Yearly Archives: 2009

The Daily Feed
By

I declare Eric Nuzum our official mascot

Photo courtesy of
‘Hey lady’
courtesy of ‘erin m’

Not just because I keep linking to his stuff (the dude entertains me, what can I say?) or because he works for my radio station of choice, but because the heavens have aligned and shown him to be The [WLDC Blog] Chosen One.

But the best part: my office has a view of the capital.

Well, technically.

The picture above and to the right (click to enlarge) is the view out of my new office window. Look just to the left of the center of the photo. You’ll see a church steeple. Slightly to the left of that steeple is a pointy thing rising above a long flat roof.

That “pointy thing” is the Freedom Statue on top of the Capitol building.

Yep, the only part of the building that he can see is a part that, if you look at the  upper left corner of your browser window, or on my business cards, or our stationary, or our flickr icon… well, you get the picture. Lady Freedom is our adopted mascot and she’s just barely visible over the rooftops to Mr Nuzum. You’ll have to click the link above to see his picture of how the Lady just is barely visible – I couldn’t put it here. *cough*creative commons*cough*suggestion*cough*

Any of you have a just-barely-visible bit of the DC skyline visible to you from your workplace or home?

Food and Drink, We Love Drinks
By

We Love Drinks: Tea at The Mayflower Hotel

Afternoon Tea

"Afternoon Tea" by Jenn Larsen, on Flickr

I’ve done my fair share of tea in this town. Afternoon tea has been a serious obsession of mine since I had the luck of spending several summers in England during college, basically living on tea as a poor student. It’s also a favorite way of my girlfriends to get together. Over the years in Washington I’ve had afternoon tea everywhere – Henley Park Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel (sadly no longer serving), The Jefferson Hotel, etc. Noticing a trend? Afternoon tea here is mainly a hotel thing, with Teaism being the notable exception (or Ching Ching Cha if you want an Asian tea experience). 

With my absolute favorite afternoon tea spot being closed for renovations (that would be the venerable Jefferson, where the scones came out warm and fragrant at the perfect time), I thought I would try The Mayflower Hotel. They serve afternoon tea daily from 3pm-5pm in Cafe Promenade, a soaring orchid and mirror filled room. 

There are many ways to enjoy teatime, and if your tastes run to the gleaming china and sparkling silver variety, The Mayflower delivers on the upscale. If you require attentive and charming service, you’ll definitely find it here. The tea selection itself is quite nice, all served loose in individual pots with lovely silver strainers on the side. The usual suspects are featured such as Earl Grey, darjeeling, and some great greens like sencha or oolong. They even have an enchanting wild blackberry tea that’s a black caffeinated blend, as opposed to the usual herbal tisane. The aroma drove me into a dreamy state, longing for spring…

So where does The Mayflower fall short? Well, frankly, the goodies.  Continue reading →

News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
By

Bye Bye Bowden?

Photo courtesy of
‘Washington Nationals Executive Offices’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

The long nightmare of Jim Bowden may finally be over for Nats fans. Baseball Prospectus is reporting that the Nats are close to firing Bowden, and replacing him with Tony LaCava from Toronto Blue Jays’ front office. Bowden’s currently under FBI investigation for involvement in a bonus-skimming scandal that has been going on since the mid 1990s. Bowden’s right hand for scouting in Latin America, Jose Rijo, is about to be fired for his part in the Esmailyn Gonzalez scandal.

Most interesting in all of this, is that Bud Selig has reportedly issued the Nats an exemption from the “Rooney rule” which would require them to interview at least one minority candidate in the process. While I’m generally for diversity, this seems to be a special exemption due to the fact that our GM could be about to be fired for cause. This close to the start of the season, it would be rather unfortunate to have to spend a lot of time interviewing candidates.

The Daily Feed
By

DC’s Worst Starbucks?

Starbucks by SWP Moblog

Let’s face it, you either love or hate Starbucks.

If you hate Starbucks, we understand, but this post is not for you so just skip to the next one below.

If you love it (or at least like it or are OK with it) tell us which one you think deserves the title of DC’s Worst Starbucks, or StarSUCKS if you will.  My vote goes to the one located at the corner of Connecticut & R St NW.  Continue reading →

Arlington, Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
By

Incoming: Le Pain Quotidien

Photo courtesy of
‘At Le Pain Quotidien’
courtesy of ‘TreyDanger’

Tuesday night Matt and I were on a run down the Clarendon strip in Arlington, and we passed painters and workers busy preparing the new store front of Le Pain Quotidien, the Belgian cafe & organic bakery poised to open under the Clarendon Gold’s Gym.

I’d never heard of Le Pain Quotidien (PQ for short), but upon further googling, PQ is another Euro import, one I’m getting pretty excited to meet. With locations already in Capitol Hill, Georgetown, Alexandria and Bethesda, Le Pain Quotidien operates under an organic philosophy (head on competition, Whole Foods) and is part bakery, part cafe. The bakery part is most exciting to me, as I was hoping for an uprising bakery trend in 2009. PQ claims to bake all their breads in-house, and knead by hand, to boot. They also offer pastries, alongside the breads. Then there’s the “communal table” – the cafe seems to be following in the Wagamama tradition of seating strangers together at big, long, cafeteria-style tables.

I’m thrilled to welcome Le Pain Quotidien into my ‘hood, I’m already picturing Sunday morning strolls for baked goods and coffee, and late night tete-a-tetes with friends over cider and tartes.

The Daily Feed
By

Garden Season is Coming!

Photo courtesy of
‘inside butterfly garden davao philippines’
courtesy of ‘burgermac’

While it’s still grey and cold, it’s good to know that Spring is coming. There was one single, solitary forsythia bloom on the hedge above our place this morning, and it’s a harbinger of better things to come. But, while you start thinking about springtime, I know a bunch of us here are thinking about gardening and all manner of pursuits outdoors. This weekend is the big DC Garden Show out at Dulles Expo Center. It runs from today all the way through til Sunday, and if you’re like me and desperate for some green instead of the brown & gold that we’re stuck with at the moment, go on out!

The Daily Feed
By

This one’s for the ladies

Photo courtesy of
‘NO PHOTOS at House of Blues’
courtesy of ‘revjim5000’

Tickets to the Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine seated show at the 9:30 Club on April 15 just officially went on sale this morning! They have been available for presale for a while now, though, so I won’t be too surprised if they sell out fairly quickly.

If you’re not in the know, Richard Cheese does hilarious covers of popular songs, turning everything from Nirvana’s “Rape Me” to Snoop Dogg’s “Gin and Juice” into swingin’ lounge music. You’ve got to hear it (or see it, in April!) to believe it.

Arlington, We Love Arts
By

We Love Arts: Public/Private

P2210167

The Arlington Arts Center (AAC) is a private, nonprofit contemporary visual arts center dedicated to presenting and supporting new work by regional artists in the mid-Atlantic States. AAC is located in the Virginia Square area of the Clarendon and Wilson Blvd strip between Clarendon and Ballston. Right now, AAC is home to a few different exhibitions, but the one that got me out of the house last Saturday is the Public/Private exhibit I had been hearing so much buzz about.

The AAC web site describes it best: “PUBLIC/PRIVATE puts together two very different types of content in contemporary art: art about the artist’s immediate surroundings, domestic sphere, and personal relationships; and art that exists out in the world, inviting or requiring the public’s physical participation. Featuring Lisa Blas, Chris Barr & Veronique Cote, Mandy Burrow, Ben Kinsley & Robin Hewlett, Anissa Mack, Christian Moeller, Stephanie Robbins, Richard Saxton, Satomi Shirai, and Matthew Sutton”

The exhibit I most wanted to see was an exhibit titled “Street With A View” about a staged Google maps street view street performance. The artists got together and created interesting things during the time when the street view car would be driving down the street in Pittsburgh. I was fascinated to see all the different things they staged for the car. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

Puppywatch 2009 BREAKING NEWS

Photo courtesy of
‘Yawning Puppy’
courtesy of ‘Ber’Zophus’

Sorry, I ate some bad food last night and caught some Drudge.

People magazine reports that the Obamas seem to have a breed and a timetable set for adding to the White House family. Plans seem to be to get a Portugese Water Dog – rescue, of course – sometimes after the girls’ spring break.

I’m not sure Mrs Obama has really grasped just how many people her new not-so-humble abode employs, though. “Got to do it after spring break. You can’t get a new dog and then go away for a week.” I’m pretty sure there’ll be one or two folks holding down the old homestead, ma’am….

And yes, that blue dog pictured up above is indeed a PWD, though the Obamas appear insterested in adopting a slightly older animal.

Food and Drink, The Features, Thrifty District
By

Thrifty District: Dessert On A Dime

photo courtesy of flickr user 3liz4

photo courtesy of flickr user 3liz4

This edition of Thrifty District targets being cost efficient and strategic with food items you already have in your kitchen.

For instance, what about that half loaf of bread that’s a little too dry for a sandwich. You thinking about tossing it out? Perhaps you’ll wait for it to age into crouton territory? Or maybe you can feed it to some birds? Here’s a better idea.  Transform it into an amazing wintry dessert on the cheap and in just a few minutes. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

Top Chef’s Carla

Photo courtesy of
‘Top chef conversation heart’
courtesy of ‘VeryBadLady’

I’ve waxed poetic about my love for current Top Chef contestant Carla Hall already. I can dig her big hair, I can get down with her quirky sense of humor, and I adore her always-positive attitude. NOTHING gets Carla down, she’d make a great caterer and if I were throwing a formal party or getting married any time soon in DC, she’d be my one-stop-shop (though I can imagine she’s booked up). The Washingtonian had a great interview with Carla today, I was tickled to read her local favorite foods. She gives a shout out to one of my local favorites, Equinox, and shares the thrilling news that she sometimes teaches class at Culinarie. If only I were so lucky as to take a class from her! DCist also snagged an interview with Carla, and she dishes about her Top Chef co-contestants and imagines what a DC Top Chef season would look like. Here’s wishing her the very best tonight on the season finale!

Life in the Capital, People, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
By

Capitol Hill Style Exposes ChickDownTown Site

Photo courtesy of
‘Dress’
courtesy of ‘farrelley’

One of my all-time favorite local blogs, Capitol Hill Style, has a post today about an internet scam that had me glued to my computer monitor. The lovably snarky CHS author Belle tells a sordid tale of buying from a scam Web site ChickDownTown – and how the “company” is a tangle of deceit, lies, fraud and credit card scams. I felt it my blogging responsibility to share her horror story, and save others from ChickDownTown’s sketchy behavior . Plus, she’s one of the people behind DC’s fashion uprising, and we can all appreciate efforts to make our fine city better looking.

She’s not all florals, dainty jewlery and lingere advice, she’s rock solid and I appreciate the fighting fashionista in Belle!

Comedy in DC
By

Comedy in DC: Your Late-Winter Blend

Photo courtesy of
‘Stand up 371’
courtesy of ‘YoLoPey’

I know. I’ve used this photo before. But this is Jay Hastings, and he’s being roasted in the DC Improv Comedy Lounge this Friday at 8. I’m not sure what the occasion is, but you should show up and find out. (Also, I need more comedy-related photos. Help a sister out.)

Also this weekend, don’t forget that Maria Bamford will be at the Arlington Drafthouse, and the show will feature Aparna Nancherla and Eli Sairs. Look at all the comedy you could be seeing this weekend! Makes up for that extra day of February we’re not getting…

On March 14th, there’s a nameless local comedy showcase at the Improv Lounge featuring Andy Kline, Jeff Maurer, Seaton Smith, and Jimmy Meritt (whose name seems to be impossible to spell consistently, but I looked it up). I’ve gone on and on about my enthusiasm for Maurer, Smith and Meritt at length here- I’m sure I WOULD go on and on about Andy Kline and Bey Wesley, the host, as well, but I don’t think I’ve been to any of their shows yet. Anyway, only having 4 comics featured means that each one will have a chance to do a longer set, which usually means better jokes with more time to do more involved material, so it’s a better opportunity to see some rising stars. Also, since Jimmy Meritt has been touring quite a bit, there are fewer and fewer chances to see him around DC in particular. So don’t miss this one.  Mark it on your calendars, buy your tickets, and go.  All you’re missing on the Improv main stage that night is Sommore, anyway.

The Daily Feed
By

Give us Statehood or Give us Puerto Rico!

washington dc by wayan
Photo by Wayan

The Senate will be discussing a vote for DC in the House today. And I hope the effort fails. I reject the concept that 500,000+ people should only get one vote in Congress. We should have a real real representation – two Senators and one Representative. Or we should be free from Federal taxes.

Give us Statehood or give us Puerto Rico!

Personally, I’m all for Puerto Rico. They get full governmental benefits but are exempt from Federal income taxes. If DC were to have the same setup, our standard of living would jump waaay up. All those tax-avoidance diehards who lurk in NoVA would jump the Potomoc overnight, sending property values, population density, and economic activity into the sky. Oh and I would save up to $14,000 on my tax bill.

The Daily Feed
By

A saucy ticket giveaway

Photo courtesy of
‘Suggestive by composition’
courtesy of ‘primplan’

The New Gay is giving away tickets to a workshop this Friday that performer and educator Tristan Taormino is holding at Hotel Helix. Since I know a lot of you read this from work I’ll say that it’s an entry-level (hah) workshop about pleasure and the… well, let’s say it’s A Not Always Lovable orifice.

The shindig is being organized by WholeDC, a new organization looking to offer classes and provide a place for supportive discussion. They say “Washington, DC is overdue for a sex-positive community center that brings together diverse people for education and entertainment.” I don’t know if we’re overdue or underserved there, but I’m all in favor of anything sex-positive.

Food and Drink, We Love Food
By

We Love Food: Posto

"artwork" by ustreetgirl, on Flickr

"artwork" by ustreetgirl, on Flickr

“A modern Italian place to meet” is Posto‘s motto, and indeed its Logan Circle neighborhood has been eagerly waiting to meet it. The newest venture from executive chef Massimo Fabbri, of downtown’s lauded Tosca, it replaces Viridian next to Studio Theatre and has already escalated in popularity, evident by the full dining room on a freezing Monday night.

It’s a relief to find that Posto has warmed-up the walls of a previously minimal and rather chilly atmosphere from Viridian’s days. The decor might strike some as more Napa than Roma, with columns wrapped in glowing natural wood, but the large light installation murals of grapevines and various Italian scenes like Venice’s Campanile set the scene. Somehow these oversized murals, dancing the line between ironic and tacky, end up being rather joyous. And though many have commented on the decibel level, I found that though it was packed, our table of four could still carry on bantering without much problem.

For my first course I tried the Pesce Spada – swordfish carpaccio with tomatoes, capers and olives. I was surprised to have it come out with a heap of frisee on top (not so much a fan of twiggyness in food), but it matched well with the fish, which was delicate and flavorful. A friend pronounced the Granchio – lump crabmeat with peppers – “very yummy” – but another’s Insalata del Posto – arugula salad with fennel – was deemed “overdressed” (then again, he is a very picky German).

I’d heard pasta was the standout here, made in house by chef de cuisine Matteo Venini, and I was not disappointed. Continue reading →

All Politics is Local, The Daily Feed
By

Cloture!

DCVRA.png

Never has such a weird word been so loudly acclaimed. Today, the Senate voted 62-37 to close debate on S.160, the bill that grants the District a Representative in the House, and tomorrow will vote on its passage. Several senators crossed the aisle (at least one in the opposite direction…) to make this cloture vote possible. The House is fairly receptive to the idea, and this means that come 2011, it’s very probably that the District will have a voting member in the House of Representatives.

Ed. note: This post has been updated to add the link to the vote tally.

Food and Drink, Fun & Games, The Daily Feed
By

Where to find a good King Cake?

Photo courtesy of
‘King cake 2’
courtesy of ‘MGShelton’

You know, I have never really gotten into Mardi Gras, but what I CAN get into is a good King Cake. I love the sugary goodness of a delicious king cake – and of course, there’s got to be a little plastic baby inside. So where oh where in DC can you find a good King Cake? Well, I turned to the one and only source for trusted eating info – Chowhound.

The CH commenters recommend picking up your cake at Wegmans, Firehook, or Louisiana Express in Bethesda. But those are the only real “local” place they named – instead, most commenters suggested going straight to the New Orleans sources and having them shipped. But that’s not very locovore of us, now is it? So, readers, where can a girl get a good King Cake round these parts?

The Daily Feed, WMATA
By

Transit infopr0n!

Photo courtesy of
‘Tunnel Rats’
courtesy of ‘Samer Farha’

Via NBCWashington, I found this cool infographic from GOOD Magazine on how the US’ major metropolitan transit systems (including the DC Metro) stack up against the world’s transit systems. I had no idea that Metro has more riders than Chicago’s system, even has Chicago has many more miles of track than we do. Don’t forget to click through to the article for some good criticism of GOOD’s methodology from the commenters.

Featured Photo
By

Featured Photo

Skate Face by Mika Altskan

Back in junior high I was a skater for all about, oh, three months.  I begged my dad to buy me a Tommy Guerrero board and proceeded to destroy my mom’s good scissors by cutting grip tape (basically sandpaper) for the deck.  I had all of the gear, all of the clothes, and none of the moves.  I think as soon as I realized I wouldn’t be pulling off an ollie any time soon, I stuck my board in a closet somewhere and went back to riding my bike.  It was definitely money well spent by my dad.

I thought everyone went through the same three month phase, however I’ve recently learned that there are many adults still skating!  I was part of a photography show not long ago at a place called Fight Club here in DC where all of the local skaters go to ride, and it was there that I met my friend who is not only really old, but also one of the best skaters around.  In fact he organized a downhill race on President’s Day last week where guys hauled ass down a section of Beach Drive, much like you see in the photo above.  In some of the more hardcore longboard races around the world the skaters can reach speeds of up to 60-70 miles per hour.  This is not a sport for wussies.

I have no regrets about hanging up my skate when I was a kid, but I really admire people who stuck with it and make it look easy.  Be sure to check out Mika Altskan’s Flickr stream for more great downhill skating shots.  As a 16 year old FotoWeek DC finalist, he’s got a lot of talent.  It’s obvious that he’s not afraid to get right in the action with his Nikon, a skill that separates great photographers from the average ones.