was definitely an eventful St. Patty's Day weekend, with lots of basketball and time with friends- literally, whenever I wasn't firmly planted on the couch watching March Madness, I was running all over creation!  Dan and I both got off of work early on Friday, and, after I met him at work, we metroed home and proceeded to watch 7 straight hours of basketball (which included a second-round win by our Hoyas...I don't want to talk about Sunday's third-round game).  Ah, March, ain't it grand!

On Saturday, I met up with Dan and his friends at around 3 for a St. Patty's pregame, after which we went to Dupont for a bit.  I have to say, I am not the hugest fan of the holiday (I have recently developed an intolerance to beer- really painful stomachaches means it's not worth it to have even one- and, due to a bad experience with Bailey's on my 21st, I refuse to touch it), partly because I am not a huge drinker, but sometimes you just have to suck it up and be festive haha.  I had a really great time with that group (one of his friends had been in Ireland for work for the past six months, so it was so nice to see him again), and then I met up with my friends for a bit afterward (for a lot of that time, I was shoving a veggie burger in my mouth- so ladylike) and then hit the sack at oh, about 10:30.  I'm not even ashamed of the fact that I'm a 90 year-old woman at heart!  Sunday was a thoroughly awful, Murphy's Law kind of day, and, after chalking it up in the loss column, I moved on, determined that the next day would be better, which it was. 

As usual, this week is turning out to be really hectic.  Don't get me wrong, I am loving my FemEx class, but having that at the beginning of the week and then knowing that I won't get back until late (thanks to Metro, I haven't gotten home much before 11 after either of the previous two classes) means that I'll be running on fumes for the rest of the week, especially with that 5a.m. gym routine.  Any rational person would say that I should skip the gym for a day, but anyone who knows me is well aware that that is not an option for me.  So, after tonight, I will simply soldier on for 12 more weeks.  While I definitely like staying busy, I have felt really overwhelmed, on those other days, by how many things I want to do and how many people (Dan, my family, friends in DC, friends from afar who I want to Skype with) I want to spend time with.  If anyone has any tips on how best to manage your time so that you don't constantly feel like you're shortchanging someone in your life.

Something fun that I have to look forward to this week is going to see the cherry blossoms with a friend later on in the week!  If you have never been to D.C. or simply have never gone over to the Tidal Basin when the blossoms are in full bloom, I would highly recommend it.  Since the Festival tends to be a mob scene on the weekends (read: annoying tourists), we're hoping to avoid that somewhat by going on a weeknight after work.  We'll see how it goes!  In any case, I know the blossoms will be stunningly beautiful, so I'm looking forward to that!

And then...Saturday is my birthday!!! I'm definitely really looking forward to the celebrations this year, but it will not be the same as when all of my closest girlfriends were in town on the same weekend as my birthday for a mini-reunion.  I was spoiled last year! I know, though, that everyone will be there in spirit, and, in fact, I learned that Kate, my Birthday Week buddy, will also be going out for karaoke with friends on Saturday night! However, despite missing out-of-town friends, this is the first year that Dan will get to witness our birthday antics (we had only been dating for a few weeks when my birthday rolled around last year, and we both thought it best not to subject him to the gaggle of girls so early on), and yes, I am forcing him to go dancing :) Or maybe he's doing it willingly haha.  In any case, I am looking forward to a nice dinner at an AMAZING Italian restaurant with Dan, my parents and Tim on Friday, followed by birthday festivities on Saturday (including breaking Lent for CAKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you tell how excited I am? I have been STARVING for weeks without my sweets!).  I think it should be pretty low-key, which I so desperately need given how hectic my life has been recently.

Yearning for Spring

After an entirely unimpressive winter (seriously DC??? We had MAYBE two dustings of snow the entire winter), I am ready to break out the dresses and retire my riding boots until next fall.  We had some warm days the last few days that caused me to lose the tights (yikes, scandalous!) and trade my boots in for flats.  We'll see if the weather holds...

I have lots of exciting things that are on my radar:

• My birthday is TWO WEEKS from tomorrow!  I don't know what I'm more excited for, getting all of my friends together and going dancing, or breaking Lent and stuffing my face with cake ;)  Or going out dancing/karaoke-ing.

• March Madness!!!!!!!!!! (duh)  Despite a disappointing Hoya loss in the BET yesterday (one of the most worst meltdowns that I have ever had the displeasure of watching), I am cautiously optimistic about our chances in the NCAAs.  Our seniors have really come into their own this year, and both for their sake and my own, I would hate to see them make an early-round exit.  I will be glued to the TV come Sunday to see who the Selection Committee has us playing in the first round!

• I just signed up for my second half-marathon, after having been thwarted in my quest to run the Marine Corps Marathon (who knew that it would sell out in less than three hours? I was planning on waiting a few months to make sure my body would hold up enough to run it, but I guess that was a mistake)!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Dan and I were looking into some other races, and the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach (on September 2nd) caught my eye.  I had heard of it before, but had decided against running it in the past for whatever reason.  This time, I decided that I had to run it!!!!  Think about it, people, live music along the course!  This race was made for me! And, even better, Dan *might* run it with me (maybe I will just get all of his friends to peer pressure him into it haha), and it would be so fun to have a running buddy! What I love most about training for a race is that it gives my runs purpose.  I have (knock on wood) had great runs recently ever since my leg started feeling better, so I'm psyched to start doing long runs again!  We're hoping to run outside tomorrow, so here's hoping the weather holds up!! 

You would never know that the girl who is so gung-ho about races now actively HATED running up until a couple of years ago.  I think that there is definitely something to be said for the power of endorphins, and I feel them much more when I'm running than with any other form of exercise.  I am the type of person who likes to challenge myself physically, so running is perfect for a masochist like me!  I also love the control running gives me over my weight.  Before I started running, my weight definitely yo-yo'ed, but now my it stays a lot more constant (even if I have those occasional cake binges, like the one I will probably be having on my birthday haha).  Because of that, I FEEL so much better all the time, and so much more in control (which, as a control freak, I love).  It is also really motivating, too, that I live in such an active city, so that, when I see other people running outside, it makes me jealous and want to run outside myself (twisted, but it's really such good motivation!).

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!  I hope it's sunny and warm where you all are!