Christmas Eve - Engaged

Photo: Christmas Eve candlelight song service at St. John's Church Lafayette Square, next to the White House. Engaged today.

Christmas Special

My favorite moment of the day yesterday was observing this middle-aged mustachioed man just cold-watchin' the Charlie Brown Christmas Special on his iPad while riding the Metro during rush hour.

Christmas Bagel

I'm not much of a food blogger, but I was pretty proud of my "Christmas wreath bagel" I randomly made this morning. Multi-grain bagel with cream cheese, avocado and pomegranate seeds.

Five Random Facts about the American Presidents, Part I

I'm currently reading The American Presidents (11th Edition) by David C. Whitney, a compendium of short biographies on all the presidents.

Since I am about half way finished with the book, I thought I'd post five random notable things I've learned so far.


Andrew Jackson spent a lot of time with bullets in his body. In 1813 Thomas Hart Benton pumped a bunch of bullets into Jackson and doctors urged him to have his shattered arm amputated. Jackson refused and carried the bullets in his arm for the next 19 years, having them removed while he was president.

William Henry Harrison had the worst inauguration. W.H. Harrison caught a cold during his inaugural address and died from it a month later.

John Tyler was expelled from his party while President. He was elected as a Whig (as VP, then became Prez when W.H. Harrison died), but because he vetoed Whig legislation, all the members of his cabinet quit and two days later the party expelled him.

Grover Cleveland lived a nonchalant life between presidencies. In between GC's time as our 22nd and 24th President, he moved to New York to work as an attorney and took the street car to work.


Theodore Roosevelt stood up for the rights of women and minorities. TDR wrote his 1880s college thesis on the "Practicability of Giving Men and Women Equal Rights," and invited Booker T. Washington to eat with him at the White House, the first time in history a president had sat down to dinner with a black man, causing Roosevelt to be unwelcome in the South.

I HEART Utah

Zion National Park, Utah

This week I had a roundtrip ticket from D.C. to Las Vegas for a work trip. I've been here 7 days now and haven't seen the strip. Instead, I toured the California Desert - Joshua Tree Nat'l Park, San Jacinto Mountains and Mojave Desert; hiked in the Utah canyons at Zion National Park, and planted trees at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Nevada. Much better than gambling.

Nature as Art

Joshua Tree National Park, California.

Assassination Vacation

I enjoyed reading Assassination Vacation*, Sarah Vowell's comical write-up of her seriously taken trips to visit all tourism sites related to the assassinations of Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley. It makes me want to go see the musical "Assassins," where John Wilkes Booth, Charles Guiteau and Leon Czolgosz sing and dance on stage, which she attends.

The book provides fascinating backgrounds on the assassins and their Presidential targets who met untimely deaths, while intertwining historical trivia, such as that Robert Todd Lincoln, Lincoln's son, was in close proximity to the murders of all three Presidents, like a jinx of doom.

Also, John Wilkes Booth's brother, the actor Edwin Booth, once saved Robert Todd Lincoln's life after he fell from a train platform onto the tracks. A Booth that saved a Lincoln's life.

The book is about the craziness of the historical tourism business, which Vowell loves whole-heartedly. Along with the general stops like Ford's Theatre, she visits the New England home of the Lincoln Memorial sculptor, Dry Tortugas off the coast of Florida where the conspirators of Lincoln's death were imprisoned, and many other odd places.

One notable trivia point for D.C. tourism: the Lincoln Memorial sculptor was mortified to find out that after all of his hard work, the light from the reflecting pool bounced up onto Lincoln's face, looking as if a flashlight had been held up under his chin. Eventually, ceiling lights were installed so that Lincoln could look dignified and pensive, as intended. Poor Lincoln. He looked scary!

For more historical trivia and context about one of the most presidentially violent times in America, read Assassination Vacation.

Video: Tony Award performance of the Broadway musical Assassins.



*My brother Chris and his wife Cathy introduced me to this good read by giving it to me as a birthday present. Thanks!

Order in the Court

Photo: My ticket in line to hear Supreme Court oral arguments.

Congress is out and the Supreme Court is in. Monday marked the first day of the Supreme Court's new term and Wednesday I decided to try my luck to see oral arguments. Wednesday's cases were high-profile, so I knew this would add to the crowds, but I also knew it would add to the excitement.

My friend and I arrived at the Court at 4:30am in order to beat the "early morning line crowd." Unfortunately, the "spent the night in front of the Court" crowd" was about 95 people. NINETY-FIVE PEOPLE slept in front of the Supreme Court during a cold October night to hear the arguments!

What was the case? A case about HATERS. Haters gonna hate. You may be familiar with the Phelps family. A large family who comprise their own "church" in Kansas (Westboro Baptist Church) and spend most of their time tormenting people with hateful signs, saying "God Hates You" and other horrific specifics. Their latest endeavors have included protesting military funerals, under the twisted belief that God is punishing America's immorality by killing soldiers in war.

You can read more about the specifics of the Snyder v. Phelps case here. I think the topic itself drew crowds, but one enthralling element was that the pastor's daughter, Margie Phelps, would be making the arguments. Arguing before the Supreme Court! It's a Court with access for all....All, including myself, who stood for 6 hours on the cold sidewalk, waiting to get in.

Photo: The dark early morning, waiting to get in to the Supreme Court.

Photo: Sunrise at the Supreme Court!

At 8:00am I went inside the building to use the restroom, and while walking down the hallway found ELENA KAGAN walking alongside me. Pretty fun.

At 10:00am we had seen our share of circus outside: the "God Hates You," "God Hates Your Feelings" signs, the Phelps clan walking around (they tried to cut in front of the line, but were moved to the back.... the ones that didn't have passes, and everybody clapped), and anti-hate protests. They began order in the Court. Unfortunately, we didn't make it in the first set of arguments. I did read that Margie Phelps was "unflappable," and that she used the phrase "up in their grill," several times. As in her church followed protest rules and didn't they didn't get "up in their grill." UP IN THEIR GRILL! Fine legal argument. I also heard she quoted Wikipedia in her brief.

We waited it out and were able to see the second set of arguments, Harry Connick v. Thompson (yes, the Dad of Harry Connick, Jr.), a tragic case of injustice about a man wrongly imprisoned for 20 years, due to the prosecutor's failure to turn in evidence that would have proven the man's innocence. I am more concerned about the outcome of this case than the first.

Amazing to view the nine Justices in their element - Sotomayor, Kagan, and the others in person. A rare treat since Supreme Court proceedings are not televised.

Photo: Margie Phelps and family after Supreme Court arguments for Phelps v. Snyder.

An exciting day at the Supreme Court, for an important debate on First Amendment issues. The sad thing, though, is that no matter the outcome of this particular case, it's likely that Haters Gonna Hate and the Phelps family will continue their hurtful protests in some capacity.

Colbert the Conservationist

I have mixed feelings about Stephen Colbert's testimony before Congress last week. On one hand, I am glad he was able to draw attention to migrant farm worker issues. On the other hand, it does not seem appropriate to have a comedian in character testify before Congress.

I DO NOT have mixed feelings about co-lobbying with Colbert, however. Just found out he has joined the "America's Great Outdoors" campaign that I work on!!! Great news to have Colbert broadcasting the need to protect America's treasured outdoor places. Colbert is working on promoting a new, bold plan for land and water conservation. Check out the site , The Hill, and Politico.

From The Hill:

One website for the "America's Great Outdoors" campaign now prominently features Colbert with a photo and a quote, in characteristic style.
....
The new push is in response to another campaign, launched in April by President Obama, that aims to engage the public on environmental issues and to "start a national dialogue about conservation" that highlights solutions implemented in local communities.

The push will "play an important role in confronting the serious challenges our natural resources face today: climate change, air and water pollution, landscape fragmentation and loss of open space," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said at its start. "This effort will bring Americans from across the country together to look for new approaches to protect our national treasures."

--
I expect him to ask for "Colbert National Park" in South Carolina as the pay-back, but I doubt that will happen....You never know, though. His joke to have his portrait in the Smithsonian's portrait gallery came true. It's now in the Smithsonian's permanent collection.

Sustainability Fair

Photo: Alpacas at the Mother Earth Sustainability Fair in the Laurel Hill region of southwestern Pennsylvania.

Learned a lot about sustainable living, green jobs, and most importantly went on the alpine slides at the Seven Springs Ski Resort where it took place.



Website to check out: Green Guardians.

"The Green Guardians is a green career clearinghouse for people wanting to develop green community service skills such as energy efficiency, recycling, composting, tree planting, green building technology, urban agriculture, eco-literacy education, and other important career skills."



The site has a large set of sustainability videos, like the one above that features an owner up the street from me that uses vegetable oil from his restaurant to fuel his car, and green jobs career search sites.

DC Night Bike Ride

Capitol Building

DC Night Bike Ride - Organized by Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA).

White House

Lincoln Memorial

This Land is Your Land (Part II)

Photo: Stewart Udall, Secretary of the Interior 1962-1969 (under Presidents Kennedy and Johnson), father of Tom Udall, Senator for New Mexico, and uncle to Mark Udall, Senator for Colorado.

TODAY I ACTUALLY SANG "THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND" WITH A LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE! My blog posting from last week came true.


Photo: Old Ebbitt Grill

Today was what I like to call "A Very D.C. Day." It started out at the famous Old Ebbitt Grill near the White House for breakfast. Yes, Dad, I do remember when you took me there when I was 11.

Then, I headed to the Department of Interior to celebrate the life and legacy of Stewart Udall, the Secretary of the Interior during the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations, whose legacy for conservation influences most of the conservation community's work today.


Photo: Stewart Udall and President Kennedy

Today at the ceremony they re-named the Interior building after Stewart Udall. I enjoyed the speeches from President Johnson's daughter, Douglas Brinkley (whose book about TDR I'm reading right now - Wilderness Warrior), Tom Udall (son and NM Senator), Mark Udall (nephew and CO Senator), Rep. Grijalva (D-AZ) and others.

