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May 8, 2002

Using Protection

Dear Protectors:

It's a long issue, so I'll forego my usual rant and simply refer you to a sterling bit of reporting by John DeVault in the current issue of The Common Denominator: http://www.thecommondenominator.com/050602_news1.html and http://www.thecommondenominator.com/050602_news2.html. This article tells you everything you need to know about the relationships among a small group of favored developers and this town's political establishment, how deals get done, and why elected officials refuse to help the residents they're supposed to represent.

A subscriber who is getting spam wrote to ask if themail's privacy policy means what it says. It does. Your addresses will never be sold, traded, shared, or used for anything other than themail and DCWatch. They are on a Jaz disk that's inserted only when I mail an issue (and on the back-up copy that I've learned from hard experience to keep), and they're not even kept on my hard drive or in any hidden folders on the DCWatch web site. As I've written before, spammers harvest E-mail addresses whenever they're published on the web, and they sell and share those addresses. If you hate spam, install and use filters. More importantly, if you hate viruses, install and use an anti-virus program — I've received at least four and up to ten copies of the W32.Klez virus every day for the past week. It's rampant. Protect yourselves

Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com 

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Fenty’s Petition to Remove Few
Amy L. Bauer, Abauer4600@aol.com 

If anyone has a few moments to pound out an E-mail similar to the following, the firemen would much appreciate it. “Dear Councilmembers, As a Ward 3 resident and the wife of a 23+ year active member of the DC Fire Department, I am asking that you please sign Mr. Fenty's petition to have Chief Few fired. (thank you to those that have already done so). What you see in the media barely scratches the surface of exactly how low morale has sunk and how badly managed the department has become. Chief Few's incompetence extends far beyond his resume writing abilities and something needs to be done before his lack of leadership allows or causes tragedy to strike.

“Mayor William's refusal to be forthright and expeditious in this matter is a disgrace and should not continue. As a governing body, Council has the responsibility to express the wishes of the citizens and 'help' the Mayor when he becomes indecisive.”

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How Williams Rolled the Council
Dorothy Brizill, dorothy@dcwatch.com 

Last Wednesday, at the City Council's hearing on Mayor Williams's illegal fundraising schemes, the Mayor gave a tour de force political performance. He gave the passive voice admission that “mistakes were made,” but evaded answering any hard questions and turned the hearing into what he called “a constructive dialogue about public-private partnerships.” Why did most Councilmembers seem so ill prepared, uninformed, and compliant? First, and most visibly, Mayor Williams stole a page from Marion Barry's play book, and packed the audience with his most loyal high-level DC government employees — Eric Price, E. Veronica Pace, Paul Savage, Jackie Randolph, Bill Rice, Gregory McCarthy, Darryl Anderson, Bob King, Leslie Pinkston, Larry Hemphill, J. Gregory Chen, and many other staffers from the Executive Office of the Mayor.

But behind the scenes the Mayor's machine applied much more pressure, especially to Vincent Orange, the Chair of the Government Relations Committee. Linda Perkins, the Ward 5 coordinator in the Office of Community Outreach, called community leaders and Williams supporters in the Ward to get them to contact Ward 5 Councilmember Orange and tell him to lay off. Williams met privately with Orange the weekend before the committee hearing at the home of Norm Neverson, chair of the Democratic State Committee. Previously, Williams had met with Harry Thomas, Jr., the son of the former Ward 5 Councilmember, to encourage him to run against Orange in the Democratic primary. Williams staffers worked feverishly to dig up dirt on Orange before the hearing, and they circulated rumors that they had found irregularities in Orange's fundraising for the Emancipation Day Parade that they would use against him. As a result of all these pressures, prior to the hearing Orange told his colleagues that he was backing away from his plan to question the Mayor aggressively.

