Well, it’s Friday, and that means it’s PS3 day. The first 400,000 PS3s were sold today, and there was some excitement at the Circuit City in Tysons, where local police used pepper balls to deal with an unruly mob. Is it worth getting pepper sprayed just to get an overpriced playstation? Damned if I know. Me, I’m still picking the mothballs out of my PS2. Maybe there will be some Katamari this weekend.

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Patty Melt at Tillie’s Diner in Alameda

Originally uploaded by pointnshoot.

There’s this great scene in Dead Like Me, where Rube is filling in for the now-deceased short-order cook at Der Waffle Haus. The waitress comes up to the order console, punches the ticket, and explains that the customer wants the cheese melted on the bread. What ensues is one of those brilliant moments in television that sticks to your brain. The Patty Melt, Rube explains, is both descriptive of the preparation and the substance of the dish. The cheese is melted on the patty, then served on toasted rye. Not served with kraut. Not served with the cheese melted on the bread. To do so would be to compromise the values of the dish, of the very preparatory nature of the food itself. That would leave just a mere broken shell of a man,

So, off I went to the diner across from my coffeeshop office for my patty melt. With the greyness of winter settling in across DC, the trees threadbare, the wind blowing ever harsher, and the cold November nights on the horizon, the Patty Melt is a refuge against the cold days, and darn tasty to boot. With all of the compromise that happens in this town, stand firm in your desire for a hot and tasty patty melt. Go down to Luna in Dupont tonight, get a Patty Melt. Embrace the ideal.

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When I heard Galileo was closing, I was fearful what this would do to the already weak Italian Restaurant Market in DC. Losing the jewel in the crown for a year or so? How disappointing! But then along came Bebo Trattoria, over in Crystal City, Roberto’s home away from home in Arlington for the duration. It’s in Oyamel’s space over by Jaleo Crystal City, on Crystal Drive. I’ve been twice for lunch now, and I can finally come up with a verdict: Thumbs Up.

I took Tiff for her birthday last Friday, where we both had the Lamb Steak, served with fresh rosemary and oregano, that was absolutely to die for. I’d never seen Lamb Steak on the menu, anywhere, but Bebo has it, and oh my good lord is it tasty. When I went back with my friend Ian this week for his birthday, we both tried the Piatti Unico, the single plate lunch special. It’s like a bento box. Or a fancy lunch tray. A long canneloni, a meatball in roasted tomato sauce, some mozzarella and tomato salad, and an amaretto chocolate pudding that is so delicious, the Vatican has assigned it a Gluttony value. At $15, I’m not sure that you can come up with a better deliciousness per dollar ratio in all of the area.

The space is cavernous and…bright orange. I’d never been to Oyamel before, so I’m not sure if this is a carryover from those days, but I was shocked at the bright orange-ness of the space. The bar looks like a perfect spot for a happy hour, with a giant liquor rack, plenty of space to stand, and a wine list that’s hard to rival.

Now, the best part is still a few weeks off. They’re not yet making either the sandwiches or the pizza that made the Galileo Grill a summertime favorite, but they will be, and then you can bet that it will be everyone’s favorite lunchspot. Go now, try something new, and enjoy. The price is right, much less than many of the downtown (or heck, even Crystal City) sit-down restaurants, and besides, where else can you get Roberto’s Cannoli?

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photo courtesy of SOME

This Saturday there’s going to be a 5k walk-a-thon for the benefit of charities that serve homeless needs. Organized by Fannie Mae, the Help the Homeless Walk-A-Thon is open to anyone who’s willing to spend $25 to sign-up and twist some arms for pledges. There’s 180 beneficiary organizations so you can be sure every penny is needed. You can let the money you raise go into the general fund or designate a specific charity if you’re soft on one in particular. I’m partial to So Others Might Eat but maybe you’re more partial to the Church of the Brethren or Dinner Program for Homeless Women.

I’ll be traveling this weekend so I can’t participate, but I’ll pledge $10 each for the first five of you who sign up and comment here to let me know you’re doing it. You don’t have to provide your real name in the comment field below but you MUST use a valid email address so I can contact you to get your information and fulfill my end of the bargain. Capitol Weather projects a pretty average Fall day with clear skies and temps in the 50s so get out there and do some good.

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Today is the last day to enjoy the weekly Freshfarm Market in Penn Quarter!

Held from 3-7pm on 8th Street between D and E Streets, this little pocket of local produce goodness could be just the thing to kick-start your Thanksgiving Day menu planning. A bounty of organic fruits, vegetables, honey, and cheeses ready for the table. You could also stop by the happy soap ladies booth to pick up some yummy scented handcrafted soaps for your guests (what? you won’t have guests? you aren’t cooking for your entire family plus in-laws this year? am I truly the only insane person in DC? what have I gotten myself into?? sigh. shoot me now.)

If you can’t make it this afternoon, never fear – the Dupont Circle Farmer’s Market is open Sundays year-round in the PNC Bank parking lot from 9am-1pm.

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1. People’s faces are glowing. You all know it – the cell phone glow. People are texting their friends to see what they’re up to, checking their Blackberry’s*, or calling their grandma in Toledo to see how they’re feeling. If there was good music playing, the cell phones would be safely stored in a secure location.
2. The song you’re listening too sounds oddly like the last song (and the song before that). Unless you’re wasted of course, and then you may as well be listening to your little brother’s garage band.
3. You can hear the crowd singing better than the actual band. “I…want to rock ‘n roll all niiiight…”. You get the idea.
4. You can only make out every tenth word. “Blah, blah, blah…. screeeeeeech!!!…. rar rar rar!!… mmmm hmmm…. oh yeah…”.
5. It takes the band as long to set up their gear as it does for them to play their entire set. Any truly good band has this stuff down pat, or has roadies to do it for them.

Am I missing anything?

* – If I could go back in time and politely get rid of the guy who invented the Blackberry, I’d do it in a heartbeat.

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I understand well that people will steal the most random of shit. Road signs, statues, toilet paper rolls in fast food places, whatever. But this one was a new one on meA tree? Seriously?

Here’s a hint for my fellow Arlingtonians: If you are affluent enough to afford a house in Arlington that’s big enough to have a yard worth landscaping, then you are affluent to buy your own damn trees to fill that yard with. Don’t want to pay $3K for a tree? Grow it yourself. Just because it’s in a park that your tax dollars pay for doesn’t mean it’s YOUR tree for the taking. My tax dollars pay for that park too, so don’t be a jackass.

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Fox is going to air a two-part special next week featuring an interview with OJ Simpson, in which he explains how, IF he killed Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, which he SO TOTALLY DIDN’T HE SWEARS TO GOD, he would have done it. Theoretically. Just guessin’ here.

This is the part where I ‘fess up to using Lisa de Moraes’ take on the special as a blatant ploy to somehow make this post even tangentially related to DC, because if I hadn’t seen it in the Post, I would have thought it was a headline from The Onion. I hope you will forgive me for this abuse of the MBDC format. My favorite quote?

“If I Did It” is also the title of the former pro football player’s new book that, Fox said yesterday, hits bookstores Nov. 30 — just in time for the holiday gift-buying season, ho, ho, ho. And who wouldn’t love to find a copy of O.J.’s sordid sort-of hypothetical confession in his Christmas stocking on the morning of the day in which we celebrate the birth of baby Jesus?

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photo courtesy of Yukari*

Wayan may have thought that the hatin’ started when you cross the Potomac but it seems that anti-gay measures flank DC on both sides. The Post reports today that the trifecta of cornhole-phobia this week is comprised of Pittsburg, North Carolina and Baltimore. The writer reports that the Catholic Bishops statement compares same-sex attraction to the temptations of “envy, malice or greed” and politely queries Bishop Arthur J. Serratelli how he can then claim the release is intended to be “positive, pastoral and welcoming.” The article includes without comment the real comic content further on: the statement out of the Baptist Convention that “in our day and time, no other sin marches so defiantly across our national landscape.”

I think you forgot gluttony, Buddy. 66% of the adult population is overweight or obese and 19% of kids ages 6 to 11 are overweight. Maybe the Baptists replaced math class with intelligent design classes so I’ll give them a hint: 66% is more than “one in ten.”

Hmmm, they did say “marches.” Maybe that omits sins that waddle?

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photo courtesy of Hasbro

So several of the other Metblogs cities have been commenting on the new Here&Now Monopoly edition – what Hasbro calls Monopoly “if it had been invented today.” Rather than spots like Park Place and Illinois Avenue there’s Seattle’s Pioneer Square, Minneapolis’ Mall of the Americas, the Atlanta Airport, and Orlando’s Disney World. We, of course, get the White House. Reasonable – it’s the most famous of our landmarks, though I’d contend not the most visually distinctive.

The issue I take with this, however, is that it’s one of the green properties – not one of the two most expensive blue properties, which went to Times Square and Fenway Park – and sells for 3.2 million bucks.

3.2 Million. Hehehehe. Seriously? You guys think you can buy the White House for 3.2M? HAHAHAHAH. If you’re looking to update the game to the current time you need to put a price tag of 3.9 BILLION on that bit of real estate, and that’s just the rental for four years. Sorry Hasbro, if you wanted to put that kind of a price tag on one of our landmarks then maybe you could have let players purchase the local sports arena, in exchange for which you get to call it by your own name.

