“Dear PoPville,
As we all know, DC rats are fearsome beasts that will chew through anything and jump on neighbors. For those of us who don’t have the option of deliveries being left inside, I’m wondering if maybe readers can make any suggestions for a rat-proof storage box of sorts for food deliveries. Ideally just big enough to hold those reusable insulated totes. Thank you!”
“Dear PoPville,
I had a couple of disturbing encounters with who I think is a homeless guy in the U street area. First time was a couple of months ago, I was walking my dog on U street and Vermont. He stopped as if he wanted to pet my dog, and when my dog approached him, he started cursing and tried to kick her head as if it were a football. Luckily, my dog reacted fast and avoided the kick. Last Friday, I was walking on V and 13, same guy was walking, this time carrying an 8-pack of paper towels. When I walked by him, he started cursing and again tried to kick my dog’s head. (more…)
Bike lockers at Eastern Market
“Dear PoPville,
I’m looking for some advice regarding safe, indoor overnight bicycle parking in DC. I carpool into work and keep my bike in the office to ride around during the day, but I was recently told I couldn’t store it overnight there any longer.
Are there any safe, indoor spaces to park a bike overnight and on weekends in DC? Preferably close to the downtown area if possible.“
Photo by PoPville flickr user Caitlin Faw
“Dear PoPville,
I need advice. I live in a beautiful, relatively new condo building. The developers kept the historic facade intact but gutted and rebuilt the interior of the building. High-end hardwood floors, great appliances… They even sound-proofed the place to a great extent, which is a luxury in DC. But they forgot to account for one thing: A one-year-old stomping over our heads 24/7. I love kids and want kids myself one day.
However, our upstairs neighbors’ kid stomps around the apartment – especially early in the mornings. Our sleep quality is almost non-existent at this point. Who needs a 7 am alarm when a kid stomps around over your head starting at 6 am, right? You want to sleep in on a Sunday? Too bad, the kid will wake you up around 7-7:30am. We emailed our neighbors directly but they either don’t seem to care or are not really cut out for parenting and don’t actually know how to regulate their kid’s behavior. They don’t say no to their kid or tell him to stop because he “throws a temper tantrum.”
[Ed. Note: Now hold on a second. It’s not necessarily fair to judge parenting through walls. As the parent of two little kids myself, one who wakes up very early, I can tell you first hand that there is zero way to “regulate that behavior”. I have tried alarm clocks, the stick to the carrot, tears to begging, prayers to all major deities and my kid wakes up when she wakes up. (more…)
from a previous discussion
“Dear PoPville,
I recently bought a house that had been rented for a while. There are eight phone and TV wires coming into the house, from two different poles. One of the poles also has two wires hanging down and neatly coiled at about waist level. The poles are in front of the house and the whole things just looks like a mess. Is there any way to get the wires cleaned up? Do I have to call Comcast and Verizon? Can I hire my own contractor or even cut the wires myself?”
Ed. Note: I think Tryst though a bit of a walk from metro sounds perfect. 2459 18th Street, NW. Photo by PoPville flickr user AWard Tour
“Dear PoPville,
So I wanted to know a good place for a birthday lunch/brunch kinda thing. I really like the areas around U Street/Logan Circle, Adams Morgan, and Eastern Market/Capitol Hill. The most important thing location-wise is that it’s metro accessible since that’s how many of my friends will be getting there. Any type of food is good. The place would preferably be not too expensive since we are students and on a budget.”
“Dear PoPville,
My car, which was legally parked in a Resident Only Zone on 3rd Street NE, between L and M Street (East side, closest to M Street) was ticketed and towed on Monday at 9:37am. I learned of the ticket on Tuesday morning, via an e-mail notification from the DMV Ticket Alert Service. I didn’t learn of the tow until the third inquiry call made to the Towing Control Dispatch Center, but that’s another story.
The stated reason for the ticket was that I was parked in an Emergency No Parking spot which, per the DMV Associate I’d spoken with, had been reserved for the day by a resident/neighbor. It’s my understanding that these notices are supposed to be put up 72 hours prior to the time the area is being reserved, meaning that there would have been a sign up on Friday on/before 9:37am. There was no sign up on Friday at 4:00pm and there was no sign up when my boyfriend walked by the car on Saturday. (more…)
Photo by PoPville flickr user Tim Brown
“Dear PoPville,
I’m expecting my first baby and looking for recommendations for an OB/midwife practice in DC (preferably easy metro access). While I’m at it, I’m also trying to figure out which hospital is the best fit, and whether anyone has recommendations for doulas. Online reviews are all over the place, and all of my parent-friends live in VA. I’d love the input of some parents in DC about their experiences and how they made their decisions.”
Photo by PoPville flickr user Erin
“Dear PoPville,
I wanted to nominate a Friday Question of the Day: What is your favorite coffee shop? We’ve been trying to hit more coffee shops lately, and I was wondering if people have any favorites for good coffee, wifi, decent pastries or sweet treats, and comfortable to sit and enjoy for a while.
Along the same lines, I was also curious about where people go for their “third place,” i.e., a social environment that is not home or work? Bar? Coffee shop? Library?“
“Dear PoPville,
To the neighbor who left their fake Christmas tree on the curbside on our street…There’s a reason why yours is the only tree that didn’t get picked up!
I reported it to DC through online 311 but people should know better. Ha! Please help spread the word to other people who chuck their fake trees and expect them to be picked up.”
Ed. Note: Why are people chucking fake trees anyway, I thought the whole beauty was that you could reuse them every year?