Shannon McGovern • May 3, 2012

Hey, Georgetowners! To liven up these hot, “dog days,” we’re taking time to give a hats-off and a good belly rub to man’s best friend, who sticks with us in any weather. Send us pictures of of your pooch along with names (theirs and yours) and your contact information to samantha@georgetowner.com and one lucky doggy will be featured as the face of our “Dog Days of August” issue. The rest will be included online in our “Dog Days of August” photo album alongside our article highlighting the best outings for you and your dog in D.C. [gallery ids="100256,106899,106894,106889,106884,106879,106874,106869,106864,106908,106859,106912,106854,106916,106849,106920,106844,106904" nav="thumbs"]

Shannon McGovern •

IMAX is coming to a theater near you this fall, with the Sept. 9 premier of Contagion, a thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh starring Matt Damon, scheduled to appear via the “IMAX Experience” at AMC Georgetown 14 on K Street.

The IMAX Experience is a modified version of the IMAX theaters in the Museum of Natural History and the Air and Space Museum on the National Mall, and has been dubbed “IMAX-lite” by Ian Buckwalter of the DCist. Like Buckwalter, several local bloggers have expressed contempt and skepticism toward what would appear to be an advance for the theater experience.

But many would argue to the contrary: the IMAX Experience preserves IMAX”ssignature sound quality and involves the same dual digital projection as in the traditional IMAX theaters. The resolution of the projected images is classified as “2K,” making IMAX dual projection superior in quality to normal movie screens with 2k resolution, but sources report that most movie chains have begun to install to 4K resolution projectors in their theaters. If the transition is completed on schedule, the IMAX Experience at AMC Georgetown will have been trumped in terms of image quality in its first year.

Critics are wondering if the IMAX Experience will live up to its snazzy name, or if IMAX is better experienced through the traditional setup at the Smithsonian. We’ll just have to wait until Sept. 9 and see for ourselves.

Shannon McGovern •

The Georgetown Business Association invites the community to join them at this month’s reception, “Networking with a View… And a Salute to Furin’s.” The event will grant special recognition to Bernie Furin in honor of his retirement and the closing of Furin’s after 40 years of catering Georgetown events.

The reception will be held at the House of Sweden on the Waterfront from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 17. The GBA asks that those planning to attend RSVP by Monday, Aug. 15 to Sue Hamilton via email or she can be reached by phone at 202.333.8076.

Shannon McGovern •

UPDATE: Albrecht Gero Muth was charged yesterday with the murder of his late wife, Viola Drath.

Muth was arrested by D.C. police Tuesday evening and charged with second-degree murder after police found he did not have a credible alibi at the time of Drath’s death and found no signs of forced entry into their Q Street home. Muth allegedly has a history of violent behavior toward Drath.

The death of 91-year-old Georgetown resident Viola Drath, originally credited to natural causes, is now under investigation as a homicide.

Drath died in a bathroom in her home on Q Street on Friday morning. In his obituary submission to The Washington Post the following morning, Drath’s second husband Albrecht Gero Muth classified the cause of death as “head trauma resulting from fall,” but the results of an autopsy have given the D.C. authorities cause to begin a search for Drath’s killer.

Police spent the weekend interviewing the family and collecting evidence from Drath’s home, but have not turned up any leads as of yet. The home shows no sign of forced entry, and the police have not named any suspects or discovered a possible motive for murder.

A native of Germany and reputed journalist, Drath is remembered as a former reporter for Handelsblatt, a German newspaper, and as a columnist for The Washington Times. She wrote several books and was actively involved in foreign policy, particularly affairs involving relations between Germany and the U.S.

Shannon McGovern • September 6, 2011

SlutWalk marched through D.C. on Saturday as one of many recent marches organized by women to raise awareness and reduce the blame put by society on victims of sexual abuse.

Women and men gathered at Lafayette Square and processed down 15th Street to the Washington Monument. Some marchers woreonly in a bra, several painted “Slut” across their chests, others carried signs declaring “My Dress is Not a Yes” and “Even Sluts Have a Right to Say ‘No’.” All conveyed the same message: Consent is not granted by the way a woman dresses or acts, and victims are never responsible for sexual violence committed against them.

SlutWalk D.C. defines its principle goal as onethat “specifically aims to challenge ‘rape culture’ which excuses sexual violence through messaging such as ‘Don’t Get Raped’ – instead the message should be ‘Don’t Rape!’”

SlutWalk D.C. follows a series of marches that began with a small movement in Toronto in April, after a Toronto police officer who suggested that women could better protect themselves by not dressing “like a slut.”

Since Toronto, SlutWalk has not only taken Chicago, Austin, Philadelphia and Seattle by storm, but also gone international with marches in Brisbane, Australia and London, England.

For more information about SlutWalk, its principles and its history, visit slutwalkdc.org
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Shannon McGovern •

Your bags are packed, you’re ready to go . . . and whether you’re leaving on a jet plane or loading up the car, whether you’re excited, nervous or both, hopefully you know you’re about to embark upon the most exciting four years of your life yet. Although I’m by no means an expert, here are five things to keep in mind your first year:

5. Travel: You have all your options open your first year, so use the time to consider your academic interests and think about where that can take you in the next four years. Explore opportunities for research, internships, study abroad and volunteer work that will provide you with hands-on experience with your passions in the next four years.

4.Embrace Challenges: Many students find themselves facing a new level of difficulty in their classes and the workload in college. The best thing to keep in mind is that everyone else is in the same boat, and with time you’ll learn to time-manage and find that your professors and peers are always more than happy to help and advise you.

3. Get Outside: The best way to avoid the “freshman fifteen” is to take a holistic approach to healthy habits – stay active, eat well and find fun ways to de-stress.

2. Try New Things: College is a great opportunity to explore new opportunities and reinvent yourself. In addition to required classes take something that sounds interesting, just for fun, and sign up for clubs and activities where you will meet people of myriad interests, beliefs, politics and backgrounds. There’s so much to learn beyond the pages of a textbook.

1. Work Hard, Play Hard: Your college experienceis supposed to prepare you for the rest of your life. Devote yourself to your schoolwork, and reward yourself with time to just have fun. School comes first, but the college social experience is just as important. If you’re lucky, the friends you make at school will be there beyond graduation.

Shannon McGovern • August 10, 2011

Besides backyard barbeques and weekends at the beach, summertime is a great season for fruits that not only make for healthy, refreshing snacks but also have purifying and cleansing properties that make them ideal for skin and hair treatments. A simple web search will turn up a plethora of recipes for facial and hair solutions made with any imaginable fruit or vegetable, but what’s going on beneath the mask once you are fully slathered in these all-natural ingredients?

1. Banana

The oils and vitamins in ripe bananas naturally condition hair when mashed and applied as a mask, adding gloss and moisture to dry or chemically-treated hair. Bananas are also said to prevent wrinkles and help maintain a healthy skin tone when used in facial treatments. Many recipes combine bananas with avocado, which has similar nutritional qualities.

2. Papaya

Like many tropical fruits, papaya is rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants that reduce acne, fine lines and redness in the face. Papaya is particularly effective as an exfoliating treatment because of the enzymes naturally present in the fruit that have the capacity to eat away dead skin cells. The fruit also contains antioxidants and compounds called flavonoids, which are known to help reduce the formation of lines and wrinkles.

3. Lemon

The citric acid in lemons acts as a mild bleach for blondes and light brunettes when lemon juice is applied to hair and exposed to sunlight. We can take advantage of the acidic properties of lemon juice for restorative purposes as well, namely the removal of product residue and swimming pool chemicals. Lemon juice can tone and control oily skin as well.

4. Pineapple

They may not be the prettiest fruit to look at, but the enzyme bromelian has the capacity to cleanse and beautify skin by exfoliating dead cells, healing sun damage and reducing swelling. The fruit can be used mashed and raw or combined with other fruit such as papaya for a deep purifying face mask.

5. Oranges

Forget the hassle of a messy mask – rub fresh orange slices across your face and let the rich vitamins work their cleansing magic reducing blemishes and clearing your complexion.

6. Cucumber

As with oranges, there’s no need to mash and mix cucumbers in order to use them to soothe and cool your skin. Besides feeling great placed over our eyes, when rubbed on our skin cucumbers reduce swelling and restore facial tissue – a perfect solution to a bad sunburn after an afternoon under the summer sun.

7. Green tea

After cooling down with a refreshing glass of iced green tea, treat your dry scalp and hair with a green tea rinse. Green tea contains vitamin C and pathenol, which both condition hair and protect it from UV damage. Green tea has been used in homemade sunscreens as an alternative to heavy, oily lotions and helps clear pores and moisturize skin.

8. Coconut

Coconut oil contains lauric acid and capric acid, which fight microbes that can cause hair loss, as well as an abundance of vitamin E, making it an ideal hair conditioner and anti-dandruff solution. In addition to acting as a powerful moisturizer, coconut oil can be used as a styling gel. The oil can be melted and applied to the hair, where it will cool and solidify to hold your “do.”

9. Strawberry

Strawberries naturally contain salicylic acid, an active ingredient in many facial washes and soaps, which cleanses and exfoliates skin to clear clogged pores and reduce redness and shine.

10. Mango

Mangoes possess many of the same vitamins as do papaya and therefore have the same capacity to alleviate dry, peeling skin. The fruit contains carotene, which replenishes skin and makes the tissue more elastic. Mango hair treatments also help with hair elasticity and strengthening root growth.

Shannon McGovern • July 26, 2011

A thick column of black smoke billowing from behind the Tackle Box and Hook restaurants was the only visible indication to M Street bystanders of the massive fire that broke out in the back alley today shortly after noon.

Diners enjoying lunch at Tackle Box said they did not hear an alarm sound but saw smoke coming from the kitchen, prompting everyone in the restaurant to walk out immediately. Kitchen staff also promptly evacuated when flames erupted from the back of the kitchen. The D.C. Fire Department received the emergency call reporting the fire at 12:30, and shortly after over 100 firefighters from 30 D.C. emergency response units arrived on the scene, said Sergeant Sid Polish.

No one was injured in the fire, which was mostly restricted to the outside alley, but Hook suffered significant fire damage in the rear of the restaurant and its immediate neighbors, particularly Tackle Box, maintained collateral damage from smoke and water, said Pete Piringer, a Public Information Officer for the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department.

“The damages [to Hook restaurant] are somewhat significant,” said Piringer. “The good thing is there were no injuries.”

M Street was closed from the Key Bridge to Wisconsin Ave while the fire department secured the buildings, and the block containing Hook and its neighboring businesses was restricted to pedestrians.

This afternoon firefighters will work on ensuring all the hotspots have been fully extinguished and collaborate with investigators to determine the cause of the fire.

Hook will most likely be closed pending repairs and ultimately a health inspection before reopening.

[Click Here](https://georgetowner.com/videos/fire-hook-restaurant/) to view live footage of the event.
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Shannon McGovern • July 13, 2011

From the beginning, the relationship between Norman Parish and his wife Gwen centered around a deep appreciation for talent and beauty, values that come to life in the Norman Parish Gallery’s 20th Anniversary exhibition, “Living Embodiments: Artistic Expressions of Being” which will run until July 12.

Norman met his wife, Gwen, 23 years ago after moving to D.C. from Chicago. They spent their weekends driving through the mountains of northwestern Maryland. They would park on the side of the highway where she would sunbathe and read while he painted landscapes, and together, they mused about the idea of opening an art gallery. One day, walking home after enjoying an oyster meal at Manhattan’s, the couple noticed an ad for the sale of a gallery.

Twenty years later, they celebrate not only the anniversary of their gallery’s opening, but also the talent and development of the family of artists who, Norman says, contributed work of consistent quality.

“My reference to quality is that the subject matter may not be to one’s liking, but the art works can truly be called fine art. The diversity of the artists shown over the years has one thing in common . . . quality,” said Norman in a press release.

The Parishes entertained a full house at the gallery’s opening reception for the exhibition on June 17. While exhibitions usually feature the work of one artist, in honor of the anniversary, Norman selected the work of a range of artists with whom he worked over the years and whose work he feels is “meaningful and impactful.” The works of master painters Herbert Gentry and Robert Mayhew were given recognition as well as upcoming artists Mason Archie and Morris Howard, pencil drawings by Kenneth Pasley, photos by 11 photographers and a piece by Sam Gilliam. Some are personal friends of Norman’s including Richard Hunt, a former classmate from the Art Institute of Chicago, and Evangeline J. Montgomery, who advised him while he was opening the gallery.

Collectively, the Parish Gallery features mostly, but not exclusively, artists from Africa and the African Diaspora whose art covers a broad spectrum of styles in contemporary fine art. In the past two decades, the gallery hosted artists from over 25 different countries.

Reflecting back on the life of the gallery, the Parishes remember a few exhibitions that were particularly notable. For both Norman and Gwen, Willard Wigan’s microscopic sculptures in his exhibition “Art in the Eye of a Needle” stood out, particularly for the notoriety and intriguing concept. During the two-month exhibition, 3,500 people visited the gallery to peer into microscopes to view the miniscule sculptures set in the eyes of needles.

Norman noted the development of Yvette Watson, an artist who he introduced to the gallery business. In her first show at the Parish Gallery, she sold 14 of the 16 pieces on display – one of the only sellout shows.

An oil painting by Parish himself also hangs among the work of his friends and colleagues, a brilliantly colored landscape that’s what he calls “expressionism in the form of stylized realism.” Despite his talent, Parish considers himself more of a businessman.

“I spent my life pursuing an art career and I was in my late forties when I realized it wasn’t happening. Someone said, ‘Why don’t you open a gallery?’ So I became a businessman,” he said.

Parish opened the gallery because few galleries consistently allowed diverse art in terms of style.

“My primary concern is that these artists have a place to be seen,” he said.