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Mt. Pleasant Blog Takes Off After 15 Posts
That’s how you make a splash, folks. I want to congratulate Courtney and Kate for starting Climbing the Mount, a brand new blog covering the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood of DC. After barely a dozen posts, their blog got picked up by DCist last night. They tell me the 5pm post sent more than 600 visitors in 6 hours.
Let that be a lesson – find a niche, stick to it, and you’ll find fame, wealth, and success as a blogger. Mine the wealth, and only relative fame. But, you know. Internet!
Jul 8, 07:35 AM / Comment [187]
A Lesson for Local Business in How Not to Use the Internet
The other day I got a menu from Duccini’s, a tasty pizza place on U St. There’s probably two or three others in my kitchen, in the middle of the mess of menus in a drawer. On my way to the trash, the title on the top of the back page caught my eye: “See What the Blogs are saying about Duccinis!”
Wow, I thought. A local restaurant might understand the Internet. I expected to see a review from any of the numerous DC food blogs, or maybe even a comment from Yelp.
No, instead, it’s a screenshot of a random, unnamed bulletin board.
The first person quotes a previous poster who asks,
“Has anyone here had Duccinis Pizza, I got a menu from them the other day. looks great.”
The man with the fro responds,
“I put one of the children of the Duccini’s owners through college. A friend put a different child of the owners through college. Another friend bought their books.”
“Neptune,” represented by a ghost sticking out its tongue, offered encouragement.
“duccinis is quite good … and they always manage to deliver mighty quick. best stromboli EVER. the best part about duccinis, they deliver ben and jerry’s ice cream! yay for chocolate chip cookie dough!”
No URL, no name of the bulletin board. Nothing. Just a screenshot.
Man, those Blogs sure love Duccini’s!!!
P.S. One of my secret passions is online marketing for local businesses. With a little bit of work, local businesses could build their online reputations and drive customers from effective web marketing.
Jun 25, 09:37 PM / Comment [2]
I'm Moving to New York City
So, some news. If you’ve already read the title, you now know that I am moving to New York City.
When? Soon, but I don’t know for sure. It could be as soon as in 4 weeks, but it could be a while into the summer or longer.
I’m moving to New York to be closer to Lisa, who’s now finishing her first year in the New School’s film program.
Right now I’m looking at various job opportunities in NYC (or that are remote), hoping to work in online organizing or website strategy and/or management for a company or organization that does some good for the world. Fortunately there’s a number of great positions that fit that mold, so I’m just going to evaluate my options and move when the time is right. That being said, again, I am preparing to be able to leave in 4 weeks time, given the right opportunity. (Psst…got a hot tip?)
Awesome Obama Visibility in Adams Morgan
Friday nights I like to walk Dirt McGirt down 18th Street, the main stretch of bars and nightlife in DC and usually full of interesting things at the start of the weekend.
Tonight, as we approached the busy intersection of 18th & Columbia, I heard tons of cars honking. I figured some dumbass wasn’t turning left on the advance left arrow from Adams Mill Rd, but the honking was pretty persistent, and I didn’t see anything like a long line of cars waiting to turn.
Honk honk honk-honk-honk – WTF? How is a rhythmic honk supposed to communicate one’s complete and utter frustration with a fellow driver’s inability to pay attention?
A girl darted across the intersection, running straight to a white Mazda pulled over in front of Starbucks, the driver’s arm outretched from the window. The girl handed him an Obama sign.
That’s when I realized there was a cluster on every corner of people waving Obama signs, shouting for Obama, and even chanting Obama chants. The honks were from cars passing in every direction honking for Obama.
A woman deftly stuck a pamphlet in front of me as I rounded the McDonald’s – an Obama pamphlet customized for DC, with an insert from DC for Obama on how to vote on Tuesday. I told the woman I was voting for him – she said, Remember, vote on Tuesday. These Obama volunteers were well trained, incredibly enthusiastic, and truly impressive.
As Dirt and I continued our walk down 18th St., more Obama volunteers were walking towards us, passing out Obama rally signs and campaign literature, reminding people to vote for Obama on Tuesday.
Not a Hillary supporter in sight. Can’t wait to vote Obama on Tuesday.
2008 DCist Exposed Exhibition
One of my photos has been selected to appear in this year’s DCist.com Exposed Exhibition of DC-area photographers. The photo at right, creatively titled “trumpet,” was taken at local jazz club HR-57.
The exhibition opens at a Penn Quarter gallery on March 7, where this photo will appear (for sale) with selections from several dozen other folks. I’m pretty excited, as this is my first exhibition in a couple of years. I’ll share more info as it becomes available!
DCist on Washington Winter
The local weather prediction deities at CapitalWeather are calling for a 70 percent chance of snow in the area Wednesday, with a 50-50 chance that we’ll get more than an inch of snow. And as we all know, just like a child can drown in three inches of water, Washington can work itself into a frantic death spiral over an inch of snow.
I am now officially disenfranchised
I am officially a resident of the District of Columbia. Yesterday I turned in my New York State driver’s license for one from the District of Columbia, along with DC plates for my car. (Since September, I’ve been driving around with a single New Mexico plate that expired in February 2006.)
Thanks to the Motor Voter form, I also registered to vote in the District. Perfect timing, too: the mayoral election was last year, my Congressional representative cannot vote, no representation in the Senate, and in 2004, John Kerry won DC’s three electoral votes with 89% of the vote – so my vote in the District of Columbia won’t matter for a long time.
Oh yeah, I’m now an organ donor for the first time – I probably don’t have any use for anything after I’m dead.
DC's Best Dive Bars, 1 & 2
Gridskipper (actually, Rebecca Armendariz) posts two editions of “DC’s Best Dive Bars,” which includes the newly-opened faux-dive Red Derby up past 16th St. Heights, and somehow excludes The Malt Shop. (To Rebecca’s credit, she gave a tip of the hat to the Dancing Crab / Malt Shop in her Tenleytown guide.) All in all, it’s a good guide.
» DC Dive Bars 1
» DC Dive Bars 2
DCist Photo of the Day!
Yesterday morning I scanned in some polaroids and uploaded a handful to Flickr. This polaroid of the Taft Bridge in Woodley Park was Friday’s photo of the day on DCist.com.
On a separate note, I lost $100 in a bet about which bridge is pictured here. I insisted it was the Duke Ellington Bridge, which it is clearly not, as there are no suicide bars over the edge. Lisa gladly took up the bet in my blind desire to insist I was correct. We shook on it, and I still owe her half…
DC: False Voter Registration worse than False Driver's License?
At this moment I am filling out my DC driver’s license application and the accompanying motor voter registration form. I just signed the bottom of both applications and noticed a very curious discrepancy.
From the DC Driver’s License Application:
Any person using a fictitious name or address and/or knowingly making any false statement on this application is in violation of D.C. Law and subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 or 180 days imprisonment or both. (D.C. Official Code §22-2405).
That seems reasonable – we definitely want to discourage people from using false information to obtain official identification.
From the D.C. Voter Registration Form:
WARNING: If you sign this statement even though you know it is untrue, you can be convicted and fined up to $10,000 and/or jailed for up to five years.
Hello! Don’t even think about messing with the District of Columbia’s elections, motherfucker. Sure, if you try to get a driver’s license to board an airplane, we’ll put you in jail for half a year. But try to vote in our democratic process? Freedom will smack you in the ass.
Forget the Chinatown bus
I took a short trip to New York City on Friday, riding the Amtrak on the way up and taking a bus on the way down. In previous excursions to The Center of the Universe, I’d taken one of several flavors of Chinatown bus companies. One time, within 3 seconds of pulling away in New York, the bus hit the side of a passing car, delaying us an hour and a half.
But on Friday evening I took a bus from DC2NY.com, and it was the best bus experience I’ve had. The bus was new and clean, the driver was friendly, my fellow riders were courteous and quiet, and best of all, the wireless internet worked, albeit slowly. All for $22. Towards the end of the trip, the driver held a vote to see if we should put on a movie. The vast majority voted for a movie, but he did not tell us what he was going to put in the DVD player. It ended up being Homeward Bound, one of my favorite movies from when I was a kid. It was fun to watch such a classic as we wound up our trip to the District.
We arrived in DC only half an hour late, which was decent considering the weather and traffic. Check them out the next time you’re going up north.
I'm Growing a Mustache for Little Girls with Cancer
Update: See 3 weeks of growth
It’s really not like what it sounds.
