Category Archives: The Daily Feed

The Daily Feed
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Smithsonian Kills O. J. Donation


O.J. Simpson by Project M·A·R·C

Here is yet another reason to love DC – the Smithsonian Museum has rejected the suit that O. J. Simpson wore in court when he was acquitted of murdering his wife, Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman. Apparently there was a legal fight as to who should own the suit, but all parties settled on donating it to the Smithsonian because, you know, something that stands for such a proud day in American history should be on display next to Archie Bunker’s chair and the Hope Diamond.

Way to make the right call, Smithsonian.

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Is the Macaron the new Cupcake?

Photo courtesy of
‘Napoleon box of 18’
courtesy of ‘yosoynuts’

That’s right, you heard me clearly, is it possible that the macaron is soon going to rule the market of portable deliciousness once dominated by the cupcake?  I have been saying it for quite sometime that this shift in power was bound to happen, but now that The Wall Street Journal even took notice today, this may be happening sooner than I had thought.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Suspicious Package with white powder at APA

Photo courtesy of
‘HAZMAT exercise’
courtesy of ‘United States Army Garrison – Presidio of Monterey’

WUSA is reporting that a package containing white powder arrived at the American Psychological Association building (750 1st Street NE) near Union Station earlier today. Three people were intercepted en route to the hospital by DC Fire and EMS for decontamination and none are reporting any symptoms at this point. 1st Street NE has been shut down between G and K, so plan your travel accordingly.

News, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Marion Barry Censured, Stripped of Committee Chair, Referred for Prosecution

Photo courtesy of
‘Misc – Post Partisan Apology – 10-11-08’
courtesy of ‘mosley.brian’

Count this one as a victory for civilization. Councilman Marion Barry today was unanimously censured by the City Council for his role in a kickbacks scandal, unanimously referred to prosecutors for misconduct related to the kickbacks scandal, and unanimously removed as chair of the housing committee.

Councilman Barry was loathe to admit his own responsibility in these matters, instead pushing off blame on the Council for the Bennett Report, on Bennett and his staff, and on Council Chair Vince Gray. Barry was looking for someone, anyone, to drag down with him, trying to drag Councilman Jack Evans and Jim Graham and Council Chair Gray down for what Barry felt were similar ethical lapses, no matter what the reality of the situation was.

As Geoffrey Hatchard pointed out on twitter, it was if Barry was saying “you do this, and you try to run for mayor, i’ll make sure no one votes for you,” to Chairman Vince Gray, which is no small threat given Barry’s clout in distressed Ward 8. Given that the Democratic Party is still afraid of Barry, this is no small measure of revenge for Barry, to attempt to frighten and impose upon the council in retribution for censure.

Barry continued to defend his innocence, to defend his record as “clean”, and then went on to challenge the very censure process that he’d just underwent. Barry said that he was “not dismayed” by the process, which largely means to me that we need to give these censure proceedings further teeth.

The Daily Feed
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The Big 1-4-3! Happy Birthday Howard University


‘General Oliver Otis Howard House’
courtesy of ‘NCinDC’

Grab your cake and ice cream, this is a big one! Today marks Howard University‘s 143rd birthday. On this day in 1867, General Oliver Otis Howard founded the school, which is based in DC but is home to a student population from all corners of the world.

The historically-black university not only boasts several prominent alumni, but has played a key role in American history. Whether it was Thurgood Marshall’s role in Brown v. Board of Education or Zora Neale Hurston’s contributions to the award-winning Hilltop Newspaper, Howard University has a lot to celebrate today. Under the direction of President Sidney A. Ribeau, we wish you many, many more, Howard University. Make a wish!

The Daily Feed
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Ticketed on Presidents Day? You Might Be In Luck

Photo courtesy of
‘Amount Due’
courtesy of ‘maxedaperture’

Were you (un)fortunate enough to have not heard about the snow emergency (declared Sunday evening, aka Valentines Day) and got smacked with a nice big $250 ticket for parking on a snow emergency route on February 15th? I don’t know about you but I sure wasn’t checking to see if there was a snow emergency that night. Well, City Council members Brown and Wells are fighting in your corner to have those forgiven. Give them a hug.

The Daily Feed
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Save the Date! March 20th is Polite Day…Please and Thank You.


‘Horton #23 (26/365)’
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

On Saturday March 20th, District residents are encouraged to remember what their Mommies said, mind their manners, and be kind to their neighbors. Polite Day, which was sponsored by D.C. Council Member Harry Thomas, is meant to remind people to be courteous to one another, despite the hustle and bustle they encounter on a typical day in the city.

On our morning commutes, daily interactions with others, and just everyday life, it’s very easy to get wrapped up in our own agendas. Although we may not intend to be rude, I’m not sure that we need a formal holiday to do what we’re supposed to do anyway.

Is that what it’s come to? I’m all for being polite, but what I’m hoping is that Polite Day is just in light of the snowpocalypse and bad attitudes that might have been a side effect. There are certain things that we shouldn’t have to be reminded to do, right?

News, The Daily Feed
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How To Deal With Westboro

Photo courtesy of
‘westboro baptist church and me’
courtesy of ‘Burstein!’

It’s hard to deal with the hateful jackasses at Westboro Baptist Church with the degree of response that they need, as curbstomping useless hatemongers is still technically aggravated assault, but it’s still good to let them know how we feel. For that, the Sexist at the City Paper has a great guide to how to handle a Phelps protest, which includes the sort of thing that you should put on your signs, how to not get arrested, and how to generally behave. It’d be great if DC could put together some quality counter protests to generally drown out these feckless thugs.

The Daily Feed
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DC Dogtags

dcdogtag

I’ll admit it – if I loved you as much as I should I would have written about this before snatching up the one currently available pictured item. But when I saw twitter user WStephenAnfield mention owning one of these and found it on Etsy I couldn’t resist.

On the upside, Etsy seller GingerCardCo has obviously made these before and presumably will again. You can send them a note and say you want one – it’s been my experience that Etsy sellers often have more stock they haven’t listed yet. XOHandworks also has a number of map pendants, several of which have DC on them. I prefer the marginally more “macho” dog tag, but perhaps the pendant is up your alley.

Disappointingly both of these vendors are non-local. Any of you readers local artists creating DC-centric items? The t-shirts WLDC has adopted as our unofficial uniform are made by Lara of 237inc who’s a local, by the way, and they’re still available and awesome.

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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DC Food Blogger Happy Hour: Tomorrow at Vinoteca

Happy Hour Flyer March 3

Interested in starting a food blog? Or maybe you have one up-and-running, but you want to share ideas with local bloggers about recipes, photography and software? Or really, maybe you just want to talk about food. We know people who do that, too. Join the DC Food Bloggers tomorrow night for happy hour at Vinoteca.

See you there! And make sure to RSVP on the Facebook fan page.

Special thanks to co-hosts The Arugula Files, Beerspotter, Biscuits and Such, Capital Spice, Capital Cooking, Common Man Eats, DininginDC,  Gradually Greener, ModernDomestic, Thrifty DC Cook, and WeLoveDC.

The Daily Feed
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Individual Game Tickets For The Nationals Go On Sale At 10 A.M.

Photo courtesy of
‘She’s got shade to share’
courtesy of ‘erin m’

Individual game tickets for all Nationals home games this season go on sale TODAY at 10 a.m. Individual ticketing includes Opening Day vs. the division rival Phillies on Monday, April 5 and a special inter-league exhibition game against the Boston Red Sox on Saturday, April 3 (the game doesn’t count toward any regular season standings, but sounds like fun … doesn’t it?).

You can buy the tickets online via the Individual Ticket Page.

News, The Daily Feed
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DC’s Breathalyzers Under Suspicion

intoxilyzer-5000.gif

This is an Intoxilyzer 5000, a computer-based system for determining the blood-alcohol content of a person arrested under suspicion of driving while intoxicated.  Unfortunately, due to a massive failure and/or product defect, the machines were generating false positive tests in many cases, throwing into doubt hundreds of DUI cases dating back to October of 2008.  Worse, it’s 8 of the department’s 10 units that are under suspicion of producing faulty results.  It’s not clear how long the department knew of the issue before replacing the units, or how this will be handled in the public eye.

The Daily Feed
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The DC Independent Film Festival Opens Thursday

Photo courtesy of
‘National Archives Film Canisters’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

The Oscar’s are right around the corner, but let’s not forget where our favorite filmmakers got their start — making their own movies.

The DC Independent Film Festival starts its 12 day run on Thursday at the Navy Memorial Museum/Heritage Center located 701 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.

The festival features 117 movies over the 12 day period. Tickets for both opening and closing night are $50 each and include admission to the DCIFF opening/closing receptions. Festival 10 Pack’s are also available for $50 and offer you admission to any 10 film sessions over the 12 day period.

Click here for a complete schedule of flims and events. Tickets are available online.

The Daily Feed
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Amtrak Offers Wi-Fi On-Board Acela Express Trains Between DC And Boston

Photo courtesy of
‘connected’
courtesy of ‘nevermindtheend’

Amtrak announced that all Acela Express trains between Washington and Boston will be offering Wi-Fi access starting today. The Wi-Fi will be free for riders in both first and business class. However, Amtrak is unsure whether or not the feature will continue to be free. The final decision will be based on customer demand and system performance.

Life in the Capital, People, Special Events, The Daily Feed, The District
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The Art of the Blog

Photo courtesy of
‘2010:57’
courtesy of ‘::FiZ::’

Friday night I had the opportunity to attend The Art of the Blog at District in Adams Morgan.  Hosted by Ready Set DC, The Art of the Blog is a new, monthly get together for bloggers across the nation’s capital.  With a focus on ‘neighborhood blogs’ this month, the special guest speakers – Dan Silverman of Prince of Petworth & David Garber of And Now, Anacostia – both shared candid interpretations of what it’s like to be a DC blogger.   Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Islam’s Rosa Parks?

Photo courtesy of
‘Ø£Ù�ا Ù�Ù�سÙ�Ù�Ù� – I`am Muslim’
courtesy of ‘عÙ�Ù�Ù� ~ Ali’

It only garnered a few paragraphs in the WaPo’s Local Digest but The Daily Beast has a longer writeup about a sit-in held at the local Islamic Center on the 20th. At the core of the debate is the mandate by some mosques that women pray in a separate area, sometimes behind an opaque screen or curtain. When a group of women who disagree with this policy came in and attempted to pray alongside the men, the mosque officials called D.C. police to have the women removed or charged with trespassing.

It’s an interesting situation, and the gender divide isn’t following the usual progression of less permissive to more permissive; the article cites a CAIR survey stating that 50% of mosques enforced separate prayer areas 15 years ago. 10 years ago 66% did.

Essential DC, History, Life in the Capital, The Daily Feed, The District
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Cultural Tourism DC Opens A New Visitor Center On U Street

Photo courtesy of
‘U Street’
courtesy of ‘Rolenz’

Cultural Tourism DC opened a new Visitor Center on U Street last week to introduce a new audio tour of the historic  neighborhood. Local residents and tourists are encouraged to stop by the new center and take the audio tour to learn more about the rich cultural history the neighborhood has to offer.

Stops on the tour include the restored Lincoln Theater, Jazz hot-spot Bohemian Caverns, The Whitelaw Hotel, and The Thurgood Marshall Center for Service and Heritage.

For more information, email Trail@CulturalTourismDC.org or call 202-661-7581.

The Daily Feed
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Ballpark Tours Are Back This Season At Nationals Park

Photo courtesy of
‘Nationals vs Mets – Field of Dreams – 9-29-09’
courtesy of ‘mosley.brian’

Looking for another excuse to make it to the ball park this summer? There’s more to the game than sitting back and watching the players at work. The Washington Nationals resumed their behind-the-scenes tours of Nationals Park this weekend.

The one-hour-and-fifteen minute tours include the opportunity to step inside the Nationals Dugout, see where the guys hang their hats in the Clubhouse, step on the mound and throw a pitch in the home team bullpen, access to the Lexus Presidents Club and PNC Diamond Club, a chance to feel like a big-league reporter from inside The Shirley Povich Media Center, and visits to the Nationals batting cages to hit a couple balls.

Tickets are available online or at the Nationals Park Box Office and are $15 for adults and $12 for children under 12. Seniors and military will receive a $3 discount with a valid I.D.

Additionally,  proceeds from the tours benefit the Washington Nationals Dream Foundation. So get outside, see the park, and support a good cause this season!

Tours will run until November 13.

The Daily Feed
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Metro Now Costs 10 Cents More

Photo courtesy of
‘NO SMARTRIP -6480’
courtesy of ‘Joe Tresh’

If you use a SmarTrip card, you probably didn’t even notice it on your commute this morning, but your trip was just a bit more expensive than it was last week.  As of yesterday, fares on Metrorail and Metrobus jumped 10 cents to help cover a huge budget gap.  Just a friendly reminder to bring along some extra change for your commute starting this week, and if you get transit benefits through your employer it might be time to increase your monthly benefits.

The Daily Feed
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The Olympics Are Over, Time To Play Ball

Photo courtesy of
‘Nyjer Morgan makes a great catch’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

Now that the Olympics are over we can all breathe a collective “sigh” and get back to our regularly scheduled programming. With that said, guess what the end of the Olympics means? Time for beer, hots dogs, and the 7th inning stretch!

ESPN.com Senior Baseball writer Jayson Stark puts it best (via Twitter), “Here’s a thought that ought to warm you up out there. This was the last Sunday without a baseball game to watch until Nov. 7. Play ball!”

Riggleman is forced to split the squad for the Nationals TWO (yes, two) first games of the season since the Florida Grapefruit League doesn’t start playing until Thursday. One half of the team will be facing the Astros in Kissimmee and the other half face the Marlins in Jupiter. For now, the team is scheduled for three more days of full-squad workouts.