Sunday, June 26, 2011

Week 5: The Kindness of Strangers

Another blog posts means another week of my internship has come and gone. I write this blog post with a full belly as I just got back from the Safeway Barbecue Battle which I attended with some of my fellow interns. It was a great day to be outside, listen to some music, and of course eat some delicious BBQ.

I have to give a huge shoutout to the awesome folks at Safeway. Rather than having our rather unwieldy wait in an hour long line for samples they brought us interns a huge tray of delicious food and were so incredibly nice about it. I love people who go out of their way to show kindness. Maybe it's just my imagination, but the people I have met in DC are on the most part incredibly nice. Everyone at my office has gone out of their to welcome me and make me feel like a part of the team. All the other interns are awesome and I love getting to know them all better as the weeks go by. AAPD staff member Jim Dixon provided another highlight of my week as he guided us on an informative tour of the FDR memorial. He was like an encyclopedia full of knowledge about the memorial and it was great to get such a detailed history.

Even people on the street always seem willing to lend a helping hand. During my first week I must have asked directions from dozens of different people, and everybody was incredibly helpful and thought nothing of taking a few minutes out of their day. At the Nationals game I attended last week with my roommate we both scored free hats from a friendly vendor. The gym I attend on campus has been letting me store my basketball wheelchair onsite- despite the fact that this means they have to grab it for me everytime I come to practice. The first time I ate at Potbelly I struck up conversation with someone in line, who recommended their favorite order. It is truly these small acts of kindness that can turn a good day into a great one.

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