Heads up, Metro, this one sounds like something you’d definitely want to get working on right now:

Today, we are happy and proud to tell you that their efforts have resulted in a new Google Labs experiment: Google Transit Trip Planner. With it, commuters will be able to easily access public transit schedules, routes, and plan trips using their local public transportation options. This first release covers only the Portland, Oregon metro area, but we are working to expand our coverage very soon. (If you’re from a local transit agency interested in being included in Google Transit, we would love to speak with you. Just write to us.)

I’d love to see The Ride Guide replaced with some sweet Google lovin’, if you know what I mean. C’mon Metro, step up, this would be awesome!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I just have to ask… who the FUCK designed Columbia, MD? I’m not talking about the residential portion of one of America’s first planned communities (but the wisdom of creating an entire community with no reliable landmarks that aren’t duplicated 4 blocks later is questionable). I’m talking about whoever the mental giant was that designed the business district.

My business partner and I had to drive from downtown DC to Columbia, MD today to deliver our company’s annual holiday gift to a client there. Keep in mind, this is typically a 5 minute visit, and we’re driving 33 miles to do it. Why? Because someone three levels up from us decided that every one of our active clients had to get this gift. In person.

So we get off 95 at Columbia to discover that there are no damn street signs, rendering our Google directions useless. We stumble our way to the business district on Dobbins Rd, looking for #6440. Approximately where 6440 should be is a shopping center. It contains 6435, 6445, 6450, but no 6440, and no one has any idea where it is. So we go across the street and find a 6440, but it’s an auto-parts store. Great.

Another quarter-mile down the road, in yet another complex, we find what? A SECOND 6440!!! WTF? How can there be so many buildings labeled 6440? Does that not confuse the mail carrier?!

Having completed our 5 minute errand after an hour and a half of driving around, we decide we need some hot chocolate for the ride home and decide to go to the nearby Starbucks. But you can’t get to that Starbucks from the same thoroughfare we were on. There was no driveway into the (yet another) complex it was situated in. Just grass and landscaping.

We had to turn down an unmarked side street to find what was apparently the only driveway into the center. It took us to the loading docks area, where we had to then take a hairpin turn back toward the Starbucks and wind our way around to the front of the building.

Who the hell designs a shopping center this way? Why would you send your shoppers to the loading docks first? That’s like… like joining a dating site and using a photo of your armpit in your profile! Sure, it’s you, but it’s not exactly the best first impression.

I don’t know who designed the Columbia business district, but they did a shitty, shitty job.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Last night’s outing is today’s hoarse throat. Was it due to the issue du jour, a smoky bar? Well, yes and no. I did go to a bar where people were smoking, but they were also singing, and after a few pints to celebrate my husband’s birthday, so was I…

The flyer for “Twisted Karaoke Tuesdays – the Best of 80’s, Punk, and Glam,” could hardly be resisted. So it was back to The Reef for an evening of fun. I remembered reading that Wayan had visited the event back in the summer and found it lacking, but at that point it was billed as a strictly metal event, and since then they’ve expanded the genres. So we decided to give it another shot. What better way to celebrate a birthday than good-humored humiliation in front of your dearest friends?

At first we panicked when the DJ/Emcee started off with 80’s of the Paula Abdul variety instead of say, The Clash variety. But after a brave couple did a duet to David Bowie, we relaxed. There would be some glam after all, and though we never did get any punk, someone did do a head-banging Slayer rendition that even included some dead-on air guitar.

The crowd was great – from the self-deprecating howlers bravely giving it their all to some truly brilliant divas with the moves. It was a really good mixture – no haters, everyone applauding and having fun. By the end of the night I’d been talked into a duet with my birthday boy, yodeling to the B-52’s. Crazy. No wonder my throat hurts today. But it was worth it.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

… Looks like Chicago is banning smoking as well! Though, they appear to be phasing it in over 2 1/2 years, instead of the one year phase in that the proposed ban here would allow.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Bagpipe murderer

Originally uploaded by tbridge.

Have you seen this guy violating his bagpipe in front of Farragut North? He’s horrible. Like “Please pay him to shut up” horrible. Isn’t the idea of being a street musician being good at what you do?

I love good bagpipes. They’re a wonderful thing. When played by good pipers.

In the hands of this charlatan, it sounds like he’s violating a cat.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

After Podcasting was named to the Oxford English Dictionary, WUSA has moved their local news to podcast format. Well, or so they claimed on their 7pm broadcast tonight. Except, that it seems there’s only one Minicast up as of right now, though their segments are available piece by piece.

Why do you taunt us, WUSA 9, with just one minicast? It’s great that segments are available, but why not minicasts, too?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Hmm, wait, that’s the expression for talking about music. What would blogging about art be?

It would be Eye Level, the new Smithsonian American Art Museum‘s blog. Although a blog that touched on one exhibited work a day would be an interesting one, this is actually more sweeping. Their opening day post says “Eye Level investigates American art

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

By a 12 to 1 margin, the DC City Council has expanded the city’s smoking ban to include restaurants, so long as business does not drop by 25%. Bars and clubs will also be required to add ventilation or separate accommodations by 1 January 2007, though the requirements are NOT currently waived for cigar and hookah bars, Councilman Graham is working on an amendment for the second reading on 3 January 2006.

I do not speaking for Metroblogging at large, nor this site as a whole, but as a citizen and independent of the site I write for, I welcome this move and congratulate the DC Council for making the right decision. Second-hand smoke is really one of the most frustrating thing about going out to a bar or club, and I will probably work to take advantage of this more, now that I can go out and have a great dinner and a few drinks in a local establishment without coming home reeking of second hand smoke and tobacco. I hope that the amendment allowing hookah bars and cigar bars to continue to allow their patrons to smoke continues, though, as those are places clearly designed for the purpose of smoking.

Many will say that this threatens the local eateries and bars in the District. Data from Montgomery County suggests the oppposite:

in the 12 months after the smoking ban took effect in October 2003, state sales tax receipts for Montgomery restaurants grew by $4.4 million or 7.6 percent, compared to the 12 months leading up to the ban. Applications to open new restaurants in the county also increased from 80 to 87, up 8.7 percent, according to the county’s public health service.

While data is not conclusive (and some data is in fact contradictory), I would have to say that I firmly believe this to be good for the city, and good for metropolitan area at large. Perhaps Arlington County and PG County should follow?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

There’s a bar in Glover Park called Bourbon. I’ve wanted to check it out for some time now, then I heard that they were going to open an offshoot in Adams Morgan, but it escaped my mind this past weekend as we wandered in search of post-dinner drinks.

We were a bit aimless, probably due to our consuming an entire bottle of sake with our sushi at Uni (random note: Uni has WiFi now!). It was cold and windy, which inspired a serious hankering for the infused vodka at the cosy Russia House lounge, but they were shut for a private party. “No room at this inn,” we thought, moving on sadly to 18th Street.

It’s funny how I’m sort of “rediscovering” Adams Morgan, lately. On our brisk walk up Columbia Road we passed the apartment building I lived in back in the mid-nineties, as a foolish and totally insane twentysomething. It felt very odd to walk by again.

Our next destination turned out to be the Blue Room, with its glowing bar. However, again we were thwarted – “Private party,” the cheery bouncer informed us, “but the first floor’s open.” This is how we ended up at Bourbon, completely unawares until after sitting down and ordering drinks and then finally noticing the long line of amber bourbon bottles behind the bar.

In case you haven’t guessed, Bourbon is located on the first floor of the Blue Room. It’s a small space with a few tables and booths in front and a bar in back. There’s an almost Asian feel to the simple decor, especially the dark wood bar. Though there were people partying it wasn’t too full at any point in the night, and I found out later that was its opening weekend. The two bartenders were both extremely nice and talented – we had some great cocktails, but ridiculously as we realized afterwards, we never did try any bourbon. From what I could tell they have a great selection. Oh well, I guess we’ll have to return to try them! The music selection was nicely eclectic. It looks primed to become a very popular spot so be sure to check it out before it hits maximum capacity.

I can only hope that you won’t be bounced around too much first – watch out, the private holiday parties have started!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

If you’re a beer guy, you know how important the ability to get good beer is. In DC, we’re spoiled with places like Capitol City Brewing Co., RFD, The Brickskeller, Elephant & Castle, Harry’s Taproom, Dr. Dremo’s and other such august places to knock back a few beers with your friends. Now, up in Gaithersburg, Dogfish Head has opened up an Alehouse in Gaithersburg right off the 270. Rumor has it that they might keep a Randalizer up there, but I’ve not heard one way or the other!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

I’m a wireless junkie. I love the latest and greatest technologies. DC is a fantastic place to live and be a wireless junkie, due to all the wireless providers trying to jockey for position with the government. The new 3G network Cingular is putting up promises burst speeds of 1 megabit, and sustained transfers at 400-700 kilobits per second. Service isn’t cheap, but if you absolutely positively need the fastest service available, this would be the way to go.

The coverage area suggests that all of the District, Arlington county, half of Fairfax, all of Alexandria, and as far to the northwest as Gaithersburg and to the Northeast as Perry Hall (on the other side of Baltimore!) will be covered by the new 3G service. Not at all shabby.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Two little bits of DC humor have wended their way to my inbox today, and both are worth a serious chuckle. The first has to do with our seriously bizarre street layout:

The DC road grid was laid out by a Frenchman, which explains why locals hate the French, and also explains much about US Foriegn Policy. Within DC proper, the roads are laid out in a grid, with other streets crossing the grid at weird angles, usually through a traffic circle. No one in DC knows how to drive in a traffic circle, and people from the surburbs are worse. Many streets are one way, and making a left turn can require travelling three or four blocks out of your way. Right turns are worse. Right turn on red is allowed, except at intersections that are posted otherwise.
Most intersections are posted otherwise.

And the second, well, it speaks for itself (kinda sorta definitely NSFW. Text only.)

Whoda thunk we had such great orgies down in Virginia?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Asian Hymn Singing Guy on the Orange Line

Originally uploaded by brownpau.

Flickr user brownpau caught a photo of my favorite Metro Amusement: Asian Hymn Singing Guy. He’s been in DC easily as long as I have. He gets on usually somewhere like Foggy Bottom, and as soon as you’re in the tunnel bound for Rosslyn, he unleashes his lovely baritone voice.

This time of year, it’s almost always a Christmas Carol.

As soon as train pulls into Rosslyn, He slaps shut his hymnal, politely wishes the assembled riders a happy holidays, and exits the train.

Sure, he has a thick Korean accent, but his voice is good, and his pitch is true. Every time I see him I smile. Here’s someone who truly believes in what he’s doing. You don’t find that very often anymore, even in this town.

Sing on, Mr. Asian Hymn Singing Guy. You’re my favorite part of this season.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Looking for a gift for the future doctor in your family? A gag gift for your significant other?

The National Academies of the Sciences bookstore has Giant Microbe toys. Ebola for your budding medical genius, syphilis for your girlfriend!

The NAS bookstore is located at 500 Fifth Ave, NW, near the Judiciary Square and Gallery Place metro stations. And if your loved one is really geeky, there are a number of publications by the Academies available for purchase as well.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Well, our own Diane Rehm has snubbed us but we’re in good company. On today’s 11am show she talked to Dan Burstein about his new book “Blog,” but not one mention of the subject of local events and issues blogging – just national news issues. C’mon guys! Blogs vs Big Media is sooooo 2004 – let’s hear about how we’re impacting local issues and coverage.

Today’s update from 2004 should be available for you to listen to online by this evening.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Cold Tiki Torch

Originally uploaded by tbridge.

I hardly know what to think about all the weathermen and weatherwomen in this town. I swear, they take the most implausible worst case scenarios and predict their forecasts by them. Bob Ryan, Topper Shutt, you guys really oughtta do better. We had maybe an inch or two on the ground this morning, all the while you were proclaiming to the highest heavens that we were due some 4-6″ of the white powdery stuff that even Marion Barry won’t snort.

How did you make out with the snow?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Well, we know the lobbyists in this town are a bit dodgy. Some of them like Abramoff et alia seem to be trading favors for favors, as it were, and lawsuits around that are no small amount of news. However, The Hotline at National Journal seems to think we’re about to see a different sort of scandal emerge:

According to the U-T, Wilkes also “ran a hospitality suite, with several bedrooms, in” DC — “first in the Watergate Hotel and then” in a Capitol Hill hotel.

Come again? A “hospitality suite with several bedrooms”?

Talk about raising more questions, including:

— Why does a lobbyist need a “hospitality suite with several bedrooms”?

— Who uses those bedrooms and for what?

These lobbying scandals involving Cunningham and Wilkes and Abramoff are looking more and more like a bad movie script every day. Except with one difference from the movies: this stuff actually happened.

Yeeshies. But, of course, this is all conjecture…but knowing this town, the weirder, the more likely.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Christmas Tree

Originally uploaded by tbridge.

Well, the first flakes have fallen, and I’d say there’s about 1-2″ here in Fairlington tonight. The storm appears to have pushed further East than the forecasts had called for, and it appears we’ve missed the brunt of the storm here, though folks on the Chesapeake may get the lion’s share of the snow.

The roads in NoVA are clear tonight, though the stores are all out of milk and eggs. Shocking, really, that we would all overreact. Thankfully, with roads clear and snow just barely mounting, looks like we avoided the big storm we were promised.

I got out tonight when I got home, and took a bunch of long exposure shots on a tripod. The results are pretty amazing. Did you get a good shot of the snow? Share!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Tom’s post about Tony Bennett and the Kennedy Center Honors reminded me that Mr. Bennett is my only bona-fide brush with celebrity in DC. Well, that’s not entirely true – I’ve also in my time bumped into Bob Dole as he entered the Four Seasons, spotted Clinton as he exited the church on 16th street, saw both Tony Williams and Eleanor Holmes Norton at Eastern Market, oh, and then there was the time I watched Marion Barry hold court at the YMCA. But none of these were remotely exciting, really. They’re all political sightings, which any number of us can have on any given day of the week in DC. Ho-hum. But Mr. Tony Bennett, now that’s something.

I was having lunch in a little cafe near the Kennedy Center back in ’96. My back was to the room, so I could do my usual daydream drill of staring out the window thinking “some day I’m going…” whatever it was that day. I began to be aware of an electric charge in the room, the way people were talking was changing, and I heard someone begin the dance of deference. “Hmmm.. someone important is here,” I thought, “who cares?”

I was just drifting back into my lunchtime reverie when a strong, craggy yet impossibly smooth voice made itself known. It was like hearing a beloved uncle, unexpectedly, laden down with presents just for you. I sat straight up. That voice! It was, no, could it be? “Fly me to the moon…”

Of course once I figured out it was him, sitting down having his lunch and being schmoozed by the cafe owner, I had to force myself not to turn around and morph into a giggling schoolgirl. The man is a god, definitely, but he should have his privacy. So I only snuck a glance when I was done and busing my tray to the counter. He was holding court with aplomb, in a tweedy jacket, collar open, silver-haired, those eyebrows, just as you’d imagine him and ready it seemed to start crooning any minute. I dashed out and called my dad to tell him I had just seen, “Tony! Bennett! The! Tony! Bennett!”

That’s it. My best brush with celebrity (while living in DC, that is. The best one in my life was the divine Alan Rickman, but that’s a non sequitur here. Besides, you might start accusing me of being a crazed celebrity hound. No!)

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Tony Bennett sure can sing. That’s for absolutely certain. However, man, you gotta feel like he’s aged a million years since 2000. The Washington Post has photos from this weekend’s events at the Kennedy Center Honors, and boy, does Tony look old. Congratulations on a helluva career, my friend!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs