This post comes to you from the quietest table in a very loud restaurant in Washington, D.C.  This morning I took the train from NYC to sing a concert which is being held tomorrow evening at the Italian Embassy--it's a real shame that my life is so dull and boring...!!  I'm pretty exhausted from traveling and no sooner that I checked into the hotel I walked to George Washington University to rehearse with the pianist.  When that was over I was starving because I hadn't eaten anything accept for a coffee on the train and some fruit from Starbucks since the scrambled eggs and toast that Chef Paul made me before hitting the road.  It was seven o'clock already and I couldn't decide where I wanted to eat.  Thank goodness there's a really nice restaurant connected to my hotel!  After some hemming and hawing I chose to eat at the restaurant rather than order room service.

The art of dining alone is a ritual that anyone who travels for work is familiar.  Eating out alone isn't my favorite thing to do--I've noticed that when I'm alone I tend to overeat and eat too fast since there's no one there to slow me down or share my food.  Tonight I wanted to rest my voice so I chose not to sit at the bar which might encourage chit chat.  I'm a pretty hip sight to behold.  I'm in the lounge section of the restaurant at a table blogging on my computer and texting CP pictures of my food.  In lieu of a cocktail, I've got a pot of chamomile hot tea with honey.  I ordered good stuff, too:  a vegan roasted potato soup--I am a HUGE fan of soups that taste extremely fattening but are actually prepared pretty healthy--and salmon with polenta and braised greens.  Keep in mind I didn't have lunch!  Sure, if there was a Subway or Panera sandwich shop nearby I would've eaten there or taken it back to my room.  But tonight I'm having a big girl dinner :-)

[brief pause for eating...]

Yum!  No wonder this place is packed on a Sunday evening!  No room for dessert.  I don't want be miserable in the black monstrosity of a gown that I brought to wear.

It's a tough life....