Going Green in the Nation's Capital

Last weekend I drove down to Washington D.C. to visit my longtime friend, Jacob. While D.C. might not seem that far (I didn't think it was either), it is actually 6.5 hours away from Providence! I did have several people who doubted my ability to drive that long without harming myself or someone else (I am thankful- I know you are just looking out for me! But my parents, Nick, and my boss? I must be a worse driver than I thought), but I made it safely without making any wrong turns until I got into Washington D.C. (Not my fault, either- Google's directions were super confusing! Although, it probably wasn't Google's fault, either... a French architect designed the city layout.)

I couldn't resist putting this picture up (sorry,, Jake!)... apparently Jacob forgot to look in the shower when he was picking up his apartment.

A pictures of the houses near where Jacob lives... aren't the lovely?

The Washington National Cathedral is across the street from where he lives. I would have taken a picture of the view from his window, but it was rainy/overcast/foggy for most of the weekend.

On Saturday morning, Jacob took me exploring all over the city, but first we ventured into the business district to check out Jacob's office. He works in the Education and Resources Department for the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). If you are at all environmentally-savvy and into construction/architecture (okay, maybe there aren't that many of you), you may have heard of "LEED certification." According to the USGBC, "LEED certificate provides independent, third-party verification that a building project is environmentally responsible, profitable, and a healthy place to work." Their rating system looks at the following categories: site sustainability, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, regional priority, indoor environmental quality, location/linkages (is linkages a word?), and education and awareness. There are different levels of certification resulting from scores on their rating system, with the highest being "platinum," and naturally (no pun intended), since this building is their headquarters, it happens to have a platinum rating. Below are some of the highlights from my tour...

There is a fountain in their lobby- must add to indoor environmental quality. The stairs that are in front of the water fountain were made without using a crane. To have less impact on the environment, they used some type of polymer glue that Jacob compared to super-power duct tape.

Now this is a high-tech... there are sensors on the roof that adjust the shades automatically depending on the amount of light received. The light never reaches any of the workers' eyes (see how the desks are moved back?), so no one gets hot. There are even white carpet tiles that are designed to reflect more light into the room. They call this their "green corridor."

No, you are not dreaming--4 Starbucks coffee machines in the kitchen! I'm not even a coffee drinker and that makes me jealous! Love the orange wall, too.

They only eat on reusable plates and silverware (I don't remember what they are made out of, but it's something recycled), and the next bay of the dining area has dishwashers (Energy-Star certified).

An X-Box, fut ball table, and other games- how do they get anything done?

On a prominent wall, they arranged quotes (that employees had submitted prior to moving into this new building) in the shape of a tree. I think I might steel this idea (or did they steal it from me? I can't wait to use Wonderful Graffiti!)

Here is an up-close shot of the quotes... what quote would you add?

In the basement is an amazing gym- it's at more than twice the size of my apartment (which isn't that big, but still- a gym? So jealous!)

An outside view of the building

Around lunchtime, we went to Eastern Market to socialize with an organization Jacob has volunteered with since he arrived in D.C. Youth Ventures is about empowering youth to be leaders and change-makers in their communities. The students meet every Saturday for several months and eventually complete a business proposal (complete with $1k to get their idea off of the ground if it is approved.) We listened to several students talk about their experiences with the program. I didn't even know any of the students for more than 30 minutes but was still touched by their stories and attitudes.

After the presentations, Jacob and I wandered around the flea market with his friends Phipps and Maria. While I was looking at pashminas (which I now use *all* the time and take everywhere I go- thank yo Erica!), Jacob told me he had found a vendor selling old maps. I was randomly looking through a pile of European maps when I came across a map of Macedonia! Some of Nick's family roots are in Macedonia- he even visited his grandpa's first cousin and the family farm in what is now Slovenia when he went backpacking in Europe in 2006. I couldn't tell exactly how old this map was, but I knew it wasn't made anytime recently. I decided that I would walk around a little more to see if I really wanted to get it.

About 15 minutes later, I was back at his booth. The seller thought it was over 100 years old, and I ended up talking him into a 20% discount. If you hold the map up to the light, you can see the place where it was sewn into a book and the lines from how the paper was made. At the bottom of the map, someone had even written "CA 1750" in pencil. I'm pretty sure it's not 250 years old, but you never know! I am going to have someone look at the map before I put it in a frame. I was planning on surprising Nick with it when he came to visit, but I couldn't wait that long! I ended up scanning the map and sending him the picture when we were skyping. Nick is not the most animated person I've ever met, but his face lit up when he saw his gift (the best feeling in the world- this is why I love giving presents to other people... finding the perfect something for a friend or family member is so rewarding to me).

The Eastern Market area...

An inside view of the Eastern Market (not my picture)

The scanned map- it is a little blurry on the left because it wasn't put all the way down on the glass there (didn't want to wreck it!). Isn't it cool? Wish I could read Latin!

After the market, we walked through the mall area of the city. (When you are in another city, people that live there sometimes have a warped view of how far things are. For example, Phipps said that it wasn't far to the Jefferson Memorial. When you measure the distance, though, it is over 2 miles! Definitely got my exercise in that day.) This was my first visit to the Jefferson Memorial... it was a little cold, but the view was still very pretty.

The Washington Monument through the cherry blossom trees... I am going back to D.C. in the spring for a pharmacists' convention, which will be just before the Cherry Blossom Festival.

It is made entirely of marble- isn't that amazing?

Jacob and I at the Tidal Basin

Aren't the monuments beautiful at night? (Not my picture, unfortunately...)

Here are some more pictures I took when walking through the National Mall...

The Capitol Building

The original Smithsonian Museum...

After we visited Jefferson Memorial, we went to the Museum of Natural History. I've been there before, but it has one of my favorite exhibits- Gemstones and Minerals! (Of course I would like that one- I love anything bright and shiny!) Jacob likes the dinosaur exhibit, which is actually pretty amazing... some of the fossils are even a little scary looking!

Here I am trying to imitate Jacob's favorite one in the exhibit...

And here is Jacob trying to do the same. Who won?

I couldn't pass up a giant dinosaur iced sugar cookie at the museum's cafe!

I tried to take a picture of the absolutely gorgeous pink gemstones I liked at the exhibit, but it never turns out to look anything like what you see in person.

The Hope Diamond (obviously not my picture)... Too bad it belongs to the people of the United States, or I'd try to convince someone to buy it for me! :)

That night we went out with a group of Jacob's friends in Chinatown and had an absolute blast! Jacob's friends were so nice, and we got along instantly (or at least I thought so).

Jacob and I on the Metro

Mollie and Jacob on the Metro

I don't remember if this is before or after Anne and I rescued a deaf girl who was passed out in the bathroom... you never know when knowing a bit of sign language will come in handy!

Why do boys constantly feel the need to ruin pictures?

We took about five pictures of the four of us (left to right): Phipps, yours truly, Jacob, Mollie. This is honestly the best one we got.... the whole thing reminded me of being in a photo booth.

Thanks for a great weekend! I'm looking forward to visiting D.C. in the spring!

50 Natural Highs

This is something I've had for almost ten years. Some of the things are not as relevant as others (do long distance phone calls actually exist these days?), but others still ring true. I hope you enjoy this list as much as I do.

50 Natural Highs

1. Falling in love.
2. Laughing so hard your face hurts.
3. A hot shower.
4. No lines at the supermarket
5. A special glance.
6. Getting mail
7. Taking a drive on a pretty road.
8. Hearing your favorite song on the radio.
9. Lying in bed listening to the rain outside.
10. Hot towels fresh out of the dryer.
11. Finding the sweater you want is on sale for half price.
12. Chocolate milkshake. (or vanilla!)
13. A long distance phone call.
14. A bubble bath.
15. Giggling.
16. A good conversation.
17 The beach.
18. Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter.
19. Laughing at yourself.
20. Midnight phone calls that last for hours.
21. Running through sprinklers.
22. Laughing for absolutely no reason at all.
23. Having someone tell you that you're beautiful.
24. Laughing at an inside joke.
25. Friends.
26. Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you.
27. Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep.
28. Your first kiss (either the very first or with a new partner).
29. Making new friends or spending time with old ones.
30. Playing with a new puppy.
31. Having someone play with your hair.
32. Sweet dreams.
33. Hot chocolate.
34. Road trips with friends.
35. Swinging on swings.
36. Wrapping presents under the Christmas tree while eating cookies.
37. Song lyrics printed inside your new CD so you can sing along without feeling stupid.
38. Going to a really good concert.
39. Making eye contact with a cute stranger.
40. Winning a really competitive game.
41. Making chocolate chip cookies.
42. Having your friends send you homemade cookies
43. Spending time with close friends.
44. Seeing smiles and hearing laughter from your friends.
45. Holding hands with someone you care about.
46. Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change.
47. Riding the best roller coasters over and over.
48. Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a present from you.
49. Watching the sunrise.
50. Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day.

With a Little Help From My Friends

This week I was fortunate enough to have three very special visitors- it is always delightful to have friends visit Woonsocket.

On Wednesday night, I went out for drinks and desserts with Megan and Dave at River Falls. Dave was actually the pharmacist that hired me to work as a pharmacy technician six years ago. To this day, I still remember my interview in the counseling room over spring break of my freshman year of college. My friends and I had planned a road trip for the second half of the week, but I wanted to make sure that I had a job for the summer to help in my efforts to get into pharmacy school (and to make sure I wanted to be a pharmacist- how awful would it be if I had gone through six years of school and then decided I hated pharmacy!). Dave was the pharmacy manager, and Megan was the lead technician that worked at his store. I couldn't have asked for better examples than Megan and Dave for my first pharmacy experience.

Megan was a wonderful teacher- extremely patient, hands-on, and a good communicator, all while being positive. She made the pharmacy a great place to work- I can honestly say that there was not one day that I dreaded going in to work at that pharmacy. An early memory that sticks out is being amazing at how many patients' names Megan knew. She was always the first to address customers, even if she was in the middle of something- a lesson that I carry with me to this day. (People just want to be acknowledged!)

Over the last six years, I have worked in more than a dozen different pharmacies, and I have never worked with someone as compassionate and and passionate as Dave. He went the extra mile to ensure his patients had the best care possible. He would even arrive at work an hour early to have a one-on-one consultation with patients that needed help. I also respected Dave because he never asked his to staff to do anything he wouldn't do.... he'd ring out customers at the register, put away stock bottles, etc. While Dave was checking prescriptions, he would quiz me on side effects, counseling points, brand name, mechanism of action, etc. (this is all in my first two years of pharmacy school!). The pharmacy was well-run, thanks to Dave.

Along with Megan and Dave, there were a number of other outstanding pharmacists, technicians, and interns that I worked with at that store that helped me to be successful. I just finished the book, "Outliers," by Malcolm Gladwell- it tackles the question of why some people are more successful than others. In one section of the book, he talks about the effect that opportunity has on a person's success. Some people are just in the right place at the right time and/or know the right people. Of course, people who become successful still must work hard and take advantage of the opportunities provided to them, but the fact that they have had an opportunity for an experience that allows them to excel is a large contributor to their success. In some ways, I feel like I have had this advantage... I worked for Dave, who introduced me to Amy, who introduced me to Ron, who told me about this residency. Right place, right time, right people.

On Thursday night, Colleen came to spend the night with me. Colleen is one of Nick's classmates (well, former, she is graduating this year) that was in Bloomington with him their first two years of med school. There was a small group of them (less than 30 students), so there was a group of them that became very good friends. Colleen had an interview at Brown on Friday, and I was happy to offer up my place for a free place to stay. (If you are not familiar with medical schools, Brown has an *amazing* program- not only is Colleen smart, she has a lot of international volunteer experience, making her an ideal candidate for just about anywhere.) It's only about 20 minutes from Providence (well worth the drive to save $100+ if you ask me!), and it all worked out really well. She had to go to a dinner on Thursday night (I guess they want to make sure the candidates aren't completely socially awkward? I'm not sure), which let me finish cleaning my apartment before she got there. I hadn't really had a chance to sit down and talk with Colleen (we have hung several times but not really appropriate settings for an in-depth conversation). She was kind enough to let me pick her brain on quite a few topics- med school, surgery, my boyfriend, residencies,research, etc. Hope your interview went well, Colleen!

I was going to go out to dinner with Megan and Dave on Friday, but the group they were working with at the office was taking them to dinner at Foxwoods. I've yet to go there, but from what I've heard, it sounds nice. (Somehow gambling more than once this year just doesn't make sense financially- it's not very prudent.) From all of the whirlwind activity from the week, I was exhausted by Friday. I was planning on watching Sixteen Candles (When Debbie quoted this movie a few weeks ago, I looked at her like I had no idea what she was talking about- she had the movie at home and said I had to watch it to understand her generation.), but I never made it that far. I woke up the next morning on the couch with all of the lights still on in my apartment. Oops!

More to come on my adventures from this weekend!

I Know You Want One

I was sitting at my desk earlier this week, minding my own business, when my boss came to my desk. I see Debbie multiple times every day, so it was no surprise except for the fact that she was holding a present for me! She told me she ordered it for me as a Christmas present, but it turned up in the mail the day after I left for vacation. When I ripped the wrapping paper off, I was ecstatic... Debbie got me a Snuggie!

You might be familar with the Snuggie, but if not, it's "the blanket with sleeves." They have ads all over tv. (Click here to see a Snuggie ad.) At first it seemed like a joke, but before I knew it, they started advertising for different types of Snuggies... zebra-stripe, pint-sized, etc. I think it is one of those things you secretly covet but would never buy yourself. And not only did I get my very Snuggie, I got a Purdue Snuggie!

I immediately opened the box and tried it on at the office- I couldn't wait to wear it! (Note: the office can be drafty where I sit, but I'm not sure that a Snuggie is very professional.) Alma, who sits next to me, heard the comotion and wanted me to come show her my new present. I ended up seeing Troy, who now calls me "Grandma." (Last week my neck was bothering me, so I had a heating pad on my chair to loosen up the muscles. The addition of a Snuggie probably didn't help my case.)

Warm and cozy in my new Snuggie!

Thanks, Deb! I love it!

This Is Your Song

So many things have happened since I wrote a decent blog post that I don't even know where to start! Since I know some of you may be looking forward to seeing some recent pictures, I think I'll work in reverse chronological order.

After only one week in Rhode Island, I flew home Friday night for the Indiana School of Medicine annual St. Vitus formal. (Note: When Nick and I went to Europe this past June, we visited Prague Castle, which houses the St. Vitus Cathedral that the dance is named after. When we arrived to tour the cathedral, there was over a 2-hour wait! We decided to check out another history exhibit and revisit St. Vitus afterwards. When we came back, there was a sign on the door stating "Closed early for a special event." You have got to be kidding me! Thousands of miles away from home, and it is closed on the day we visit.) Nick invited me to go last year, and I had an absolute blast, even though I didn't know that many people. Two of my very best friends were going to be there, and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to get dressed up. (I mean, how often do you get to do that any more? Most weddings don't lend themselves to semi-formal attire, at least around here.) Chelsea's husband, Kyle, started medical school this fall, and June, who is in her third year of school, transferred to the Indy campus to complete her rotations.

Here is a picture I took of St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague- isn't it beautiful? I still can't believe I took this myself... it looks like it belongs on a postcard.

Nick in front of St. Vitus

Here I am pouting on the steps... looks like we'll have to make another trip to Prague!

I didn't have to think twice about what I was going to wear. About a year ago, my Grandma M gave me a dress that was hers from the 1950's. There are only two female grandchildren on that side of the family (Katie, you can always borrow it if you'd like to!), so I didn't have to put up a fight for it. Toula, the lady who has been doing alterations on my dresses since I was a junior in high school, did an absolutely fabulous job on the dress. The top had to be taken out, the zipper replaced, the bow fixed, etc. The dress was in great shape, and I wanted to make sure whatever we did wouldn't compromise its integrity.

The finished product...

Before the dance, Nick and I headed over to Kyle and Chelsea's house for dinner. Considering the type of event, one might assume that we had a formal meal... wine, steak or chicken, some kind of cooked vegetable, and another starch. When I talked to Chelsea, though, we decided that having margaritas and a taco bar would be much more fun! We opted not to get dressed up until after dinner to avoid any fashion emergencies or break downs (except for Nick, that is... apparently he doesn't spill or at least thinks he's too cool to join us). Naturally, I had left my camera at Nick's apartment during dinner, but I'll post Chelsea's pictures when she sends them to me.

St. Vitus is held at a different location every year (third years on the student council plan the event). Last year it was held at the Indianapolis Public Library, which might sound a bit strange but was actually a great venue. This year it was at the Indiana Roof Ballroom. The last time I went there was for a Brian Setzer Orchaestra concert more than 10 years ago. It is designed to look like a European village, complete with stucco walls and balconies. I think my two favorite features are the giant wooden dance floor (hello, decals!) and the second floor balcony that is accessible to guests. You can read about some more of the Roof's history here. I tried to take pictures of the room, but my camera didn't do the lighting justice (or maybe it was a user error!). Either way, I've included some pictures taken by professionals.

The second floor balcony adds a touch of romance

The ballroom set up for a wedding- I love the dramatic lighting

I only include this demonstrate how crazyy I am when it comes to certain things. (I'm not sure that crazy is the correct way to describe my behavior but that will have to do for now.) For example, taking a picture of the wooden floor. (Decals, anyone?)

We had a wonderful time talking, dancing, and laughing with friends. Without further ado, here are the rest of the pictures from the night...

Doesn't Nick look handsome?

Chelsea wore a floor-length, light pink dress, which was absolutely stunning.

Lana and Aakash working the dance floor

David, Nick's roommate, has classic style- reminds me of Frank Sinatra, Harry Connick, Jr., etc.

Chelsea, June, and yours truly (I am so jealous of June's haircut- she wears it so well)

I can't take him anywhere...

... except to the dance floor
I know it might look like it, but I am not naked! (I'd blame this on the photographer, but I don't remember who took it.)

What a gorgeous couple- I love that you can just tell how happy they are together from this picture
Stealing a kiss on the dance floor...
No, they are not in a gang... Celebrating 4 years of med school (Well, technically Nick is at 3.5, but who's counting)

And my favorite picture from the whole night (I think David snapped this one when we weren't looking).....

At the end of the night, without anyone noticing, Nick and I went to the center of the dance floor and sang each other one of our favorite songs...

How wonderful life is while you're in the world...