Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
follow-up on suspected tree murder
About a month ago, the Ode Street Tribune reported a fresh stump surrounded by a pool of sawdust near the Netherlands Carillon. We asked a local tree expert for a forensic analysis. His report:
The pictured stump shows no sign of decay, and the wood appears sound. I can't ascertain by the picture if the tree was truly dead. The stump had been removed by the time I got over there.The Ode Street Tribune continues to believe that a tree murder may have occurred. We suspect some sort of conspiracy. Use your imagination!
By the way, if there are relatively few or no leaves on a tree it may not be dead but just drought-stressed. Trees may give up their leaves to conserve moisture when the soil is dry for a prolonged period as a survival strategy. We had little rain April through June and in August. However, if a tree has few or no leaves and also has many twigs/branches that are brittle, or next season's buds haven't formed by late autumn, that tree may be dead or close to it. I'm sure Park Service personnel know how to make these determinations.
As to your second question, it is a fine strategy to leave dead tree trunks standing (snags), so various wildlife forms can utilize them. In a park setting though, there may be considerations of safety or aesthetics.
There are a few other trees in the park that are in poor shape. Let's hope the National Park Service will replace trees that are removed whenever possible.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Quarterdeck patrons face homelessness
The impending closing of the Quarterdeck restaurant has provoked despair and drinking in the neighborhood. In the video below, stunned Quarterdeck patrons ponder a frightening future without this beloved neighborhood establishment.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
caroling with professionals
The Arlington Temple United Methodist Church here in Rosslyn will host a free chamber music concert followed by a Christmas pot luck supper and Christmas caroling on Sunday, Dec. 12, starting at 7pm. The chamber music concert will feature Dúo Alturas, two professional recording musicians playing South American and classical music arranged for guitar, charango, and viola. Not only that, but Dúo Alturas will also join in a Christmas carol sing-a-long. With enough high-proof spirits, the group may even head out into the neighborhood. So here's your chance to carol with professionals. If you can't sing, count on Dúo Alturas to supply the music. You just add extra joy!
More: an Ode Street Tribune investigative report on Rosslyn's spiritual gas station.
More: an Ode Street Tribune investigative report on Rosslyn's spiritual gas station.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Afrodisiac dominates party
Party Crashers: Comic Book Culture Invades the Art World opened last night at the Arlington Arts Center. The second half of this exhibit will open at Artisphere in Rosslyn on December 11. Everybody knows that serious, sophisticated persons don't look at comic books. They read graphic novels. But both the learned and the innocent will enjoy sneaking into Party Crashers. It's a wonderful exhibit that spans great creative comic space. You can follow these comics up close, in detail, as if you were sitting down with the wall in your lap, and you can enjoy them from an art-gallery distance. This exhibition also includes several video animations.
Don't miss Dash Shaw's video animation, Unclothed Man in the 35'th Century AD. It's beautifully drawn and lyrical, and addresses fundamental technological trends and anxieties. Deb Sokolow's webs of signs are more elaborate than the handwritten, newspaper-delivery conspiracy notes that used to appear occasionally about local newspaper boxes. No exhibit of contemporary art is truly complete without a Powerpoint presentation. This exhibit includes two Powerpoint presentations by Andrei Molotiu. They are among the most informative and interesting Powerpoint presentations that I have ever seen.
The center of the party, however, unquestionably is Afrodisiac. Jim Rugg and his partner Brian Maruca have created an astonishingly transgressive challenge to heterosexist and racist stereotypes. They unsettle taboo zones of normative discourse about black masculinity and parody the hegemonic cultural construction of an Afro-centric identity. This work should be required study for cultural reconstruction. It's really funny.
Party Crashers: Comic Book Culture Invades the Art World is at the Arlington Arts Center through Jan. 16, 2011. The exhibit component at Artisphere will be open through Feb. 13, 2011.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
about that gang graffitti
Have you noticed some graffitti about the roads in Arlington? Worried that some violent gang is marking territory? Don't worry. Be happy. These markings appear to be Arlington County indicators for planned bicycle markings or re-markings.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
pothole repaired!
A serious pothole on a trans-Arlington bike superhighway has been repaired. Arlington County's Department of Environmental Services executed the repair within three days of receiving the pothole report on its convenient online pothole reporting form. Day-long rain on the second of those days made pothole repair infeasible. Hence the pothole repair was completed within the next feasible repair day after receiving the report. That's doggone impressive county government performance!
Residents need to do their part to keep County roads in good shape. Annoyed by a pothole that you have to keep dodging? Consider blaming yourself for not reporting it.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
no agreement on Rosslyn boathouse
Contrary to a prior report, the National Park Service has not agreed to the construction of a boathouse in Rosslyn. Dottie Marshall, Superintendent of the George Washington Memorial Parkway for the National Park Service (NPS), stated at the Radnor/Ft. Myer Heights Civic Assocation (RAFOM) meeting tonight that NPS must evaluate alternatives, including alternative sites and the alternative of not constructing a boathouse. Marshall emphasized that a Rosslyn boathouse's implications for Roosevelt Island's presidential memorial would be considered thoroughly and weighed relatively heavily.
The current Roosevelt Memorial is a Stalinistic abomination. Marshall noted that NPS is repairing the moats about the memorial (yup, it's got moats) to lessen the number of dead animals floating about the memorial. That's not enough to renovate this presidential memorial.
Teddy Roosevelt had a great love for the outdoors and for vigorous physical activity. Roosevelt Island is a wonderful green space. Build a boathouse across from Roosevelt Island and name it the Roosevelt Rough Rider Boathouse. Doing that would make Roosevelt Island a much more fitting presidential memorial.
Marshall also discussed critical road repair on George Washington Parkway, the construction of comfort facilities (toilet and storage space) near the Iwo Jima Memorial, and rapidly shrinking wetlands along the Potomac.
Other notes from the RAFOM meeting:
The current Roosevelt Memorial is a Stalinistic abomination. Marshall noted that NPS is repairing the moats about the memorial (yup, it's got moats) to lessen the number of dead animals floating about the memorial. That's not enough to renovate this presidential memorial.
Teddy Roosevelt had a great love for the outdoors and for vigorous physical activity. Roosevelt Island is a wonderful green space. Build a boathouse across from Roosevelt Island and name it the Roosevelt Rough Rider Boathouse. Doing that would make Roosevelt Island a much more fitting presidential memorial.
Marshall also discussed critical road repair on George Washington Parkway, the construction of comfort facilities (toilet and storage space) near the Iwo Jima Memorial, and rapidly shrinking wetlands along the Potomac.
Other notes from the RAFOM meeting:
- A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Hillside Park renovations will occur this Saturday at 1pm at Hillside Park. The event flyer states, "Green design and construction practices have transformed Hillside Park into a unique and sustainable public space!" Translation: a lot of metal and some concrete was added to Hillside Park. Green plants were painted on one lump of concrete. The trees are not pleased. You shouldn't be either.
- Dominion Power is holding a community meeting about the new Radnor Heights power station and power line. The meeting will take place on Nov. 29, 5-8pm, at the Lyon Park Community Center.
- Joint Base Myer Henderson Hall will hold more history walks this spring.
- Arlington County will hold a public meeting on its six-year Transit Development Plan on Nov. 22 at 7pm in the county meeting room, 2100 Clarendon Blvd.
- Lou Gatti received a 15-year lease renewal for the Quarterdeck restaurant. This neighborhood restaurant will thus continue to serve neighbors and visitors. Patrick will be the operational manager.
- The RAFOM holiday party for neighborhood low-income families is tentatively scheduled for Dec. 14.
- Bald eagles have built a nest near the intersection of Spout Run and the George Washington Parkway. Keep an eye out for eagles!
Monday, November 15, 2010
gateway to Gateway Park renovation
Rosslyn's Gateway Park hosts the Rosslyn outdoor film festival, the Rosslyn Jazz Festival, the Rosslyn pitstop on Bike to Work Day, meals and toilet facilities for homeless persons, and many other important functions. Planning is now underway for renovating Gateway Park. To learn more about the proposals, see:
- TBD: Pondering the future of Rosslyn's Gateway Park
- ARLnow: Proposed Designs for revamped Rosslyn Gateway Park
- Arlington County: Gateway Park Master Plan Meeting Schedule & Documentation
Sunday, November 14, 2010
swinging Wednesdays at Artisphere
Wednesday nights through December 8, Artisphere's ballroom is shaking with live swing music. The above photo is from last Wednesday's dance, which featured the Red Stick Ramblers. Playing this Wednesday with be King Teddy from Baltimore with rockabilly and jump-blues infused swing. If you're busy Wednesday night, or your tastes are more Latin, Tuesday night is salsa night at Artisphere
Saturday, November 13, 2010
pothole on major Arlington thoroughfare
A large pothole has emerged on 15 St. N. just past the intersection with Taft St. heading toward Rosslyn. Hence the pothole is on a trans-Arlington bike superhighway. I've reported the pothole to Arlington County Department of Environmental Services (DES).
This past July DES filled in a pothole within four days after it was reported. Let's see if DES is able to maintain that incredibly high level of performance.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
celebrating Veterans Day
With the famous Iwo Jima Memorial located in Rosslyn, our neighborhood is a leader in memorializing veterans. In fact, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) chose the Iwo Jima Memorial in Rosslyn (VA) to lead off its Veterans Day 2010 video.
But Veterans Day is about service to the nation, not neighborhood pride. This noble spirit of transcending narrow interests and loyalties (so difficult for the Ode Street Tribune to acquire) is clearly displayed in an informal tribute that was erected today on the front side of the Iwo Jima Memorial (which is in Rosslyn). The cadets of the Paint Branch High School Navy Junior ROTC Unit erected a wreath and framed a tribute "to all veterans of the United States Marine Corps." The tribute stated:
But Veterans Day is about service to the nation, not neighborhood pride. This noble spirit of transcending narrow interests and loyalties (so difficult for the Ode Street Tribune to acquire) is clearly displayed in an informal tribute that was erected today on the front side of the Iwo Jima Memorial (which is in Rosslyn). The cadets of the Paint Branch High School Navy Junior ROTC Unit erected a wreath and framed a tribute "to all veterans of the United States Marine Corps." The tribute stated:
We, the cadets of the Paint Branch High School (Burtonsville, MD) Navy Junior ROTC Unit, thank you and honor you for your valiant service to your country. From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli to Normandy to Guadalcanal to Okinawa to the Chosin Reservoir to the jungles of Vietnam, and to Iraq and Afghanistan, you have made us very proud and protected our freedoms and way of life here America. Ooh-rah and Semper Fi!!!!Inter-service rivalries in the armed forces have often been fiercely fought. This tribute from a Navy Junior ROTC Unit to Marine Corps veterans perfectly represents the spirit of Veterans Day.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
living wall at Artisphere
Artisphere has installed a living wall to complement the Berlin wall on the back side of the building. The plants on the wall appear to be varieties of mint. They are held on the wall in pockets of porous fabric. Water circulates through the fabric from a steel trough at the bottom of the wall.
If you ever feel like just staring at a wall, this is a good wall to stare at. It's alive!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
parking spaces with a cubist view
Art in Rosslyn is not confined to Artisphere. Art is everywhere. From bike racks to escalators, inside restaurants to the great outdoors, you can hear it, see it, and taste it. If you park your car in the lot in 1742 N. Moore St., it gets to look out on this beautiful, cubist-style cityscape. Persons who work elsewhere in the DC metro area are happy just to get a parking spot on their way to their dreary office cubicles.
The cityscape is composed in part by Rosslyn's award-winning Central Space to Central Place. If you look down from this vantage point, you'll notice that the edge of the ledge of the building is covered with a ribbon of fine, protruding needles. These keep pigeons from resting on the ledge and crapping on the persons below who are waiting for buses. Your chances of getting hit by crap are lower in Rosslyn than in other places!
Monday, November 8, 2010
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Tacchino Ciclocross so good it leads to thanksgiving
The Tacchino Ciclocross race, organized by local bike racing team Squadra Coppi, attracted hundreds of cyclocross enthusiasts to a great day of bike racing at the beautiful Rosaryville State Park in Maryland today. Joe Dombrowski, who won last week's elite men's race at All Hallows Cross, added some extra drama this week by showing up to the starting line about two minutes after the elite field had raced off from the start. Dombrowski peeled off his warmup jersey and raced after them. Lap by lap he moved through this elite field until after four laps he had gained the lead. He then rode away for a decisive victory. Very impressive. Too bad he didn't win a fine timepiece.
The concluding tandem race was an event to behold. The Tacchino course featured many sharp turns, two barrier jumps, two log jumps, and several tricky off-camber sections. Since the tandem race was last, the course was even more slick than it had been at the start of the day. Riding a tandem on this course seems like a suicide pact. Other than a couple in deep despair at the prospect of parenthood, why would any pair do it? But do it they did. Local bike racers Andrew Shelby and Nicholas Taylor of Whole Wheel Velo Club rode strongly to a second-place finish, only five seconds behind a pair consisting of two top elite men riders.
The biggest race of the day was the Men's Cat 4 race. This event-leading race featured some great crashes among the 111 starters as well as the sort of riding that you just won't see in other races. Squadra Coppi's own Cody Alvarez won the race. Given its newsworthyness, the top eleven finishers (unofficial results) are listed below.
Everyone seems to have thoroughly enjoyed the Tacchino Ciclocross race. One random Squadra Coppi team member wearing his team jacket had five persons come up to him and thank him for the race. The person who most deserves thanks is race director Jim McNeely. He put on a race fully worthy of a fun-loving bicycling fiend.
Through its network of investigative journalists, the Ode Street Tribune has acquired complete (unofficial) results for the following Tacchino races: Men 4; Masters 3-4 35+/45+; Men 3-4 & Single Speed; Masters 1-2-3 35+ & 45+; Women 4; Women 3; Women 1-2; and Boys 10-14. Request the results for a rider in the comments, and the Ode Street Tribune will provide it in a following comment.
Men Cat. 4 Race, Top 11
1. Cody Alvarez, Squadra Coppi
2. Christopher Wynnyk, Rensellaer Polytechnic Institute
3. Micah Smith, Squadra Coppi
4. Ryan Jenkins, The Bike Lane
5. Benjamin Toll, PAX Velo
6. Thomas Ayd, Shore Velocity
7. Chris Hall, WWVC Racing
8. Kevin Luckeroth, Adventure for the Cure
9. Adam Lewandowski, The Bike Lane
10. Devon Halley, NCVC/United Health Group
11. Douglas Galbi, Squadra Coppi
Update: Check out Jay Westcott's excellent video coverage of the event.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Rosslyn welcomes Columbia Pike
In conjunction with FotoWeek DC 2010, Central Space to Central Place in Rosslyn has a photo/video projection running every night from 6pm to 11pm through Saturday, November 13. The show includes many images from the Columbia Pike Documentary Project. It also includes some still images from Rosslyn, some time-warped video of Rosslyn night street scenery, some video apparently from Limelight Saturday Night in Clarendon (dull, dull, dull), and some color diffusion abstracts.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Rosslyn red-hot in bikeshare planning
Capital Bikeshare will be expanding in Arlington beginning this coming April. As part of the planning for expansion, estimated demand/value for Bikeshare bikes has been mapped at a high geographic resolution.[*] The bikeshare value is given for each area. The highest bikeshare-value areas are shaded in red.
Rosslyn is red all over. With an estimated bike count of 50, the area of Rosslyn about the Artisphere exceeds all but the Ballston metro area in estimated bikesharing value. At a bikesharing value of 28 bikes, the Radnor/Ft. Myers Heights neighborhood also appears propitious for bikesharing.
The attractiveness of the Radnor/Ft. Myers Heights neighborhood is no secret. This neighborhood is so attractive that persons from far and wide come here every weekday morning to park their cars. Bikesharing bikes will allow neighborhood visitors to get to the Rosslyn metro faster. Hence visitors will have more time to relax and savor the beauty of the neighborhood and chat with the friendly, welcoming, and knowledgeable persons who live here.
* * * * *
[*] The mapping resolution is the census block group. Below the estimated bike count figure is a seven-digit number that identifies the census block group. That identifying number consists of the four-digit census tract number, followed by the two-digit census track number suffix, followed by the census block group number within that tract.
Rosslyn is red all over. With an estimated bike count of 50, the area of Rosslyn about the Artisphere exceeds all but the Ballston metro area in estimated bikesharing value. At a bikesharing value of 28 bikes, the Radnor/Ft. Myers Heights neighborhood also appears propitious for bikesharing.
The attractiveness of the Radnor/Ft. Myers Heights neighborhood is no secret. This neighborhood is so attractive that persons from far and wide come here every weekday morning to park their cars. Bikesharing bikes will allow neighborhood visitors to get to the Rosslyn metro faster. Hence visitors will have more time to relax and savor the beauty of the neighborhood and chat with the friendly, welcoming, and knowledgeable persons who live here.
* * * * *
[*] The mapping resolution is the census block group. Below the estimated bike count figure is a seven-digit number that identifies the census block group. That identifying number consists of the four-digit census tract number, followed by the two-digit census track number suffix, followed by the census block group number within that tract.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
excellent lettuce
CostCo in Arlington is now selling Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce. The lettuce is grown on Tanimura & Antle farms in Salinas, California (mid-April through mid-October) and in Yuma, Arizona (mid-October through mid-April). It arrives in Arlington in clamshell packages that each hold six small lettuce heads. The six heads are a mix of three different lettuce varieties, each with a somewhat different taste. The six-head package costs $3.99.
Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce keeps well. After a week in the refrigerator it's still in great shape. Packages of loose "spring mix" leaves rot much more quickly. Having vegetables that keep well is particularly important for single persons, who, among a wide range of hardships and injustices, often find that their vegetables rot before they consume them.
Tanimura & Antle is a company with an impressive history. The Tanimura family left Japan in the late 1800s and settled in California. They got into the business of growing lettuce and strawberries. The Tanimuras persevered through the Great Depression with a business focus on iceberg lettuce. During World War II, the two young men in the Tanimura family served in the U.S. Army, while the rest of the Tanimura family spent three years in an internment camp in Arizona as part of a U.S. policy that interned all Japanese-Americans living on the West Coast. After World War II, the Tanimuras resumed growing iceberg lettuce. By 1950, the Tanimura's were selling all their lettuce to Bud Antle's lettuce packing business.
The Antle family left Oklahoma in search of farm work in the late 1800s. By 1930 they were working as iceberg lettuce trimmers and packers in California. They worked themselves into managerial positions and then started their own iceberg lettuce business in 1942. Demand for iceberg lettuce boomed during World War II as result of supplying overseas U.S. soldiers. By 1971, the Antle family, led by Bud Antle, has become the largest U.S. marketer of premium iceberg lettuce.
In 1982, the Tanimura and Antle families, which had been doing business with each other for more than four decades, formed the corporation Tanimura & Antle. That's the business that produced the Tanimura & Antle Artisan Lettuce now for sale at CostCo in Arlington. A big thank you to the Tanimura and Antle families!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
people lining up to vote
Update: At 6:10pm, the waiting line for voting was only a few minutes long. Hence the picture is now better. The polls are open until 7pm. If you haven't yet voted, just do it.
Entrance-to-exit voting time at the Wilson School in Rosslyn at 7:46am this morning was 17 minutes. About 8am, the wait was a few minutes longer. Vote!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Dominion has carefully considered pedestrian traffic
Following up on its incisive report on the new Radnor Heights power line, the Ode Street Tribune emailed the following question to Dominion Virginia Power:
The Ode Street Tribune sent the same question to the Arlington County Department of Environmental Services (DES). We have not yet received a reply. Perhaps the DES general comment form wasn't the right place for the question.
What will be the effect of the construction of the new underground power line connecting the new Radnor Heights substation to the power substation near the crossing of Rt 110 and I-395 on traffic through the North Gate thoroughfare [multi-use trail on Marshall Drive below the Netherlands Carillon]?Two days later a Dominion Project Communications Coordinator responded:
Dominion has carefully considered any potential inconvenience to pedestrian traffic near the Arlington Cemetery North Gate during the construction of the underground power line. Open-cut trenching is generally completed in small sections at a time, which lessens the impact of construction to users of this trail.Dominion should be commended for its prompt reply and willingness to provide additional information. That Dominion has "carefully considered any potential inconvenience to pedestrian traffic near the Arlington Cemetery North Gate" is re-assuring. We assume that by "pedestrian traffic" Dominion means all modes of traffic, including bike traffic, that use the multi-mode trail.
Maintaining public safety is of the utmost importance during any construction project. Dominion will work with local officials to create traffic control plans for not only vehicular traffic, but pedestrian traffic as well. Work crews will avoid the pedestrian path to the extent feasible. In construction areas with tighter constraints, crews will construct a temporary pedestrian path if necessary to accommodate pedestrians during construction. This temporary path would be clearly marked and easy to follow. When the construction is complete, the path will be restored back to its original condition.
Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to provide this additional information about the project. Should you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
The Ode Street Tribune sent the same question to the Arlington County Department of Environmental Services (DES). We have not yet received a reply. Perhaps the DES general comment form wasn't the right place for the question.
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