I miss her very much today. It feels like one of my limbs is missing.

I need to be more motivated to finish things

Yet another drawing I have never finished.

Today was, relatively speaking, a rather balmy day. The high when I got off of work was around 63, so Monica and I went for a walk up the Potomac trail. All the leaves are off the trees but it was nice nonetheless. When I woke up this morning I felt like complete crap, just feeling utterly overwhelmed with everything. Fortunately there are a lot of nice people where I work so I cheered up as the day progressed. I got to try some ports today. I tried a 10 year old tawny, the name of which I forget and two newer ports. One was a Zinfandel port, the name of which I also forget and the last one was a Bogle Petite Syrah port. They're interesting drinks, but I can't imagine anyone really wanting to drink them in any great volume. They're incredibly sweet. The 10 year old tawny tasted like raisins, maple sugar and almonds. I could almost imagine drizzling it onto ice cream or something. The others had much fruitier notes. The one good thing about working at a grocery store like Trader Joe's is that you have ample opportunity to learn about the finer points of food and beverages. I have been trying to absorb everything I can like a sponge. Champagne is made with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes. Cabernet Sauvignon has notes of black fruits like plum and blackberries. Merlot has fewer tannins than Cabernet. A young wine will not linger on the back of your tongue as long as a mature one. A Pinot Noir can be paired with blackened fish with pepper. I always wanted to go to culinary school, maybe this will be a way to pick up a thing or two for free.

The Purpose

This blog is for those people out there who sort of like me. I'm going to try to write a little bit daily. I say this knowing already that this probably won't happen. Washington DC is a great city but it's strange to be so disconnected from everyone I know. I think it was okay for a while there because it sort of felt like a vacation or something but now that I'm working and looking for places to stay, it's starting to sink in a little bit more that there is no point where I'm "going home". It has been weird experiencing a real winter. Starting out I was wearing two layers of pants everywhere because I couldn't tolerate even 40 degree weather. Now I routinely go outside in 30 degree weather with just a hooded sweatshirt. I guess that's the blood starting to thicken. It snowed a few days ago and then rained, turning the snow into sheets of ice on the ground. The sidewalks are treacherous where it is usually shady as there is a thick, slick layer of ice remaining. They cancelled school for two days in some places. I guess DCers aren't used to the snow either. Work was pretty  insane today. Since it's the day before the Superbowl, the aisles were packed with people trying to buy their avocados, sliced meats, chips and salsas for the big game, I sort of hate that I'm a blue-collared worker again. I guess I feel like I am above it but with this economy I suppose I should be thankful that I have employment at all. Wish me luck, hopefully I will get a better job soon. I miss you all. The photo I posted is some George Washington Masonic something or other. I see this often when I go into Old Town in Alexandria. It gives me the creeps. I hear that I should take a tour as it's even more disconcerting inside.