Thrifty District

Thrifty District: Furnishing Your Humble Abode

‘Fausti Mobili – Lago Point XL a terni’
courtesy of ‘Design Conversation’

So, you need furniture. You don’t have a lot of money, but even so, you’d like something a little nicer than the disposable Swedish particleboard options of Ikea or even the tvbedstore.co.uk page. That can mean only one thing: Consignment!!  You’ll probably have to travel a bit, though. But that’s okay, right? You’re going to need a truck anyway.  Consignment is also good for your carbon footprint; it reduces the need for additional furniture to be recycled, keeps what you buy out of the landfill, and items are generally consigned locally, so even transportation is minimal. It’s an environmental triple-win.

Tom and I needed a dining room table shortly after we got married.   Oh yes, we had hit Ikea, but due to the weird, narrow shape of our dining room, had pretty much struck out. Nothing that we liked would fit.  So we wandered around a bit at a consignment shop, and found what we non-hyperbolically refer to as The Perfect Table. Slightly narrow, with pull-out leaves that nearly double it in length, it fits exactly into our space with room to sit around it, and expands easily for our frequent dinner parties.  Why do I wax poetic with the details of a table that by definition, you can’t buy because we’ve already bought it?  Because it’s an example of the glories of consignment furniture- that table that someone else got rid of, probably because it was too small for their new dining room, was the absolute perfect thing for our needs, and it’s high quality, and probably better than we would have been able to afford brand-new. (We bought chairs to go with it an an open-air antiques market, but that’s another post.)

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The Daily Feed

Backstrom Out of YoungStars Game

Photo courtesy of
‘Nicklas Backstrom’
courtesy of ‘pimguy’

Nicklas Backstrom announced he was withdrawing from participating in the NHL YoungStars game during the All-Star Break festivities this weekend in Montreal. “This year I felt like it made more sense for me to give someone else that opportunity and use this time to rest and prepare for the second half of the season with the Washington Capitals,” Backstrom said in a prepared statement. “I can assure Caps fans that I’m not injured.”

Backstrom took part in last year’s game and currently leads the Caps in assists (36) and is second in points (48). He’ll be replaced by David Perron of the St. Louis Blues.

Inaugupocalypse, The Daily Feed

Obama Bazaar @ Union Station

Photo courtesy of
‘Concert on the Mall’
courtesy of ‘Alex Barth’

Leaving work yesterday, I walked up Massachusetts to Union Station, and wound up pushing my way through a barrage of Obama swag, and screaming sellers. One seller was on his cell phone telling another person “come down here, there are tons more people here!”

I was offered a poster of shirtless Obama, a 2009 Obama calendar, first family mouse pad, and more tee shirts than Joey wore when he was being Chandler. There was everything, literally EVERYTHING I could want with Obama’s face (though I didn’t spot the coveted Obama Flip Flops). There was a woman pushing a walker trying to sell tees 4 for $20, and another guy hawking the hard-to-find WaPo election day paper.

Did anyone else experience this crazy Obama-market? And I swear I read somewhere (can’t remember!) that street sellers were going to have to cease selling Obama’s image on everything – cookies, money, vanity plates – after the election. Does anyone else remember that?

Essential DC, Life in the Capital, Talkin' Transit, The Features

Talkin’ Transit: Rules of the Road

Photo courtesy of
‘follow your path’ courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

There’s lots of news everywhere regarding Metro and Inaugupocalypse, so I don’t see a need to rehash all that here. Instead, I’ve been intrigued with a lot of referencing lately to cycling in the District, especially as an alternate form of travel. I was thinking it might be a good idea to run down some of the rules and guidelines for biking in the District, for both cyclists and drivers to remember.

The “golden rule” to keep in mind? Cyclists traveling on roadways have all the general rights and duties of drivers of vehicles. This is true for the entire region, not just the District. Continue reading

News, Talkin' Transit, The Daily Feed, WMATA

The Record That Won’t Fall: 1,120,000 Metrorail Trips


Metro Platform
Originally uploaded by tbridge

Before last week, the best day on Metro came this past Summer, with 854,000 riders. Yesterday smashed that record. Metro has now released the numbers for yesterday’s totals and they’re astronomical. 1.12M riders on the Metro. Another 423,000 rode Metrobus yesterday, leading to a total public transit ridership of 1.54M people.

