Astronauts are AWESOME!

Person and I had a REALLY awesome day at her job today! We went to an elementary school in Arlington with Astronaut Jose Hernndez! He was really, really nice and SO good with the students! Person got her picture taken with him; she didn't want to take me out of her purse because she didn't want to distract the kids' attention. She did put a cool little space helmet on me and take a picture of me in her office, though, so I was happy to stay in her purse and just listen to the astronaut talk to the students.

Person's job is really, really awesome. She is happy, and when she is happy, I am happy too!

The Origin of Me

So, a lot of people have been asking how Person came to adopt me. Here is my story:

When Person is upset about something, she has a picture of a baby penguin - he looks all AAAUUUGGGHHH!!! - that she sets as her profile picture. It's a sign to people that know her that she is having a Difficult Time. More often than not, she is having a Difficult Time because of her upcoming trial; she gets very aggravated when things are not progressing the way she wishes they would. She is ready to face the Very Bad Man in court!

Because of the penguin picture, Person's father started calling her Baby Penguin - she is sweet and cuddly and nice most of the time, but when she is Upset... watch out!

When Person is stressed, she tends to slide her necklace charms (a tiny silver space shuttle, her diamond cross, and a Fearlessness (the motto of one of the sexual assault survivors' groups she belongs to) pendant back-and-forth-and-back-and-forth; she finds this comforting. Although comforting, it is also a visible gesture; she knows that she will be stressed when she is testifying against the Very Bad Man at his trial.

So one weekend, Person and her Friends went to a Renaissance Faire in Virginia. While she was at the Faire, she went into one of the vendors' booths; they were selling things made of alpaca wool. The second she saw me, she knew she had come up with the solution to keeping herself comforted in the courtroom: she would hold me in her hands while she testified.

When Person got home that evening, she posted a picture of me on her Facebook page and asked her Friends to help name me. Quite a few names were put on the table, but the second she saw the one Friend Stephanie suggested, she knew it was the PERFECT name for me: Alot. One of Person's favorite "irreverent humor" websites is called "Hyperbole and a Half"; one of the posts was about how people misspell the term "a lot" as "Alot" - she talks about how, whenever she sees the word "alot", she thinks about a mythical creature made of whatever the person is talking about "alot" of. Friend Stephanie suggested that I could represent a lot of things in my Person's life: Alot of Courage, Alot of Strength, Alot of Bravery.

All of Person's Friends thought Alot was a GREAT name for me. Someone suggested that she add "Sir" because she found me at a Renaissance Faire. And Sir Alot was born!

A Busy Weekend

Person and I had a VERY busy weekend! Saturday morning, Person had to rescue me from Zoe-Cat, who took me off her nightstand while she was in the shower and played with me. I am just glad it was not Simon-Cat, because he would have eated me for sure (he is so big he can't jump up on the bed anymore)!
Saturday afternoon, we went shopping for fabric to make a dress for Friend Erin's wedding this Fall. It is going to be at a Renaissance Faire, so Person will be dressed as a Lady; Person's friends are discussing how I will be dressed. I am hoping for a tiny kilt and a jaunty beret! That night, we went to WolfTrap with Friends Erin, Steven, Patty, Peg, Mark, Cindy, Joyce, and Monica (and five of her friends). We saw Cirque, which is kind of like Cirque du Soleil but not quite as fancy. Person kept saying "That's not normal!" when the contortionists were on stage - I can't believe the shapes they were making with their bodies!
Today we went to Friend Patty's house to paint her living & dining rooms (with Friend Peg). Person LOVES to paint - she was kind of sad that our townhouse had just been renovated when she moved in last summer, because she really enjoys painting and home improvement! Tonight we are going to chill out and relax at home, because we are very tired and have a busy week ahead!

ExploraVision Awards

Person and I went to the ExploraVision Awards Gala tonight. Miss Heather - one of Person's Friends - was one of the judges and invited Person and I as her guests. A bunch of her Einstein Fellow Friends were there, too. Dinner was FABULOUS - we had a really delicious 4-course vegetarian meal!
We saw all kinds of neat people there. The Japanese Ambassador to the United States, the Chairman of the Board for Toshiba, the President of the National Science Teachers Association, the White House Deputy Director for Policy of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Bill Nye the Science Guy all spoke to us. They were all interesting, but some of them talked WAY too much (we thought the Science Guy would NEVER stop). After the students got their awards, a bunch of confetti cannons shots TONS of paper and sparkly things all over us - we felt like such a celebrity!
Our week has been VERY exciting, and we have a super-fun weekend planned. We'll take lots of pictures, of course, and will tell you all about it!

My First Baseball Game

Person and I had a fabulous time at the Nationals game! The Nationals are Washington DC's Major League baseball game. Person was excited, because this was her first Major League game. Person and I went with three of her Friends: Mr. Warfield, Miss Patty, and Miss Joyce. We had REALLY good seats - we were 4 rows from the field, so we had to be very careful not to get hit by all of the fly balls that came our way!
Person isn't really a big sports fan, but she seemed to really enjoy being at the game. I never knew Person could YELL so much - she really enjoyed the Presidents Race. If she can figure out how to post the video, you will get a kick out of how she was cheering for Teddy - he has NEVER won a race, and Person LOVES an underdog! Person even bought a Teddy doll for me to hang out with at her office; I am sure the Einsteins will love having someone else to chill with while Person works!
The only thing Person disliked was having to get on the Metro with a million zillion other People after the game - Person does NOT like big crowds of people smooshing into her - but her Friends took good care of her and we made it home safe and sound.
Tomorrow is another BIG day for me and my Person. We are getting all dressed up and going to the Toshiba ExploraVision Awards - we will take lots of pictures and tell you all about our latest adventure!

Penguin Power

Because everyone is so excited about following my awesome adventures, my Person has finally decided to help me write a blog (my flippers are very small and it is hard for me to type.) We hope that you will enjoy reading about all of the interesting things my Person and I get to see and do! Stay tuned!