The Washington Times, in an occasional piece of halfway decent journalism, has a great article about DC’s speed camera program, which raises a boatload of money for the District, mostly on the driving habits of Marylanders, and doesn’t seem to curb any of the traffic issues. According to the article, traffic fatalities went up to 49 in 2005 from 45 in 2004, despite the addition of new speed and red light cameras.

The District has already collected $5 million in fines this year alone (Note, $100 of it was mine.) on pace toward $30 million in revenue.

So yes, I’m prejudiced against them because I got caught, but I guess I’m more upset that instead of just $50 (my fine), I didn’t get notified until the fine was already due, so I had to pay $100 or face more serious consequences while I fought the District’s commissioner of the revenue on the issue. But, if they’re not improving safety…and there are more fatalities…are the cameras doing any good except raising money for the District?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Friend of Metroblogging DC (yeah, I said it) and occasional MBDC contributor Erin Myers was featured in the Sunday Source this weekend as one of five local DJs profiled for the Source’s cover story.

DJ Lil’e, as the kids call her, spins an 80s alt-pop dance party called “Right Round” at the Black Cat monthly, appears monthly at Saint Ex and is also a regular at Felix, where you may also remember her from Metroblogging DC’s First Birthday Party.

If shakin’ it on the dance floor is your thing, or if you just love Robert Smith, the next Right Round is on April 15. Only $6! What a bargain!

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George Mason University has WON their game against number 1 seeded University of Connecticut Huskies, in an Overtime Thriller at the Verizon Center. Tied at 74 after regulation, the Patriots charged through the Overtime period, beating Connecticut 86-84, becoming the first double-digit seed to ever make the Final Four.

The big story? Mason’s distance attack. Shooting 9 of 18 from outside the 3 point line, Mason was well over their usual 37%. The din from the Verizon Center is coming through loud and clear over the radio, and I would imagine Chinatown is bedecked with yellow and green fans running through the streets!

On to Indianapolis and the National Championship! Gooooooo MASON!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Some random observations from last night:

1) The downstairs bar at Local 16 on a Saturday night is packed so full it’s impossible to navigate with a full martini.
2) Everyone at the inexplicably packed bar looked exactly the same. No diversity. I was even the only girl with short hair.
3) Despite said fetchingly modern haircut and killer jeans, a twentysomething rugby player called me “ma’am”
4) 3am crullers from 7-11 will assuage ageist humiliation and stave off impending hangover
5) A night on the town isn’t complete until you’ve seen a car burst into flames mere steps from your house

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

…Would you find a Maternity-wear store, next to a tobacconist.

Only in Virginia.

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I went out to the Farmer’s Market in Courthouse to check out my options for some good local produce and products. I love the idea of a farmer’s market, allowing me to buy direct from the producer with no middle man; my inner capitalist does a little dance whenever I go.

Sadly, though, I wasn’t impressed with what I saw at the market. Yes, I know it’s only the end of March, but the showing was dismal. Bread and pastry, sure. Sorbet, sure. But hardly any produce at all. Some mushrooms, yes, but not much in the way of anything fresh. While I was tempted by the peaches in bourbon, I ended up with some Polyface sausage and a few Fuji Apples. Definitely, it’s still early, but I was bummed. I guess I just want it to be Spring so badly….

One last vignette from the market. Tiffany arrived at the market around the middle of the morning, and two men with t-shirts and clipboards were collecting signatures to put former Secretary of Defense Webb on the ballot for Senator in Virginia. We both looked up at him, not knowing off the top of our heads who he was, I said “Hm. No, I think I’ll pass.”

The look on the guy’s face could best be described as “astounded.” He was shocked that someone would turn him away. It made my day, entirely.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

GMU has triumphed over Wichita State to bring them into the Elite Eight for the first time in the school’s history. Though all of our brackets are completely wrecked, Darpino was seen rejoicing in the streets, shirtless, covered in gold and green.

At the half, the Hoyas are up by two over Florida, but the chance remains that the District’s semi-pro college basketball teams could represent a quarter of the Elite Eight. Not bad, DC, Not bad.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Amid allegations of plagiarism, Ben Domenech resigned his blog, Red America, at the Washington Post today.

