‘Lonely’
courtesy of ‘austrini’

WaPo reports today that the Virginia state police handed out 27 HOV tickets during a crackdown initiative on Thursday, including one $1,000 fourth-time offender citation. If you’re the gambling sort be aware, the fines are based on number of violations in the preceding five years. First time, $150, second time $250. Then $500 then $1000.  If it makes you feel any better the money goes into the State Literary Fund, which, according to the article “provides money for schools.”

Interestingly, it’s a little more involved that that. The Literary Fund is mandated by the Virginia constitution and sets a low-water mark for it – 80 million – and anything above that can be disbursed by the General Assembly for various school purposes. The amount below that is controlled exclusively by the Board of Education, subject to the limitations of law that have been set up over the years. The BoE can make loans and investments with it, but Virginia isn’t obligated to back those loans up with anything beyond what’s in the fund.

The BoE seems to be cautious with how they make those loans; the list of what’s been lent out and what’s on the back burner can be found here and there’s a lot more things deferred than paid out. Also interesting, at least to a gadget nerd like me, is one of the limitations on what a borrower can use these funds for: no “Loose technology equipment” but “Technology infrastructure and built-in equipment” is okay. I wonder if this is why these somewhat silly “electronic classrooms” that have become in vogue over the years are so common – is there a funding disparity for stuff based on whether you screw it into a rack in the closet or not?

WaPo’s DC Wire blog has an item that we’re likely going to hear more about in short order: the LA Times has gotten their hands on a congressional report about the firing of Inspector General Gerald Walpin in June. In it is information about conversations Michelle Rhee had with Walpin last year about Kevin Johnson, who she got engaged to very recently.

The LA Times item leads with the fact that Rhee vouched for Johnson as a “good guy,” but that doesn’t seem likely to burn her much unless she was romantically involved with him at the time and didn’t disclose it. I’d hope my darling wife would speak at least a little positively about me if asked; if the person she’s talking to doesn’t take that connection into account then that’s their bad judgment, not hers.

What seems like a more curious bit is down at the bottom, when it discusses the history of Johnson’s problems with allegations of inappropriate behavior with two volunteers and one student at his charter school, St. Hope Academy. The LA Times says that the report mentions Rhee intervening with a teacher at St Hope who would leave “a few months later,” according to the LA Times, in June 2007.

It’s not all that odd, though, since that timeline puts the interaction before she was identified as our new chancellor on July 12th. At that time Rhee would still have been CEO and President of the organization she started and ran before coming here, The New Teacher Project. The LA Times also doesn’t mention that at that time Rhee was on the St Hope board of directors, making it reasonable for her to be involved in things happening at the school.

The only actual oddity I found was that St Hope’s announcement of Rhee’s coming to DC indicated she would continue to serve on the board. She clearly left – she’s not listed on the 2009-2010 form – but she either resigned very quickly or they jerked up their record-keeping. Her name is not listed on their IRS form 990, which requires listing the names of everyone who who served as a board member for any amount of time between Jul 1 2007 through Jun 30 2008. She does appear on the 2006 form.

I’d say the only issue for Rhee is whether it turns out she’s associating with questionable people, or to be more precise, planning on marrying him. There’s some interesting material in these resignation letters from board members who left St Hope earlier this year, and at least one doesn’t paint a positive picture of Johnson.

‘day295 :: year two’
courtesy of ‘erin*carly’

You can pick up the first edition of the new DC Agenda (formerly Washington Blade) at:

Mr Henry’s, Results Gym (G St), SMYAL, Banana Cafe, Phase One, Remingtons, Freddie’s Beach Bar, MLK Library, Annie’s, Apex, Dupont Italian Kitchen, Fireplace, HRC hq and store, JR’s, KramerBooks, Lambda Rising, Leather Rack, Results Gym (U St), Barrel House Liquor, Crew Club, Whitman-Walker hq, Green Lantern, Halo, Universal Gear, DC Eagle, MCC, Nellie’s, and Town

It’s also in newspaper boxes at:

Cafe Berlin, Eastern Market Metro, Capitol South Metro, Union Station, Columbia Heights Metro, Crystal City Metro, King St Metro, Courthouse Metro, Rosslyn Metro, Pentagon City Metro, McPherson Square Metro, Metro Center (13 & F), Wilson Building, Dupont Metro (Conn & Q, Conn & 19), CVS (17 & P), SoHo (22 & P), Farragut North Metro, Carribou Coffee (14 & Rhode Island), Whole Foods (14 & P) and elsewhere!

Congratulations, DC Agenda, on your first issue!

‘opinionated’
courtesy of ‘spiggycat’

Not the kind of coverage he really needed, mind you, but some more facts about the naked dude in Arlington I told you about Wednesday. Washington Post’s crime blog has additional delightful facts, like the fact that the stolen car he was found in by police? His ex-girlfriend was the one who’d reported it stolen several days prior.

WaPo’s writers seemed surprised she’d still want it back after the Naked Man incident, but really, you can do wonders with Febreze.

‘Taste Festival 2009’
courtesy of ‘mirvettium’

The other night at a media dinner surrounded by food and drink journalists I blurted out the sentence “I can’t believe anyone would spend $350 on a bottle of liquor! You drink it, and then it’s GONE!” and everyone looked at me like I had five heads. I should learn to keep my mouth shut, and think about who my audience is before I speak. (Emphasis on SHOULD, reality is I probably never will. Let’s pretend it’s endearing.) So anyways, point is, today, I eat my words. And my words taste like truffles. Continue reading →

The Trapeze School of New York has been offering classes on the site of the old convention center at NW Hand 9th for about four months now but that time is going draw to a close. It’s always been intended to be a short term deal, though the classes running though the end of the month make it six months of operation, not the four the Washington Post originally reported.

It seems a more long-term home is on the horizon for TSNY, whose class schedule lists them as “closed for construction” at the end of the month and with a promise to open in 2010. They haven’t yet returned my call to confirm, but its almost certain that they’re the unnamed trapeze school named in a recent zoning board decision allowing a trapeze school “which must relocate from its present site” to set up in the area right next to Nationals Stadium.

The city calls the area the “Southeast Federal Center Overlay district” which is pretty lofty-sounding for an eight block area. You can look at Google maps’ sat view here – it’s the area below M between the Navy Yard and 1st SE. I’m not sure how gung-ho I’d be about swinging through the air at high speed in January but I’m all in favor of something more interesting in that area than parking lots and big holes in the ground.