DC is What You Make It

by Haleigh Cadd (’21)

I can imagine that one of the primary indicators that would signal that it’s rush hour in DC during non-COVID times is when people would compete for walking space on the sidewalk. These people might wear disgruntled expressions, their 9-to-5 attire, and would maybe have a conversation with someone walking next to them or through their headphones.

I can imagine that when a street light gave commuters the go ahead–there would be a moving mass of people crossing over to the next block. A jogger might stand out against a sea of office commuters as he/she tries to bypass the homebound mob.

From what I’ve seen, though, the only reason people wander out onto the sidewalk these days is to walk their dogs. Or to go on a long walk–on purpose.

In other words, in this COVID era, the only indicator that 5 o’clock used to be ‘rush hour’ is that people are walking around in athleisure–looking dazed. They look like they’ve sat in on one too many Zoom calls. My guess is that that’s why they’re walking on purpose.

Despite all of the upside down I observe in the city on my daily walks to and from the Wake Washington Center, I’ve decided–today–that DC is still DC. What led me to this decision was an intentional frame of mind.

For instance, today, I chose to work outside for a few hours at Kramerbooks and Afterwords Café. This was, of course, after I got the green light from my manager at Signal Vine, Inc. that I could log off for five minutes to walk there.

Kramerbooks is a bookshop and café that sits on Connecticut Avenue. I could see the top of the statue that sits in the middle of Dupont Circle from my table. I could hear sirens echoing around me, as well as car engines from the streets that intertwine around the block. At the café, there were about half a dozen tables occupied. One of the tables closest to me was occupied by a pair of graduate students, judging by the bits of conversation that were loud enough for me to hear.

Here, I obtained free Wi-Fi and sent emails to my managers about ongoing projects between bites of my lunch. I ordered coffee. I called my dad.

In other words, it was the same scene that I would experience in non-COVID times. Except, I had to leave the confines of my office at the Wake Washington Center–a COVID-induced norm–to experience it.

My last blog post talked about how I deviated from the norm to come to Wake Washington. The reason I came to Wake Washington–at all–was because I wanted to transform my college experience into an experience that I wanted, even if not many people particularly wanted the same thing. In other words, I followed the piece of advice that I feel like I received weekly as a freshman, which was: “It is what you make it.”

As an introvert, I think it would be easy for me to hole up in my apartment and get through at least a handful of the twenty-nine–I counted–books that I brought with me. In my defense, what else is there to do in COVID-era DC?

But! The Eastern Market is within walking distance! And the Capitol Building! And Georgetown! And the Library of Congress! And the National Mall! And an entire network of Wake alumni whom I could ask for a coffee date on any given day–granted that Ms. Richwine is willing to introduce us. And she has yet to tell me ‘no’ on that front. 

The books piled up around my apartment can wait. 

DC during COVID is–as I recently heard someone describe it– ‘a shadow of what it used to be.’ This is true. The DC buzz is less than existent. For instance, today, it kind of felt like I was walking around in a snow globe because there was hardly anybody walking around Dupont Circle at lunchtime.

But that doesn’t mean that the city of DC has changed. The history; the daily, impactful conversations about what’s happening in and around our country; the world-famous sites–it’s all still here and only a few blocks away.

I sometimes forget this. I also forget that there is a world outside of the Wake Washington Center. Ms. Richwine actually reminded us of this last week, which prompted my leaving for Kramerbooks.

The cool restaurants on Connecticut Avenue were–for the most part–still open. If anything, the afternoon was more picturesque because people were taking their time to truly enjoy their lunch–instead of hurrying to scarf it down before they walk back to their respective offices. In other words, people were enjoying their lunchtime on purpose.

DC is not as populated nor as energized on work-induced-stress as it is during non-COVID times. Instead, you can eat your lunch in peace–and take your time doing so. Maybe it’s not as alluring as it is when election year hype seems to make rush hour even more buzzed–but, it’s still DC. And it still holds what it did before COVID–I just have to ignore the books in my apartment to see this for myself. I have to apply the advice I was given my freshman year and make this experience into what I want it to be.