Winter? Huh?

This week started with the first REAL snowfall in DC this winter. It was all iced over by the next day, and most of the roads and sidewalks remained slippery. And I noticed on my commute to and from work that a significant number of women, of varying ages were wearing rainboots or Uggs -- I counted 10 pairs of Uggs at my Metro station, and five pairs of of rainboots.

While not a fan of Uggs, I will admit that I'm rather jealous of what I imagine are the wearer's warm feet. I'm not sure how I feel about rainboots, style-wise, but I do know that they're not good on ice. I personally wore hiking boots to brave the DC sidewalks, and I'm sure I'm committing a worse style faux-pas than others.

But the most ridiculous thing I've seen this past week: Women wearing heels with no socks or stockings.

Maybe these women don't want to schlep an extra pair of shoes to the office. Maybe they don't have to be on the frozen tundra of our sidewalks very much. But shoes with no socks when it's below freezing? Maybe the answer here is that I'm more of a Jewish Mother than I've realized... but this seems absolutely, utterly and completely ridiculous.

Anyhow. After two days of the cold (and ridiculous footwear, natch) the Boy and I decided to stop talking about him teaching me to snowboard, and actually make a day trip this Saturday to a ski resort for my lesson. We started assembling gear of his that I'd borrow, talked about what I should wear (long underwear, absolutely; fleece would be better than wool; are cashmere socks a bad idea?), and looked up prices for board rentals.

But now, we have to postpone our plans: It's going to be almost 75 in DC tomorrow, and not much colder than that at the mountain. Trust me, I am the last person to complain about nice weather -- when it gets to be spring, I will spend hours rhapsodizing about the warm weather, sunshine and flowers -- but this is insane weather for March.

I suspect the tourists will descend upon us once again. Cherry Blossom season is approaching, and this weekend could be a sneak preview.

I bet they make ridiculous footwear choices, too.

Quiet Day At Work

I'm ~trying~ to be productive. I swear....

My sister has a tumblr account, which is fascinating and beautiful, and after browsing through other users pages, I was quite tempted to sign up for my own account. But since I have this little corner of the internet to myself (not mention a rarely used LiveJournal account, along with my frequently updated Twitter and Facebook), I decided not to do it. Instead, I shall use this space more creatively, and with less self-consciousness.

To wit: I'm sharing some images from a new collection of amazing pre-1960 color photographs online, courtesy of the The Library of Congress and their new Flickr page


I am just blown away by these (sorry, gonna be cheesy) "captured moments". Maybe it's nostalgia of some sort, maybe it's simply respect for the artistry, maybe it's a combination of a few things. But I am just amazed by these.

I used to imagine myself quite the amature photographer. In 7th or 8th grade, I had a photography class at camp and was given a secondhand Minolta. I treasured that camera and would take with me everywhere, even after the class was over, using up roll after roll of film as I took photographs of the most mundane aspects of my daily life. I know my parents weren't exactly thrilled about processing all that film.

In high school, I took a chunk of my savings (mostly Bat Mitzvah money) to contribute towards a new Nikon. And I was taking photography classes again, so my shutterbug habit was less expensive, and more focused on completing class assignments.

And now, I'm addicted to my digital camera. I have so many random pictures and and videos from my daily life... perhaps I will have to start sharing them more often.

Shoes and Smoking

I wrote an entry last week about the interesting choices that DC women make in footwear during icy weather, but I didn't put it online -- partially from being swamped at work, but also because the weather has been delightfully spring-like for several days now, which made my thoughts (temporarily) irrelevant. But when the weather changes again in a few days, I'm sure the rain boots and Uggs will come out once more, which will provide me with a chance to share those particular musings.

In the meantime, I am fascinated with this article from the American Journal of Epidemiology, about a potential correlation between smoking and HPV:

Is Smoking an Independent Risk Factor for Invasive Cervical Cancer?

The strong correlation between smoking and exposure to oncogenic human papillomaviruses (HPVs) has made it difficult to verify the independent role of smoking in cervical carcinogenesis. .... The point estimates increased with increasing age at diagnosis and increasing cotinine level. This study confirms that smoking is an independent risk factor for cervical cancer/SCC in women infected with oncogenic HPVs. These findings emphasize the importance of cervical cancer prevention among women exposed to tobacco smoke.

Evidence that demonstrates the negative consequences of smoking just keep piling up. And when I see how tobacco uniquely effects women, I get more anxious for my friends who smoke. And angry at the tobacco companies ... but I won't go down that route just now.

Quote of the Day

"For peace of mind, resign as general manager of the universe."
~ Anonymous

OBAMA!!!!

The inauguration was amazing. I've never felt so exhilarated by the inauguration of a president! Granted, I did not watch the ceremony as one of the hundreds of thousands of people that gathered on the Mall -- an experience that I know was unlike any other -- but I still feel like I was a part of that incredible day.

My friends and I walked from Dupont Circle to my office on Pennsylvania Ave. At first, we were amazed at the quiet and empty streets:

Then, once we got into my office and joined my coworkers on the balcony, we had an incredible view of everyone on the street below:

I was amazed at how many people had poured into this city, impressed at how smoothly the Army and DC Police were managing the crowds... but ultimately, grateful that I wasn't stuck in those crowds. It was enough for me to watch the President and Vice President be sworn in on CNN, because we could then stand on the balcony to watch his motorcade make its progress from the Capitol to the White House:


We stayed for hours, watching as much of the parade as we could until our faces got too cold to stand outside. Just amazing.

Only in DC ...!

Quote of The Day

"Whatever is bringing you down, get rid of it. Because you’ll find that when you’re free . . . your true self comes out."

~ Tina Turner

Happy New Year, Happy New President!

I had jotted down what I thought were some witty observations about the pre-inaugural activity I've seen from the conference room windows at my organization, but I decided they were not nearly witty enough to actually post...

Instead, I will share this amusing news tidbit from Chicago: Extreme Makeover - Ossama's Hair Salon Now Obama's. "Business is better when your name evokes one of the nation's most popular figures, not one of its most hated..."

(Perhaps I'll come up with something more creative to share later this evening...)