Yearly Archives: 2011

The Daily Feed
By

“Internet” gambling coming to DC

Photo courtesy of


‘$20 Chip’
courtesy of ‘bigmikesndtech’

When DC first announced the concept of the legalization of online gambling, I had hoped what it might mean was access once again to the main online poker rooms in a manner that was clearly above board. It does not appear that will happen, at least not in the first year of its operation. Instead, what the city will get is a series of “hot spots” for online gambling provided by Greek company Intralot.  Intralot will be offering online poker, but only near the specific hot spots for the first year or so, with the rake for each hand split by Intralot and the District 50/50.

Intralot has targeted July 1st for a free no-stakes gambling site with favorable craps payouts, and then the launch of actual gambling around the 1st of September, unless Congress decides to re-intervene, despite letting the 30-day period for comment on the law pass. The CFO’s office has released projections that the gambling could raise $13M for the city coffers between FY 2012 and FY 2014, which would be used to offset social services cuts.

The locations for the initial hot spots have yet to be chosen.  If they prove successful, and if the technology is deemed functional to ensure only those in DC are playing, home gambling over the actual Internet could start next year.

The Daily Feed
By

JFK Just A Guest, Not Joining The Nationals Racing Presidents

Photo courtesy of
‘Close race’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

We’ve covered the Racing Presidents from Nationals Park a time or two here. Hell, some of us have even climbed in the suit for corny features. Through all of that, I’ll admit that one of the most fun conversations I’ve had has been about when it would be time to expand the Racing Presidents with a new theme of mascots that aren’t sharing Mount Rushmore. Modern day presidents? The forgettable ones?

How about one of the most memorable of the 20th century, like JFK? Could it be that this last one may be happening?

Conspiracy theories abound since Wednesday evening when a comically-large-headed gentlemen bearing a resemblance to our nation’s 35th president made a guest appearance in the 4th inning stretch Nationals event. Check the video below:

Continue reading →

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
By

Where to Eat and Celebrate the Royal Wedding

Photo courtesy of
‘Hot Tea, Cold Day’
courtesy of ‘Samer Farha’

Sure, we’re no longer British subjects and yes, we’re thousands of miles across the pond. But that doesn’t mean we can’t raise our pinkies and toast to the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

For the complete tea time experience, The British Pantry in Aldie, VA, is offering special royal wedding teas from April 26th to April 29th. They’ll have raffles for a “commemorative royal wedding gift.” But if you don’t win you can always buy a royal wedding tea towel, that way you’ll have Prince William in the palm of your hand each and every day.

Over at AGAINN, if you donate a teapot to the restaurant during the rest of April you can have a free appetizer or dessert. The restaurant plans on displaying and serving tea in all of the donated teapots.  Aside from British fare of scones and finger sandwiches, AGAINN will be serving tiny wedding cakes. Proceeds from the cakes will go to PeacePlayers International – Northern Ireland, a DC-based charity the royal couple is donating to as well. Should you also be a blushing bride like Middleton, you can enter to win a tea party for you and your friends.

If an afternoon tea isn’t enough for you, you can stay overnight at the Ritz-Carlton on April 28th and awake to partake in the royal wedding viewing party at 5 AM. The viewing party breakfast for $40 per person will include different British treats, while the overnight package will give you two tickets to the viewing party, as well as special cocktails and “18 carat sapphire cupcakes” to celebrate the royal nuptials.

Entertainment, Special Events, The Features, We Love Arts
By

The State of Arts Education

Paul Ruther (Phillips Collection), Gail Murdock (DCAHEC Board member) and Michael Bobbitt (Adventure Theatre) at the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative gala. Photo by the author.

Last week, the Huffington Post ran an opinion piece by Michael Kaiser—President of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts— lamenting Millennials’ low “culture IQ.” “We now have an entire generation of young people who have had virtually no exposure to the arts,” Kaiser declared, citing anecdotal examples of young colleagues clueless of Caruso’s tenor or Giuseppe Verdi’s place in history. He warned that unless we bolster arts education (and make the arts more affordable to young people), arts organizations will flounder in a few years’ time as their donors, board members, volunteers and patrons age without anyone to replace them.

Unsurprisingly (and as noted on Friday by our arts editor Jenn Larsen), Kaiser has since faced a hailstorm of online criticism, with dozens of self-proclaimed art-loving Millennials labeling him “ageist,” “elitist,” and even delusional. In a frequently-linked post, blogger Liz Maestri accuses Kaiser of “[making] the ridiculous assumption that all young people are stupid, drooling rabble, when in fact young people are more culturally savvy than ever.” Challenging Mr. Kaiser’s “self-defined ‘high art,’” she concludes that “major arts organizations need to go away. They are their own worst enemy.”

In some ways, I agree with her. “Stuffy art”—to steal one of the HuffPo commenters’ jargon—is not the only form of art out there. I cringed when, strolling through Eastern Market a few months ago, my friend pointed out “bad art” at a local artist’s stand. In my mind, there is no bad art, just as there is no “high art.”

But that very mindset is something I learned. Unlike Ms. Maestri (or half of the HuffPo commenters, it seems), my dad is not a musician, nor are my brothers; I never had season tickets to “the BSO” and I haven’t worked for an orchestra. During my junior year in Paris, I sped through the Rodin Museum and dreaded Picasso exhibits. Where is the art in grotesque shapes? I asked myself.

Two years later, I see it now. In fact, I see art everywhere: in the Dupont Circle fountain sculptures, the Gothic architecture of neighborhood churches, and the countless murals speckled across the city. Continue reading →

Sports Fix, The Features
By

Good Sasha: Caps prove they can take the Rangers in Game 1

Photo courtesy of
‘Alex and Alex’
courtesy of ‘jakarachuonyo’

Quit holding your breath.

That is what playoff hockey does to NHL fans. Without realizing it, they are sitting on the edge of their seats, swearing at the refs, yelling at the ice, screaming at their TVs.

Then, overtime comes and it is so intense that it seems like they have completely lost their senses.

The Caps did not lose their senses on Wednesday night, Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals against the Rangers. They could have, it would have been very easy to say ‘Henrik Lundqvist is a freaking monster, we are completely snake bitten, it is all happening over again.’

Washington held strong and were rewarded, taking the game 2-1 for a one game to none series lead as Alexander Semin scored for the first time in 15 playoff contests, racing a rocket from the slot to the back of the net in overtime.

“I think we were a little flappable,” coach Bruce Boudreau said. “We weren’t getting anywhere and it wasn’t until that last 10 minutes where we said on the bench ‘OK, let’s start sending the defensemen, taking more chances and going after it.’”

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

Nats Almost Comeback To Beat Halladay

Photo courtesy of
‘Trying to turn the double play’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

The last time Nationals left-handed pitcher John Lannan faced Phillies right-handed pitcher Roy Halladay was September 27, 2010 at Nationals Park. That was the day the Phillies clinched their fourth consecutive National League East division title.

Jayson Werth went 3-for-5 against Lannan that night, hitting a solo home run and a two-RBI double.

In Wednesday’s game, Werth went 1-for-4 and scored a run against Halladay but that wasn’t enough to fend off Philadelphia during their 3-2 victory over Washington.  Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

MASN Introduces Nationals Buzz Guest Bloggers


Photo by Rachel Levitin

As a few of you know, last year was my first full-season covering the Washington Nationals. Tom Bridge and I had the privilege of bringing you the latest news from Nationals Park during each home game. This summer, Dan Rowinski joins us in our effort to cover baseball in Washington.

During the off season, MASN Sports inquired about whether or not I would be interested in joining a small group of Nats bloggers as part of their effort to expand the voices heard on their Nationals Buzz blog. My first thought was: “I’d be a fool to turn down a chance to talk baseball more often than I already do.”

Fast-forward to April and the guest voices of Nats Buzz have now joined the blog’s veteran scribe, Kristen Hudak. Continue reading →

History, The Daily Feed
By

Smithsonian Snapshot of the Week: Space Tea

Space Tea, courtesy of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum

The Smithsonian has started a new project, giving us (and you!) a weekly peek at an object in the Institution’s vast collection (137 million items!) that is not on current display in any of their museums. This week’s artifact comes as a celebration of yesterday’s announcement of their acquisition of the Space Shuttle Discovery.

Space Shuttle Columbia lifted off from Kennedy Space Center April 12, 1981, at 7 a.m. EST to begin the first shuttle mission, STS-1. The primary mission objectives were to accomplish a safe ascent into orbit, check out all the systems on the space shuttle and return to Earth for a safe landing. The first flight of the reusable spacecraft successfully met all of these objectives.

This powdered tea was returned from the first Space Shuttle mission food kit. Astronauts would inject water through the port from a dispenser in the galley, shake the container to dissolve the tea crystals and squeeze the accordion-shaped container to drink the liquid. The container is compact and suited to weightlessness. The tea is typical of Shuttle-era menu choices, but the packaging has changed since the early missions, first to covered cups and then to foil pouches with straws.

The Daily Feed
By

Maryland Okays Direct Wine Shipment

Photo courtesy of
‘Simplicity’
courtesy of ‘Rukasu1’

Maryland oenophiles rejoice! Now you don’t even have to leave your house or put on clothes to get your chardonnay or pinot noir. The Maryland legislatures passedHouse Bill 1175, which allows direct shipment of wine to consumers in Maryland. Maryland wine drinkers can now have up to 18 cases a year shipped directly to their doorsteps, starting July 1st. The measure was largely uncontroversial, having passed the State Senate 47-0 on Friday and the House 135-1 on March 25th.
Continue reading →

Food and Drink
By

First Look: The Queen Vic

photo4
The Queen Vic just opened last month, and it’s already quite the welcome addition to ever-changing H St. While some other popular establishments on the strip seem to blend in with their toned-down colors, The Queen Vic chose to go the opposite direction. There is no way anyone could miss the dark red exterior, or walk by without even taking a peek inside.

The interior looks just like one would expect a British gastropub to look like…I think. There is a wooden bar that stretches through the narrow restaurant. Behind your bar seat you’ll find a mirror, and in front you face quite the selection of beers on tap and some of the friendliest and most welcoming bartenders ever.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

The Case of Werth Vs. Morgan and the 4/13 Ticker

Photo courtesy of
‘Morgan for the out’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

The Lead Item: What a perfect week for this story. In Jayson Werth’s first game as a National against his old club from Philadelphia, he had his best night of the young season, going 2 for 3 at the plate with a home run and a steal. Not too shabby, and a great sign of maybe more to come from the outfielder. And when Werth and Co. get done with the NL rivals from the north, they’ll get a chance to square off with another familiar face comes to town in the series to follow: Nyjer Morgan’s Brewers.

What’s that you say NBC Washington? There may be an interesting back story between the two title characters of the last paragraph?

“After he was taken out of a game against the Tigers at Space Coast Stadium in mid-March, outfielder Nyjer Morgan — since traded to the Brewers — performed three of the six sprints on the outfield warning track and called it a day. Werth told Morgan to do the rest of the sprints. Morgan declined, figuring he arrived at the ballpark at 5:30 a.m. ET and didn’t need to do any more work. They went into the locker room a few minutes later, Werth and Morgan got into a verbal argument, with Werth telling Morgan that he needed to continue to do his work. Jerry Hairston Jr. got involved and was able to calm Morgan down. According to a baseball source, Morgan believes the incident is the No. 1 reason he is no longer a member of the Nationals.”

Pause for dramatic rhythm: It. Just. Got. Interesting. I’m hopeful for some fireworks over a nice weekend at Nationals Park. Now, the Ticker.

Continue reading →

Comedy in DC
By

Comedy in DC: Mike Lawrence

mike lawrence

I somehow managed to remain coherent enough after my day job to have a conversation with Mike Lawrence. He is coming down to DC this Friday to be the headliner for Cool Dudes Hanging Out at the Velvet Lounge starting at 7:00 and ending at 10:00. Mike, 28, is originally from Florida near Ft. Lauderdale and has been living in New York for the past four years.

His first experience with comedy was watching his mother perform when he was growing up.  They both make people laugh, but from different parts of the heart. I asked him what makes his comedy different and he said that she is the light and he is the dark. “I’m a lot sadder and angrier and she’s a lot happier.” His first time expressing himself through the mike was with poetry, but he transitioned to comedy, because all he cared about when he read his poems were the parts when people laughed. “I think my goal is to do this on a bigger level. I like what I do I want to do it more. My heart is really into live performing. Stand-up is great. It’s you getting paid to be yourself, which is awesome. I’m a nerdy kind of uncomfortable guy with anger issues and I get to be that for money. That’s awesome.” Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

Das Bullpen’s Beer List and Prices


Twitpic from @megadue, used with permission

So, you saw Rachel’s post about Das Bullpen like I did and got excited: a biergarten before a baseball game? Sounds awesome. The logical follow-up question, of course, is what kinds of beers are we looking at and how much are they going to run me? After all – part of grabbing a beverage or two before heading into a baseball game is trying to save on the concession price.

A quick search led me to Twitter user @Megadue, who was at Das Bullpen last night, and gave us a shot of the above list. (Nothing says “Biergarten” like Bud Light, amiright?) Cost wise, you’re looking at $7 for imports, $6 for Bud and Meg noted that size is probably 16 oz. Inside the park, Bud Light isn’t to be found (Miller and Coors products are your options for domestic pours), but you’re still looking at $8 to $8.50 for a 16 oz, so the price difference nets out at $2 at the end of the day if you stay domestic and aren’t exceptionally finicky about the difference between Lites and Lights. Of the others, only Bass (I believe) is available inside the park at $1 more.

My initial verdict: I wouldn’t mind me a Leffe or Czechvar before the game, but only one, especially on Thursday/Friday/Saturday when the Scoreboard Walk’s tempting pre-game $5 special may trump a nice beer house style draught.

The Daily Feed
By

Hot Ticket: Spectrum @ SONAR (Baltimore), 4/14/11

If you can get yourself up to Baltimore tomorrow night, I highly recommend seeing Spectrum at SONAR. The last time Pete Kember aka Sonic Boom brought his psychedelic freak-out troupe to the area they burned Velvet Lounge to the ground with their white-hot intensity. Their show last year was the single best set I have ever seen at the Velvet Lounge. The show featured some truly inpsired Spectrum originals, a few inventive covers, and of course some reinvented Spacemen 3 jams. I expect a repeat at SONAR.

Spectrum
w/ Screen Vinyl Image and Asteroid No. 4
@ SONAR
4/14/11 – 8pm
$12

The Daily Feed
By

Wizards Look To Finish Season Strong After Victory Against Boston’s JV Squad

Photo courtesy John Powell

My expectations for the Wizard’s final home game on Monday were sunk as soon as I saw the inactives.

“Garnett, O’Neal, Rondo”

Coming off a tough loss against the Miami Heat the night before, I was hoping to see Boston try and bounce back against the Wizards in an effort to fight for the two seed in the Eastern Conference. Instead the Celtics decided to mail it in, resting all of their starter and sending out the JV Squad.

Boston’s bench kept it competitive against a Wizard’s line-up that was also somewhat depleted. Josh Howard, Rashard Lewis, and Nick Young sat out with injuries. After a slow start in the game, shooting machine Jordan Crawford nailed a three with 38.8 seconds left in over-time to end a nail-biter that felt more like a snoozer due to the lack of star talent for Boston.

Continue reading →

All Politics is Local, Essential DC, History, Life in the Capital, News, The Daily Feed, The District
By

Union Station Birds Target New York

I was in Union Station this morning, waiting for a train and zoning off, when I noticed a striking difference between the Acela’s DC, Philly, NYC and Boston overhead posters. While all the posters feature a stylized Acela train speeding through each city’s unique skyline and all hang from the rafters in very similar positions, the New York City poster was the only one covered in bird poop, especially towards the bottom of the poster.

Upon noticing this difference, I began looking for some simple explanation for this avian vandalism. Perhaps the NYC poster was simply, and unfortunately, hanging in an already popular bird hang out? No. No birds insight. Perhaps the NYC poster featured some sort of bird attracting color? Nope. Posters were all fairly similar in color scheme.

After surveying the poster scene, I could come to no other conclusion then that the Union station pigeons, sparrows and starling clearly dislike Amtrak’s NYC Acela poster, and NY by association, and they have decided to express their 2nd amendment rights by strategically bombarding it with their poop. Case solved.

Entertainment, Fun & Games, Music
By

The Winning Ticket: Mogwai

As a way to say thanks to our loyal readers, We Love DC will be giving away a pair of tickets to a 9:30 Club concert to one lucky reader each week. Check back here every Wednesday morning at 9am to find out what tickets we’re giving away and leave a comment for your chance to be the lucky winner!

Now here is a ticket giveaway for a band that I personally endorse 100%. Mogwai are one of the very best live bands on the planet. They are elite. They are the special forces of the post-rock genre; of the many inspiring bands that post-rock has produced none are as consistently amazing live as them. Their concerts rattle souls. I once saw them play so furiously an amplifier burst into flames (seriously). Another time I saw them perform, they played so hard that their drummer had to be hospitalized immediately after the show. Enter to win two tickets to see Mogwai unleash their quiet beauty and thunderous power at the 9:30 Club on Tuesday, April 19th.

For your chance to win these tickets simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address between 9am and 4pm today. One entry per email address, please. If today doesn’t turn out to be your lucky day, check back here each Wednesday for a chance to win tickets to other great concerts. Tickets for this concert are available on Ticketfly.

For the rules of this giveaway…
Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
By

Nationals Beat Phillies 7-4

Photo courtesy of
‘win’
courtesy of ‘oddlittlebird.’

The boos of Philadelphia Phillies fans targeted toward Jayson Werth didn’t stop the Washington Nationals from winning Tuesday night’s game 7-4. Division rivalry aside, the Nationals had to prove they could handle one of Major League Baseball’s best teams on a night where their men in the corners were sidelined with stints on the disabled list.

Continue reading →