Celebrity Something Meetup!

I had an interesting weekend. Got in my long run of 1.5 miles, scrubbed some balcony furniture, gave away every piece of clothing I own, did a little retail therapy (b follows a) and oh, showed Celebrity I Run for Hope Blogger Laurie, the commentingest commenter, her nation's capital!

Laurie rolled into town on a big jet plane on Saturday, her 80-year-old grandma in tow. These two girls are goin' on a Road Trip! On a bus Road Trip! Laurie and I met up at her hotel on Sunday. She is just like her blog! And her comments! The original plan called for us to take a short (1.5 mile) run on Your National Mall.

By 2 p.m. Sunday it was approximately 1,000°F, plus, it was Memorial Day Weekend. Which apparently is a popular time to visit Your Nation's Capital (who knew?).

Execute Plan B! We would stroll the Mall, and pop in and out of some museums (Smithsonian fees are very reasonable—free!) in the two hours we had together.

I had asked Laurie on the phone if there was anything in particular she wanted to see, and she said "just the Botanic Garden."

And yet, sadly, that was too much information for me to carry around in my little pointy head.

Instead, I took her on the abbreviated tour of Your National Mall.

So we hopped Metro down to the Smithsonian stop and I took Laurie right into the American Museum of Natural History because who doesn't like to look at dinosaurs, right? Especially when every single kid on the planet is in attendance? We took one photo, saw a dinosaur, and left.

All the while, I narrated my tips and tricks for moving seamlessly in and around D.C. (I move like the wind). "How come there's a line over there?," Laurie naively asked, pointing to some hapless souls waiting to get into the National Gallery of Art, East Wing. "Because they don't know any better," I informed her, expertly maneuvering us into the NO WAITING entrance!

The National Gallery of Art is a treasure. It is cool, it is beautiful, and it is largely tourtist-free. We first wandered around its outside gardens while I may or may not have narrated a particularly harrowing part of my marathon journey. Inside, I expounded on pieces of art and their provenance.

After a quick hydration stop in the Cascade Café


the memory chip started humming and as it came to life I slowly recalled that Laurie had wanted to see the U.S. Botanic Gardens. In fact, that was the only thing she had actually mentioned wanting to see!

So off we went. I can't say it was the definitive tour, but I got the job done! Afterwards, we hopped back on the Metro, where I suddenly realized that I had to change trains but Laurie didn't. I threw myself off at the very last minute, shouting over my shoulder the name of the stop Laurie needed. For all I know, that poor girl is still riding the blue line!

And for those of you who follow the adage: "no pictures = did not happen," well, feast your eyes, bub:
Laurie, I swear there is art in this museum. See?

Listen, I know this town like the back of my hand. I'm quite sure that the Capitol is right around here somewhere.

Isn't she just gorgeous?

Laurie OWNED the Botanic Gardens.

She's just like her blog! Thoughtful, funny and nice!

Laurie, nothing but flowers.