Photo: Robert Frost and Stewart Udall

They read Robert Frost poems, told stories about Udall's work, and ended by singing "THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND."

I spent another part of the day learning about upcoming tax law changes, but I'll keep this post about the inspirational Udall.


Among his accomplishments, Udall oversaw the addition of four national parks, six national monuments, eight national seashores and lakeshores, nine national recreation areas, 20 national historic sites, and 56 national wildlife refuges, including Redwood National Park in California and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail stretching from Georgia to Maine. He also played a key role in the Clear Air Act, Clean Water Restoration Act, Wilderness Act, Endangered Species Act and more.


Soon after becoming the Secretary of Interior, Udall told the Washington Redskins owner that he had to integrate the football team as every other franchise in the NFL had already done, or risk being evicted from the Washington, D.C., stadium, which was federally owned.

An inspirational man. Learn more here.

Island Bingo

Island Bingo is as fun as it sounds. Last week Tom and played Bingo at Solomons Island, Maryland, joining the locals for triple Bingo competitions and a bunch of other sequences we didn't understand - like crazy kite and postage stamp.


The Island Bingo came with a free fried chicken, mashed potato, green beans and assortment of cake desserts dinner. I spare you the photo of us eating the fried chicken.


A high school aged staff had to help us and monitor our gaming. We had fun, though!


One update in the Bingo world is that the game included dozens of TVs around the room to display the Bingo # (i.e. "B14"). Bingo is getting very technologically advanced. Most of the people in the room had Bingo computers. Check out a full display of Bingo supplies at this link, including fancy daubers.


Tom really wanted me to include this photo. We should have sat by more locals. This is the Early Bird game, so the big time $1,000 jackpot 8:-11:00 game night had not started, yet.

Historic Preservation - WWII Edition

Photo: Camp Amache in Southeastern Colorado

Last week I attended the Japanese-American Citizens' League awards banquet, an event for work because of our partnership with Japanese-American internment camp site preservation. It was an inspirational night, including speeches from awardees Dianne Feinstein (her staff) and Roxana Saberi (who told her harrowing story as an American journalist imprisoned in Iran in 2009).

This historic preservation projects my firm works on have been a good lesson for me about this chapter in history I didn't know much about. For more information, see video.

I painted the boat!

Watercolor of the Argo.

This Land is Your Land...

Photo: Kevin and I climbing Mt. Bierstadt, Oct. 2001

Great article by Timothy Egan in the New York Times last week. Titled "My Summer Home," Egan reminds us that our national parks and other federal lands are "summer homes" for all of us.

Growing up, I looked with nose pressed against a mythic window of class at those who played in their waterfront compounds at Hayden Lake in Idaho. And when I came of age, I heard about the Hamptons and Cape Cod, Aspen and the San Juan Islands, where the zip code itself was supposed to guarantee happiness.

We had nothing to call a second home, and then I saw in a month’s travel that we had everything. Not long after I was old enough to cast my first vote, I realized that with American citizenship came a birthright to my summer home.

Read full article here.

Egan also wrote The Big Burn, a terrific book about the conservation movement during the era of Theodore Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot (first Chief of the U.S. Forest Service), told within the narrative of the young Forest Service fighting an historic fire in Idaho that was the size of Connecticut.

Photo: Stacy, Meredith, Pete and I camping in Colorado, Fall 2003. Eric and Jeff were with us, too.

I miss Colorado's public lands! (and Colorado people!)

Now everybody sing! "This land is your land..."

Where the Buffalo Roam

The last week of August I roamed with the buffalo, traveling around northwestern Wyoming. I saw Old Faithful erupt (amazing! on the edge of my seat!), viewed Lower Falls in Yosemite's canyon area (of Ansel Adams fame), gawked at the sunsets at Grand Teton National Park and relaxed at "Cowboy Village," my lil' cabin/hotel. A great week of work!


Photo: Old Faithful!

Photo: Lower Falls in Canyon area of Yosemite National Park.

Photo: Grand Tetons National Park at sunset

Photo: Cowboy Village Resort in Jackson, WY

Photo: My lil' cabin at Cowboy Village

Photo: Buffalo rolling around at Yellowstone Lake

Photo: More buffalo! They are everywhere.

Photo: Ah Wyoming! View of the Grand Teton.

Floating the Snake River in Idaho

Yesterday I floated the South Fork Snake River in Eastern Idaho, a river that meanders from Jackson Lake in Wyoming all the way across Idaho to join up with the Columbia River in Washington.


We rafted in order to view a corridor of conservation properties on what the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has rated the most unique and biodiverse ecosystem in Idaho. The river features prime habitat for yellowstone cutthroat trout. This blue ribbon fishery receives over 300,000 visitors a year. I can see why - I loved floating this pristine river with mountain views.

I learned the Snake River obtained its name through miscommunication between British fur trappers and the Shoshone tribe. A hand sign made by the Shoshone representing fish was misinterpreted to represent a snake, giving the Snake River its name.