Photo by DC Metroblogger

Look what I found: the office candy drawer. And note that I wasn’t the first.

It seems that the office rats staff also knows where to score chocolate mid-day. From Hershey to Mars, this container of calories is a favorite of the sweet tooth.

Now that I know of its location, temptation calls that much stronger. Maybe even more than the office candy bowl.

Do you have an office candy drawer? And if you do, do you want to know where?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

photo courtesy of SideLong

If you spent some of your drive in this morning cursing at your XM radio as the signal drifted in an out, you’re not alone.I did the same and so did pretty much everyone else. Apparently XM botched a software update and the problem is at the sats themselves.

And yes, I did a shout-out to a movie so dumb that it implied you could hack an alien spaceship with a Mac (on OS9 no less!) and that a space-faring race needed to use satellites for timing rather than a simple atomic clock. Sue me.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) was the first of the crowd to put a not-so-anonymous hold on the DC School Takeover Bill, and today, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) was the second to do so. Sen. Landrieu has put a hold on the bill at the behest of the President of the DC Board of Ed President Robert Bobb.

Ah, DC. Just because a bill passes the council, twice, gets signed by the mayor, that doesn’t make it law.

This is DC. Bills that pass the council and the mayor, also have to pass through the Congress, meaning that there are 535 other people who can stop the bill at any point through the Legislature. And so, today, the chair of the Board of Ed ran an end around.

What’s next? Sen. Feinstein (D-CA) asking for a hold so that she can hold the District hostage over some other point? Sen. Brownback (R-KS) doing the same so that he can hold the District hostage over yet another point? This is just ludicrous that those elected by a wholly separate group of Americans, not even geographically or culturally close to the makeup of the District get to choose what happens here.

It’s honestly embarassing to me.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I’m heading off to Ireland this Wednesday, for a jaunt through the West Country. So it seemed fitting that before I step into the the mystical land of dolmens, bogs, and Yeats, I experience a dose of modern Irish reality. Saturday night I went to see a play about a city one associates not with green but with grim grit – Belfast.

Solas Nua is performing Owen McCafferty’s complex montage “Scenes from the Big Picture” at my alma mater Catholic University’s Callan Theater through June 24. It’s part of the Rediscover Northern Ireland initiative that’s currently taking place as a build-up to Northern Ireland’s inclusion in the Smithsonian’s Folklife Festival. Peter Marks gives it a rousing review in today’s Post.

The play weaves myriad characters of questionable likability – apathetic teens, drug dealers, cheating husbands, estranged families – in a quickening gyre of urban life. There’s no sunny blarney here, only the fierce determination of living under difficult and dangerous conditions. But at the end one is left with a strong sense of the tenacity of hope against despair, with a beautiful final image of an old man removing his cap, paying homage to his dead wife as a magical meteor shower bathes him in light.

Be sure to check out the Rediscover Northern Ireland site for a fresh look at an area that’s suffered more than its share of grief, and raise a pint to the Irish spirit.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I have no idea how I missed this when it happened, but WTOP News sold the naming rights to their glass-enclosed nerve center, to Ledo Pizza, of all people. News reports from WTOP now come from the Ledo Pizza Glass-Enclosed Nerve Center.

Me? I just can’t wait for the Prada Presents the Washington Post Style Section, or maybe it’s something like Verizon’s Pennsylvania Avenue or Sprint/Nextel U St.

What else are we going to see the naming rights sold for?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Today our office takes up residence at 1900 M Street NW and the lunch options overwhelm.

Shopping, dry cleaning, CVS or Rite Aid too, I am at a loss for all the usual office worker services and I need your help.

If you work nearby, if you have advice or guidance, do share. Metroblogging is all about local knowledge and I need some.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Not Wise on an MC

Originally uploaded by webjedi
.

While I didn’t drag my ass out of bed early enough to consider doing the “National Bike to Work Day“, but besides the now plethora of pedaling folks on the streets and along the parkways, the motoring type of cyclists are now out in force.

Now I know, a lot of them, pedal or non, do do things the right way, a number, the ones that stick in our minds, are those who don’t. The picture to the right here, demonstrates everything you shouldn’t be doing on your motorcycle accoring to the Maryland MVA saftety course, which includes, riding with you helmet up (but points for having one), no hand protection, and, of all things, smoking a cigarette.

