Fun in the Capital

I traveled all lllll the way to the other side of the world and who do I bump into?

The Baker!

She’s visiting DC too. It’s hard to recognize her inside her winter duds. We spent the afternoon taking in the sites and visiting her old friends.

We even stopped by Buzz where she used to work.

The Baker insisted the cakes looked a lot better when she was in charge of frosting. I for one believe her.

After a quick cappuccino, I had to make a dash and meet my notary (aka Tex’s big sis). My Hollywood Contract arrived and I had to get it signed, sealed, and delivered so my Beverly Hills Attorney could file it before the holidays.

To celebrate my official entrée into screenwriting, we naturally hit up…the White House Christmas Tree.

It was C-O-L-D.

And reports kept coming in that two feet of snow were heading our way.

Loppy Lou and I took a moment to pose in front of the Pennsylvania Tree. It’s important for Hollywood Celebs such as Myself to remember our roots.

Ogling trees made us work up an appetite. We gathered some of my college friends for dinner at Georgia Brown’s. Over dessert, my pal Home Owner invited us back to his new place for a drink. However, when we stepped outside we realized the snow - that wasn’t supposed to start falling until midnight - had arrived early.

Of course we were not about to let a bit of frozen water stop us from enjoying free drinks.

We really liked Home Owner’s new place.

And he was the perfect host.

The flat has a beautiful, private roof deck but it was a bit chill for alfresco nightcaps.

By the time Loppy Lou, Tex, and I headed home the snow was starting to pile high.

We stopped at a grocery store for milk and it looked like Armageddon.

Carts were abandoned in the isles. Children were sleeping on the cash registers. The only milk we could get our hands on was chocolate! And thank goodness we did because we were trapped in the apartment until Sunday. Plus, it's delicious.

When we finally escaped we had to d-i-g.
Well...they had to dig.

I’m not in Kuala Lumpur anymore.

And We Are...Back!

After a rather long hiatus, I am back! Thank you to the readers who expressed concern that I’d injured my typing fingers. My digits were, are, and always have been functioning, it was simply I who was not. But now my holiday in America has ended. After two snowstorms, two holidays, thirty hours of flights, and a dreadful seven hour layover in Bangkok, I am back in KL and ready to regale with tales of my trip.

After leaving the wind and rain of California behind, I arrived in DC to a much colder wind and impending snowstorms. Loppy Lou had just ditched her DC digs and moved to Alexandria with her fiancée Tex. They live in a Christmas Condo!

After a week of getting acclimated to the new living situation, they were ready to welcome their first houseguest. Me!

My first evening in DC fell on Loppy Lou’s annual cookie exchange with several girlfriends. I had never participated in a "cookie exchange" and I admit I was but an onlooker at this one.

Basically girls bake several batches of a single type of cookie. You then gather together and trade with each other, hopefully claiming cookies that are more difficult to make and more delicious than your own. This way you round out your holiday cookie selection without exhausting yourself kneading dough for oatmeal raisin AND candy cane cutouts. Clever. Loppy Lou invited me along to this hand off of baked goods. I was excited to meet her Lady Baker friends.

where are the cookies?

Along with cookies, they also exchange gifts. Everyone was so excited to open their gifts.

And they were so pleased with what they received.

After the giving, receiving, and several bottles of wine were finished, we walked over to Filomenia Ristorante in Georgetown.

The Lady Bakers become quite rowdy when they get a few drinks in them. And, I'm the first to admit, we indulged in a few more than a few.

By the end of the night all the boys were looking good to the Lady Bakers.
What did I learn? Cookie exchanges = a drunken good time.