Nicole in D.C.

I used to think of myself as “cool.” When I lived in Brooklyn, I was surrounded by a sea of much cooler people who knew it and constantly showed you just how lame you were.

I lived in D.C. for five years before moving to Brooklyn and never realized how much D.C. culture had worn off on me. For the longest time, I’d do things that I thought were normal, but Brooklyn people didn’t get…

I waited for people to de-board the train before I got on.
I’d go straight home after work instead of go to two happy hours, a concert, and stumble home.
I talked politics regularly.
I had hobbies outside of work.

While these  habits seem normal and healthy, they were very un-Brooklyn. I almost always got home at a reasonable hour and kept up with all my television shows. Also, every Sunday, I was basically unreachable because it was football day. Toward the end of my stay in Brooklyn, I slowly started to change my habits and started going out more and more.

Now that I’m back in D.C., I notice myself quickly falling back into my old D.C. habits. I won’t go out on Thursday nights because it’s Must See TV on NBC (!!!). I vow to clean my apartment every Sunday, but wind up watching the Redskins lose instead. I’m also home every night by 6 or 6:30… if I go to happy hour, I’m home by 8 (in New York, I didn’t even get off work til 7).

Last night, Saturday night, I promised myself I would go out and do something. A friend was having a party in Virginia, other friends were out and about in the city, and there were plenty of movies playing that I wanted to see.

Instead, I stayed home.

What does one do at home on a Saturday night when nothing’s on but Law and Order reruns you saw during their original airings?

Watch the House of Representatives approve the health care reform bill.

Yeah, I’m 23. I shouldn’t be doing that. And I know it. The funny thing is, I wasn’t the only one who did it. Based on my Twitter and Facebook feeds, I was not the only person I know who stayed home to geek out with CSPAN (although, I might’ve been the only one who teared up a little).

Only in D.C. can I get away with these uncool behaviors and I like it.