Photo by PoPville flickr user pablo.raw
You can talk about whatever is on your mind – quality of life issues, a beautiful tree you spotted, scuttlebutt, or any random questions/thoughts you may have. But please no personal attacks and no need to correct people’s grammar. This is a place to vent and/or rejoice about daily life in DC.
Rant: First ear infection of my life. I’m sorry to everyone I ever said “what’s the big deal?” regarding swimmer’s ear.
Rave: Monday sick day!
Oooh those are the worst (really). Hopefully you have drops + an oral antibiotic –it won’t clear up on its own…
I got some prescription-strength antibiotic drops. Would’ve been like $160 without insurance, for a bottle smaller than my pinky. Insanity. The doctor didn’t mention an oral component though – hopefully I won’t have to go back.
RANT: I really haven’t felt good for a month. My energy level is zero. I’m hoping it is just the heat and humidity. Anyone else feeling this way?
Have you been through the DC summers before? This may not be the case for you, but perhaps you have asthma? Mine was undiagnosed until I was exposed to the heat/humidity here. I had no idea that’s what it was, but I was exhausted all the time, could barely get out of bed for a month, and was coughing a lot. By the time I was diagnosed, my doctor said my lungs were working at 60% capacity.
I’ve been feeling this way. All I feel like doing is lying around reading and watching documentaries on Netflix.
sorry you feel sick…however, you should ABSOLUTELY watch the Wild and Wonderful Whites on netflix watch instantly. You will not regret this.
Totally feel that way. Did not get anything done this weekend and felt like crap, which I completely attribute to the awful weather. Anxiously awaiting the fall.
Rave: great weekend (longest bike ride yet!)
Rave: beach vacation next week
Rant: nada
Rave: weather was great on Sat. only some clouds and I was able to take that photo and others; the moon really was that red in the horizon.
Rant: I don’t know how many times I heard “Is that the White House?” “Yes” from tourists that night…
That’s an awesome photo Pabloraw
Thanks!
Yes, absolutely gorgeous photo!
Yes amazing – do you sell your photos pabloraw?
Thanks! I do sell photos; please e-mail me to raw.pablo@gmail.com and I’ll give you more information.
Yes, great photo Pablo! Question: how did you get the moon and the capitol dome to both be properly exposed? When I’ve tried to take moon pics with any kind of lit up building in the frame, the moon is always a lot brighter–so, either the moon is overexposed and washed out or the buildings are underexposed and grainy.
I have this problem too.
My basic formula is: ISO 100, f-stop between 8 and 11, Shutter speed 3″. Next time I’m going to try a 1″ speed. Of course, changing the speed will change the other parameters too. I usually get to the site some 30 min. before and do a couple test shots exposing for the building. Once the moon appears, I adjust.
Great photo Pablo!! Sorry I missed the event, I plan on being there next time for sure.
Rave: Friend in town this weekend so lots of fun activities – museums, favorite restaurants, trip to Chocolate City brewery, pig roast, etc.
Rant: I don’t have a lot of tolerance for staying up late and drinking lots! Three beers seriously does me in with regrets the next morning…
Rave: Squared away our apartment for our first three months in Buenos Aires!
Rant: So very much still left to do before leaving.
Rant: Another freaking shooting rampage. And Sikhs? Really? Some of the nicest, unobtrusive people on the planet.
Someone about a week ago mentioned that they refinanced with a really low percentage rate with an online company- can anyone remember what the company was called?
Rant: Shopping for a refinancer. We had a 4.85% a couple of years ago (which was great at the time) but frankly, numbers confuse me, making this whole process frustrating.
Rave: I tried out some kenesiology tape on my knee this past weekend and I don’t know if it was a placebo effect or what, but it seemed to take the swelling down a bit and it was less painful going up stairs. I had tried everything and laughed when my friend suggested it, but I’m not laughing now!
myers park
It might have been me… We used Myers Park… but we were doing a 15 so got a 2.875 rate with a 2000 closing credit. The notary that did the closing said that Myers Park has the best rates….
That was it- thank you!!
I just used NIH Federal Credit Union (anyone can join)..it’s good community banking. I got a 20 year fixed for 3.375%-closing costs are going to be about $5,000 no points.
Yeah, in looking at a re-fi, we saw that our bank would offer us a 3.75% with no points/origination, but that won’t give us enough of a break every month for it to really be worth it… ugh…
Rave: I had a lovely weekend with good friends – including tubing in Harper’s Ferry.
) and I hate packing/unpacking.
Rave: This is my last week of work before a week off for staycation.
Rave: After weeks of trying, I finally got reservations for La Boum brunch!
Rant/Rave: I’m moving over the weekend to a different apartment in my building (without a balcony
Rave: Finally a DC resident after four years of commuting from Maryland!
Rant: Even though I now live two blocks from work I don’t quite feel comfortable leaving the office and going home for lunch … yet.
Nice! I did a similar move a year and a half ago and it’s been life-changing. Your quality of life will be so much better here.
And yeah, I hear ya on the lunch thing. I’m not quite as close to work as you are, but it still seems like it will take to long to walk home and have a nice lunch and get back within a reasonable timeframe. I just go in early and get home around 4.
RAVE: Very good live jazz at FUSION Indian restaurant on GA Ave last night. My date was very impressed after our walk through what must have looked like the ghetto to her. The music was a surprise to me. Different band every Sunday. Good food. Nice joint.
Rant: My sleep schedule got all thrown off this weekend, so I am pretty exhausted today.
Rave: Even though it is Monday, it is one day closer to our Caribbean vacation!
Rant: Decorating the new house. Even though I have stuff up on the walls, it still looks pretty bare in places. Adding more pictures on the walls would make it look too cluttered, so I am not sure how to remedy that.
Rave: At least I have a new house to decorate!
Rave: Had a great time camping and hiking in the Shenandoah.
Rave: Saw a black bear on one of the trails! This is a rave because it was a ways off the trail and was moving away from us.
Rant: I almost stepped on a rattlesnake.
Double rant: I googled the effects rattlesnake bites when I got home. I may never go hiking again. (okay that’s a lie, but that shit is scary)
Rant: Shoe repair. I can’t figure out how to replace heel tips myself, so I have to take my shoes somewhere to be repaired. I can’t find a place that charges less than $15 to do this. That might not seem like a lot, but I’m rough on shoes and my tips only last one or two months before they’re completely worn down. So that’s like $150 a year just to keep ONE pair of shoes in good condition. So frustrating!
Try the Peter Bug Shoe Repair Academy on Capitol Hill. Cheap and do a decent job.
Oh yeah, I forgot about them! I live in Capitol Hill so it’s convenient.
Rave: Finally moved into an apartment over the weekend, It has central air! Man I don’t know what I was missing… I slept longer and harder than I have in years because of the perfect indoor temperature. The simple things make all the difference.
Rave: Floor plans on my house are done! Construction can go full-scale now that I’m out of my house for 6 months!
Rant: Trying to schedule Internet installation with Comcast… Don’t they know people have to go to work so that they can pay for the overpriced cable service? They should show up on time, I do.
Rave: Getting rid of Comcast TV. We had a bundle with voice and internet service, but I realized we were paying about $90 extra for a service we never, ever used.
Has anyone gotten an HDTV antenna installed? Thinking it might be useful to have the basic channels.
I only have Internet service for 28$ a month. Don’t need cable at all! I save tons of money.
Nice! But I also need the phone line for my home security system.
You can do the security through your cell – it will just be a bit more per month
No, the house I moved into was pre-wired with ADT and the technicians told me they’d have to installed an entirely new system (which would cost us a lot) if we wanted to go wireless.
I also like having a landline because our house is tall and narrow with three levels. So unless I carry my cell with me everywhere I’ll never heard it. It ends up being cheaper anyway because this way we can have the smallest cell phone plan.
You can also adopt a dog! You only have to pay for dog food, walk it, and vacuum heavily! LOL.
I have two dogs. Fortunately the non-shedding kind.
What service do you use?
We have an antenna on the roof. It works great.
Rave: Oscar Pistorius. Inspiring story and super cute to boot.
As inspiring as Oscar Pistorious is… it really is unfair to allow him to compete. He has an enormous advantage in the 400M and up distances…probably a slight in the 200m distance as well. No lactic acid buildup, more bounce in the stride, longer stride, etc. It is unfortunate but the advantage he gets from the metal legs is very much.
Except that he doesn’t have calf or foot muscles to use. That has to be a disadvantage.
If they are an advantage, then why is he allowed to compete? Opinions vary on that issue, and it seems experts have come down on both sides.
I confess that my gut reaction is to support a man who has overcome so much to become a world-class athlete.
This has been on going for years. He has made a huge stink for years, threatened many lawsuits, etc and they just caved and let him in. Not having to worry about the lactic acid build up nor actually build up calf muscles is a huge advantage. He basically only has to work on respiratory buildup. The blades have been shown by many studies to provide a very significant advantage. check out letsrun.com if you want to read what many elites and semi elite track folks in the US and around the world think.
Actually, a number of studies were done regarding any potential competitive advantage before they gave him the ok to compete. Those studies showed no such advantage exists.
Anyone who has ever raced the 400 competitively (or heck, just ran fast 400 M repeats for training) knows lactic build up in your calves is not high on the list of concerns. Perhaps he doesn’t have to deal with the build up one gets as a result of training, but I imagine he endures other issues unique to him.
I’m all for him competiting as long as he doesn’t have a physiological/biomechanical advantage.
I was a 50 sec 400 / 1:56 800m runner…
What beerdude said. The case went to the Court of Arbitraion for Sport, both sided were allowed to present expert testimony, reports, etc. Both sides did. The science appears to favor the notion that his prostetics do NOT provide a competitve advantage.
Rant: tenant announced he is moving in his girlfriend
Rant: now stuck paying utilities for two people rather than one
Rant:why am i so stupid
Show them the increased bill. Tell them they’ve got to pay up. Problem solved!
Not really, unless the lease allows for the OP as landlord to increase the rent at will for any reason – which I’ll wager it does not. The rant is probably because the lease doesn’t prohibit a second occupant and doesn’t make any provision for increased rent to cover the additional utility costs of a second occupant. So the best the OP may be able to do is up the rent the next time the lease is renewed.
If the lease doesn’t allow a second occupant, isn’t the tenant technically violating the lease by moving in his GF?
Rave – 4 sets of tenants have had boy/girlfriend move in with them – then got engaged – got married & 3 bought houses in the neighborhood. Two have babies and send me cute pictures. Happy tenants are good tenants and being part of the “circle of life” is kind of fun.
Rant – the additional utility cost to me must have been 5 or 6 bucks a month!!!
Rant: Coworker has some health problems which may mean I don’t get to take vacation as planned later this month.
Rant: I know I should be pissed at work & the stupid staffing rules, but I already dislike this coworker, so this situation just makes me dislike the person more.
Rave: At least my stupid coworker is employed and thus has some health insurance.
Rave: Article about how well DC is doing… in the New York Times!
Rant: Anyone in or around Mt Pleasant hear the helicopter late last night/early this morning? It must have been circling for 15 solid minutes. First, I’m dying to know what it was doing and why at that time? 2nd, I thought the beauty of helicopters is that they can hover in place – why in the world was this one circling?
Have you never seen Cops or Blue Thunder? I’m pretty sure they were looking for someone. The use of helicopters is pretty common to help forces on the ground find usually “dangerous” people that have made it their buisness to dip out and not get caught. Many of us have had those lights in our backyards.
Rave: Really enjoyed fishing on Herring Bay/North Beach. Those that are looking to get away for the weekend should check that area out. It is about 40 minutes door to door from NE DC. It is a nice little resort area that seemingly has a lot to offer.
Rave: The bluefish were biting and people were catching some nice sized fish.
Rant: I only caught one smaller but decent bluefish.
Rant: The DNR wardens are serious out there. Dude just would not leave, he was like big brother. Make sure you are on the up and up or they will get you and it will cost serious money. Know you rules and regulations for the state you are fishing in.
Rant: Driving to Herring Bay on Saturday was all screwed up, missed my turn and ended up in the very bottom of Southern MD on the Patuxent.
Rave: Stopped at a couple produce stands and got some outstanding locally grown vegetables and fruit.
Rave: Dope pic Pablo.
Rant: I missed the chance to take the same pic with Pablo.
Thanks! You’ll get an e-mail from me at some point, but the next one will be Sept. 1st. Conditions are going to be different though, since Sunset and Moonrise will be kind of around the same time.
It is all good. I just want to learn. And by that time I should have a class under my belt so hopefully that will help.
Rant: Idiot neighbor sitting on his stoop tossing roman candles at our bedroom window 10:30 am yesterday morning. Partner went out to confront him and was met with shrugs, mumbling, backtalk, then the kid blaming his toddler. Sure, your two year old tossed fireworks and directly hit the windows of the second floor of the house across the street. WHO DOES THAT?
Rave: He stopped. No window damage.
Rave: The successful Mars Curiosity landiing. Go, science!
Rant: Found out about the live viewing and talk at Goddard Space Flight Center too late. It was full by the time I tried to sign up for it.
Rant: Where do I begin?
Rave: Keep on keeping on.
Question: For those who knew they were soon to be resigning, how do you manage to fake your way through the rest if your time at a job? It’s getting pretty difficult right now, and I don’t want to get kicked out of here before resigning!
Rave: Reveling in the idea of never having to screen calls for another boss again. omg.
Yeah, it’s tough. I remember trying to squeeze interviews into my lunch breaks, but the interviews always ended up being 2 or 3 hours long and eventually my employer caught on and I was forced to resign.
I’ve found that what gets me through is using my final weeks to pull together any documents that might be helpful for whatever poor soul is going to wind up taking over my duties/position after I depart. So, lists of tips/tricks, etc. It made me feel good to know that I was helping someone out in the future, and kept a smile on my face to think they would need the help bc “I’m outta here, sucker!” Another plus: it makes you look like you’re busy at work when all you’re really doing is preparing to leave.
That’s a good idea. It also ensures you’ll be leaving on good terms.
Yes, good idea. Thanks!
Do you have another job lined up? If not, maybe you should get kicked out. Unemployment!
No I actually don’t. But… could I get unemployment for being fired for being a hostile bitch to anyone that comes near me? haha!
Unemployment benefits are generally not available to people who quit. Only those who are fired/let go.
I had an ex who couldn’t get benefits because his employer lied about the circumstances of his departure.
I was able to get unemployment even though I resigned from my job. This was in VA though.
Honestly, probably. I think most UI offices look for evidence of “gross misconduct.” Granted, it’s defined differently in different states.
Rave: I’M AN AUNT! We waited around all of yesterday for the good news, and she finally made her appearance just before 9:30pm. Got to meet my niece for a few minutes before she and her new parents needed to get some sleep, and I’m excited to spend some more time with her today.
Rant: My grandmother is not doing so well, and I suspect we’ll be saying our goodbyes before the week is over. Talk about the circle of life.
I know what you mean… my grandmother passed away not long ago on the evening her great-granddaughter was born. It was my cousin’s wife who had the baby. And his parents didn’t even tell him that my grandma died. It was weeks before he found out. So he obviously didn’t make it to the funeral. They said they “didn’t want him to be brought down by that and have his day marred by the passing of his grandma.” I think (and, frankly, have always thought) that they are horrible people.
Anyhow, my condolences. :-/
Rant: Totally burnt out with work. Need a staycation pronto but need to finish up some big projects first. Been going full speed since early spring and my energy and enthusiasm and ability to push through is severely depleted. My new years resolution to work less this year has not been very successful.
Rave: *Hopefully* done with remaining huge projects next week??? Hoping. Then I plan to do close to nothing for as long as possible.
Rant: My dad came down this weekend to help us paint our new condo. Because we now have the space for him to stay with us, he stayed in our guest room. And every single day, he noted that it was strange that he was staying with us because he usually stays in a hotel, and my younger sister will stay in a suite with him to spend more time together. When he remarks EVERY DAY that its weird spending more time with me, you know what that comes off as? He’d rather be spending his time with her, and that he enjoys his DC trips more with my sister. And that feeling just sucks.
Rant: During this time, we also spent time with my sister’s boyfriend. When we first met him, he was quiet and reserved. This time, he was loud-mouthed, cursed WAY too much in front of my dad, and has an attitude as if he’s better than my family. My sister and her boyfriend spent half of their time whispering to each other and from what I overheard, they were putting down things my dad, my partner, and I were saying. Just because you serve in the military doesn’t mean you get to talk down to my family, you entitled prick.
Whew, thanks for letting me get those out there. I’ve been holding all that in for DAYS.
Ouch – family closeness can often get uncomfortable. Just FYI For future visits, there are lots of vacation rental apts. in the Columbia Heights area. I have one and often host visiting families. Check VRBO.com, Homeaway.com and Airbnb.com.
I’m sorry to hear that. You didn’t ask for advice, but I hope you won’t mind getting some from someone who’s had problems with her dad in the past: speak your mind. Next time you talk, let him know how he made you feel. It will give him a chance to explain (or make excuses, whichever the case may be), but more importantly you will have said this to the person that it really needs to be said to. When I let it go in the past, I always found that I never really let it go; it just festered until the next time when I saw him. It’s bad for your emotions.
Anyway, just my 2 cents. Hope you had a good time otherwise, jerk boyfriend notwithstanding. Honestly, it seems like there’s a run on sister’s jerk boyfriends in PoPville lately!
Rave: Sister was in town for fiancee’s bridal shower, had a great weekend hanging out!
Rant: Had to use the oven to cook meat instead of the pit last night due to severe weather.
Ear infections are horrid. I had one so bad once the ENT shoved some weird vacuum down my ear and sucked it out………………………..worst pain of my life.
oops that was for the post above.
Rave: Chevy Chase playground/Livingston spraypark was a hit with the little ones. Parents – I highly recommend, worth the short drive.
Rant: Hot muggy swimmy DC summer air
Rant: Majorly pulled my calf muscle while working out with my boyfriend’s fire crew on Saturday. This successfully delayed my 4 mile run I was supposed to complete yesterday. Grrr.
Found a blue umbrella with butterflies on the red line just now. Post contact info if it’s yours.
Rave: Great sex last night!
rant: it was right after a second date….too soon?
Rant: On the Red line this morning heading to Dupont. At Cleveland Park they announce that, due to all escalator and elevator outages, they will not be servicing Dupont station and there will be a shuttle from Woodley Park or Farragut North. I get off at WP, wait around with a bunch of people in the miserable humidity, and there is NO SHUTTLE, of course. And no one to tell us this. Finally get on some bus or other that lets us off in Dupont, having to pay for this bus. Ugh, this was a major WMATA FAIL.
Rave: Friends had a Slip-n-Slide party on Saturday! Weather was perfect and it was tons of fun to let out my inner child………but boy, am I sore! Abs are killing me!
Rant: Job. Really don’t want to be here anymore.
Rave: Moving! Yay!
Rant: Shipping! Anyone have thoughts on which post office is better (for shipping boxes), Columbia Heights on Georgia Ave. or the Petworth one? Thanks!!