By Tom Bridge
Here’s President Obama bashing on DC for the snow day that a lot of folks picked up today. I, for one, couldn’t agree more with our President. The roads were a bit icy this morning, surely, but not even the hills of Fairlington were impassable. Have we really reached a point in our society where we can’t handle a little frosty precip?
By Wayan
DC requires seat belts in taxi cabs, but I do not think they mean back seats, only front seats. Why? Because I have never heard of anyone getting a $50 fine for no seat belt in the back seat. Have you?
Then why do taxi cabs have these seat belt stickers in the back windows?
By Katie
Peregrene Latte
Originally uploaded by lorigoldberg
Panera Bread (oh how I wish you were downtown DC, Panera) is giving away free coffee all day! YES! How USEFUL! Unlike free ice cream from Baskin Robbins, this free treat is perfect for this ice-out day we’re having.
Alongside the free coffee, you’ll be able to sample Panera’s new breakfast treats. Plus, if snow stirs up the gift-giver in you, participating stores will match every dollar you donate to local charities.
By Wayan
If you are out and walking about this morning, beware of the sidewalks. This one looks clean, right? Well that sheen of ice on top will bust your ass.
Better to walk on the deep snow as your weight will break through the ice and give you a solid grip. So wear boots today and take your time.
By Katie
Bebo Trattoria
Originally uploaded by Samer Farha
My Dad was in town for a conference recently, staying in Crystal City. I thought Bebo Trattoria would be a delicious place to take him, I have loved Roberto Donna’s crispy pizza and savory pastas in the past. We were ushered into our seats and then promptly forgotten about, waiting more than 15 minutes with not so much as a nod from a waiter. I caught the attention of person who appeared to be the manager and even motioned to the table, and he waved me away.
So we got up and left. It’s rare that I’ll just up and bail on a place, sometimes good food is worth suffering bad service, but having NO SERVICE whatsoever made me pretty angry, so mad that I left. Other tables around us had seemingly no waiter either, though few of them chose to walk out. Some got up and found the manager, and loudly demanded service, others just sat quietly and waited. Everyone had a different reaction to the lack of wait staff.
That got me to wondering – what bad restaurant behaviors make your blood boil? I know we all have a different tolerance of service, and different things that send us over the edge. What experiences make you inclined to leave no tip, or to even walk out of a place? How bad does it have to get for you to make a statement, and what happened when you did?
By Tom Bridge
‘Washington Library of Congress Madison gebouw’
courtesy of ‘DymphieH’
Living in the District blogger Farrelly has just tweeted that there’s a fire at the Madison Building at the Library of Congress. We’re trying to track down information, but if you know anything please let us know in the comments?
Update: Many Thanks to Sam Masten at LOC for his update: “The Madison Building has been evacuated because there was a fire in a trash can on the Ground floor which may have been set. Because of the weather outside people are going to be directed to come into the Jefferson and Adams so be prepared.”
By Tom Bridge
G Street and 13th
Originally uploaded by tbridge
The Post has a roundup of school closings for today, and all I can come up with is a little bit of, “Really? You closed for this?! Kids today.” Fortunately, DC, Alexandria, and Arlington saw the mere dusting we had at 7am and said, “Dammit kids, you’re going to school today!”
I swear, some counties will close their schools if the weatherman does the snow dance on the nightly news.
By Ben H. Rome
Snow in Springfield
Originally uploaded by Ghost_Bear
As I’m sure many of you commuters have already noted, it’s snowing. Depending on the forecast you listen to, we’re looking at 1-3 inches today, evolving into an icy wintry mix by afternoon rush.
Please drive extra-safe today. We all want to get somewhere, and driving like you think you know what you’re doing when you really, really don’t isn’t going to help the people around you, especially if you slide off the road and cause a fender-bender. Be patient and if possible, just ride Metro instead.
By Don
Well the Washington Post can keep flogging that election day paper and selling inauguration day printed blog entries messages to Obama if they want to be unimaginative. The Reverend Sun Myung Moon, on the other hand, knows that it’s foolish to sell one day’s worth of paper when you can sell an aggregation of eight year’s worth! Coffee table book “W” – not a novelization of this film – will contain a selection of the Washington Times‘ unbiased reporting from the Bush Presidency, described thusly:
this compelling coffee table styled book about an extraordinary president in turbulent times. “W” is packed with gripping pictures and stories
Way to show your impartiality, WT.
By Tom Bridge
‘(139/365) :: Say goodbye to 2008’
courtesy of ‘chispita_666’
I went to lunch today at one of my usual spots, and sat down at the bar across the corner from a guy that arrived just before me. He was an older gentleman of indeterminant age, and I watched as Zach poured his drink. It was a pint glass, filled half with ice, and then filled three quarters full or so with rail vodka.
And then I watched the old man drink it in about two to three minutes.
I’m going to repeat that, because it bears repeating. This guy drank about 10oz of vodka. In two to three minutes. Apparently, he’s a regular. Comes in two to three times a day. Always kinda shambles out, looking sober as a judge. Despite having had what amounts to seven shots.
And then I figured: My God. He can’t be alone in this town. Whew. And that’s when I picked up my jaw.
By Tom Bridge
Today, The District of Columbia takes its rightful place with the rest of the 50 states, with a Brand New Quarter that hits the streets today. You can get rolls of them at mint quality via the link above, or also get whole bags of them via the Mint for a slight markup. You can also choose which mint they’ll come from (Philadelphia or Denver) which is great for all you numismatists out there.
I’m headed to the bank here shortly, I’ll see if I can do a little better than line drawing.
By brownpau
As of today, South Carolina, Las Vegas, and the United Arab Emirates have all gotten more snow than Washington, DC this winter. The city has seen a few flurries and even a dusting or two in the suburbs, but our total accumulation so far has been pretty much zero. That might be about to change, however, with this winter weather watch.
Latest statement from NWS has us starting with mostly snow late tonight or early Tuesday morning, transitioning to freezing rain late Tuesday afternoon and evening, then changing to just rain on Wednesday. So things will gradually go from fluffy and picturesque to messy, wet, and slippery. I also estimate a 65% chance of longer grocery lines for milk, bread, and toilet paper.
By Katie
‘matchbox sliders’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’
People who regularly follow my posts here on WLDC may be wondering why I haven’t posted on Restaurant Week yet. Well, it’s because I’m selfish.
There, at least I admitted it. I wanted to make sure my mouth got to feast on deliciousness before I made my recommendations to you, blogosphere so ya’ll wouldn’t take my reservations. Get it? I’m competitive when it comes to MY FAVORITE WEEK(S) OF THE YEAR. I live for RW. I do.
I don’t listen to the haters who say places serve nasty food or you get bad service. Sure, I’ve had my share of that, namely the blah meal I got at Bistro Bis one time, or the crap service at the late Restaurant K by Alison Swope where the waiter actually told my table to eat their greens. But when you hit gold, you REALLY hit gold with RW. You can get more bang for your buck than Spitzer at the Mayflower. So where am I dining this RW? I’ll tell you… now that I’ve got all my reservations secured. Continue reading
By Don
‘Irony (b/w)’
courtesy of ‘philliefan99’
Writer and activist Adam Green brought to our attention his article about the now-infamous screwups that kept masses of ticketed people out of viewing areas for the swearing-in ceremony. Green asks a fairly reasonable question – is there going to be any accountability for the people whose poor performance created this situation? – but I cannot get fully behind the question.
Not because I don’t think people should be accountable, but because I think it’s somewhat akin to asking “why didn’t shaving a crop circle into my cat’s fur turn out well?” The first answer this question should get is “why would you want to do that anyway?” Bottlenecks and slowdowns in our city have become de rigueur even when we’re not dealing with an extra couple million people, and it’s time to take a new look at how we handle security and what we expect from it.
