True Story

I'm cleaning out my computer tonight and coming across all kinds of old pictures, like this.

I wish I had never given my Mom that quilt, and I wish Brokaw wouldn't have grown up.

Memories.

Sigh.

True story: I got Brokaw on a Sunday. That next day, Monday, I called out sick for the first time.

High Five For Friday

I'm sitting on the floor of the airport of the Atlanta airport. I'm as finished with my work as I can get at this point, so here I am.

Oh, the glamorous life, right?

I saw that my friend Jennifer linked up with Lauren for High Five for Friday, so I thought I'd do the same. It's my first time doing this.

Highlights of my week:

1. Quick little road trip to West Virginia with my man, to escape all that is City Life.

2. The 80 degree day we had in DC, and the fact that the flowers and plants and herbs on our porch are still going Summer-strong.

3. Laughing at myself at work when I was getting dressed after going to the gym, realizing I forgot my DRESS. I made the best of wearing yoga pants at work all day.

4. Covering the first Presidential debate of the 2012 election season. This was my view in the media center.

5. Colorado sunset. This iPhone pic does NOT even begin to do it justice!

I can't wait to get home tonight. I hope you are all doing well, have a great weekend!

Life in the Cage

It's funny how things change.

A few years ago, I would wake up on Saturday mornings, drink coffee (that part hasn't changed), and cruise apartments on Craigslist in Washington, DC or even New York City.
I dreamed of living in a high rise with a grocery store in it, and taking the Metro everywhere.

Then, I did it.
And then, I got married and moved out to the suburbs.

Now, I'm a commuter.
I don't have the worst commute, but it would be nice to have those two hours back every day to do something meaningful, or at least - productive.

In the last week, I've gotten TWO speeding tickets from speed cameras in DC.
I am so mad.

Yes, I was speeding, I was breaking the law. I get that.
It's just crazy to me that you can get a ticket for this without a human police officer even being involved.
Then - I read that the DC Mayor is trying to discourage people from driving!?!
Argh! Who is he to decide how I get around?

This - paired with other parts of city life - are really getting on my nerves lately.

old press pass

People in the city walk around with lanyards around their necks.  At least, journalists do.  Mine has my White House pass, my Capitol Hill pass, my work ID, a fob to get into the parking garage at work, a fob to get into my apartment complex, my Metro Smartrip card and my Starbucks card.

So many ways that I have to prove I am who I am before I enter ANYWHERE I go!
I'm sick of it!

Particularly the stupid gate at our apartment complex.
I guess the gate is supposed to make me feel secure, like I live in this nice, "luxury" gated community.

I shook my head at that stupid gate when I was walking the dogs this morning.
Because THIS is how it makes me feel:

This is not helped by the fact that I travel a lot. So, that means lots more proving who I am, and going through security. And - covering the presidential race brings a lot of that too. The Secret Service likes to know who you are.

Anyway.
All of this has left me feeling like I'm ready to live here:

I want wide open space, where I can come and go as I please, and maybe even speed - just a little - if I want to.

This Time Last Year

You have probably noticed I've been blogging quite a bit about Fall this week. Well, that's because I've been participating in a SITS girls challenge. They dangled the possibility of winning a $25 Starbucks card, and I jumped!

The final challenge is to link up to a post from this week last year.
So, here you go.

What was I doing a year ago?
I was covering the presidential election, of course.
Yes, already.
If I remember correctly, that was the debate in Florida that I watched while sitting on a bean bag in the Google hangout.
And, I had a great hair day.

So, there you go.

Favorite Fall Recipes

I once pondered the idea of having a Pumpkin-themed birthday party for myself.

I'm an October baby.

I never did go through with that pumpkin party idea, but maybe I need to.

Next year.
You know, after the election.

I do love all things pumpkin.

Remember like three years ago when there was a canned pumpkin shortage? I thought I was going to die.
Clearly, I survived.
And I'm now a canned pumpkin hoarder.

Here are a few of my favorite pumpkin recipes.

Pumpkin Trifle

Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Scones

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins (one of my favorites!)

Side note: this dough freezes really well.

And my ULTIMATE favorite: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

I shared the pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe with you the other day. 

And, just in case anyone from Aldi is reading my blog - PLEASE bring back your pumpkin pancakes again this year!

Because, last year, they were amazing.

What are YOUR favorite pumpkin recipes?

Note: If you want to follow my recipes, you can on Pinterest.

My Happiest Fall Memory of All

October 17, 2008 - right in the middle of a presidential campaign, Michael Ritter asked me if I'd spend the rest of my life making memories with him.
I blubbered, which meant yes.

And here we are - in the middle of the next presidential campaign - married, more in love than ever - and we have definitely made some memories together, and we're looking forward to many, many more.

Side note: I miss that Roxy sweatshirt.
If you want to read the story of how Michael proposed, you can find it here, in the archives.

Okay, Fall. You're Here. Let's Do This.

(pic taken last November, at the Franconia-Springfield Metro station)

The key to Fall is admitting that it is here, and enjoying it.

This is not easy for me. It's harder for my husband.

We are both Summer-lovers.

But, I do love the colors of the leaves, all things pumpkin-spiced, the fact that both of our birthdays are in Fall, and I love being able to wear a hoodie and flip flops at the same time.

I don't look forward to changing the closets out. Both of us have twice as many Spring/Summer clothes than Fall/Winter clothes.

Oh well.

Black pants erry'day it is.

A bonus thing about THIS Fall? Election Day. More importantly, the Day After the Election.  You know, when I will get my life back.

Looking forward to that.

And Thanksgiving.

And, hopefully this Fall will be WAY better than last Fall, which happened to - um - suck - to put it eloquently.

I made my first batch of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies today. Cheers.

 (photo taken at Shenandoah National Park, September 2010)

How a 7th Grade Heartbreak Taught Me to Never Give Up

I'll bet you had no idea I was a middle school basketball star when I was in the 7th grade.

I think I was about 4'3."

I had one year of rec center basketball under my belt, where I may or may not have used growling in defense and earned the name, "Pit Bull."

Okay - so, maybe "middle school basketball star" is a stretch.

Here's the back story.

I really wanted to be a cheerleader.

But, after an extensive career as a rec center cheerleader, and even teaching a new girl in my neighborhood how to cheer, I didn't make it.

When I tried out in the gym of Indian River Middle School the Spring of 1992, I messed up.  They started the cassette tape, and I started the little dance routine that I had DOWN, but I had a brain fart about :10 seconds in, and I did the unthinkable: I asked if I could start again.

I remember there were three judges. I could see my pain in their eyes.

They re-started the Casio.

I smiled through tears, and did my little routine, then went back to the other gym with all of the other girls who were also trying out for the squad.

The girls who made the squad would get a phone call that night. The girls who didn't make it, wouldn't get a phone call.

I hoped against hope in my dad's red and white van as he drove me home that evening.  We ate dinner, and me, my mom and my dad all acted like we weren't waiting for the phone to ring, but we were.

And you know what? It rang. My eyes busted out of my head, and I answered it.  It was Cathy Hockman, the cheerleading coach. But, it wasn't a congratulatory call. She said she wasn't calling everyone who didn't make it, she was just calling me, because she thought I was really good - but I didn't make it because I had to re-start, so at the end of tallying up the scores, my score was too low.

Heartbroken is an understatement.

My parents took turns consoling me.

I also got to learn a lesson that Summer about what it's like for your friend to get something that you wanted.  The new girl in the neighborhood who I had befriended who had never cheered before, she made it. I was so jealous, but we were still friends.

But, I was determined to be an Indian River Brave.  Somehow.  Some way.

My school had volleyball, but I didn't try out for that. I had only played that a couple of times, in gym class, that year.

Then, I heard about girls basketball tryouts.

And, something compelled me to put my name on that sign up list.

I think my parents thought I was crazy.

But, they bought me some new basketball shoes.

I practiced with my dad and brother in our driveway.

And, somehow - at the end of the week - my name was still on the list.

I was an Indian River Brave.

I sat and sat on the bench that year, when I played basketball.  I made good friends with the other white girls who also rode the bench. Sometimes, when we had a 20 point lead, our coach would put us in, and we were all terrified we would shoot at the other team's basket. 

The most action I saw was when we first ran out of the locker room, because I was the shortest one - so when we ran out, I carried the ball.

But, when I played the 2:00 I played that whole year, my dad LOVED that the cheerleaders were cheering for ME. 

I didn't care.

I watched the cheerleaders at every game, plotting tryouts the next Spring.

Spring came, I tried out for cheerleading, and I made the squad.

And I was a cheerleader from 8th grade all the way through my Senior year, when I was the Head Captain. 

I learned a lot of life lessons along the way in my five years of cheerleading for the Braves. Maybe I'll tell you about them sometime.

But for now - take it from 12 year old Dana Brown: Don't give up. Sometimes things don't go according to plan.  But, that doesn't mean you have to give up, or that there's only one way to be what you want to be. Try harder. Try something else. Then, rock it out harder than you would have in the first place.

After the Election

Completely unrelated photo of pie. Because pie and sunlight are both good, no matter what you're talking about.

It's 7:25am on a Monday, I think.

I’m at Panera.

I just swallowed a Pumpkin bagel with Hazelnut cream cheese, almost whole.

I am so hungry lately.

And, I’m fat.

Dangerous combination.

I can’t deal with that until after the Election.

“After the election,” has almost become this sort of mythical time and space.

A land far away, in another time – in my imagination.

The reality is, it’s 44 days away.

That’s not long at all.

It’s kind of like Daylight Savings Time.

You know, when you get that extra hour, and you think just one extra hour is going to make you more rested, more productive, better looking and happier?

Then, it happens - and you are shocked to realize that you didn’t get extra sleep, you didn’t get anything extra done, and you feel like you missed an opportunity because you spent that hour watching football and doing something completely mundane, like unloading the dishwasher.

I don’t mean to sound like a Dana downer. I’m just saying, this is how it happens, when I’m not looking.

After the election, I’m going to get healthy.
After the election, I’m going to read again.

After the election, I’m going to go on dates with my husband.

After the election, I’m going to write a book.

After the election, we’re going to try to have a baby.

Well.

It sure seems like I have my life planned out until the midterm elections in 2014, right?

This is what I do when I’m not looking.

I am very task-oriented.

In the business – and journalism – world, this is great. I prioritize like a pro, and I have no problem bragging about how productive I can be.

But, sometimes in life – in my walk with the Lord, and my relationship with my husband – my “to do list” thinking can make me miss out on some things.

The things that you have to stop – or slow down – to enjoy.

So, yes.

That election, 44 days away – I have at least three to do lists for each day until that day.

I will continue plowing through those like a pro.

But afterwards, maybe  - just maybe – I will be able to slow down and look around.

I’m going to vote today.

That means the mythical, magical place is getting close.

Now, back to my ultimate comforter, my to-do list.

We Are Still Alive

Just busy. Very, very busy. The good kind of busy, though. Not the bad kind of busy, thank God. I went to the RNC Convention in Tampa.

This guy met me and helped me carry my luggage, then I spent two nights at home.

Then, I went to cover the DNC Convention in Charlotte.

Then I was home for one night, then Michael and I went to the Joni and Friends Wounded Warrior Getaway in Maryland.

We've been home for two nights and we leave tomorrow (one day later than planned) for my nephew's wedding.

So. Um. Yeah.

I do still love all of you and I think of this blog and this little community we have often.

Very often.

I will be back soon.

A little, before the election.

Then - full force - a week or so after November 6th.

Cheers.