It is here! My week’s update, albeit late, is here!
Since I last posted, I have been in the Philippines Embassy
not just once, but twice. Like. What even? The events in the Philippines have
definitely put lots of organizations and powerful individuals into action. My
first visit there was for a discussion between Filipino American leaders
regarding a concerted relief effort to help and support those in the
Philippines. It was cool, extremely so, to see the genuine care and passion
that these leaders from different backgrounds had to help their fellow man. The
Filipino idea of pakikipagkapwatao
was definitely apparent throughout.
I was there again last night, this time for a Philippine-made
furniture showcase. It reminded me of Rebecca and her and her architecture class’
furniture project.
I have been keeping busy in the office as usual but I also
have renewed my efforts to have fun through it all. Last Saturday, I went with
Guthrie, a high school friend who goes to Georgetown now, to Roosevelt Island
where we walked through the forests and the mud and also visited TR’s memorial.
So appropriate that he is commemorated in the very nature that he loved (Yeah
TR and his big stick and refusal to live the life of ignoble ease but instead
to embody the strenuous life!).
As my usual
outings with Guthrie goes, the trip turned into a photoshoot. He has a nice
camera and this is the first time anyone’s agreed to be his photo subject so
Guthrie kinda really directs. As in “I don’t like your bow, it ruins the shot,
take it off!” or “Move your hand on this side!” or “Lean this way, not over
there!” type of direction. We were on the edge of the island near the side of
the Key Bridge and Georgetown University and he told me to stand as close as I
could to these low-hanging orange leaves above these slippery rocks in the
water. I was wearing my boots that were definitely not slip-resistant and the
rocks were covered with mud which made them even more slippery. We knew the
water below me, though not very deep because they were covered with jagged
rocks, was freezing cold. And he took his time taking shot after shot, pausing
in between to change the settings to make sure the lighting was just right,
too.
I appreciate him taking the time to take photos and stuff
and have no problem helping him but once my feet started aching, I was already
complaining, “But I don’t want to model, I just want to go to law school!” to
which Guthrie replied, “Well you know law students have creative ways of
finding the money to pay for law school…” Really now.
Nevertheless, I did not fall in (yes!) so it was still a fun
time. See the pictures I have included below!
The fall is slowly making its way out and winter is creeping
in. Winter is coming! That was definitely apparent this morning. The
temperatures were the same as before, it has not significantly dipped in a
while, but the winds! The winds make it bitterly cold. I like the cold
temperature just fine, but when the strong wind chills make it worse, oh boy.
Number of times I've been hit on: 8
People here in DC have mistaken me for the following
ethnicities:
Vietnamese (by a Vietnamese lady who owned a food truck)
Korean (the owner of the dry cleaning place I go to for my
blazers, by a random guy on the metro, and the lady at the grocery store)
Chinese and Japanese (by the 10 Chinese journalists I took
on a Capitol tour)
Two people stopped me last night to ask if I was Filipino! I
m ean, it was probably because I was near the Philippine Embassy and because I
had a nametag with the Filipino flag on it from the event I attended, but, I
mean, it still counts right?
Pictures!
