I am finishing my first week in Washington, DC and can’t believe that it’s only been a couple of days. There has been so much going on that it seems like I have already been here a month or more. I have done so much around the city and with work. I am working at Meyers and Associates, a lobbying firm positioned just south of the capitol. Their main clients are universities, agriculture companies, and cities interested in transportation work.

For Meyers and Associates I have been researching legislation and grants associated with the recovery act. Yesterday I was on a conference call for Green For All. It is an organization designed to increase the number of green jobs in our economy. They have several programs/grants available for institutions, industry sectors, and non-profit companies to utilize and train underemployed or unemployed people. At the end of the conference call, I wrote a memorandum with additional websites and articles relating to Green Jobs. In addition to conference calls, I have been asked to research legislation and determine the status of certain amendments.

I do not always have work to do so I have found myself researching new legislation that is similar to what Meyers and Associates is working on. It became very useful yesterday when an employee asked me to research if the recovery act has issued any grants for library improvements. I was able to quickly cite the status of the current grants and which ones would be available for their project.

For the last several days I have been going out around the capitol for happy hour. Yesterday I was invited out for a Texas Tech get-together. Texas Tech University has around 15 students working on the hill and they arrange meet and greets. We went to a pub on Pennsylvania Avenue. I had a great time meeting some other students and catching up with my friends.

At around eight, I caught the 15-minute ride on the metro back to the Foggy Bottom exit and walked the mile or so to our apartment. KA has put us in an amazing apartment. We are living in the George Washington University dorms, but they are more like fancy apartments. It has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and even a large living area. For downtown lifestyle, I would have to say we are living in luxury. I have spoken with other interns and they are crammed in tiny rooms and having to share community bathrooms. KA has definitely been great to us.