Crazed and Amused...and Home

DC is everything I remembered and more.

I'm back in a job where I work more than I should and I'm challenged in new ways. I'm learning a new mission. I come home exhausted and unable to explain what I did in a day because to describe it wouldn't do it justice.

My job demands that I travel, but only around the DC-metro area, so I spend more time in my car than in my office. As a result lunch is either a semi-healthy lunch inhaled around 3 PM, or a granola bar (or um...Combos...maybe) that I grab at a 7-11 between meetings and consume, obviously, in the car.

Wanderlust

wan·der·lust [won-der-luhst] noun
a strong, innate desire to rove or travel about.

I lived in the same house from the summer before kindergarten through high school graduation, and came back to that same house for 24 years until my parents retired to the beach. There are too many memories to recall readily though I know they involved hours on the phone, laughter, tears, boy band obsession, and an absurd amount of neon.

I loved growing up in that neighborhood, with the same friends living on my street.  I met so many of them when we entered kindergarten together at 5 years old and (thanks to Facebook) I'm still in touch with a lot of them today.  Throughout college and beyond, I loved to come home to the same house, the same mall, and...Ukrop's.

Because of this, I always thought that I would find a home quickly after I graduated (whether it was Richmond or not...it was DEFINITELY going to be a sweet southern town), marry my high school/college boyfriend, settle down, have kids, and give them a similar experience.

Wow. 

While I'm sure that there are plenty of people who make this kind of firm declaration and follow through, I clearly was not one of them.

District of Love

It was another fun time in DC last weekend!  Having the time to spend just enjoying the city prompted me to bring a new style of post to my blog - my favorite things!  What better place to start it with than one of my favorite cities? So let me start with...

Where to stay?

Despite the fact that I have a lot of friends that live in and around the district, I like to stay in hotels.  Usually, the dogs are an excuse to get a room, but I love the feeling of a true "vacation" that I get with staying in a hotel!  Especially the dog-friendly Kimpton Hotels.  By being an "In Touch" member you get free internet and a credit at the mini bar.  Bonus that they are cool and boutique-y.  There are a bunch of them in DC, but our two favorites are:

• Hotel Palomar, when we can get a good deal (because it's usually a little more pricey) - Great location in Dupont Circle area, modern feel, awesome restaurant/lounge (Urbana), huge rooms and a pool to boot!
• Hotel Helix - Usually the cheapest, but still in an awesome location now that the 14th Street/Logan Circle area has boomed.  Cool pop-art theme (the minibar has Pop Rocks and Pez!) and very cool outdoor patio for their restaurant/lounge.

An oldie but goodie...Eli and Marlon enjoying their time at the Palomar

Where to eat?

Oh there are SOOO many delicious places to eat in DC (one of the reasons that it was really really hard to lose weight when I lived there!)! But my favorites include:

Open City (Woodley Park) - ProMo and I used to go to breakfast there at 6 AM every Friday and every time it was fantastic, delicious, fresh and unique.  Love it.

Napoleon (Adams Morgan) - Another neighborhood favorite, this restaurant is better known as a champagne bar late night.  But I've only enjoyed the brunch there.  The crepes are delicious, the salads are fresh, but what keeps this place in my rotation even after we moved away is the french onion soup. To. die. for. I actually said, "Come to mama" when I saw the waiter bringing the soup to our table.  No lie.  I can't really explain why I love it so much because it defies explanation. Just trust me. And get some!

Logan Tavern (Logan Circle) - Warm homey feel, nicest waiters ever, and delicious comfort food that is surprisingly affordable.  I would give a specific recommendation but everything I've gotten here is delicious.

Obviously there are a lot of other yummy places that I enjoy, but these are the places that I miss when I'm not there.

Where to dance?

[This category and the next would both say "Adams Mill" if that amazing place was still open, but alas I have to go with other choices...]

Well, there are a lot of fun places to dance and PLENTY of places I've never been to (especially some of the newer places that have a lot of buzz), but when I don't mind paying a little extra for drinks and I want to go somewhere that I (usually) don't have to worry about being hit with the "ball and socket," I go to Tattoo on K Street.  It's tiny but they have screens that play videos and the DJs are usually pretty amazing. It's my little piece of Vegas in DC.

Where to feel like a local...

Well again, this would've been my category reserved for the Best Bar in DC, but I'll say that anywhere that you find yourself saying, "Let's just go to _______ " is likely your neighborhood joint.

So in honor of the Mill, I'll leave this spot blank and say that any place is "your place" if you know them and they know you! Where you can walk in and they will know your name, give you a hug, and start prepping your favorite drink...

And finally, because my favorite thing about DC is my friends, if you want to see some really cool pictures of DC, check out my friend LL's photography blog! Beautiful!

Hey DC peeps...got any faves you'd like to add? Feel free to comment!

A Valentine

And now...a serious post. My Valentine to the Mill.

Dear Adams Mill Bar & Grill, a.k.a. "The Best Bar in DC" [as declared by ProMo, Spring 2007]:

Oh, Mill. I read the stories. I know your doors have closed for good.  Will you become another bar? A (gasp!) Panera? Too soon to tell.  But rather than focus on the sadness I feel for those who will never know the awesomeness that is a refreshing beverage on a summer afternoon on your patio, I will choose to relive some of our happier times together.

My attempt to make my bar photo look artsy :)

I guess it all started with that season of bachelorette parties - 2003? The patio, the bar, the fact that you were a little off the beaten path (a little, not much).

We parted ways for a few years but met up again (it was fate!) when ProMo and I moved to Adams Morgan and you were just down the street. It was love! There were the lazy evenings with tater tots, beer and great conversation with the most kick-ass bartenders ever.  There were also those crazy nights of dancing until the lights came on and everyone got kicked out but us.  Usually we fell somewhere in between. And we loved it every time.

rawr

Sure your bathrooms were busted, the drink glasses stuck to the bar, and your upper floors were sweltering no matter the season or number of people in there. But you made up for it in so many ways:

You let our dog come with us to happy yappy hour on the patio.

Marlon ready to do some grass roots marketing at yappy hour

You hosted ProMo's graduation party.

Tame moments at ProMo's graduation party

You helped us make a love connection with Dana and Dan.  You had our backs when we "defended" our bar stools. You didn't care what time we came in, we were always welcome. We always saw friendly, familiar faces...even after we moved.

Santa Crawl 2010.  Didn't know it would be out last time at the Mill!

We know you had a rep for being a typical dive bar, but to us you were more: lots of love, smiles, dancing and drinks.

Best bartenders at the best bar!

We'll miss you!!

South of which border?

Despite what some people on the streets of NYC and the employees of Chipotle think, I am filipina, not hispanic. [True story...Chipotle employees always start talking to me in Spanish.  OK, maybe not in the 'burg because they're all white here.  But seriously, everywhere else.]

Traditionally, filipinos are known as asian.  I do find the term "pacific islander" a little more exotic, but I've been told that this term is meant for people from Fiji, Guam, Hawaii, etc. and not filipinos.  Hmph.

Apparently this distinction is not just confusing for me.  For example, take this actual exchange between me and one of my closest friends (who I will not expose, though she may out herself):

The Setting: The Mill, aka "Best Bar in DC," circa 2008, T-Pain playing in the background

Friend: Did you know that Jeremy [Mill bartender and CLEARLY asian] is asian?
Me: [blink]
Friend: [smile, sip of drink]
Me: Are you serious?
Friend: Yeah! Did you know that?
Me: Um...yeah. I did. [staring. sip of drink.]
Friend: Oh. [blink]
Me: Wait, you know that I'm asian right?
Friend: Oh come on! You're not asian. [Sip of drink. Exasperated look.] You're a pacific islander.

Fair enough.

The two non-asian bartenders at the Mill, circa 2008.

Regardless, I do believe that filipinos do get a little confused about our heritage.  Things are distinctly filipino, but their roots are in both asian (noodle and rice based dishes) and spanish (meat, meat and more meat dishes) culture.  For example, we have eggrolls, which we call "lumpia."  However, instead of being filled with cabbage and veggies like chinese eggrolls, they are primarily filled with meat (beef or pork), potatoes and carrots.

mmm...lumpia

Here are four of my favorite, most distinctive filipino traits.  I've seen a lot of these lists, but not for a while.  So if you know or love a filipino, feel free to comment and add!

1. At least one of following three wooden carvings will be hanging on the home of a filipino: a large fork and spoon, a set of tinikling dancers, a portrait carving of the last supper.  My parents had all 3. Promo and I have the fork and spoon.

2. We love to sing and dance. I could tell you the obvious which is that most of us have our own karaoke (or "Magic Sing"), but I prefer to illustrate this fact by giving you a list of famous filipino entertainers, who sing, dance, or both:

• Bruno Mars (who wants to be a billionaire so f'in bad, but will catch a grenade for ya)
• apl.de.ap. (from the Black Eyed Peas. dirty bit.)
• Nicole Scherzinger (Pussycat Doll, and all-around hottie. Dontcha wish your girlfriend was hot like her?)
• Charice (cute pop singer in her own right, most recently seen on Glee defecting to Vocal Adrenaline)
• Darren Criss (hot Blaine from Glee. A Teenage Dream.)
• Vanessa Hudgens (High School Musical ex of the dreamy Zach Efron)
• Cheryl Burke (Dancing with the Stars, object of Ochocinco's affection for 5 minutes)
• Napoleon D'umo (from Tabitha & Napoleon, aka Nappytabs, aka kick-ass choreographers)
• ...and pretty much every act on America's Best Dance Crew

3. We have a very distinct way of getting someone's attention.  To type it does not do it justice.  It is a very terse, loud, "Pssshht!" As a follow up, we will sometimes say "Oy" but usually "Pssshht!" does the trick.

4. That said, we are very friendly, loving people.  Close family friends are called "auntie and uncle" (or "tita and tito" if we're going full pinoy) and we legit use the term "godbrother/sister" to describe the child of our godparents (or our parents' godchildren).  In truth, my godsisters and godbrothers are truly like family to me.  To even call them cousins isn't descriptive enough.

The fam at a beach in the Philippines, December 1976. Yes, I am topless.  Don't judge.

So I don't know tagalog (but my goal is to learn it this year!).  And my southern accent still creeps out every now and then.  And I may or may not have been pulled into the Puerto Rican Day parade in NYC...

But I am definitely a proud filipina! Mabuhay!