Photo by DC Metroblogger

This is turkey is half of today’s feast. There is also a ham in the other oven.

When you are cooking for 16+ people you can’t mess around.

I am at the edge of DC, a stone’s throw from Takoma Park in the “Nut House” on Butternut Street. Good times and great people.

May you be so blessed too.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

While coming back from lovely Key West last night, my darling girlfriend and I stopped at the Tiki Bar, an outdoor sprawling collection of waterfront saloon just north of Islamorada. Someone else had suggested that the Dairy Queen in Key Largo was the natural midway point to stretch your legs but with the temps in the high 50s and us being drunks us, we figured we’d stop at the bar for a beer instead.

So what, one wonders, does this have to do with DC metroblogging? Well, less than a minute after we sat down and ordered another couple wandered up and sat down at the bar to our left. They heard the tail end of my darling girlfriend’s gripe that whenever she visits with me it’s colder back at home in DC.

“Oh? Where in the DC area?” they asked. Knowing that nobody ever knows city names out that way, I just said “by the Dulles airport, actually.”
“Sure, but where?” I mentally shrugged my shoulders and said “Sterling.”

You’d have thought I flashed them or denied that the Pope ****s in the woods from the expression of surprise. Sure enough, 1200 miles from home we had sat down at a bar less than five minutes before two of approximately 82,000 people who live in the 45 square miles of my adopted town. Freshly back from Key West where they’d just gotten married, they were on their way to have thanksgiving with his family just north of Ft Lauderdale and just figured they’d stop for a drink on the way.

We had a good laugh out of the coincidence but I forgot to get their names, else I’d mention them here. We congratulated them on their nuptials and wished them a happy thanksgiving, which I also extend to you: Happy Thanksgiving, dear readers, and if you’re next door to me in Miami right now…. I don’t want to know about it ’cause that’s just creepy.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Get ready, my fellow Arlingtonians. We’re getting our own CakeLove in Shirlington in Spring 2007. The new location will combine a full bakery, like the CakeLove bakeries in DC and Silver Spring, but will also have some tables and cake-by-the-slice like at LoveCafe. Pardon me whilst I quiver with the anticipated sugar high.

Fortunately for me, the new location will be a block and a half from my gym, so I can go work out and THEN have a cupcake. I’ll be able to work it out so that the whole adventure will be calorie-neutral.

Now, about how many calories are in a CakeLove cupcake?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

This is the line at the Bling Bling Giant today.

It proves that I am not the crazy one for waiting until today to shop for Turkey Day fixings.

We are all crazy to be cooking for parties of 16 or more hungry and lonely misfits.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

We all expect madness today at Safeway or Giant, people going mad for turkey and stuffing.

But CVS? And bottled water?

While he wouldn’t answer my queries, understandable as I was all up in his grill about the bottled water buy out, I still wonder the buyer’s need.

Will DC run out of water today? The Potomac drying up? Or maybe he has a family of 47 who need to quench their thirst.

No matter, he sure had fun rolling that cart out on the street. Bottles and stares were everywhere.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

While this cold and dreary day depresses event he most joyful, do not despair. Sunny days will come again one day – they must!

And then McPherson Square will be ready, will be waiting, thanks to Park Service employees like this.

Mixing up dirt for bulb planting, he will convert these cold winter months into a spring star burst of color and smells. Both almost as good as tomorrow’s bronzed turkey and smells of stuffing.

Now if he could only talk to the weatherman about this whole overcast thing…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I am at home today, not on the road to Toronto, where I thought I would be going for Thanksgiving. Since our travel plans changed last minute I was available to take my wife to work down at 2000 Penn. Usually, traffic on the way there at 8:30 in the morning is pretty bad but today it was easy. I guess the mass exodus for the holiday had already started. Lucky us!

This means the city and the few open businesses are all mine today and again tomorrow as the black eyed peas and collards simmer on the stove all day. Such fun, wandering DC without the press of crowds.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I never was very curious about the World Bank building but DC area resident Andy Carvin shows that it really is pretty majestic.

Original link here. From Andy Carvin’s blog.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Just because I’ve gone to visit my family for the holidays doesn’t mean I’m not thinking of y’all. The wall of the Raw Bar here in Key West is festooned with old license plates and I thought that just because they weren’t on a VA car anymore wasn’t a good reason to share them with you. Hope you’re all enjoying your lows in the 30s. *chortle*

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

My wife recently came into possession of a $200 gift card for Nordstrom’s. At first I was happy as a pig farmer with new hip waders, thinking of all the clothes we could get with that wad of dough. Then we actually went to Nordstrom’s.

