MOVA Is Moving ... Hopefully To Oblivion

D.C. gay bar MOVA, formerly known as Halo, is planning to move to a new but undetermined location in D.C., according to owner Babak Movahedi.

Mr. Movahedi says that the rent is too high and the landlord has refused to renegotiate a new deal. The landlord, David Lett, counters that "Movahedi’s assertion that he declined to enter into discussions over a possible change in the lease" is total bunk. According to Mr. Lett, "Movahedi violated the lease when he failed to pay the property tax on the building, which was a requirement of the lease". Having known both men in capacity enough to judge their character, I'm inclined to believe Mr. Lett's word.

Congress To Leave The Oversight Business (Sort Of)

Well, this news seemed to come out of nowhere.

House Democrats are pushing this year to give the District full control over how it budgets and spends city revenue, severely limiting opportunities for Congress to intervene in local decisions such as support for same-sex marriage, needle-exchange programs and medical marijuana.

Now, don't go getting your knickers in a bunch. Despite the misleading article title, Congress will not be completely striped from D.C. budget oversight.

Congress still would have the power to enact laws on the District and block new legislation approved by the council, and would have oversight of federal money earmarked for the city.

I honestly think this is a perfectly appropriate compromise in advancing further autonomy for the District. Kudos to U.S. Rep. José E. Serrano for putting this out there!

Now You Know Where You Are, Where You Are Going, And What You're Looking At

Gizmodo is my first stop for all news techie. They cover a lot of gearhead ground, from breaking technical news to product reviews to absolute nonsense. And their daily deals post is not to be missed. Contributor Kyle VanHemert posted an exciting item regarding our very own American Museum of Natural History. If you love museums (and specifically this one), this should send a thrill up your leg.

After downloading the app on your own device or borrowing an iPod touch from the museum, you'll find that figuring out where you're going is just the start—you can also let Explorer guide you on preplanned tours or select from a list of exhibits and specimens to plot your own route through the museum.

As one who has been to this museum more times than he can count, I'm very much looking forward to going back and experiencing the American Museum of Natural History anew with this new tool. I certainly hope that the Smithsonian Institution makes more applications like this for some of its other museums that can be a tad overwhelming to slough through (*coughAirandSpaceMuseumcough*).

Must. Have.

Jimmie at The Sundries Shack found something very pretty. And I must have it.

DC Universe Online Cinematic Trailer

Here is more information on the game (check out the voice cast!). Here is the official website. And it can be pre-ordered on Amazon.com. *drool*

UPDATE (07/30/2010 00:08): It appears that Viacom is cracking down on the cinematic trailer. I've updated the one here with a copy they haven't hit yet.

Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up - The Finale!

This is the last one, I promise. And you're welcome for the earworms.

Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up Is Winding Down

Um, Diarist, are you okay?

Yep.

Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up A-Thon

This sort of goes against a vow I once made about playing a certain artist, but it's Craig so why not?

Additional Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up

Yep. I think you all can see how this day of posting is going to go.

Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up Continues

The Ferguson-a-thon continues ...

More Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up

Really, my faithful readers. I'm having a rough time getting motivated today. So here's another video to help us along!

Mid-Week Pick-Me-Up

If you're anything like me, Wednesdays can be more Mountain Day than Hump Day. I'm always looking for ways to give it life, to have it move, to give it more of a prominent place amongst the days of the week. No matter how hard I try, how far I look, how much I do, it always comes down to this:

Craig Ferguson. Puppets. Michael Franti & Spearhead. A groovin' black man. An infectious beat. A short guy in leather.



And now I'm ready to tackle the day.

A Washington Post Article Causes A Double-Take

The Washington Post published an article today highlighting a local businessman, focusing mostly on his successful *local* chain of gyms. I have several friends who work out at one of his various locations and hear nothing but good things about Vida Fitness so you will get no snark from me over it, him, or this article.

But I did find it a bit comical that someone with intimate knowledge of Near Southeast was ... how to put this ... caught a bit off-guard at the announcement of a new Vida at Navy Yard, The Yards, or anywhere else in the neighborhood for that matter.

Without anything else to go on--and with no neighborhood projects currently touting a 2013 delivery date--we'll just have to wait and see which developer cops to being in talks with Vida.

It will be interesting to see if Mr. von Storch has been in secret negotiations with one of the neighborhood developers to bring a Vida to the area (or if this expansion is as big a surprise to them as well). It certainly would be yet another slap in the face of his soon-to-be-former tenant, who set up shop close to Near Southeast almost ten years ago.

It's For My Glaucoma. Really.

It's official, the District has joined fourteen states in legalizing medical marijuana. Well, technically, D.C. made it legal back in May; Congress will make it legal for D.C. to make it legal at the end of the current Congressional session Monday night by opting to do nothing about it.

Medical marijuana is now legal in the District after the Democrat-controlled Congress declined to overrule a D.C Council bill that allows the city to set up as many as eight dispensaries where chronically ill patients can purchase the drug.

So rejoice, you who suffer chronic (or is that cronic?) pain! Take heart, you who are terminally ill (or is that ill?)! But be afeared, those entrepreneurs who might try to make a quick buck because, while possession and use will be permitted with a prescription, growing the ganga will still be illegal.

Monday, Monday ... Can't Blog That Day

There's really nothing in the news I care to blog about today.

I'm a bit tired of hearing about the two-way race for D.C. mayor.

The original location of Ledo Restaurant is closing, but that would only be news if it weren't moving to a new location nearby (so the site is actually closing, not the restaurant ... *yawn*).

Then there were those storms yesterday and what seems like half of the Washington Metropolitan Area lost power. But, again, it would only be news (and thus blogworthy) if no one lost power.

DDOT released a ton of old photos of D.C., which are very cool. (Well, history is cool.) Last week's news, though. (Still cool, though.)

Anyway, it's a Monday. Enjoy the links.

Busy Day At DCPS

After months of relative silence, Chancellor Rhee has gotten busy again. First, she trims some fat from the school system then she announces some voucher changes. Now, I'm not saying that she's tying up loose ends but one can't help but wonder if she's pushing toward a deadline.

Bang! Pow! Boom!

I love me some video games. I especially love me some FPS games. My singular complaint with the FPS market (specifically the PlayStation FPS market) is that you're still shooting with something that isn't a gun, which can make FPS games a bit challenging.

Well, that looks to soon be remedied and, I have to say, I like the solution.

So, my birthday is right around the corner. Surely some of you can pool your monies together and get this for me, yes?

Burning Bush Not A Sign From God

Okay, okay. I know! This story is not funny. Someone actually getting hurt is not funny. Nearly going blind is not funny.

But someone personally purchasing something called a firestick plant for his landscaping, pruning said plant, and immediately rubbing his eyes before thoroughly washing his hands ... c'mon, that's the kind of stuff that's just made for television.

So here's a lesson for you home gardeners: When gardening, wash your hands before touching your face ... or any other sensitive part of your body. (Surely that could have been one of the commandments.)

Get Your Grub On!

Restaurant Week is coming!

The summer-time version is slated for August 16-22, 2010. Here are some very helpful suggestions for you:

• Pick a highly rated, expensive place where you would not otherwise eat. This is the whole point of Restaurant Week. Well, that and helping out local charities.
• Make your reservations now! The best places book quickly.
  
• Take your favorite peeps along. Seriously. Restaurant Week is one of those times you want to share with other people. When else will you all get to be all gussied up and enjoy fine food prepared by the best of the best? Exactly.
  
• Don't rush yourself. You're going to be in a restaurant you otherwise couldn't afford. Enjoy your time there. Relish it. Soak it all in.
  

Caption This

I saw this picture on The Washington Times website and thought this should make for some entertaining captions by my faithful readers. (Hello? Is anyone out there?) So have at it.



Allow me to start:

"$787 billion in tax dollars spent on jump-starting the economy with nothing to show. Unemployment is at 9.6%, despite my promise to keep it under 8%. Iran is brashly pursuing nuclear weapons. Health insurance reform is the law of the land all across America, against the will of the American people. My Justice Department is suing the state of Arizona while letting the New Black Panther Party off Scot free. Not bad for a couple years' work."

Is This Bizarro World?

I don't even know what to think about this bit of news.

Former Mayor Anthony A. Williams joined Mayor Adrian M. Fenty and Council member Jim Graham Tuesday morning in Columbia Heights for the unveiling of a commemorative plaque in honor of all three of them and the nonprofit that helped make DCUSA possible.

But the event in the lobby of the building anchored by Target resembled a campaign endorsement of Fenty (D) and Graham (D-Ward 1).

I admit that Mayor Fenty has done some fine work during his tenure as mayor. He also has some worrisome errors in judgment and ethical missteps that paint a troubling portrait for the future should he be reelected. The only thing Gray detractors say against him is that we don't know enough about him to know how he will actually lead the city should he be elected ... that we still have too many questions about him that need answering.

And, yes, we don't really know how Mr. Gray will behave, should he be elected. Will the improvements started during the Williams Administration continue to move along smoothly, or will they be weighted down by consensus-building? Will the city government go back to the days of corruption and ineptness? Will the District become the Crime Capital of the nation once again? Will the public school system fall back to its pre-Williams days? Will the city become the model for public transportation or will needed improvements like bike lanes and streetcars be scuttled?

Mr. Gray needs to continue engaging "new media" folk and continue making himself available to the public in order to make himself more real to the voters. Because, as a friend put it to me recently, the city will "vote for the known evil".