We Were Silly

In 7th grade, I took a trip to Washington DC to with much of my Jr. High (including Katie.) Obviously there is SO much to see, and we only had a few days to do it. Unfortunately, I think much of the significance of the places we were visiting was lost on us. In fact, according to my (and Kate's) memory, the highlights included:

• Flying without our parents.
• Counting how many steps it took us to get from the bus to whichever monument we were visiting.
• Staying in a hotel room without adults for the 1st time. Which led to...
• Hot tamale eating contests that brought tears to our eyes
• And races to see how quickly we could take showers (4 minutes).
• Squirrels look different in other parts of the country.
• Seeking out gift shops immediately after entering a museum (we had an excuse - they told us to buy postcards instead of taking pictures )
• The Secret Service doesn't tolerate shenanigans in the White House (that was all Katie).
• And being excited that our flight was delayed because they gave us each $5 to go to a mall food court for lunch.

I started thinking about this trip because a specific memory of it popped into my head the other day. I was a bit obsessed with Forrest Gump at the time, so when we arrived at the Washington Monument I couldn't help but think of the scene in the movie where Forrest & Jenny run across the reflecting pool.

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I ran back and forth across the steps in front of the monument and then said , "Now I've stood somewhere where Tom Hanks has stood!" ...Nevermind all of the political rallies and influential activist movements that happened there! (No offense, Tom.)

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Ok, that is all. Off to enjoy the 3 day weekend!