Monthly Archives: February 2009

The Daily Feed
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Give me a break

Photo courtesy of
‘The surgery changed Theo’s Life’
courtesy of ‘chris.loxton’
WTOP reports that WMATA’s funding issues are causing the Jurisdictional Coordinating Committee to discuss potential cutback strategies that include 10pm closing times on the weekend. This isn’t really as interesting as it sounds – the JCC is an group comprised of regional transportation leaders and they’re simply putting together suggestions to bring before the Metro board next week. Their role is to advise, not decide. From the 2006 WMATA Board of Directors procedures [pdf] “The Jurisdictional Coordinating Committee has been established by the Board to facilitate the exchange of information and viewpoints between jurisdictions and the WMATA staff and among the jurisdictions.”

That said, is this a productive use of an advisory committee’s time? Sure, we could theoretically solve the homeless problem in about 24 hours by sending out the police force to shoot each one of them in the head, but most of us accept that such a cure would be unacceptable. So is it really necessary to list that as a possible solution to the problem? WMATA needs to provide solutions that are useful to people, and if you’ve ever waited the interminable period of time it takes for a train to show up at 1am on Friday night you know there’s a demand for Metro services. Kick Groktor off that committee and come up with some real solutions.

The Daily Feed
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Crystal City Goes Fashionable?


Fashion in Motion
Originally uploaded by maxedaperture

Apparently, fashion is heading towards Crystal City, the magical sky-scrapered part of NoVa that us true Arlingtonians don’t like to claim.

And I quote: “Join the Crystal City BID for Crystal Couture, a two week extravaganza of fun and fashion. The event will feature sample sales, runway and trunk shows from designers, local boutiques, and area salons. Each night will feature a theme with unique drinks, food tastes, and exciting fashions and music. The event is free and open to the public. Event hours will be from 6-10 p.m. weekdays, with special daytime events on Saturdays, Sundays, and Presidents’ Day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.”

The events this fashionista would consider heading to? Glam Garments Gone Green, Work Wear Wednesday, and Cocktail Dresses.

Monumental, The Features
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Monumental: John Ericsson Navigation Memorial

Ericsson Memorial West Side

John Ericsson, a Swedish inventor, has a beautiful monument just south of the Lincoln Memorial on the median near the intersection of Ohio Drive SW and Independence Avenue SW. The beautiful pink granite statue was placed on its current location in 1927, at a cost of $60,000. $35,000 of that was federal funds, as voted in by the 1916 Congress, and the other $25,000 was raised through Swedish-American funds.

So, why was Ericsson so important? He invented the screw propellor for ships, allowing vessels to propel themselves through the water efficiently using a steam-driven engine. His dual-propeller design is the father of the propulsion system for just about every naval ship in the water today.

Continue reading →

Thrifty District
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Thrifty District: Cold Weather Heating Bills, OH NO!

Photo courtesy of
‘Icy Sunshine on Photowalk’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

Many DC residents saw spikes of hundreds of dollars in their utility bills last month that Pepco is basing on the unusually cold weather we’re having- even if you keep your heat low, your heater has to work harder to keep your home at a consistent temperature, so demand for power most likely spiked last month, too. This is also an effect of busted HVAC. You can click here to view AirNow Cooling & Heating’s information and know more about the power spike.

So… how do you stay snug and toasty when money might be tight? If you’re a single-family homeowner in the District, a good place to start would be with the DC Department of the Environment’s free home energy auditing service, available to all DC residents regardless of income.  This audit can point out a variety of ways to increase your home’s energy efficiency, including the really simple ones like “Put more insulation over there,” or “OH MY GOD how long has it been since you weatherstripped your back door?” Even if you’re a renter, the DOE’s energy audit information contains many suggestions for investigating where energy is being wasted.  (I kid you not, DC DOE has a Facebook Fan Page. Who do they think they are, us?)  You can also find lots of DIY home auditing information at EnergyStar.gov.   Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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A non-smoking Virginia?

Photo courtesy of
‘New Year Resolution’
courtesy of ‘Pete…E’
Say it ain’t so, Camel Joe! The Washington Post reports that the Virginia GOP has found a compromise position with Governor Kaine and there may be a bill passed limiting smoking in public places. Civil libertarians, rejoice grit your teeth a little less – this is a compromise better than the ban in the District: facilities that wish to do so will be able to build private rooms for smoking, provided they follow some sort of air handling standard.

Personally I’d rather that simply be a air handling standard for all public facilities and not have seperate rooms, but the Governor seems to have lost my phone number. It’ll be interesting to see what the details will be on this bill when it’s fleshed out.

