DC: Pentagon. Pigging. Potomac.

Another fabulous trip to DC has come and gone. Morgan and Julia accompanied me this time. Highlights (any opportunity to make a list):

1. Getting an insider's tour of the Pentagon because, it turns out, David really DOES work there. He has a tendency to exaggerate so naturally I thought "I work at the Pentagon" was one of his exaggerations. Nope.
It was very cool. Miles and miles of confusing white hallways. But naturally, because it's the military, they have an exact method of numbering the rooms so that each part of the number designates your location inside. Like A3225 means Ring A, Level 3, Corridor 2, Room 25...or something like that.
I only embarrassed myself once inside the Pentagon, something I'm extremely proud of. The security on the way in was intense; we had to provide our social security numbers and have our photos taken. As they scanned David's badge to make sure he was an employee, it took a couple of tries, and after the first try I jokingly said, "I KNEW you didn't really work here." Morgan, Julia, and David all froze and the security officer did NOT even crack a smile. David ripped me a new a-hole for that little joke. Apparently you can't be FUNNY at the Pentagon.

2. For dinner that night we went to Chima, the love of my life (restaurant-wise). It's an all you can eat Brazilian steakhouse, which is amazing in itself, but the most astounding aspect of this restaurant was its service. Absolutely incredible. They seated us immediately, brought drinks literally a minute after they were ordered, and then followed with the food asap. Bowls of cheese bread, mashed potatoes, and fried bananas were in endless supply.
And the MEAT. Swoon! Cute Brazilian waiters make a constant circuit of the dining room, bearing large roasts of meat on long skewers. You are given a two-sided disc, and as long as you have your disc on "Yes, Please," they never stop coming with that meat. Bacon-wrapped filet mignon, chicken, swordfish, pork...it was incredible. I have never been so impressed with a restaurant. An absolutely incredible experience. And the food was terrific.

3. On our last day David took us out on the Potomac in his new boat. From the marina we could see the Capitol and Washington Monument. So cool. On our trip down the river we passed a beautiful white house with a red roof...Mount Vernon! I literally teared up. (But it might have been because David was barreling down the river at top speed.) I'm such an f-ing patriot. (The day before we'd visited the National Museum of American History and we saw THE star spangled banner. It's displayed in a dark room with the national anthem printed above and the sound of a heart beating. I started bawling.)
Anyway, David, the connoisseur of all things lavish and comfortable, brought a grill along and actually made hot dogs, hamburgers, and grilled marinated potatoes on the boat. He is so over the top. But I love it! Then we followed it up with water skiing and tubing. David and his friends are in their late 20s (read: still immature) so we had "tube wars": one person on each tube, both pulled at high speed at once and with both occupants trying to dislodge the other. The best sight of the trip may have been Morgan viciously and repeatedly kicking David in the throat to get him off his tube. Ah, cousinly love.

The trip home was punctuated by Morgan singing (extremely off-key) the full repertoire of "My Fair Lady" and "Mary Poppins". All in all, a WONDERFUL time!!!