For the last several years, Ben’s been a close friend of mine, and has offered counsel, humor and help that I have appreciated on many levels. However, if the allegations are true, and the research done by many in the blogosphere seems to conclude that they are, then Ben has made the right decision. The Post deserves a voice free of controversy and the pall of scandal, even though I believe that Ben would have done an excellent job in that capacity.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

When I got the invitation from my friends Jeff and Cam to go to a protest at the Afghan Embassy on Wyoming Ave in Northwest, I didn’t quite know what to do. See, I’ve always had this dislike for protestors, dating back to the last round of really anarchic WTO/IMF/WorldBank protests which obstructed me from getting around downtown and nearly got me tear gassed as the protestors stormed the Citibank on McPherson square. Going to the protest would be a major change in posture for me, as I’ve felt that often times opposed the nature of protests at embassies in general.

But I went. And here’s what I learned.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs Continue reading →

Personally I prefer my seafood uncooked. Growing up in Miami there was just so much fresh seafood to be had that I got good and spoiled. So now I’m very finicky about seafood and most places just don’t measure up, so I usually pick sushi over seafood. My darling girlfriend, however, didn’t come to this position despite also growing up in a coastal town. So I end up going to more seafood places than I would necessarily like and she goes to less than she’d care for. Sometimes my inner crank is proved right and it’s lousy. More often I’m simply unimpressed. Our experience at RT’s Restaurant, however, was just flat-out excellent.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs Continue reading →

While reading about Jenn L’s adventures in finding the perfect pair of jeans, I decided that a nice pair of high-end jeans would be just the thing to treat myself to after a few months of workin’ it at the gym. After all, what better way is there to celebrate your new, cuter ass than with a nice pair of jeans to complement it?

But, I said to myself, what will I do if I go spend a bunch of money on The Perfect Pair and then I tear them? Or wear a hole in them? Or destroy the backs of the cuffs? Being short, most jeans are too long on me and I do this a lot…

DailyCandy DC has provided me with the answer, and although the answer isn’t located in DC itself, I thought I’d share it with you all in case you were as inspired as I was by Jenn’s tale of against-the-odds denim questing. Denim Therapy will re-weave your torn, worn, damaged denim to make the repaired area look just like the rest of the fabric. Prices are about $7/inch for repair work and takes about two weeks. A small price to pay to keep your $125 Luckys looking good…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Yesterday’s Post highlighted some fun comments from MoCo police:

August 2004: “In their country [in Africa] they would get shot for talking back to the police. By the way the international sign for ‘get the [expletive] on the ground’ is a gun pointed at you by a uniform police officer.”

The comments were made on the Union’s Message Board, which is not visible to the public. Of course, the Police Chief’s unhappy about the whole thing, and Hello MoCo has the best summary so far:

• Police Chief: Shut down the message board!
• Doug Duncan: There’s no room for “racism, bigotry and hatred” in the police department.
• The union: We’re not shutting it down, the board has a legitimate purpose. Don’t forget about free speech.
• NAACP chapter: Officers told us about concerns regarding the message board; not much was done about it.
• Casa of Maryland: “Outrage.”

So, should the message board, which isn’t public, be shut down? Well, free speech says No, it shouldn’t. Common sense, though, says, “Hey Guys, Generally, it’s a bad idea to say things on the internets that you wouldn’t say in front of a crowded room.”

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

This train accident from November 2004, which left one train literally atop another at the Woodley Park Metro, caused all manner of conflagration in DC when it happened. The NTSB has finally released their report on this incident, and are citing “Operator Error” as the cause of the incident that injured 20 people and destroyed parts of two trains. Estimated damage for the incident was $3.4 million dollars.

Here’s the rub, from the summary of the NTSB report:

“The train operator’s alertness was likely reduced due to inadequate sleep.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s practice of allowing train operators to return to work after having as few as 8 hours off between shifts following prolonged tours of duty does not give train operators the opportunity to receive adequate sleep to be fully alert and to operate safely.”

Airlines are required to give pilots adequate sleep times. Amtrak is required to give train operators adequate sleep times. But Metro isn’t?! How did this happen? Of course, the NTSB passes the buck on to the Federal Government to create laws that require that, but leave WMATA out of the matter? Shouldn’t the NTSB be directing WMATA to require adequate rest times between shifts? Seems to me like a bit of a no-brainer, don’t you think?

The full report is not currently available from the NTSB publications department, but should be in the coming days. I’m a bit disappointed that the investigation took well over a year, and we’re only hearing about this now.

What’s WMATA’s take on all this? Well, they’re trying to spin it, just a wee bit:

“In Metrorail’s 30-year history, the Woodley Park collision is the only time in which one train rolled backward into another. The Metro fleet is safe and we are confident that our train operators know how to brake trains,” said Steve Feil, Metro’s Chief Operating Officer for Rail. “This was an isolated incident due to operator error, and we dismissed that operator because he failed to follow proper procedures to brake the train.”

Never mind that WMATA has no regulation concerning the rest times between shifts, which lead to a degraded operator making a mistake. Want to do something about this? Email Metro’s Board of Directors, or fill out a comment form and ask for a guaranteed minimum rest time between shifts.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Mayor Williams is blogging again, and actually, today’s entry is fascinating. The Mayor goes through his mailbox for his readers, detailing the number of letters and their divisions, as well as some of his actual responses. Transparent government isn’t easy to find, and rarer still in action, but it’s nice to see the Mayor and his staff working hard on behalf of their citizens.

Keep it up Mr. Mayor. I’m digging the blog, and I know you’re busy, but could you post a bit more often than once a month?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Wtf?!

Originally uploaded by tbridge.

There I was, picking up flank steak and wine at Whole Foods in Clarendon, when I was struck by something absolutely bizarre. I’m used to seeing Tabloids and Fitness Mags. I’m even not surprised to see Rachael Ray’s new magazine in the stand.

But Wired?

At the checkout? Really?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Wired, I think it’s great, but I’m astounded to see it at the checkout stand, I always thought it was a bookstore or newsstand kind of magazine.

I could see this happening in San Francisco. I could see this happening in Seattle. But DC? Really?

There are some thoughts here:

• Is this a Tech-Becoming-Mainstream issue?
• Or perhaps a Women Enjoy Technology, too, issue?
• Maybe they got the wrong shipment and just decided to roll with it…

I dunno, but I’m not sure I’m willing to accept that my complete geekdom is normal.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

In July, the second of the clubs that marked my DC nightlife of the nineties and beyond will close. Both in a corner of SE that is witnessing rapid development.

First to close was the immortal Tracks, where I enjoyed countless nights of industrial mayhem and gothic malaise on Thursday nights from college onward, bulldozed for office development some years back.

And now Nation will close, also making way for development as that area metamorphoses into the new stadium neighborhood. The final weekend will be July 14-16. And so it continues – out with the dance clubs, in with the Starbucks.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs Continue reading →

photo courtesy of WPAC

Early last month I blogged about one of the Wall Snatchers exhibits, Graffiti Analysis, and mentioned the show. Now your window of opportunity to see it is about to close. Your heel-dragging has paid off something, however, as WPAC has scheduled a panel discussion since the opening. “Fresh Canvases: How the Street is Changing Our View of Art” will happen at the show location on Sunday, March 26, the last day of the exhibit from 4pm to 6pm. At 8pm your chance to see the show will come to a close, unless one of the artists brings the exhibit to your street-corner.

The exhibit continues at 3307 M Street, Georgetown this Friday from 6 – 10 pm, Saturday & Sunday 12 – 8 pm.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Since leaving my fulltime employment in late February, I’ve made two really crucial discoveries about the area in which I live:

1. Arlington County Meter Readers are absolutely, positively psychic when it comes to parking meters. I’ve gotten two $25 tickets in the last month because I was less than 10 minutes late to pay my meter. Two. When you think that I spend as little as two or three days a week at my new “office”, this is pretty astounding. Clearly, I need a better method of tracking time. $25 is more than I’d pay for parking all day in the District…
2. Arlington County does sell this really kickass Smart Cards for Parking Meters. You give them $20, they give you a card that has $20 in meter cash on it. Put the card in the meter, and it charges the meter with more time the longer you leave the card in the slot, up to the max for the meter. Sure is better than carrying change, but I wish it helped me remember when I was out of time…

Hopefully my other discoveries will be a little less…expensive.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

There’s a protest at the Afghan Embassy tomorrow at noon. But it’s not for anything I would have expected.

Apparently, you can commit apostasy in Afghanistan. As in, it’s a crime. As in, atheism or christianity or buddhism or shintoism, they’re all crimes. For which they’ll kill you.

But yeah, protest at the embassy tomorrow. I may not agree that any one religion has primacy over the rest, but I certainly don’t think a state ought to choose which religion gets protected status. If you’re interested, there’s a group meeting at the embassy at noon.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

No. Not the President.

No, Dick Cheney’s not there either. Karl Rove’s on vacation in Tibet working on his political zen.

Okay, look, it’s not someone who works there, I promise.

Some guy threw a package onto the North Lawn of the White House and caused the Secret Service to go from ultra-prickly to really effing paranoid until they caught the guy and dragged him off in cuffs. It is, however, safe to go near the White House again. Just not too near.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs