Star sightings

You know how I mentioned I'd like to spend a little time with Reese Withspoon and Paul Rudd and Owen Wilson and Jack Nicholson? Well, if catching a glimpse of them while filming their latest movie counts, then I'm three out of four. Yesterday Stephanie and I discovered they would be filming about two blocks from our office, so we ran a reconnaissance mission late in the afternoon to check out the situation. Our scouting session revealed a lot of cranes and lighting equipment, but no actual filming. Stink. However, it did raise a couple of questions: (1) how were they were planning on clearing out the McPherson Square bums to actually conduct any filming there, and (2) does the handwriting on these "no parking" signs match the handwriting on the "no parking" signs posted all over our block of K Street...possibly implying that they're filming right by the office next week? (when I'm out of town, of course - but potentially cool for Steph)

Then...our trusty blog at Washington City Paper informed us that filming would actually begin at 6 PM. You know, my sharply honed research skills may not always lead to the right tax answer, but I can do a pretty remarkable job of tracking down pop culture news. That counts for something, right? I made my way over after getting out of work a little later than I would have liked, and Stephanie joined me after escaping from her evening grad class. After being shuffled from sidewalk corner to sidewalk corner with a group of onlookers and being admonished multiple times to not use a flash when taking any pictures, we found ourselves right in the middle of Reese and Paul and Owen. Ok, not right in the middle...across the street. But it was really pretty interesting to see what all goes into making a movie.

For instance....why did they have a giant water truck wetting down the street? Was it theoretically supposed to have just rained, or does help out with the lighting in some way? What's the ratio of time spent waiting around versus actually filming anything? How much do they pay the poor girls with headsets whose primary job is to tell us onlookers to please get out of the way?

We totally want to be in this movie. So...Stephanie and I both filled out our extras applications today with Central Casting. Not sure if anything is going to come of this, but maybe we can make an appearance as "upscale pedestrians" or "attractive bar hoppers" or "Charles & Matty's neighbors," all options for today's extras.

If you want to check out all of the pictures from our movie set adventure, check out my Picasa album. Yes, some zooming might be in order to actually pick out those famous faces, but it was a pretty cool city experience.

Apparently the movie does have a working title...

And here's Reese...

And Paul and Owen and I think James Brooks...maybe...

Oh, and those burning questions from earlier - they were actually filming along 15th Street and not in McPherson Square, so all of the bums could stay on their park benches. Will they be filming in front of the office next week? To be determined - I'll have to count on Steph for the updates, though, because it's time for....blog-cation! Tomorrow morning I'm meeting up with Kami and Carolyn at BWI to head into Boston - we're spending a few days in Provincetown, a few days in Boston, and you can rest assured that a great time will be had by all. I can't wait to see these girls!!

Now I just need to find Jack somewhere around town...

Parking lot invasion

The massive parking lot I cut through on my way to work has been invaded. The two block chunk of pavement between 9th & 11th, bordered by H and I, currently accommodates about 1/4 of the cars it usually holds, which I'm sure creates far more havoc for the drivers than the walkers. Yes, this space has been invaded...by a trapeze school and temporary tennis courts and massive trucks and trailers from Sony Pictures. You need more information here on this particular aspect of city living.

1. TSNY has made its way to D.C. Trapeze School New York. I now walk past a trapeze school on my way to work. They've set up in the corner of the parking lot at 9th and H, and so far it's been pretty entertaining to see the various skill levels on display as I walk by. I kinda want to do this ala Carrie Bradshaw, Sex in the City, Episode #82, "The Catch." My ab muscles could probably use some work before I attempt this.

2. I have no idea who the Washington Kastles are, but their tennis courts are in the way of downtown commuters. Ok, now I know what it's all about because I had to Google it and figure things out. So apparently there's this thing called World TeamTennis with co-ed teams all over the country - real names here, the Williams gals and Maria Sharapova. Maybe I'll take in some exciting tennis action this summer.

3. I need to figure out how to get in some time with Reese Witherspoon and Paul Rudd and Owen Wilson and Jack Nicholson, because they're running around town shooting a movie while I'm spending my days in a cube. How does one get a copy of their shooting schedule? Hmmmm...I hope they're still in town when I get back from P-town and Beantown. At any rate, they have massive amounts of trucks and trailers and movie equipment taking up a quarter of the parking lot (at least I'm assuming all of the "Sony Pictures" splashed all over everything is related to them - I mean, this isn't L.A., so I figure I've got it narrowed down pretty well). I'll try not to go all stalker and just hang out in the parking lot, though. Maybe some actual filming somewhere.

And that, friends, is what I walk past going to and from work. Oh, and three Starbucks, one tacky souvenier shop, and typically several bold squirrels.

America's pastime...and another meal on a bun

Ok, so even though I'd embarked on the half-smoke adventure a mere thirty-twoish hours earlier, that didn't stop me from enjoying another meal on a bun on Friday night...I mean, how do you go to a baseball game and NOT eat a hot dog?!? All-beef frank on a nutritionally-deficient all-white bun, smothered in mustard and relish, washed down with a beer...sometimes it's exactly what you need. Or maybe that's just me.

Friday night I met up with cube buddy Stephanie, her husband, and a few other friends at Tortilla Coast for a margarita and some fortifying chips and salsa before heading out to the Nationals game. The Nats. At least now when I hear that I actually think of it as something short for "Nationals" rather than pesky little bugs. Oh, gnats. The team is somewhat terrible this year, but I'm not one of those people who get too caught up the baseball team's win-loss business. If you put a baseball game on TV, odds are I'll go to sleep - however, attending a game is something else entirely. You soak up the atmosphere, enjoy some good times and good ballpark fare with friends, and have a generally pleasant summer evening while men happen to swing bats at balls somewhere in the general vicinity.

You know how mascots walk around at the game, generally bringing joy to the crowd and posing for pictures with small children? At a Nats game, it's actually a little creepy to see an Abe Lincoln with a head the size of the rest of his body headed your way. You can spot him in the upper right-hand side of this one, and there's a picture on someone's camera of all of us hanging out with Abe - I'll share that one later. Oh, Washington. You can also meet Donna (on the left) and Stephanie (in the middle):

In addition to encountering the wandering Presidents, we were on the jumbotron during the 7th inning stretch, dancing away with Screech the Eagle. And when we found out his name was Screech, at least three of us turned to each other and made an exclamation about "Saved by the Bell." Ahh, childhood memories.

When the 9th ended in 1-1 tie and headed to extra innings, we headed over to the Bullpen for another beer, some live music, and the last two innings on TV rather than in the ball park. The Bullpen is a cool concept - kinda like tailgating for the baseball game, only since it's hard to tailgate when you ride the Metro in, they've set up a space to provide the festivities.

It's that baseball time of year, gang - grab some friends and head out to the ballpark for the cheap tickets and a good time. I actually prefer the ridiculous minor league between-innings entertainment to the MLB show, but it's definitely not a bad way to spend a Friday night or a weekend afternoon. I mean, for the MLB you have team-specific bottles of Bud Light - it's a trade-off.

Not a light lunch

Last Thursday I, along with three co-workers, took my Habitat-weary muscles about a mile up 14th to spend a couple of hours doing a little more good in the world. PwC is a big supporter of Martha's Table, a local organization that provides all kinds of services to those in need - education, daycare, a decent meal - and we usually send a group of volunteers up once a week to do whatever needs to be done for a couple of hours. The Martha's Table folks have partnered with local farmer's markets and often receive donations of any produce left at the end of the day. Someone must have had a bumper crop of kale this year, because the walk-in fridge was absolutely filled with the stuff. Giant Rubbermaid totes, heavy duty garbage bags, cardboard boxes - overflowing with kale.

So, in an effort to actually make use of it before it turned all nasty and squishy, the four of us set to removing the leaves from the stems and tearing those leaves into bite-size portions, then dumping pan after pan into the sink for a thorough washing before its conversion into soup. Two hours of kale shredding - I was pretty grateful for the latex gloves, or otherwise my hand might have been stained a lovely shade of green for the foreseeable future. Actually, it was pretty amazing to see what four sets of hands can accomplish in a couple of hours when faced with an astounding pile of produce.

As much as we would have loved to stick around for some kale soup (ok, not really - we were pretty kaled out at that point), our stomachs were gurgling for something a little more hearty. We'd just spent the last couple of hours in a ginormous kitchen surrounded by food and leafy green things, so of course we turned to a location where the food carries a much more neutral color scheme (you know, the browns and tans of the world), the land of starch and grease, a D.C. icon. Ben's Chili Bowl is conveniently located just a few blocks away, so we walked on over and indulged in heart-attack fare for a late lunch. I had my first taste of a half-smoke, and while there's really no definitive answer for how it gets its name, D.C. lays claim to this slightly spicy sausage that's a notch above a hot dog. Throw it on a bun, smother it with chili and onions, throw some potato chips on the side, and you've got one nap-inducing lunch ready to go. I made the first bite with a knife and fork, and after being chastised for being so neat, I proceeded to throw caution to the wind (even wearing a white sweater - I mean, I was inviting danger), cover my hands in spicy chili, and chow down. Major clothing crisis averted by strategic neck-craning on each bite. Cube buddy Stephanie opted for the chili cheese fries, which are equally greasy and also tasty. Maybe my body could use some kale.

Power tools empower

As part of PwC's community service initiatives (we do more than taxes!), they occasionally give us the chance to shirk traditional work responsibilities for the day and descend en mass on some organization that's been kind enough to agree to take on a bunch of accountants/lawyers/type-A personalities for the day as we attempt to do some good in the world. The lucky recipient of the gang from 1301 K? Habitat for Humanity! So yesterday, after loading up on the bus, fortifying ourselves with coffee, enduring our rather incompetent driver, and hoping and praying that they sky wouldn't open up on us with a ginormous rainstorm, we found ourselves in a southeast section of the city that I would probably not otherwise find myself in, willing and ready to...well...to build a house.

Today my body hurts in ways I didn't know it could hurt. I mean, it's really not too bad and actually serves as a good reminder that I should work out more, but can you pinpoint the muscles you use to (1) carry windows from a work shed to a home and then up a flight of stairs, (2) shave down a too-small window frame using what I think was a reciprocating saw, (3) move and stack scaffolding, (4) fill an enormous dumpster with construction junk, and (5) destroy old wooden stuff (held together with stubborn nails, of course) with a sledgehammer? This is totally counting as my workout time for the entire week. And now I know about things like window flashing and properly leveling a window in its frame! My cube buddy Stephanie and I learned quite a bit from Dave and Claude, two regular volunteers who come out as part of the Wednesday Crew.

And what would a construction site be without a little inappropriate talk and possibly some innuendo? Courtesy of the guys..."I can't get it up!" (actually referring to shifting the window up in the frame before screwing it in to close up the air gap at the tap) and "can we go all the way?" (those words may have come out of my mouth...quite innocently, I might add...as I was peeling the backing off the waterproofing tape going around the window frames). One of our favorite phrases of the day? Screw it! And this was in a positive context! It's pretty exciting to actually get the window in place, leveled and ready to go, and shout "screw it!" to the poor guy who's stuck outside (usually Claude) so he can quite literally screw it...you know, screw the window into its frame.

Fortunately, it only rained on us a little bit, and the home we were working on already had a roof, so we could seek refuge inside during the heavier drops. Oh, hard hats also serve as pretty decent rain hats in a pinch. The weather ended up cancelling today's outing (us Pdubbers are spread out over three days so we don't drive the regular crew completely crazy...oh, and for reasonable logistics), so I'm really glad we got to go yesterday!

And may I just put out there...who shows up at a home construction site NOT expecting to get dirty, do some actual physical labor, and maybe come across a bug or two? Most of our crew was pretty willing and had a good attitude for the day, but come on, you bug and dirt weenies - get with the program.

Check out our massive pile o' refuse...

...and the back of our home (which is actually two homes)...and do you see the two windows on the top floor on the right? The reciprocating saw and I got to cut through the blueboard insulation and send it plummeting to the ground so we could put windows in. I want to spend more time with power tools, please. I cut through nails with that thing!

It was rewarding to get away from my desk for a day and actually do something that gives back to the community a little bit. Sometimes I struggle to find anything redeeming about what I do at work on a day-to-day basis (the best I can come up with is "upholding the financial integrity of so-and-so and the economic backbone of our country!"...sounds semi-impressive, right?), and I truly appreciate that PwC does make an effort to give its employees the opportunity to put in a little community service time. Thank goodness for that community service charge code for my time sheet. And I hope this house that accountants helped build actually stands the test of time.