Good Goobly Goop! A tie for $135? A sweater for $200? For that much I want my clothes to be self-cleaning and to adjust themselves as I get older and fatter. Does anybody ever really shop there? I can’t imagine paying those prices. For the cost of one of their off-the-rack suits I can fly to Bangkok and get one custom tailored in a day.

I am still in shock.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Jim Moran, Congresscritter for the 8th District of Virginia and Alexandria resident. God what a toolbag this guy is. The Post Express Blog has all the sordid details on his career, except for the MBNA loan he took conveniently around the time of Bankruptcy reform bills. Assaulted an eight year old black kid? Check. Two jilted girlfriends in a fight in front of his Alexandria home? Check. More Pork Spending? He’s gonna earmark the shit out of appropriations bills!

Gotta love scumbag local politicians. I was really disappointed he survived his primary challenge in 2004, and deeply disappointed no one would stand up to this worthless thug.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

So, someone out there on the internet could do us all a great big favor and photoshop Jim Bowden’s head on to the body of a horse, or maybe in place of it’s rear end, just so we can post it with this story. Alfonso Soriano took the big bucks in Chicago, signing an eight year, $136M deal with the Cubbies, and bringing his chapter in Washington to a close.

Remember back in July, when the Nats refused to trade Soriano at the Deadline? And Bowden said they could sign him to play forever and a day in DC instead? Yeah. Bowden’s a moron. The Nats decided not to pay $17M per season for Soriano, and will instead fritter it away on some other likely shitty roster moves. So, with the free-agent market now beginning, and the first shot out of the cannon a big one, can the Nats afford anyone on the market? If Soriano’s getting 17M, it’s unlikely the Nats could make an offer to Barry Zito, or any of the other major free agents, leaving us with second tier pickings which will cause attendance to once again droop.

Good job, Jimmy Bo.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

In my last post, I mentioned Chief Ramsey was probably on his way out. Little did I know… This morning Mayor-Elect Fenty named Commander Cathy Lanier to be DC’s next Chief of Police, effective on January 3rd. Commander Lanier began her career in DC back in 1990 as a beat officer in the Fourth District, and eventually worked her way up to assistant commander of the Sixth District, and then commander of the Fourth District.

Commander Lanier is currently serving as the head of the Homeland Security Unit which is responsible for Counterterrorism. Before that, she was also commander of Special Operations for the MPD. I welcome Chief Lanier, and, in the words of Wakko and Yakko, “Helloooooooo Nurse!”

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Well, we’re better than New Orleans or Los Angeles. When it comes to murders-by-firearm ratios. Sure, we’re at 80% of the homicides being fatal gunshots, but it could be much worse. New Orleans? 92% of homicides are caused by guns. But, where are these guns coming from? Aren’t guns supposed to be illegal in DC? Surely that ban is saving lives left and right! Well, it’s hard to say, honestly, because the MPD doesn’t exactly track why people were killed by firearms. Was it a bad-guy on bad-guy crime? Was it a drive-by that killed an innocent kid? Was it the police shooting a suspect? None of that is kept in the statistics.

Soon to be outgoing Police Chief Ramsey is busy blaming Maryland and Virginia for importing the guns to the District. “We have tough gun laws, but most of our guns are coming from Virginia and Maryland,” says Chief Ramsey in a article in the Washington Times on Friday. Well, let’s look for a second at the crime rates of neighboring areas.

MoCo: 19 murders in all of 2005. Their crime statistics group doesn’t break it down by method. That might be because there were only 19 murders in the whole county last year.

Prince George’s County: 135+ murders in 2006. Their crime statistics also don’t break out kinds of murders, only their mere numbers.

Arlington County: 5 murders. Right. Five. No breakdown on percentage of gun violence.

Alexandria City: 2 murders in 2004. There’s no statistics on 2005 yet, sadly.

Okay, so let’s see. What are the gun laws in Virginia? Here’s a handy reference. A short summary: You can buy one gun every 30 days in Virginia (not quite sure why you need more than one, but okay), and there are restrictions on who may buy them. You can apply for Concealed Carry in Virginia, provided you take training and pay for a license. What are the gun laws in Maryland? Well, like Virginia, you may buy one gun per 30 days. Like Virginia, you can apply for a concealed carry permit, but apparently results are mixed with actually getting them.

So, let’s see. DC is having gun violence because citizens of Virginia and Maryland can legally buy one gun per 30 days, and may need to get training in order to carry them in public. Sorry, Chief, that doesn’t fly with me. DC’s gun laws aren’t a deterrent to violent crime. The problem isn’t the laws or the guns, it’s the actual criminals that we’re either not preventing from committing the crime, or dealing with effectively once they’re in the system. It’s not helping that DC residents can’t carry to protect themselves, either. Yeah, I’m ready for the slew of “but think of the children!” and “what about accidental shootings?” But what I’m not ready for is the Chief of Police saying that gun laws in MD and VA are causing homicides with guns in the District. That’s a load of horseshit.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

DC Photographer Don Brodie has an exhibition at the CAT Gallery at Montgomery College, Rockville Campus. The show is titled “The Art of the Portrait” and is on display until December 31st. If you are not aware of Don’s portraits, you are really missing out. Take some time and go see this exhibit. Don is more a work-for-hire guy than an exhibit guy, so this is a real treat, being able to see so much of his work in one place.

Here is the address:
Montgomery College
Rockville Campus
51 Mannakee Street
Rockville, MD 20850

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I’ve seen many photos of the fountain in Dupont Circle, but very few have caught my eye. They look more like tourist snapshots than a photographer’s work. I think part of the reason behind this is that there are many angles at which one can shoot it from, yet very few of those angles are actually pleasing to the eye. Flickrite bossa67 appears to have found one of those angles, and with the lighting, (what I’m guessing is) his use of sepia tones, and the great timing of the birds in flight, we have a winner. The trees directly behind the fountain may be a bit distracting, but overall I think this shot does Dupont justice.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

My wife and I are traveling to Toronto on Wednesday to see her parents during the four-day weekend (extended a fifth day by my sneaky calendar-wrangling skills) and were trying to decide a few weeks ago whether to fly or drive.

The drive, at approximately ten hours, half of that through every tiny town in central Pennsylvania, is daunting, to be sure. However, when I checked on flights, ignoring the high cost for flying and getting a rental car during a holiday weekend, I still came to the conclusion that the drive was the smart way to go.

My calculations were like this: arrive to the airport three hours early to allow for extra holiday crowding, fly four hours (through Cincinnati or somewhere), then wait for luggage on the other end, get the rental car and you are at ten hours or close to it. Plus add in hassles with security, being pressed next to other cranky, sweaty passengers and having airport food, and what is the appeal?

When flying no longer saves time and costs much more than the alternative, you can count me out. Give me the open road, my own car, my own food and several hours across coal country. I’m good with that. I just hope the traffic isn’t terrible. At least the security lines on the way to my car are relatively short.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Hello DC freaks. This would be the good life with San Francisco freaks.

And no matter how freaky you think you are, the SF freaks will out do you.

That may not be a bad thing as too many people here seem to be trying a little too hard.

Not these three however. They are all joe cool. Especially the guy.

Miss ya DC and see ya soon.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I recently killed an afternoon after work at the Rock Bottom Brewery at Ballston Commons, one of my favorite places to sit and enjoy a brew. Rock Bottom has a wonderful collection of beers brewed on premises by a master brewer. The food is good, although limited for vegetarians, which puts a bit of a damper on things. I am always satisfied with the nachos, though. Even if the selection is not great, what is there is excellent.

At my most recent visit, however, I paid my $12 tab with a ten and a five and waited about 15 minutes, reading the City Paper, and never got my change. Granted, I had planned to leave the change as a tip for the waitress, but there is still a social contract between a server and customer that had been broken. I at least wanted the option to leave the tip rather than having her assume that I didn’t want my change.

Is this weird? I am not a bad tipper and left her the money in the end but she seemed really offended when I asked for my change, as if I had asked to return the plate of onion rings for a refund after eating them.

When did tipping become compulsory? I am a big believer in rewarding good service, but part of that good service should include not assuming that the change is yours to keep.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that Ritz Camera seems to be a haven for people who don’t really know anything about photography? I have been to stores in at least three states and am consistently disappointed. Maybe it’s their hiring practices but they seem to select for the choice combination of lack of knowledge and determination to belittle customers.

My most recent incident came this past week at the Ballston location, where a clerk told me I wanted something other than what I came in for.

“Trust me,” he said after a few minutes of going back and forth, “what you need is an IR transmitter.”

“Trust me,” I replied, “I know what I need and it’s nothing like an IR transmitter.” I suspect the guy just learned about IR transmitters and wanted to impress someone with his new vocabulary. I don’t claim to know everything, but I am a professional photographer, know what I need, know IR and the differences between the two.

After a few more minutes of being talked down to by someone who didn’t know much, I finally left, saying that I would rather go out to Penn Camera at Tyson’s than continue the conversation.

To any Ritz Camera representatives who might read this: hiring people who can dust shelves is not enough. You have to train people as well or else select for existing knowledge. It’s expensive but a good investment that can pay back quickly if you implement it the right way.

A lesson in customer service wouldn’t hurt either.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs