close encounters

I run into politicians frequently at work (sort of the nature of the job). Occasionally I will see them in moments when their charismatic facade is down and I get to glimpse the man behind the mask.

One day as I was climbing onto the Hart/Dirksen subway to the capitol, I was startled by the excited voices of two small children who were climbing out of the last car. They were being chaperoned by an older couple. I could hear the older man, presumably the grandfather, ask in a booming voice, "Was that fun? Do you kids want to ride the subway again?" to which they shouted, "YES!!" "O.K. then, let's go up to the front!" They all piled into the front car, where I was seated. This was a bit unusual because the subway is not open to the public, and it's not typically used for joy-riding. To my surprise, it was Senator Leahy and his wife with two young grandchildren. He was dressed casually and carried a camera with which he continuously snapped pictures of the kids. The kids shouted excitedly the whole way to the capitol, and Senator Leahy and his wife both apologized for the disturbance. I assured them I didn't mind. I forgot to stand and offer my seat to the Senator's wife, who stood and leaned against the railing the whole time.

Once we stopped at the capitol, Senator Leahy turned to the kids and again asked, "Do you want to go again? OK, let's all go back to the front!" and they all got out and piled into the back car, which was now the front car. Everyone in the vicinity was distracted by the commotion. The guard rolled her eyes and shook her head. When I had completed my errand I returned to the subway and waited for the next car to take me back to the Hart Building. As it pulled up, who do I see but Senator Leahy and his family STILL riding in the first car. This time, they exit the subway for good and head into the Capitol. Their next game: riding the elevator marked Senators Only. This experience was probably the highlight of my week.

A short while later, I was in an elevator in the basement of the Capitol and the doors were almost completely closed when out of nowhere, a person darts through them with surprising agility and speed. Curious to see who was the athlete who had joined me in the elevator, I stare at the individual and see that it is Senator Risch. "Is there a vote going on?" I asked, trying to be friendly. He shrugged, smiling. "Yeah, that's what they tell me." I don't remember the rest of our interchange, but I found him very pleasant.

It's funny, but after little encounters like these, I find that I like the Senators a whole lot more than I did before, irrespective of their political ideologies. Once I nearly knocked Nancy Pelosi over as I turned a corner outside the Senate chamber and after that, I found that I liked her alot more, too. To them I'm nothing but a blip on the radar, but to me there is now a personal connection.

senatorial bathtubs

There are no end to the discoveries you can make in all the nooks and crannies of the capitol. The senate bathtubs may be my favorite of all. Joe showed me these. To find them, you have to go to the basement, enter a door that looks like it leads to a maintenance closet, go down a hall, turn a corner, go through a room, up some stairs, down some stairs, through another door, round the corner, and there, next to a toilet that is still used, are the tubs. One has been covered with a wooden board and some electrical equipment sits on top of it now, but the other is still open, waiting for the tired and careworn intern to come and take a soak. I wonder what past senate Greats have used this tub for the exact same purpose. Nevermind, I'd rather not wonder about that.

Here we are, freshening up after a long day of work.

looking for a place to stay? here are some options you may not have considered

I was telling Ian about the hotel in Sweden that's entirely made of ice, and he in turn told me about the new pod hotels that are cropping up in major cities. I went online to see what else I could find on them, and it turns out that there's a whole market for unconventional accomodations.

If you'd like to economize but aren't quite ready to stoop to using the park bench, one step up would be staying at a capsule, or pod, hotel. Rooms are about 6.5 x 3 square feet. They come with a bed and a TV and not much else. If you're in the Hague and there is no more room at the inn, try the oil rig's escape pod. If the same situation occurs in Austria, try a sewage pipe. Or you can find shelter from the Swedish winter in the Icehotel. Ice is the primary construction material, with some snow.

This article highlights the best weirdest hotels:

http://matadortrips.com/igloos-castles-sewage-pipes-and-survival-pods-the-worlds-10-weirdest-hotels/