By Tom Bridge
‘Artomatic 1905 WASA Pumping Station’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’
Think your Pepco bill hike was bad? Meet Jeanette Cohen whose WASA bill went up 4,000% last month after WASA says she used over 139,000 gallons of water. Folks, that’s a 39-day shower, but yet, WASA won’t back down and are insisting that Mrs. Cohen, who’s 99 years old, pay the whole bill.
Class act, WASA. Class act.
No word yet on how much lead Mrs. Cohen’s house now contains.
By Tom Bridge
IMG_4438
Originally uploaded by liz.shen
Okay, I know, celebrity-gawking isn’t quite the same here in DC than it is in LA, but check out reader Liz Shen’s awesome photo set on the spot in Adams Morgan. Hope it was worth all the street closures!
By AcaciaO
‘IMG_2185’
courtesy of ‘KJB Photography’
Angelina is in town today, speaking at a conference for World Refugee Day at the National Geographic Museum. The theme of this years’ conference, which seeks to raise awareness to the on-going plight of refugees around the globe, is “Refugee Youth: Building the Future.” Additionally, Jolie was slated to have a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, but that was nixed, as Secretary Clinton apparently fell and broke her elbow yesterday. My sources indicate that she is currently on the Hill in the Rayburn building, perhaps on UN Refugee Agency business.
By Tom Bridge
‘CRIME SCENE DO NOT CROSS / @CSIï¼�cafe’
courtesy of ‘[puamelia]’
The Post and WJLA are reporting a double shooting in Columbia Heights that has shuttered 14th Street at Irving, as well as the south entrance to the Columbia Heights Metro, and WMATA is re-routing 52, 53, 54, H2, H4 and H8 bus lines around the incident.
It’s not clear the extent of the wounds of the victims, but both have been transported to area hospitals.
By Don
‘The Studio Theatre’
courtesy of ‘NCinDC’
Studio’s been a little tease since they first announced their upcoming season, which contained an item listed as “an unnamed Neal LaBute play.” Today they officially announced which play that is: Reasons to Be Pretty, which is currently running on Broadway. Studio shills it like this:
This play concludes LaBute’s trilogy exploring America’s obsession with physical beauty, a trilogy he began with two Studio Theatre favorites, The Shape of Things and Fat Pig–both runaway hits.
It’ll open next March.
By Kirk
‘Travelling with Swine Flu’
courtesy of ‘Diego Cupolo’
Caitlin, one of our readers, alerted us to a case of H1N1 at America University. I will now pause briefly to allow you to panic.
Good? Ok! Media relations at AU sent out this press release detailing the situation. Apparently, an employee is at home sick with the swine flu. Students, faculty and staff that were in contact with the infected individual have been notified and advised of steps that they can take to avoid contracting the illness. I would like to remind our readers that despite what CNN, MSNBC and FOX News would like you to believe, H1N1 is not, in fact, the harbinger of doom for our civilization. Symptoms are similar to the seasonal flu and people generally recover from it within a few days.
By AcaciaO
‘NMAI Teepee Sculptures’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’
Come hear some people with skillz strum their guitars — it’s the annual Ibero-American Guitar Festival and this year it is being held at the National Museum of the American Indian. The fest will pay homage to the sounds and traditions of Ibero-American regions and cultures and will especially highlight the contribution of the guitar to these cultures. The event is organized by the Association of Ibero-American Cultural Attachés in conjunction with The Smithsonian, and will honor the legacy of one of the greatest Latin-American composers, Heitor Villa-Lobos. While full access to the concerts will cost you, ($50 for the weekend or $30 for each day or $20 for each concert) concerts at noon on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday are free. Check out the full schedule, which also includes lectures and a screening of a bio of Villa-Lobos.
‘Clouded Leopard Cubs are 12 weeks old!’
courtesy of ‘Smithsonian’s National Zoo’
Here at We Love DC, we are on the record as being big fans of cute baby animals. Oh yes, there is no National Zoo press release with photos that we will not ooh and aah over if it contains exotic baby critters.
So with that in mind, I present this representative photo of recently-posted Flickr photos of the clouded leopard cubs, now 12 whole weeks old. And I would just like to say:
I WANT TO RUB HIS BELLEH.
By Tom Bridge
‘La Guardia to New York 6’
courtesy of ‘GregPC’
The Daily Beast has a piece up today on the noble profession of line-standing, and how the character of the profession is changing as the people who want a guaranteed spot to watch a hearing in the Capitol go from being bike couriers or interns to being the Homeless. The video’s pretty insightful, and asks the question: Should linestanding be permitted as part of the democratic process, where those who can pay someone to stand in line on their behalf get all the access?
This seems to be another case of paying the homeless to do something (y’know, like union protesting) that you should be paying staff to do, but that just might be me being ornery.
By Don
At this point “change the default password” advice is pretty old news. Similarly, pranks when people don’t do so are also a little tired – there’s a whole gallery of altered signs accompanying an article on the web indicating what the default password is over here. NBC4 has a shot here of a roadsign sign that’s been tampered with here in our area and made to say things that VDOT probably doesn’t normally say to the public. I mean, maybe in Manassas but not on the GW Parkway!
More interesting to me, though, is the parts of the image NBC blurred out. Okay, F*** I get why you redact that. B***SACK? Is ‘ballsack’ really censor-worthy?
By Katie
‘7465 brownies ftmfw’
courtesy of ‘imcountingufoz’
So, as I informed you earlier, Bliss Spa is now in DC! “Welcome to the land of luxe lotions, line-levelers and lip gloss.” But for now, Bliss is having a brownie-off to see which DC bakery will supply the brownies for Bliss’ infamous brownie bar at the DC location.
The competitors? Baked & Wired vs. Bread & Chocolate vs. Heller’s Bakery.
Got an opinion? Vote over at You Be the Fudge.
By Kirk
‘Capital Pride Parade’
courtesy of ‘spiggycat’
WAPO reports that the authors of the recent Gay Marriage Referendum are taking their cause to court, asking judges to overturn the Board of Elections and Ethics’ Monday decision to block the proposal. The Board ruled that the Referendum, designed to annul the City Council’s decision to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere, was in violation of the city’s Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation. The Board stated that the proposal would extend or deny rights to legally married couples based strictly on their sexual orientation, thereby making it illegal. The Plaintiffs argue that Dean v. District, a 1995 court case which ruled the denying marriage to same-sex couples did not violate the HRA, validates their proposal. An expedited hearing has been requested.
By Max
Reese Witherspoon by UltimateGraphics
This just in! Some website I’ve never heard of is reporting that Reese Witherspoon, a lucky member of my top 10 20 list, was spotted being all hot and sweaty on the Mall yesterday. As you may or may not know, she’s in town filming How Do You Know with Owen Wilson who was nowhere to be seen. It appears they have their product placement covered with her wearing a Nike top and Under Armour shorts (and I can only imagine what else). Sources on the scene say that Reese was actually sprinting to my house. How do I know? She’s running north, that’s how.
If you spot Reese or any other celebs around town, be sure to let us know! Or, you know, send them to my house.
By Katie
IMG_0287
Originally uploaded by Addison H.
So I rarely do this, just put up a post swooning about a restaurant, with nothing particularly newsworthy to announce. But ya’ll, the new Glover Park eat place Blue Ridge is GOOD, and that is news enough. Blue Ridge is affordable, casual, with entrees around the $12 price point, and with great service, and a lovely patio, it is quickly becoming one of my favorite restaurants in the city. It’s time for you to get your rear in gear and visit.
With a heavy-focus on southern (and the sweet potato in particular), I loved every single thing I tasted. The house-made bacon stood WAY out as my new favorite bacon in the city. I loved the sweet potato fritters, as well as the root beer float I had for dessert. I tried the trout and the fried green tomato BLT, and will food dream about them both. I’m sure you’ll be hard pressed to find something you don’t like on the menu.
The drink list is well thought out, with a heavy focus on affordable house wines served in a cafe glass. I tried both house whites and liked them. So, what are you waiting for?! Go, now!
By Tom Bridge
I’ve watched over the last six days how an election in Iran was wholesale hijacked, how the people revolted, how they circumvented their government’s heavy-handed filtering of the Internet, and how they used social media tools to keep right on going. So, I present to you, a guy who may well have saved lives and continued a nascent revolution. His name’s Jared Cohen, and he works for the State Department. No, he’s not a new hire, not a product of the Obama Revolution, he’s someone that Secretary Condi Rice hired in 2006 to look at the Middle East, how to talk about the Middle East youth movements, and how to engage with a part of the world that we have a hostile relationship with.
But Cohen’s achievement was picking up the phone over at Foggy Bottom and asking Twitter and NTT to postpone the maintenance window to a time when it wouldn’t have such a drastic consequence on the unfolding of history. Well done, Mr. Cohen. Well done.
By Max
suite bett by loop oh
We all need vacations. I could go for a three month (or permanent) vacation right about now. However when times are tough and your wallet is a bit thinner than usual, you might think about skipping your trip to Paris and instead having a DC staycation. Instead of researching French bistros and quaint places to eat baguettes and cheese, why not stay right here in our fabulous city?
The key to a successful staycation is to get out of your house and into a hotel. Might I suggest the new and improved Dupont Hotel? They recently did a $50 million renovation and all rooms feature either a king or two double beds, complimentary wireless Internet, flat-screen TVs, heated bath floor tiles, Frette bath robes and Kiehl’s bath amenities. The best part is that they’re offering their rooms at $100 off their regular nightly rate, a deal that’s hard to pass up.
So ditch the kids, pack your fancy lingerie, and slip into a world of luxury. If you’re still longing for baguettes, cheese, and an overall rude French experience, might I suggest Bistro du Coin?
By Don
We’re past the halfway point for Artomatic 2009 – running 38 days total from May 29th till July 5th, today makes day 20. Have you been yet? Multiple times? I had to miss the opening because of this darned honeymoon obligation but I’m hoping our visiting guest will be interested in going this week.
If it’s anything like last year’s Artomatic it’s so big that it’s hard to see it all. Anyone got a can’t-miss artist to shill?
By Tom Bridge
‘DSCF6337’
courtesy of ‘lakelandlocal’
Alexandria has powered up their revenue-generating red-light cameras along Route 1, as well as on Duke Street in an attempt to make us all “safer”. While this is probably less expensive than parking a police officer on the corner with a ticket pad, that certainly seems like something that would chasten people for running the light rather than just treating it as an “expensable” behavior like going over your cellphone minutes.
By Kirk
‘Washington Monument – North View – 7-15-08’
courtesy of ‘mosley.brian’
Property in DC may be pricey, but, according to the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate (AFIRE), it’s worth it. In their 17th Annual Survey of Investors, AFIRE listed Washington, DC as the top international city to buy property in. With property values in the US beginning trending upwards, foreign investors are apparently looking to DC, NYC and San Francisco to lead the national market out of it’s current funk. They expect full recovery by 2010.
By Kirk
‘Plastic bags’
courtesy of ‘Gabriel Thomas’
Being non-green (we need a color description for non-environmentally conscious people, by the way) just got a bit pricier. Yesterday, the City Council gave final approval to a measure that imposes a 5-cent fee on disposable bags. The new law is designed to encourage the purchase of reusable bags, which will hopefully cut down on pollution in the Anacostia river. Revenue from the new tax will go towards environmental clean up and public, anti-littering campaigns.
By 