DC

On a Cold Night in The District

dc // columbia heights

On a cold night in DC we met up with our childhood friend for dinner at The Bird. We ordered a “flight of egg” which included an odd, lemon-y (?), eggy, disturbingly sweet bite, topped with caviar, and a cold, strange, gelatinous egg disc doused in soy sauce.

Our night was not off to a good start.

dc // the bird restaurant

nope

dc // the bird restaurant

yup

dc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heights

12 yr old Hibiki = nectar of the gods

dc // columbia heights

nope

dc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heightsdc // columbia heights

Experimental appetizers aside, the rest of our dinner was delicious, even if I could barely finish my massive entrée and had to give it to my hubs, the trash compactor. We ordered multiple bottles of French wine and talked and laughed and recounted old memories until the restaurant grew quiet and empty. Our friend, DDA, called an uber, and then we all dashed out into the cold night into the warmth of a toasty car to drive the few blocks to DDA’s apartment.

Sly immediately sifted through DDA’s vinyl collection (because of course they had the exact same taste in music) and played DJ for the majority of the night. Meanwhile, DDA searched for a CD player to play an old CD he borrowed from his sister. When he emerged with the CD player we all laughed because somehow a CD player seemed so much older and out-of-fashion than a record player.

A Liquor cabinet was popped open, its contents splayed out on the kitchen bar for all to sample as we sang along to old favorites – new wave, synth-pop and gothic rock. If there were to have been a theme song for the night, it would have been Seasons, by Future Islands, the lyrics a fitting description of our night.

People change,
You know but some people never do

After warming our insides up with various liquor combos, we had the grand idea to tentatively climb the cold, slick, narrow, spiral staircase to the rooftop deck. My sister and DDA valiantly tried to hook up the outdoor fire pit and heater to one of the three propane tanks that were lying around, but nothing seemed to work. The propane tanks were either empty or the connection to the fire pit was broken. Eventually, and after much heckling by yours truly, we gave up, brought up a bottle of booze, and waited for the snowstorm to hit DC.

Laughter and scotch, while not necessarily dependent on one another, flowed generously. Pantries were raided of half-eaten bags of chips, salsa, cheese and crackers. Sometime well past midnight, pizzas were ordered, and, despite everyone exclaiming they were too stuffed from dinner, disappeared quickly. Around 3am, there still was not a snowflake in sight, so we reluctantly said our goodbyes and made plans to meet up once more the following evening.

It was the type of night that we took for granted in our youth because we knew there would be many more, but now that we are older we realize they are so few and far between. It was the type of night that unfolded organically. Where nobody has somewhere else they’d rather be or makes excuses to leave early. Where nobody looks at the clock or obsessively checks their phones. Where nobody asks, “So, what do you do?” Where everyone drinks and sways to music. Where the idea of standing on a rooftop in the freezing cold sounds completely and perfectly logical, like the best idea ever. Where you meet new people and instantly become friends. Where you reconnect with old friends and wish you had done it so much sooner.

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  • JJ
    January 25, 2017 at 12:03 pm

    And… the Smithereens are playing this Friday, and of course we have to go. Lol.

  • veronika
    January 25, 2017 at 12:04 pm

    Aww, man. I wanna go

  • Kevin
    January 25, 2017 at 12:59 pm

    How can you say that the night didn’t get off to a good start? Reading the phrase, “gelatinous egg disc”, made my mouth water with wonder and joy.

    Liquor combos tend to lead outside. Great whisky was always my favorite.

    A magical night.

    Keeping Good Thoughts…

  • veronika
    January 27, 2017 at 7:38 am

    Fave whiskey or scotch? I highly recommend the Hibiki.

  • Funnelcloud Rachel
    January 27, 2017 at 9:57 am

    Ha! State Theatre FTW!

  • Funnelcloud Rachel
    January 27, 2017 at 9:59 am

    I need to know – was the Olde English 800 purchased specifically for this gathering or was it scrounged from the liquor cabinet? I feel bile rising in the back of my throat… #beentheredonethat #nopenopenope

  • veronika
    January 27, 2017 at 10:09 am

    Someone brought it to a previous gathering and our friend was trying to pawn it off on us. As you can see, the bottle remained unopened.

  • Kevin
    January 27, 2017 at 10:35 am

    I really liked John Power and Son Distillery (Irish whiskey). I only had it once, but it made an impression. Never developed a taste for scotch. Never liked the taste of tequila (also THE WORST hangover in my life). Rum was good. Vodka had a nice fire, but somehow cold, and it had more edge going down than I liked. The one time I tried moonshine it melted the styrofoam cup it was in, so I didn’t look for it so much.

    Keeping Good Thoughts…

  • veronika
    January 27, 2017 at 11:19 am

    Lol moonshine always makes me feel as if the enamel on my teeth is peeling off. I love scotch, but apparently I like the type of scotch most people dislike – earthy, peaty, smoky. Tequila = can’t do it anymore unless it’s really high end/smooth. Vodka and soda with a lime is my go to drink. You live amongst a good number of distilleries, yeah?

  • Kevin
    January 27, 2017 at 11:55 am

    And strangely, a handful of wineries over the past decade (Picker’s Creek Winery opened up a few years ago, just a few minutes down the road. I have no idea what kind of wine Marshall County grapes could make. I don’t expect it to get to Daegu any time soon). My parents took me on a tour of the Jack Daniels Distillery when I was elevenish (also the location for a marching band field trip). What struck me the most were the Olympic size vats they use to ferment the mash. Two story galvanized pools of bubbling brew. That, and the warehouses where the barrels were stored for aging. The air in there was eighty proof.

  • Kevin
    January 27, 2017 at 12:02 pm

    Keeping Good Thoughts…

  • veronika
    January 27, 2017 at 12:08 pm

    That’s not so strange. Virginia has a ton of really good and underrated wineries that nobody outside of Virginia really knows about since all American wine is overshadowed by Napa wineries. There are a few wineries in Korea, but the Korean idea of wine is something more similar to plum wine — so sweet and not something you can necessarily drink all the time.

    Must have been pretty fun times growing up. Jack Daniels at 11. Dang. In Texas we had the Bluebell ice cream factory and the Dr. Pepper museum.

  • Kevin
    January 27, 2017 at 12:40 pm

    “Oh, The Places You’ll Go!”…Seeing ice cream being made sounds pretty damned good too. I would have been satisfied if Jack Daniels had closed and we still had Opryland. That Flume Zoom was a fun ride.

    Keeping Good Thoughts…

  • veronika
    January 27, 2017 at 1:47 pm

    What is it about theme parks that makes them so sad when they are old, abandoned, or torn down? It was a sad day for us when Astroworld closed its doors. Texas Cyclone was the best. 🙁

  • Kevin
    January 28, 2017 at 12:59 pm

    Probably wrapped up in that kind of wow and wonder that we could only appreciate as kids.

    Keeping Good Thoughts….