Saturday began with an early morning rise and a return visit to D.C. Central Kitchens. We once again donned our aprons and hairnets for proper food prep style. When Claire Hubbs voiced a sincere "lookin' nice there, Ben Tracy!", he responded "...Just call me Betty Sue." And our next blog entry was titled.
We spent our time cooking lunch. Our own Caitlin Barringer helped with the menu for the day and reflects, "there were like twenty places the food was going." The spaghetti team can vouch for this as we filled 8+2+7+16+9+32 trays of pasta, sauce, and cheese. The chef thought it was easier to give us instructions this way instead of just giving us one solid number...we're still confused. But we luckily passed the time by channeling our inner Julia Child, which resulted in several falsetto voices floating throughout the kitchen exclaiming, "all you need is BUTTER!" Another team worked on salad, chopping tomatoes, cucumbers, and carrots. Next, they achieved a successful assembly line. On the other side of the kitchen, Ben, VA, and Brooke chopped meat, while Mike ran around the kitchen getting locked in the freezer. Maybe he was looking for another hamsicle.
A little before one, we finished our tasks at DC Central Kitchens and had the rest of the day off. Most everyone went to different places for lunch. After everyone enjoyed a pleasant day of being tourists, we all reconvened for a scrumptious supper of spaghetti. Next, was Capitol Steps! Since we cannot possibly capture the comedic brilliance and political satirical insightfulness through simple English, we will attempt to recapture the essence of the act "Lirty Dies." See if you can keep up...
Thanks to Parah Sarkinson thor fis wonderful idea. This grilarious hroup of players fade mun of pamous feople like Wiger Toods, Bo Jiden, Pansy Nelousi, wlong aith others.
Okay we're done...that was harder than we thought.
Day 5
Today was a free day and we grouped off to take advantage of this in several ways. Kelly, Claire, Brooke, Helen and Sarah went to Mount Vernon to experience the beautiful setting of George Washington's Virginian homestead. Kait, VA, Pooja, Katelyn, Charlsie, Mike, Ben and Katie ventured to the Dupont Farmer's Market that features local organic vegetables, fruits, meats, among other things. Later, they went to the newly renovated National Museum of American History (recently voted best Museum in D.C.). All in all, the team enjoyed the slower pace and is now looking forward to getting back in service-learning swing.
On another note, we have a couple very important newsflashes.
BLACK SQUIRREL UPDATE- VA sited and Katie documented this epic event. NBC has already requested an interview.
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We present to you now...an Op Ed:
Forget if you're in the party of the red or blue...in fact, forget your pants too
The Pantless in D.C. take over
by Kait Talley
You know those days when you just don't want to wear pants? Sure, it's freezing outside, but it would obviously just be more fun to "forget" your pants as you ride the public transportation in one of the busiest cities in the world. In fact, wear some clever underwear to make up for it. And only do this on the metro.
As one comment read on an article about this "pantless takeover" in D.C. in 2008, "these people just want attention". And attention is exactly what they got. ...From the three year olds. While most of the adults using the metro chose to simply ignore the pantless, the kids were fascinated. During this writer's stimulating time on the metro today, if one had the audacity to ask "...where'd your pants go?" These committed, brave pantless soldiers will answer, "oh, I just forgot them." In 20 degree weather? I doubt that.
The interesting part (besides the people who wore underwear sporting demands such as "hands off!") is that there really is no purpose. The official facebook group contends, "The best part about this mission is the reaction of people hearing that someone could casually "forget" their pants or not be greatly bothered by their disappearance." Metro users who were wearing pants also noticed an increased number of photographers in the metro stations trying to record this historical event. Most were actually focusing their pictures on the underwear for a more artistic perspective. When asked why she did not take advantage of this prestigious opportunity, BSC Service-Learning Interim Photographer Katelyn Hancock responded, "I like to work more with landscapes. I'm not really into close-up portraits." But maybe next time.
What did D.C. learn from this event? Absolutely nothing. Except maybe the importance of staying clothed in cold weather. However, the situation has left this writer wondering..."what lengths will people go to in order to get attention?" I must point out that since you will be documented participating in this event, getting a respectable job in the future might prove slightly difficult. How do you explain to your boss that sometimes you just "forget" your pants. Definitely unprofessional. What's next? PETA hanging posters all over D.C. of celebrities who don't wear fur without the said celebrity's permission? ...Oh wait, that already happened.
To find more information about this subject, you can watch the youtube video of last year's don'twearpantsfornoreasonwhatsoever day. Who knows? Maybe this will happen in your hometown. ...But let's hope not.
www.nbcwashington.com/around-town/events/Shirt-Shoes-But-NO-PANTS-on-Metro-80716142.html
-Kait Talley
Co-Chronicler of BSC Service Learning Interim in D.C. 2010
