PHEW!

Crunch time is definitely approaching. The past week was a blur as they have come to be. My focus has been on my classwork, as I just completed my midterm for my course. Surprisingly, I have really been enjoying my leadership class. It is definitely a unique, fresh approach to a topic that can come across as stale and forced. I have been thinking about my final leadership project lately, but I’m still not 100% in which direction I want to go in.

During the week, the US Marshals interns got to go to the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms’ (ATF) K-9 facility. It was neat to go and actually see what takes place from when a dog enters the facility, to when they actually are out looking for explosives or traces of arson. Labradors are used because of their high stamina, their energy, their noses (!!!), and their personalities. It definitely made me want a dog.. (HINT, HINT!)

The main draw of my weekend was seeing the Smithsonian American Art Museum on Saturday. We arrived in the afternoon and barely even cleared two floors of the massive buildings! There were two sections: the actual Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery. It was definitely AMAZING.

To get things started.. Here’s a canvas of LL Cool J. Nothing says American Art quite like LL Cool J sitting in a big old chair. 

Here’s an Andy Warhol of Marilyn Monroe!! I absolutely loved it. It may look somewhat dull, but it is really bright in person. 

This is a 1953 photograph of Grace Kelly. She was absolutely stunning! 

We also checked out some of the Presidential Portraits. Lincoln’s was one of my favorites. 

Bill Clinton’s was downright funky and really modern! It was definitely a hit to look at. 

And those are just my favorites! The SAAM/NPG are free to visit, although donations are encouraged. It is definitely a sight worth checking out, even if art isn’t really your “thing”. I hope to make it to the Natural History Museum soon.

Until next time!

Spring has Sprung!!

This week was evidence that good things come to those who wait. Pretty much every single intern has been eagerly awaiting the arrival of nice weather to basically do ANYTHING with. Granted, we can go sightseeing and do things when the weather is shoddy, but it just isn’t as enjoyable. This week we had a LCJ lecture about foreign policy in the Middle East, and specifically Afghanistan and Iraq. I do hope that next week, after this upcoming PLS, we go to a more Criminal Justice-oriented program. I just have different expectations of the programming and I can’t wait until we see some more “national” lectures. :)

I received a project involving college CO-OP applicants to the US Marshals throughout the country from my manager at my internship. It is a pretty awesome to be responsible for a (relatively) large group of people, and I’m glad my superiors have enough faith and trust in me in to take care of the job! I am challenging myself to finish it within a month, just to see if I can work within a real deadline. It’s pretty exciting.

This weekend my roommates and I took advantage of this GORGEOUS weather! Friday night we ate out near Dupont Circle, which was nice. Saturday we were able to get out again and head out to the National Mall. We were able to check out the health care bill protest that was going on. Regardless of my views, it was amazing to see the power of the American people. I am extremely proud that I live in this country where if I don’t like something, I can march right to the capital of my nation and protest or celebrate it. It was really intense, and while it was cool to check out, wasn’t exactly my scene. 

Afterwards, we went to Eastern Market for lunch. Saturday night my one roommate Melissa and I just hung out at our apartment because...

We went back to Eastern Market on Sunday! For those of you who probably don’t know, Eastern Market is a stop off the Orange/Blue line that is also an open-air farmers and flea market. The market part may sound skeptical, but I can assure you it was fantastic! Before we went shopping we stopped at a french cafe for breakfast which was absolutely mouthwatering. My roommates Natalie, Melissa, and I were able to pick up a ton of fresh produce and goods! I was able to buy delicious fuji apples, navel oranges, watermelon and more. My roommates made out like bandits. We had all fresh food to make an amazing dinner with, and it was just really nice to buy something fresh and cook it right away. I even carved the watermelon to make a bowl to serve our fruit in! :) Farmer’s markets are definitely great ways to stimulate the local economy without breaking the bank! I also purchased a piece of art from a vendor and bought a bar of natural soap that was vanilla and sandalwood scented. My roommates and I also got sets of GORGEOUS wrap around necklaces and earrings. It was just a really neat experience. I didn’t get pictures of the market, but I did get pictures of the “fruits” of our labor. We definitely plan on going back as soon as possible.

Until next time..

HALFWAY THERE?!

EW! I refuse to believe that my semester here in the GLORIOUS nation’s capital is halfway finished! Where has the time gone? The weeks by this point have blurred together into one large blob. I have definitely been enjoying the experience of living, working, taking class, and exploring down here in the DC area..

