getting our wrap on and pm am hipster parties

I'll admit to not being the hugest AM fan. Everytime I go there I feel like I'm stuck amidst spring break gone wild (ish). Out of the woodworks, the average age of the DC-goers that surround you plummets to the low 20's and, oddly enough, I find myself feeling old. It's an interesting role reversal, but not one I too frequently decide to bring upon myself.

Well, I knew in advance that this Saturday included heading to AM for a big party, so I planned accordingly. The Fashionista got in some of our required volunteering t:ime at B&N for JLW. We met another new member and the three of us held down the fort, wrapping presents for 2.5 hours for donations to Bright Beginnings. We definitely didn't pick the busy shift, which afforded lots of time to catch up, dissect the world, and even snag some delish recipes courtesy of Sra. Bisquick.

The F brought up an interesting concept... do more math-oriented people typically prefer baking versus cooking? I'm a math-oriented person for sure and baking is my preference for sure. Give me a recipe and I will painfully shake that flour until it is exactly perfect in the measuring cup. However, expect me to whip up some sort of dish with a "dash" of this and a "pinch" of that... yeah, totally different story. Interesting concept. It plays well into my resistance (and I don't know why I still resist so much... perhaps it's lack of time staying in) to fully getting into cooking at home.

Anyhow, before long I found myself on my couch at 9:45PM loving life for being in... making use of that fabulous funky blanket we got from work (one roasted LJ coming up) and rotting my brain watching the latest brain rotting version of the Real World, egg nog and cookies in hand. Could Friday night be any better?

Saturday's plan was to finish off the Christmas shopping. I was um let's say a tad bit frustrated when I sat down to my lovely Fit and tried to turn the ignition and nothing. Hmmm. Try number two. Click (key) + noise? Nope... no noise. Noise from LJ: loud grumble. Hmph. 45min to 1 hour later, finally back on the road, with mental shopping list in full swing. Once I complete my order on line, I will officially be good to go. Quite a few presents are now wrapped, adorning our living area. Sadly, my little tree can't accommodate them below, but I'm making it work. The house should be nice and cozy for the family to arrive to.

Prior to the party, we had a girl's dinner at L'Enfant Cafe at the start of AM. Once SW and I finally found the place, we were good to go. My photo classmate, VK, had recommended the place one upon a time. I was a bit anxious, as I'd never been able to pinpoint where it was before. I felt a little oblivious when I saw the French flag displayed proudly on the awning. How did I miss that last time? Ummm yeah. I think I didn't make it quite that far up 18th before. Anyhow, always nice to check out a new spot in the city and this one did not disspoint. Great list of French wines... fabulous crepes... it would have also made a fun spot for a quiet romantic dinner. File that one away for such occassions.

We finally got ourselves out of the warmth of L'Enfent to begin the hike to head to the party. It had been billed a hipster holiday party (it's my one and only party claiming to be attached to Festivus). I'd never been to the Angry Inch, but the word on the street was that dancing would be a part of the plan, and that's an initiative I fully support.

Lots of observations... we ran into quite a contingency of military guys, which wasn't to be expected. I'm hoping to have more stories to enjoy in the day-after de-brief. You know who you are ;-) We had one bartender who seemed to be hating life. Maybe he was clinging to the "angry" part of the bar's name. No worries, bud, we believe you on the name anyhow.

The music was superb. 80's to mostly early 90's... and eventually bringing in some of the dance tracks and hip-hop hits of today. Loved it. Naturally, it wasn't too long before people began to make their way to the dancefloor -- and it was by that point in time that a somewhat spread apart crowd became about 2-3x as dense. I was loving that the Fashionista had given me the heads up that it would quickly end up being on the warmer side on the inside of the bar. She doesn't get the name for nothing you know...

One of the things I do miss about Miami once upon a blue moon is the dancing. It was nice to get that itch (bad pun fully intended) out of my system. I don't know if the DC crowd fully appreciated my capability to get fully down to the ground, but I busted that out, proud to see that it was still in tact.

It was nice though to be in a scene where there's not a sea of guys swarming in on the dance floor ready to swoop in. It never failed to amaze me that guys in Miami were confident enough to try to penetrate the forcefield of a circle of single girls dancing on the dance floor. What part of girl's night out do they not get? Sheesh. Anyhow, the DC crowd was much more respectful. Just 'cause a girl's dancing doesn't mean she wants a partner, and this dancing gal was pleased to be able to do just that. For that alone, I'd call it a successful evening.

SW and I were maxed out on the dancing and eventually decided it was time to make our exit, taking our coats and throbbing ears back home. Fun evening though... not the "normal" holiday excursion, so nice to have a wild card in the mix.