With the FBI, NSA, CIA, and all the other acronyms it goes without saying that Washington DC is home to a lot of secrets.

But the secrets I’m about to tell you about are much more interesting than those you’d find at the place above.

They are the secrets held by you and; I, the secrets held by the person checking out your groceries, your neighbor, the waitress at Applebee’s. I’m talking about the secrets of the everyday person.

Frank Warren doesn’t know all of them, but he does get an awful lot of them. (more…)

So I have been traveling an awful lot lately and I recently had to take a flight out of BWI instead of my usual airport of choice, Reagan National. Pulling into the garage at BWI I noticed that the facility was wired to show how many spaces were free and where. I was impressed with the lighted sign at the entrance telling you how many free spaces were on each floor- I was shocked to see they even had row indicators to point you directly to free spots. I noticed there were overhead sensors underneath every space that communicates with the garage within seconds of a car parking. When I parked my car I saw the sensor change from green to red- and I saw the number of free spaces shrink by one.

As someone that loves to drive around DC but is not a fan of finding spaces in parking garages; I couldn’t enjoy parking at BWI anymore than I did at that moment. I am absolutely in love with the SmartPark system- and I know I’m not the only one.

I know that the garages in Montgomery County have a similar system but wouldn’t it be great if more garages in the district had this technology?

image found here.

Dear Metblog readers, indulge me in a brief personal story and the use of this forum to say thank you to someone.  Hopefully you’ll just find it a heartwarming little story about how good people can be in our area.  

Dear Random Girl who eventually got off at the Naylor Rd. Station:

Thank you for finding my Iphone.  Although I’ve never met you or saw you or know anything about you-I appreciate your finding my Iphone.

See, I was heading home to drop off the comic books I had bought at SPX and to get changed to go out for the evening.  In my fervor of comic book delightedness I must have only half-heartedly put my phone into my sweatshirt hoodie pocket after checking it (like I always do) coming over the river on the yellow line bridge.  Questions of whether to go all the way to Clarendon or not coupled with handfuls of newly signed books must have distracted me as I left my train at Crystal City because it wasn’t until I got outside and reached for my phone again that I realized it was gone. 

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You’ve probably noticed it even if you aren’t conscious of it directly.  Iron Man (on DVD as of yesterday) was the biggest movie of the year by far (edit: at the time).  Then The Dark Knight came along (edit:  which then become the biggest movie of the year).  In between Hellboy II and Wanted both came out and this book Watchmen on the best seller’s table at Borders.  Make no doubt about it my friend-comics are coming out of the long boxes in our basements and into the mainstream-so you better get hip and quick.

In your quest for comic book literacy there is only one thing better than going to your local shop and asking for a copy of Sandman or Maus:  Discovering the next great episode of graphic literature of course!  The place to do that just happens to be in our own backyard of Bethesda at the Small Press Expo.  This Saturday and Sunday the best and brightest of the comics newest and/or Indie talents will be on hand to sell you comics and sign your stuff.  I’ve gone to SPX a few times over my six year stay here and it is a great event for fans and non-fans alike.  Very often creators are happy to just talk with you for a while, sign books that you buy and give you deals if you buy a few (hey these guys are out there making a name for themselves!).  Also a great way to disabuse yourself of the notions that “comics are for kids” and “comics are all about super-heroes.”  They aren’t-and nowhere is that better done than in the small press. 

I’ll be there Saturday (super-geek that I am) so be on the lookout…for a bunch of people more famous, creative and important than I am that is!  You’ll almost certainly walk away with something you’ll enjoy reading and might even have a “Oh her? Yeah I met her back at SPX 2008” story to go with it some day!

Beer-That is all you need to know

If comics are not your speed (or even if they are-Saturday is a long day) The Commonwealth (particularly Shirlington) will play host to “Oktoberfest” hosted by Cap City.  After I’ve loaded up on comic books I plan on heading back across the river to get…well…loaded.  Responsibly of course!  For a mere $25 you’ll have access to over 30 local breweries and their 4 oz beer samples.  That’s 120 oz of beer for $25 (if you only go to each tent once that is!) also known as a deal.  If you don’t drink the event is free and there will be music and food available for all-so it might be worth stopping by anyway. 

I again will be there and will eventually be the guy either sitting down reading comic books trying not to spill beer on them OR the guy getting into a loud angry discussion about which of Earth’s Green Lanterns was actually the coolest. 

Author’s note:  If you do decide to go to both places you might want to do comics first only because impulse shopping goes up when you’ve been drinking and it’s much safer (and far more legal) to drive having bought too many comics then it is to drive having drank too many beers.

Do you ever wonder what scientists do when they’re not doing…. science?  Cafe Scientifique is “a place where, for the price of a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, anyone can come to explore the latest ideas in science and technology.”  The concept started in the UK and now they are springing up all over, bringing folks from all walks of life together to debate and discuss what’s new.  Science-types and English majors are both welcome.

We have two cafes in our transit-shed, lucky us.  One in Annapolis, where Cy Jones from the World Resources Institute is going to discuss water trading tomorrow, September 30.  Like carbon trading, only wetter.  Another in Arlington on October 7, where Dr. Don Wilson from the Smithsonian Institution going to talk about Bats: Myth and Reality.  It’s at the Front Page, in Ballston.  If you’ve ever thought about putting up a bat house, this is your chance to ask all those questions. 

Could be a nice addition to the ‘hood.  If the neighbors aren’t too freaked out, that is.

Well, as some of you may be aware, because you are either extra stinky today, thirsty, or just plain out of the wet stuff, WSSC reported a water main failure this morning in Montgomery County. Now, as of the most recent update, it’s now two breaks, which occurred after initiating standard procedures to shut down valves to identify where the leaks are occurring and what is affected overall. There are a number of government closings listed here (aren’t you glad school’s out?!). Good news, and there supposedly is some of it, by 7:30pm tonight we’ll have our water back, but as with every upside, there is a down. The water purification recommendations will be in effect for the next three days (until Thursday).

For those of you who will need potable water, it is recommended that you boil your water (rolling boil) for over a minute before you use it (and for those who need cold water, don’t add ice cubes from your automatic ice maker, unless it’s got a filter on it, wait for it to reach room temperature or cool it in your fridge). Other methods for treating your water can also be achieved through typical backpackers methods such as a SteriPen or purification tablets (REI, HTO, or other outdoor store) for larger volumes.

I was detained by the police today and accused of stealing. I was also illegally detained against my will by several Wal*Mart employees preceding the detention by police. My crime? Leaving Wal*Mart with four bags of sugar (that I had just purchased) without showing a receipt, because I was not given one by the Wal*Mart cashier. I was threatened with being taken to jail, threatened with physical violence as I attempted to leave, and had to defend myself and my property while Wal*Mart security attempted to rip it from my hands, breaking my bags and causing one of my items to break open on the pavement. After I was released (having been completely innocent all along), I was lectured by the police officer and Wal*Mart manager about how next time I could make it easier on myself by just agreeing to give up my rights to their goons to begin with. While the initial employee who detained me apologized, the others, including the Wal*Mart Manager, did not.

I was at the Germantown Wal*Mart to buy four bags of sugar because earlier in the day I had been at Butler’s Orchard picking 10 pounds of strawberries to turn into delicious jam. And to make delicious jam, you need lots of sugar. I grabbed four bags and headed to the checkout, where I also decided I could use some refreshment. I grabbed a Mountain Dew from the cooler, but the cashier had already processed my card for the four bags of sugar. He apologized and rang up another transaction for the Mt. Dew. At that point, he crumpled up my receipt for the four bags of sugar and handed me the receipt for the Mountain Dew. I headed for the exit, and was greeted by Wal*Mart security who wanted to check my receipt. I produced the receipt for the Mountain Dew and explained that the cashier had tossed the other receipt for the sugar. I would repeat this explanation 6 more times before this affair ended. The rest of the tale is below… (more…)

Agents of the FBI today raided the Prince George’s County home of State Senator Ulysses Currie (D-25 MD), as well as the headquarters of SUPERVALU’s Shoppers Food Warehouse in Lanham, MD. NBC 4 says that the raids are related, but can’t show a correlation. I’m sure we’re going to hear a lot about this in the next few days, as Sen. Currie is chairman of the Budget & Taxes committee in the Maryland State Senate. You can also watch WJLA’s coverage via their website.

Bethesda is working with Coca Cola and Honest Tea and the Bethesda Urban District to add street level recycling to their downtown. Sure, there are a bunch of trash cans there all ready, but no recycling options. That was, until yesterday, when Honest Tea President Seth Goldman helped kick off the project that’s been at least nine months in the offing. The Business Gazette first reported on this project back in September of last year:

‘‘People may recycle at home, but there is no place for consumers on the street to recycle,” he said.

Goldman recommended the addition of recycling bins next to trashcans on streets in the central business district.

Bethesda Urban Partnership, a nonprofit that promotes and maintains downtown Bethesda, providing trash pickup and other services, said it would be willing to help.

Nice to see Bethesda picking up some green sense for their downtown!

No Trash. Only Recyclables — Originally uploaded by Baku3

Come see a video from today’s Bethesda Market. The market goes on every Tuesday from 11-3 until October. There is food, baked goods, plants, produce and all sorts of other things at the market at Veteran’s Park. Come on down next week. Click the picture to the right to see the video.