"You just dropped some mad knowledge."

Hey everyone!

Today was an amazingly educational and fun day (yes the two can coexist!). We started off the day with a trip to the African American Civil War Memorial and Museum a couple of metro stops away on U Street. I had never seen the memorial before, so I was surprised at the sight of it as we rose up and out of the metro station. The memorial was simple, yet powerful. In the center is a 10 ft. tall sculpture of African American soldiers and a sailor as they prepare for duty. This is surrounded by a Wall of Honor with the names of over 200,000 men who served in the United States Color Troops.

After spending some time here and reflecting on how "modern" some of the names were (Jupiter just does not strike me as a Civil War era name, but it is a good name none the less) we moved on to the actual museum. At the museum we were greeted by Hari Jones, the curator of the museum, and he treated us to an impromptu "lecture" on the truth about African Americans in the Civil War. He used the movie Glory as the focus of his discussion and proceeded to educate us on the actual facts of the 54th regiment. Fascinating stuff! I really would have liked to spend all day listening to him- he was that good. So good, in fact, at the end Christian exclaimed "You just dropped some mad knowledge, man." You should talk to the man. It might just change your life.

After that, we walked down to the National Museum of American Jewish Military History. This was also very interesting. There was a focus on the roles of Jewish women in the military, and an overall focus on the role of American Jewish soldiers in World War II. The museum included lots of pictures and personal artifacts, which really made an impact. Seeing these things (shoes!) and the pictures of the people and their own words on paper made everything feel closer to home, and not quite so long ago.

At this point, we were all tired, hungry, and more than ready to walk back up to U street to experience the Washington, D.C. institution Ben's Chili Bowl! In the interest of full disclosure, I love food. I mean a verging on unhealthy obsession with food and anything having to do with food. To my delight, so does my group. Luckily all ten of us were able to pack into the back room and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. For the record, the famous Half Smoke is no joke. Amazing. Joelle even convinced a young man working there to give her a free chocolate shake (after the first one we actually paid for). The girl has mad skills...she might want to consider a career in law. Or whatever career she can convince people to give her free stuff.

So anyway, we had an amazing day and I am up WAY past my bedtime, so until tomorrow ASB fans and friends...


-Nichole, Staff Advisor