Adventures with Ben & Weena - I was in our nation's capital this weekend and got to help the other half of the Beav celebrate his birthday. Weena and I took the new(-ish) jetBlue nonstop from Sac to Dulles, allowing us both to experience for the first time the wacky Dulles Mobile Lounges.

In addition to enjoying a delicious birthday brunch prepared by Jamie, we also tried to enculturate ourselves with a trip to the new Smithsonian museum. However, the National Museum of the American Indian (or is it "indigenous peoples of the Western Hemisphere"?) was disappointing, poorly organized and mostly free from the context of things like Manifest Destiny and the Trail of Tears. And if miles and miles of turquoise and dreamcatchers are your kind of thing, then is this gift shop ever for you!

Another highlight of the trip was finally getting to meet Chrisafer, but unfortunately I missed seeing Jimbo. In an incredibly friendly gesture, Chris offered to broker a threeway for me with two patrons at Saint-Ex, but with my Special Lady Friend accompanying me, I had to demur.

Earlier in the evening, we got to see a performance by the Polyphonic Spree on the grounds of the Kennedy Center. Contrary to popular belief, the group is not a cult, robes and Brady Bunch-style choreography notwithstanding. I'll leave the music review to John, I must briefly report that Brian high-fived the lead singer as the group came from the back of the plaza through the crowd when returning for an encore! The crowd made for excellent people watching too, including "firebear," a tall, redheaded scruffy GWU student who really seemed to be enjoying the show.

On a random note, even though I know some people have an aversion to the word "woof", I wore my "woof!" t-shirt on Saturday. Sometimes I think it's a fine line between mocking and identifying with the "bear community." And other times I realize that I'm way past the line anyway. I was self-consciously playing with the buttons on my overshirt, leaving the exclamation hidden.

Anyways, I must again thank John and Jamie for their incredible hospitality and for making our visit so memorable and fun.

UPDATE: I am indebted to Adam for buying me five fruity girl drinks at Chi-Cha Lounge. I owe ya.

SECOND UPDATE: God, I suck. So I further neglected to mention that Jason and Brian provided great food and great company on Friday night. Funky B made cocktails with Effen Vodka, which I pounded with some mini-mint milano cookies. Then we had pizza from Alberto's, which rivaled Zachary's as some of the best deepdish pizza I've had. It's a great feeling to visit DC and know that I'll be seeing good friends...which is why it's a favorite destination of mine. Again, I'm grateful to everyone for taking such good care of us during our visit.