Similar threats and power plays were made against other Councilmembers. On the Friday before the hearing, Eric Gaull, a senior staffer to City Administrator John Koskinen, abruptly resigned his position and announced his intention to challenge Kathy Patterson for the Ward 3 Democratic nomination. Gaull attended the May 1 Council hearing, and was prominently introduced to community and party leaders by Norm Neverson. Phil Mendelson, perhaps the most vulnerable incumbent in this fall's elections, is already being challenged Beverly Wilbourn and may also have to confront Eugene Kinlow, Jr. Both Wilbourn and Kinlow enjoy considerable support within the Williams administration, and there is a movement afoot for the Democratic State Committee to endorse a candidate in this race before the primary election. Williams could throw his support to one of Mendelson's opponents, either publicly or behind the scenes, and Mendelson has been sent the message to remember that his core constituency lies in Wards 2 and 3, where Williams retains many uncritical supporters.

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What a Flag Raising!
Phil Carney, philnopus@erols.com 

Debbie Hanrahan and I decided that every public school in America has a flag and flagpole, except for schools here in our Nation’s Capital. So we bought and installed a flagpole and flag at our neighborhood school, Ross Elementary at 1730 R Street, NW.

Weather permitting, Ross kids, teachers and many parents assemble outside every morning. Recently the chief custodian and I installed the flagpole. Later during the assembly, Chief Custodian Butler ran the Stars and Stripes up the flagpole for the first time. Principal Gloria Smith led the Pledge of Allegiance. Then the pre-K and kindergarten kids spontaneously sang their flag song. And then, all the kids spontaneously sang “Oh beautiful for….” What a touching and inspiring flag raising!

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Look Sharp, Feel Sharp
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com 

Those granite curbs being installed all around the city look sharp. That's because they are sharp. The exposed edges of these new curbs is ground to a knife edge. For those little kids and older folks who take a fall and hit one of these sharp edges it will open their skulls like a surgeon with a Sawzall. The curbs that are being replaced have a nice 1-inch chamfered exposed surface that would cause a real bump and bruise if struck by one's head, but are not likely to render it open like an impaled watermelon.

When we installed new 6 by 6 railroad ties in the refurbishment of Turtle Park, I borrowed a commercial router and routed some 1800 linear feet of exposed edges, putting on a nice one inch rounded edge. This made the park much safer for the little gang that play there and occasionally fall onto these edges. It is too bad that the procurement folks in the DC Government doesn't think sideways to figure out just how any new product or surface will affect those who will be exposed to that product. The new minibuses are another good example. These buses, though less than half the size of the big old buses, make twice the noise in the neighborhoods.

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Retrocession Presentation: The County Comes Back to Virginia
Mark David Richards, District of Columbia, mark@bisconti.com 

Tomorrow, on Thursday, May 9, at 7:45 p.m., I'll be giving a presentation to the Arlington Historical Society, http://www.arlingtonhistoricalsociety.org/, about events leading to the retrocession of Alexandria Town and County back to Virginia in 1846. The presentation will be at Arlington Central Library auditorium, 1015 N. Quincy Street. Parking is available in the garage (enter from N. Quincy Street) or in the lot behind the building (enter from 10th Street). The library is a few blocks west of the Virginia Square Metro station. A written paper will also be available at the event.

Residents of the District, former and current, share a unique historic relationship that could be strengthened. Why not create a “Historic District of Columbia (HDC),” formed of the whole area General George Washington included in his original federal diamond? Perhaps on some issues an HDC could make cooperative agreements that transcend the Potomac — starting with sharing and learning about our histories. Just a thought.

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More on Nonpartisan Elections and Federal Hatch Act
Lars Hydle, Larshhydle@aol.com 

After writing on this last week I looked at the web site of the federal Office of the Special Counsel (http://www.osc.gov/hatch), and learned that the limits imposed on DC government employees are the same as on federal employees — that is, not the somewhat looser constraints applied to state and local employees. Probably tens of thousands of DC and federal government employees living here cannot seek partisan offices, but can seek nonpartisan offices.

