We Will Miss You Stumpy!

The first photo I can find of Stumpy - the “little tree that could” - is from 2018. He has now become famous because the park service will be cutting him down for tidal basin improvements that will begin soon. We have been visiting the tidal Basin for the last seventeen years, and also before we moved to Capitol Hill. This little tree is so scrawny you might not even notice. He sits just beyond the Jefferson Memorial. But there, the waters oftentimes flood the area and it has taken a toll on the trees. Every time we meandered that way on our morning walks I would take some photos - long before knowing his fate. And I’m so glad I did! Luckily I have Stumpy in each season from almost the same vantage point with the Washington Memorial in the background. Unfortunately both my husband and I tested positive for Covid last week for the first time and are so disappointed that we can’t walk about like we always do. We are hoping that we will still have a chance to visit after the cherry blossom festival and before the tree destruction. It makes us feel so sad to see him go. But at least we have good memories of this little tree. I’m so glad I noticed him long before the hoopla. Stumpy deserves to be remembered. 

52Frames 52Picks Road Photo Challenge

At the suggestion of our friend in the Midwest I joined the 52Frames photo challenge at the beginning of the pandemic. It has served the best purpose of getting us out of the house to capture a photo every week of a given subject. I have learned a lot about taking photos and using new techniques - even though I am not a photographer. I just love to take pictures and my camera is my iPhone. This week the subject was “road.” We had a great opportunity to capture a woman in black crossing Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the US Capitol Building. My husband really liked this image and he is usually right. And I’m so happy that my picture this week was selected as a top 52 out of over 3,000 entries. I got an email this morning telling me of the good news. The last time my photo was selected was in October, and this one makes the fifth time - a record I am very proud of. I just wish I was physically feeling better since both my husband and I tested positive for COVID last Thursday. It’s been a long week and now I no longer have any taste or smell, along with congestion, cough, and sleepless nights. I am thankful that it is not worse. But after four years of being so careful and having the latest booster just ten days ago, I am feeling rather dejected. So this recognition came at a good time - but I will forever be reminded when it happened. 

Happy Nowruz and Moby Dick

Happy Nowruz! It doesn’t feel like it because both my husband and I are Covid bound since last Thursday. We managed to escape this horrible thing after being so careful for four years only to get it now - ten days after being vaccinated/boosted. Earlier last week we had ordered  a place holder for two Moby Dick Sabzi Polo Mahi special dinners to celebrate the holiday. Now we don’t even have a sense of taste or smell anymore and it’s a chore to force something down. So last evening we put on our masks and hobbled down to the car to drive and pick up the special fish dinners. Usually we get all sorts of other fixings but just didn’t have an appetite. But we will have enough to cover two meals and not have to worry about making dinner. So we are trying to take this virus day by day, hoping it continues to improve. There are the obvious ebbs and flows and anger and frustration and sense of loss for the simple things. I know it could be a lot worse and we are thankful for that. Unfortunately it started on our anniversary, continues through the holiday and my husband’s birthday, and ruined our planned weekend getaway to visit family in central Virginia. Spring was always such a season of promise. It’s a little different this year. 

Parking With Parkmobile

When we lived on Capitol Hill we had to park on the street. We also had to have parking stickers to prove we were residents. That was then. Now we live in northern Virginia and we miss our street parking parking stickers! Now we know why anyone who came to visit us appreciated the visitor parking passes we also had because we were residents. Now we either find a parking space that has two hour parking and make sure we are in and out within two hours, or we use the parkmobile app. When we attend programs at the Library of Congress we can usually find a two hour designated spot. But when we are about town looking for photos for my weekly challenge we usually use park mobile. The best place is at the tidal basin because it’s a best kept secret - unless it’s cherry blossom time when you avoid it like the plague. The next best place are the streets inside the National Mall. Our favorites are by the Smithsonian castle or the American Indian Musuem. When all else fails we park on independence Avenue across from the American Indian museum. Once in a while we go back to our neighborhood and park by our condo building in a two hour space. But you really need to read the signs that are posted to avoid tickets or tows. And it can be very confusing if you are a non resident. The average rate is about four dollars for an hour and a half. So now we spend about sixteen dollars a month for parking because we do try to visit every week - just to get out of the house. Is it worth it? Sometimes. At least we have an option. 

52Frames Road Weekly Photo Challenge

The photo challenge this week for 52Frames was “road.” We didn’t know it at the time, but it was one of the last days we would be driving around outside before we both tested positive for Covid on Friday. We had been so careful these last four years and just got another booster vaccine eight days before. Now we are in the twilight zone. Looking back on last week feels like centuries ago. I wanted to see the magnolias that were blooming at the Enid Haupt gardens at the Smithsonian Castle. We found a great parking spot by the Air and Space Museum and started our morning walk there. We headed down Pennsylvania Avenue towards the Capitol and noticed an elegant figure in black. We positioned ourselves in the median of the street by the National Gallery of Art and waited for her to cross the street. That was the image we decided to use. I took a lot of photos of the avenue from inside the National Gallery as well. It’s a great view not only from the second floor, but also from the rooftop where the blue chicken sculpture resides. On our way home there were a lot more options for road pics in our old neighborhood on Capitol Hill. Surprisingly the image we liked didn’t get as much attention on instagram as a few of the others. But I always trust my husband’s artistic judgement - even though it may not coincide with the photo challenge literal subject interpretation. I’m not sure when we will be able to get out this week to take photos for the challenge this week. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom a week ahead of schedule. I really don’t want to miss them. 

Happy Anniversary?

It hit us out of nowhere. After four years of being very careful and isolating ourselves to an extreme the inevitable happened. Both my husband and I tested positive for Covid - on our anniversary. We just got our booster shots eight days before. We were both feeling a bit under the weather starting Thursday afternoon with post nasal drip. Even the dinner tasted funny. Then the next morning we woke up with sniffles and coughs. What else was there to do but take out two of the Covid tests we have been collecting and never needed to use. Initially my husband tested positive and I was negative. We still had enough energy to go for a morning walk. But as the day went on we started to deteriorate. I took another test in the afternoon and it was positive. We contacted our doctors office to get paxlovid, but of course no one responded. But both of us are on medications that may disqualify us from taking it. Then we both got low grade temps and felt lousy. I was hoping we would have just a slight version, and so far we have even though it’s still very crappy. Luckily we have all sorts of over the counter drugs to help us get comfortable. It’s still worrying because it is the weekend and we are pretty much on our own. These are the times you wish family lived closer. And wouldn’t you know we were planning a weekend trip to central Virginia to visit and this happened. We also need to cancel a few appointments this week. It’s a good reminder that you can’t take your health for granted. So far this year has been awful for a variety of reasons. I hope this is the end of it. 

Water Leak and Travel John

As it so happens after our morning walk were met at the front door of our condo by the building’s mechanic. He said he found a water leak in the parking garage and traced it up to our unit after searching the tier on this side of the building. We have been having issues with water since a pump mechanism was added to the pipes in the HVAC closet in January. Regardless, having a water leak means shutting off the water until the issue can be addressed. We were not happy. We thought when we moved from Capitol Hill we would finally be rid of these headaches. Since we only have one bathroom that can also potentially create a problem. And when we first moved in five years ago I ordered a potty stool and a Travel John solid waste collection kit - just in case we would ever need it. We already have disposable urinals in the car, but luckily have never had to use them. I also kept two disposable urinals in the house just in case. Because we didn’t know how long the situation would last, the potty chair was set up - just in case we couldn’t wait any longer. But I needed to pee, and this gave me an opportunity to see how one of the items works. Since we aren’t campers or outdoorsy types, these things are foreign to us. I have to say the product worked just like it said and can hold up to 800 cc’s that eventually turns solid, and then gets tossed away. It does help to think ahead, but it sure would be nice to have two bathrooms. But then again, that wouldn’t have helped if the water was turned off. Let’s just hope we get a resolution to the pump problem sooner than later.