Well, it’s time to go shovel the driveway. I don’t want my 60-year-old neighbor next door, 14 years my senior, to outdo me in his physical prowess. In case I get stuck or bored, I asked my wife to call up the ASPCA and have them send out one of those whiskey-toting St. Bernards like they have in cold places. Wayan must have seen these guys all over Zurich when he was there. A little liquid courage can go a long way in clearing my driveway or maybe just making me not care whether it’s cleared. Either way, problem solved.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Today should be a snow day in Washington DC. The Federal Government should join with every school district in the region and declare this a full snow emergency closure – a day off so we can dig out.

Yes, I know, for those from Buffalo, this isn’t even a dusting. Well then, go back to Buffalo and dig them out. Here, this snow has stopped local transportation cold.

The snowplow you see here – that’s 10:45am. K Street may be open to traffic but no side streets are. I watched a taxi skid down Mt. Pleasant Avenue this morning, narrowly missing pedestrians and parked cars.

And yet the Federalies say the government is open on a liberal leave policy. Um, thanks. That means the rest of DC economy, which all follows the Federal Government in snow rules, is trying to be open for business.

And failing miserably.

Are you at work? Can you get anything done? I think not. And yet here we sit in the office while we could be helping neighbours & ourselves prepare for a productive Thursday.

Today should be a snow day.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Wanna show your clock-stopping hottie that you’re in tune with women on Valentines Day? That you understand and appreciate how she can be both feminine and breadwinning?

Then check out Films on the Hill showing of Annie Oakley, the 1935 tale of the sharpshooter from the Ozarks who joins Buffalo Bill’s legendary wild west show, becoming its main attraction.

If she questions the suggestion, recite this quote from Barbara Stanwyck, who starred as Ms. Okaley:

“Modern women could learn a great deal from Annie Oakley. She was a woman of all ages, deeply feminine in spite of her shooting ability–which she developed to support her family.”

Annie Oakley
7:00 pm @ Films on the Hill
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop
545 7th Street SE

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Making wine from Juicy Juice. It’s a redneck talent passed down from father to son or from inmate to inmate, depending on where you learn it. My driveway is frozen and this is what is keeping me from getting cabin fever and becoming a cannibal.

Yes, the airlocks on those bottles are what you think they are.

I hope you all are faring better. Stay indoors and get some of those around-the-house projects done. It’s better than busting ass on the ice and then wishing you had made the redneck wine to take the edge off the pain.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Are you wondering when the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), the lead agency for snow removal in DC, will clear snow and ice from District roadways and bridges?

And we’re not talking major roads, commuter thoroughfares and designated Snow Emergency Routes? No, we’re talking the 1,100 roadway miles of streets that matter – yours.

Then check out the handy new interactive Snowplow tracker where you can watch DDOT’s snow removal process in almost real time.

Checking on the map this morning, I say it’s already a little out of date. Not a single road is marked plowed, yet I heard snow plows grinding down 16th Street all night long.

No matter. Another cheer for the DC Gov website for using technology to increase public interaction with government!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

With a soft top you can prod a bit from the inside of the car and break up what’s frozen on top. That’s what fell & froze between when I got home at around 4:30 and when I did this experiment at 9:00.

Be interesting to see what it’ll be like tomorrow morning.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Look at 16th street outbound. A endless parking lot stretching north as far as camera or eye can see.

Traffic is so slow that I abandoned the warmth of the over packed bus for a mile walk home in the ice and snow.

Along the way, I’ve given the bad news to bus stops filled with expectant passengers: the buses are rare in number and already over capacity.

And now I do not walk home in snow alone.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Have you seen the WMATA Metrorial tunnel advertisements? The ones for cars and TV shows no one cares about?

Wouldn’t you rather have a fun video to look at? One that you’d look forward to seeing on your daily commute? Maybe something like this Swiss Love tunnel ad I saw in the Zurich airport:

Awww, yeah. Now don’t you wish the DC Visitors and Convention Center Bureau could put up a tunnel advertisement like this in the Blue Line tunnel leading to/from DCA? Say local supermodels teasing riders to visit the Capitol?

That would be real subway tunnel love.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

For us old “fuddy duddies” on DC Metblogs, some of us are more akin to liking some older musical acts than the current crop of bands. However, if one remembers correctly, if it weren’t for some of these bands, what you have on the radio now, would have never existed. I no longer listen to R.E.M. due to Michael Stipe’s disparaging comment about The Beatles (not noting ANY influence whatsoever – noting it was “elevator music”).