This could be changed by persuading the Congress to further amend the Hatch Act to exclude DC government employees from its provisions, but the easier course would be to amend the Home Rule Charter to make our elections nonpartisan. The Council and Mayor, and the voters, would have to approve, but then the legislation would undergo Congressional review like all DC legislation, with the Congress having to pass a law to prevent our Charter Amendment from becoming law. The Council would have to take the first step. How do Councilmembers and candidates for Council stand on this issue?

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Big Paying Jobs
Gabe Goldberg, gabe@gabegold.com 

Ed Barron wrote: “. . . there are some big paying jobs in the DC School System administrative offices. Superintendent Vance announced the elimination of 126 jobs in the school administration offices, which will save $16M on next year's payroll. Unless my calculator has blown a circuit that amounts to an average salary of over $129K per job.”

You might indeed check your calculator. Mine divides 126 into $16,000,000 and yields $126,984.12 as average salary. But that's a quibble compared to your omitting the overhead, burden — whatever you want to call it — that's applied to salary to calculate an employee's true cost. It includes benefits and other direct/indirect costs such as retirement plan contributions. It often reaches 100 percent or more of base salary. So the average salary is closer to $64,000 than $129,000, or even $126,000.

And calling the work “simple administrative work that could be done by most high school graduates” without knowing anything about jobs being eliminated and retained seems perhaps gratuitously churlish, not to mention misguided, considering how much complaining there is on this list about DC employees unable to do their jobs. Paying high school grad-wages seems to assure minimal performance. Surely even in DC there's some trace of the “you get what you pay for” rule and paying professional wages provides leverage — whether used or not — to demand professional performance. Do you really want to guarantee getting minimal performance with the wage structure used?

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No Mansion, But. . .
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com 

There's no mansion for the Mayor yet on the property that lies along Foxhall Road, but there is about a half mile of a very high and foreboding wrought iron fence. That fence reminds me of the one I used to climb over at Holy Cross Cemetery in Brooklyn in a quest to get the valued chestnuts that dropped from the big trees there, as a misspent youth. That fence surrounding the property designated for the new Mayoral mansion is an expensive piece of work. My guess is that it cost upwards of $200K and will surely protect whatever mayor should reside there.

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Middle C and Spam
Helen Hagerty, helenmhag@aol.com 

It's hard to imagine one of the best local music stores lumped in there with annoying claims of free Viagra, instant debt relief, weight loss promises, and no interest credit cards. I would have welcomed an announcement from the “Filthy Spammers” at Middle C Music Store instead of the usual junk I receive. Most patrons of this gem of a store are thrilled it was able to stay open under new owners.

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Spammer
Bob Levine, rilevine@cpcug.org 

He's a spammer plain and simple. He stole E-mail addresses and sent spam. I have no patience for spammers and other low life creeps. His store should go belly up and place him in debt. If he wanted to post an announcement in themail and Gary agreed to publish it, that's one thing, but he spammed themail and he's a low life creep. I hope there is something else I can find to do to harass this store because I have no patience for spammers.

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Not Masochists
Bryce A. Suderow, streetstories@juno.com 

This is in reply to Gary's question asking if District residents are masochists. I don't think they are. They're simply cowardly. They live in denial of how bad the city really is because if they admitted the truth to themselves, they'd have to leave the city. So they live in a fool's paradise.

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Not Quite Masochists
Anne Heutte, heuttea@earthlink.net 

Here is some kind of answer to masochism in DC. We are caught in a historical loop that has lasted for two hundred years or so. When you come from Elsewhere, you are shocked and appalled, and think that your shock and appall is enough to change things. No. For reasons, deliberate or not, DC, was left out of the formation of disparate entities into the United States of America. All of out disabilities can be traced to this initial, scarcely noticeable at the time, fault.

After a while, we scarcely understand the processes by which citizens of states govern themselves, however crudely. We are living in a perpetual state of amnesia.

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Not at All Masochists
Kenan Jarboe, kpjarboe@erols.com 

Gary -- has the thought crossed your brain that some of us just disagree with you? I'm not being a masochist to think that some things might be going right in this city.

