November 7th, Washington D.C. on election eve. As a Canadian, this is not something you expect to experience. If you want a sense of how Canadians experience America, google “Trudeau elephant”. I’ll leave it as an exercise for the reader.

The flight was uneventful. Baltimore looked very much like Baltimore at night tends to look.

And when I went out to dinner,the restaurant was dead. It was almost as if it was a Monday night. Oh, wait, it was a Monday night. At least I was able to visit one of my favourite D.C. spots – Pi Pizza, with an excellent selection of pizza, and an even better selection of micro brews.

I spent the evening sitting at the bar, working on my computer with my headphones in, listening to  music and pretty much ignoring everyone. Not exactly what people associate with travel, but … what can I say.  I sometimes worry I’m being anti-social, but of course, not enough to stop doing it.

When the cheque arrived, I noticed that one beer was missing from the total, so I pointed it out to the bartender. Not that I was complaining of course, but I felt obliged to point out the error. He informed me that one beer was on him, because … wait for it … I’d been such a pleasure to serve. It turns out that quietly minding your own business while clearly enjoying the food and beer just makes you a good customer. Who knew?

Then it was a short walk back to my hotel, past some of the local art.

All the while, walking down deserted streets. It definitely felt like an ordinary Monday evening, even though it was anything but ordinary.

We’ll have to see what tomorrow looks like…