A Happy Halloween 2012 in Georgetown

November 6, 2012

It was a calm night with D.C. thankful for being spared the full force of Hurricane Sandy. Accompanied by their parents, adorable little trick-or-treaters dominated the residential streets, east side and west side, in the early evening hours. Then, it was time for the adult parties and the increasingly crowded scene radiating from the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street. Officers from the Metropolitan Police Department were out in force with cruisers, a mobile commander center parked next to Serendipity 3 and officers on horseback. Halloween celebrants walked along the sidewalks, happily meeting and taking photos of any interesting ghoul, monster or fake celebrity. Except for a small Occupy D.C. protest in front of Councilman Jack Evans’s house on P Street around 10 p.m., no other incidents were reported. [gallery ids="101047,136418,136424,136430,136436,136443,136450,136456,136463,136469,136411,136406,136496,136491,136374,136485,136380,136481,136387,136393,136399,136474" nav="thumbs"]

Sandy Is Smacking Washington, Georgetown


Hurricane Sandy hit the Washington area today, as if you didn’t know. Georgetown was mostly closed and empty. There were cars on the streets, and it is important for pedestrians to be alert. Many drivers think no one is walking in this weather.

A least through mid-day, a few eateries remained open, including Booeymonger’s, Bourbon Steak, Clyde’s, Cafe Milano, Dean and Deluca, Marvelous Market, Peacock Cafe, Bistrot Lepic, Bistro Français, Wisey’s and Wisemiller’s. The two CVS pharmacies were open. Some businesses boarded up like Lululelon and Papyrus; other threw down sandbags or taped their windows.

The floodgates are up at Washington Harbour. With Tony & Joe’s and Nick’s Riverside Grill just re-opening after 18 months after an April 2011 flood, there was concern for the revamped restaurants and the soon-to-open ice skating rink at the Potomac River complex.

Schools and universities are closed. D.C. schools are closed Tuesday. Also, the C&O Canal is drained. Tonight’s advisory neighborhood commission meeting has moved to Oct. 31.

Sandy is expected to bring rain and high winds today through Tuesday evening. Winds of 30 to 40 miles per hour are predicted from 8 a.m. Monday and will eventually increase to hurricane force wind gusts 60 to 70 miles per hour from noon until early Tuesday morning. Significant tree damage is predicted. Several warnings pertaining to the hurricane have been issued.

The National Hurricane Center recommends staying indoors and being prepared for extended power outages. If you live near large trees, they recommend staying in your home’s lower level or finding shelter somewhere else.

Metrobus and rail service will be suspended until further notice beginning today.

D.C. Water recommends having containers full of frozen tap water to provide additional cooling during power outages. Additionally, they noted that clogged storm drained can be reported by calling 202-612-3400.
The American Society of Civil Engineers will be available to provide information regarding the hurricane and its impact. The contact person is Jim Jennings at 703-295-6406.

Ready.gov, sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has extensive guidelines for hurricane preparedness.

Other handy phone numbers:

•Pepco: 1-877-737-2662

•Dominion Power: 1-866-366-4357

•BGE: 1-877-778-2222

•Potomac Edison: 1- 800- 255-3443

•NOVEC: 1-888-335- 0500

•SMECO: 1-877-747-6326

•Rappahannock: 1- 800-552-3904

•Verizon: 1-800-837-4966

•Comcast:1-800-XFINITY (1-800-934-6489)

•RCN: 1-800-RING- RCN (7464-726)

•Cox: 703-378-8422
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Annual Living In Pink Luncheon & Boutique, November 2, 2012


The Living in Pink Annual Luncheon will be held on Nov. 2. This annual luncheon and boutique is a fundraising event to raise money for breast cancer research.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, except for nonmelanoma skin cancers. The chance of developing invasive breast cancer at some time in a woman’s life is about 1 in 7 (13.4 percent).

The mission of Living in Pink, founded in 2004 by two-time breast cancer survivor and mother of four, Michele Conley, is to help find a cure for breast cancer so that the next generation of women will not have to endure the emotional and physical pain of breast cancer surgery and treatment.

To purchase tickets and learn more about Living in pink, visit livinginpink.com

Biz Group Hosts Autumn Reception at the Ritz


After its monthly board meeting on Oct. 17, members and friends of the Georgetown Business Association relaxed at Degrees bar and lounge of the Ritz-Carlton on South Street, catching up with each other and drinking seasonal concoctions like vanilla-infused cognac champagne and spiced Manhattan and sampling finger foods that included beef Wellington, quiche and smores. People were talking about GBA treasurer Karen Ohri’s appearance on a Fox 5 News segment that highlighted the changes in Georgetown retail, especially the reconstruction of the Shops at Georgetown Park which will add discount stores to the M Street commercial scene. Also discussed was GBA’s economic forum at the City Tavern Oct. 18 and GBA’s big annual meeting on Dec. 12.

Check out (GBA’s Karen Ohri on Fox 5)[http://www.myfoxdc.com/story/19837492/changing-business-landscape-in-georgetown] [gallery ids="101026,135829,135824,135820" nav="thumbs"]

Man Invades Georgetown Home, Strikes G.U. students.


Early Saturday morning, Oct. 20, two Georgetown University students were assaulted in their home on the 3500 block of O Street.

A public safety alert was emailed to the campus community at 9:45 a.m.
on Saturday by the university’s Department of Public Safety. It reported the two students noticed the intruder around 3:45 a.m. He struck the two students and retreated towards campus. The email describes the suspect as a 5-foot-10, 21-year-old weighing about 160 pounds, having brown hair, and wearing a light blue shirt an blue jeans.

The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the incident.

Fabio Trabocchi to Open Restaurant at Washington Harbour; Citronelle to Reopen


Chef Fabio Trabocchi plans to open his next restaurant, the 7,500-square-foot Fiola Mare, at Washington Harbour in fall 2013, according to the Washington Post. Trabocchi has signed a letter of intent with MRP Realty, which owns the popular waterfront complex on the Potomac River in Georgetown. Trabocchi already has Fiola in downtown. Architects for the new restaurant’s build-out of HapstakDemetriou, which has offices at Q Street and Wisconsin Avenue, the Post added. The fish-happy eatery will have inside and outside dining along with a raw bar.

Meanwhile at Washington Harbour, Farmers Fishers Bakers will open in November in the old Farmers & Fishers space, next to Sequoia and Tony & Joe’s, in front of the soon-to-open ice skating rink. Maintaining the rustic theme, Farmers Fishers Bakers will include a “farmhouse sushi” bar.

One block north of the waterfront complex on K Street, chef Michel Richard has told the Washington Post that he plans to re-open his famed Citronelle on 30th Street.

While Richard will be working on opening his New York restaurant next year in the New York Palace on Madison Avenue behind St. Patrick’s Cathedral, he told the Post: “I want to stay in D.C. My wife would never move to New York.”

Asked if he will reopen Citronelle, Richard told the newspaper: “Oui . . . in ‘May or June’ and in its original Georgetown location, the Latham Hotel.”

Living in PinkNovember 1, 2012

November 1, 2012

When it comes to illnesses, especially with, but not limited to, cancer, we live in a time of high and keen awareness, a time of activism, and pro-activism, of an urgency working toward finding a cure, of gathering and distributing information and reaching out. This is the age of ribbons, runs and research.
The first time Michele Conley was diagnosed with breast cancer, she was 35, a mother of four young children with a career as a State Farm Insurance Agent living in Chevy Chase. She was a self-described fanatic when it came to athletics, running, physical fitness and exercise.

That was in 1995, and back then, there wasn?t a ribbon or a run for every illness, and what you could call medical activism of the kind started by Susan G. Komen for the Cure non-profit was not as all-pervasive as it is today. Many of the options now open to cancer-diagnosed patients were not yet available.

?I was shocked, but went through the chemotherapy, the radiation and the surgery,? she said. She had reason to be optimistic afterward?the cancer seemed to have gone into a long remission.
In the interim, her mother was also diagnosed with breast cancer and then, five years after her own bout with breast cancer, it came back.

?I had a much harder time with that,? she said. ?It was a tough, very tough. But this time, I thought, let?s go get it done with. And I thought, I?m going to do everything I can to not just fight this but end it in some way.?

This time she opted for radical surgery ? double mastectomy and hysterectomy ? which meant a hospital stay and a lengthy recovery period.

We visited Conley in her State Farm Office on upper Wisconsin Avenue, and found an outgoing, straight-talking, attractive blonde woman who gave no appearance of having gone through such a life-changing ordeal, even if it was in the somewhat distant past. When she talked about her experience, she was blunt, direct, animated.

There was no complaint, no whisper of long suffering. There was talk about running marathons, her
four children, about the hope and need to find a cure for cancer, which had made long and wrenching
visitations in her life and that of her family.

She?s a doer, pro-active, purely active. ?I?ve always been like that, and I think I get that from
my mother, who is amazing, really amazing,? she said. ?When we found out that mom, Annette,
was diagnosed, we went to the doctor together, and we were told about options and plans, and what
was required, starting in her case with chemotherapy. And she listened, and she said, ?Well, okay,
let?s do that. When do we start??

That ?let?s do it? attitude comes natural to her. Because she did more than just take on the cancer
and all it entailed. In 2004, she decided to do something a little more involving. She started the
?Living In Pink? Foundation, with a core committee of ten women, which sponsors a yearly fundraising
luncheon (It?s Nov. 2 this year) as well as the awarding of a grant, which supports innovative
research toward breast cancer research. Or, as the mission statement reads, Living in Pink was
created to ?help find a cure for breast cancer so that the next generation of women will not have to
endure the emotional and physical pain of breast cancer and treatment.?

Conley is president of the foundation, her good friend Dr. Pamela Peeke, a Bethesda physician
and diet and fitness specialist, is Chief Medical Advisor and Laurie Zorc is Director of Operations.
?Things have changed over the years, all sorts of cancer foundations and treatment centers
are have emerged,? she said. ?We?re all working toward the same thing, and I want to help. I met
through Dr. Peeke a lot of people who went through similar things and that?s one of the other things
that results from all this, the knowledge that we?re not alone. You can?t feel like you?re handling
this alone.?

?For me, I have to say that my children, twins Brooke and Denver, 22, Brendan Riley, 19 and
Forrest 17 have been just a tremendous source of support for me,? she said. ?They?re the reason
you want to fight so hard, but they were also there for me, especially the second time. Not fighting
back was not an option.?

?We?re looking toward the future,? she said. ?We?re talking about the future of our children.
Recipients of Living in Pink Research Funding have included Dr. Eliot Rosen from the Lombardi
Cancer Center at Georgetown University; Dr. Koji Itahana from the University of North Carolina;
Dr. Sandra M. Swain of the Washington Cancer Institute at the Washington Hospital Center;
Dr. Robert Strange of the University of Colorado; Dr. Ehsan Samei of the Duke University Medical
Center and Ann-Marie Simeone of the University of Texas-M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
?It?s a lot different today,? she said. ?More and more people and groups are involved.

Married for a second time to mortgage banker Mark Eigerbrode, Conley is in some ways much
the same woman as she was before she encountered the disease that looms so large in the minds of
women. She is still a runner, a doer, a straightforward, plain speaker with style and verve. Except
you think that everything she does now has a dollop of urgency in it. ?Cancer,? she said, ?is not for
the faint of heart.?

The No-Cut, No-Color Drybar Opens Near Safeway

October 31, 2012

“Peace, Love & Blowouts” is emblazoned above the reception desk at Georgetown’s newest salon, Drybar. The upscale salon opened Oct. 19 at 1825 Wisconsin Ave., NW, and offers its unique service of a blow dry bar. Its slogan is “No Cuts. No Color. Just Blowouts: Only $40.”

The concept, created by founder Alli Webb, was begun in Los Angeles, when Webb’s at-home blow-out service called for expansion. The Georgetown salon is the 18th Drybar location in the United States with others in several states, including California, Texas and New York. This is the second location in the D.C. area; a Drybar also opened in Bethesda Oct. 19.

The chic space is the same in every Drybar: white with bright yellow accents all around. Its iconic upside-down, yellow blow dryer, Buttercup, can be seen throughout the salon as an artsy chandelier. (There was also a giant version of the blower, driven around town to promote the two new stores, announcing chances to win a free blowout.) The walls are adorned with black-and-white glamour shots of Hollywood movie stars, and customers are treated to chick flicks on television, while getting their hair done. Fruit-infused water is served, and small packs of assorted snacks are available for $4.

Each style of blow-out is $40 and listed on the large chalkboard in the entrance. Customers can pick from the “Straight Up: simple and straight,” the “Manhattan: sleek and smooth,” the “Southern Comfort: big hair with volume,” the “Cosmopolitan: lots of loose curls,” or the “Mai Tai: messy and beachy.” “Shirley Temple’s” are offered at $28 to children, aged ten and under.
For an appointment, call 202-609-8644, visit TheDryBar.com or get the Drybar app for iPhone.
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George McGovern: Unabashed Liberal and Patriot


George McGovern died Sunday at the age of 90 as the 2012 presidential race rapidly approached its climax. It has been a campaign that has been one of the most contentious campaigns since, well, 1972, when McGovern and his followers took the Democratic Party on a rambunctious, liberally liberal and ultimately disastrous crusade against incumbent President Richard Nixon and the incumbent Vietnam War.

McGovern was an unabashed liberal, and an unabashed patriot, a war hero who bled for the blood of young American men in an unpopular war, a man who led a sometimes stolid, stoic American life coming out of a small-time upbringing on the flat plains of South Dakota to rise to the U.S. Senate for three terms, the pure head of the liberal wing of the Democratic party and his party’s standard bearer in 1972.

The result—a campaign that featured an assassination attempt that knocked Alabama governor George Wallace out of another third-party run, a not-always-hidden dirty tricks campaign by the president’s forces, the demise of centrist Maine Senator Edmund Muskie’s campaign amidst tears in New Hampshire and McGovern, seen as the anti-war heir of the slain Robert F. Kennedy, taking the helm of the party.

That campaign and the man are worth remembering today: his was a life that was marked by decency, sacrifice, the triumphs inevitably accompanied by defeats and tragedies almost as much as the Kennedy clan’s. McGovern’s unrepentant, uncompromising challenge to the nation was to defeat Nixon and end the war. Coming from a man who had flown terrifying bomber missions over Nazi Germany during World War II and was decorated for his heroics. This message should have echoed with great effect throughout the land, but McGovern became the victim of being swept away with the spirit of the party at the time, which, if you listen to commentators of the time, or saw any part of the convention, was an outburst of left-wing, counter-culture ebullience, an in-your-face cultural challenge of rock and roll music, tie dyed t-shirts, afros, beards, mini-skirts, drugs and license which made Middle America shake in its boots.

McGovern’s quite idealistic, resounding, powerfully affecting “Come Home, America” acceptance speech might have made some dent in the final result had it been heard by most of the nation. But with battles and celebrations over all sorts of speeches and issues dragging things out, it wasn’t heard until 2 a.m. As McGovern said then, “Welcome to my sunrise service speech,” an hour when most Americans had indeed gone home.

More trouble followed from the get-go. It was discovered that Missouri Senator Tom Eagleton, his choice for running mate, had electric shock treatments, and was eventually forced from the ticket even after McGovern unwisely had said he backed Eagleton “one-thousand percent.” Few takers for the job could be found, until Sargent Shriver, Kennedy family icon and former head of the Peace Corps, accepted like the good and loyal soldier he had been all of his life.

The Watergate break-in occurred at the time, and while it was being reported, McGovern railed against it, suggesting deeper, darker doings from an unscrupulous Nixon administration. He turned out to be a prophet, a fact which gave him no solace “You know, when somebody says you’re ahead of your time, it just means you have a terrible sense of timing.”

His opposition to the war was honorable, and almost visceral, coming as it did from the experience of war. “I am fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in,” McGovern said.

His convictions, his campaign convinced few and ended up in a historic defeat, getting only 38 percent of the nation’s vote—and carrying only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia, losing his own state.

The defeat stung, and lingered, as it might have done with any person in a quest for the most powerful job in the world. In 2008, McGovern was in Washington at the National Press Club participating a panel on the media and elections. A 20-something woman asked him how long it takes getting over losing a presidential election. “I’ll let you know when it happens,” McGovern quipped, 36 years after the 1972 election.

McGovern was not done with suffering—he lost his U.S. Senate seat in the Reagan Republican sea change, and two of his five children died young after battling alcoholism.

Personal tragedy, even of the Shakespearean or Greek kind, does not add up to a legacy, of course; it is a part of the river of life’s stories. McGovern’s legacy remains his steadfast principles, his almost quixotic run against Nixon who himself was forced to resign the presidency, his honest opposition to the Vietnam War and his leadership on fighting world hunger, a passion and cause he shared with Republican Bob Dole, who shared with him a lost presidential campaign and World War II heroism.

President Bill Clinton, who worked on his 1972 campaign in Arkansas, honored him with a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2000. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called him “always a gentleman and an outstanding member of the greatest generation.”

As a political figure, McGovern was transcendent, with the result that the party, after his devastating defeat started to move more to the center. He was principled—a rare quality today when many politicians, of both parties, seem to have few positions which they are not willing to discard for a sign of movement in the polls. As a man, he never lost touch with the many multitudes and factions that make up our country.

The late journalist Tom Wicker once described McGovern’s antagonist Richard Nixon as “One of Us,” meaning he was the sometimes dark, uncertain face we sometimes saw in the mirror. If that is indeed the case, then George McGovern was the best in us—that which flickers sometimes in our own mirrors.

Weekend Roundup October 25, 2012


Napoleon Bistro Celebrates National Champagne Day

October 26th, 2012 at 09:00 PM | Event Website

A Champagne Flight will be offered from 9pm-11pm highlighting non-vintage, rose, and brut champagnes. Champagne cocktails will be offered at half-price throughout the evening. Napoleon’s Last Tango Crepe will be paired with a champagne for $20.

Address

1847 Columbia Road NW Washington DC 20009

Everard’s Clothing | All-American Trunk Show

October 26th, 2012 at 09:00 AM | Free Admission! | admin@otimwilliams.com | Tel: 202-298-7464 | Event Website

Enjoy cocktails while perusing through the latest Fall collections from featured American designers Hickey Freeman and Allen Edmonds.

Address

1802 Wisconsin Avenue NW Washington, DC 20007

Thanksgiving Voilà! Hallah Baking Demo & Tasting at Rodman’s

October 26th, 2012 at 12:00 PM | Free! | info@tribesadozen.com | Tel: (202) 684-8256 | Event Website

Join Leah Hadad, owner of Tribes-A-Dozen, as she demonstrates the art of baking Voilà! Hallah Egg Bread Mixes. As a special treat for Thanksgiving, you will have the opportunity to taste Leah’s sweet Cranberry-Almond Hallah and savory mushroom pastry roll.

A woman-owned DC based company, Tribes-A-Dozen offers a unique line of all-natural, kosher certified (OU) hallah bread mixes in three varieties: Traditional, Wholey Wheat, and Simply Spelt.

12pm – 4pm

“Break Bread, Not Tradition”
Address

Rodman’s Tenleytown; 5100 Wisconsin Avenue NW

The Smithsonian Craft2Wear Show

October 27th, 2012 at 10:00 AM | $5 | Sfawcett46@gmail.com | Tel: 888.832.9554 | Event Website

The Smithsonian Craft2Wear show will take place the weekend of Oct. 26-28 at the National Building Museum. Representing the finest of American wearable-craft artists, all 45 exhibitors have been juried into previous Smithsonian Craft Shows.

Address

National Building Museum; 401 F Street, NW

Middleburg Scavenger Hunt

October 27th, 2012 at 10:00 AM | registration for the Scavenger Hunt is free | Tel: 540-687-8888 | Event Website

Scavenger Hunt participants must be 21 years of age or older. Visit wine tastings, shops, art galleries, libraries, restaurants and local historians to help answer the Scavenger Hunt questions. The participant with a correctly completed card, will receive the grand prize of a Middleburg Gift Basket containing a certificate for an overnight stay at the Middleburg Country Inn, local goods and coupons worth over $1,000.

Address

Pink Box; 12 North Madison St; Middleburg, VA

Halloween in Georgetown

October 27th, 2012 at 08:00 PM | Free | Tel: 703-271-7700 | Event Website

Please join us as actors from The Georgetown Theatre Company communicate with the spirits and read a witches’ brew of poems and short stories by Edgar Allan Poe, including The Cask of Amontillado, The Raven, Annabel Lee and others.

We also guarantee a “supernatural” surprise!

A Horrors d’oeuvre Reception will follow the reading with goodies and coffee.

A $10 donation to The Georgetown Theatre Company is requested.

Address

Grace Church Georgetown; 1041 Wisconsin Avenue, NW (One block south of M Street)

Halloween Bike Party

October 27th, 2012 at 09:00 PM | dcbikeparty@gmail.com

Grab a costume and your bike to be a part of the DC Bike Party. Everyone will meet at the Dupont Circle Fountain and leave at 9pm. There will be a stop at Oak Hill Cemetery, heading down Pennsylvania Avenue to Chinatown. Then the group will head to Duffy’s Irish Pub.

Address

Dupont Circle Fountain

The Ripple Effect Artist Talk

October 27th, 2012 at 02:00 PM | Tel: 202-458-6016 | Event Website

Join Ripple Effect curator Raquel de Anda as well as a few of the artists from the exhibit for a discussion about the exhibit and possible social implications from art and art projects such as those seen in Ripple Effect.

Address

Art Museum of the Americas; 201 18th Street NW

Family Festival at the Marine Corps Marathon

October 28th, 2012 at 09:30 AM | Free | JStinnett@scottcircle.com | Event Website

Watch your runners while your kids have a ball at miles 22 and 23 of the Marine Corps Marathon Course in Crystal City. Kids will enjoy arts and crafts with the National Children’s Musuem, face painting, moon bounces, balloon animals, obstacle courses, circus activities and more!

Address

241 18th Street, Arlington, VA, 22202.

Music of Heaven and Earth

October 28th, 2012 at 05:00 PM | $20 | ChurchOffice@uccdc.org | Tel: 202-628-4317 | Event Website

The Thomas Circle Singers’ “Music of Heaven and Earth” explores scenes of heaven and earth through a diverse program of music in a variety of languages. Highlights include Blake Henson’s The Good Fence, Alice Parker’s An American Kedushah, and Lee Hoiby’s Last Letter Home.

Address

First Congregational United Church of Christ; 945 G St, NW (10th and G Street NW — Metro Center)