quality of life

Dear PoP – Mayor Corps Alert Please Post

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

Please post that at 1:30PM today 8/4 at the Adams Mill playground, some students from the Mayor’s Youth Corps were taking “up skirt” pictures of a 3 YEAR GIRL. She was just changed and was running from her mom up some playground equipment. She didn’t have any diaper on yet and these pedophiles lean over from otherwise doing nothing and take phone camera pics. My wife notified the lady, who owns a local business and demanded the creeps empty the phone. We should have called the cops. What do we do with these Neanderthals? I’ve notified Green Corps and our ANC folks. They’ll be off the street in no time…”

This is obviously extremely disturbing.  The writer of this “Dear PoP” is the young girl’s father and is understandably extremely upset.  I can’t imagine how outraged I’d be in a similar situation.  I hope to God the offenders can be identified and punished.  I’m not sure the offenders realize just how abhorrent the act they committed was.  I most definitely think they should have the crap scared out of them.  Of course I wasn’t there so I don’t know exactly what happened but I’d be cautious to label these teens something beyond idiots.  And they most certainly were idiots.   And we’ve spoken about this in the past but it is becoming ever more clear that these Summer youth programs need more supervision.  Of that I am certain.

Uh-Oh: Le Droit Park, Petworth Locations Among Possible Post Office Closings

By Prince Of Petworth

Tons of readers wrote in on Friday about the possible Post Office closings in DC (photo above of Le Droit Park). We spoke of the Petworth post office back in March. The news of the potential closings were first reported in the Post’s Federal Eye blog. They wrote:

“The Postal Service has marked 677 post offices nationwide for possible closure or consolidation, according to a document given today to a House subcommittee holding a hearing on the future of American mail delivery. Among them are 10 post offices in the District and three in the Maryland suburbs of Hyattsville, Rockville and Silver Spring.”

Well, I for one think this is horrible. I use the post office from time to time to mail out t-shirts so it’s really convenient for me to have one in my neighborhood. But then again, I don’t really use the post office that frequently. So what do you guys think – should most neighborhoods in DC have their own post offices? Or have post offices really become a thing of the past?

Dear PoP – The Mice are Menacing

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

I wonder if you would get a discussion going on your site about mice in apartment buildings around the local neighborhoods. My wife and I live in an apartment building and recently our digs have become infested with mice; for six to seven weeks now, the little critters have run amok and torn into, among other random items, a cereal box and a fresh tomato. The runts are getting braver and coming out more frequently and out of more unpredictable places (the other afternoon, one little guy jumped out of the dishwasher and onto our dog’s back before performing a somersault-landing and sprinting away to safety in a water heater closet. We’ve tried everything to get rid of the runts (i.e. traps–first, the snap traps and then the less humane glue traps, putting steel wool in the holes, and conducting immaculate house cleaning routines). All attempts have failed. It is unclear that the management company has responded appropriately given the level of infestation (we know other building tenants are experiencing the same problem). We are curious how prevalent such mice issues are for other D.C. residents? And we’re also very interested to hear about other people’s experiences. For example, what they do to rid themselves of mice and how do their landlords/management companies respond, etc.? If there is a reader that knows tenants’ rights and can speak about whether a tenant can break their lease if there is a persistent and serious problem that remains unresolved by management, we’d like to know that, too.”

Back in June ’07, I revealed a dirty little secret – we all currently have or have had mice in the past. For me the only thing I was able to do to deal with the problem was to get a cat. (Ed. Note: My cat, Dingo, has been ruled ineligible for the coolest pet in PoPville contest by an independent panel of advisors.) Before I got a cat I used traps that would catch them but there seemed to be a never ending supply of reinforcements. Since I got a cat I’ve never seen one or evidence of one since. I did, however, also have some outdoor spaces patched up. However, I live in a house. If I lived in an apartment building I would definitely request exterminators from the building management. Some advice was given here. But what do you guys recommend for one facing this problem in an apartment building?

I’m Gonna Weigh in on the Henry Louis Gates Controversy

By Prince Of Petworth

So much for a lighthearted Friday… But I’ve been listening to so much talk about this and something struck me right away that nobody has mentioned. As most surely know by now Prof. Gates was arrested when someone called the police as he was pushing in a stuck door on his home. Some are being critical of the Cambridge police and some are being critical of Prof. Gates. For sure, I believe, race to a certain degree was likely an issue with how he got arrested. But I have a problem with the neighborhood. Because I was thinking how this would never have happened where I live. Presumably it was a neighbor who called the police. And as they say it’s good to have folks looking out but on my block everyone knows each other. If I saw my neighbor Joe, black and often casually dressed, pushing in his door. I’d say, hey Joe what’s going on, you ok? It seems insane to me that this neighbor does not know what her neighbor looks like. Perhaps she saw the driver but I’d say this incident says a lot about the neighborhood of Cambridge, MA.

This is Definitely Part of the Beautiful Life

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

My neighbor put this chair out with a “free” sign. Then this guy came along and sat there reading for about an hour.”

As an avid reader I think this is a beautiful sight.

Federal Court Rules DC Checkpoints Unconstitutional

By Prince Of Petworth

The Washington Post reports:

“In a strongly worded opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit condemned the roadblocks, which police used last summer in the city’s Trinidad neighborhood in Northeast Washington. The checkpoints, which have not been used in about a year, were a response to a spate of shootings, including a triple homicide.”

Council Member Mendelson sent out a press release:

“I am pleased with the U.S. Court of Appeals decision reversing a lower court’s approval of the controversial roadblocks. It is unfortunate that the District’s Attorney General was so wrong to insist that the roadblocks were constitutional. However, today’s decision is no surprise given that the DC Court of Appeals came to the same conclusion regarding roadblocks – ironically, also in Trinidad – in 1991.

All of us want to reduce crime – there is too much of it despite the recent drop in numbers. But the District government should pursue strategies that are proven to work. Roadblocks sound good – they’re a “get tough” approach – but they are controversial and often illegal. There are much more effective strategies, as Police Chief Cathy Lanier has shown, that have the community’s support and reduce crime.

Today’s decision is a triumph over rhetoric.”

I’m curious to know how you guys feel about this issue.

Dear PoP – Loitering a Big Problem at the at Firehouse, 14th and Newton St. NW

By Prince Of Petworth


photo by John

Ed. Note: I didn’t have a photo of the firehouse at Newton so just picked a random one from flickr. Regarding the firehouse at Newton, I too have seen random people hanging out and setting up a small portable bbq and wondered if it was sanctioned by the firehouse.

“Dear PoP,

I wanted to raise the issue of loitering in front of the firehouse on 14th and Newton streets, as it’s caused a great deal of frustration for the residents of Newton and certainly beyond. Those familiar with this spot know that there used to be benches in front of the firehouse, a beacon for all types of characters. Generally, these people are unruly, intoxicated, offensive and pretty insensitive to anyone around. Jim Graham had the wood benches removed last year, but the cement structures of the benches remain, and now the regulars have taken to bringing their own furniture in the form of lawn chairs, desk chairs, etc. It’s easy to write these folks off as “homeless”, however, it’s become pretty obvious that they do have homes. They park cars along the curb of 14th St. and blast music; if it’s nice out you bet they’re grilling (that’s right they have a grill and meat to cook), and after they leave the entire area is a disaster. Trash is left everywhere as well as items that apparently aren’t worth holding onto.

We started by contacting the firehouse. The gentleman who was apparently in charge, asked if we were referring to “Bumfest”. That’s right, this is a civil servant. The obvious indifference to members of the community and apathy towards the situation outside of the firehouse is pretty frustrating considering we care about our neighborhood. Most of these firefighters are from other states, and seem to care less about the immediate community. Councilman Graham has expressed repeated frustration to his constituents, but there’s no loitering law in DC, and police claim they can do nothing.

I find it hard to believe that if my friends and I decided to congregate on the sidewalk and grill, start fights, curse out passersby, puke, and trash the area, we wouldn’t be punished in some way. It’s really embarrassing to have the first site visitors see on your street be a group like this.

Does anyone else in the neighborhood share my sentiment? We’ve contacted the non-emergency number close to 10 times now, but the problems persist. Please make the community aware of this issue, I really want to offer these people an alternative.”

DC demystification by Eric Nuzum

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville Flickr member Rukasu1

The following was written by PoP contributor Eric Nuzum.

This one is for the interlopers and sojourners in the house. Native sons and daughters can sit this one out, opting instead to monitor the comment thread and shake your heads in mild disgust.

So I’ve been wrestling with something lately and could use some advice: How does one go about explaining our neighborhood life to folks back home?

My wife and I have become increasingly perplexed by the fact that, despite moving into our Petworth home 18 months ago, neither set of parents (mine from rural Ohio; hers from rural Indiana) has come to visit us yet. Seeing that we are the first kids on either side of our families to buy homes, we expected a little more interest.

The answer came during a visit home a few weeks ago. When we pointed out the lack of parental visitation to my folks, they were pretty silent.

“You aren’t frightened of where we live or anything…are you?” I asked.

Long pause.

“Well,” my mother said. “Maybe a little.”

In hindsight, this didn’t surprise my wife at all.

“Think about the stories you tell them,” she said. “It’s all crack addicts and crime and problems and sketchy this and that. If that was all I heard about any place, I’d be frightened too.”

Okay, she’s right. But in fairness, when I’m telling stories, I go for the colorful and entertaining, I’m not shooting for high journalistic objectivity and fairness. However, I admit that the end product does come off a bit askew.

Going solely off my solely-for-entertainment-value stories, the unfamiliar might be left with the impression that Petworth is a place where bullets fly daily, bugs and rodents conduct their own ANC meetings, the Sunday paper contains coupons for local heroin and crack dealers, and residents mope down the street openly weeping (when we all know that only the residents of Chevy Chase walk down the street weeping, come on). You can even see from my own previous guest posts on PoP (spottily chronicled here), I admittedly tend to focus on the less-than-positive, less-than-normal, and less-than-flattering.

My wife issued a decree, right there in the car driving across the Pennsylvania turnpike: No more negative yarns and jokes about DC to family and friends.

To me, that seems to harsh, almost like suppressing elements of life here. She clarified that she wasn’t asking me to censor anything, just realize that by sharing stories and making jokes about one side of life here, I was casting the entirety in false light. I see her point. Continues after the jump. (more…)

I seriously Respect This Effort

By Prince Of Petworth

I’m always impressed by folks who go the extra effort for no personal gain. Someone found a bike and decided to post signs to find the owner. I think this is part of what makes a neighborhood/community great.

And finally a condo/apartment name that I like. Kinda reminds me of the simple brilliance of the Irving.

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