A tour of DC with a friend...

I was in DC for three days fighting for ... well, justice and the American way... and lookie who joined me!

First order of business - lunch.

Fancy Schmancy place!

Then, the big deal meeting. *yawn*

The action starts the next day at the Capitol. Santa visits the
basement of the Canon building.
That's one of three buildings
where all the Congressmen and women
have their offices.

Weather. Balmy for the North Pole.
Cold for the thin skinned Texans.

Mmm. Cookies in the break room.

The View from Congressman Lamar Smith's
office. Unfortunately the Congressman
was unavailable.

The reading material in Congressman Doggets office
is a little dry. Not a single horse back riding
magazine. :p

Meeting with Santa's FAVORITE Congressman
Congressman Charlie Gonzalez.
He's sooo getting a gift this year.

After hours of meetings Santa finally got to go to dinner.

At Filomena, Santa tries the amaretto with three coffee beans
One for Health, One for Wealth, and One for Love.

The next day, Santa had time to see the sites!
First, Mr. Lincoln.

Santa loves Lincoln.

Then, off to the WWII Memorial.

Santa hadn't been to the new WWII memorial before.
You know, the buzz of the holidays, the
stress of the 2008 sleigh upgrade, yada...

What's interesting to both Santa and me is
how different the WWII memorial is
from Vietnam.

Vietnam gives a sense of a wound that is
still open, the despair over the fallen.

WWII is not that way.

It gives a sense of where that war is
in the American psyche. A war we
are proud to have fought.

Not glorifying the fighting, but
honoring the noble cause.

Then Santa noted these gentlemen washing windows...

It was getting a bit chilly, so Santa
had some hot tea and checked
email.

Then some research on reindeer alternatives.

Then back to the airport.
Crazy airline delays made Santa decide that
reindeer are more reliable.
(Thanks to Michael Lindsey
for the lift)

Ah. Finally driving home from the airport.
It's good to be home.