At least one of the bands that introduced a “sound” that has influenced multiple generation of garage band dreamers, The Police, have just announced they ARE going on tour. What’s absent from the tour list (at least for the first leg) is ANYTHING near DC. They play two shows up in NYC and one in Boston, but outside of St. Louis and Bonnaroo in Tennessee, nothing near by that isn’t sponsored by a summer road trip.

Speaking of influences, The 9:30 Clubhas a soft sale for the latest “supagroup” from Blur/Gorrilaz front-man, Damon Albarn, “The Good, The Bad, and the Queen” on March 14th. The band is made up of a venerable cavalcade of stars with a pedigree to impress, including Albarn himself, Clash bassist Paul Simonon, former Verve guitarist Simon Tong and Afrobeat pioneer Tony Allen (the album was produced by former “Demon Days” producer and half of Gnarls Barkley, Danger Mouse). WOWZERS!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

photo courtesy of The Dime Museum

If you’re a BoingBoing reader you might have seen the entry about the impending auction of the Baltimore Dime Museum’s holdings. Color me confused – I’d thought this was a done deal back at the end of 2005 and that much of their stuff had ended up at Palace of Wonders. I guess I’m almost one of the people that the Baltimore Sun article mentions who “have grown accustomed to word that the dusty space was closing — only to find out that wasn’t so much true.”

Minus the finding out that it’s not true.

It’s too bad, and an interesting lesson on how we hear news of finality and close the book, mentally. It never occurred to me to look into the matter after the late 2005 news articles on the closing and verify that, yes, it closed. I couldn’t make it there in time for the supposed last day at the end of 2005 but I’m pretty sure I could have found a day given almost a full year.

If you want to look through the lots of stuff that are going to be for sale you can check it out on the web here. Or go to the preview on the 23rd, 24th, or 25th. On the 26th you can bid, in person or on eBay Live, at 5pm.

The American Dime Museum
1808 Maryland Avenue
Baltimore, Maryland 21210

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Hard Times Cafe

Originally uploaded by spencerb.

Many thanks to Fred Parker who gave me a status update on the Hard Times Truck:

“The transmission grease is too thick for the cold weather and is being changed before the GW Parade next Monday. Thanks for asking.”

Glad to hear the truck will soon return!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by Brownpau

Reading WMATA’s preparations for snow today as a die-hard transit foamer, I was captivated by the Metrorail de-icing equipment:

Passengers will see the de-icing equipment inside those 12 trains. It is neither dangerous nor flammable, and passengers should not be concerned that it is aboard their train. If they prefer not to be in a rail car with the equipment, they can move to another rail car.

Now why would anyone want to move to another car? It would be fascinating to check out Metrorail’s deicing equipment up close & personal.

I am only slightly disappointed to say that the experience was already shared by “StandingClearoftheDoors” in his I rode the Zamboni post. There, he shares his observations, the last of which might make you more apt to move to another car:

A curiosity: A yellow airline cargo net surrounds the tank and is secured to the top bar with two black shockcords. Those tanks must weigh 2000 lbs half empty, so I have no idea what the netting, shockcords or the attachment to the hand assist bars was for. If that tank wanted to start moving, the car’s bulkhead *might* slow it down.

Now if only a quick Metroblogging DC reader would take a photo of the equipment…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Hard Times Cafe

Originally uploaded by ellen.w.

Driving into Old Town tonight for my weekly trip to the Virginia Tech campus, something didn’t feel right. All of a sudden, I was Payne & King St., the heart of Old Town, but it’s like I had missed the gateway. Suddenly I had gone from residential to commercial with no buffer. I stopped at Payne Street, the site of a recent accident involving my Jetta and a crazy drunk woman’s Nissan, and it didn’t feel right.

Coming home, I put my finger on what was absent: this beautiful antique truck, with American flag & plastic horse and the striking Christmas lights. It’s the gateway to Old Town, coming from the Masonic Memorial. A homey touch of American making the transition from residential to commercial, and tonight its spot stood empty. The tired façade of Hard Times looked lonesome for its eponymous symbol of American perserverance in the face of its iconic Protestant Work Ethic name. Where’d the truck go?!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

There’s a magical time of day that comes just before sunrise and just before sunset. Twilight? That may be the term to describe it. It’s when the sky turns a dark shade of blue and the gradient is just amazing. Say goodbye to the harsh, scorching light of day and paint some romance into your photograph with the subtle, fading light of dusk or dawn.

