Spring in DC

Texas has some of the most beautiful and varied land in the country, all in one giant state. It takes a whole day to drive from the tip of the west end of the state to the east border. You have orchids in the Big Thicket and bluebonnets in the hills around Austin. There’s the Colorado River and the Davis Mountains. There’s the Rio Grande and Big Bend. The rugged land around San Angelo and the tropical land around Houston. Roses in Tyler. Cactus in Midland. Jackrabbits, windmills, oil, cattle, horses (yeah!), silicon technology (yes, even in Texas). Boots, don’t forget the boots! Pick-up trucks. Coors. I could go on. Texas is unique. I loved it when I lived there, and I love going back to visit.

So now that I have waxed poetic on Texas, let me tell you something about the area where I live. I drive home from work every day past the nation’s Capitol, down Constitution Avenue, past all the beautiful federal buildings, and the Washington Monument, and the White House. Last week, the cherry trees were bursting with pink blossoms that fall off the branches like snow. To the left, I pass the Viet Nam Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial (so gorgeous when viewed through cherry blossoms), and the Lincoln Memorial (sparkling white in the sunlight). To the right is the Kennedy Center and that infamous Watergate. Then I cross the Potomac River, and if I stay on Route 50 I pass the Iwo Jima Memorial on the left, and that is always quite a sight, crowded with tourists right now. But if I take the GW Memorial Parkway, I have the Potomac River to one side, with all the crew teams out on the water. And bald eagles! They are making a strong comeback. Sometimes they swoop down across the road in front of the car (scarey), and there is no mistaking that reddish body with the white head and tail feathers. We have red-tailed hawks here just as we do in Houston, and I've seen a couple of golden eagles when heading out Route 66 toward West Virginia. They are so much bigger than red-tailed hawks. And buzzards (yikes, they are HUGE). Cormorants, we have those, too. Some foxes hang out in the big park near us, deer, too. I have been taking this drive for more years than I want to admit, and I never, ever tire of it. I think I live in one of the most beautiful areas in the world.

After law school, we came to the area thinking we would have our “Washington year.” Every lawyer should have a “Washington year.” But we got Potomac fever and our “year” became “years.” Many years. We bought a house, our elusive offspring was born here and attended school here, and now lives his elusive university life in Scotland. I love this area as much as Texas. But when I go to LA to visit my friend Tracy, I love California, too! And New Mexico. And Wyoming. Connecticut. Maine. America the Beautiful.

That’s enough of that. I’m in a strange mood today. It’s spring and spring makes me giddy.