Things Fall Apart

I'm here in D.C. Not as smooth a start as I would have hoped. The morning of my flight from Louisville, my contact lens fell out of my eye and onto Jaber's floor, never to be seen again. Ever since it's been one thing after another, and I've barely had a moment to stop. I did file a story last week, though (I'm writing for the St. Joseph News-Press in Missouri), and we did go to the Eastern Market yesterday, which was really fun. I had a delicious crab cake sandwich, sweet tea, a brownie and plenty of samples of fresh fruits and vegetables at the farmers' booths.

The residents of this fair city are friendly and helpful, which I noticed immediately. The first thing I told my housemates when I walked in the door from the airport is how nice it is to be back in the South, where people offer to help a lone traveler with her unmanageable luggage, where Fed Ex men stop not once, but twice!, to drop off boxes so the recipient doesn't haveto go to the headquarters-or-whatever and somehow get them home herself, where people actually look you in the eye and say hello.

Also, I'm expecting mail this week, so there's that. Something to look forward to.

There's thunder and rain just outside my window. My roommate is out with a friend. Alone with nothing but my thoughts and Graham Greene. I love it. I'm off to read a few before bed.