Daughters of the American Revolution Museum Visit

We had been to the Daughters of the American Revolution theater twice. As a Library of Congress employee I got free lottery tickets to see Gershwin prize winners Willie Nelson and Billy Joel  - they needed people to “fill the seats” and we were very happy to oblige. We have never been to the museum so we went last week to visit to get an image for the 52Frames photo challenge. We walked over from the Tidal Basin and the building is situated close to the White House. It was built in the early 1900’s. We were lucky to have a docent who was free to take my husband and I on a whirlwind tour. Unfortunately half of the building was under renovation, but we were happy with what we saw. That included the huge genealogy library, a lovely gallery space used for weddings, and several historical rooms. The views from the gallery were lovely - including one of the Washington Monument. There were dining rooms, bedrooms and sitting rooms - all decorated in period pieces designed by the represented states. I ended up creating a composite image of the mirror in the gallery and the wallpaper from an early 1800’s Virginia dining room. Afterwards we walked around the building on our way back to the car. It was nice to see the inside of the building we have walked by so many times. Maybe when the renovation is done we will visit again. 

52Frames Unexplored Weekly Photo Challenge

The subject this week for the 52Frames photo challenge was “unexplored.” That topic took us to four places that we had never been before. The first was the Daughters of the American Revolution Museum. We had our own personal docent who took us from one historical room to the next. I ended up creating a composite image of a very old mirror with a cool reflection and placing it on the wallpaper from an early 1800’s Virginia dining room. The next day we went to River Farm along the Potomac. The land was once owned by George Washington and is right next to Mount Vernon. The only good photo was some flowers with the house in the background. The next stop was the Department of the Interior. What I thought would be a decent museum was almost nothing to see. But the security to get in was more stringent than in any other place we have visited in DC. The intended last stop was the Portrait Gallery, but it didn’t open until 11:30. So we walked the streets around Chinatown and the new City Center. The whole vibe was very sad. It was literally dead except for a couple of coffee shops. I can see why the arena wants to move to Alexandria. The crime has put a big dent on a once vibrant community. The number of empty buildings is overwhelming. So it was a busy week for checking out places we hadn’t been to before. It was all very interesting, but for some reason I prefer the old familiar places. 

Uber and Willie Nelson

It's been awhile since we took Uber, so I was a bit confused about how to enter the right address. The driver called to clarify exactly where we were located. He finally got us to our destination in rush hour traffic - the DAR Concert hall for the Willie Neslon Gerswhin prize concert. But it was quite expensive at $26.00? So we took our free seats that were a lottery win from the Library of Congress employee pool and waited for the music. Not long after we sat down, Mr. Nelson entered and sat within our view and seemingly enjoyed the show - Neil Young, Paul Simon, Cyndi Lauper, Don Johnson, and several others whom I don't really know. At the end Willie sang "on the road again," but we didn't hear "you are always on my mind." They had to redo the Cyndi Lauper duet because there was something wrong with the production truck. Nevertheless it will be broadcast in January.  We'll probably watch it because it's a very different show watching it on tv. It was a nice event, but I'm not a huge fan. But my husband enjoyed it. I think the songs of Billy Joel last year had more meaning for me. I didn't know half the songs played at Willie's show. When we left the concert hall, we walked a couple blocks and hailed a cab. He got us home in short order and it was $15.00. I'm sure it had something to do with the time of day - or did it? 

Willie Nelson Gershwin Prize Concert Tickets

It feels like yesterday that we went to the Gershwin Prize concert for Billy Joel. A few days back an announcement was sent to Library employees that tickets were available for the Willie Nelson Gershwin Prize concert. It's a great way to fill up the seats but also see some extraordinary artists - even if they are not your cup of tea. So I submitted an email request and waited for the lottery. Yesterday when I came to work there was an email informing me that I did get a pair of tickets. So I picked them up at the events office and brought them home. They are almost in the same spot as last year - all the way left and very close overlooking the stage. My husband was thrilled because he really likes these kind of events. They are really unexpected perks of working at the Library. The DAR venue is elegant and the artists honoring Willie Nelson are even more interesting - to me - in particular Neil Young. The event used to be held in the Jefferson building which was a lot easier for us to get to, but never enough space to open it up to employees. The DAR is much bigger and the concert will be broadcast on TV over the holidays. We'll probably take Uber to get there, and a cab home. It's one of those rare times we don't walk or drive ourselves, but it is worth it!