Six years ago, D.C. offered a toast to its renowned friends on the Hill and asked artists to create “Party Animals,” elephants and donkeys decorated in various ways. Later they were auctioned off for charity.

D.C. residents have a love-hate relationship with politicians. We want to be known as being a city that is more than just one tourist stop after another. We resent when pundits say “D.C.” but really mean “the national government.” Yet, we are a city where powerful things happen and where tvs in bars are at least as likely to be tuned to CSPAN and CNN as to ESPN. And we’re proud of that, too. (Frankly, we’d be more proud if we had a legitimate vote in Congress. Could you guys get on that, please?)

So as a D.C. resident with conflicting feelings about politicians and politics, I find the Party Animals that remain around the city cute but not necessarily photoworthy.

That is until I was walking home past the University Club — a hoity toity private club — one night and found that their Party Animals were protected by knitwear. Yup. This Donkey and Elephant are wearing scarves.

The closer statue is the Grand Old Pachyderm, which apparently has 51 stars adorning it in deference to a hope for future D.C. statehood. I’m not sure what the name of the Donkey is. Anyone?

Don’t you think that sets a nice tone for the day, particularly when both are homemade?

Well, maybe all days shouldn’t start that way because then you’d lose the luxurious feeling of having a lie-in until noon and starting your day with sweets. But it’s good every once in a glorious Saturday while.

I read.

I fixed a hat that had come unravelled at the crown. (I think I missed one loop of a K2tog that I then accidentally pulled at to create a bit of a hole.)

After that it seemed like I ought to get out for a while (in my newly repaired hat). I walked down to the garden plot to see how it had fared the winter. (The trees over my plot had dumped their leaves over the plot after I dug it up late last fall. I’m so pleased, since I could hardly have planned that mulching better myself.) I walked around aimlessly for a while after that, glad just to be out in the temperate weather. I tried a Wonka Golden Egg (similar to a Cadbury Caramel Egg except with “graham cracker bits” embedded in the chocolate that seemed more like your typical rice krispie bits). It was okay, but I would probably just go with the Cadbury Creme Egg next time.

I came home as the sun set to do a little knitting. I’m making some pretty green lace anklets for myself at the moment and have finally got them on the proper needles to make good progress. I’d bought some circular needles over the winter and broke them out earlier this week only to find that the joins were so disjointed that I had to move each stitch individually off the cord and onto the needle. That didn’t seem like the way toward happy knitting, so I switched them over to DPNs yesterday and knit away contentedly for a couple of hours tonight.

Rudi made a veggie curry and we watched the first three-quarters of the PBS Pete Seeger special that we missed last week. I made some connections between it and the book I’m currently reading, Eat, Pray, Love, which I’m going to have to explore more deeply as I think about the book.

And we concluded the night with a trip downtown with our friend Susan to catch Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. Frances McDormand and Amy Adams were delightful as a problematic, down-on-her-luck governess and a flighty American would-be starlet and this was exactly the sort of movie that you’d enjoy watching on a rainy night when you’re feeling a bit down and want a life-really-is-good-and-happy-endings-can-happen kind of pick-me-up. (Not that I was down tonight. I’m just saying for future reference. Or for anyone else who might get that feeling.)

Oh, and I remembered to ask for my free cd at the movie theater. Who can beat free music?!?

Now I’m curled up in my reading nook with my book and my tea and my Della. I’ll probably head to bed shortly so I can have another lovely day tomorrow. Here’s hoping that they keep coming…

Good night all!

My brain has been somewhat sieve-like the last couple months and seems to be particularly bad this week. I blame all that darkness. And the lack of sleep. And … well … getting old.

What this means is that over the last week, several times I’ve thought to myself, “That would make a great note for TBT on Thursday.” It pains me that I can remember thinking that but can’t recall what prompted the thought in the first place. Is this what makes people compulsive list-makers?

Nonetheless, I’m able to recall at least three beautiful things from the past week, so I will offer to you those that my brain hasn’t misplaced (yet):

1. The trial I serve on during jury duty leaves me frustrated. I calm my soul with a cup of hot chai and a salty oat cookie consumed while reading by the koi pond inside the downtown tea shop. By the time I am ready to head home the clouds — both in my mind and in the sky — have lifted.

2. Friday night Rudi, Sweetpea, Elspeth, and I went to the Birchmere to see Paul and Storm (formerly half of Da Vinci’s Notebook) and Jonathan Coulton perform. They’re all “singer-songwriters” with a humorous bent, so we were hopeful that this would be a rocking show. Paul and Storm, whom Rudi and I have heard before at Falcon Ridge are locals and definitely had the crowd behind them. In fact, I think they may have been a little too adored as they kept getting distracted during their songs, which merely added to the general levity of the evening. Even Jonathan Coulton jokingly complained a little when he came out for his set because people kept shouting P&S catch lines at him. I think he recovered, though, as he was pelted throughout the show with stuffed animals relating to various songs of his own. After the show I’m left with memories of a terrifically funny show and the growling line, “All we want to do is eat your brains,” running through my head.

3. Spring has arrived in D.C. Snowdrops popped out in early February and the crocuses (croci?) started emerging at the end of the month. Two weeks ago, I observed the first daffodils along the bank of Rose Park, last week I saw the first flowering trees, and this morning I noted a pink hyacinth about to flower. (Cherry blossoms should be out the last week of the month, so if you’re considering a trip to see them, that’s the ideal time.)

I promise a real post a bit later. But I decided that I’d better give you the answers to the movie quiz since the guesses have petered out. Admittedly, I’m not surprised that no one guessed #4, but since nearly everyone has seen movie #1, I was shocked not to have anyone guess it:

PS: Oh, and Grey Kitten has played along in the comments of yesterday’s post. We have guessed #1 and #5-8, but please feel free to take a stab at the rest of his movie quotes.

I seem to have stumped folks with yesterday’s meme, so today I’ll offer clues to the movies that you haven’t guessed. (I will say that I didn’t pick any quote if I couldn’t remember it being said.) Here are some potentially better-known quotes:

1. “A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others.”
2. “This is your dance space. I don’t go into yours, you don’t go into mine.” Rudi got it!
3. “Ahh, a bear in his natural habitat — a Studebaker.” Catherine got it!
4. “You have everything it takes to make a lovely woman except the one essential: an understanding heart. And without that you might just as well be made of bronze.”
5. “How many drinks have you had?”
   “This will make six Martinis.”
   [To the waiter] “All right. Will you bring me five more Martinis, Leo? Line them right up here.” Rudi guessed this one on the other post just as I was posting this clue. And so did Sarah.
6. “You are the most beautiful girl in the world.”
   “You’re just saying that.”
   “No! I’m madly in love with you and it’s not because of your brains or your personality.” Jenn got it!
7. “Face it, girls, I’m older and I have more insurance.” Sam got it!
8. Catherine correctly guessed The Princess Bride.
9. “O Captain, my Captain.” Sam and Catherine guessed this one simultaneously!
10. “…If you’re ever under a falling building and someone offers to pick you up and carry you to safety, don’t think, don’t pause, don’t hesitate for a moment, just spit in his eye.” Karen got it!

Does that help?

I’m serving jury duty today, so I’m offering you another meme, this time a movie-based one I found on Craftylilly’s blog:

1. Pick 10 of your favorite movies.
2. Go to IMDb and find a quote from each movie.
3. Post them here for everyone to guess.
4. Strike it out when someone guesses correctly, and put who guessed it and the movie.
5. Looking them up is cheating, please don’t.

1. “Unusual weather we’re having, ain’t it?”
2. “God wouldn’t have given you maracas if He didn’t want you to shake ’em.”
3. “When a German scientist tells you to hold on to your hat, it’s not casual conversation.”
4. “The prettiest sight in this fine pretty world is the privileged class enjoying its privileges.”
5. “I don’t like crooks. And if I did like ’em, I wouldn’t like crooks that are stool pigeons. And if I did like crooks that are stool pigeons, I still wouldn’t like you.” Rudi got it!
6. “High school — those are your prime suffering years. You don’t get better suffering than that.”
7. “A heart can be broken, but it will keep beating just the same.”
8. “When I was your age, television was called books.” Catherine got it!
9. “I was the equivalent of a 98lb weakling! I would go to the beach and people would kick copies of Byron in my face!”
10. “When what’s left of you gets around to what’s left to be gotten, what’s left to be gotten won’t be worth getting, whatever it is you’ve got left.”

Clearly I won’t be able to share the answers until after I’m done with jury duty. Until then, have fun!