Small World

After a great run along the trails of DC this am I met Norm and Jed for a day that could be summed up as Three Idiots and a Baby.

Norm, friend from college, who after being introduced to Bill, a friend from high school, introduced Bill to his wife wife Mandy, who's mom went to the same high school where my Dad taught after my Mom graduated. And Jed went to high school with Norm and Owen and now..., aww screw it.

We hung out strolling DC with Norm's daughter, grabbed lunch, and had some fun. Hanging Norm and his wife is always one of the highlights of my summers in DC.

The photo, is a view of DC from the Potomac's edge in Georgetown.

Prepping for a Cast Study

Took a nice walk to Politics and Prose to grab a book to prep for a cast study I'm teaching week 3 caffeine, some caffeine, and a little snack.

The cast study is about a seal team on Operation Redwings in Afghanistan and some of the decisions they have to make and their consequences.

My favorite bookstore in the world, no hyperbole, is Politics and Prose in NW DC. Just awesome.

Another day in the District.

Rooftop Happy Hour

DC loves it's rooftop bars. Here is one of it's most recent. El Centro DF.

The Bishop's Garden

After a wonderful run down to, through Georgetown, and along Potomac via the C&O trail I sat here and prepped for a couple a case studies that I'm teaching in week three of the program.

It's sunny with crisp and clear Blue skies and a glorious 84 degrees. Nice.

Israeli - Palestinian Forum

After a brief ride on the 36 bus from NW DC will arrived at the Ronald Reagan Building for a great forum on Middle East Policy at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

My home for the next month

Getting down to business

The students have arrived and the program is in full swing.

Some highlights of the day;

First case study taught
"Ethical Problems in Public Careers: Lying". The students were sharp and I barely had to say anything the whole class. Yes, you read that right. They pretty much self moderated, a very good sign. I can not describe the pure bliss of watching smart, engaged, and open minded students discuss things of substance. It's why I love education.

"The pursuit of the Russian Visa"
I'm inching closer to acquiring my visa for my trip to St. Petersburg, Russia at the end of the July. Nerve racking, but quite fun. If it were easy I wouldn't be interested in going.

Trip Planning, Taking advantage of what DC has to offer
Tuesday morning I'm leading a group of students to attend a forum at the Woodrow Wilson Center in the Ronald Reagan Building for a panel discussion titled, "An Israeli-Palestian Agreement? What's Possible and What Isn't". The panelists are;

Shai Feldman
Director of the Crown Center for Middle East Studies
and Professor of Politics, Brandeis University

Hussein Ibish
Senior Fellow, American Task Force on Palestine

Aaron David Miller
Public Ploicy Scholar, Woodrow Wilson Center

Moderator, Jackson Diehl
Deputy Editorial Page Editor and Columnist, The Washington Post

Link

Some of the other faculty are taking students to two different events at the Brookings Institute, one on social networking and the other and technology and innovation. The last group is headed to the Senate for a hearing on Libya and War Powers. You know the typical Tuesday morning at SPS.