Diamonds are forever

I love overhearing conversations. I don't know why, other than the fact that I can be really nosy and gossipy. It also may be related to my being a news addict -- I just NEED to know things. Or because I'm a writer, and I'm always on the lookout for a good line or character I can use in a novel. (Sidebar: When a friend says something interesting or has something funny happen to them, I claim it and tell them I'm going to use it in a novel. If I ever do get published one day, I am going to be SUED beyond belief.)

I also like to people watch, in a casual way. I can't just sit somewhere and watch people -- I need a book, my iPod, and a plan -- but I do notice people. Like today, at the Barnes and Noble in Georgetown. A mid-20s woman reading a magazine caught my eye because I liked her shirt, so I did a double take. She had the magazine on her lap, and her left hand ready to turn the page, engagement ring sparkling away, and she wiggled her finger a few times to watch it catch the light. It lasted probably only three seconds and then she was right back to reading her magazine and I turned so she wouldn't know I "caught" her. She didn't know anyone was watching, or didn't care. She wasn't grinning or being googly-eyed at it, just admiring the sparkle. Maybe it's because I like shiny things, I don't know, it just made me smile.

Day 264: George's town

After a week of fighting off sleep at my desk and on the metro, I finally got to sleep in today. However, since it was such a beautiful day outside, I could not allow myself to sleep in all day, as had been the original plan. Instead I set off for some errands and some shopping in Georgetown, shopping on M street for the first time since I moved and the first time by myself.

I don't know how I let it go so long, probably something to do with the fact that I always go with someone else because I don't want to get lost. (Which of course I did but only for a little while.) I didn't get anything at the stores I went there for, but got a few good things elsewhere. And it was worth the walk and debit card stress just to hear a white white girl, dressed like a fool in short shorts, boots, and a scarf, loudly rap Kanye West's "you can be my black Kate Moss tonite." Thankfully, no one took her up on the offer, at least while I was around.