No swimsuits, sunscreen, or flip flops for me. No sir. This wasn’t your average spring breaks trip. Instead, it was goodbye, Texas and hello, Washington DC! I was headed to The Hill for National Agricultural Day. Woo hoo!!
Needless to say, I was super excited to be back. My congressional visits had been scheduled. My research had been done. My plane had arrived safely…now my only problem was that I had to hail a cab to get to the National 4-H Center, where we would be staying. Oh dear. I waved my hand. No one stopped. I tried to yell. No one stopped (but I did get a few odd looks). Finally, I gave up and decided I might have to make the 3 mile hike on foot. As you may already know, I have ZERO sense of direction. So, I wasn’t even sure which way I should start walking. I glanced around, attempted to make an educated guess, and began my trek (with suitcase in hand). 2 minutes and a few blocks later, I decided that was NOT going to happen. 3 miles was WAY TOO LONG of a walk. It was then that I caught sight of The Cheesecake Factory. Brilliant! I would have them call a cab for me! Well, I thought it was a good idea; the lady at the hostess stand did not. She just looked at me like I was nuts. It’s not my fault there are no taxis in Brenham, Texas! So, I started off again. I walked. And I walked. And I walked. And I walked. And I walked. And I walked. And FINALLY, a taxi stopped for me!!! He may have only driven me the remaining mile, but I was quite proud of my newly acquired taxi-hailing skills!
The rest of my trip was much, much less frustrating. I started off the next day with coffee and a speech from the United States Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack. Then, it was off for a meeting with Texas Senator John Cornyn. In the short few minutes that I spent with Senator Cornyn, we covered a lot of topics- everything from his support of Texas FFA’s Ag Day at the Capital to the resolution that he co-sponsored in an attempt to increase beef exports to Japan. Next up was Congressman Neugebeur of Lubbock, whom I had the opportunity to talk about our 2012 State Convention in Lubbock with. Before I knew it, I was sitting in Josh Maxwell’s office discussing Environmental Protection Agency guidelines and the upcoming Farm Bill. It was good to get the down-low on agricultural issues from a fellow Aggie! Finally, I got a few minutes to catch up with Past National and State Officer, Casey Hogan, and Past State Officer, Tate Rosenbusch, both from Texas. It amazes me to think that only a few years back, they were in my shoes. Texas FFA sure knows how to take you to new heights!
A quick luncheon and a few hours later, I was back at the airport. And this time, I did NOT have to hail a cab! My trip was short- less than 24 hours- but there is no doubt about it, it was the most educational spring break trip I’ve ever taken!
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