By Don
‘a vegan is crying…………….’
courtesy of ‘LaTur’
Spike M. won best burger at the New York City Wine&Food Festival a few weeks ago. The winning burger – horseradish, bacon & bleu cheese – isn’t listed on the Good Stuff Eatery menu, though the toasted marshmallow milkshake he served with it is there. Perhaps they’ll make you the winning burger if you ask, or get February’s winner, the Colletti, which is on the menu: bacon, cheddar, vidalia onion & chipotle bbq.
By Kirk
One of DC’s largest lobbying groups, the US Chamber of Commerce, has found itself as the butt of a prank. Yesterday, a group claiming to represent the Chamber called a press conference at the National Press Club. A few journalists, representing such prominent organizations as Reuters and CNN, showed up to here the stunning news that the Chamber was reversing its long-held stance on clean energy, which had been decidedly “pro-business” up to this point. Mid way through the press conference a man from the actual Chamber burst into the room and decried the proceedings as fraudulent. Fortunately for us, the whole incident was caught on film and found its way onto Youtube.
At this point, details of what actually happened are still a bit shady. It appears that a civic-minded comedy group, the Yes Men, staged the prank to call attention to the Chamber’s environmental stance. This group has held other, fake press conferences in the past, including delivering a fake key-note address on behalf of Exxon-Mobile at a major oil conference. At this point, the Chamber has stated that it is pursuing legal action against the Yes Men.
What do you all think? Harmless joke? Praise-worthy activism? Crime?
‘Metro SmarTrip Card’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’
Hey Metro, if your budgets are so strained, maybe you could keep your credit/debit machines working so that people like me who don’t carry cash can refill our SmarTrip cards.
Did anyone get stuck due to this morning’s credit/debit outage in Metro stations? Or are the rest of you better planners than I am and never let your SmarTrip card get that low?
By Max
Skyline Drive Color 2 by afagen
The time is here when the green shades of summer transform into fall’s multiple shades of red, orange, and yellow, definitely one of my favorite times of the year. It’s time to break out your favorite sweaters, your corduroys, and over the last week, your umbrellas and rain coats. I may not have time to visit Skyline drive this year, but luckily Flickrite Afagen was there to capture this beautiful photo of the foliage for us. Seeing this shot makes me want to hop on my cafe racer motorcycle (which I have yet to acquire) to take a ride through the beautiful hues of autumn, stirring the leaves as I rumble by.
One key ingredient to getting a nice shot of the fall colors is having a good set of filters. On a sunny day you’ll definitely need a UV filter to cut through the haze. You might also try using a warming filter to give the colors, well, a warmer feel. There are numerous vantage points to shoot from along Skyline drive. The hard part is finding a time when the colors have peaked and the crowds have not. The good news is, like the annual blooming of the cherry blossoms, if you miss your chance to photograph the fall foliage this year, there’s a good chance it will happen again next year.
By Tom Bridge
Oh c’mon, VDOT. You misspelled Reagan National Airport? I mean, I know we all call it National anyway, because it’s still a little soon to have it renamed after a guy that half the country seems to not have liked at all in retrospect, but misspelling his name? Not cool.
Their solution? Paste a correction over the top. Laaaaaame.
By Tom Bridge
‘Union Station’
courtesy of ‘erin m’
In the wake of Ted Loza’s bribery arrest, and the ensuing scandal, Councilman Graham has requested Taxi Cab regulation be moved from the committee which he overseas to the Committee of the Whole, which is handled by the whole council. This is the first of the consequences of Mr. Loza’s arrest, but very likely not the last.
By Don
app screenshot from cultureous.com
Just saw someone mention an app called Cultureous on twitter so I looked it up. I’m not sure it’s of much interest to us locals, but it’s a nifty little app for you to suggest to your visiting friends. In-app maps, attractions, links to items of interest, and trivia for less than the price of a curbside half-smoke. I can’t vouch for it personally but I admire the linking of podcasts and youtube clips to each attraction – it’s a clever little way to add something and make more than an online version of a printed guidebook.
By Don
‘No!’
courtesy of ‘blacksand’
The Washington Times is reporting that the court has declined to review their earlier decision en banc, leaving it to stand that the Trinidad roadblocks are unconstitutional. A request for a hearing before all the justices, rather than just three, is the normal next step after losing a decision at the appellate level. The city could opt now to appeal to the supreme court but the vast majority of requests to the SC are denied, leaving the city in a quandry.
Or perhaps not. The city’s record in actually honoring decisions against it are not so fantastic. The Heller handgun decision explicitly mentioned semi-automatic handguns but the initial revised restrictions attempted to continue banning them. Just a month ago the city lost a case in arbitration regarding the union agreement and the “All Hands on Deck” operations but Chief Lanier indicated they had no intention of stopping. Perhaps the city will just opt to ignore this decision as well.
By Ben H. Rome
‘DSC_4085’
courtesy of ‘Ghost_Bear’
After attending the Predators – Capitals game on Saturday with a friend new to hockey, I came to a sudden realization. The Capitals are pretty much the only local pro team that is resisting the giant sewer of suckitude. With their winning ways, it’s an easy bandwagon to jump on, something I pointed out first last spring.
To that end, we’ve got some new fans showing up at the Verizon Center (I still refuse to stoop to calling it “the Phone Booth”) to cheer on the Capitals. So why not lay out some ground rules and info for you newcomers to the great game of hockey? Besides, it’s a good refresher course for out out-of-town visitors and rabid fans in general.
I give you the “Unofficial Guide to the Washington Capitals Fan Code of Conduct.”
By Karl Johnson
‘super pollo!’
courtesy of ‘tornatore’
Friends and readers, it is with a very heavy heart that I sit down to write this post. I could spend all day poetically waxing about the feelings that have overcome me on this surprisingly sunny yet very dark, dark day. But instead I will just go ahead and put it out there. The Super Pollo in Ballston has closed. Gonezo. Done. No mas. Somehow, someway, we will find a way to go on. But right now, I cannot see that way for I am horrified over this closure.
‘Nuff said!’
courtesy of ‘jimbotfuzz’
Prince George’s County Sheriff Michael Jackson is running to become chief executive of PG County. I don’t live in PG County and thus don’t want to presume to tell the fine citizens of PG what to do with their vote, but I will point out this Reason article that points out the botched raids carried out in the wrong houses, the commonplace shootings of family pets during such raids, and other such examples of how the Sheriff’s department has been terrorizing innocent PG County citizens during Jackson’s tenure. No, Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo’s case was not a fluke.
I hope Prince George’s County citizens consider carefully whether they want to reward this kind of contempt for their rights, safety, liberty, and property.
By Donna C.
‘Falling Water’
courtesy of ‘photo_secessionist’
Perhaps you had enough of water over the weekend? If not, get thee to the DOME in Rosslyn at 7 p.m. tonight for a screening of Liquid Assets (see the trailer).
This third film in a green series sponsored by Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment promises to share the true importance of systems of water, wastewater, and stormwater treatment that we often take for granted.
I understand — at first glance it sounds a bit dry, no pun intended, but it can be fascinating to find out how things work. How does that water get from the river to your faucet anyway?
This film talks about what goes on far below our feet — and how to keep that clean water flowing.
By Rebecca
‘Sea Urchin’
courtesy of ‘aslives’
It’s that time of week when WeLoveDC brings you another edition to our ever growing list of DC Omnivore 100. For this entry, let’s push the envelope and go beyond personal food comfort levels by trying Sea Urchin.
If you’ve watched any Jacques Cousteau-esque nature shows, you know what a sea urchin looks like–a purplish-black, spiked, baseball sized creature attached to the ocean bottom or coral. And you know that stepping on them is a definite no-no. It’s also one of those peculiar food items, like lobster or snails, where some human was SO hungry and that he/she had no other option than taking on the time-consuming task of figuring out how/what parts of this creature they should/could eat.
Given the spiny, hard appearance of the sea urchin, it’s of no surprise that only a small portion of the creature, its roe (aka: gonads, ovaries, milt or eggs,) is edible. “Uni,” as the Japanese call the eatable part of the sea urchin, is considered a culinary delicacy in many parts of the world. Sea urchins are often eaten raw, with a squeeze of lemon or used to flavor omelets, soups and sauces, or used instead of butter. Continue reading
By jasmine
‘Grammy, embarassed by a gift mixup’
courtesy of ‘ragesoss’
If you like cringe-worthy comedy a la The Office (times 10) or take delight in others’ misery, Mortified is coming back to DC this Wednesday. For the uninitiated, Mortified is basically people sharing their most embarrassing teenage diary entries, poems, love letters, and locker notes for the whole world to enjoy. You might have seen the book, which I cringed all the way through.
The live event is Wednesday, October 21 at 8pm for ages 21 and up only. You can buy your $10 advance tickets here, or pay $15 at the door (if it’s not sold out!). It’s at Town, which is at 2009 8th St NW (U Street Metro).
By shannon
‘Just Another Sight’
courtesy of ‘M.V. Jantzen’
The Crystal City Business Improvement District just announced a new program coming in the Spring of 2010: a 100-bike Commuter Hub, which will offer bike rentals to commuters, tourists, or residents. The Commuter Hub will be located at 220 Twentieth Street, a new LEED-certified apartment building in Crystal City. Revolution Cycles will manage the retail and rental business, which will also offer repairs and bike accessories.
Bike rental establishments in our region typically cater to tourists, who can bike around the monuments and parks while sightseeing. But the Commuter Hub is marketing itself differently– by capitalizing on its location near area trails and bike routes, it offers nearby office workers a chance to rent a bike and explore the trails during lunch. I’m all for opening up bike options to more area residents, and think that this could be a great option for people interested in trying out biking around town without a huge commitment.
Full press release after the jump. Continue reading
By Tom Bridge
If you missed a copy of the print edition of the Washington Post this morning, you might want to go grab one to see the difference. It’s a pretty significant re-design of the front page, as well as the organization of the paper at large. They have a PDF Guide to the Redesign up on the web today as well. I’m not if I adhere to the “any redesign that needs a lengthy explanation is a bad one” theory of information architecture, but it’s certainly amazing to see what they’re trying to accomplish.
Editor Marcus Brauchli will be answering questions live in 15 minutes about the re-design of the print edition. Don’t miss it!
By Kirk
‘Looking Up’
courtesy of ‘Samer Farha’
On your way into work this morning, you might have noticed a giant blue expanse and a shining orb in the place of the gray ceiling that you had grown accustomed to. This is called “clear sky” and it should be the norm for the rest of the week. Warm temperatures and dry air are finally returning to the DC area and it is good to see them back. Unfortunately, we do have some more rain in our forecast, just in time for next weekend. Let’s hope the weatherman is lying.
By Ben H. Rome
‘bloop’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’
Dried out yet? Fortunately, fall returns after flirting with winter over the weekend – at least for a few days. While the weekend wasn’t the rosiest, weather-wise, it still beats dragging into work on a Monday. So we offer our weekly morning break from the return to tedium by offering you visions of the weekend past.
By Ben H. Rome
”
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’
Mark Segraves and Adam Tuss over at WTOP.com filed a report this morning covering the fact that since 2004, Metro bus and train operators have been cited over 4,000 times for endangering the lives of their passengers. Most of the incidents involve illegal behavior including speeding in residential neighborhoods, running red lights and hitting cars, people, bicycles and wheelchairs. (Update: WTOP has informed me that this will be a week-long series with reports from both Mark and Adam through Thursday.)
Shocking? To most of us, probably not. Metro downplays the numbers, citing that on an average day, 1,200 buses cover 1,500 square miles and provide 20 hours of service. I can forgive the bad eggs that happen along; it’s a sad fact of life that no service or system is perfect. It’s hardly surprising to anyone that one of the more common complaints in the report is rude and discourteous behavior by Metro employees to customers, including profanity and grabbing people.
What is incredible about the report is some of the infractions that operators have been cited for. Slewing the bus around corners hard enough to tip wheelchairs over? Leaving passengers in bus lots or trains after closing? Urinating inside the bus?
Seriously, WMATA, WTF?
By Tom Bridge
‘Georgetown University’
courtesy of ‘citron_smurf’
Georgetown first-year student Alex Thiele, recently arrived from La Jolla, California’s Bishop’s High School was arrested this morning at 12:30am for possession of an unlicensed firearm, according to Georgetown’s Vox Populi blog, who have a copy of the original police report. It seems that the firearm was taken off a US Park Police officer during the Midnight Madness event at McDonough Gymnasium, and was discharged, with a toilet in the Men’s bathroom destroyed as a result. We’ve contacted the Park Police, and hope to have comment as to whether or not Officer Clanton was on or off duty, and how her service weapon came to be in the hands of Mr. Thiele.
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