Paul Rudd, Reese, and Mr. Nicholson in D.C.!??!

There's a rumor circulating D.C. that they're filming a Paul Rudd movie in town. Tonight, that rumor was confirmed! After celebrating Chris' birthday for dinner, we literally walked right into a set on 15th and H Street. There were cameras, lights, extras...So we waited around for some sign of Paul Rudd, Jack Nicholson, and Reese Witherspoon.



Okay, so that's not really them, but they're convincing enough!! Sadly, we didn't get to see anyone famous except for some SAG actors, but that's all right. We have three weeks until they finish filming in D.C., three weeks to track them down!

We had dinner at The Old Ebbitt House, famous for feeding presidents in the past. Although the reputation is presidential, the prices are not! The food was very reasonably priced and the service amazing. Our waitress had a great sense of humor, and our tables were in the middle of what seemed like a hotel courtyard. Dim lighting, crab cakes, clam chowder, and atmosphere.





My First Official Day of Work

Fellow interns and staff
There are three other interns (Tiffany, Cynthia, and Adriana) in Loretta's office, and they're all from southern California too! Two of them are Cal-State Fullerton students, while one found the internship through the Hispanic American Caucus. They're all very nice and were so helpful to me on my first day, since they've all been here for three weeks.

Sorting mail, stuffing envelopes, phone calls
It sounds less interesting than it actually is! Through sorting the mail, I got to read through some of the letters and faxes that constituents send. You learn that there are people who genuinely care about health care, energy, gas taxes, and even gun bans enough to share their personal stories why they support or oppose certain legislation. However, you also learn that there are people who have no idea who their Congressman is and will fax everyone up the wazoo to either get attention or hope for a response. I saw hand-written faxes that called laws and politicians "evil" and such.

Tours of the Capitol building
Eventually I'll be trained to give tours of the Capitol building so I can give tours to constituents who wish to visit. Can't wait!

Tunnels
There are three main buildings in which representatives have their offices: Cannon, Longworth, and Rayburn. I work in Longworth. The coolest part about all these is that they're connected by a series of tunnels underground. So on my lunch break, I walked over to Cannon to visit Nabila in Congressman Sablan's office.

Debate on the "cap-and-trade" bill (a.k.a. HR 2454)
On my first day, my supervisor Ajay let me go to the House floor to watch a debate on the cap-and-trade bill that was to be voted on (it passed at a narrow vote of 219 to 212). Our office had C-Span on all day while the debates were going on. Washington, D.C. is a Hollywood for politicians. Instead of a stage, they walk onto the floor. People watching the debates will yell at the television screen and throw out their commentary or their jeers. Being a politician comes with a little bit of celebrity, I realized. That's just my two cents. I don't know whether I like that or not.



I doubt I was supposed to be taking these pictures, but oh well! :) I'll come up with a V-log sometime soon about my commute to work and such so you can hop the Metro with me and head to downtown D.C.!

I miss you all! Thank you for following me here! I am thinking of all of you constantly. :)