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Showing posts from 2013

Reflections on 38 Years

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Today I am 38. Some days I feel not a day over 20. Others, I feel 80. This is aging, I guess.  Where you look back and think, "How did I get here? I can't possibly be this old."  I'm getting closer to 40 (which, for the record, I don't fear), and this makes me think a little about where I have been and where I'm going. I'm not where I thought I'd be when I was a kid, or ten or even five years ago.  But where I am is pretty good . . . and I need to remember what I have done, instead of kicking myself for what I haven't yet. I've been to Europe, but not Asia. There's much of the world that I still haven't seen.  But I will. I've met a President, a pop star, an Academy Award Winner, and a Supreme Court Justice (two, actually), but not Cher.  She continues to elude me, but she's still kicking and so I am. I've learned the value of sunscreen, a comfortable pair of shoes, expensive olive oil, and nice champagne. They're

Remembering, With Love

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Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.   It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.     It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. My grandmother died yesterday after an entirely too-long battle with Alzheimer's.  As the oldest grandchild, I was lucky to have known her when she was healthy, which she was during all of my childhood .  It' s going to be hard to say goodbye to her this week, but it was much harder to slowly say goodbye as she descended into her illness. But that's not what I will remember about Grandma.  I will remember how nearly-perfect she was.  There aren't words to describe the depths of her kindness, there just aren't.  I'm not a religious person, but Grandma was -- and she lived her life in such a way that religious or not, it was an example for everyone.  When I think about her, the verse above comes to

Lotteries, Luck, and the Women Who Came Before Me

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Last week the Powerball soared to nearly $600 million.  As is often the case when it gets to that point, I bought a ticket.  I didn't win.  Well, I didn't win the jackpot . . . but I did win $4.  I doubled my money.  And that's not nothing.  That got me thinking about luck and winning and how often we end up ahead, and don't really notice it because we're too busy worrying about what we didn't win. Take for instance the line of women from whom I come. My mother's mother grew up in a working-class Italian family in the '30s and '40s in D.C.  When she was in high school, there were sororities that all the girls joined.  Unless you were Italian -- you weren't allowed to join, because of who you were.  A lesser woman might've admitted defeat and sat at home feeling sorry for herself.  Not my grandmother.  She and her friends started their own sorority. They continued to meet regularly for more than 60 years -- in fact, until she died, she cont

. . . and the Net Will Appear

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I'm not a risk taker. I follow rules, take the road most taken, and generally do what is expected of me.  And lately all of that rule following has made me pretty . . . uncomfortable.  I'm mid-career, mid-stride, nearly mid-life.  And frankly, I'm quite tired of being mid-anything.  I'm ready to shake things up, make a change, move on to whatever's next. Trouble is, I have no idea what's next.  You're probably thinking, "Duh, WashingTina, nobody knows what's next. That's the whole point, isn't it?"  I don't do so well with not knowing what's next.  I'm a planner.  I like to know what's for dinner by breakfast.  I like to know what I'm doing on Saturday by Monday afternoon.  I like to know where my next paycheck is coming from, how many vacation days I've earned, and the exact number of pennies in my bank account.  Not very exciting. I was at an event recently focused around creativity.  Despite my straight an

On Gay Marriage

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I'm all for open minds, but for me, there are few issues on which there can be no debate. For me, gay marriage is one of these. My sister is gay.  And I think she deserves every right I do. She is not "less than" because of who she loves. Let me say that again, because of who she LOVES .  Are we even debating love now? In a time where we are torn apart by ire, and vitriol, and hate?  Are we so consumed by limiting who can LOVE? But aside from my familial connection, I think every human being deserves equal treatment -- medical and retirement benefits; tax deductions; the right to visit the one you love, unfettered, in a hospital; the right to raise children together; even the right to disagree, dissolve, and divorce.  I don't think there are a separate set of rules for certain segments of the population based on w ho you love . Period. My friends, the Gay Lawyer and his husband the Gay Historian (and their baby, the Most Beautiful Child in the World ), have been

The Luck of the Washingtonian

I love this city. I love it more than I can find words to express.  There are so many awesome things to do, see, and experience here.  None more exciting than the inauguration of the President.  The peaceful transfer of power, the pomp and circumstance never fails to make me feel proud of my country. Every four years, the eyes not just of our country, but of the world, are turned toward Washington to witness history.  This year, I was lucky enough to attend the inaugural ball, to see the President and First Lady up close, sharing their first dance.  It was literally the greatest night I can think of (besides my own wedding ).  I'm going to be high about it for weeks. My exciting experience, and the incredible luck of being able to participate in something so special, got me reflecting on just how fortunate I am to live in this city.  It's easy to forget, when you hear from your friend on the Hill that they had a lunch meeting with the Speaker (of the House, obviously), or tha