A Tale of Two Saturday Nights.

It was the best of times...never the worst of times.

Saturday night in Manhattan one week ago with lots of faces I knew.


Last night only one face I knew and a whole bunch of faces I didn't know in DC. I like both ways of exploring the nightlife. Knowing only a couple of people was fun because it allowed me to focus on the people I was with and good conversations. (Blurry because I don't know them well enough to make them pose over and over again for my blog.)


In Manhattan, we have certain things we like to drink. Belfast bombers are a staple. And so are taking photos for my mom before we chug drink the delightful drink.


In DC, sometimes we trade in the traditional for the new and trendy. Churchkey has over 500 different beers and great delicious bar food to go with it. Think Eggplant panini, flatbread pizza, and shrimp corn dogs. I was there with a beer pro and had three different tasty brews. I'm not a great beer drinker, but I loved everything I tried last night.


Inevitably during a night on the town, someone will insist on eating gross greasy food. Usually boys are the ones clamoring for food. In Manhattan all I wanted was one donut. Instead we ended up with a pool table full of Gumby's, including pokey sticks and dessert pizza. I insisted on dessert pizza because of my perpetual sweet tooth.


Predictable to their nature, the boys last night insisted on food. We walked from Churckey to Ben's Chili Bowl, one of my favorite places in all of DC.


I was pretty sure that I would regret chili cheeseburger and halfsmokes so I stuck to diet coke. I already had a chocolate cupcake, a homemade hostess cupcake, at Churchkey so I was set.

I debate in my head all the time what will happen when I am done at GMU. I am so happy here, but I was incredibly homesick when I was in Manhattan with my friends and family. Last week Rachel told me to quit. As she pointed out, I have only been here for four months, and I need to calm down about what happens in 2011. I think she is right. I don't need to be so worried about what happens next and where I belong. Take these two Saturday nights. Both had their merits, their laughs and a few good stories. Both of these places have a strong pull for me. I feel loved at home, and I feel independent here. I miss the kids at NW terribly but love the staff at Key already.

Do you know what comes next in Dicken's famous first line? It's fairly appropriate I think for a tale of two Saturday nights. "It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness..."

I like it. For now my life will continue to be a blend of the two cities that pull at my heart. And I'm going to learn to like that too so I don't miss any fun.