If you don’t look at one more word of what I have to day, at least take a moment to look at this interview with Bruce Schneier about the ways Mall security was and was not going to resemble Airport security and some thoughts on the matter. Continue reading
By Don
‘Inauguration’
courtesy of ‘RSchley’
FotoWeekDC has kicked off another contest and the theme is nice and simple.
Take that amazing image during Inauguration week, or find one you have already shot that captures the spirit of the Presidential Campaign, and the Election.
You’ve got till March 15 to enter though entrance fees go op steadily.
By jasmine
‘Exit Clov’
courtesy of ‘mockstar’
DC band Exit Clov, most notable (to me, anyway) for the haunting sound of their twin lead singers, has released a free track on their website. The song is called “My Country’s At War” and serves as a reminder of the ongoing war in Iraq, lest we get too swept up in all the Inauguration festivities. Merci, Exit Clov, for keeping our heads in the right place.
By Ben H. Rome
‘Nicklas Backstrom’
courtesy of ‘pimguy’
Nicklas Backstrom announced he was withdrawing from participating in the NHL YoungStars game during the All-Star Break festivities this weekend in Montreal. “This year I felt like it made more sense for me to give someone else that opportunity and use this time to rest and prepare for the second half of the season with the Washington Capitals,” Backstrom said in a prepared statement. “I can assure Caps fans that I’m not injured.”
Backstrom took part in last year’s game and currently leads the Caps in assists (36) and is second in points (48). He’ll be replaced by David Perron of the St. Louis Blues.
By Katie
‘Concert on the Mall’
courtesy of ‘Alex Barth’
Leaving work yesterday, I walked up Massachusetts to Union Station, and wound up pushing my way through a barrage of Obama swag, and screaming sellers. One seller was on his cell phone telling another person “come down here, there are tons more people here!”
I was offered a poster of shirtless Obama, a 2009 Obama calendar, first family mouse pad, and more tee shirts than Joey wore when he was being Chandler. There was everything, literally EVERYTHING I could want with Obama’s face (though I didn’t spot the coveted Obama Flip Flops). There was a woman pushing a walker trying to sell tees 4 for $20, and another guy hawking the hard-to-find WaPo election day paper.
Did anyone else experience this crazy Obama-market? And I swear I read somewhere (can’t remember!) that street sellers were going to have to cease selling Obama’s image on everything – cookies, money, vanity plates – after the election. Does anyone else remember that?
By Tom Bridge
Metro Platform
Originally uploaded by tbridge
Before last week, the best day on Metro came this past Summer, with 854,000 riders. Yesterday smashed that record. Metro has now released the numbers for yesterday’s totals and they’re astronomical. 1.12M riders on the Metro. Another 423,000 rode Metrobus yesterday, leading to a total public transit ridership of 1.54M people.
While it’s safe to say that most of them were headed to the Mall for the Inauguration, not all of them were, which means the crowd estimates around 1.4 million are sounding more and more credible for me.
I’m going to come right out and say it: I don’t think this record will fall in the next 5-10 years. While growth has been strong for metro with gas prices on the rise, I can’t see 1.12M riders in a day being topped without some sort of massive event in DC that will bring people from all around. The broad appeal of the Obama Inauguration is going to be hard to beat.
Maybe another Tibetan-Freedom-style concert down on the Mall with some monster names would do it, but even then, I can’t fathom them breaking the record.
DC Residents
Originally uploaded by acaben
…to agitate for DC representation, but especially so when there are thousands of out-of-town guests in one place. Guests from places that HAVE a full complement of Senators and Representatives.
These citizens were at the “We Are One” concert on Sunday afternoon, proudly displaying their “Taxation Without Representation” stickers on the backs of their heads.
Bravo, neighbors.
By