Category Archives: The Daily Feed

Adventures, History, The Daily Feed
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Snowpocalypsi of Yore

Photo courtesy of
‘Ice mask, C.T. Madigan, between 1911-1914 / photograph by Frank Hurley’
courtesy of ‘State Library of New South Wales collection’

During this past weekend’s Snowpocalypse, when I was hunkering down in my blazing warm apartment, watching Mean Girls, eating curried pumpkin soup from Whole Foods and sipping on Macallan, I couldn’t help but wonder what a Snowpocalypse would have been like 100 years ago sans Goretex, Under Armour, Smartwools, central heating, snowplows/snowblowers, TV, etc. and without a widespread use of electricity. In a word, I surmised people were cold.

Fortunately, DC blog Shorpy features an particularly awesome photo post a 1918 Snowpocalypse that reminds me just how great this city and residents are. These DCers don’t look cold at all.  They’re trudging through the snow, hats on, wool coats buttoned, on their way snow be damned. Of course, the photo doesn’t convey the intensity of the  storm or the level of hardship endured, but it does show the resilience of our ancestors. DCites do their best when faced with heavy snow fall.  We will not be cold. We will not let the snow win. Both the 1918 and 2009 Snowpocalypsi were storms well weathered by our nation’s capital.

History, The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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The History of Bullets and Snow Balls

Photo courtesy of
‘IMG_2384’
courtesy of ‘AJ Ashton’

By now, pretty much everyone in DC knows about the cop that brought a gun to a snow ball fight. Before casting aspersions, it should be noted that there is historical precedence for gun fire being exchanged during snowball fights.  In 1770, the famous Boston Massacre was sparked, in part, by snowballs thrown at the British by angry Bostonians.  Fortunately, this weekend didn’t bear the same political tension as late 18th century Massachusetts, but it’s still an interesting coincidence.  Police forces don’t take kindly to snow balls.

The Daily Feed
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Haynesworth After The Loss

Photo courtesy of
‘00207256’
courtesy of ‘Keith Allison’

Yesterday, I quoted in my Sports Fix that, “When the fall’s all that’s left, it matters a great deal,” going into the Redskins game. The Giants didn’t just beat the Redskins last night, they heard the lamentations of their women. It was a seal-clubbing. Trick plays gone awry, no points in the first half, this was the team that started out the season, not the team that almost beat New Orleans. After the 45-12 loss, the Post caught Albert Haynesworth:

“It just feels like we’re all going in different directions,” Haynesworth said. “We need someone to lead us in the right direction.”

Oh sweet baby Jesus, where to begin.

Here’s a hint, Albert, if you can spot the problem (direction) and you only ask for a leader, you will never get one. In that situation, your job is to rally as many of your teammates as possible, and lead them in the right direction. You just signed the biggest NFL contract ever for a defense player. Perhaps it’s time to demonstrate some leadership, instead of throwing punches. Maybe, just maybe, then you can bitch about leadership.

The Daily Feed, WTF?!
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Bad Driver – No Dessert for You

bad driver

I saw this truck parked in the garage at Ballston last night. Yes, you caught me – I was buying last-minute gifts for my loved ones and for my We Love DC secret Santa person. (Katie, you are totes going to love what I got you!) Actually, it was the beginning of my shopping spree, but that’s beside the point.

Can you imagine being enough of a dick as to drive like this, with half the windshield obstructed? Well, I am here to tell you that some people really are that stupid. I know there’s got to be at least one of our readers that does this sort of thing – clearing a small space at the front of the windshield and hoping nobody else is coming down the road. Probably the same people who do not stop at stop signs. So can someone shed light into this type of laziness? Why not clear the whole car of snow?

The Daily Feed
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Snowbank Blocking Pedestrian Crossing

Plowed snowbank blocking pedestrian crossing in Clarendon

Some snow plow operation in Arlington has seen fit to pile this massive snowbank right on top of a pedestrian crossing outside Clarendon Metro, forcing walkers to walk around it, on the road, dodging ice and skidding cars to get across Wilson Blvd. Hey, Arlington, I know it’s hard to figure out where to put all this snow, but if you’re trying to encourage walkability in the county, you’re doing it wrong.

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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Society Still Intact; Mass Repopulation Not Necessary


eggnog almost gone, fraternizing with cream. film at 11.
Originally uploaded by carlweaver

My Lovely Wife and I decided to venture out today, since the Arlington County snow plows decided to go down our street. Normally after a snow storm they don’t, so this was quite an exciting afternoon. I thought it would be prudent for me to be sure the rest of society was still intact or if the missus and I needed to get busy repopulating the planet. Sure enough, society was still around, but just barely.

When we got to Harris Teeter, I found that the eggnog case was almost completely empty. This is all that was left. I decided to do some self-imposed rationing and only took one carton, leaving the rest for other weary travelers.

I guess it’s okay. Soon they will get a delivery, I am sure, and this situation will likely not seem so dire. I guess it’s good that society is holding up under the strain, because repopulating with just my Lovely Wife could take a while, seeing as how we humans are normally limited to one offspring per nine-month session (very inefficient, if you ask me), and she doesn’t like the idea of me repopulating the planet with anyone else.

The Daily Feed
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Live ATC from IAD and DCA

Planespotting at Gravelly Point

Local pilots and planespotters will be happy to know that LiveATC has live streaming tower communications from National Airport (DCA) and Dulles (IAD). Few things are more soothing and fascinating for the aviation geek than listening to the smooth, seductive tower-and-aircraft dance of ATC broadcasts from your local airport.

You can also search for the pertinent airports from LiveATC search; National is KDCA and Dulles is KIAD. Found via DCTower.net.

The Daily Feed
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Georgetown Snow Delivery

Photo courtesy of
‘Random Snow Picture’
courtesy of ‘Grace Fell’

So with two feet of snow on the ground (and now melting into slush and freezing back to ice) venturing out into the wilds of Georgetown to get to Chipotle or Dean & Deluca might seem akin to scaling Mt. Everest. Fret not, dear Georgetown resident, for the Georgetown Voice has found a few restaurants and pizza joints who will brave the summit to deliver for you. Check out their list and stop gnawing on that piece of shoe leather.

The Daily Feed
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Best. Snowpeople. Ever.

Cheers to Snowpocalypse!

Cheers to Snowpocalypse!

The population in DC has grown substantially in the past few days, as scores of snowpeople have taken up residence. I met a new “neighbor” this morning, sporting lei and Santa hat, real metal buttons, candy blue eyes and, best of all, a drink complete with orange snow.

Here are a few more creative snow folks from the We Love DC Flickr pool. Got more? Add ’em to the pool!

The Daily Feed
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Happy Solstice, DC!

Photo courtesy of
‘shields up’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’

I don’t much care for winter. It’s not the cold (though that’s no fun), and it’s not the snow, it’s the lack of daylight. The days that don’t get bright until 7:30 and get dim again at 4:30. I just can’t handle that little light. So, celebrate, my fellow seasonally-affected folks, for today is the shortest day of the year. At just 9.4 hours of daylight, we’re won’t see a day this short for another year. It’s a long way back to 12 hours, yes, but each day gives us valuable seconds and minutes of daylight that will brighten our souls and lives.

Until then, perhaps warm your soul with a little Nocino, house-made at Room 11? They’ll start pouring tonight at 5pm. It’s supposed to be a real treat. See you there?

Entertainment, History, The Daily Feed, The Mall
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2010 Cherry Blossom Festival. Will the snow be gone by then?

Photo courtesy of
‘Cherry Blossoms look like snow’
courtesy of ‘InspirationDC’

Covered in 20″ of snow, it’s hard to imagine the beautiful spring weather common during the Cherry Blossom Festival, but let’s try anyways.

The 2010 festival will run from March 27 to April 11, and marks the 98th anniversary of Japan’s cherry tree gifting. Activity planning is underway with the opening night to take place at the National Building Museum, fireworks at the southwest waterfront on April 3, the parade on April 11 and many more events in the works.

The Daily Feed
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Dig out that hydrant

Photo courtesy of
‘Frozen Chain’
courtesy of ‘LisaW123’

NBC Washington reminds us that fire hydrants are among the things that need to be dug out today. If you’re one of the many lucky folks who got the day off today courtesy of Uncle Sam, perhaps you could do 10 minutes of volunteer work with your shovel. It’s not entirely selfless – if your house catches on fire today you really don’t want to wait around while the FD moves some snow.

News, The Daily Feed, WMATA
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WMATA Back to Strength

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘Chris Rief aka Spodie Odie’

Not Full strength, mind you, as Metro Access is closed today except for medical trips for dialysis, etc, but buses and trains are all running today, to all stations. They dug out 106 miles of track below the 8″ mark to let trains pass safely, and thanks to the works of the DDOT Plows, the bus routes are clear enough for passage. Be safe out there.

News, Special Events, The Daily Feed
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NatGeo Closed, Warriors Open

Photo courtesy of
‘National Geographic Terra Cotta Warriors – Eternal Faces – 11-18-09’
courtesy of ‘mosley.brian’

Some important information NatGeo wanted us to pass along:

Though the National Geographic Society and its employees will be closed Monday, the National Geographic Museum and its popular exhibition “Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor” will reopen to the public for regular operating hours from 10-6 p.m. Only ticket holders for Monday, Dec. 21 will be permitted during their designated time.

Exhibition tickets for Saturday, Dec. 19 will be automatically refunded minus the ticket-processing fee. Previously announced alternate viewing hours have been cancelled due to predicted icy road conditions in the evening. People interested in attending the exhibition at a later date should contact the ticket office by phone at 202.857.7700 so that further processing fees can be waived. Due to system limitations we are unable to waive fees for tickets re-purchased online. Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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NBC Washington Mocks WV, Shows Enormous Ignorance

Photo courtesy of
‘NBC Logo’
courtesy of ‘alexa627’

Update 9:09AM: As of very recently, NBC Washington has taken DOWN this post in response. Thank you NBC for this first step. We anxiously await your written response as well. Thanks to everyone for your action.

As a DC area resident and WV native, I am outraged at the recent insulting and downright offensive “news” article from NBC Washington titled “West Virginia Discovers the Internet“. In this not even remotely humorous piece, Chris Needham mocks WV in over-the-top obnoxious terms for putting all of their vital public records online. In fact, WV is actually one of very few states in the country that also provide public access to images of these documents, making WV advanced in this case.

In this short little piece of commentary that NBC Washington has the nerve to pass off under the “news” heading on their website, Needham writes such utterly offensive crap as:

“…they have to poop in their backyard, running through the cold, fearing that the trap door on their red flannel pajamas should pop open early, exposing their nether regions to the bite of the winds…”

Continue reading →

The Daily Feed
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How’d DC Do?

The snow has stopped, and the sun has come out, and DC has started digging out from the Snowpocalypse. I know on our street, it was a ton of neighbors helping neighbors dig their cars out, and a lot of waving at the guys in the plow. DC is saying that all streets in the city will be plowed today, and to call 311 tonight if you’ve not had your street done yet. Transportation is gradually returning to normal, with 13 Metrobus routes running, and Circulator buses resuming partial service. How’d the city do this time out? Answer in the poll above, and tell us in the comments what worked and didn’t!

The Daily Feed
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Office Over-reaction, in the act

Photo courtesy of
”
courtesy of ‘erin m’

City Paper has a good writeup of the bringing a gun to a snowball fight situation, complete with pictures of the man with his pistol in his hand. Their photos come courtesy of matthewbradley and the full set can be found here. AJ Ashton also has pictures, his showing the first moments as the man got out of the car. In his pictures you can tell that the weapon was at that point still holstered or tucked into his waistband. Click through to get to the full-sized shot, where you can clearly see his hand on his weapon. The preceeding shot of him in the middle of stepping down from the car shows his hand over the weapon but not in quite the same position.

Without seeing it on video – certainly a possibility given the number of cameras around – it’s impossible to tell if this was just him adjusting the position of his weapon or making a deliberately threatening gesture. It’s hard to say whether that’s a holster or if he’s just shoved it in his waistband. If it’s the waistband… dude, I got two words for you: Plaxico Burress.

Threatening behavior or not, I still think it seems a little douche-y to behave the way he did. You can’t just roll down the window  and holler at the revelers to stop throwing snowballs at cars? Pelting vehicles is indeed iffy behavior, and dangerous in already poor visibility conditions. Just maybe not iffy enough to justify armed confrontation…

The Daily Feed, WMATA, WTF?!
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WMATA to Stay Underground-Only In the Morning

Photo courtesy of
‘The Metro in winter’
courtesy of ‘afagen’

WMATA has announced they will not restart bus service or above-ground rail first thing in the morning, and will likely not resume service right away. There are a lot of factors at play here, including temperature and speed of plowing, but if I were a betting man, I’d say Bus service back on track by noon, and rail by 3pm. But, that’s entirely up to the good folks at Metro, so watch for more updates as they happen.

The Daily Feed
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10 Ways to Avoid Eating Your Family

3:05 angry minute

What? You aren’t getting stir crazy? Cabin fever isn’t setting in yet? You must either be one of my friends in Bangkok keeping tabs on me or else you own a four-wheel drive. Me, I am just glad I have not yet been cooked and eaten by my Lovely Wife. We are starting to feel locked down, like the end may be near, and have openly admitted to kind of understanding the Donner Party a little better.

Here are 10 ways to keep the cabin fever from setting in:

  1. Turn the TV back on and watch an eighth hour of Law & Order.
  2. Juice? Yeast? Hook it up and make some old-skool wine.
  3. Pretend your roommate/spouse/stranded friend from out of town doesn’t look like a giant strip of bacon.
  4. Come shovel out my car. Seriously – this will keep you busy, and it’s fun!
  5. Do a little dance, make a little love, get down tonight.
  6. That movie you picked up from the Red Box on the way home last night isn’t going to watch itself.
  7. Too dark to go sledding and too dark for a snowball fight, so try running through the snow like Rocky did in Rocky IV.
  8. Read a book. Or maybe enjoy some porn you picked up after church last Sunday.
  9. Call the ASPCA about the camel your neighbor George has billeted down in Mount Vernon.
  10. Youtube. It solves all boredom problems.

What are you doing to distract yourself from cabin fever and thus cannibalism?