No one is really talking yet about just what’s going to be closed for the Inauguration, and this is beginning to bother Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton. She’s gone to meet with Dept. of Homeland Security.

Apparently they’re planning to close parts of downtown to traffic. They just haven’t decided what parts yet.

This entry’s for all of the young professionals out there who want their hair cut. DC’s a tough town for the art of the barber. When I first moved here 4 years ago, I went in search of a decent barber shop. Not a salon, not a stylist, but a real, honest to God barber. It took me months to find a place that I liked. I settled on a guy named Charlie over on H St. by the World Bank. But one day, I went in for my haircut, and Charlie’s chair was empty, his marine sticker and picture of his family gone. I asked, but they said he’d just up and left one day.

Dejected, I settled on the Clarendon Barber Shop over by Lazy Sundae in Clarendon, but eventually haircuts were taking longer and longer, costing more and more. I’ve been on an eight month search for a real barber and it wasn’t until lunchtime today I found one: Rafael Rodriguez. Tucked into a shop in the middle of the first floor of International Square, across from the bank, there is his chair in Jose’s Barber Shop.

Rafael is an artist. His clippers were barely noticeable as they sheared off my 2 months’ growth, his scissors swift and precise, and his eye impeccable. He ever gave me a nice beveled sideburn, which is a pretty neat trick to get even. Best yet, he sped me through in 20 minutes. All for $20. Not a bad use of a twenty-spot. He sure bought my allegiance.

Sure, he’s no Charlie, but barbers like Charlie are a rare commodity. Nobody uses a straight razor to do your neck and sideburns anymore. Nobody keeps a good scalp massager on hand. These are things that have become antiques and eschewed in favor of a metrosexual who “styles” your hair, uses highlights, and uses copious “product”.

Give me a barber, any day of the week. Thanks Raphael for a great cut, I’m glad you’re here!

See also: Haircut photo

btw, welcome to new blogger chris tepper — he’s a fellow alum from the university of chicago, but don’t hold that against us ;)

yeah well, i kinda don’t believe in new year’s resolutions…only because i think any resolution i make should start asap, but this one is tied to the holidays, so labeling new years is what it is.

anyway, i’m banning starbucks on-the-go. and the reason i didn’t start it in early december, when i first considered it, is because of those damn peppermint mochas. after 5 weeks, i finally got sick of them and am ready to bite the bullet.

there are several reasons 1) supporting the mom & pops; 2) wasting my life since i always go out of my way to pick-up coffee every morning; and 3) most importantly, the price increases.

annouced last october, starbucks is increasing the price of it’s drinks about 11 cents per cup. the other day, i looked at the cash register as it rang-up $4.25 for a grande skim peppermint mocha. yikes…that’s the price of a reasonable sandwich or cup of soup. apparently everything from the beans, milk, sugar, transportation and healthcare costs drove the company to increase prices. i just don’t buy it. with locations popping up like bunnies, they’re increasing their market share like crazy.

i personally don’t think starbucks should become as widespread as mcdonald’s. i remember the first drive-through starbucks i saw and was just turned off. the point is to sit and relax and hang-out like a lounge. the coffeeshop for the tv show “friends” or “seinfeld” were not meant for to-go or take away — and that’s a lot to say for both being set in nyc. those of us who have been going for years knew starbucks for the atmosphere, the conversation, the relaxation, the meditation. i can’t remember the last time i sat down w/ a good book paired with a warming cup of coffee in a coffeeshop.

if starbucks does want to be the next mcdonald’s — then they should be just as cheap. i’ll pay 99 cents for a mcburger and my mc coffee should cost the same.

so if you see me walking down the street w/ a cup designed w/a pretty little green mermaid in my hand, it was either shoved into my hand by force or i was experiencing a slight relapse. in either case, you have the right to reprimand me, at which time i’ll take a final sip, dump the cup and feel better about stopping the addiction and not supporting the commoditization of a good cup of coffee. anyone else care to join me?

I just moved to the City, so missed all the fun the last time around, but here’s hoping the Marion Barry Show is just getting started.

Council’s New Arrivals Push to Spread Revival (washingtonpost.com)

Three new members of the DC Council were sworn in yesterday at the DC Convention Center. Kwame Brown (D-At Large), Vincent Gray (D-Ward 7) and Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) were sworn in by DC Superior Court Judge Mitchell-Rankin yesterday in a major DC Fete. Barry was said to say: “I’m a fighter. When you look in the dictionary and look up the word ‘courage,’ you see my picture.”

Mr. Mayor, that’s not the only word your picture is by.

Please also see page 531 for crackhead, page 691 for irresonsponsible liar and page 1031 for drug-addled jackass.

Oh, and page 3 of the gossip column for “Bitch set me up.“

61 degrees today, people. 61. Did someone invent a time machine and transport us to May?