While it’s safe to say that most of them were headed to the Mall for the Inauguration, not all of them were, which means the crowd estimates around 1.4 million are sounding more and more credible for me.

I’m going to come right out and say it: I don’t think this record will fall in the next 5-10 years. While growth has been strong for metro with gas prices on the rise, I can’t see 1.12M riders in a day being topped without some sort of massive event in DC that will bring people from all around. The broad appeal of the Obama Inauguration is going to be hard to beat.

Maybe another Tibetan-Freedom-style concert down on the Mall with some monster names would do it, but even then, I can’t fathom them breaking the record.

The Daily Feed

It’s always the right time…


DC Residents
Originally uploaded by acaben

…to agitate for DC representation, but especially so when there are thousands of out-of-town guests in one place. Guests from places that HAVE a full complement of Senators and Representatives.

These citizens were at the “We Are One” concert on Sunday afternoon, proudly displaying their “Taxation Without Representation” stickers on the backs of their heads.

Bravo, neighbors.

Inaugupocalypse, Special Events, Weekend Flashback

Weekend Flashback: Inauguration 2009

Photo courtesy of
‘look!’
courtesy of ‘erin m’

In case you were under a rock yesterday, we had us an Inauguration yesterday. Our 44th President was sworn in on the steps of the Capitol while an estimated two million people witnessed it and the following parade.

Our prolific area photographers were out in force yesterday; many of them you’ll recognize from prior visits to the Flashback. I encourage you to check out our Flickr feed, as all but one of the following shots came from it. And for images around the world, check out a special Flickr section that features some great shots taken by photographers outside our Beltway.

Many, many thanks to our regular pool contributors; you guys made my job extremely hard today with all the great photos. Keep it up!

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The Daily Feed

Finding the cheap eats

Photo courtesy of
‘Eat Bar’
courtesy of ‘voteprime’

I’m not 100% convinced; the selection seems a little slim and contains suggestions I could live without, like “Potbelly.” But Lifehacker recently spotlighted the website UEatCheap.com which purports to find you food for under $10 and not all the suggeestions are bad. You can check out the DC area listing here and add anybody you think should be in there. Or just do what we’ve all been doing without the internet and just use the Washingtonian Cheap Eats listing.

The Daily Feed

Photo courtesy of
‘Inside a game of Operation’
courtesy of ‘Matt Biddulph’
The fourth quarter of today’s Kojo Nnamdi show – 1:30pm – is about a resurgance in American tinkering with electronics. The guests are going to be people associated with MAKE, but we’ve got a local group dedicated to fiddling and a few friends of WLDC are associated: HacDC. If you’re interested in “remix culture” (even if you hate that damned term *cough*) you might want to look them up.

Sports Fix, The Features

Sports Fix: Caps Continue Dominance

caps.jpg
IMG_1380 by jonlarge

Capitals
Record: 29-14
Place: 1st in the Southeast, 12 points ahead of the Panthers.
Last 2 Weeks: 3-3

The Caps may want to avoid any political holidays in the future, especially those involving the Senators. You know, the ones up in Ottawa.

Last night’s 3-2 loss was a tough one, as the Sens scored with less than two minutes remaining. The power play goal by Brendan Bell late in the third broke a Washington comeback and their three-game win streak as the NHL’s All Star break begins for the Caps.

Back on Election Night, Nov 4, the Caps faced Ottawa and lost then, too, in a 2-1 contest. Apparently, big political days and Caps hockey don’t mix. Continue reading

Inaugupocalypse, The Daily Feed, The Hill, WTF?!

The Scene at Union Station

With most of Union Station’s Grand Hall reserved for tonight’s inaugural ball, and the Metro station and rail concourse already packed to capacity, the crowd entering Union Station had to be divided into Metro, Amtrak, and MARC/VRE riders. Confusion reigned outside as the Columbus Circle road was closed off, forcing people to circle around sidewalks and fences and clumps of National Guard and MPD personnel.

How was it for you?

