A Day with George

Despite the snow earlier this week, the sunshine today proved it is still Fall in DC. Today my mom, my second grade teacher, her daughter, and I went to George Washington's residence. There we were able to visit his tomb and walk around his historical estate, that was also home to a variety of animals from camels to sheep. The grounds were spacious and provided for a pleasant walk along the Potomac river Although it was expensive to get in, as the tickets were $18 per person, it was worth the price because it was obvious that all the money goes to preserving this expansive and historic property.

Thankful for Thanksgiving

          Every year as I get older I become more and more thankful for the holiday Thanksgiving. I am thankful for Thanksgiving because it forces families who wouldn't normally come together to spend a whole day together bonding through cooking too much food, eating until you can't stand, and taking walks with one another in attempt to burn off all that turkey and mashed potatoes you knew you shouldn't have gotten seconds of, but couldn't resist (we have all been there my friend). It is not everyday of the year that I am reminded to tell my parents and my friends how thankful I am for their love and support. I know I should be grateful everyday, but life isn't perfect and sometimes I forget to say thank you. It's hard to appreciate something so great as having two adoring parents, brothers and a handful of amazing friends when life won't stop to let you take a moment and appreciate all the greatness that surrounds your life. I'm not saying that my life and the people in my life are perfect, but what I am saying is that I am thankful that I have a day that lets me appreciate what I do have rather than what I don't. Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you have a wonderful day and that you too got a chance to tell the special people in your life thanks.

Here are some candid photos from my Thanksgiving:

My cousin Dorie and her rambunctious dog Toby.

My Grandma and my Aunt Stephanie

Wouldn't be thanksgiving with out selfies and a surprise visit from our mystery guests

He won by one point. Whatever. 

Sneaking in turkey before the dinner...shame.

"Give me a kiss" she said

Skulls for Thanksgiving was a little too dark so my cousin and I decided to give them a makeover. 

New York State of Mind

As a senior at a Jewish day school, I have learned a lot about the presence of Jewish life on college campuses. For example, I was under the impression that the Chabad houses run by colleges use their religious privileges to attract students to their organization by serving alcohol to underage students. I admit this negative perception of the Chabad was a construction of my own ignorance. This perception proved to be erroneous when I traveled to New York City this weekend and spent a lot of my time at the NYU Chabad house.

Although I previously knew that the Chabad house at NYU had free dinners, I did not know that they offered free food for every single meal of the day. A privilege I didn’t fully appreciate until the house provided me with a free breakfast, lunch, and dinner all 3 days of my stay in New York- no questions asked (that’s 12 meals…just incase you can’t multiply or add). I was in shock by their generosity. I did not know the Rabbi or any of the students, but there they were serving me endless portions of bread, cookies, and fruits all weekend long. My belly and I were overjoyed and warmed by their unfamiliar hospitality.

It wasn’t just the free food that made me feel so welcome; it was also the student’s amiable attitude (which had nothing to do with the free wine). I am not sure whether to describe them as having excellent social skills or simply just friendly, but each student I was introduced to seemed generally interested in getting to know me. Some of the kids even hugged me goodbye when it was time to go back home. Shocking I know, but I swear happened. Human compassion exists people, turns out they were not just serving me food to force me into becoming religious like I previously assumed. I stand happily and chubbily corrected.

I apologize for the lack of photos from my trip. Here are the few photos that I managed to snap for you guys:

Frosted Blueberries

My friend Daphna and our wonderful hosts for the weekend 

Taken at the Highline

All photos taken by Fiona Whittington

Tourist Time

         Hey guys! For senior skip day my friends and I decided to go to Washington D.C. to be tourists for the day. I have never been to most of the monuments despite living right outside D.C for my entire life. Therefore, I thought it would be appropriate to take a day and go into D.C. to do all the things I oddly have never done before.

         If you also live near Washington D.C. and your looking for something fun to do in the city, I would strongly recommend having a picnic at the base of the Washington Monument. The view from the lawn is scenic and the open green space generates a relaxing atmosphere. 

Here is a video of my adventure:

http://youtu.be/WyxcGgEJnZI

Sorry it's so short, I hope you enjoy!

Quick Note: The Butterfly Pavilion is located inside the Smithsonian. To enter the museum there is no charge, but it costs $6 per person for a 15 minute session (although the staff lets you stay for as long as you would like) to enter the Butterfly Pavilion. 

Photo by Fiona Whittington

Finding Strength

Strength is a multi sided characteristic. One can be mentally strong, physically strong, or have qualities of both. Being mentally strong can mean achievement in academics: excelling in math, science, and english, or having confidence and feeling strong within yourself and about yourself.

I regularly think back on an adventure I had over the summer where I felt the most mentally and physically strong. I climbed Camel’s Hump, which is the third tallest mountain in Vermont. I have never been a person who is “in shape”. I’m not very active, I don’t work out or play sports, and my daily life doesn’t require me to be physically fit. Hiking is one of the few activities I enjoy that also happens to be exercise. However, on the morning of my expedition up Camel’s Hump, I was positive I would make it halfway to the summit and crash: my calves would burn excessively, my chest would weigh me down and I would be able to move no further.

Instead I had the opposite experience as I was marching up the steep and rocky slope. I felt alive, I felt amazing, I felt like I could do anything. My calves did burn, but I felt satisfied because of that, my chest was heavy, swelling with pride at what I was accomplishing, and I only stopped moving in order to enjoy the spectacular view I had arrived at.

This same summer I went to Seattle Washington by myself to visit my grandparents. I explored the downtown area alone, I chose what I wanted to do each day, and I figured out how to keep myself entertained, without relying on my friends to keep me happy. This was a lesson that also boosted my strength. It increased my confidence, and showed me that I could live and survive on my own, that I didn’t have to look to other people to feel content.

When I was standing on the summit of Camel’s Hump this came to mind. I had climbed this mountain, and with only the company of myself, I had gained confidence.

Confidence, like strength, must be found within yourself. Relying on other people for these important aspects of your mind will only lead to more insecurity and weakness. As a teenager, confidence can be fleeting, it can vanish as soon as someone bruises your self image. I hope to remind everyone that only you can control how you feel about yourself, and finding ways to to find happiness on your own is almost all you need.

Me on Camel's Hump

This is a neighborhood in Seattle called Fremont

Exploring Seattle on my own, Pike Place Market

My Afternoon Under the Planes

            Today my mom and I went to watch the airplanes land at Reagan National Airport in DC. Although I did not get any good pictures of the airplanes that flew above us, I did get to take a ton of wonderful pictures of some sunsets, my moms beautiful face, and my shoes? I'm not sure what the name of the place we went to was, but it was an empty field where you can watch airplanes soar really close to the ground. There's not much else to say except that I quite enjoyed our afternoon below the airplanes and that I am looking forward to going there again when it's warmer. I hope you enjoy the pictures! :)

Oreo and his adorable underbite. 

Cotton Candy Skies

New Audrey Emoji's coming out in 2015