we were told there would be cake

After a long day out today - shopping in Georgetown, a boat trip down the Potomac to the twee historic tourist town of Alexandria, Virginia - we happened upon the Occupy camp in Lafayette Park. It was late in the afternoon, and there was a muted atmosphere, with two or three drummers drumming and no one engaging in any actual protesting. There was however a lot of earnest discussion happening between small knots of people, with half caught words and phrases like "direct action" and "caucus". The movement here seems small, but still somehow important. Its principles resonate with many people, and it looks sustainable - there is apparently talk of winding things back for winter then embarking on a spring offensive. Being a magnet for crazies, I spent some time in conversation with a tall man wearing a sort of hasidic bearskin hat with a single, false red ringlet hanging rakishly over his forehead, on subjects as wide ranging as the Dalai Lama and Sasol. He was very well-informed on South African issues. On the way back to P Street where we live, Gina remarked how everyone in Washington seemed to be on some sort of earth changing mission, and that this was not a bad thing. It is indeed a very earnest place, but a lot of fun, too.