Archive for August, 2008

Tonight: Don’t Be Glib

Don’t Be Glib sound nothing like I expected. Instead, they make music that would be at home in a dimly-lit cocktail lounge or as the soundtrack to a movie montage where the heroine walks the city streets at night. The sultry croon of singer MaryBeth Doran is the defining element, but she is ably [...]

It’s That Time Again

A School Bus and Capitol HillOriginally uploaded by Smiley Man with a Hat
Just a friendly reminder to everyone as we head into the final days of summer: school’s back in session, and that means school buses are out in force once again.
If you see the yellow flashing lights, slow down and prepare to stop at [...]

Featured Photo

this jersey says it all by dharmabumx
As August comes to a close, we should all be thankful for the amazing weather we’ve had this summer in DC. Sure, there were a few weeks with temperatures in the high 90’s and Vietnam-like humidity, but for the most part we’ve had many reasonable days in the [...]

Lights Going Out

Old Town Gazebo, courtesy of wharman
Ever done a nighttime walk through Old Town over in Alexandria?
If you’ve ever been over across the Potomac for dinner some weekend evening, you’re aware of the “period people” who meander along King Street, sharing the city’s history with passersby and giving the place a quaint atmosphere. (At least, a [...]

Continuing Foggy Bottom Metro Escalator Outrage

This gets old really fast, but all three escalators at Foggy Bottom Metro Station are out once again, with only one available to act as both up and down stairs for a rush hour crowd this afternoon. GW Hatchet has details, and as usual, I was on hand to get video:

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Eating your own dog food

Page A02: An article about some researchers contending that there’s an evolutionary imperative that might explain why we as humans are more interested in gossipy fluff articles than writeups of more import and substance.
Page A01: An article about the closing ceremonies of the Olympics in China. They’re referred to as “tightly scripted” but no mention [...]

Thai Festival 2008 at Union Station

If you’re in the area of Union Station you might want to drop by the Thai Festival that’s been running there through the weekend, celebrating 75 years of U.S.-Thai relations. They’ve got music, crafts, history, orchids, a kick boxing ring, and of course tons of Thai food. Admission is free, with booths and displays sprinkled [...]

SMS Received – It’s Biden

It’s 3AM and I should be safe and asleep. But there’s a phone beside me and it’s beeping. Something’s happening in the world.

Good morning, DC! The Obama campaign seems to have been waiting for DC bars to close before sending out the much awaited text message. Or maybe they originally planned to send the SMS [...]

Leung and Takao vs. Millennium Stage

Millennium Stage Detail uploaded by mjlaflaca
Cellist Amy Leung and pianist Naoko Takao gave a recital this 18 August, but they also gave us an object lesson in the challenges of presenting music in the wrong setting, here a venue which robs the music of precisely the features that make it worthy of performance– once again, [...]

Monumental: Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben

DSC_0077, courtesy of Me
The statute memorializing America’s first drill sergeant sits in the northwest corner of President’s Park, as the area immediately north of the White House is commonly know. [fixed, thanks Kate!] Lafayette Park, as the north end of President’s Park above the White House is commonly known. Of course, most of us know [...]

“I wasn’t expecting to come home to a bus in my apartment.”

A Metrobus crashed into an Alexandria apartment last night. No one was injured as the resident wasn’t home and the driver had just offloaded his passengers due to a door problem — just before the bus started rolling away — but both apartment and bus appear to have been totalled. WJLA has more, and here’s [...]

Metro Adds “Dangling Loop Things”*

photo: Adam Tuss/WTOP Photo
As shorter people across the metro area (myself included) know, the bars that run along the top of the middle of Metro cars can be quite high, leaving some to crowd around the vertical poles for security. On a full train, this was always challenging, but the problem was exacerbated when WMATA [...]

Georgetown Strike

Spotted this strike in Georgetown this morning and got some video:

As you can see, the infamous giant inflatable strike rat is with them. Any idea what all this is about?
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Social Calendar: August 21 – 27

“Local Color” courtesy of RSchley
Thursday, August 21: The Silver Spring Marimekko store hosts some neat events. Tonight a Goodwill at Marimekko – Vintage Trunk Show. From 5pm to close the DC Goodwill Fashionista and co. will be selling carefully-selected vintage and retro pieces for your fall wardrobe.
Friday, August 22: Sean dropped us an email as [...]

Getaways: Gettysburg

IMG_4238, courtesy of Cavalier92
Located only two hours from downtown DC, Gettysburg is probably the most well-known Civil War battlefield in the nation. Originally begun as a memorial in 1864, the battlefield was established as a National Military Park in 1895 and transferred to the Department of the Interior’s National Park Service in 1933.
The quite Pennsylvania [...]

Hello, Hello Cupcake

A city never content to open just one establishment serving nicer versions of a trendy food (see: burgers, frozen yogurt, wine bars, et al), the district is about to get a another adorable cupcakery – Dupont Circle’s long-awaited Hello, Cupcake – to directly compete with the formidable Georgetown Cupcake.
Thanks to a tip from The [...]

Pitbull Mauls Child, Gets Shot

Got this heads-up from Commander David Kamperin on the MPD-1D Mailing List about officers shooting a pitbull in SE after they saw it attacking a six-year old girl:
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Terminal B is Delicious

5 Guys breakfastOriginally uploaded by tbridge
Sure, Jon’s talked a lot about why Dulles can be lame, but there’s stuff to like, too. We headed out early this morning to catch our flight to New York on the way to Seattle, and though we couldn’t find the infamous Diamond Lanes, we did make it through [...]

Comedy in DC: Jeff Maurer

I’ve caught Jeff Maurer at the Hotel Topaz Thursday comedy nights a few times, and one of the things that always struck me is the control in his delivery- most comedians act like they’re telling jokes, which is fine, because hey, you’re at a comedy club. Jeff sounds like he’s telling a story to his [...]

Warning Signs

Nothing like coming home to a Police warning. When I called my condo association, they said that the car bandits are running rampant in South Arlington, and that they were targeting cars with GPSes or iPod hookups. So, beware South Arlington.
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