Last day at work

So, today is the day that I have to turn in my office key and clean out my desk.
I had a lot of fun working with The Potomac Advocates this fall and learned so much about the way things operate in D.C. I was very fortunate to get placed with these guys and I plan on staying in touch with them.

Compared with other internships, The Potomac Advocates really knows how to treat their interns. Not many other college interns were able to spend a weekend at a beautiful resort in Pennsylvania. I was also able to meet a lot of interesting and important people during my time with The Potomac Advocates, such as Congressman Reyes from Texas, Jeff Baxter-the guitarist/defense consultant and a handful of senior military officers.

For our last day at work, we all went to a great seafood restaurant together and then went to the office Holiday Party at The Monacle (I think I mentioned this place on Election Night). It was a great way to spend my last day with everybody.
Thanks for everything Potomac Advocates!

This is a picture from the U.S. Capitol with "The Man". Every state gets to put 2 statues of someone from their state in the Capitol. Oklahoma chose Sequoyah and Will Rogers of course. I knew I could not call myself an Okie or an RSU Hillcat if I didn't take this picture.

It's official...

I graduated! Yesterday, The Washington Center held a commencement ceremony for all of the interns. They gave us a nice certificate and a t-shirt, but obviously I received much more throughout the entire semester in terms of education and experience.

One of the things I enjoyed about the semester was meeting and being surrounded by other college interns who have the same type of drive and motivation that I have. Having the drive to be successful in life is one of the most important characteristics a person can have.

I know I've mentioned this before, but the semester really went by fast, too fast for me. So, before arriving in DC, I had a long list of all the things I wanted to see and do while I was here. For the most part, I did see and do the majority of the things on the list. But, about halfway through the semester, I realized that every time I would scratch an event, landmark, or monument off the list, I would hear about or see something else that I had not thought about or knew about before. Not to mention all of the sites that I wanted to go back and see a 2nd, 3rd, and even 4th time (Lincoln Memorial). So, unfortunately I can't say that I did everything that I had on my list, but I came close, at least on the original list.

Some of the places I'll try to see one last time for the semester:

• Lincoln Memorial again, why not?
• Supreme Court (There's a hearing that I'll try and get into tomorrow!)
• The White House- I haven't seen the Christmas tree since they put it up
• Wizards basketball game- I've never been to an NBA game before, so I figured tonight would be a good time, tip-off is @ 7 pm!
• The perfect night picture of the Capitol, I know just the place.

I'm probably leaving out other places, but if it doesn't happen this time, something tells me I'll be back in DC again.

Well, my last weekend in DC has passed and although it was fun, I definitely had to overcome some obstacles. Two things that I have no control over were working against me big time. Snow on Saturday when I went to go check out Alexandria, VA and the Metro subway was delayed all weekend.

Maintenance work on the subway turned regular 25-30 minute commutes into almost an hour, it was ridiculous! I just now realized that I have not driven a vehicle for the entire semester, so it's going to feel pretty strange when I get back home. You know how whenever you are driving and in a hurry, it seems like all the lights turn red and the slowest drivers in the world end up in front of you, well the metro can be very similar. Whenever you're in a hurry, you will just miss the train and the next train will not arrive for 10 minutes! Or like this weekend, you'll be on the train and pull up at a station, then for some reason wait there "momentarily" which turns out to be 10 minutes!

So the big thing I wanted to do this past weekend was go to the Smithsonian National American History Museum. It just opened recently after being closed for about 2 years. This is the museum where the original star spangled banner is and one of the original copies of the Gettysburg address, plus tons of other cool stuff. I could have spent the entire day at this museum and I'm thinking about going back before I leave. So, I took some pictures from the museum:

• yes, that is the "puffy shirt" from Seinfeld
• Roberto Clemente's uniform (A former Marine and a great baseball player)
• Kermit!
• And a poster that is so true.

Also a picture w/ a quote that is on the side of the U.S. Dept. of Justice building that I really liked and since I am a Justice Admin. major, I thought it would be appropriate.

Side note, I'm a little disappointed to say the least with TU losing in the conference championship game on Saturday (one of the ugliest performances from them in a long time), even more disappointed with all of the so-called fans who did not show up! A conference championship in a stadium as small as Tulsa's should have been sold out. Nevertheless, I can be happy with a 10 win season from TU every year and we still have the chance to win 11, GOLDEN....

Another week

Here are some pictures from the past week:

A group picture of all the interns at The Potomac Advocates with our Research Coordinator, Patrick in the middle. All the guys were giving me a hard time because I wanted our group picture to be at the Marine Corps Iwo Jima Memorial, but democracy was in effect and I lost. This is still a good picture though.

In the middle is a picture at the apartment after finishing my Forensic Psych. class and my portfolio project, nothing but relief and joy on my face!

The last pic. is my favorite, because that's w/ Jeff Baxter, I think I mentioned him earlier in the semester when I saw him at a dinner over by the Capitol. He's a guitarist that was in Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers and also does missile defense consulting work for the government. My mom has always been a big fan of the Doobie Bros., so I think she'll like the pic as well!

So, I'm leaving DC soon and have to do some last minute sightseeing of all my favorite places and some that I haven't been to yet.

Down the home stretch!

My time in DC is coming to an end, unfortunately it flew by so fast, I wonder if RSU will let stay another semester!

I just finished my Forensic Psychology class last night and it was a good class that touched on some interesting topics. Anytime you have bright students who want to learn and a professor who shows enthusiasm for the course, I think it is a guarantee to have a good semester.

The past week was a blur with all the work I had going on, but for the most part everything is finished. All I have left to work on is my portfolio for The Washington Center which shows people what I was doing all semester. In the portfolio, I write about things such as my volunteer work and the lecture's I attended. But most importantly I try to persuade or convince the good people at RSU who made this experience possible for me that their $$$ was definitely well spent!

I really don't know where to begin with all of the opportunities this internship has provided me. I could start with the education, the people, the places, and I still think I would forget to mention something or someone.

The educational benefits alone, my gosh! The lectures that you attend on a variety of important topics that are presented by some very respected individuals. You learn from your job, the people at your job, the people you meet through your job-NETWORKING! Then there is the college course you take such as Forensic Psych. Also, you can learn a lot from your fellow interns that come from all walks of life. Aside from my time in the Marine Corps, this semester has been one the best learning experiences of my life.