Birthstaycation

There are few things on this planet that get me more excited than the thrill of my birthday.  In some sort of blissful alignment of the stars, I scored 10,  yes count them TEN, days off from work.  Usually the sound of a week and a half off from work would send me barreling toward the airport, but travel was not going to work out for me this year.  So I decided to have a staycation for my birthday... actually, I had a BIRTHSTAYCATION.

In order to have a successful birthstaycation, one must plan well in advance and invest in quality research to fill your days so that you don't end up watching reruns of Full House on TBS.  Luckily, I had some besties coming to town to help me out.
Cat & the DC bridesmaids- pre-birthday trip to Florida to see this lovely lady tie the knot then home with then brought the celebration back home.
Meg- flew all the way from Oregon to celebrate my actual birthday with me.  It takes a true friend to manipulate their work schedule and make it look like a coincidence.
Laura- a quick redline metro ride from Bethesda.
Kelly- rounding out the weekend to help me keep celebrating all the way from North Carolina.
Audrey- couldn't resist a reason to come to the city from SW Virginia.
Lo- roommate, friend, and equally as ridiculous about birthdays.

Here's how the week went:
Birthday tapas at One Lounge- I highly suggest the happy hour deals!
Happy hour at Fire & Sage- an unexpected treat with Meg post birthday shopping.  Because any time can be happy hour, but specials are from 4-7 pm.
Dinner at Ping Pong Dim Sum- come hungry, leave hungry.
Best burger in DC at Desperados followed by my neighborhood dive Stetson's.
Bottomless brunch at 14K Lounge.  Worth the groupon, don't go back at full price.
Climbing at Sportrock with my favorite climbing partner Kel.  Felt so good to ruin my manicure with gristle and chalk.
Birthday PARTY at Policy & Saint Ex.

The Year of Becky had its successes and "rainchecks" (we won't call them failures just yet, because every year is the Year of Becky), and ended with a bang.  This is shaping up to be one of the best years yet as I romance my new city, find some romance myself, make amazing new friends while nurturing some of the oldest, and gameface for life.

Absentee ballot

Election week is here and it could not be more welcomed in my house.  Time to start filibustering some legislation and stop the TV ads. By popular request, I'm showing you some of the best of my fall since you last saw me...

I celebrated Columbus Day by visiting the Reading Room of the Library of Congress.  The RR is only open to the public 2 days per year.  The other days it is a research library, full of people way more smart and motivated than I am.

A simple afternoon walk can easily turn into a tourist attraction in DC.  When you're surrounded by so much history and architecture, you have to take the time to stop and smile for the camera.

A cool fall day at the Jefferson Memorial.  Lulu discovered ducks in the tidal basin for the first time.  When she saw them again at Meridian Hill Park, she dove straight in after them.  

Great Falls is a fantastic destination for a day hike.  About 20-30 minutes from DC and absolutely beautiful scenery.  The parking lot can be a little crowded, especially on a warm, sunny day, but if you push your hike beyond the first couple of overlooks it gets much less busy.  We went on the Virginia side, but the Maryland side has lots of rock scrambling that looks like a lot of fun.  There were climbers setting up top ropes for a few easy climbs, which is definitely something for me to look into.

Work has been great!  It's a busy schedule and I think the grass is always greener on the other side of the pasture.  Some days I love sleeping until noon and having lazy mornings/afternoons while other days I hate that I miss out on the "normal people life" and happy hours/nights out.  I have gotten acclimated to the hospital and am starting to dive into more projects.

Halloween was great fun too, despite the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.  We faired pretty well in the District despite the grave forecast.

We are heading up on my favorite season... Birthday season!  It's going to be a busy week then I have ten days off for play.  I'm calling it my Birthstaycation.  Stay tuned.