Claire Hagan on Ron Paul

One day I was going through heartache and decided to make myself feel better by going home to the Nation’s Capital.  Returning to Washington is always a powerful reminder of why living there again is one of my life’s top goals.

As usual, I cheered when crossing the Potomac into the Federal city.  It felt good to be back somewhere very familiar.  I even bumped into an old friend while trying to find my hotel (yes, I am already starting to forget where things are).  It seemed like a good start to another Washington trip.  Nothing special.  That changed when I bumped into a parade.

There I saw the brand new mayor Adrian Fenty.  Fiery and straight talking Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton was also waving at the crowd.  Then came councilman David Catania.  It was refreshing to see these people again. 

I walked on to the Kennedy Center for a ballet.  I was apprehensive about going to the show because I did not have a chance to change.  My polo shirt and jeans made me look like a tourist.  My attire was not even close to what is appropriate to wear for a show at the Eisenhower Opera House.  In New York, dressing up is dressing hip and cutting edge.  Washingtonians tend to dress like one another and in a conservative manner.  I knew I would not fit in.

I forgot about such trivialities as I approached the large, modern building.  I remembered going to my first opera there.  I also remembered a romantic embrace at the rooftop terrace while looking at this imperial city from above.  I remembered covering the Kennedy Center Honors as a young intern.  This place has always been one of my favorite Washington institutions.  Now, I was once again walking the its red carpets.  As usual I glanced at the flags on the ceiling in the Hall of States and Hall of Nations.  And I looked at summer boats floating on the Potomac through the gigantic glass windows of the Grand Foyer.  Inside the Opera House, I looked at the balcony where the President usually sits and studied the crowd to see what notables were at the performance.

After the show I decided to walk back to my hotel.  In college, I loved walking around the city and these walks would often take me by the White House.  It remains one of my favorite buildings for its architecture, its history and what it represents.  Even after having worked there, I am still in awe of it.  It is not too big and not too overstated, which is what the founders wanted.  Still, it is an undeniable fact that from there the world is run.  And after seeing it many times, it is still cool to catch a glimpse of the Presidential or Vice Presidential motorcade, with their many cars and motorcycles, speeding by.

I walked by the Watergate complex and wondered if Condi Rice was home.  I soon remembered she was probably with the President in Europe.  I walked by the Saudi embassy and wondered whether the prince was there.  The next morning I had breakfast at the Mayflower Hotel and thought about how Eleanor Roosevelt once refused to be escorted from there to the White House. 

I consider it a privilege to live in a place where so much global history has been made and is being made around you.  I guess I have Potomac fever.