Last night, Bob and I had dinner with Chris, a lovely guy who's bent over backwards to be hospitable while I've been in D.C. - someone I've gotten to know a little over the last year or so. He's a reporter, and he recently spent a good deal of time in Florida during the election, so it was interesting to hear the behind-the-scenes story. Unfortunately, though, he couldn't give me any dirt on my favorite CNN reporter, that cutie, Bill Hemmer.

Afterwards, we cruised around the city, with Chris stopping, showing infinite patience, while I took nighttime photos of the illuminated landmarks.

The Capitol at night.

The Jefferson Memorial.

At about ten in the evening, we headed over to the printing presses of the company he works for, which print for a variety of newspapers, including the New York Times (my favorite newspaper by far), and got a fascinating tour of the whole production process. When you pick up that paper daily, you don't think too much about the enormous process that goes behind it. But when you see the four, block-long, three-story tall printing presses in operation, and all the ancillary operations, it's amazing that they manage to get the thing out to everybody's doorstep early the next morning.

On the left, Bob and Chris in front of gigantic rolls of newspring (each weighs one tonne), and on the right, the photo-negative of Page 1 of the New York Times, ready to be transerred to a printing plate. (This morning, Chris left a parcel for me with the concierge here - it was a printing-plate of that Page 1. Chris knows how much I love the New York Times, so I was pleased as punch with his gift!)

One of the presses.

This morning, I took my usual workout in the gym. I feel like I'm making real progress right now, but I remember that at about this time last year I made a resolution that I'd have a bigger chest by the end of 2000. I can't say that I've been too successful, despite all the work I've put in. I must have the biggest immunity to pectoral development in the history of body-building.

Bob and I spent a relatively leisurely day. We tried to go first to the White House ... and failed (long lines). Then to the Washington Monument (closed until Spring). Finally, we just went to lunch instead.

China Town

The statues at the entrances to the two Memorial Bridges across to Virginia, set against a wintery sky that was fading to a bleak pink in the distance.

We spent the balance of the afternoon driving to Alexandria, an old town not far from D.C., and walking around it's gentrified, tourist-trap, faux-cobbled streets. It was kind of like Georgetown, without the boozing frat guys and blonde-haired girls.

Walking in Alexandria, I instruct Bob in how to pretend that there's no camera.

As we left, we took a diversion to check out the building that dominates the horizon near Alexandria. It turned out to be the other Washington Monument - the George Washington Masonic Memorial, a towering, odd-looking stone building set alone on a hilltop on the edge of town.

The George Washington Masonic Memorial

After a nap, it was time for dinner already, so we drove back to Dupont Circle and went to an old favorite from San Francisco, Fuzio. Bob's a guy who's seen a lot of the business world, in his career, and, talking with him about my career connundrum, I finally felt that I was maybe starting to pull together in my mind a coherent idea of what direction I should go in. Thanks for listening Bob!

Finally, we headed home for a night-cap of Harveys Bristol Cream. And now to bed!