We had a very strange winter around here. One day it would be 70 degrees and the next it would be below freezing. The cherry trees at the DC tidal basin were hit pretty severely by a hard frost right as they were budding so the cherry blossoms were a no-go.
Still, there were some interesting things to see otherwise. I asked Hans to go with me to the Maryland home and garden show because the local orchid society was having a sale. It made me feel slightly like I am turning into a fussy old lady but they are plants that I enjoy because they thrive under what I've read is "benign neglect".
Last month my friend Claire was in the area for a couple of weeks and she invited me to visit the national temple of the Scottish Rite Freemasons, a really interesting building I had no idea existed in the city. We got to sit in the grand master's chair, which sits in a 100-ft-ceilinged room and looks like it could easily stand in for the Iron Throne with the interesting windows behind it.
Other than that, I had to make a last-minute trip to New Orleans for a family emergency. Once things calmed down I had time to do a little shopping and try nitro coffee for the first time (along with some first-class donuts!).
On Sunday we're flying to Amsterdam.
