potluck organized by American Pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago

Attended a potluck organized by mid-Atlantic Chapter - American Pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago, and socialized with the Camino hikers and want to go hikers over delicious Spanish food and wine. I prepared Spanish meatball tapas. The Camino de Santiago also known as pilgrim ways to the shrine of the apostle St. James the Great in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. I traveled in Spain for 16 days in 2013 but did not have time to hike Camino de Santiago. — checked in to Fairfax Station, Virginia.

2.5 hr long play "FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS"

I watched a 2.5 hr long play by Pulitzer Prize-winner Suzan-Lori Parks "FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS", and start thinking what freedom really means. During the Civil War, a slave, Hero, from West Texas to the Confederate battlefield, examined the true cost of freedom. "In the tradition of lost-in-the-woods plays, this section is profoundly philosophical in nature, exploring questions of race and power and social identity." — checked in to Round House Theatre.

3 m walk on snow covered towpath

I woke up 7:30 am to walk 20 m on towpath, but ended up just 3 m round trip from angler's inn to the great falls overlook due to the snow covered path. It was way more easier to cross country ski at 6+ mile per hour than running with micros pikes at 4 miles per hour. I am not sure how thick the ice was over the wide section, but I will not skate on it. I saw two dogs of my size. If the snow does not melt faster enough, I will skip the RFK 50 mile walk and do that on my own in late March. I continued running 10 miles at 11:22 per mil at a commercial parking lot, to make a half marathon today. — checked in to Great Falls Park.

TWO Wine tasting in one night

Wine tasting # 1 of tonight paired with pasty. What’s a Pasty? A pasty is a savoury meat and/or vegetable pie that’s a complete meal in its own right for tin miners in UK. It’s designed to eat on the go while also being tremendously satisfying. I tried 4 kinds of fillings: vege, chicken paired with 2 kinds of white wine, and 2 beef kinds paired with 3 kinds of red wine. One of the oldest references is that Jane Seymour (Henry VIII’s 3rd wife) had pasties. The owner of The Pure Pasty Co was a HSBC banker in London now happily run pasty business in Vienna, Virginia. The event ended with English sparkling wine. BTW, Pasty owner urged me try his favorite midnight moon goat cheese which is available at the Vineyard. — checked in to The Vineyard of McLean Virginia.           Wine tasting # 2 of tonight: 6 kinds of red wine paired with chili and three kinds of cheese. My taste buds were pretty confused after I finished tasting. — checked in to The Wine Outlet.

Open Bar & financial Seminar meetup

Attended an Open Bar & financial Seminar meetup sponsored by a Wells Fargo financial advisor. Nothing he said was new yet he cited an article titled 10 Observations about the Current Market Environment is interesting to read. The seminar was more for young professionals just started saving and investing. I strongly believe Economics and personal finance should be mandatory for high schools. Happy to run into a friend there. — checked in to Ozio Restaurant and Lounge.

Open house happy hour at a non profit media facility

Attended an open house happy hour to tour this non profit media facility opened just in December 2015 to involve public and minority to voice via various media channels. They offer classes for operating their camera, audio, and radio equipment. For example, the public only pay $16 for 2.5 hr use of the three camera shooting room (cheapest in the world) if the content is no commercial and for them to air via WERA 96.7. Only $700 a day for commercial so to fund their operations. I operated #2 central wide angle camera during the demo, and had a great time. I am considering 15 hrs a week volunteer to learn to use the equipment so to produce traveling and hiking documentaries and podcasts later. — checked in to Arlington Independent Media.

ran after bog snow

I walked on unplowed paths to get to a commercial parking lot on Leesburg Pike. My socks were wet from the walking, and my back was wet from running in 54f. Very slow 3 m to avoid slip on the wet surface with my running shoes. Cannot wait to see the snow go away so I can train more for RFK 50 mile walk on February 6. — checked in to Falls Church, Virginia.

walked 16 miles to chekc out Clarendon Metro snowball fight

Eager to get out after trapped in the house for 2 days. I walked 16 miles round trip from Tyson's corner along Leesburg Pike then Washington Blvd to Clarendon Metro for the snowball fight. I thought these two roads were flat, but experienced the ups and downs when walking on them. I was planning to walk along one session of the W&OD trail, but it is fully covered with snow. Lesson # 1: snow boots from Walmart are not made for distance walking and will give you blisters. Lesson # 2: walking on the roadside after big snow will ruin your clothes with dirty snow and salt. Lesson # 3: remember both water and snacks. I saw a cords country skier and one biker who complained biking on snow like sand and as tiring. I saw one dog with four nice boots and one dog with a designer down coat. Animal fashion! Gaint was open.— checked in to Metro-Clarendon.

Snow shovel

Put on my ski pants, gloves and down coat to shovel some snow off my car; however, no space for all the snow. Simply have to wait for the weather to warm up. I think we got more than 2 feet of snow here — checked in to Falls Church, Virginia.

happy hour with healthcare engineers

Attended a happy hour with healthcare engineers and attempted to figure out a way to make some $ out of my master degree on health administration. Nevertheless, I figured out that I should follow up with Bernie sanders who appears to be a better choice than Trump or Hilliard. The traffic on route 7 was a mass so I left my car at a business parking lot 0.25 mile aways to spare myself from the abandoned cars. Leesburg bike becomes a parking lot for people who do not know how to drive a sleet surface. By the way, I ran into my old colleague at West Falls Church Metro who I saw last time in 2009. — checked in to Spider Kelly's.

Movie: The Revenant

Between Star Wars and The Revenant, I chose the latter tonight. Watched the bloody western movie, felt dizzy when stepped out of the theater. I am so fortunate to live in a legal society to stay safe and warm all the time. As the critic of rolling stone said: Note to movie pussies: The Revenant is not for you. — checked in to Angelika Film Center - Mosaic.

10.7 miles Holiday Hike in George Washington National Forest: Signal Knob

Took a 10.7 miles Holiday Hike in George Washington National Forest: Signal Knob in 18 f sunny windy day, with my internationally collected hiking outfits: lama hat from Peru, one hiking pole from Patagonia, one hiking pole and hiking boots from Nepal, backpack from turkey, and me, the hiker, from Taiwan! — checked in to George Washington National Forest.