Bike accidents, ball gowns, and books

I had my first bike commuting accident on Friday. I guess it was only a matter of time until it happened, but I was still bummed that it happened. Here's the story:

I was riding north on Connecticut Avenue at Farragut Square, stopped at the light at Connecticut and Eye street. I started from the red light, crossed the intersection, and went about 10 feet. I hit a pothole and lost control of my bike. About 10 feet of wavering later, I finally bit it and went face first into a parking meter. BAM. The right side of my face right into a parking meter. I laid on the sidewalk for a couple minutes before I could get up again. A very nice woman came and sat with me until I was ready to get up. I walked my bike to the office and realized that I'd lost my housekeys. Great. So my coworker and I walked back to F.Square and looked, but couldn't find them. We talked with the Golden Triangle guy (these people that help tourists get to Dupont Circle and the White House, basically) and described the keys to him. Went back to the office and just kind of sat there. Another coworker was nice enough to drive me home. On our way, I got a call that said the GT folks had found my keys. YAY! I ended up with a black eye and some nasty bruises on my leg, but otherwise unscathed. 

So, last weekend I went to the National Italian American Foundation's Annual Gala and it was incredible. I took a friend of mine from college (EC) as my date and we were treated to an incredible, incredible dinner. Antipasto was prosciutto, artichokes, peppers, porcini mushrooms, roma tomatoes, and endives. Never mind the five to six bottles of wine already open on the table when we got there. Primo was penne pasta with vodka sauce. Secondo was a filet with a fontina cheese crust, porcini mushroom risotto, and broccolini. THEN was dessert. Lord, lord was that dessert good. I had the best cheesecake I have ever had in my life. Ever. Ever. Ever. Seriously, I don't think I'm ever going to be satisfied by a piece of cheesecake ever again. So, so good. I stumbled home around 3 a.m. on Sunday morning completely exhausted. If nothing else, the Italians know how to throw a good festa.

Sunday, J and I went to Daedelus Books, a book warehouse. It was awesome. All the books you could want, nothing more than $5. I got three or four books, but none more exciting than Hunger Games. If you're in the mood for an addictive read, I've found it for you. I bought the book on Sunday and am already finished with it. It was THAT good. It's the story of North America an indeterminate amount of time in the future. The continent was divided into 13 districts controlled by the Capitol. The districts rise up against the Capitol and the uprising is quashed, but not before the Capitol destroys District 13. As a reminder to all the other districts, every year that Capitol holds the Hunger Games. Each district sends one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 to compete in a grueling, to-the-death competition that is broadcast on live television. 

Despite its somewhat off-the-wall premise, it is riveting. I couldn't put it down. I killed all 370-some pages in less than 36 hours. I devoured it. I'll be getting the sequel tomorrow (that's right. It's a TRILOGY) and I can't wait. So, if you're looking for some reading, pick up Hunger Games.

In totally unrelated news, Rocky Horror Glee is on tonight! Sneak peek: