DC Can Be a Real Drag

Every year, there is an event that takes place here in DC that is unlike any I could even imagine in my hometown of Salt Lake City, UT. Yes, I'm referring to the annual DC Drag Race. A whole bunch of guys dressed up in women's clothing and over-the-top makeup, and they parade up and down the street for a while and let everyone take pictures of/with them. Then they all have a short running race (about a block long). It's quite the festive atmosphere and a bunch of friends and I enjoyed watching the whole spectacle.

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Meeting My Dairy Godmother

I haven't had frozen custard in years. Which means it was high time to end that drought. My friend Tabbi was kind enough to show me the best frozen custard joint in the Greater Washington DC area:We all met up at the store and enjoyed some delicious flavors, including the day's special (oatmeal cinnamon cookie). I devoured my first cup and went back for some chocolate, even though when I got there I wasn't very hungry. Thanks for reminding me how much I love this delicious treat and showing me where to satisfy any future cravings I may have, Tabbi (in the Aggies sweatshirt below)!

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Rollin' with the Amish Homies

Every now and again it's nice to get out of the city and do a bike ride in the country. This weekend a large group of us ventured out to rural Pennsylvania to do a little pedaling among the Amish.

We had different groups that did different distances (10, 15, 30, and 60 miles) and people did whatever pace they wanted given the bike they brought (from tri-bikes to mountain bikes and even some beach cruisers).

It was a fairly leisurely ride, including many stops along the way. We stopped for pictures and just to chat, to see interesting buildings, and to have snacks.

When we got back to our cars, the ride's sponsor (Crazy Richard's Peanut Butter) had provided PB&J sandwiches and energy drinks to satisfy our hunger and thirst. The whole experience was wonderful and I can't wait for the next Amish ride in the springtime.

Note: I forgot to take my camera battery off the charger when I woke up that morning at 6 am, which I didn't realized until I got there. So... unfortunately I don't have any of my own pictures from the ride. My most sincere apologies. Here is Amber's blogpost, though, which has some pics.

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Chance Encounter with "Nephi"

In Mormon culture, it seems that a lot of people have had, or know someone who has had, a chance encounter with one of the three Nephites. Well, I can do them one better. I actually ran into Nephi the other night.Okay, so maybe it wasn't the actual Nephi. But it was a good man nonetheless. And when we served together in the Guatemala City Central mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Eric Richardson was nicknamed "Nephi".

The nickname was appropriate in several ways:

• "young" (maybe not "exceedingly", but still only 19 or 20 at the time)
• "large in stature" (at least compared to me, though I'm not a big guy)
• "lowly in heart" (humble, so this blogpost must be killing him)
• "a ruler (leader) and a teacher"
• "filled with the power of God" (he definitely taught with authority and the Spirit)

I freely admit that these are simply my opinions and that Eric wasn't and isn't perfect. But he was a great missionary and I looked up to him a lot. As a result of that admiration, I was very happy to run into him and his sister (my friend Hannah) while coming home from the metro station. We had a good, short conversation and I'm glad to hear he's doing well.

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Crepetacular Crepetacular

In between the Sunday sessions of General Conference, there was a social gathering at Jay's house, which he has dubbed the Crepetacular Crepetacular. Jay explained to me that this has been happening semi-annually for 7 years, which means this one was the 15th time he's put it on.

There was a great turnout and I got to see lots of friends. We discussed a variety of topics, from the talks on Saturday and that morning, to who people are dating, to bike rides through Amish country, etc.

Jay provided crepes, and we all brought an item that would be delicious either inside of or on top of said crepes. All the tables filled with food made me think of the incredible food being devoured by my family in Salt Lake. Don't you just love the conference feasts? I know I do.

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AIDS Walk 2008

I was up early on Saturday morning, because I'd signed up with my friends to do the AIDS Walk in Downtown DC. Becca and Adam came over, and we took the metro in to meet up with Jeff, Cady, and their son Jarrett. We also ran into my friend Irma--who works at Geico-- and her buddy, the Geico Gecko--who caused extreme (and hilarious) fright for little Jarrett.

After a welcome by DC Mayor Adrian Fenty and Olympian Greg Louganis, we were ready to run. A fair amount of the run was on Pennsylvania Avenue, with the Capitol either right ahead or behind us. Quite cool.

I wasn't pushing too hard, in fact I was trying to hold back and relax, but I still ran the 5K in just under 22 minutes. That's a good sign for me and gives me courage for some races that I'd like to gear up for. Yay for getting up early on a Saturday and getting the blood pumping.

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