This has been one of the nicest weekends in DC I've had in a while - lots of quality time with Scott, lots of soaking up what DC has to offer, lots of productivity around the house, and of course some Ultimate.

On Friday night, Scott and I went to the Tabbard Inn for dinner - we've been meaning to go since his birthday, since his parents gave him a gift certificate. We sat out on the patio, and it was a perfect evening. Clear light, ideal temperature, no wind. I ate my first raw oyster ever, as well as my first soft shell crab and conch, and I'm eager to have all three again. We ate at a leisurely pace but weren't quite ready to go home when we finally paid the bill, so so walked to Dupont Circle, sat on a bench and people-watched for a while. The brass band was playing on the other side of the circle, and their jazz wafted our way. Couples, dogs, chess players, frisbee players, drunk people, hurried people. What a night to be out.

We headed downtown again on Saturday morning to check out an exhibit at the Sackler called Encompassing the Globe: Portugal and the World in the 16th and 17th Centuries. From the website: "The Portuguese voyages of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries led to the first real interaction among almost all the world's peoples. An unprecedented exchange of knowledge, techniques, imagery and ideas inspired the creation of highly original works of art." The exhibit contained sections on Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, China and Japan. Lots of cool, scrambled things - like an Italian Madonna and Child in a setting with Chinese decorations. I got to visit Portugal for a week while I lived in Italy, and it was fascinating. I'd love to go back and spend more time there sometime.

Scott had to spend the afternoon at the office, and I spent it doing useful things around the house. Like cleaning mold off the underside of the mat in the shower. Gross, but satisfying. Scott and I met at the Carter Baron Amphitheater, a few blocks from our house, for a picnic dinner and a free outdoor performance of the National Symphony Orchestra. Again, a perfect evening to be outside. The NSO performed a neat collection of works by American composers. Bernstein's Overture to Candide was terrific. Grofé's Sunset from the Grand Canyon Suite was wonderful. And the encore was Copland's Hoedown from Rodeo - irresistible fun.

Today we spent lots of time in the garage, pulling out furniture that needs to be given away or trashed, and in the basement, packing boxes to ship to Davis. Today's "moldy shower mat" was a box of kitchen supplies that I had stored in the garage. A mouse had gnawed into it and made a nest of the potholders... and had left droppings amongst the silverware. I soaked it in bleach and washed it well, and then threw away the sponge and washed my hands well. Scott is as good as packing as I am bad at it. This entire process would probably drag on for weeks if he weren't here giving orders. Today, he's entirely responsible for my sanity.

At 3:30, I left the nice, cool basement and headed north to Pi practice. We worked hard and sweat a lot, and it was a long bike ride home, but it was good. Now I'm home, showered, fed, hydrated, happily ready for bed.