News & Politics

The Quarantine Questionnaire: Kristin Fisher, Washington Correspondent for Fox News

The TV reporter talks about escaping to the Blue Ridge Mountains on weekends and one very aggravating quarantine fail.

What’s the best thing you’ve streamed? Most useful thing in your freezer? Dream day when this is all over? In search of inspiration—and, let’s be honest, a bit of voyeurism—we’re asking Washingtonians (current and recently former) how they’re passing the time and getting through quarantine. Here’s Kristin Fisher, a Washington correspondent for Fox News and former reporter for Channel 9. Since the lockdown began, Fisher has been back and forth between working from home in Dupont Circle and airing reports from the White House (also, interviewing her 74-year-old father, an ER doctor in Texas who has worked through the crisis). Maybe you saw President Trump lash out at her “horrid” questioning during a coronavirus briefing in April? 

Kristin Fisher at home in Dupont with her daughter, Clara. Photograph courtesy of Fisher.

Best book I’ve read: Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of ConsciousnessThis book has me contemplating becoming a vegetarian again.

Best thing I’ve streamed: Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix. Before watching this, I’d never seen a Formula 1 race and couldn’t name a single driver. Now I CANNOT BELIEVE that Sebastian Vettel is leaving Ferrari and Carlos Sainz will be taking his seat.

Best podcast I’ve listened to: None! I’ve stopped entirely now that I don’t have a normal commute.

Best meme: This (below) sums up my life fairly accurately at the moment.

 

Best virtual event I’ve attended: I’ve become a big fan of virtual music festivals. Kaskade playing over the Grand Canyon at sunset was pretty incredible.

Most useful thing in the freezer: Homemade popsicles. They provide hours of entertainment for a toddler. I simply let my little girl, Clara, drop pieces of raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries into astronaut and rocket popsicle molds, and then we fill it up with either orange juice or sparkling water (“bubble water” as she likes to call it). Pop it in the freezer and voila! [About those astronaut molds: Fisher’s mother was the first astronaut-mom in the world to go to space.]

Least useful thing in the freezer: A broken ice maker that I can’t get anyone to fix.

Song/album on repeat: Polo and Pan’s Home Sweet Home

Best purchase: An outdoor trampoline [like this]. It took three hours to assemble, and my hands were covered in blisters by the time it was over, but it’s been worth it to watch Clara bounce all that energy out to her two favorite jams: the “Russian Dance” and the dance of Mother Ginger from the Nutcracker. (I swear I didn’t force those musical selections upon her because of her name.)

Best purchase I probably wouldn’t have made otherwise: Adjustable dumbbells

Quarantine goal: To become a bonafide crazy plant lady who doesn’t murder all of her babies.

Favorite takeout: Fajitas and frozen margaritas from Lauriol Plaza

Favorite comfort food to make at home: Tacos. All kinds. Anytime.

Go-to at-home cocktail: I’m more of a wine and beer kind of gal. But if I do have a cocktail, it’s almost always a margarita. (If you’re noticing a theme, it’s because I’m from Texas.)

Weight gain or loss: I’m on the scrawny side so I’ve been trying to gain some muscle during quarantine, hence the aforementioned adjustable weights.

Worst part of the day: Waking up. I have to wake up around 4 AM to be ready for my first live shot at the White House, which is usually at 7 AM.

Best part of the day: Evenings on our patio and dinner al fresco

Favorite quarantine activity: Weekends at our cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Zero cell service. Extremely isolated. Perfect for a pandemic.

Person I’d most like to spend a day quarantined with: Marie Kondo, so she can apply her Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up to my house

Person I’d least like to spend a day quarantined with: Joe Exotic, the Tiger King

Favorite place at home to quarantine: Patio. It’s our jungle oasis in the middle of the city. Grill, hammock, fire pit, tons of plants, and an outdoor TV. It’s actually become my favorite place to watch evening White House briefings.

Most surprising self discovery: I can’t believe I’m saying this but…I love going to play golf! Now, I don’t actually play. Clara and I just tag along with my husband. She loves getting in and out of the golf cart and cheering him on.

Most memorable quarantine fail: After waiting in a long line at the grocery store, I realized I left my wallet at home. I realized my mistake after I’d been shopping for about ten minutes. I’d already been having a day, so I just gave up, went home, and ordered Uber Eats. It was a complete and total fail.

Best coping mechanism: Noise-cancelling AirPods—perfect for monitoring a White House briefing in one ear while playing with a toddler in the other.

Dream day once this all ends: Waking up on a beach in Tulum with my husband, daughter, and dog. Dinner at Hartwoods. Dancing at Papaya Playa Project.

Kristen Hinman
Articles Editor

Kristen Hinman has been editing Washingtonian’s features since 2014. She joined the magazine after editing politics & policy coverage for Bloomberg Businessweek and working as a staff writer for Voice Media Group/Riverfront Times.