When I was your age...

"...I walked nine miles through the snow to get to school..."

"...uphill both ways..."

Okay. So it's not quite nine miles from my apartment to work at the Capitol. But today, it was definitely a walk through the snow. And it's not quite uphill, but it's to the Hill. Which totally counts, in my opinion.

But days like these make me wonder why on Earth our Founding Fathers thought THIS would be the ideal place to set up shop and get to work on America. With freezing winters dumping snow drifts reminiscent of the arctic tundra and summers hot enough to melt your eyeballs, Washington, DC's weather leaves something to be desired. In fact, I venture to guess that the District can only boast of a few weeks between each season that are actually hospitable to human life.

Now sure, maybe I personally do not mind the frigid, below-freezing temperatures or the icy sidewalks or gusts of wind up to 20 mph. But I have all the benefits of 21st century living -- a wide array of scarves, hats, and gloves, two incredibly toasty, street-length coats, those nifty around-the-back-of-the-head earmuffs, several pairs of boots, a double-insulated Starbucks mug, and the promise of central heating at my office.

George Washington? Not so much. Today on my way to work, happily sipping my home-brewed coffee and enjoying the novelty of real, live snow, I tried to imagine George's commute around Washington. The cool part about living in such a historic place? I could almost see our poor frigid hero thundering down Pennsylvania on horseback, bound in furs and freezing cold, two hundred years to early for a drive-thru cup of coffee...

Back.

So I'm back. After a long, long hiatus.

I originally intended just to take a break over the holidays -- relax, zen out, all that. After all, this blog is College Kate. And what on earth would she have to say about home for a month?

And then I got here.

Washington, DC.

Where, as I previously mentioned, I'm interning with a fairly notable member of Congress. Because of that, I've been trying to figure out the best way to continue this little blog without compromising my position there or the privacy of the office.

I considered a lot of alternatives over the last three weeks that I've been here -- from shutting this down completely (gasp!) to just making the blog about DC living. In the end, I decided I certainly didn't want to leave this blog behind over the next few months (it has been, and will be, a total ride!).

Here's the plan: I probably will discuss my internship, and my experiences at the Capitol. I absolutely will NOT disclose any information that could compromise the office. I will absolutely NOT be naming names.  I'll also talk a lot about my living arrangement here, in housing solely for young, conservative interns.

Yes, I said conservative. But no worries. This blog will not be about politics. In fact, I've been thrilled to discover that Washington, DC -- the people here -- no one gets upset or worked up about politics. People hardly even discuss politics. It's about policy, instead. No anger, just intelligent thought and conversation about issues.

And that's what this blog will be about. Minus the issues.

Stay tuned! And thanks for sticking around!