Inaugupocalypse, Life in the Capital, Media, News, Technology, The Daily Feed, The Hill

Senators Byrd, Kennedy Taken to Hospital

Photo courtesy of
‘Ambulancia’
courtesy of ‘Daquella manera’

CNN is reporting that Senators Robert Byrd (D-WV) and Teddy Kennedy (D-MA) were both taken from the Luncheon at the Capitol (see, Kaspar, got that one right.) after suffering medical emergencies. CNN suggests that Senator Kennedy was having a seizure, and that it was unclear the extent of the medical difficulties that Sen. Byrd was experiencing.

Inaugupocalypse, The Daily Feed

Metro On Pace to Crush Record

Picture 7.png

585,281 people had ridden Metro as of 1pm today, which means we’ll probably eclipse the record some time around 7pm today, if my math is right. I would bet we’ll clear 1.3M people by the time that Metro closes tonight.

Update: The 4pm graphs are out for the Metro, and they’re up to 806,000 riders for the day. At 4pm. So, by now (5pm) it’s likely that record has been topped, and it’s probable that they’ll be well over 1.3M riders for the day.

Inaugupocalypse

A New Capital

Wordle.png
Wordle on the text of the Inaugural

Congratulations, President Obama, and welcome to your new home. Today, it’s a new Capital, though all the streets are the same. The Wordle above is a representation of the prepared text of your First Inaugural Address, which I enjoyed deeply.

Here are the three paragraphs that we should all take to heart:

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

“Let it be told to the future world…that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive…that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

The Daily Feed, WMATA, WTF?!

Metro Accident at Gallery Place, Station Closed

Photo courtesy of
‘Shadowy Figures’
courtesy of ‘Samer Farha’

There’s a hole in the middle of the Red Line today, as a Red Line train struck a passenger at the Gallery Place Chinatown metro station this morning. The woman who was struck is alive and was transported to the hospital immediately thereafter. Gallery Place, however, is now closed, meaning trains are turning around at Metro Center and Judiciary Square, leaving a gaping hole in the middle of the Red Line. More as this becomes available.

Arlington, The Features, We Love Food

We Love Food: Brunch @ Boulevard Woodgrill

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Brunch at Boulevard Woodgrill courtesy of Needlessspaces

I have an odd relationship with breakfast. I don’t care for eggs – gasp – so there’s not tons of breakfast foods that appeal to me. I enjoy the pancakes, and french toast. I love hash browns, grits, bacon, sausage… but most of breakfast is centered around eggs, which is why I embrace brunch. Brunch, the hybrid between breakfast and lunch – I can order some lunch counterparts, or I can stick to breakfast foods that I enjoy like the ones pictured above.

Arlington is home to some insanely delicious brunches – it seems practically every restaurant up and down the Wilson/Clarendon stretch offers brunch.  My fellow Arlingtonites come out in full force, wearing the weekend-morning uniform of Uggs and college sweatshirts, we find ourselves sipping coffee and munching on yummy food. I love it. Matt and I can roll out of bed, I can throw on my UNC hoodie, and we can walk to a plethora of delicious options. A few weeks ago we chose Boulevard Woodgrill, and it was completely satisfactory to our breakfast/lunch cravings.  Continue reading

24 in DC, Entertainment, The Features

24 in DC: Episode 3 (12:00 to 1:00)

Picture 5.png
Jack Bauer IV and 24 by Browserd

We’re a little late getting started, sorry for that, we were hanging out with some inaugural guests.

24 picks up this week right at the safe room where Prime Minister Baku is hanging out, which, supposedly, is up in Northwest off Foxhall Road. The house itself looks more like an LA-style mansion than the big properties up on Foxhall.

12:04

Agent Walker is driving up Constitution near Justice, getting bitched out by her boss for “torturing” the guy at the imaginary hospital down somewhere near 3rd and Independence. Continue reading

Inaugupocalypse, The Daily Feed, WTF?!

Parking Rates Skyrocket

100_ncd_ft_bk.jpg

As a friend of our twittered this afternoon, he spent $80 on 5 hours worth of parking for a meeting in Northwest DC. While supply & demand are certainly market forces at work in our fair town this week, I can certainly see this being a bad case of usury. Ouch!

Any other sky-high prices out there that you’ve seen? $6 for a Half Smoke at somewhere other than Nationals Park, perhaps? $40 for a sweatshirt at somewhere other than the Smithsonian Museums Gift shops?