Happy Thursday, everyone! If you missed last week’s issue, find it here.
I want this newsletter to be about you, the ladies of DC, so send me your thrift shop finds and bad date stories by replying to this email.
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American Girl in DC
You may think the best icebreaker to approach a millennial woman is a question like “What sign are you?” or “Isn’t Taylor Swift an amazing lyricist?” But you’d be wrong. If you truly want to get to know a woman, you must ask her which American Girl doll she owned (or wished she owned). Such a choice sets the course for the rest of her life.
For example, my doll was Kirsten, and now I am married to a man whose idea of a good time is going to the “Scandinavian gift shop.” My sister’s doll was Felicity, and now she is a recovering horse girl.
Looking through the quarterly American Girl catalog is a quintessential girlhood pastime that I fear won’t be passed on to the next generation. All I can do is document its rich history — and reimagine American Girl for the present day. So, I present to you: what each American Girl would do if she lived in DC in 2022.
Molly McIntire
After trying to major in dance at college and breaking both ankles, Molly really buckled down to focus on her statistics courses. She graduated with a 3.8 GPA and an aspiring mushroom forager/Dungeons & Dragons-playing boyfriend named Zander. Molly realized she had a calling: to make the world a better place through data. She applied to nearly every nonprofit in DC before landing a job as a researcher for an environmental group. Molly feels like she has finally found her people at work — especially her gingham-shirt-wearing cubicle mate, Graham. Her new life has her wondering — is it time to ditch Zander to move on to someone new? Someone who actually contributes to a 401K?
Samantha Parkington
Samantha grew up in an affluent, liberal suburb, but she always knew she was different: she was a Republican. Something about limited government and lowering corporate tax rates just spoke to her. After interning in a congressional office, Samantha realized that Hill life wasn’t for her — but luckily, she had collected enough double-thick business cards at happy hours to land a job at a distinguished think tank. Her days are busy, but she always makes time for a hot girl walk to the Eastern Market Trader Joe’s. Samantha’s one gripe about life in DC is the men — none of the bowtie-wearing, philosophizing guys in her social circle appeal to her. There is this one TPUSA influencer who slid into her DMs — she just can’t stop thinking about him. But what would her friends think if she dated a Trumplican?
Addy Walker
Starting in kindergarten, Addy never had any trouble getting the best grades in her class. Her path was clear: a 4.0 college GPA, a full ride to law school, and the most prestigious internships. Now, nearly a decade after her first pre-law course, she’s on her way to paying off her student loans and, one day, making partner at the best law firm in DC. Addy spends her weekdays working 12-hour days and her weekends brunching with her friends (and sometimes working, too). She gets a lot of praise from her superiors — but after one of her immaculately edited TikToks of her favorite DC brunch spot went viral, she can’t help but wonder: Would she be less stressed if she left it all to become an influencer?
Kit Kittredge
Kit always had a knack for asking people the questions they didn’t want to be asked. Naturally, she became a journalist. DC is a big change from her small midwestern hometown, but she’s figuring it out. She even created a professional Twitter account (hoping for a blue check soon!). She spends her days running between the newsroom and Capitol Hill, where she attends all the wonky hearings that her more experienced colleagues don’t want to cover. Most of her emails go ignored, but that’s okay — she’s just starting out. But one comms director, Josh, never ignores her emails. Sure, his member may be a freshman, but Josh was just so nice when they got coffee at the Longworth Dunkin. And he has great dimples. Would it be a total violation of journalistic ethics if they went on a real date?
Interview with Elise Amez-Droz
This week, I’m excited to introduce you to Elise Amez-Droz — I think you’ll really appreciate her advice about prioritizing the right things despite the busyness of DC!
What do you love about your neighborhood?
I live on Capitol Hill. It’s obviously a unique place in the country, and for that reason alone it’s exciting to live there. The Hill, as we call it, is also not anything like what the rest of the country might picture it as: even when things heat up in the two branches of government located there, the rest of the neighborhood remains quiet and pleasant. I love its architecture and well-tended front yards. Capitol Hill has a small-town feel and many of my friends have made it their home as well, so I often run into them on the street or at the grocery store. Having a sense of community is important to me, and Capitol Hill definitely delivers!
What does your life look like right now?
Currently, I’m a manager at a research center where I study and promote solutions to the country’s healthcare woes. On the side, I write op-eds on new developments in health policy and I do my best to bring together right-of-center folks who love health policy — you know, all five of us! In all seriousness, that community deserves to grow stronger, so if you like health policy, please get in touch.
What's your favorite DC hidden gem?
Hands down the Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in America. Located in Northeast (Brookland), the monastery is such a hidden gem that people keep referring to it as one in reviews and blogs. I’m on a mission to help people discover its beauty! The monastery resembles the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and it contains replicas of shrines both within the sanctuary and in the gardens. You can take a free guided visit (make sure to register online), which involves a tour of the replicas of the Roman catacombs underneath the church, and subsequently take a stroll around the gorgeous grounds. The beauty and peace that characterize this place should delight religious and non-religious gals alike!
What’s one book every woman should read?
My roommate gave me Something Beautiful for God for my birthday a few years ago, a short book written by English journalist Malcolm Muggeridge based on the eponymous documentary he made about Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa’s understanding of the meaning of life and of suffering has greatly influenced my own, and I think her life is worth imitating, even by us DC women, in our own way.
What's the biggest lesson you've learned over the course of your career?
There is no such thing as being too busy by accident. At the beginning of my professional life, I would often say that I was too busy to do certain things — and I was, but I didn’t realize it was my fault. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. This stage of life as a young professional in DC is unusual in that all the obligations made on my time are of my own choosing. In my personal life and even at work, it’s on me to set priorities. Yes, I might be too busy to take on this commitment or accept that invitation, but that’s a choice I’ve made. Realizing this has allowed me to become a better planner and to be more available for my friends, too.
The Haps
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
This Thursday night, you can take part in a time-honored, bipartisan tradition at the annual Congressional Baseball Game. Whether your money’s on the Republicans or the Democrats, you’re sure to run into people you know and have a generally swell time. Find FAQs about attending the game here. News flash — there may be climate protesters who rush the field to protest the politicians. Read more here via Roll Call.
See you at the ball game!
Dessert Cheat Code
What are the girls eating for dessert? Pudding, of course! I always keep chocolate pudding mix on hand for when I’m craving something sweet, but I realized I need to step up my game after reading this Southern Living roundup of desserts made with pudding mix. Plus, have you ever been to a Southern gathering that didn’t have at least one dessert featuring pudding and Cool Whip? That’s literally impossible.
Find the recipes for Brownie Trifle, Lemon Tiramisu, and more here. And if you ask nicely, maybe I’ll send you the recipe for my grandma’s signature chocolate eclair made with vanilla pudding.
Bulletin Board
Congrats to MATTHEW and BAILEY MAILLOUX, who announced they are expecting their first child in January 2023! See Bailey’s post here.
KRISTA CHAVEZ joins NetChoice as a communications manager after four years at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University! Congratulate Krista on Twitter here.
SAMANTHA RENCK joins The Daily Signal as Senior News Producer! She was previously a reporter at The Daily Caller News Foundation. Connect with Sam on Twitter here.