This week, our President’s Lecture Series, or PLS as I commonly refer to it, was referred to as a Career Boot Camp. We were able to choose from a plethora of workshops to attend and participate in that were created with the mission of assisting us interns with life once we graduate college. Even though I don’t graduate until next year, I am still glad that I could get a piece of the “real world” before it is so rudely thrust upon me! The first of my workshops was “Getting a Job in the Federal Government,” which provided lots of insight into programs such as STEP, SCEP, & FCIP. It also gave lots of tips and pointers into using the website USAJOBS, which is where basically all federal jobs are posted. It was pretty interesting. My second workshop was “From Questions to Clarity: Deciding Whether Graduate, Law or Business School is in your Future.” I didn’t find it as informative as the first but it was still insightful. I am glad that TWC put together an event like this for us, so props to them!

On Thursday, I got to visit the District of Maryland with the other US Marshals interns. It was pretty similar to headquarters. They have lots of offices, lots of people working IN the offices, etc. Everyone who worked there was extremely nice and happy to answer questions and tell us about themselves, which we appreciated. It was a hike from the city to Baltimore, but it was a GORGEOUS day so we were definitely glad to be out. We even got to have lunch at the Inner Harbor on the water. It was nice to get a change of scenery for just a day..

The White House... Finally!

We finally had the chance to attend a President’s Lecture Series presentation. I’d like to think that we got off to a strong start. Selected to present was Dr. Lawrence Korb who has served in the Naval Reserve, published books and over a hundred articles, and made over one thousand television appearances. He is a Senior Fellow at American Progress and a Senior Advisor to the Center for Defense Information. Dr. Korb spoke about foreign policy and the current situation in the middle east. He even answered questions at the end. I really enjoyed hearing his views, and I was really pleased that TWC chose him to kick off the President’s Lecture Series.

The focus of my class this week was on Mission, Vision, and Values for a fictional organization. It was pretty neat, as we got to formulate our own in groups and present them to each other. It’s nice to see a progression in the lessons as my time in the classroom goes on. I haven’t quite thought about what I want my final project to be on, but I am certain that with the way the class is going that I will be more than adequately prepared.

This weekend, I got to see my parents!! We went all around the Metro area: Crystal City, Pentagon City, Federal Triangle, and Chinatown. We made it to the White House which was exciting, because I haven’t had a chance to do any sightseeing yet. The White House is definitely a LOT smaller than I thought it would be. I can’t say that I didn’t feel inspired when I was standing in front of that particular house, because it was just amazing! It was cool to check out the area and pass by some of the monuments. We even waved to the guys on the roof, AND they waved back! Afterwards we went out to lunch in Chinatown and parted ways. It was nice to see my parents and even nicer to finally see the White House.

Me at the White House!!

The White House

Intersection of the White House

The Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which is GORGEOUS!!

Civic Engagement and You

The weeks have definitely become a blur! I have become well adjusted to my working life here in the nation’s capital. This past weekend I saw Shutter Island in Chinatown with a couple of my roommates and some friends. It was my first time to Chinatown and hopefully not my last!! The movie theatre is almost connected to the Verizon Center and the complex is MASSIVE. The movie was amazing and it was seriously the highlight of my life. Martin Scorsese is a genius, and I swear with each movie he puts out the quality of each dramatically improves over the last. Leonardo DiCaprio (or as I call him, Leo) was near the top of his game in this film. I can’t say he has ever put out a role that I didn’t enjoy.

This week followed the same pattern as previous weeks. Wake up, work, sleep, repeat. My class continues to be interesting. I love all the different theories and concepts of leadership, and I never realized how diverse the topic was until I started this class. It is a little nerve wracking to still be pushed behind because of all of the snow, and now that there may be MORE coming this upcoming week, it is just horrifying. It makes me wonder why I didn’t come for the summer term...

However, this week I got to devote a large chunk of my time to my civic engagement project. I had decided that I wanted to volunteer at the DC Veteran’s Administration Medical Center, or the DCVAMC. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, as I haven’t really done much volunteering before. I rose rather early on Monday to head out to my interview with Voluntary Services at the DCVAMC. I had to take the yellow to green lines, and then the Metro Bus to reach the facility. That was in and of itself an adventure, as I really don’t recall taking the green line yet so it was pretty unfamiliar territory. When I arrived I had an interview and that was it! I had a couple of options of where I wanted to volunteer, but I ultimately went with Caring Spoons. To follow up, this past Thursday I had my orientation at DCVAMC to learn all about volunteering. After that, I was able to meet with one of the coordinators of the Caring Spoons program to get a better idea of what it is all about. Caring Spoons is a program that allows volunteers to spend time with veterans during meals and assist them if necessary. It seems like something that really is for me so I am super excited to get started.

My only regret is that I didn’t get on the ball with the civic engagement planning sooner, as I could have potentially had an entire month more to volunteer as opposed to the roughly two I am going to have now.

This week we have President’s Lecture Series lecture at the Department of Agriculture which should be pretty cool, as it is our first big PLS event that involves ALL of the TWC interns and not just the Law and Criminal Justice program. I am definitely looking forward to it.

Ciao!