Another Monday has come and gone without a Supreme Court ruling on DC v Heller, the case that is going to determine when if you can have a gun in the District. Mike O’Shea over at Concurring Opinions, a law-focused blog, has a good writeup here talking about what the potential upshot will be when the ruling hits the street. He also speculates on when we’ll see the ruling show up, and accurately predicted that it wouldn’t be today.

If you’re not a regular reader of law blogs some of it might be a little obscure but most if it is pretty readable. Check it out.

“Big Guns” Susan, courtesy of ttstam

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If you’ve driven up 14th St near the Mall this week, you’ve seen all the tents on The Mall. They’re part of the soon-to-happen Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Today, they were needed as shelter as a major league thunderstorm rolled through the District of Columbia. From where I was in Clarendon, they looked an awful lot like a hurricane or an apocalypse, not like a heavy weather system. Breaking News On is reporting that those tents have collapsed, injuring a number of people caught beneath them during the storm. NBC4 is reporting that no one was critically injured in the storm.

Dominion Power is reporting close to 100,000 are without power currently.

I got home this afternoon shortly after the worst of the storm had hit, and there were several large tree branches down, and this oak tree, snapped in half is just a block over.

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That’s the word from Capital Weather, talking about today’s severe weather that we’re being warned about by NOAA. Most probable at 45% is damaging winds with hail being less likely at 30%. Tornadoes only get a 2% shot but I still wouldn’t do my kite-flying today.

Here’s hoping this is just an anomaly early in the season, but CW points out that normally there’s 1 or 2 of these NOAA warnings a year and at June’s midpoint we’ve had 4 so far now. Yuck. It’s moving west to east, so you might see it sooner or later than the 3 to 8 window depending on where you are in the area. Be careful out there.

Washington DC storm, courtesy of â„¢bluhousworker

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Just in case you thought leaving that newspaper behind on the bench of the Metro train was polite for some rider henceforth, Metro would like to disabuse you of that notion. Please check out the latest entry into their video efforts. I think it’s better than Peeps, but not as good as the Pope.

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Well, as some of you may be aware, because you are either extra stinky today, thirsty, or just plain out of the wet stuff, WSSC reported a water main failure this morning in Montgomery County. Now, as of the most recent update, it’s now two breaks, which occurred after initiating standard procedures to shut down valves to identify where the leaks are occurring and what is affected overall. There are a number of government closings listed here (aren’t you glad school’s out?!). Good news, and there supposedly is some of it, by 7:30pm tonight we’ll have our water back, but as with every upside, there is a down. The water purification recommendations will be in effect for the next three days (until Thursday).

For those of you who will need potable water, it is recommended that you boil your water (rolling boil) for over a minute before you use it (and for those who need cold water, don’t add ice cubes from your automatic ice maker, unless it’s got a filter on it, wait for it to reach room temperature or cool it in your fridge). Other methods for treating your water can also be achieved through typical backpackers methods such as a SteriPen or purification tablets (REI, HTO, or other outdoor store) for larger volumes.

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Yesterday morning, the three of us who split a full share at Great Country Farms in Bluemont hopped in the car and headed for the farm to do some picking, and to retrieve our CSA boxes. Last week’s trip had been in the middle of the pre-summer heat wave that had the mercury pegged in most folks’ thermometers, and had us sweating a ton as we picked strawberries. This week’s trip turned out to be a more pleasant pastoral affair.

We hit the fields at about 10:30 in the morning, when it was only just in the mid-70s and the breeze made it mighty pleasant. We ended up with about 8 pints of strawberries between us, plus our farm boxes which had asparagus, lettuce, more strawberries, spring onions and a small cilantro plant. Farmer Ray showed us where the peach orchard was, as well, and showed us the fruit that was setting in the branches already. He says about three weeks ’til the peaches are ready. Judging by the heavy-laden blackberry vines, we’ll be in blackberries next week or the week after. After that, it was off on an adventure.

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It may seem a cliche to use adjectives like “witty” and “frolicking” to describe a performance of a Moliere play, but those are precisely the proper words for Shakespeare Theater Company’s “The Imaginary Invalid,” now at the Lansburgh Theater through July 27.

Helmed by a wonderfully expressive Rene Auberjonois and a sparkling Nancy Robinette, this is one of the strongest ensembles I’ve seen at STC in a long time, with so many hysterical key moments for the cast it’s unfair to detail any in particular. But Auberjonois’ rendering of the hypochondriac Argan and Robinette’s saucy maid Toinette set the comic pace, playing off each other perfectly. A showpiece for the intimacy of the Lansburgh, it’s also exquisitely designed, with sets and costumes evoking the period without being slavish (Simon Higlett and Robert Perdziola respectively). Director Keith Baxter chose to reinstate the masques and commedia interludes that often get cut, with the result that audience members truly feel transported to Carnival 1673, right down to an appearance by Le Roi himself.

“The Imaginary Invalid” has the distinction of being the last play Moliere performed in, as he expired after the fourth showing. Written at the end of his struggle with tuberculosis, it contains a scathing indictment of the ignorance and arrogance of the medical profession of his time (with pertinent echoes to our own era’s uneasy dalliance between pharmaceutical companies, doctors, and their nervous boomer patients). And yet it is a supremely enjoyable piece – as all great comedy comes with a sting in its tail. Definitely worth it.

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I was detained by the police today and accused of stealing. I was also illegally detained against my will by several Wal*Mart employees preceding the detention by police. My crime? Leaving Wal*Mart with four bags of sugar (that I had just purchased) without showing a receipt, because I was not given one by the Wal*Mart cashier. I was threatened with being taken to jail, threatened with physical violence as I attempted to leave, and had to defend myself and my property while Wal*Mart security attempted to rip it from my hands, breaking my bags and causing one of my items to break open on the pavement. After I was released (having been completely innocent all along), I was lectured by the police officer and Wal*Mart manager about how next time I could make it easier on myself by just agreeing to give up my rights to their goons to begin with. While the initial employee who detained me apologized, the others, including the Wal*Mart Manager, did not.

I was at the Germantown Wal*Mart to buy four bags of sugar because earlier in the day I had been at Butler’s Orchard picking 10 pounds of strawberries to turn into delicious jam. And to make delicious jam, you need lots of sugar. I grabbed four bags and headed to the checkout, where I also decided I could use some refreshment. I grabbed a Mountain Dew from the cooler, but the cashier had already processed my card for the four bags of sugar. He apologized and rang up another transaction for the Mt. Dew. At that point, he crumpled up my receipt for the four bags of sugar and handed me the receipt for the Mountain Dew. I headed for the exit, and was greeted by Wal*Mart security who wanted to check my receipt. I produced the receipt for the Mountain Dew and explained that the cashier had tossed the other receipt for the sugar. I would repeat this explanation 6 more times before this affair ended. The rest of the tale is below…

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Was your week at work better or worse because you didn’t get/have to wear a baseball hat with a beer bottle on it?

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Tim Russert, host of NBC’s Meet The Press, died this afternoon of a heart attack. He was 58.

Russert’s one of the reasons I felt okay moving to DC. I have a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, almost the entirety of it taken through political philosophy and international relations theory. I couldn’t stand the idea of wasting my time in a class where all I learned how to do was posture and bullshit, and so I stayed away from the American Government classes at Denison. I know there’s a whole dark art to the way Congress works, and I know there’s an acceptance of that that has to happen in order to work here.

But Russert didn’t care about the posturing part. He pressed on with questions when he didn’t like the answer he got. He was a real pest that way, and I remember a number of Sunday mornings when it was clear he took a bit of relish in needling the politician on the other side of his desk.

I remember the 2000 elections and Tim had his whiteboard out and was doing all kinds of electoral math that made everyone else he talked to that night look like an absolute simpleton. He was the only one who really got it. It’s why that whiteboard is sitting now in the Smithsonian.

Thank you, Tim. I will miss you immensely.

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If you’re a hockey fan and interested in seeing Alex Ovechkin get a key to the city, drop what you’re doing right now and head to the John A. Wilson building on 1350 Penn, NW – the festivities are at 4pm.

If you think I’m a douche for not telling you till 50 minutes before, well, take it up with the Caps team. I have an email here stamped 2:41pm telling me about it. I guess they figure that if you’re not capable of stopping what you’re doing with that much notice – and reading your email up-to-the-second on your crackberry – then you’re not a good enough hockey fan to merit coming out.

Every time you look at an unsold seat and wonder why there’s not a butt in it, Caps, think about this level of organization.

Ovechkin by Bench, courtesy of clydeorama

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I never really paid attention to the writing on this sign before, located on St. Elmo Street in Bethesda. I imagine it’s in front of a hair designer, but I didn’t see one, not that I was looking. Mostly what I noticed, other than the drawing of a woman about to get naked, was that she encourages us to examine what is behind her.

What’s behind her? Surprise! More sidewalk and, as you can see, a car partly blocking the sidewalk. I wonder if this sign really does anything to promote Valentino’s or if people just assume it’s an ad for a strip club, as I did for about a year before stopping to read it.

Photo: Do they sell boobs? Originally uploaded by carlweaver

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A second fire has closed Metro Center and further complicated an already awful day week. WMATA and the DC Fire Department are working to combat what seem to be a system of fires.

Seriously, if you’re at work, start preparing to take another method of transit home if you Metro’d in. Tell your boss you need to leave early today. It’s Friday, in the summertime, leave at lunch.

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…is the Farmer’s Markets this weekend. With salmonella warnings out there for pretty much every kind of store-bought tomatoes, why not head out the farmers market so you can get some disease-free tomatoes, and meet the people involved in growing them? The Post has a great listing of DC area Farmers’ Markets, and also an interactive Google Maps Mashup with markets separated out by days of the week.

I’ll be at the Courthouse market in the morning tomorrow getting tomatoes for Insalata Caprese with fresh basil. Sounds good, doesn’t it?

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A Pepco substation serving a good portion of DC’s downtown business district failed at 7:30 this morning, leaving 10,000 businesses in the downtown area without power, and Metrorail stations McPherson Square (Orange/Blue), Farragut West (Orange/Blue), Farragut North (Red) and Dupont Circle (Red) without power. In addition to the outages, there’s been a fire reported by WMATA at Metro Center, and another reported by WAMU, WTOP and multiple twitters at Dupont Circle Station this morning as well.

DC Dept. of Transportation says that more than 30 traffic signals in the downtown core are also out, and has requested that people please treat them as four ways stops. I know there were more than a few people on my drive up 15th street who failed to treat them as such. Of course, when traffic’s flowing, it’s hard to treat them that way, I get it, but still.

Be aware, commuting today probably sucked ass, so please be nicer to your coworkers who looked like they slogged through a marsh of fire in order to come to work.

[Update, 9:56] Dupont Circle Metro is now closed due to the power outage. Apparently a lot of people were having trouble exiting the station on the long escalator climb to the surface.

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Now that my commute to work is shortened to a quick stroll from the kitchen to my home office, I’m not so in touch with the morning rush. But that doesn’t mean I forgot the pain involved with a message like this from Alert DC:

Metro is reporting delays of over an hour on the Red Line. A small fire on the tracks in the Metro Center area has been put out, but major delays continue. Additionally, at least Dupont Circle, Shaw-Howard U, Farragut North, Farragut West and McPherson Square Metrorail stations have no power due to an unrelated power outage. Non-Red Line service is operating normally in those stations, but with low (emergency) lighting.

While I think the view in the stations would be pretty cool for some station photography – masses of people waiting in low lighting, an almost Orwellian feel if you find the right depressed look – I think it best to follow the last direction from Alert DC:

Avoid Metrorail entirely if you were planning to use the Red Line.

Happy Friday, everyone!

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Just when I think DC Cabbies have cornered the market on assholatry, I meet somebody like this Friendly cab. Coming home from an install tonight, I watched as this guy leaned on his horn when the car in front of me took the merge on to the on-ramp of I-66 at a speed that was not to his satisfaction, only to swerve across a lane of traffic to build up speed to cut him off (passing both of us in the meanwhile) and giving us the finger.

Wow. I guess Arlington “Friendly” Cabs aren’t quite as friendly as we’d all like to think.

"Friendly" my ass. — Originally uploaded by tbridge

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If you’ve been shopping this week you might have noticed a big hole where the tomatoes should be, or perhaps any eatery you’ve been in has had signs up stating they’re only serving cherry tomatoes and citing the FDA warning. While they work on figuring out exactly where the problem originated so they can tell you what is safe to eat from your local supermarket, you might want to try your farmer’s market.

Your farmer’s market tomatoes were never included in this interdiction because they’re not part of the same ‘system’ as what the grocery stocks, and therefor there’s no way they came from the same currently unknown source that has shipped out salmonella-laced tomatoes. Whether or not they’re immune to the problem in general is a matter for some debate, and you might read this posting here at the excellently written and disquietingly-named BarfBlog. Professor Powell takes the scientific view that there’s no evidence that sustainable and local is any safer, but observes that at least with the farmer’s market you may have the opportunity to ask directly about production methods.

He’s welcome to his opinion, but I personally will always feel more confident overall in produce and meat that comes out of a family-style farm using traditional practices than what comes from ‘industrial’ food.

On a side note about the tomato outbreak, this recent crop (sorry) of tomato safety issues comes as no surprise at all, and the eastern shore of Virgina has been implicated before.

Picture courtesy of AHMED.

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I was walking to the supermarket near my office when I encountered this obstacle. Of course, instead of safely crossing the street, everyone, including me, was walking single-file on the curb on Old Georgetown Road. yeah, it’s not exactly smart, but at least it adds a little drama to my otherwise dull day in a windowless office.

What’s curious is that the sidewalk was closed for no apparent reason. Construction is done in this building, so there were no obvious dangers.

Thanks, all you mysterious people who get paid to block sidewalks. Often you do a good job but this time I fail to see why it’s closed. The bricks have already been walked on, so please fear that no more.

Photo: Closed for what? Originally uploaded by carlweaver

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For our anniversary last night, I managed to get us a table at Ray’s The Steaks in Courthouse. If you’ve ever been to the shopping center on Wilson where Ray’s is hidden, you know that there are three other restaurants in the same little area, and that parking for that little shopping center is about 20 cars for what amounts to 80 to 90 tables. It creates a situation wherein parking to go to dinner is a combat sport, best undertaken with a healthy dose of bloodlust, and the luck of the Irish.

Between Guajillo, Ray’s, the Bistro and Pho 75, these are some popular little restaurants, the wait for which is usually a deterrent to actually going (well, except for Pho, where it’s crowded, but there’s always a spot at one of the cafeteria tables) and the parking situation made it equally bad. We managed to get a spot on Wilson about half a block from Ray’s, and considered it a moral victory, if not an actual one. As we were waiting for a lull in the traffic, we saw this guy in an Infiniti skulk through the parking lot looking for a departing customer, only to park his car in the no parking zone immediately outside the parking lot.

I applauded his ingenuity, treating the prohibition against parking as an invitation to leave his insanely expensive vehicle in a tow-away zone as some sort of gourmet treat for the rabid tow-truck drivers of Arlington to scoop up in their giant metal maw. I watched him head straight for the liquor store, which I thought was wise, given that his car may or may not be there when he got back. I mean, at least it gave him real options, in case he did get towed, right? Get a little Kahlua, maybe some Coca Cola, and you can get a nice little buzz on walking up to the Clarendon tow yard where they put your car when it’s snapped up by the towing company.

Sadly, we didn’t get to see how this story ended up, as we were to busy enjoying some sherried crab bisque and a giant NY Strip, and then heading off to the movies. But I’d like to think the jerk got his car towed.

Parking Fail — Originally uploaded by tbridge

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