V.w.verweij

The wizard you choose determines your fate 

Many tiny mandarin ducklings hiding under their mother.

Photos: Devin Murphy/Smithsonian’s National Zoo

From the Smithsonian’s National Zoo:

“Today was Bao Bao’s first time playing in the snow outside! And she was quite the little snow panda. She spent her morning tumbling down the hill in her yard, climbing and sliding down trees and pouncing on her mom Mei Xiang!

Giant pandas live in mountainous bamboo forests in China, during the winter it can be very cold and snowy.”

It’s National Bird Day!  

And what better to share on National Bird Day than one of our favorite bird-friendly places - Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area in Idaho?

A part of the BLM’s National Conservation Lands, the Snake River Birds of Prey hosts some of the largest concentrations of raptors in the U.S. The area’s 485,000 acres host some 800 pairs of hawks, owls, eagles and falcons that come each spring to mate and raise their young. As a complete, stable ecosystem, the NCA is a valuable place for research and education.

Check out BLM Idaho’s website for great information about the area and educational materials for learners of all ages:http://on.doi.gov/1hWoXCg

When the history of ’90s sitcoms is told through televised romans à clef, it is, of course, the writers who get the last word. Tension between writers and stars is nothing new to television — ask any writer of Mork & Mindy what working with Robin Williams was like — but these tensions became more pronounced in the ’90s, for two reasons: The syndication money was obscene, and the standup explosion of the ’80s led to a demand in star-driven vehicles based on standup routines. This led to inevitable questions of authorship. Carsey-Werner became famous for creating sitcoms around standup performers (Bill Cosby, Roseanne Barr, and Brett Butler, for example), and just as famous for the volatility of their stars.

Certainly writers poking fun at their stars is nothing new (Cheers mocked Ted Danson’s vanity decades before Community took a swing at Joel McHale‘s), but when relations were frosty, the narrative was: actors were hard to work with. It should come as no surprise that in a field as male-dominated as TV writing, male stars endure light ribbing even when the network had to hire a fixer to pay off their rape victims, while there’s a word we use to describe demanding women. It is for this reason, in part, that The Comeback is such a (hilarious) relief: Lisa Kudrow functions as a writer-performer (co-creating the series with Sex and the City’s Michael Patrick King) and can reframe stories of bad behavior on both the part of the actors and the writers. On one episode this season, Seth Rogen, playing himself, observes that “every writer” wants to shoot their actors, and “that’s why you gotta write your own stuff.” The Comeback, which just finished its second season on HBO, is far from the first series to make specific references to closet skeletons in Hollywood, but its point of view is decidedly rare.

Read the rest at Splitsider

If you have any animal/pet photos you’d like to share please send an email to princeofpetworth(at)gmail(dot)com with ‘Animal Fix’ in the title and say the name of your pet and your neighborhood. Your photos will go into the queue (usually 6-8 weeks wait) and will be posted in the order I receive them. If you’ve already entered your pet and would like to do so again – that’s no problem – just space the entries out a bit. Please try to send horizontal photos 640×480 (medium size on your iphone) if possible. If you’re not using an iphone any size is fine.

“Hank and Harriet sunbathe together. Based in LA but I (their aunt) live in Columbia Heights.”

“Skittle, thinking he should be the only orange creature in the house, faces off with Jack (O’Lantern) on Webster St.”

“Grover (left, white rabbit) and Gertrude (right, black rabbit). Grover is Dracula and Gertrude is dressed as the she-devil that she is—Grover was smitten with her when he met her at a rabbit matchmaking. Both are rescue rabbits. They live in Foggy Bottom.”

“This evening while walking my pup, I ran into a woman whose dog Bunker got away a couple of days ago. (My heart is breaking for her; in her place, I’d be devastated.) Thought I’d spread the word.

Bunker is a chihuahua mix, about 10 lbs, and apparently he is a shy and skittish fellow. He was last seen around the corner of 4th and G Streets SE. Marion Park and Garfield Park are nearby.”

Ed. Note: Thanks to Michelle for putting together this list of adoptable pets. It will be featured the last Friday every month. If you are interested in submitting an adoptable pet you can email Michelle at Help.the.Pups.DC(at)gmail(dot)com

Superman – Rural Dog Rescue

Rocket Boy & Twister – Homeward Trails Animal Rescue

Rocket Boy (male tabby with white) & Twister (female tabby) are 6-month old kittens from Homeward Trails Animal Rescue. Rocket Boy is just as friendly as can be and is happy to be picked up, held, and cuddled. Twister is up for playing at any moment and loves to explore. For adoption information, please visit their Petfinder page. If you are interested in becoming a foster, please send an email here. You can also meet some of our adoptable animals at one of our events!

More great pets after the jump.

Leon – Washington Humane Society

Leon is a 1.5 year old pitbull mix from the Washington Humane Society. Only Leon’s intake pic was available, but he is cute as can be. He is a super sweet and very social pup that would love to spend his time with you. He is great with other dogs and loves treats (so he would be a lot of fun to teach tricks)! He is active and would like to find a buddy to take him out running or hiking. Enough good things couldn’t be said about him. You can meet Leon at WHS’s New York Avenue Adoption Center and learn about the adoption process here.

Clarendon has been ranked among the nine “yuppiest neighborhoods in America” by the website Thrillist.com.

The Orange line neighborhood made the list thanks to young, affluent residents and their standard-issue upscale haunts, like Whole Foods, Pottery Barn and Lululemon. From the website:

This Virginia neighborhood across the river from DC blends the quietude of suburbia with the bustle of city life, which makes it perfect for the professionals who work on K Street. Single and young families alike call this place home, and chain staples like Pottery Barn, Whole Foods, and Lululemon are interspersed with just enough local bars and restaurants to keep the newly minted post-grad yuppie-types from fully realizing the commercial existence they’ve bought into.

The other eight yuppie neighborhoods to make the list are LoDo (Denver), West 6th Street (Austin), Pearl District (Portland), South Lake Union (Seattle), Lincoln Park (Chicago), Back Bay (Boston), Brickell (Miami) and The Marina District (San Francisco).

(Updated at 1:45 p.m.) Tejo Remy, an artist for the Netherlands whose work has been featured in the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, is designing a fence for the plant that filters Arlington’s sewage.

The fence surrounds the Water Pollution Control Plant, on the 3400 block of S. Glebe Road, and it will be designed in Remy and design partner Rene Veenhuizen’s style of reusing common objects to create engaging works of art.

The perimeter fence includes a long stretch along the Four Mile Run trail.

“The design-duo’s ethos stems from a strong industrial design background, reusing existing resources rather than consuming new materials, and building awareness about our connection to the environment,” Arlington Cultural Affairs spokesman Jim Byers said. “Remy and Veenhuizen have developed and will implement a compelling, innovative design concept which will serve as a unifying element within the Four Mile Run area, while creating distinct enhancements for the fence at the Water Pollution Control Plant.”

The project is expected in 2015, Byers said. It was approved by the Arlington County Board in April 2012.

Some of Remy’s noted work includes a “chest of drawers” displayed at MoMA and a chair made of rags. He spoke briefly about the fence project this week at an exhibition on Dutch design at the Netherlands embassy in D.C.

Photo (top) via Google Maps, (bottom) courtesy Alan Henney

theoriginal99luftballoons:

Bloomingdale Colors (by Ronnie R)

I have owned a dog for my entire adult life—more properly, a Chihuahua. First, there was Sal. Then, for a brief period, there was Sal and Penny. Since 2007, it’s just been Penny. (RIP Sal.) Both Sal and Penny, despite their temperamental differences, have always been treated like actual family members. We rarely leave Penny at home while we vacation or visit family. And, like family, we have made great allowances, and often, excuses, for her misbehavior.

Anyone who knows Chihuahuas will be unsurprised to hear that Penny is abnormal for a dog but fairly standard for a Chihuahua. She is sweet and cuddly and playful. She doesn’t even mind strangers, once it’s clear they are staying for a while. She easily adapts to hotels and new houses and new people. But, her list of dislikes, or, more properly, things she cannot tolerate, is long: other dogs, birds, squirrels, loud noises, strollers of any sort, doorbells, delivery people of any sort, and of course, babies and small children.

Now, Josh and I would both admit, I think, that some of Penny’s failings are our fault: We never taught her much. She doesn’t know many tricks, though she is very intelligent. She isn’t obedient in any way at all, and we never successfully learned how to deal with her nerves. Which, was, in hindsight, a grave oversight.

We worried a bit, when I was pregnant, about what it would be like for Penny. “The dog is just as important to us as the baby,” we told ourselves, because we LOVE this dog and didn’t have a baby yet, so we didn’t realize how silly it is to say or think that. We felt confident that the dog and the baby would get along just fine. And at first, they did. We were so proud of Penny. Zelda, who didn’t seem to be aware of the dog’s existence for several months, was an object that Penny seemed instinctually to want to protect. She would lie on the threshold of Zelda’s room, as if waiting for intruders. When the baby cried, Penny’s ears perked up and she ran to whatever container the baby happened to be currently contained in. Whenever we let her near the baby, she sniffed her quickly, stealing a whiff, before backing away, head cocked, trying to make sense of the being now living with her.

Of course, Zelda wasn’t really living yet. Sure, she was a huge draw on my personal resources, but it was probably better than ever for Penny, at first: Zelda wasn’t much of a crier, she slept a lot, and so suddenly, I was at home twenty-four hours a day, quietly sitting in one place while Penny slept nearby. This is, as far as I can tell, Penny’s most desirable life scenario: to just chill at home with one of her owners, silently snoozing all day.

Then, Penny started stealing items of Zelda’s clothing. She’s always had a fondness for my dirty laundry, so it was cute to watch her suddenly make off with little socks and bibs, a little hat patiently hidden under our pillows. We started to see her creep off into corners, digging imaginary holes, burying her treasures nervously. Then, a few months ago, things started to go south for old Penny. Zelda started sitting up and reaching for Penny’s tail. Penny didn’t like this development, and she didn’t hide her feelings well. The entire family—all four of us— were sitting on the floor of Zelda’s room the first time Penny sort of snapped at her. Zelda had grabbed the fur on her back and, before one of us could stop her, she tugged. Penny has snapped at us before, usually while in bed, but in her nearly eight years of life, she has never managed anything resembling a bite. Her “snap” is more of a warning, delivered with her mouth, rather than an intention to harm.

The baby doesn’t walk yet, but she’s working on it, and Penny knows it, so the relationship has deteriorated progressively, on Penny’s end, to this: A few mornings ago, I walked downstairs to the living room, where Penny was asleep. Zelda was in my arms, and laughed when she spied the dog. Penny perked up, unsure for a split second, then emitted a low, slow, almost lazy growl. We walked into the kitchen and I set the baby down. The growl continued. It wasn’t a growl that required work, but it was consistent. Zelda was probably twelve feet away from her, and crawling in the opposite direction. But still, Penny needed to do this. To express something. Zelda laughs at the growl, determined, as in all things, to make the joyful best of it.

What is she telling us? Zelda is a threat to her, clearly. She moves quickly and unpredictably these days. She doesn’t understand boundaries. Penny is a nervous mess: big sister doesn’t quite “get” little sister these days. We’ve explored behavioral therapy. We make jokes about sending her to live with my father. But we’d never do that, and I believe that the situation is temporary. Long term, I know, they will learn to love and appreciate one another, as we love and appreciate both of them, despite their annoying little habits. Until then, we have decided that Penny might benefit a bit from a Prozac prescription. Our veterinarian assures me that this will make life more enjoyable for her and for us.

Because if Penny isn’t exactly quite as important to us as Zelda is, she is still, bad ‘tude included, part of the family. And it is hard to watch her enjoyment of life wane as Zelda’s increases, as she works hard at learning to walk and talk. Penny’s worries have seemingly grown to a point where life feels unbearable to her, and they wear on us, too. Once, years and years ago, a little help from some low-grade antidepressants helped get me out of a rut. My hope is that they’ll do the same for Penny, and that they’ll get her back to where I know she wants to be: snuggling with Zelda like she’s a new toy.

THE PARENT RAP is an endearing new column about the fucked up and cruel world of parenting.

The idea that “poison is a woman’s weapon” is an old, made-up sawhorse. The concept has been invoked in works like Game of Thrones and Sherlock Holmes (not the Cumberbatch version, you didn’t miss anything), and bolstered by popular fiction: the terrifying grandmother from Flowers in the Attic, the adorable little old ladies from Arsenic and Old Lace, very nearly Marie from Breaking Bad, and the evil queen/gnarled old witch from Snow White. It’s a classic conceit: the femme fatale slipping a mickey into a glass of rye, the psychotic nana sprinkling arsenic on her grandchildren’s donuts, the jealous older woman offing her young competitionr, the cherubic nurse who is secretly an angel of death. But as Deborah Blum, author of The Poisoner’s Handbook, points out: 60.5% of poisoners are dudes, leaving only 39.5% of poisonings to the ladies.

Still, compared to other methods for murder, 39.5% of poisoners being female is fairly high – from 2006 to 2010, women represented 21% of arson cases, and only 7.9% of gun murders. There are still many more female arsonists and shooters because those are more popular crimes—in the sample years there were only 49 poisonings total—but it’s still notable. Basically, if someone was poisoned, it’s not particularly likely that the murder was committed by a woman—but if a woman murders someone, it’s somewhat likely it was by poison.

The myth persists, in part, because it makes so much sense. Poison is uniquely available to and administerable by women. Ladies have long been tasked with cooking, cleaning, and nursing, and poison can be drizzled into coffee, applied to the inside of freshly laundered shirts, or administered as an “accidental” overdose. As a recent Vice article showed, even grandmothers can do it; in Japan, a woman is accused of collecting about $8 million from poisoning six boyfriends and one husband. Poison is a hands-off, elegant means to someone’s end; it’s not showy or vainglorious, like stabbing or shooting. It doesn’t require muscle like, say, beating a human to death. Poison is a weapon for people who just need a job done. It’s very practical that way—practical and cold-blooded. So who were some of the heartless, real life ladies who have helped cement this idea in the popular imagination?

Read the rest at the Hairpin.

3118 Georgia Ave, NW

Colony Club’s website says:

“Colony Club is a neighborhood coffee shop, bar and ping pong club. We strive to provide the highest quality products in a setting that is fun, friendly and approachable for all.

Located on the historic Georgia Ave in Park View, Colony Club tries to capture an old-school vibe and some of the history of the street by paying homage to the family flower shop that operated at Georgia Ave and Farragut in the 1940s-1960s.”

3118 Georgia Ave, NW was the former home to Ma Ma’s Southern Cuisine and Hadiyah Cafe before that. More info as they get closer to opening. If you’ll excuse me I’m going to pass out from joy…

looking north on Georgia towards Kenyon

Photo via Dupont Underground

Could be the biggest thing after the proposed 11th Street Bridge elevated park.

From a press release:

The nonprofit Arts Coalition for the Dupont Underground (ACDU) announced today that it has signed a 66-month lease with the District of Columbia’s Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) for an abandoned 75,000-s.f. former trolley station below the streets of Dupont Circle, in the District’s Northwest quadrant.

The ACDU also announced today the launch of a crowdfunding campaign for the project on the Fundable platform: fundable.com/dupont-underground.

Founded by architect Julian Hunt, co-principal of Hunt Laudi Studio, a D.C.-based architecture and urban design firm, the ACDU has been negotiating with DMPED for the lease since the group won a 2010 RFP from the city to redevelop the space. Hunt, who moved to the District in the mid-1990s and has been working to reopen the platforms and tunnels for more than a decade, was inspired by the years he spent living and working in Barcelona, where architects and artists have played a crucial role in shaping that city’s physical and cultural growth.

Photo via Dupont Underground

“I didn’t find the same kind of energy and conversation going on here,” said Hunt. “My first effort was to launch a critical journal, but when I discovered the old trolley station, I realized that I had stumbled onto a compelling, vital place to make something happen right below one of the District’s iconic public spaces.”

The tunnels, built along with the Connecticut Avenue underpass, opened in 1949 and closed in 1963, when the city’s streetcar system was shut down. Other than designation as a fallout shelter in the late 1960s and hosting a short-lived food court on the west platform in the mid-1990s, the space — which the group calls the the Dupont Underground — has remained empty.

The nonprofit will focus initial efforts on transforming the east platform. “The plan is to clean up the space, then open it up to the public,” said Hunt. “We want to demonstrate what uses are best suited for the long-term.”

The ACDU is among the first U.S. cultural groups to use “destination crowdfunding” for development. It has partnered with District-based Destination Crowd Capital (DCC) to assist the nonprofit in this process, as well as to generate strategies for long-term investment and development.

DCC helps businesses raise capital, conduct market research and develop a loyal customer base, and establish grassroots marketing. The company was co-founded by Scott Wayne, an international destination development expert, and Scott Popma, an intellectual property attorney and expert on crowdfunding.

In addition to activating the space through art- and design-related events, public performances and other gatherings, as well as temporary commercial uses, the ACDU will also be working on long-term plans to permanently redevelop all 75,000 square feet as a mixed-use cultural destination. To that end, it has hired Patrick P. Smith, a development specialist who has studied the space, as director of real estate development. The ACDU will add more staff, including an arts and programming director, in the months ahead.

“The next five years will be a dynamic time of showcasing new artists and designers, new technologies, and the exciting possibilities this space presents,” said Hunt. “We see the Dupont Underground providing cultural and economic benefits to Dupont Circle and to the District of Columbia.”

If you have any animal/pet photos you’d like to share please send an email to princeofpetworth(at)gmail(dot)com with ‘Animal Fix’ in the title and say the name of your pet and your neighborhood. Your photos will go into the queue (usually 6-8 weeks wait) and will be posted in the order I receive them. If you’ve already entered your pet and would like to do so again – that’s no problem – just space the entries out a bit. Please try to send horizontal photos 640×480 (medium size on your iphone) if possible. If you’re not using an iphone any size is fine.

“Babette Patricia Varin from Eastern Market (by way of Louisiana)”

“Lucille II of Park View”

“I turned my dog into a fox!”

If you have any animal/pet photos you’d like to share please send an email to princeofpetworth(at)gmail(dot)com with ‘Animal Fix’ in the title and say the name of your pet and your neighborhood. Your photos will go into the queue (usually 4-6 weeks wait) and will be posted in the order I receive them. If you’ve already entered your pet and would like to do so again – that’s no problem – just space the entries out a bit. Please try to send horizontal photos 640×480 (medium size on your iphone) if possible. If you’re not using an iphone any size is fine.

“Ellie from Shaw”

“Maisy of Park View is really getting into the Halloween spirit this year.”

“Duke the bumblebee and Keagan the lion getting in the Halloween spirit.”

“Dear PoPville,

Can you please call attention to how awful the national tree experience is this year. Throughout the years, things have been taken away. First it was the reindeer. Next it was the yule log fire pit (that everyone loved!) And now it is as if the state trees have been taken away too. Thanks to sponsorship by Google, every state tree was exactly the same programmed lite brite looking robot tree. It was like looking out at some terrifying homogenized, digitized vision of the future. If you walked on, you found that the ornaments sent in by each state, which previously decorated the state trees, were given tree shaped wooden cutouts. And each state was not even given a whole one of those. They were split half one state and half the next state.

In years past, kids and adults would marvel at the flames from the yule log warming the group and providing reflection and conversation. Now kiosks are available for designing your own personalized national tree. So we get to go out with our family to stare at another screen. So much for bringing people together in public spaces. These places used to belong to us. Now just Google.”