First Call

Toasted PB&J for breakfast today, and a ride in on the Metro to work this morning.  Most of the day was spent gathering information about campaigns in Ohio, Nevada, and Alabama.  I also made my first call into some campaigns to discuss with them if they would like us to join their team.  I must have picked the wrong campaigns because I was only able to leave some voice mails, but it was a good experience anyways.  The VP of the company gave me two thumbs up when I asked her about working on developing a website for a very special event back in Cambridge (more on that later).  I went to lunch with Katie today at Potbelly's, num num num.  I didn't realize how big of a chain that company was, it is definitely much more than just the State Street location in Madison.  Made it back to the RAF around 6:30, and I have the evening up to my discretion for the first time in several days.  Not sure what I will do with it exactly, but I do know I need a good night's sleep.  I'll check in before the evening is out if anything interesting happens!

Dr. Strangelove

Day two at the office had air conditioning!  I opted to ride the Metro in to work today, and it took about 20 minutes to make it from the RAF to the office.  My time in the office today was centered around gathering contact information for candidates to the House of Representatives.  Katie, a fellow intern, and myself worked through candidates in California and Illinois for the most part today.  Gathering this information is the basic foundation necessary for the growth of the company.  The Vice-President of the company, Savina, has asked me to participate in a campaign and elections event that should be pretty interesting; http://www.cvent.com/events/the-art-of-political-campaigning/event-summary-49c3074cf0404d56b1f6cec239de6c9f.aspx.  I'll be the only intern that goes to the event.  Some co-workers suggested we go to Whole Foods for lunch.  I thought that a strange proposition, but I joined in on the trek.  Not doing that again.  There is a buffet of food that you select from to place into your own bowl, and pay by weight.  This is not economical for me.  I left the office with Katie and Raquel at 6, and we rode the Metro back home.  I had a meeting at 6:30 at the RAF for my Veterans Civic Engagement program, and we had a guest speaker from the Student Veterans of America organization by the name of Matthew Feger.  He talked about his organization, and I am interested in bringing interest about it back to UW-Whitewater after the summer.  The meeting lasted until about 8:30, making my day about 11 and a half hours long.  I wasn't quite ready to call it quits just yet though, because Dr. Strangelove was playing in the outside theater a block from the RAF.  I was joined by Kristin and Pete, and the film started at about 9:00.  I'm back in my room now.  Jon is ironing his shirt, Keenan is on his computer, Pete is lounging in the leather chair, and we are all watching game two of the Heat vs. Celtics series.  Time to watch the last couple of minutes!  Goodnight!!

Day 1 at the Office

I showed up to the internship fifteen minutes early today.  Yes, that's right, Bryce Noble Yates Chinault was actually early.  When the rest of the interns showed up around nine, we started to dive into what we will be doing over the course of our internship.  I think I will be spending a fair amount of my day on the phone regularly, which will be okay because the people I will be talking to will be campaign managers and staff.  I also get the impression that I may be doing some traveling with the company.  It was a bit rough in the office today because the air conditioning wasn't working and it was in the 90's today, but we all made it through the day.  They said that this was the first day they had had that problem, and the timing couldn't have been better with the office more packed than normal.  I introduced myself to the two ladies cleaning the office that were speaking in Spanish as I opted to help them move a couple of items with a little "Me llamo Bryce."  They both smiled in reaction and came over to shake my hand and respond in kind.  That was fun.  I won't be able to disclose all of what I do during the day, because we sign a confidentiality agreement of sorts that doesn't permit us to speak about the campaigns we are working on.  But, I will share what I can, and speak in general terms when I have to.  We had pizza served at lunch today, which made my day!  I also received my Blackberry and laptop that I will have for the duration of my internship, pretty sweet!!  I left the office around 5:40 to make sure I was on time for my class that started at 6:30.  My class is instructed by John Forkenbrock, who currently works for the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools (NAFIS), has taught courses for the Washington Center for several years, and previously instructed other college courses.  We will be dissecting the process of how the federal budget is originated, processed, and completed.  Or, as of late, not completed.  He seems like a very cordial and intelligent individual, and I look forward to learning from him throughout the duration of the course.  There are 11 students enrolled in the class, but only five of us showed up tonight...not sure what that means going forward, but we will definitely have as much engagement with the professor as we want during the course of the semester.  Class ended around 8:40 tonight.  The walk home involved a fair amount of rain, much to my chagrin considering I was transporting my new laptop, but I, and the laptop, made it back safe and sound to the RAF.  My mind is quite fatigued from the day, and I might have to share more details about what all occurred tomorrow.  ¡Buenos noches!

Hot Dogs & Mac and Cheese

Pete, Christen, and I made hot dogs and macaroni & cheese for dinner tonight.  We then went into an interesting coversation about food in general.  Christen's family would eat a rotation of meals every couple of weeks.  Like every other Monday was chicken, Tuesdays were for another specific food, or if they went to McDonald's they would order the same thing every time.  Needless to say, she was terribly perplexed when I put some of my mac & cheese in the hot dog bun, and when I cut up one of the hot dogs to put in my mac & cheese.  Maybe that's just a Wisconsin thing...then again, maybe I am a little weird.  Pete then pointed out that he loves to eat peanut butter and fluff on a toasted piece of bread.  Keenan had no idea what fluff meant, so Pete brought it out to show him.  With all of us coming from different states and different backgrounds there are all kinds of little phrases, actions, or habits that are deemed entirely normal by one individual, and seemingly as foreign as imaginable to the other.  I have ironed my clothes for tomorrow, and have my bag packed ready to go for the morning.  Time to watch the end of game 1 between the Heat & Celtics and call it a night.  Alarm goes off at 7:00 a.m.  Goodnight!

Memorial Day

The Memorial Day Parade was very nice.  I went with my roommate Pete and our friend Kristin.  We made it to Constitution Ave. two hours before the parade was set to start, and camped out in a prime location to see the parade under a great shade tree.  What we hadn't expected was for dozens of people to decide it was okay to stand half way in the road just to our right where the parade was coming from.  Really?  It was the only area that people where standing so close, and they were repeatedly asked to move back.  I felt bad for several individuals that were camped out next to us that were in wheelchairs, and had been there for nearly as long as we were, and may have been Veterans themselves.  We were told everyone was to be moved back when the parade began, but our nearest officer didn't seem to mind.  The parade itself was great though, with Veterans present from multiple wars, bands from across the country, Gary Sinise, Buzz Aldrin, some American Idol contestant, and Miss America all occupying floats honoring our troops.  I may not have enough time to really take in the Arlington National Cemetery today, so I think I will save that for next weekend when it likely will not be as heavily trafficked, and I can spend at least a couple of hours in the area.  Tomorrow I will be starting my internship at 9:00 in the morning, and I will also be attending my first class, The Federal Budget, from 6:30-9:30 in the evening.  Tomorrow equals a twelve and a half hour day for me, and I am looking forward to it!!

From Wisconsin

I had another very fun night with some recently made friends, and some brand new ones from last night.  I introduced myself to a woman named Erin who asked what I was doing out in D.C.  I explained my internship program to her, and stated that I am from Wisconsin.  Turns out she is too!  So I ended up meeting two of her friends (one was named Katie) from Wisconsin too, and enjoyed some time talking about the home state.  I also met a Nicole, and spent the evening with some previously made friends that are part of TWC.  There is going to be a parade up on Constitution Avenue here shortly, and I will be in attendance.  I also plan on heading over to Arlington National Cemetery to view the Changing of the Guard this afternoon.  I have been packing a lot in to my first few days here, and I have loved every minute of it.

A Blue Jay

I was able to be within a few feet of a Blue Jay the other day, and I forgot to mention it.  Made me think of home.  :-)