1) Meeting LJ
Last Saturday I finally met the beautiful LJ from Grits in the City. We rendezvoused at Georgetown Cupcake, where I waited in a line outside for 10-15 minutes before I was able to make my purchase (which may seem like a long time, but I’ve heard it could have been much worse). We found a table across the street at Dean & DeLuca, so we were able to sit down and talk for a while. Then we realized that we were both headed to the same destination afterward (Chinatown), so we got to spend even more time together as we took a shuttle to the Dupont Metro and then rode the red line to the Gallery Place stop.
Ms. Grits is delightful. I’ve been reading her blog for years (she used to live in DC but moved to NYC a year or so ago), and we’ve been Twitter and Facebook friends for a while, so I knew I liked her spirit and that we’d get along — but still, it’s entirely different when you meet someone face-to-face. She didn’t disappoint.
This is what Ms. Grits said about our meeting:
Even though I’ve followed [Zandria's] blog for years and messaged some with her, we’d ironically never met face-to-face. There’s something great about meeting someone in person and finding them to be just who they’ve presented them to be through their writing. I think that’s a combination of an honest person and a great writer.
Awww…much love to you, too, dear!
2) Whew!
This has been a busy week — I had something scheduled every day after work. On Monday, I had a date, thanks to a random Twitter encounter. (Which I mentioned last week. Verdict? Fun. Will be going out with him again.) On Tuesday I went to the Sunset Parade at the Iwo Jimo Memorial (highly recommended).
On Wednesday I went to The Northerner‘s house on Capitol Hill for a Gap-sponsored party. That was a lot of fun, and I went home with a new pair of jeans. I got to meet another blogger that I’ve been reading, Wearing Mascara, and also a new blogger, Preppy Chemist. I ended up driving Ms. Chemist back to Old Town because her car was parked in the area, and that ended up being lucky for me because neither of us knew how to get home from Capitol Hill. So I drove while she navigated, thanks to her iPhone. (I could have done the same if I was by myself, but looking from the phone to the road — while it was dark outside — didn’t seem like the safest option.)
Last night I went to Anacostia to hang out with my friend J- and his friend that just got back to the States after spending the last 6 months in Afghanistan. They’re funny guys — I had a great time.
Tonight I’m going to a friend’s house in DC for a girls-only party. (Although I’ve heard some rumors that a guy or two might show up, so we’ll see how long the girls-only thing lasts.)
(I just realized that I’ve hung out with bloggers every day this week except yesterday. It’s, like, blogger-mania or something!)
3) But…I’m getting away from the mania for an ENTIRE WEEK.
I leave for Montana early tomorrow afternoon. My aunt Cathy will pick me up from the airport in Missoula, we’ll stay there overnight, then we’ll drive back to her home in Salmon, Idaho for a few days. The plan is to visit a few national parks — Glacier and Yellowstone — for the remainder of the week. I get back to DC next Saturday night, 8/15.
I still haven’t decided whether I’m taking my laptop or not. I’m considering having a less-connected vacation, but I think I’ll probably take it with me just to have the option. We’ll see. I haven’t packed a single thing for my trip yet (see: busy week, above). My flight doesn’t leave until 1:30pm tomorrow though, so I can always get up in the morning and still have a few hours to get everything together before I leave for the airport.
I may not update this blog until I get back, so until then you can follow my updates on Twitter.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