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Traffic Tickets and the Law
Daniel Wedderburn, DanielWedderburn@cs.com 

After just reading Gary's latest as well as the Post's big feature article Sunday about parking, speeding and red light tickets, here are some thoughts. Nobody likes to get these tickets — including me. I swear like crazy whenever I get a parking ticket, but by the next day I do realize it was me, after all, who broke the law. Fortunately, I have no speeding or red light tickets since moving to DC in 1967.

I do get especially irked at those who complain when they get speeding or red light tickets. These people are seriously endangering other people as well as breaking the law. The Post shows major reductions in deaths in the city since the electronic devices have been installed! Also, I have noticed a definite slowdown in speeds and running of red lights in the last eight or so months. This is a major quality of life advance for our city. Finally, I hear all this bitching directed only at the District despite the fact the 'burbs have their own electronic detection devices and do the same thing. Recently, I was in a Montgomery County residential area and noticed signs stating no parking at ANY time during the workday, unlike here where you are allowed two hours. Also, the Post last week compared DC's proposed increases in parking and traffic fines to those that currently exist in the 'burbs. Even with the lesser increases that Carol Schwartz's Committee has just approved, our new fines will be similar to those the 'burbs have and in some cases will still be lower.

Yet just wait to hear the outcry when commuters start having to pay the increased fines. They'll start once more berating our city and yelling like hell. Well, I say to hell with them.

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Residential Parking Permits
Leslie Miles, lesliemils@aol.com 

John Whiteside is absolutely right about resident permit parking, and the example from the north that we should follow. I too used to live in Boston and now live in Logan Circle. I have been trying to get the folks at Traffic and Parking to realize how useless it is to have a Zone Two sticker, which people from upper Georgetown can use to park free on my street all day and walk a block to work. I got tickets in Boston -- the parking situation there makes ours look wonderful — but at least commuters weren't making it worse for residents. This situation came to a head when we were planning for the new Convention Center. Residents overwhelmingly approved of a Boston-type system, at least around the building, and the Convention Center Authority is required to have a resident permit parking plan in place before construction begins (whoops, guess they missed that deadline) but the Traffic and Parking Division just can't get their arms around the idea. So we have nothing. Maybe the dire situation that will cause in this neighborhood will finally push the District to look at this problem citywide and issue meaningful resident stickers.

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Gridlock
John Whiteside, john at logancircle dot net

Our biggest transportation problem in DC is the sheer number of cars and people moving through our city each day, and I appreciate the challenges the city's transportation department faces. That said, the number of traffic problems around the city caused by sheer incompetence is frustrating. There's Logan Circle, designed so that if more that two cars enter it at once, lanes get blocked and traffic backs up. There's Dupont Circle, where traffic entered the circle from Connecticut Avenue southbound never actually has the right of way (there's either a red light with a “no turn on red sign” — and no traffic approaching in the circle — or a blinking yellow, while traffic in the circle prevents you from entering). There's 34th and M NW in Georgetown, where westbound traffic on M Street only has a green light when the light at the Key Bridge is red — so the intersection immediately backs up, and one or two cars can get through during each very long light cycle.

These things could be fixed easily. It's impossible to know why they aren't, since Dan Taghlerini, the city's head of transportation, has carried on a proud DC tradition by creating a department completely impervious to citizens. Just TRY to get Mr. Taghlerini to respond to any question or complaint. I am convinced that he doesn't really exist, but was simply created to put a name on the department.