I think this time of day goes strangely neglected in photography. Maybe because it’s such a short period of time? Maybe because it’s when you’re either asleep in the morning or eating dinner at night? The fact is, it’s a perfect time to get your camera out, especially when you’re photographing things like an outdoor Christmas tree, or a quaint plaza, and you want to see a silhouette of your subject. When the sky is pure black as it is when night has fallen, there is too much contrast and it’s hard to expose just right.

Fellow Flickrian ehpien has used this lighting to perfection here with his beautiful sunset reflection of the Lincoln Memorial. I don’t know about you, but I’d love a huge print of this hanging on my wall.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

This was supposed to be the post where I excitedly announce that Google Maps has added Metro stops and building outlines for DC. I was all prepared to find some nice, prominent spot in DC to show off the new feature, like maybe the White House and McPherson/Farragut Square area or something, but I entered the zip code wrong, putting in “20050” instead of “20500,” and got this:

If you look closely, Google Maps has a big balloon saying “PENTAGON” pointed squarely at The Ellipse. So yeah, close, but no cigar — I give Google Maps a C+ for Geography and a D- for Geometry.

(Hmmm, maybe this explains that guy who keeps editing the Wikipedia entry for The Pentagon to say that it’s shaped like a circle.)

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

photo courtesy of F.W. Thomas Performances

It doesn’t have to be current, but hey – everyone’s got a story and the F.W. Thomas Performances would like you to share it. In their own words:

In addition to our ALL-STAR lineup of presenters, we’re opening the podium up to that most dreaded of all show-biz tropes: AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION.

To wit: We are looking for BREAKUP STORIES, EMBARRASSING LOVE LETTERS (THOSE RECEIVED and THOSE WRITTEN AND MERCIFULLY UNSENT) and OTHER ASSORTED TALES of ROMANTIC WOE. Possbily including:

* Transcripts of Instant Messenger dumpings
* Excerpts from restraining orders taken out by celebrity crushes and delivered via process server
* Primary school Valentine’s cards woefully misinterpreted by you

The audience participation portion of the evening will be modeled after a poetry slam. As is the case in a poetry slam, performers will be expected to be dynamic and brief.

Unlike a poetry slam, you will be expected to be funny and interesting.

They had me even before they took a swipe at poetry slams, but that clinched it. Don’t be a wuss, brave the light snow Wintry Doom of Death and get thee just north of the Verizon Center and see the show. Seriously: $5. How wrong could it go?

The Warehouse Theater
1017-1021 7th Street NW
7:30pm tonight

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

There’s just a scant 24 hours left before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training down in Viera, Florida, but all I can see going through my head is the scene from Major League with a bunch of suits reading the list of invitees…

Stan Kasten: This is a list of players that I want to invite to Spring Training this year.
Board Member #1: I’ve never heard of half of these guys and the ones I do know are way past their prime.
Manny Acta: Most of these guys never had a prime.
Board Member #2: This guy here is dead.
Stan Kasten: Cross him off then.

With 71 players coming to Spring Training this year, only 3 of whom played with the Nationals all season in 2006, I’ve got to say, it don’t look too good. I’ve got hopes, though, that we can scour the California Penal League for our very own Rick Vaughn, and hope to God that we can find a whole chicken so that our Pedro Cerrano can hit a curve ball.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

This is the florist at 14th and I Streets today.

See all those rose boxes? He is ready for your Valentines flower needs.

I count at least 28 dozen roses in that stack and I bet there are more inside.

Question is: with the impending snow hysteria tomorrow, will there be anyone downtown needing flowers?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

When I wander around the city, I always wonder what radndom utility boxes actually do.

Walking back from a meeting, I saw this one open. At the corner of 14th and I Streets NW seems to be a telephone switching box. Or at least the guys standing around it were from Verizon.

Look at the close up view, recognize any equipment?

How many of these urban utility boxes actually perform some required service, and how many are just relics of the past, like police call boxes now made into art?

I wonder how cleaner our sidewalks would be if we removed all the un-used detritus that clutters our egress.

Might we have room for more trees instead?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

photo courtesy of Capitol Weather

Well, this is not your day.

Where else are you going to get weather updates that – in addition to not being the hysterical wankfests you get from local tv weather – give you a breakdown of probabilities like this? It beats the hell out of “up to 10 inches!” given that “up to” includes “none.”

On a related note, my grocery shopping excursion an hour ago was shockingly uncrowded. Perhaps the hysteria won’t uncork till after the 11pm news.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs