When you’re next gassing up your car for over $4, my fellow Virginians, you can take a moment to say a silent prayer of gratitude* to Senator John Warner, who earlier today rejected a bill that would have continued tax credits for investment in non-oil energy sources like wind, solar, biomass and even some alternative methods for using coal. Presumably this was because the House version of the bill endeavored to pay for this by “closing a tax loophole that allows individuals that work for certain offshore corporations, such as hedge fund managers, to defer tax on their compensation.” But hey, why should people who earn 30M a year pay taxes like the rest of us?

Maryland’s Ben Cardin and Barbara Mikulski supported the bill, as did Jim Webb.

Solar Panels All Done!, courtesy of clownfish

Update: * unfortunately the sarcasm-drip doesn’t come through well in print, but that’s “gratitude” as in “oh THANK YOU Senator Warner, I LOVE paying as much for energy as I possibly can,” in case you were unclear.

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The all-staff email went out last week: “We recently learned that the DC Government is now enforcing its recycling regulations. Inspectors are making unannounced inspections and issuing warnings for failure to recycle. Second violations are subject to fines. As we know, the DC government is in need of funds so we can expect enforcement to be serious…”

Since I work on our website and just don’t generate much paper waste, I made mental note of what common items in my cube would go into which containers (soda cans mostly, like any self-respecting geek), assumed that the promised at-desk recycling boxes would once again not make it to me, and didn’t think about it again.

Until yesterday, that is. Our Vice President of Facilities and Property came to my cube around 4:30 yesterday, and said, “Hi Tiffany, how’s your trash?”

“Um, empty, mostly…” I pulled my trash can out, displaying the two items inside: a used sub shop napkin and a square of paper.

“What’s THAT?” she said, indicating the non-napkin item.

“Oh, it’s a page from this calendar here,” I indicated my Page-A-Day calendar. Coated paper, questionably recyclable.

“Okay, great.” She walked away.

And then I noticed the email she had sent shortly before- a DC Recycling Inspector was going to be visiting our building the next day and would be issuing fines for any violations.

Let me clarify- an employee of the DC government, paid by tax dollars, would be entering our office for the purpose of poking at our trash cans. And let’s not pretend this is about the environment: the inspector could fine us for throwing away recyclable material, but at the end of the complex list of what is and is not appropriate in recycle bins, DC admonishes us “WHEN IN DOUBT, LEAVE IT OUT.”

But that’s how it came to pass that this very morning, before the arrival of the inspector, the Senior Director of my division came around to each individual member of our department, and delivered a perfunctory speech about how our organization takes recycling very seriously both for environmental and fine-avoidance reasons, and that complying with company procedures is the responsibility of every employee.

I’m so delighted that commitment to efficient stewardship of our resources extends to how DC businesses must spend the time of their well-compensated executives.

If you were wondering, we passed our recycling inspection perfectly. In fact, only one tenant in th building was fined for recycling violations- an office of the DC Government.

The Goddess of Recycling

Originally uploaded by His and Hers Parigi

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Check out this Mini-Steamroller spotted in Clarendon. But what’s really awesome about it? There’s no one driving it. It’s entirely remote controlled. Folks, the revolution is coming, and this is the start. Soon, a whole army of these mini-steamrollers will come for us all. Wait, why’s this man with the white coat coming for me with a butterfly net and a tinfoil hat…

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When my friend Holly told me that Lewis Black was doing a signing in DC, I was surprised. He’d just gotten done playing the Warner a few weeks back, but he was back in DC again! Sure, why not. Politics & Prose was hosting the signing at the 6th & I Historic Synagogue just north of Chinatown. The crowd outside the Synagogue at 6:45 was impressive, wrapping around the corner. By the time all of us were there and ticketed, the only seats that were left were in the balcony with a poor sightline down to the center stage speaker’s platform, which was frustrating.

It was pretty impressive, though, to see the place fill up in as quickly as it did. Mr. Black did a short talk on his creative process and what it was like to write the book, and then the floor was open to questions. There were some good questions (What would you ask the candidates if you were moderating the debate?), and some bad ones (I’m looking at you, rambling lady in the neon green top who just would not shut up.) but the crowd was pretty affable over all. The tour is for his new book Me of Little Faith.

I do admit to chuckling to myself that as Lew was dissecting Catholicsm, Judaism and a number of other faiths, it was right in the heart of the major league thunderstorms that blew through town last night. Thanks much to P&P for coordinating the event, and 6th and I for hosting in their beautiful sanctuary.

Lewis Black at 6th & I – Closeup — Originally uploaded by tbridge

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Hopefully you haven’t all washed away in the heavy weather. I saw Tom twitter that he could hear hail but I didn’t hear anything other than a hard rain at my house. It came and went here even quicker than the sudden downpour that showed up Saturday night mere moments before we walked out of the stadium. I’m happy to say we managed to stay under cover both times, though I did brave last night’s initial sprinkles in order to do some grilling.

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Well, okay, that would be the story in a just universe. Instead it’s about Scott Hoover, a Washington and Lee professor who filed his intention to sue the State of Virginia over their policies and procedures in handling scratch-off lottery tickets. Here’s the money quote from the Washington Post article:

Hoover, who teaches business courses, including statistics, alleges that he had no chance of winning the grand prize with his ticket.

The reason it’s the money quote is because what Hoover means isn’t what all of us who have taken statistics know about the lottery: that you have effectively no chance of winning. No, he’s torqued that the State supposedly didn’t effectively recall scratch-off tickets once the big prizes had been won. Apparently Virginia has a stated policy of recalling the scratch-offs once all the grand prizes have been awarded, which Hoover says they did not do.

In a just universe W&L would can him for failing to understand his own lessons and the jury would award him the 26.5 million he’s asking… if he successfully rolls 1,000,000 dice and gets a 6 on every one.

Picture courtesy of Jeffrey Beall

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I was at the Safeway on Old Dominion Drive in McLean on Sunday and saw this bugger there. Not only was it rotten and split – yes, way past rotten and soft – but there were ants all over it, which are too small to be visible in this picture, unfortunately.

Safeway employees and managers – every time I am ready to give your store another chance, I see something like this. It doesn’t take much to keep the place looking decent. Is this how you save money? Do you try to reduce shrinkage by waiting until the ants carry everything off to their intricate system of nests somewhere in the building?

Do any of our readers work for Safeway and want to comment? All I can think is that if there is one ant-infested part of the building, there are likely to be others.

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Washington Post Express has the details on an afternoon derailment between Rosslyn and Courthouse, that’s likely going to flummox your attempt to head out of the District. Trains are single-tracking between Foggy Bottom and Clarendon as it stands right now.

There’s no word on the number or type of injuries aboard the train, but it was a passenger-carrying train that derailed between Rosslyn and Courthouse.

Check out DCist’s pictures from the derailed train!

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Is it seriously summer already? Hold on, let me Google that. Oh hey! It’s not.

Could have fooled me though. This is August weather. In June. What kind of cruel joke is Mother Nature trying to play on us?

This reminds me of the weather we had in ‘Nam during the war. I remember it like it was yesterday. The swift boat dropped John Kerry and I off on the banks of the Poo Nahnee river and we had to cut our way through the humidity with our machetes. We had to tie rolls of Bounty to our heads to mop up the constant stream of sweat. We got heat stroke so many times that our reality was more like a dreamworld than our dreamworld was. Hah – one time when we were crossing the Moo Goo Gai Pan river under sniper fire, John tried to windsurf across on a crocodile. Silly ivy leaguer. I came to his rescue and beat the bajeezus out of that croc with the butt of my gun, but lost it along with three fingers and a buttock in the process. I had to retrofit a potato gun I’d bought at Wall Drug on a family vacation into a tofu gun. Now you know why I’ll never be a vegan.

I’ve had enough already! I want my dry, 75 degree days back. I want to be able to open my windows at night. I don’t want to have to take three showers every day. I don’t want to have to run my air conditioner around the clock. I don’t want my jeans to stick to me when I go out at night.

Go away, Summer.

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I saw this motorcycle parked behind the National Gallery of Art on Sunday. Does anyone know whose it is? Without evidence to the contrary, I would have to guess that George Clinton picked up a job there.

Who would do such a thing to a motorcycle? Even though I think it was ass ugly, I have to admit that it had a certain flair and filled me with admiration for the person who apparently thinks it looks good. It was certainly good handiwork if nothing else.

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Otherwise, not so impressive a game.

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Most of the Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA) efforts in the area started their disbursements of crops this weeks, and we headed out to Bluemont, VA to Great Country Farms to pick strawberries and get our farm share. The drive out to Bluemont is not for the totally-city-mouse, as once you get past Leesburg and out past the last of the exurbs, you’re into deep farm country, with narrow roads and large farm vehicles looming over the cars. Don’t let that discourage you, though, as what’s at the end of the hour’s drive is the farm, and fresh produce.

We were not deterred by the intense heat advisory that all the news channels have been on about since the weather advisory hit the wires on Friday. We got to the farm around 12:30 or so, and checked in with the office in the main building of the farm. Thankfully, their AC was working well, and they hooked us up with the “You Pick” implements so that we could go out into the fields and pick our strawberries.

Our full share gave us the opportunity to ride out into the fields and pick 6 more pints of strawberries. Farmer Ray was running the tractor shuttle, a hefty tractor hooked up to three large carts, each able to hold a dozen or more people. We climbed up into the cart, and headed off to the fields. The ride it self was 5 or 6 bumpy minutes along a farm road back into the fields of strawberries. Great Country had set up a water station at the drop-off, which was much appreciated in the heat. Farmer Ray gave us a few tips to finding the best strawberries, and we headed out into the fields to grab our share.

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In case you haven’t heard, today is going to be hotter than two rats in a wool sock. Dig the cooling options in Fairfax sent to me by Falls Church Emergency Alerts:

Due to ongoing power outages and extreme temperatures, Fairfax County will open two cooling centers on Saturday and Sunday, June 7-8, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Cub Run RECenter, 4630 Stonecroft Boulevard, Chantilly, and the Providence RECenter, 7525 Marc Drive, Falls Church.

Residents can lie down, cool down and get cold water at both these centers. However, people visiting the cooling centers will not be able to use the fitness facilities or pools for free. Those who need transportation or more information should call these centers directly. Call the Cub Run RECenter at 703-817-9407, TTY 711; the Providence RECenter at 703-698-1351, TTY 711.

This weekend residents also can get a temporary respite from the heat at one of the county’s library branches, other RECenters and pools, or private facilities, such as a mall. However, residents should call the facility first to verify hours of operation.

Resting for just two hours in air conditioning and drinking water can significantly reduce heat-related illnesses.

Residents who need immediate, life-saving help should call 9-1-1. For other safety help, call the public safety non-emergency phone number at 703-691-2131, TTY 711.

More information on how to stay safe and cool is available online at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/.

What are you doing today to keep cool?

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Famous Dave’s has a new drive-through at their location on Rt 123.

0605082027a.jpg, courtesy of UUMickey

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If you walked by Greater Goods, the all things eco-friendly store on U Street, tonight and glanced in the window you may have wondered what all those nerdy looking guys and girls were doing with soldering irons huddled around several large tables. They were doing what any self-respecting geek in DC could be doing on a Thursday night: attending one of Make:DC‘s first organizational meetings and putting together a tiny circuit board useful for controlling motors like those found in robots.

Make:DC is a new group organized by local mechanical engineer Adam Koeppel as an offshoot of the popular MAKE Magazine. According to the website, the group aims to “inspire and organize the Washington, DC community of makers for greater collaboration and learning.” From tonight’s meeting, it seems they’re well on their way.

I went into the meeting not having used a soldering iron since shop class in middle school, and through some expert assistance and liberal borrowing of tools, I was able to build one of the $20 DC Motor Driver Board designed by one of the group members. (If you’re not sure what a DC Motor Driver Board is, fear not, I wasn’t entirely sure either. But in future meetings, we’ll be using them to control motors, build small robots, and do other neat things with them.) If you’d like to find out more, visit the group’s website at MakeDC.org. The next meeting is June 19, and other activities are advertised on the website.

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Dave Kellett of the online comic SHELDON has pointed out that DC’s conformance to its inspiration is incomplete. I see no choice for us but to go out and make it all fabulous.

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Screen on the Green’s schedule is now out for 2008, featuring one of my favorite Bond flicks, Superman, and Cary Grant will take turns making DC’s hot summer nights a great place to be. Mondays starting in Late July and early August will feature films on a giant screen set up on the Mall between 4th and 7th street. Bring a picnic, catch a free movie, enjoy some outdoors time. Movies start around 8pm or so.

Here’s the schedule:

July 14th – Dr. No

July 21st – The Candidate

July 28th – Arsenic and Old Lace

August 4th – The Apartment

August 11th – Superman

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Chief Lanier doesn’t understand the problem with her new plan to turn parts of DC into little parts of Baghdad right here on US soil. In fact, when challenged about the new program, her defensive response is pretty telling: “We put check points in place all the time for major events around federal buildings and nobody cares. Now that we want to do it to stop shootings and violence in our neighborhoods, it’s as if it’s something that’s unreasonable.”

We’re talking about people’s homes here, Chief. We’re talking about hassling them at the end of their long day. And for what, exactly? It’s not like the people from Trinidad go over to Georgetown to rob the rich white folks who live there, is it? Crimes that we’re seeing are local. They’re within the neighborhoods, not without them. So the people that you’re “letting through” the cordon aren’t always going to just be innocent residents. So really, what did you think we were going to do when you decided to set up Sadr City in DC? Were we just going to sit there and say, “Good on you, chief! This is perfect!”

Hell no. Crime’s not as simple a problem that you can fix it with barriers like this. You might get more results just from having more officers in the neighborhood. Which is what you should have anyway. According to DC Law, you are never required to carry identification, yet this new law will bring that to all residents of certain (poor) neighborhoods in the city. So, really, Chief, go back to the drawing board and figure out how to really fight the crime, not just push it around the city with cameras that no one’s really watching, and regulations that make it seem like they belong in a gulag or an eastern bloc country. Okay?

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If you’re downtown still, get ready for a screwed up commute if you’re on the Orange, Yellow or Green line. Right now you can’t get further west that East Falls Church due to a power failure at that station. According to the service alerts from Metro, “Due to a power problem outside of East Falls Church, trains will terminate at the station. Shuttle bus service has been established. Expect delays in both directions.” The delays on the Green and Yellow lines are mostly related to a power failure at Georgia Ave/Petworth where all the escalators and elevators are out of service, but trains seem to be okay.

I’m reminded of Mitch Hedberg’s comments on escalators…

An escalator can never break. It can only become stairs. You would never see an “Escalator Temporarily Out Of Order” sign, just “Escalator Temporarily Stairs. Sorry for the convenience.”

Or, perhaps this video is more appropriate. Either way, something to do at the office if you haven’t left yet and need to get beyond East Falls Church.

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