Arlington, Life in the Capital, The Daily Feed
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The Big (Apartment) Hunt

Photo courtesy of
‘Misc DC – Presidential Flyover – 9-1-08’
courtesy of ‘mosley.brian’

So we’re looking at making THE BIG MOVE, and I need some advice from all you Realtors and leasing agents out there.

My lovely roommate and I are going to be striking out to find a new apartment along the Wilson/Clarendon (metro accessible) stretch and are wondering – how are the prices out there? We had a HORRENDOUS time snagging our current apartment during the summer a few years ago, but are hoping with the economic downturn, and the dead of winter, things might actually play out in our favor.

I’ve noticed so many more advertising yard signs (Parc Rosslyn and Vista, I’m looking at you!) and random people on the street corner doing tricks with big arrow signs than I did last year – so I ask…is it a renter’s market out there? Can we bargain? What is your advice (or experience, if you recently made a move) for apartment shopping during these winter months in a crap economy?

The Daily Feed
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DC Shorts

dcshorts

Katie thinks you should get yourself out and about to enjoy this weekend’s warm weather, but if you’d rather hunker down in the dark and watch some flickering lights there’s options for you too. DC Shorts will be running a screening of 14 of the best submissions from their 2008 festival this Friday and Saturday evenings at 7p. 14 films in 3 hours.

Personally I like the sounds of How My Dad Killed Dracula: “On Halloween night, a father recounts the harrowing tale of how he fought and killed Dracula” but those of you who like Tiff’s comedy writeups might enjoy Funniest Feds: “The stand-up comedy competition featured over 30 contestants — all of whom work as federal employees in the DC area.” At $10 it’s hard to imagine not getting your money’s worth.

US Navy Memorial
701 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
20004

The Daily Feed
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Arlington reaches out to Obama appointees

For the cabinet

Sometimes it seems like there’s a lot of conflict between DC, VA and MD, what with talk of car taxes and arguments over Metro funding. It’s a new time in America, however, and Arlington County is apparently trying to turn over a new leaf and be inclusive of new DC employees. So if you’re up for a cabinet post in the Obama administration, Arlington wants to help you.

You probably need it.

The Daily Feed, The Great Outdoors
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Warm, Sunny Weekend Ahead!

Photo courtesy of
‘Try to remember…………..’
courtesy of ‘LaTur

So, folks, it looks like this weekend will be (fingers crossed, knock on wood) WARM! Say whaaat? That’s right, it’ll be a reasonable temperature to be outdoors. So dust off those walking shoes, oil up your bike chains, and head out for some much-missed vitamin D.

I’d recommend heading over to Roosevelt Island, going for a run down the Mount Vernon Trail. Or head down to the national mall to take a stroll through the US Botanic Gardens‘ outdoor garden. Or, you could head out on your bike to the various area trails.

Here’s wishing you some happy sunshine this weekend…

All Politics is Local, Downtown, Life in the Capital, Technology, The Daily Feed
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DC Loses CIO to Obama Administration

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘ckramer’

Hearty Congratulations to DC CIO Vivek Kundra, who is the latest victim of Obama Abduction. Well. I suppose it’s not exactly Abduction if they ask and you consent, right? Okay. We need a new word for that. Anyhow. Mr. Kundra is headed to the OMB as administrator of e-government and information technology. Not quite the cabinet-level CIO position that he was suspected to be considered for, but not exactly entry-level work.

Kundra will see Government-wide IT budgets of something on the order of $70,000,000,000. First task? Maybe some Macs for the Obama staff at the White House? I hear they’re jonesin’ hard.

Special Events, The Features
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Got a Date?

Photo courtesy of
‘Jessicart’ courtesy of ‘technotheory’

If you’re clueless about what to do for next weekend – and if you don’t know what the date is, you may want to leave your forest cabin periodically – then you may want to venture down to the DC Riverfront.

Why’s that?

Artomatic. From Feb 13 – 15, Artomatic and the Pink Line Project is presenting three great days of art and music. So grab a date and go!

Oh, yeah, one other thing: Artomatic 2009‘s right around the corner and they’re asking everyone to take a survey to help them prepare for this year. So you art and music lovers, head over and make your voice known!

The Daily Feed, WMATA, WTF?!
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The horn on the train goes BEEEEEEEEEEEP…


(This is a video. You can play it. Listen for the horn!)

Piled on top of this morning’s Red Line woes, this train on the Red Line appeared to have its horn stuck in “VERY LOUD ON” mode, constantly blowing without stopping. (Insert clever ‘your mom’ joke here.) I got on at Union Station, got off at Metro Center, and that horn never stopped blaring through the tunnels and stations the whole time. Anyone else get to ride on the Eternal Horn Metro train this morning?

The Daily Feed, WMATA, WTF?!
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Red Line Woes Crush City Core

Photo courtesy of
‘Coming and going’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

Oh, Red Line. I wish you were better. But I’m hearing from all over that you’re nothing but a Charlie Foxtrot this morning. Between the Escalators at Dupont’s North Entrance freezing up, and the stuck train Union Station, and all manner of stopped up traffic jams, it’s a bad day to be at Metro Center.

It strikes me as hilarious, though, that of all the lines, only the Red Line has a Twitter Account to talk about all the issues.

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Chocolate Lovers Festival


Moonstruck chocolates
Originally uploaded by eszter

The Fairfax, VA Chocolate Lovers Festival is this weekend, Feb. 7-8 in the Old Town part of the City of Fairfax in our fine Commonwealth of Virginia. It has been going on since 1992, is held the first full weekend in February and looks to be quite a big affair. From the festival’s web site:

Among the events planned each year are the Taste of Chocolate, featuring chocolate vendors selling their wares; the Chocolate Challenge, an arts extravaganza where the medium is chocolate; the Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast featuring chocolate chip pancakes; historic re-enactments; children’s activities; a craft show at Fire Station 3 sponsored by the Auxiliary to the Fairfax Volunteer Fire Department; open houses at historic buildings; and much more.

So who’s going? I know it’s all the way across the river for those of you in MD and DC, but it’s a celebration of nature’s most excellent resource. How can you not go?

Foggy Bottom, Food and Drink, We Love Drinks
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We Love Drinks: 51st State Tavern

51st state

When I worked in Foggy Bottom, I found it practically impossible to find a bar in Foggy Bottom proper that wasn’t overrun with George Washington and Georgetown students. Too bad I didn’t find The 51st State Tavern until now, because it’s the answer to my happy hour prayers.

Situated in a two story former row house (like oh so many bars in DC) 51st State is the perfect place to grab an incredibly affordable drink with a friend. Located where Penn meets L street, near 26th at that super funky intersection, I finally found the perfect Foggy Bottom/West End after work spot. It’s not crowded, nor is it overrun with frat boys and the girls that follow (at least during HH), and has the perfect short beer list with something for everyone. Continue reading →

Crime & Punishment, Entertainment, The Daily Feed
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Spot Crime in DC

photo by spiggycat

photo by flickr user: spiggycat

If you like keeping an eye on local criminal activity, then look no further than SpotCrime’s Washington, DC Crime Map.  This handy little tracker allows you to search by crime type (Arrest, Arson, Shooting, Burglary, etc.,) by date/time, by location, and enroll for crime alerts.  It also allows you to report crimes, but usually takes about 24-48 hours for them to register, so if you search for today’s crime information, it will be limited.

Another SpotCrime feature is UCrime, which allows college students to track on-campus or near campus crime.  If you sign up for UCrime, you can receive alerts as well, which is not a bad idea given the recent rash of college/school violence.

SpotCrime offers tracking throughout the U.S. and a little over 30 international cities.

The Daily Feed
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Hit and Run on the Beltway

Photo courtesy of
‘Typical Beltway traffic’
courtesy of ‘brianmka’

Metro police are looking for a dark, maybe green, Honda Accord (model year somewhere between 98 and 02). The driver hit a Metro police officer on his motorcycle on the inner loop of the Beltway last night near Pennsylvania Ave. in PG county, catapulting him to the center of the road. The driver dragged the officer’s motorcyle for a while as they fled the scene.

The officer was treated for non life-threatening injuries and released.

Talkin' Transit, The Features, WMATA
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Talkin’ Transit: Bits and Nits

Photo courtesy of
‘e-z pass my ass.’ courtesy of ‘the idealist’

A myriad of transit news items, so pay attention.

E-Z Pass: If you’re a Maryland driver who has an E-Z Pass, get ready because the state is tacking on a monthly maintenance fee. Starting July 1, a $1.50 charge per account will be added; there will also be a new charge of $3 accompanying a Notice of Toll Due. Toll violation charges will increase from $15 to $25 and the duration of E-ZPass commuter plans will change from 60 days to 45.

Metro Track Work: After some time off, the work crews are back and we’ll be seeing weekend line delays as Metro restarts its maintenance cycles. This weekend is the Red Line’s turn, so add 20 minutes to your travels between Silver Spring and Forest Glen from 8 p.m. Friday to close of service on Sunday.

Continue reading →