could it be? could it really, truly be? an opportunity to post? hurrah!!! i was beginning to seriously doubt whether i'd be able to post anything substantial this week, so i'm taking advantage of this time and letting you all know that i'm still alive and kicking...

this week has been madness. absolute, utter chaos. besides the fact that the office was exceptionally busy, with the state of the union address and the first nomination hearings in judiciary leading to an increase in calls and comments, midway through the week, erica came down with something or another and fell ill. so she was out of the office wednesday afternoon and all of yesterday, so i was left with all of my scheduling work, an increase in phone calls and minimal help from the interns (although sam did provide support and i appreciate that, i should say). it was not a fun scene. by the middle of the morning yesterday, i was ready to bang my head against the desk and cry. but instead, i cursed to myself a great deal and put a smile on my face so i could get through the day...

let's see--where to begin? the state of the union address was well-written, i must say, and well-structured, from a strategic point of view. let's butter up the audience with mentoring and AIDS research!!! then they'll like us! but wait--where is all of this money for the war going to come from? the money for mentoring and AIDS research. but they don't mention that part...whatever. i'm not a bush fan, nor will i be a bush fan, so it's just how things are. so the highlight for me was seeing him stumble over a part of the speech and have to squint so he could read the teleprompter, which must have been rewound or something. i took pleasure in that. so sue me. ;)

there was a moment before the address, however, when nbc showed a gorgeous shot of the capitol lit up on top of the hill, and i was, as i often have been in the past, amazed by how powerful and beautiful it was. but then i realized--wait! that's right next to where i work each day! i see that all the time! it added to the surreal nature of this experience, something that was only more evident the following evening (how about that for a transition, eh?)

so after the crazy day of wednesday, i decided to take advantage of the opportunities presented to me here and made my way over to dirksen to sit in on the judiciary committee hearing. i'd been interested in seeing what the hearing experiene was like for awhile now, and the added bonus of being able to sit in on a controversial hearing was too much to pass up. so i sat in for about twenty minutes (i would have loved to have stayed longer, but it was already approaching seven and, frankly, i was exhausted and needed to get home!) and, for a few moments, couldn't wrap my brain around the fact that i was sitting in the same room as influential and powerful people i'd never dreamed of sharing space with. i mean, whether i agree with thier politics or not, whether i like their personalities or not, i still can't help but be impressed by the presence each of the senators have. and when a bunch of them are together--wow. so i was sitting there with this smile on my face as i tried to focus on looking responsible and whatnot, thinking dopey thoughts like, "i can't believe i'm listening to ted kennedy!!! i can't believe my boss is up there!!!" etc. etc.

yesterday just flat out blew. i was stressed, i was tired, i worked open to close--not a good scene. the senator spoke on the floor while i was on lunch break, so i cut my break short to be back at the phones for the rush of calls we would inevitably receive. after work, i met up with chloe at front page for a drink (we agreed it was just one of those days where it was necessary) and then went home (arriving home later than normal again, which continued to mess with my head), took out my aggression and frustration at the gym (thankfully, it was my scheduled lifting day--yes, lifting is a relative term, as i'm still a weakling--so i was really able to use some energy) before enjoying dinner, catching up with some neglected phone conversations and then doing some of the work i'd brought home with me (just organizing that i haven't been able to get through this week) before reading and giving myself up to dreamland.

so at least i have some relaxation to look forward to this weekend. while last weekend was so much fun (as if you didn't know from my raving in earlier posts), it didn't exactly give me a lot of time to unwind from last week. so i feel like i'm approaching this weekend having worked for two weeks straight...part of me doesn't want to do ANYTHING, but i know that i'm hoping we have a happy hour tonight so i can at least hang out with the work peeps for a bit. i might be going out tomorrow night with chloe and her friend betsy (who's visiting) and various and sundry other chloe-peeps, but they're saying they wanted to go somewhere a little swanky, and i'm never really one for the "trendy club" scene--if i go out, i want to be able to relax and have fun, not worry about wearing my trendy, clubby clothes (in fact, do i even have trendy, clubby clothes? i'm not sure...)and "being seen." but it might be fun to get to spend some time out with chloe, as we've been just missing each other for the past few weekend, schedule-wise. so we'll see.

i'm thinking that i'm going to finally visit the holocaust museum tomorrow, which i'm excited about, although describing my anticipation as "exciting" seems somewhat inappropriate. but i think that's to be expected. i've held off on going there for a number of reasons, but the largest being that i wanted to prepare myself for it emotionally. it's not exactly the museum one will go to just for the hell of it, you know? but i'm very much looking forward to the experience. and then the rest of the weekend will be relaxation! and a couple of opportunities to see what lies just beyond my normal travel route in my extended neighborhood--i'm walking up and down the stretch to get to some stores and shops that are farther away than i normally travel for my weekly necessities. it's all about exploration...

oh how i am looking forward to the end of the day!