I Didn't See That One Coming...

I am still on the fence when it comes to the Affordable Healthcare Act. It doesn't particularly matter to me since I work for the government and health insurance is one of my benefits. I do feel for friends that are not so lucky though, and I also recognize that the U.S. was one of the few wealthy countries in the world that did not have a universal healthcare law. Regardless, I assumed that that either the law as a whole would be struck down by the Supreme Court, or that at the very latest, they would strike down the individual mandate because of the make-up of this particular court. Color me surprised when I saw the ruling this morning that not only did the Supreme Court uphold the law as a whole, but Chief Justice Roberts was the deciding opinion, not Justice Kennedy. Whoa. Part of me wished part of the law had been struck down to galvanize the left. Instead, I'm slightly concerned that the ruling will rile up the crazy tea partiers. Just what we need, more crazy people who think of solely of themselves and their religion and have no desire to compromise on anything in Congress, where they already can't get anything done. This is certainly going to be a nasty, nasty, nasty election. Sigh.

The Disappearing Bus

Metro has this great app that tells you how much time you have until the bus arrives at your stop. Today I left work at 545, checked my phone, and saw I had 7 minutes to get to my stop. That was perfect as its about a 4 minute walk from the building. So I checked my phone again as I got to the stop, and I had 3 minutes left. I answered a text, checked my phone again, and it said there was no bus in the vicinity. Say what? How does a bus go from being tracked 7-6-5-4-3-2 minutes to just disappearing? If its being tracked then it must be there, right? As this is not the first time this has happened, apparently not. Metro seems to have magic buses that come and go at will. Even if it is supposed to be there, don't be surprised if suddenly it disappears. Sigh. Gotta love the WMATA.

P.S. Angels just rocked the Angels-Orioles series, and it was freaking awesome to actually be able to watch! Love it when they come to the DC/MD area!

Immigration and the Supreme Court

I have to be honest, when it comes to immigration, I tend to lean more on the conservative side. I completely disagree with big amnesty programs because I think it screws those who have been trying to immigrate legally, and it just tells others that if they come here illegally, don't worry, eventually amnesty will be granted. I am also on the fence about President Obama's new policy when it comes to deportation. How is someone supposed to prove that he/she has been in the country for as long as necessary to stay? It seems a little too easy to fudge. I also feel like he made this policy solely because of the election, and that's disappointing to me. At the same time, I do think we need comprehensive immigration reform, and Congress will never do such a thing while it is a Republican majority with a Democrat in the White House. All that being said, I think the Supreme Court totally erred this week. I'm happy they knocked down 3 of the 4 provisions of Arizona's law, but the part they left intact was the worst part and it makes no sense, especially in light on what they knocked down. I mean, if a State cannot require someone to carry immigration papers, what happens when the cops pull someone over, let's be honest-most likely solely because they look hispanic, and he or she doesn't have any proof but claims to be anAmerican citizen?. Can a cop jail that person because he/she doesn't believe him/her? What happens if the arrested person lies? How do they prove that? Now I do not think immigrants should be required to carry papers,  its completely degrading, but if you are going to uphold the right of the police to question someone's immigrations status when they are questioned for something else, I want to know how you get the true answer without requiring people to carry papers. I suppose I could read the entire decision and maybe see something that explains this, but I don't think it should be that difficult.This is just another example of our Supreme Court effing up in my mind. And don't even get me started on these Supreme Court Justices. For so called conservative judges, who generally prefer to leave precedent alone and let Congressional law stand, these folks, and by these folks I mean Roberts, Alito, Thomas, and Scalia, are the most activist judges we have had in a long time. Ugh. For a former law and society major, this is so not cool.

Third Wheel

Today was the baby shower for 2 of my very good friends. I am super happy for them, and I think they will be the coolest parents ever. I can't really imagine them as parents, and the fact that she is 6 weeks from giving birth astounds me, but they are such cool people (she works at the zoo!!) that I know they will rock. In any case, I caught a ride to the party with another couple who are married and also really good friends. When we arrived, I realized I was one of the very few single people there. I think part of this is because my friends who are having the baby are are in their 30s already (I still have over 3 years til I hit that mark!), so most of the people there were older than me. Still though, as I thought about it more, I realized most of my friends here are in relationships. And I mean long-term, serious relationships. This means I am often the 3rd wheel. And while sometimes it doesn't bother me, there are certainly instances when I really wished I had someone by my side. I just don't know why I haven't met that person yet. Maybe I am meant to be alone. I am super independent, and coupling that with shyness and being picky, I feel like I won't ever meet the right person. I think I am reaching the point where I need to be more proactive though. Whether that means going out alone or trying to new things on my own or joining an online dating site, I'm not sure, but I'm certainly getting tired of what seems to be my permanent role as 3rd wheel.

Packing Procrastination

Why is it that I always put off my packing until the last possible moment? It's almost 930, and tomorrow I am going to work in the morning and flying out of DC in the afternoon. Instead of being all ready to go, here I sit typing away with an empty suitcase on the floor while my ipad charges away. I just hate packing. Its irrational, especially when I consider the fact that it really only takes 20 minutes tops, especially for a short trip like the one I am headed on, but I still put it off as long as possible. I guess I feel less motivated than usual because I know mom or dad will have whatever I forget. I also just don't want to deal with separating liquids and all that jazz. Aren't we beyond that by now? Oh wait. No. Sigh. The good/bad news is that my apt is pretty clean, so there is nothing to worry about/procrastinate with there tonight. And I already took out the trash like a good girl. I have even already planned to have a friend come over to check on Sammy for the few days I'm gone. So all that's left is to check the weather, pull out some shirts and skirts, and I'm done. Yet here I sit...

Grown-Up Cliques

Call me naive, but I always thought once we got out of high school and college that the cliques would kind of go away and people would be more open as adults. That is certainly not the case. In fact, I think people are almost even worse now. It seems to me that people in their 20s and 30s have their groups of friends and are satisfied, so they don't feel the need to open up or be super friendly towards other who may look a bit lost. And I'm pretty sure I was one of those looking a bit lost tonight. I went to services, and before services there is a cocktail hour of sorts. I didn't know anyone there, so I kind of stood off to the side, feeling both like an idiot and a bit lonely. A nice guy came over and chatted with me, but then his friend showed up, so that ended that. Luckily services began shortly thereafter, and I ran into someone I met last time I came to services, so I sat with him. Services themselves were special tonight as the congregation celebrated the upcoming marriage of 2 couples. It was super fun as everyone got to throw candy at them after they received their blessing, and then got up and danced with them. At the end of services I was feeling a bit sentimental and just wasn't willing to deal with dinner and once again either finding someone I knew or butting in on a group of already established friends, so I just came home. It all really made me really miss my community back in Santa Barbara at Hillel. I guess I really want what everyone else seems to have, and I'm not quite sure how to get it. To be fair, this was only my second time attending services here, so I know I need to give it more of a chance. And I really do love the rabbi and the atmosphere at services. I just need to suck it up I guess, stop being so shy, and try to more actively make friends. Ugh. Wish me luck!

Jews on Guns, Gays, and Abortions

Say what? Well, 6th and I Synagogue is hosting a class on the Jewish Perspective on Guns, Gays, and Abortions.  It is a 3 week course with each week focusing on one of the three hot button topics. I went to the first class this evening, which focused on guns. It was super interesting to read language from the Torah and the Talmud and see what the Rabbi's of old thought about protection and when it is ok to kill someone, and then to apply that to guns and gun laws. I haven't changed my views on guns, but it was definitely a perspective I hadn't thought of before. Its very thought provoking and I'm super bummed that I am going to be missing the class on abortion since I will be in CA next week at this time. But I'll be back for the class on Jews and gays, so that should be interesting, and the Rabbi will be emailing out the work sheet on abortions, so I will still see the texts, I'll just be missing the discussion. I also met the Rabbi of 6th and I for the first time tonight, and I really like her. She wasn't there when I went to services last month, so I am excited to go to services tomorrow and see how she leads them. I have to say, it has been great getting back into Judaism and I couldn't be happier with 6th and I Synagogue.

Money Matters

Today I did something super grown-up: I invested some of my money! I have a pretty good and stable job, and I am not doing anything with my money besides leaving it in my checking account (when I'm not spending it that is, haha). So after chatting with my Dad, I decided why not? I hate the stock market and think its pretty subjective and a self-fulfilling prophecy most of the time, but where else does the possibility exist to make as much money on your money as the stock market? So, I signed up with Vanguard and invested in the 500 Index, which hopefully will protect my mula from any huge swings on particular days and in particular stocks. We shall see. I am also planning on updating my TSP. Right now I have all of my TSP money going into the G Fund, which is pretty crappy when it comes to returns. The Roth IRA TSP was recently introduced though, and since I am still very early in my government career, I think its a good move to put as much money as I can into the Roth IRA. So that's my next move, though probably not for a bit. After all, one big money change at a time, right?

I'm Too Old For This "Stuff"

I am a big fan of How I Met Your Mother (HIMYM), and there is one particular episode that I was thinking off this morning at about 630am. Why was I awake at 630? I'll get to that. In this episode, Ted keeps telling Barney that he's "too old for this 'stuff'" as Barney keeps wanting to do silly things. Ted is basing this off of a movie, I think one of the Die Hard films? Anyway, Barney responds that Ted is just lame and acts too old. They each come up with a list of stereotypical things the other must complete: Ted tells Barney he must dye his hair, pierce his ear, and sleep on a futon, while Barney tells Ted he must eat dinner at 4, take forever to answer the phone, and go to bed early, just to name a few. At the end of the episode, Ted realizes that he has been acting too old and that even though the character in the movie says "I'm to old for this 'stuff,'" he still goes out and does it. Barney comes to the realization that he is too old for some of the stuff, but that he is still awesome. Now to my point. I was up late reading last night/this morning. So late/early that I realized it was getting light out as I was reading. By the time I finished my book it was about 630. What the heck is wrong with me? Why do I stay up and do this to myself? Ugh. I ended up getting about 4.5 hours of sleep, so it wasn't all bad. Still, I think I really am too old for this "stuff." I mean, I'm fine today, but I have a full work week ahead of me, and I know lack of sleep can add up. At the same time, it was kind of fun to realize that I can be a bit of a rebel (ha, right) and still do stupid things every now and then. In any case, I'm going to attempt to go to bed early tonight, and that means not starting a new book and/or putting the book down early. Fingers crossed I can do so!

UPDATE:
I'm a failure and definitely started a new book and stayed up later than I intended. Oops.

Making Grown-Up Friends

How does a 20-something woman in a new city make new friends? That is a question I have tried to answer a lot since I moved to DC. Luckily, I have managed to make a few really good friendships since I moved here, but it has definitely been tough. Some of these friends were made through work, others through friends-of-friends, and of course a few through school. My problem now is that most of my friends are in relationships and/or super busy, meaning if I want to randomly go for a hike or to a baseball game on a weekend, its highly unlikely they are available. So what is a girl to do? Well, Rachel Bertsche was in a similar situation: she moved to a new city with her husband and was looking for new friends. She decided to be proactive about it and go on 52 "friend dates" to try and find a new BFF. That journey turned into the book, "MWF Seeking BFF." It's been fun to follow along on her friend dates, but what has also been super interesting are the bits in between the dates where she talks about the research she has done on making friends. It sounds kind of silly to write it out, but I am really enjoying the book. She has found that many women are in similar situations, looking for good friends to do something with at a moment's notice, but that few do much about it. Maybe by the time I finish the book I will be one of those who does do something about it. We'll see. :-)

Tornado Warning?

So there is a tornado warning in effect in Washington, DC right now. Apparently warnings are put into effect if a tornado has been seen within a tornado watch zone. So I guess that means there was a tornado in the DC area. Freaking crazy. There is a huge storm front moving through the area, meaning we have had over an inch of rain within the past 5 hours, and the tornado warning is in effect until 2am. I am so not used to this kind of weather...