Oooh, there’s a new Monopoly version idea. Instead of streets and buildings you have politicians and sporting arena locations. You buy the right combination of politicians and they take money out of the city coffers to buy the sporting arenas for you! Monopoly: Corporate Sports Welfare edition. I have a few politician names I’d be happy to nominate for inclusion…

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We’ve got some good food blogs here in DC – I try to keep up with DCFoodies m’self – but sometimes you’re not as interested in reading about what other people want to tell you and are more looking for a specific solution. A breakfast solution, anyone have something to say about that Raika place, or maybe what’s the best veggie dish in the area? That’s when you need a discussion board, not a blog, and Chowhound is a pretty good place to go. They’re nation-wide but there’s a DC & Baltimore area board to take your questions to or just search the archives. So far the new Bebo Tratoria is the only restaurant I’ve punched in and not found at least one result.

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Twilight tonight was quiet and misty, perfect for a twenty-minute walk from my office downtown up to my house. Most nights I’m too tired to walk, preferring to sink into a seat on the bus, but sometimes it just feels necessary, almost cathartic. Somewhere after Massachusetts Avenue the streets narrow, the enveloping tree canopy always encouraging me to shake off the workday and clear my mind of petty stress.

At the end of the walk tonight as I turned onto my block, I heard the gentle clip-clop of a horse’s hooves. It could almost be 1890. Wait, Halloween was weeks ago – what, am I so exhausted that I’m hearing phantom horses now?

No, just an officer of the House-mounted unit of the US Park Police, guiding a superbly beautiful chestnut down my street. Though I’m close to Logan Circle, it’s a rare sight to have a horse actually in front of my house. The pair seemed so confident and steady, the horse’s coat gleaming in the light of the streetlamp. I stopped on my porch and watched them pass by, horse and rider, as the sound echoed tranquilly through the night.

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What, you thought I was going to blog about the Redskins’ dismal showing against the Eagles? Wrong. If you thought the wind last night was caused by the storm, you’d be wrong, it was the giant sucking coming out of Landover. But yes, it appears that the Nats may have a new manager in Manny Acta, whose previous credentials include being the Mets’ 3rd Base Coach and the Expos’ 3rd Base Coach. Little is known about Acta, except for the fact that he can properly use the world nucleus in context. How close is the deal? Well, that’s a good question. All local media seems to indicate it’s going to go down this week, but Wikipedia’s reporting it’s done already, which is confusing the heck out of me.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Its late, way too late, and you might be a bit drunk.

No matter, you are on a mission. You are hunting for edibles at the Super 24 Hour Safeway on Georgia Avenue, and this is what you see: SPAM!!

You know you want it. Fried. With pineapple on a pizza, Pacific Island style. No, ham, this ain’t Hawaii, this is way too late for a luau.

So do you do it, do you SPAM?

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Iwo Jima 4

Originally uploaded by photosbypjt.

The United States Marine Corps celebrates today its 231st birthday, formed on November 10th, 1775. Possibly the finest fighting force ever assembled, their history is long and colorful. If you get a chance, go check out the Marine Corps Memorial (the Iwo Jima Memorial near the Netherlands Carillon) today and remember our first fighting force.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

I am up way too early for a jaunt to San Francisco and Dulles is already packed.

Security theatre has us backed up to the front doors and in twisting lines that would make Disney World proud.

In addition there is a smooth talking announcement telling us everything will be alright. Just check your freedoms and logic with your luggage.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Let’s say it’s a Thursday night before you head out to San Francisco for a week of work and you have a happy hour invite to Cafe Asia.

What would you do?

1. Stay at work and finish the pile of to-do’s stacked on your desk, or
2. Join two birthday hotties for a few celebratory drinks?

Yeah, you know there is only one correct answer to that question, even in stuffy DC!

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We’re not a political blog, but being in the seat of government makes it hard not to comment on goings-on during a hot election cycle. What is theory and philosophical matters for most of the country translates into day-to-day differences for those of us here. Funding for agencies could change your employment situation if you’re a contractor and anyone in the lobbying business will be calling on different people in 2007. She might be someone else’s Senator but our business contact. Or maybe even the friend of a friend, as is the case for me with on-the-way-out SecDef Rumsfeld.

Living here, most of us are also aware of the political realities and how quick the winds shift. Case in point – if you’ve never heard of Rumsfeld’s Rules before, you’d do well to give them a look. Whether you love him or hate him or are somewhere in between, I think you’ll like them and find they’re good advice not just for the political appointees he wrote them for thirty years ago but for much of life in general. You won’t find them, however, at the DoD website.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I was driving to work a few days ago (which is unfortunately in Virginia) and I noticed that the oversized SUV in front of me had a peculiar looking license plate. I squinted to get a good look and then my brain hurt. Why? Why would you want this on the back of your car? What do the words “Fight Terrorism” on a license plate actually accomplish? To me that’s like having the words “Fight Obesity” tattooed on your buttocks, one word on each cheek. Or “Fight Fatigue” on a pack of cigarettes. If I ever felt the urge to buy a custom license plate, I’d prefer to have the one that says “Fight For Your Right to Party”, or maybe just “Fight!”

Can anyone tell me what this is all about? It’s entirely possible that I’m just missing the point here.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs