Tag Archives: Dupont

Day 241: Anonymous letter left at Starbucks in Dupont

There’s a Starbucks at the corner of Connecticut and R in DC. It’s probably the closest Starbucks to my apartment. I go in there from time to time and today I thought I would leave an anonymous letter for somebody – perhaps brighten there day with a free cup of joe – well, it will probably end up being some fancy schmancy latte or something!

Day 241

“Coffee: A warm, delicious alternative to hating everybody every morning forever.” – Kim Bongiorner

Enjoy some coffee today on me – trust me, it will make your day better.

 

Day 205: Kim and Luis

Anthony, Kim, Reed at Anthony's 2nd Annual Celebration. We missed getting a photo with Luis - he was too busy working!

Anthony, Kim and Reed at Anthony’s 2nd Annual Celebration. We missed getting a photo with Luis – he was too busy working!

We held the second annual Anthony celebration last Monday night at one of Anthony’s favorite places: Rumors. It’s right across the street from where he cheerfully greets his customers every morning. The staff there always treats us like gold and Monday night was no exception. I love these guys.

Day 205-2

 

Kim & Luis,

People go out to bars and restaurants for many reasons – the food, the atmosphere, the service. Walking in to Rumors is like walking in to Cheers. You remember your customers, treat people right and you care. You made Anthony’s two-year celebration a very special evening for him and I wanted you to know how much I appreciate it.

Thank you,
Reed

Day 122: Amy Wilkinson

It’s been ten years since I moved into my apartment in Dupont Circle here in Washington, DC. For much of that time, my neighbor Amy Wilkinson has been working on a book. In the last couple of years, as I started working on my book about the Year of Giving, I began asking more questions to her about the process she went through to take her book to publication.

You caught me rereading Chapter 5, Networking Minds, recently to help inform some planning for a project that I'm working on.

You caught me rereading Chapter 5, Networking Minds, recently to help inform some planning for a project that I’m working on.

It’s been a long five years – she’s had all kinds of surprises along the way and often tells me the things that she would do differently if she writes another book. As a rookie author, I have listened intently to her advice.

Her book finally came out in February – I preordered it so I had it on my doorstep the day it was released. It’s easy to say that The Creator’s Code should be required reading for anyone interested in entrepreneurism, but that lessens the value of the book frankly. I would say that anyone passionate about making a difference, achieving an aspirational goal, or just being more effective in an area of their life will benefit from the book – we can all be “creators.”

The moving truck came today to move her belongings to California – Amy is headed to teach a course at Standford. My loss – Stanford’s gain. Join me in wishing her continued success and get your copy of her book here.

122-2

Amy,

Congratulations on The Creator’s Code. It’s such as terrific book and I’m ecstatic to see it doing so well. And while I know that I don’t even know the half of it, I know that you worked tirelessly on it and that your journey to publication wasn’t without its share of challenges and pitfalls. But as a creator, you managed to keep your eyes on the horizon.

A handcrafted card I made at Paper Source's workshop Thursday night.

A handcrafted card I made at Paper Source’s workshop Thursday night.

Sadly it seems that all this success also means I lose a great neighbor! Best of luck with teaching your course at Stanford and I look forward to following all the exciting places you will go.

This is just the beginning!
Reed

Day 13: Ken


I met today’s recipient five years ago today. A proud and stalwart salesman of the Street Sense newspaper in DC, I’ve stayed in touch with him ever since meeting him through my Year of Giving project. You can read about the day we met and see a photo of Ken in action selling the paper here.

Ken Day 13

 

Ken,

Today marks five years since we met at the Dupont Circle metro stop at the corner of 20th and Q. Your passion and enthusiasm for Street Sense, your customers and soccer all inspire me to be passionate about things in my own life. I know you’ve experienced great challenges in your life, but you face them with strength and optimism and I admire that. I know your birthday is this Saturday – let’s go for lunch one day this week or next week to celebrate.

Your friend,

Reed