So all you walkers and drivers, be aware of those who choose two wheels over four, or rotating rubberized motion enahancers over walking there.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Brunch Setup 2

Originally uploaded by tbridge.

Is there a better meal than Brunch? Really? You get the comfort food of breakfast, mixed with the tasty lunch fare. Eggs Benedict. With fries. This town has no shortage of great spots for brunch, from the big fancy spots like Georgia Browns (with their incredible southern comfort food) and Whitlows (for the bloody mary bar, in specific).

This town loves to sleep late on Sunday and hit the brunch scene. Whitlows, the Boulevard Woodgrill, the Overwood, Ireland’s Four Courts, these are just a few of the names, but of course there’s Peacock in Georgetown, or Four P’s in Falls Church, and heck, there’s a whole website dedicated to brunch in DC. DC is the town of Brunch, with its variations on eggs benedict legion, its bloody maries spicy, and the coffee hot.

Viva la brunch!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Congratulations, Mr. or Mrs. Snack Bar Manager of the RedGate Golf Course in Maryland. You sure have come a long way from smoothing out sand traps, emptying trash bins at each hole, and driving the snack cart around the course. Look at you now! You’re the Snack Bar Manager with your very own dedicated parking space, even closer to the clubhouse than the golf pro’s parking space! I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate your hard work and dedication over the years. Without you, who would I buy my Gatorade and peanuts from? Keep up the good work!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

While Don may be ducking down with shyness, I’m almost immobile with anticipation. Starting at 7pm tonight will be my premier on 60 Minutes.

Famed reporter Lesley Stahl will be covering MIT Professor Nicholas Negroponte’s progress with One Laptop Per Child, his dream of one-to-one computing as an educational boost, and I’ll be featured as an expert on OLPC.

You can even see a split-second of me at the end of this trailer:

And yeah, I am nervous!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

While I arrived too late to meet-up with Tom, I too joined the party crew last night at DC’s first TECH Cocktail. All the A-list of DC’s blogerati were there, sporting cool looks for the cameras.

Unfortunately, I didn’t meet any of them, being so tardy that the doorman almost didn’t let me in, but I did happen to meet the “Master Blogger” of AOL: none other than AOL Joe!

This random meeting was way better than the last one if only for the trouble AOL Joe got me into. Note his coy Cheshire cat grin as he woos the ladies…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

My dining companion last night said that he didn’t think this was accurate since the hybrid still uses gas but if someone as pedantic as me is willing to give it a pass I think it’s funny enough to share with y’all. Maybe I was just in a forgiving mood after gorging myself on chicken wings.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

In what may be a great case study on how blogging now influences major media outlets and confirmation that I am in the blogging big leagues, 60 Minutes will be focusing on the other website I contribute to: OLPC News.

Famed reporter Lesley Stahl will be covering MIT Professor Nicholas Negroponte’s progress with One Laptop Per Child, his dream of one-to-one computing as an educational boost, a way for children in the developing world to “learn learning”.

Ms. Stahl will have on-location reports from OLPC testing in Brazil. With 13 million viewers on average every Sunday night at 7pm, the coverage of OLPC should be a major boost in profile for the project.

Lesley Stahl will also be interviewing an obsessive follower of OLPC XO advances, a technology in development expert who publishes the informative and influential OLPC News: your favorite DC Metroblogger, Wayan.

Lesley and I, interviewing

I am told OLPC News and I will be an integral part of the One Laptop Per Child segment of the CBS News program, including video of an interview I had with Lesley Stahl in New York City.

There should be a distinct focus on OLPC News as the medium by which those interested in the “$100 laptop” can go for independent news, information, and commentary.

So be sure to tune in and watch me geek out on one-to-one computing in education. Cheers, jeers, and beers welcome.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

It was a packed house at MCCXXIII last night for DC’s first Tech Cocktail, hosted by Frank Gruber and Eric Olson. Out on display were a number of interesting services including Wine Library TV and Buzz XYZ, amongst others.