I’m participating in DC Smashed’s 2nd Annual Lip Hair Because We Care Celebration.
I’m growing a mustache for 30 days, and I need you to sponsor my lip hair! All of the money sponsored goes to a great charity to raise the self-esteem and self-confidence of girls with cancer. So, read on! Think of it like a marathon, but way lazier, and for a better cause. You can make your donation via Google Checkout, or give me a check in person.
Here’s how it works.
Every contestant chooses his “Mustache Hero” to emulate for his own mustache growth. In my contest application, I had explained why I chose my mustache hero, and waxed on mustachio philosophy.
My mustache hero is Mike Ditka.
On November 3, everyone competes in The Glorious ManPageant at Tom Tom in Adams Morgan. There are several rounds:
Parade of Heroes: Each Contestant shall walk the catwalk fully costumed to best represent the glory of his ‘stache, and do his Mustache Hero proud.The Slapback: Each Contestant shall enlist the aid of one female friend to enact a scenario wherein the Hero has a drink (liquid of choice) tossed in his face to establish the quality of ‘stache when wet.
FOUR Contestants will advance to the Semi-Final Round for the dreaded Question and Answer Round. The FOUR Semi-Finalists will randomly draw a question and must answer when it’s posed by the Emcee.
I haven’t yet decided what liquid should be thrown at my stache – Schlitz, maybe?
Contestants can win in a number of categories:
Most Money Raised for the Charity Best 30-day Growth Best Costume Mr. Congeniality Mr. 2007 DC Sweet ‘Stache!
I am pretty confident in my costume, so I think I have a shot in a number of categories, pending actually growing a mustache.
And with your help, we can raise the most money for charity. So, give it a shot: donate today.
I’ll leave it at the title of the page.
Grand ‘Tower of Invincibility’ Planned for Washington, DC
What is the alternative?
The sign reads: “Now we serving hot dog with proper sanitizing”
Seen outside my office this week…
A leap of faith?
Yesterday I took a leap for faith for humanity. I got off the bus after work and was asked by a man if I knew the area (at 16th and Euclid), because he was in from Baltimore. He then asked if I was a member of AAA, because his car broke down further down 16th, and he didn’t have his credit card because his son had it in Hampton, VA.
I told him that no, I was not a member of AAA, nor did I know any of my friends who were. He told me that he went to a store down the street and was short $7.90 for — something, I honestly didn’t hear it correctly. Could I take his money and go to the store to cover him? That didn’t sound appealing to me, because I really wanted to get home.
So, I decided to take a leap of faith. I offered to give him money to pay for what he needed. I opened my wallet and gave him $15 to make sure he’d have enough to get his car fixed. He asked for my business card so he could return the money. I left feeling optimistic that he’d return the money – but still felt like I could’ve been swindled.
What do you think? Did I let my laziness lead me into a scam? Or will this man return my $15?
Aug 19, 08:48 AM / Comment [1]
Detectives in the District of Columbia use a database of nicknames and aliases to track down criminals known by the street names to witnesses and members of the community. The repository includes names like “Fat Boy, Boo Boo, Meatball, Money Cash, Big Stupid, Butter, P-Funk, Dirt and Ed Lover.”
This mashup shows crime reports in DC neighborhoods
This mashup shows crime reports in DC neighborhoods. The Washington Post is really putting out some great technology content, experimenting with social news and data mashups. This map shows crime in my neighborhood, Adams Morgan.
allergies.
Today was going to be a DC tourist day – I got a ticket to the White House Garden tour and was really excited to get some photos from the Rose Garden and other gardens. The tour is only offered one weekend a year, and this was it. It was such a nice day, 80 something, sunny, and perfect.
But something started blooming last night, because my allergies have been out of control. I have been sneezing non-stop. I need a bucket installed under my nose. It is pretty much incapacitating, and I passed out for almost 6 hours this afternoon. (Every so often, since I woke up at 8:30pm, I think it’s morning and I have to correct myself that I still have to go to bed for the day.)
Unfortunately, these were not the ideal symptoms to bring myself to a garden tour. Sean, Blake, John and Pete did go, so I want to hear how it was. Hopefully I can get some allergy medication for next year.
I expect to spend the next two hours in the bathroom, because I’ve downed probably 4 liters of water in the last couple hours in a somewhat effective attempt at washing out whatever is killing me right now.
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