I had a fever today. I’m not talking about the possible fallout from a night of debauchery. I’m not talking about a fever who’s remedy is more cowbell. I’m talking about a fever for chicken- Peruvian Chicken to be exact.

It all started when my intern was watching No Reservations in D.C. it featured a few places I was familiar with, including some Vietnamese restaurants in Eden Center. Then Mr. Bourdain randomly stops by El Pollo Rico, one of the many Peruvian chicken shops in Arlington. Peruvian chicken is one of the many cuisines that run rampant just like Kebobs, Sushi, and Ethiopian. He gave a glowing review of the place as he went behind the counter to see it first hand.

Now my only experience wit El Pollo Rico has been at the catered lunches that will sometimes feature the cuisine from El Pollo Rico, however it’s been awhile since that’s happened and since watching the program the conversation between my intern and I has often included trying to find this world renown El Pollo Rico.

So this past weekend I found myself starving and I decided I was going to go online and find it. It’s actually just down the street from my house in Clarendon, so I happily drove down and found it without any problems. It is a bit off the beaten path over on 932 N Kenmore St in Arlington.

The building is a plain brick building with no markings other than a yellow sign and the smell of roasted chicken in the air. The parking lot was already full and when I walked inside there were two long lines of hungry patrons waiting to get their chicken on.

The restaurant itself is pretty simple, wooden chairs and tables fill the sparsely decorated space. The shop is cash only and offers nothing but chicken in three sizes (quarter, half, and whole.) I was pretty hungry so I got the half chicken with fries and cole slaw. I was impressed with the amount of food I got for only $8. Definitely a cheap eat.

I wasn’t a big fan of the lime hot sauce but I quickly fell in love with the yellow mustard/mayo like sauce. I used it for dipping my fries in as I scarfed down the take-out order at home.

After eating every finger-licking bite I believe I have now found a new staple to my lazy weekends. Is anybody else  in love with this local favorite? I know I am.

14th & N Street NW, courtesy Google Maps

Here’s an odd news story, apparently Pepco is testing the sidewalks at 14th & N because dog owners there believe that the combination of water and salt on the sidewalks are creating a current that has been shocking area pets. If it can shock pets I think I’d be afraid of getting a little zap myself. However it could be a M. Night Shyamalan-like situation where the sidewalks are exacting revenge for years of dog abuse.

Remember Monday? You know that day we were either happy to not have school, or somewhat cranky that we only had a two-hour delay at work. Ya that day it snowed… a lot. Now all of a sudden it’s 70 and wonderful outside. I went out to the Natural History Museum with friends and I just walked all over downtown without a coat on. That was only a week after I was bundled up trying to scrap ice off my car.

While it may have been nice this weekend, it looks like the weather is going to get cooler as we get back to work tomorrow. It won’t get back up to 70′s but it will stay above freezing at least.

That’s what I love about DC, we get a winter but it doesn’t stay too long for us to hate it.

Anybody else do anything interesting with the warm weather out?

Angelina on set (Photo: Splash News)

I was going to write a commentary on a news worthy story- I swear. But in the middle of writing it I found out some juicier material: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are in town! As I type this Pitt should be on Capitol Hill meeting with Nancy Pelosi concerning, “Make It Right, a project launched in 2007 to construct affordable and environmentally-sustainable housing for low-income residents of the Lower Ninth Ward in New Orleans who lost their homes as a result of Hurricane Katrina,” according to Pelosi’s office.

So what’s Angelina up to? She’s keeping busy filming scenes for her new film, “Salt.” Entertainment Wise has some photos of her running in costume for some sort of chase scene.

Alright so is there enough room for three superstars to be in town? If Angelina is filming scenes in town she maybe here for a few more days, any chance of seeing the two out on the town?

I’m amazed that it took a friend’s comment for me to learn about the news- I would of expected MSNBC to have live coverage of the photo op, and a little bit more buzz than today’s depressing economic news. Not even the friend that told me is really excited, “haha i guess its kind of exciting, im not about to up and leave my office but its neat.”

Is it really exciting or neat? Anybody going to flock to The frigid mall right now?

After work yesterday, I was walking from the bus stop to the Swanky Safeway (I love you, Circulator) and spotted this lonely skeleton:

What once was useful, has been discarded

It’s not exactly providing the trash bin with shelter from the elements.  Why not fold it up before trashing it?   What color was the umbrella, before it lost its skin?  Did it have fun polkadots?  Was it the usual DC Black?  Did it bear the logo of one of this town’s myriad law firms?

"McGruff!" courtesy of Flickr user crashmaster007

Is DC crime so bad that even The Crime Dog becomes a victim? I was on Gmail and fellow DC Blogger and loosely related associated Meggie Poo had a link to a hilarious story in The Post. Apparently a Metrobus driver walked up to Crime Dog McGruff and punched him in the face. Unfortunately for the driver it wasn’t any old person in the costume but a DC Police officer. The driver fled scene on his Metrobus but was quickly pulled over and caught. When caught the driver explained that he assulted the mascot, “to be funny.”

I’m not going to lie, if I saw a video of someone punch The Crime Dog I’d probably laugh. However it was Metrobus driver , on the job,who pulled over his bus then saw the dog and decided to punch him. I really wouldn’t think about doing something that stupid if I was in uniform on the job. Would you? I have to say chalk this one up to another stupid crime. I also have to laugh at the fact that he punched an officer, not some average Joe,  and will proabbly face stiffer charges. So remember if you decided to punch a mascot- he could be a cop.

Even though the it may have been traumatic to be one of those kids who saw the Crime Dog a victim of a crime in front of you, at least the Dog showed that crime doesn’t pay.

Captain’s Note: Steven Biel is the Global Warming Campaign Director for Greenpeace USA, but more importantly the writer for the blog Fire Jim Bowden. In the wake of Bowden’s departure I asked Steven for his insight on where the Nationals stand coming into the 2009 season. He was kind enough to contribute his thoughts in this guest post:

Bowden is out, Kasten is now in (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Now that the Jim Bowden regime is finally over, it’s time to assess where the team stands now and determine a path forward.

The team is much better off in one important way: for the first time, we may have some clarity in chain of command within the organization. The team has always been totally dysfunctional because no one has been allowed to pick their own staff. Stan didn’t want Jim. Jim inherited Dana Brown and had Mike Rizzo imposed on him from above. Manny Acta maybe was Jim’s choice, but it felt at the time more like the new owners forced out Frank Robinson and gave marching orders to find a younger manager. Manny hasn’t always been allowed to hire his own coaches…

Now, we may have some top-down cohesion. That in itself is a huge step forward. I hope that, whoever the next GM is, he’s given free reign to clean house and bring in all his own people. I’m a fan of Manny Acta’s but I’d rather have a united organization.

As for the team on the field, there’s a lot of talk today about how Jim left a core of good young talent to build around. That’s a really generous assessment, I think. The reality is that in order to win a championship, you need at least 2-3 of elite position players and 1-2 elite starting pitchers. For my purpose here, let’s assume an elite player is someone who rates among the top 3-4 players in the league at his position, or top 10-15 for starting pitchers. Then, you also need a whole bunch of good complimentary guys. And finally you can get away with some filler in particular roles, but not a lot.

This team has some complimentary players, lots of filler, and really no elite players at all. And even if you want to project the prospects, we probably don’t have more than one or two players with a chance to become an elite player. A reasonable, unbiased observer would probably say that we don’t have anyone in the organization with a better than 50-50 chance of ever reaching the elite class of their position.

Adam Dunn: Good, not Great (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Ryan Zimmerman is a great glove at a premium defensive position and a solid #6 hitter on a good team. Good player, not elite. Adam Dunn has an elite bat, but his fielding is poor, which net makes him good, not elite. Jordan Zimmermann has a chance, but projects probably a notch below. Chris Marrero’s ceiling is probably something like Paul Konerko–very good bat, marginal glove: good, not elite. Elijah Dukes probably has the best shot of anyone, but we all know the risk factors there. Nick Johnson at his very best is right on the cusp of elite. If you really want to dream on Micheal Burgess, there’s a virtually unlimited upside, but now you’re talking about a 20-year-old who’s never been above A ball. You get the picture.

And don’t get me started on the Daniel Cabreras and Scott Olsens of the world. These guys barely qualify as complimentary pieces, much less players to build a championship around.

So, bottom line, we have a long, long way to go. An optimistic Nationals fan really shouldn’t be thinking about playoffs in 2010 or even 2011, barring some extreme fluke. Maybe 2012.

The way I see it, the team can do one of two things: work to achieve respectability, let’s say 78-81 wins, in 2010-2011, or they can commit to rebuilding towards a contender. To some extent you can do both at the same time, but you

Crisitan Guzman may be a part of the winning solution (Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)

have to commit to one or the other as your priority. The team simply has limited assets (regardless of where you believe that limit should be, a limit DOES exist), and the team needs to invest strategically. So if you’re in re-build mode, you’re going to look to trade your valuable veterans down the stretch for prospects. That means Adam Dunn could once again be on the block this July. If Nick Johnson can stay healthy and return to 2006 form for 3 months, he might still bring back a nice return, even with his health issues. Cristian Guzman, Josh Willingham, Joel Hanrahan–these are all guys who might be able to help a contender and bring back some guys who have a chance to play for a contender down the road.

Of course, if you’re aiming for that elusive respectability, you hoard these types of complimentary pieces and hope for the best. I hope the team resists this temptation. I know, people are tired of the awfulness, but really 78 wins isn’t that much more fun than 60. The goal is to get into the playoffs and compete for a World Series. And we’re really not much if at all closer to that today than we were in November 2004. The new guy should fully commit to rebuilding and aim for a World Series by 2012.

Just a day after getting rid of Jim Bowden, the Nationals unleashed this:

credit Washington Post Sports Bog.  Also-(Deadspin) and  (Fox 5 Video) if you want to see the demon move.

upon the world.  There are some things that you cannot undo, you cannot take back-this image of the new Screech is one of them. 

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am now too scared to go to Nationals Park-especially a night game.

What hell-spawn pit did this thing crawl out of and why didn’t someone stake it in the heart the moment it first reared it’s ugly demon eagle head?  Does it even have a heart?  Did someone open The Gate?    Has Screech’s feed bill been cut due to the recession?  Is this supposed to be lean and healthy Screech?  Because if he is I have to say:

Feed Me!...Your CHILDREN!!! GRAAHHHH!!!!

He clearly looks hungry.

What child is going to not be completely freaked out by this change? 

I’m sorry, but this thing is just foul (no pun intended).  By Screech’s appearance I would hazard a guess that either they stapled his stomach or he has become best friends with Lindsay Lohan and is currently going through his “bad boy of Hollywood” stage.  This bird is not healthy and someone needs to make sure he is eating his birdseed (or whatever you feed an Eagle).

I’m not the only one who thinks so either.  Patrick’s quote when I ran this by him (to make sure it wasn’t too much to reprint here):  “It is so scary.” 

So there you go. 

Side-note:  Could this monster be the evil minion of Jim Bowden, sent back to exact his revenge?  Or was Bowden secretly misunderstood-the only warrior between our dimension and whatever plane of existence this thing came from?  Someone needs to call Dr. Who.

We attended a screening of the new documentary Orphans of Apollo at George Washington University on Friday evening, and have been mulling ever since. On the surface, this is a documentary that tells the ill-fated story of a dot.com millionaire’s attempt to lease the Mir space station back in 2000. A bit deeper, it’s a thought-provoking look at why commercial access to space remains speculative fiction.

The tagline is “Join this band of rebels out to change the course of history in space, as they board a private Gulf Stream jet, fly to Russia and negotiate one of the most remarkable business deals of the final frontier.” The story is told in interviews with the participants, mixed with some great footage of this bunch of starry-eyed kids who grew up watching the Apollo landings and reading Heinlein. When they teamed up with MBAs intent on leveraging post-Soviet technology, they sidestepped decades of global politics. Watching it play out was fascinating (even if you’re not a closet space geek).

The underlying message, however, still makes me squirm. Our government dangles space as the future, promising scientific discovery, technological innovation, and life on the final frontier. But as one of the participants observes, “the government views anything you send into space as a weapon”. And of course, that’s true, but it’s also politics-as-usual and therefore complicated. Control of space for communications, global positioning, as well as more traditional weapons is a huge priority for our government, and the Outer Space Treaty is ticklish at best.

Me, I’d love to see Dancing with the Stars in microgravity. But I’m settling for great documentary films like this.

Read the blog, order the DVD, or post comments at www.OrphansofApollo.com

"I figure I'm in...'This' much trouble."

Picture (not caption) courtesy of Flickr User Scott Ableman

Looks like I won’t have to write a scathing diatribe against Jim Bowden to get him fired-he resigned today.

Yes Nationals fans (and would be Nats fans just waiting for something to cheer for) be happy-for today ranks as the best day in DC baseball since they brought the team back.

Blaming the media for reporting the news creating a distraction over such petty matters as not knowing how old his prospects are, being linked to a bonus skimming scam and generally failing as a GM to put a team worth $10 tickets out on to the field (and don’t forget that DUI last year, either).

At first I was going to hold off on calling Jimbo as a goner because they fired Jose Rijo over the recent, “gaffs” shall we say.  Instead of being the fall guy though, Rijo was apparently just the start.  It is my full fledged opinion that Mr. Bowden is not resigning because he feels as if he’s become a distraction but because he has been told, unequivocally, that he is a distraction (and probably a few other things as well) and was invited to resign and avoid being fired.

The Nationals are stunned; caught completely off-guard by the news.  Of course if you’ve watched them play you know they make a living off of being caught completely off-guard and unaware of what is happening.

So who’s next?  Well even though (thankfully) it turns out that they didn’t ask for special permission to skip interviewing minority candidates for the position, they probably do have someone in mind.  There is very little point in letting Bowden go unless you’ve got at least a few people in mind-or a direction you’d like to go.  I expect we’ll have some more comments and thoughts as this whole thing shakes out, but for now the long and short of my opinion is that this is the best thing the Nats have done since deciding Teddy would never win a race.
Two thumbs up.