3rd Week in DC

I am glad that as I have gotten older I have realized how important it is to try not to think negatively of things just because they don't quite go as one would expect them to. We are still in session at Congress but things seemed a bit more quiet today (2nd week). People at the office seem to be warming up to me and I think that's a great sign. Even though they were like robots last week, at least they were always polite and professional. Now they are polite, professional and a little more talkative, yay!

Next Tuesday I am taking the FSOT and will need to schedule the Oral Assessment soon so that I can get a date for that before the end of my stay in DC. The days are busy and long but I feel good. Tomorrow afternoon we get to meet Charlie Rangel! Such an awesome old guy.

As usual, having a blast with the Rangel Fellows. Tomorrow I am also meeting Salvador (one of the Rangels) at 6am. We are off for a 2 mile run before the work day begins - should be enjoyable! It feels great being around smart, young, motivated people -like me! Oh, how I missed this!

This is what I see every morning as I walk in to work!

This is Reality

My brain feels like it's going to overload. Exams, training, learning the job on the Hill and"math camp for Columbia U". I've been writing so much on a daily basis that I seriously think that it will get to a point where it's just going to feel like I'm doing a chore.

What have I learned so far? I probably never want to run for public office and deal with constituents. Really, you are writing to me because you are concerned about us purchasing bottled water?! I apologize for not caring but I don't think I'd enjoy being at the mercy of "constituents". Not to mention, everyone is so busy that sometimes I feel like I am talking to a robot. I ask a question it responds and that's it. No time for intellectual conversation, and those damned alarms! Every time members have to vote on the floor, the alarms go off. Plus, let's face it...it's just not a sexy career. Now State, that's sexy.

Note: Please don't misunderstand though, this does not mean that I hate my internship. I simply don't have a strong sentiment toward it. However, I am glad to be doing it because it just confirms to me that this is not the kind of career that I would want to pursue and I wouldn't have known otherwise. Got to always look at the positive!

Survived My First Day @ the House of Reps

The day went by fairly quickly today with the work that I was given. It was my first day but they already had me working on constituent correspondence. I worked on 8 letters and I am sure that with time I'll probably be able to churn out a few more once I have a better grasp on some of the pertinent issues. No one letter was the same and they all had to do with a different topic! Doing my research in order to answer the constituent appropriately was pretty time consuming.

It seems as though everyone is very busy at Serrano's office where I am interning. I didn't see people take many bathroom breaks...and they seemed glad I was there to work on some of the things that had begun to pile up - such as constituents' emails.

Something that I will probably try not to do again is to eat in the cafeteria. $11.50 for lunch? I think not!! I had a nice affordable sandwich that I made myself for dinner. I need to wake up earlier to make sure I bring a sandwich every day to work.

Traveling to work was fine because luckily enough I ran into someone who understood the metro a little better than me, but coming home I got lost! Poor Grant (one of the Rangel fellows in my cohort) got lost with me because he knew even less than I did. However, I am happy to report that we were able to get home within an hour. I will try not to miss my stop or get on the train going the opposite direction next time...

I can't believe I have a floor meeting tonight. Seriously, how old am I? 18?! I think not. What are they going to tell me that I don't already know? "OK kids, don't light your bed on fire and don't bring in any turtles!"

1st Week in Washington DC

Time flies! It's already a week since I have been in Washington DC. Living in a dorm isn't as bad as one would think it would be. It' s true that I have not lived in a dorm for the past 2 years, but as I am familiar with dorm living it just makes me nostalgic of my undergraduate days. I also like small spaces...maybe it's because I grew up in NYC?

We met some outstanding people this past week. Every day just reinforces my desire to serve my country. I feel like I'm finally in my element. There's lots of work to be done but I feel it's good productive work. Even after a 13 hour day I have the energy to hang out with friends. I finally understand when people say. "I can't believe I am getting paid to wake up every day to do what I love".


Rangel Fellows from my cohort at a Welcome Dinner


Having lunch with Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Donovan,
Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs