Monthly Archives: January 2010

Entertainment, Night Life, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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Millennium Stage Celebrates Robert Burns

Photo courtesy of
‘Washington, DC 2010 20’
courtesy of ‘giantminispacego

Want to get away from today’s semi-unseasonal weather? The Millennium Stage at The Kennedy Center is playing host to Tony Award nominee and stage-show veteran Euan Morton and the one-man show “Burns’ Night in America“.

The show commemorates the birthday (which is today!) of “Auld Land Syne” lyricist and 18th-century poet Robert Burns.

The night kicks-off at 6 p.m. Admission is free of charge.

Can’t make it to the performance? The entire show will be broadcast live via the Millennium Stage website starting at showtime.

News, The Daily Feed
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Overtime Scandal in the Making at DPW?

Photo courtesy of
‘Saluting the Hardest Working Men in DC’
courtesy of ‘Wayan Vota’

The Examiner got their hands on a draft report from the city this weekend that shows serious overtime fraud at the DPW in the garbage collection division. 2009 showed $3.45M in overtime paid out to city garbage collectors, several hundred thousand dollars over the proper cost. The Examiner reports that four employees are at the center of the report, in charge of managing some of the distribution of overtime to other employees.

The final report is due out in days, and AG Nickles has promised an investigation. This could undermine Mayor Fenty’s re-election efforts, but seeing as no one serious has the stones to challenge him, it’s hard to tell what effect it might have.

The Daily Feed
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Which DC Building Would You Demolish?


1400 Block of Irving Street, NW by rockcreek

Far, far away in the small seaside town of Bournemouth, England, residents were asked which building they would like knocked down.  The winner, or loser in this case, was the waterfront leisure complex.  When it opened in 1998, the citizens of Bournemouth (who were found to be the happiest people in Britain) threw a polite fit, claiming that the complex blocked their beloved view of the water.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Whither Rain?

rain.png

If you looked at the weather forecast last night, you might’ve been expecting something of a torrential downpour during the night, and boy would you have been disappointed for the most part. Instead, we rode the storm’s “dry slot” (I swear to God that’s a real meteorological term) and picked up just a third of an inch, instead of the expected 2-3″ of the wet stuff.

Oh well! Sorry weather guys. The flood watch continues, though, as the upstream areas of the Potomac watershed still got pounded pretty hard last night to the tune of 1-2″, which can lead to a swollen waterfront through the city today. So clean out those drains anyway, last thing you want is some unexpected moisture in your lower level.

The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Stuck on the Chain Bridge? Nature calling? Fret no more!

Improvised outhouse under Chain Bridge

I saw this makeshift outhouse under the DC side of the Chain Bridge while walking on the tow path with my Lovely Wife the other day. Shoddily constructed, to be sure, but it’ll do in a pinch if you really need to pinch a loaf on the drive home. Complete with a bucket inside and running water in the canal. You know, because the Potomac River is so clean you might want to wash up in it.

The Chain bridge usually isn’t terrible, but when it’s bad, it’s horrid. Don’t forget about this gem of a facility when nature calls. You might be scowling as you read this, but disgust turns to acceptance when desperation increases beyond a certain threshold.

Talkin' Transit, The Daily Feed
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Metro To Seat Two of Four New Federal Members

Photo courtesy of
‘Unknown Trains to Mysteryville’
courtesy of ‘Kevin H.’

At the darkest hour of Metro’s current crisis footing, four new members are coming to the Metro Board, all from the Federal sector. Metro will seat the first two before this week’s board meeting to determine budget direction and to help provide guidance before the budget gap is closed. Those two members are Mortimer L. Downey and Marcel C. Costa.

Why are they just coming onboard now? In response to the disaster this summer, and the increased funding coming from the Department of Transportation, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Fairfax) said, “If the federal government is going to be kicking in $150 million a year, it deserves voting representation on the board,” which is a pretty solid point to make. The four members (two directors, two alternates) will join the board without the veto power that each of the twelve jurisdictional members possess.

The money quote, though, comes from Downey, a transportation consultant who served as a deputy secretary of transportation in the Clinton Administration: “The federal government would like its employees to arrive at work on time, fundamentally alive.”

Yep, I think that’s a bare minimum to demand from our transportation system right now.

The Daily Feed
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New Cigar Lounge Coming to Alexandria, Embracing Stereotype

Photo courtesy of
‘Cigars at Union Station in Washington, DC’
courtesy of ‘dc-hulls’

The owners of Landini Brothers Restaurant on King Street in Alexandria are opening  a new, private cigar lounge opening in Alexandria this spring. Landini Brothers had previously been cigar-friendly until the Virginia smoking ban. It will include all of what you’d expect from a private cigar club with a $5000 membership fee- private humidor lockers, special house cigar blend, state-of-the-art ventilation system, etc. as well as more contemporary features like free WiFi. But there’s also the decidedly retrograde “all female waitstaff” on the list of amenities. Way to embrace the stereotype, guys.

Fun & Games, News, Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Caps 4, Coyotes 2: the Streak Continues

Photo courtesy of
‘Ovechkin Tosses First Star Puck to Crowd’
courtesy of ‘clydeorama’

Perhaps this is a silly prejudice, but I feel like hockey teams from warm places have something to prove.  I know, I know, hockey teams don’t recruit from their localities and, like every other professional athlete, hockey players go to where the money is, but it doesn’t change the fact that I expect less from a hockey team from Arizona.  If the Phoenix Coyotes did have anything to prove, they’re certainly doing it this year.  With an impressive record, they came to DC, last night, as a very real threat to the Capitals five game winning streak.

The Capitals, with their aforementioned win streak and Ovechkin’s impressive scoring record, were definitely the team to beat and the Coyotes were determined to cut them down to size. The game opened with Phoenix playing aggressively and keeping the puck near the Capitals goal for most of the 1st period.  The Caps looked a bit tentative, early on, but managed to take advantage of their first power play, with Brooks Laich to scoring in the opening minutes.  The Coyotes answered in the 13th minute of the period, tying game. Continue reading →

The Features
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Geeks Without Borders: Live From Inside DC’s Crisis Camp

Photo courtesy of
‘CrisisWiki team at crisiscamp dc #ccHaiti’
courtesy of ‘andycarvin’

Special to WeLoveDC by contributor Dave Levy

Volunteering to assist Haiti has taken many forms in the past few weeks. For example, last weekend, groups of laptop-wielding volunteers tried to help out in cities far from the disaster-stricken country. In six cities around the hemisphere – including Washington –data mappers, researchers and other technological gurus brainstormed and created offerings that could be implemented from afar.

Today, volunteers are back at it in D.C., as well as 12 other cities across the United States, UK, Canada and Colombia. The scene inside NPR’s Massachusetts Avenue office this Saturday morning showed over 200 local techies using their powers for good. The great news is that this unofficial effort of “Geeks without Borders” isn’t limited to technical ninjas. As David Hale put together in this fantastic document, there are ways that even the least tech-savvy can contribute, and there is an open invite for interested parties to offer any tools they can.

The group really has accomplished a lot in the eight days since the first meetings, as noted on the Haiti Crisis Camp blog, dataphiles and coders have leveraged their skills to already complete tools that are offering unique results for the country:

Two projects are already live: 

Tradui: As Brady Forrest wrote at O’Reilly, this free offline dictionary converts Creole to English and vice-versa. “The data came from the HaitiSurf Creole to English Dictionary. It was built by Intridea and came out of Crisis Camp DC. It was released to the Android market on 1/19.”

WeHaveWeNeed.org – this is a “craigslist” for exchanges of tech, services or other needs for NGOs. “It’s a place where relief organizations can quickly post their most urgent needs and have them matched by generous donors during a time of crisis.” If you’d like to participate in the program, please let them know.

The Daily Feed
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Last Dance for Panda Jane

Photo courtesy of
‘:)’
courtesy of ‘Daniel.Techie{TaiShan~4Ever} @ 127.0.0.1’

It’s official, The Zoo has set the last day for Butterstick in DC: Saturday, 30 January 2010, and there will be a big party at the Zoo to send him off to the wilds Panda breeding program in China. It’ll run from 11 to 3, and at 1:30, Tai Shan will get his very own “special celebratory treat,” which we’re pretty sure isn’t some sort of strange euphemism, and since pandas don’t eat deer, I think it’ll probably be a bamboo cake of some sort.

Extra cool, though? Land O’Lakes got in on the Butterstick thing, and will be showcasing a set of photos of our favorite panda as part of the party. Nice work, DCist!

News, The Daily Feed
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Populist Rage Comes to the Kojo Show


via the Kojo Nnamdi Show

Kojo Nnamdi had mayoral candidate Leo Alexander on the Politics Hour where he railed against poverty and unemployment, and, wait for it, illegal immigrants? He claims that 30,000 undocumented workers in the DC area are taking jobs that poor people in DC should be taking, and wants firmer job controls forced on DC employers of all kinds, specifically using the E-Verify system as a standard for all employers.

I don’t think that Alexander is all that viable a candidate as it stands, and this certainly won’t help his cause.

Five Favorites, The Features
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Five Favorites: Swimming Pools

Photo courtesy of
‘Swim’
courtesy of ‘dansteeves68’

Here in DC, we’ve got a good thing going: all of the District’s swimming pools are free and open to DC residents. Other cities make you purchase pool passes or pay each time you go to a pool, but because of the “DC Free Swim” program sponsored by Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States, we don’t have to. And not only do we get free pool access, there are also free swimming lessons available at many pools. And whether you’re a triathlete looking to get a good workout, or you just want to splash around and pretend that it’s summer, there’s a pool for you. So what are you waiting for? Head out to one of these year-round DC pools today! Here are my picks for the best pools in the District:

Continue reading →

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed, We Love Drinks
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Friday Happy Hour: Bruno Porro Dolcetto

Photo courtesy of
‘Too much red wine’
courtesy of ‘koalazymonkey’

Welcome to the Friday Happy Hour, your single drink primer for the weekend.

Stormy weather for the weekend. Sigh. With all the gloominess looming, I think I’ll tuck myself away in a corner at Tabard Inn and indulge in some serious wine. Not only do I adore this quirky inn but they also happen to have one of my favorite wines by the glass – Bruno Porro Dolcetto di Dogliani.

Whenever I order this rich dense red, my friends roll their eyes. “You and your funky wine!” they laugh, wrinkling their noses. “It’s not funky, it’s earthy!” I protest back. Semantics. A smattering of plums and cherries? Maybe some coffee, chocolate? A log of mushrooms, damp from the forest floor? See, it’s this last scent that really drives me crazy and keeps me ordering it again and again. It’s like when you used to jump into a pile of leaves as a kid, you didn’t care that it was wet and maybe a little moldy, it was fun! The winery is in Piedmont near Alba, and that’s where my grandfather’s family is from, so maybe my love of earthy wines is in the blood.

Tabard Inn has a very sweet framed letter from Bruno Porro thanking them for importing their dolcetto (look for it in the restroom). I feel like thanking him myself for this red velvet delight. I’ll just wrap myself up in a glass and nap before the fireplace.

Entertainment, Essential DC, Life in the Capital, Music, People, The Daily Feed
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Let’s Hear It For DC!!!

I was listening to Metro on Connection‘s report on this past weekend’s 2010 Orginial DMV Music Awards show, and I was pleasantly surprised to hear this DC remix of the Jay-Z/Alicia Keyes “Empire State of Mind” by Eezy Money.  The song titled “Capital Conscience” calls out Mumbo sauce, the Skins/Nats/Wizards poor seasons and features a  DC montage music video.

Well worth sharing.

The Daily Feed
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Current Opens Second Location

Photo courtesy of
‘Indian Scarves’
courtesy of ‘Rukasu1’

I’m obsessed with consignment and vintage stores at the moment. I can’t stop blathering about Treasury, and last weekend I bought a dress at Secondi and another dress at Junction. (I, uh, have a shopping problem… obviously.) But my main squeeze of consignment shops is my local store Current Boutique. And lucky for those of you Alexandrians, Current has opened their second shop on the west end of King Street in Old Town.

“Old Town seemed like the perfect spot to open a second location,” said owner Carmen Lopez. “It’s filled with a nice mix of modern, budget conscious professionals who like quality items and need a store like Current to help with their revolving wardrobe. Consigning is becoming so popular because many women wear an outfit either once or twice and they don’t want their items just sitting in the closet, when they can recycle their designer wears and get money back on their investment. Customers that shop our store get to enjoy buying great designer clothes at affordable prices.”

I’ve currently got a suit for sale at the Arlington location (it’s Express! And adorable! Only reason I gave it up was, well, I wore it in college and, uh, you know.) so it’s also a great place to sell your gently worn, yet still adorable items. I snagged a pair of dark wash Joe’s Jeans for $50 the other day and rock them all the time. Anywho, 1009 King Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314, or call 703-549-2272. They’re closed on Mondays. Breaks my heart.

Music, We Love Music
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We Love Music: The Cribs @ 9:30 Club 1/19/10*

cribs
courtesy of The Cribs.

The Cribs treated DC to a fantastic evening of guitar-driven Brit-pop at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday night. Sporting their new 4-man line-up (now including pop-guitar legend Johnny Marr) The Cribs impressed and entertained the crowd of die-hard fans with a set heavily featuring material from their two most recent (and best) albums. While they did not stray very far from their musical comfort zone, the band did put on a dazzling display of their strengths that made for one of the most fun shows I have seen hit DC in quite some time.

Continue reading →

Special Events, The Daily Feed
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AU Hosts Holy Cross in Patriot League Championship Rematch

AU beats Holy Cross in the Patriot League Championship

When you think of college basketball in DC, one of the furthest things on anyone’s mind is the American University Eagles. But — once a year — students don their red, white, and blue apparel inside Bender Arena for the “BIG” game of the season i.e. Phil Bender.

This year’s game is a rematch of last season’s Patriot League championship between the 2008 defending champion Eagles and the Holy Cross Crusaders. Granted, this is no “We Are Georgetown” packed house at the Verizon Center, but it’s as close as AU gets.

AU Men’s Basketball made it to the NCAA tournament for their first taste of March Madness in school history in 2008, followed by a repeat appearance in 2009. They were knocked out in the first round, but if there’s anything that could have and should have been learned it’s that school pride reigns supreme when sports are involved.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed, We Love Arts
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DC Seeks Vision for Dupont Underground


Old Entrance by M.V. Jantzen

Decades after the trolley system was shut down at Dupont Circle, the city is still looking for a viable use for the abandoned underground space.  The last attempt was a food court, creatively named “Dupont Down Under”, however it failed miserably and was only open for a year.  In 2007 a proposal to create some adult strip clubs was circulated but not surprisingly it was shot down.

The Post is reporting that the city will be putting out a request for proposals next month to solicit possible uses for the 100,000 square foot space.  Council Member Jack Evans  (D-Ward 2) says, “It needs to be a destination place that people will come to.”  What a novel idea.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Arlington Named One of World’s Most Intelligent Communities

Photo courtesy of
‘Day 24.10 tablet testing’
courtesy of ‘frerieke’

Those Arlingtonians; they think they’re so smart.

Or at least someone does.

Arlington has been named one of the 2010 Top Seven Communities of the Year, and a role model for the development of vibrant digital age communities.

Of 400 communities worldwide that applied for the honor, only one other in the U.S. (Dublin, Ohio) made the list.

The Intelligent Community Forum, a New York-based think tank, noted Arlington’s technology, educational excellence with a highly diverse population, quality of life, and ability to keep both an independent identity and economic ties to the Feds.