Procastination and the Star Spangled Banner

The first week of June I took a class on health policy. Taking the class was a no-brainer; it was a one week class that counts towards my master's, and I got it out of the way rather than spending 3 extra hours a week sitting in a class. I had to go to lecture 8-5 during the week with one day spent meeting with our senators' and representatives' offices to talk about health care issues. All in all, a pretty neat experience. I just had difficulty finishing the class. There were no tests involved, just 3 papers: one 6 page and the others 1-2 pages.

I should've done the paper weeks ago, but for some reason, I just work better when it's last minute. If I try to do it any earlier, I just end up staring at a blank screen and checking facebook. This past week, I finally hunkered down and wrote the dern thing. Needless to say, I have nothing fun to share with you about this week. But...

A couple of weeks ago, C and I went to Baltimore for a concert and decided to make the day of it. We stopped at Fort McHenry and Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Not the best day for outdoor tourism as it was chilly and rainy, but we made the best of it.

In case you didn't know, Fort McHenry is the place where Francis Scott Key saw our flag "so gallantly streaming" after an all night bombardment by the British in 1814. The fort is not exactly like it was at that time because it was also used in the Civil War, WWI, and WWII, but the way they reveal the flag is pretty cool and will give you chills and some American pride. I won't give it away because I want you to see it for yourself.

After fighting through the heavy Baltimore traffic, we finally found a place to park and headed to the Inner Harbor. We were pretty hungry, so we started with food complete with a great view of the harbor. The city tends to be expensive, but one of the best ways to save a little money and still have fun is happy hour. Many places have specials on not only drinks but food, and we stumbled on a few in Baltimore. We had some yummy crabcakes and shrimp (at an unbelievable price!) and were satisfied enough to take a stroll in the harbor.

We had originally planned to tour the USS Constellation, but by the time we were finished eating, it was closed. It was still neat to see the last Navy all-sail ship in all her glory. To end the night, we saw Calexico perform at Sonar. It was a much needed vacation-like day.

"O, say can you see..."


USS Constellation