Month: August 2010

francis public pool

August 22, 2010

i’ve got to say that dc public pools are nothing like what i’d imagined — though given the state of some dc public school buildings, what i was expecting was a pretty low bar.

there were maybe 25 people at the pool at 4pm on a Sunday, mostly parents with children.

oddly enough, lots of international types who weren’t speaking the English so good — but no hordes of unattended kids whose parents had dumped them at the pool 8 hours earlier.

the kiddy pool was gi-normous (15′ x 30’ish) and sloped like a beach from inches to about two feet deep.

don’t get me wrong — the pool wasn’t gleaming (i wouldn’t put sparklet down on the floor of the shower room) but it was certainly no worse than the neighborhood pool where i grew up.

and, for DC, that’s pretty outstanding.

See All the Photos on Flickr:
francis public pool, washington, dc
video: baby/birds in a bucket

August 21, 2010

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KU7-__ZXVnQ

… and, if you haven’t seen it, watch the outake here.
wow, they really *do* make a container for just about everything

August 21, 2010
try as she may, sparklet was unable to prove her hypothesis that you can take a tissue without another popping up in its place

August 19, 2010
hike: fox hollow, shenandoah national park, virginia

August 19, 2010

trail information:
Trailhead: 38.624113, -78.288574 (Google Maps); Length: 1.2 total miles; Elevation Gain: 310 feet; Trail Type: Loop; Skill Level: Easy.

See All the Photos on Flickr:
fox hollow trail, shenandoah national park, virginia
“i’m smiling because i’m cuter than you.”

August 19, 2010

photo of the week // week forty-five
samber market

August 17, 2010

sparklet and i were in samber market today — buying our usual array of beer and ice cream — when sparklet started flirting with one of the incredibly nice korean owners of the place.

the nice lady grabbed a little bear keychain from off the wall, and gave it to us gratis.

i love mount pleasant.

p.s. sometime when i’m feeling brave, i’m going to ask the owners about their life story — their english isn’t great, but there is a picture of the husband in full marine dress uniform behind the cash register.

something tells me there is a great story there.
boyfriend, nanny, me

August 17, 2010
this view really never gets old

August 16, 2010
real “oreo” cookies

August 16, 2010

a good friend of mine from my early days at the Conservancy used to take people around on their first day with a plate of brownies, which (i have to admit) puts people in a pretty great state of mind to meet a new colleague.

i decided this weekend to resurrect the tradition — after tripping on a real “oreo” cookie recipe on foodnetwork.com.

great cookies. the only thing i’d change is that the two outer cookies (at 1/4 inch each) were waaaay too thick. when i make these again, i’m rolling out the dough to less than half that, so people can actually bite through without squirting out all the cream-filling.

oh, and turns out our new employee has an problem with gluten, so it was really more of a present for everyone else.