DC’s tech community is certainly well-served, what with groups like Refresh-DC, and the Social Media Club, but it’s nice to see more events to get techie people out and about and socializing. Many thanks to Frank Gruber and Eric Olson for the great event, be sure to check out Raoul Pop’s photoset from the event if you couldn’t make it.

So, when’s the next one?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

Finally, a Bike to Work day with agreeable weather. This means you do not have an excuse: pedal your way to employment today!

Come join DC area cyclists in Freedom Plaza to celebrate a healthy form of locomotion. Drivers, you should be especially celebratory. We represent thousands of car lengths NOT blocking your commute this morning.

And now, the Bike to Work Day Flickr Pool.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Do you recognize this dilapidated structure, badly in need of a paint job? Have you ever passed it on your way to a museum and wondered, “Hmmm. What a bizarre looking thingamajig. I wonder what they use that for?” Have you ever seen anyone on or around it? All of these questions cloud my brain whenever I walk by this prehistoric gazebo.

Well, according to Flickrite rockcreek:

“I used to walk by this every day when I worked at the Holocaust Museum, and finally called the library at the American History Museum one day to see if they had any info on it: it’s a bandstand, and it used to sit on the grounds of a now-demolished insane asylum in Illinois. When the asylum was closed in the 60s, it was donated to the Smithsonian. Apparently it was used for concerts in the 70s and 80s, but that was given up because the noise from the 14th St. traffic drowned out the musicians.”

What a waste of space! Here are my suggestions on what to do with this (roughly) 1/2 acre of land:

• Build another Smithsonian Museum: The Museum of George Bush’s Great Ideas. He’s had a few great ideas in his time, like to marry Laura and have some hot party animal daughters, to mispronounce his words and be the laughing stock of the world, etc. Hopefully his next great idea will be to leave the White House quietly and never be heard from again.
• Slap an ice skating rink in there. We’ve only got two other rinks within walking distance of this space, so what will another one hurt?
• Turn it into one giant garbage can, an art installation if you will. It will give tourists a place to spit their gum and to throw their cigarette butts into.
• Dig a hole a mile deep and build a giant parking garage. Charge $10 a car and watch the tourists gobble it up.
• Turn it into a skate part so all of those punks over at Freedom Plaza have another place to tear up.
• Build another Washington Monument there so that DC has its very own Twin Towers. Then put a catwalk between the two, charge $20 to walk across it, and watch the tourists gobble it up.
• Build the Iraq War Memorial, aka The World War III Memorial.
• Build a penalty box for any senator, congressman, or executive branch moron who breaks a law. Lock them up in a plexiglass box so that all of the tourists can pay $10 to take pictures of them with their camera phones.

Any other ideas? Let’s hear ’em.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Washington Nationals Game

Originally uploaded by acaben.

Swept the Marlins. Took Three of Four from the Braves. Our offense actually produced some runs, and our bullpen actually stopped the other guys from doing the same. The bullpen hasn’t given up a run since Tuesday. 10 straight innings from the the bullpen without an earned run. Our bullpen actually only gave up ONE run in the series against the Braves. That’s an ERA of 0.56, collectively for the series, which is pretty damned outstanding for a team that’s in dead last in the NL East, and for the team with the 2nd to worst record in the Majors.

There’s potential here, maybe these guys aren’t all that awful…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

As of February 2008, all the bars and restaurants in Maryland will be smokefree, joining the District and several other cities and states around the US. Bars and Restaurants can petition for an exemption if they can prove financial harm to their business, but I have a feeling that’s going to be a hard sell for any business that tries.

Now, to get Virginia to do the same… yeah, I know, pipe dream…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Photo by DC Metroblogger

This is Washington DC’s Franklin Square. Nestled between 14th and 13th Street and K and I Streets in NW, its one of the largest, if not the largest park in downtown.

With huge old-growth trees, plenty of grass and shade, and multiple benches, its a great escape from urban life without leaving the city. I walk through this park in the mornings this week, and I love it.

Today I noticed that the fountain in the middle of the park is full of water again, so soon we should expect a spray of blue to go with our sprawl of green.

Yet another respite I’ll miss with the bye bye to 901 15th Street.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs