too much reality isn't good for a soul, esp for me since i unfortunately have a particularly limited tolerance for it. i experience more than i can physically cope with, just from reading the paper on the train, checking teh webz, dealing with people for most of the day, watching the news, and being subjected on a daily basis to tales of an acquaintance's heinous j-date misadventures. b/c of my darkening mood, i think it's time i wean myself from this once i'm home, and spend my evenings reading, playing video games, watching movies, etc. basically being unproductive. escapism may not accomplish much, but at least it keeps me sane.
some asked how DC is. so far so good. people are pretty chill. i haven't encountered as many crazies as i usually do in NY, but they're pretty much located in certain areas that everyone with a brain just avoids. it amazes me that NYC, a much larger city, was able to conquer its once-legendary crime problem, but people here still break into cars to steal burned CDs or smash your window and not take anything just to make a point. i talked to one guy who just leaves his car unlocked b/c there's nothing to take and it's better, he says, than having someone destroy his car trying to break in. but then i talked to someone else who had her crappy jeep cherokee stolen off her block twice in one month (she lives at cleveland park which is a decent area too). so i'm glad my car is hidden in a garage with other cars that cost 20x its worth. it's a POS compared to the two carrera 4s and the sweet M5 i've been drooling over. and, since i've had to drive a lot more, my car has been flashing me the check engine light and so i will probably spend a small fortune this weekend at the saab mechanic who apparently is not unlike jerry seinfeld's angry saab mechanic, for better or for worse.
i like my apt building. it's a high-rise. it looks like a hilton. there's a gym i've been feeling guilty about not using, and a pool, and the building has events for tenants with DJs and food, which i suspect are targeted for the singles, since everyone in my building is an unmarried lawyer / lobbyist in their 20s or 30s, which is an accurate representation of DC since i swear the city is entirely made up of such ivy league lawyer / lobbyist types, and people with vague backgrounds who work in think-tanks. and they should all STFU. haha no just kidding, they have been nice so far. but a very different scene than NY. i don't see any artists, or musicians, or those who do other financially-challenging things.
everyone i've met has been impassioned with one view or another. not like they're talking about it from some blogs they've read, but b/c they know it since they work in that particular area. so sometimes i feel like people are more genuinely versed and excited about certain subjects than people i've met in NY. and overall i've also been struck by how professionally-motivated DC folk are, but, although they're definitely an educated and (at least those i've met so far) a pleasant people, sometimes they come across as a bit bland.
they all like the redskins here. the baseball team of choice is not the nationals, but the baltimore orioles. like in NY, i've been hearing a lot of philly bashing. but everyone i've met has seriously lived in philly at one point in their lives, NY in another, boston, chicago, occasionally somewhere in california, and someplace overseas for a few years. i feel parochial in comparison. no one is from DC and i doubt they will stay here longer than 5 years.
but i'm enjoying it. i needed a change of pace and i got it.
Posted by L at October 1, 2008 06:19 PM