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Auto Woes
Dru Sefton, drusefton@hotmail.com 

Parking, parking, parking, parking. This issue has been bantered about sooooo much in the three years I’ve been reading themail. Yowsa. Residents can’t find spaces, get ticketed, get towed, get peeved with commuters that park on their streets — on and on. Of course the most complaints come from within the District, where parking is at a premium. What I don’t understand is this: within the District is also where access to public transportation is the best. Please don’t think I’m being snotty or facetious here, but can someone explain why a resident of the District would need a car? With the Metro “Ride Guide” at http://www.wmata.com, you can go from point A to point B anywhere in a huge area quite easily. Stuff to carry? Get a city cart. Over the weekend I walked with mine to the Metro, rode from Dupont to Tenleytown, walked four blocks, picked up a big bag of potting soil and numerous plants, Metroed back to Dupont, walked down 17th, picked up dry cleaning, went to the hardware store and walked home. Sure, your destination may involve going from the subway to a bus or vice versa, but so what? I’m convinced you’ll still save time considering what a hassle it is to park. I realize that giving up a car is a scary step psychologically; as a Midwesterner I’ve had a car since I was old enough to drive. But that’s the Midwest, where there are as many open parking spaces as ears of corn! Not here! On Sunday the National Symphony concert at the Dupont fountain started twenty minutes late because the trombone player “was looking for a place to park.” Sigh. The answer to parking problems is, fewer cars. Period. Give it a try without a car, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

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Unpaid Traffic Fines
Bill Starrels, mortgagecorp@hotmail.com 

I read with interest the Washington Post article concerning fines for red light violators and speed radar violators. What was sticking was the number of unpaid tickets. What was left out of the article is the fact that unpaid parking and moving violations issued by MPD end up on one's credit record. As a banker, I have seen several customers with otherwise perfect credit, with unpaid items related to unpaid tickets in DC. Our friends from Maryland and Virginia should think twice next time they ignore their tickets.

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Funny Coincidence
Judith Rosenfeld, jsr2@earthlink.net 

Here's one to add to the Funny Coincidence Department: my trusty mailperson appeared on the scene last week with three packages from widely-separated shippers, each mailed independently and as much as a week apart, one (arriving late) sent as “priority mail.” Is our Post Office now delivering parcels only on certain days? Are packages destined for a given delivery area stacked in a corner until they add up to some predetermined cubic dimension?

And where's package number four, mailed within the same time frame?

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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS

Columbia Heights Community Marketplace
Elizabeth McIntire, elizabeth@innercity.org 

Get your greens on the green line. This is to invite our neighbors to come out to 14th and Irving Streets, NW, Saturday mornings for the Columbia Heights Community Marketplace. The grand opening for the second season is May 18. The marketplace will operate rain or shine, every Saturday morning from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., until October 26. Located on the lot on the SW corner next to the Columbia Heights Metro Station, beside the wonderful mural designed and painted by the Latin American Youth Center, youth, and residents last summer on the wall of La Casa shelter. There is a farmers market, with produce, plants, and flowers direct from VA and MD farmers, a flea market, crafts tables, and space for community organization displays.

This is an all-volunteer initiative of Columbia Heights residents, and a collaborative effort with the support of city agencies, the NCRC, Councilmember Graham, Community Harvest, Multicultural Community Service, CHANGE Inc., LAYC, Coalition for the Homeless/La Casa Shelter, Unity Health Care/Upper Cardozo Clinic, the Salvadorean Emergency Committee, and Washington Parks and People. It is supported by grants from CHAMPS, Columbia Heights Weed and Seed, ANC's 1A and 1B, Beckner-All Souls Fund, WIC State Agency, LISC, Johnson's. Volunteers, local vendors and entrepreneurs, and entertainers welcome. See the web site at http://www.innercity.org/chcm/. Contact us by E-mail at chcm@onebox.com, by phone or fax at 1-866-307-4534 (toll-free).

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Mendelson for Council 2002 BBQ and Petition Kick-Off Celebration
Phil Mendelson, reelectphil@aol.com 

Campaign season is upon us! Please join Phil and his supporters as the 2002 Campaign for Reelection takes its first step toward victory. If you are interested in gathering signatures to place Phil on the Democratic ballot or if you just want to drop in and mingle, please accept this invitation to the BBQ and Petition Kick-Off Celebration this Sunday, May 12th from 2:00-5:00 p.m., at the home of Bill Lightfoot, our Campaign Chairman: 1609 Kalmia Road, NW. For more details, call 966-1485 or E-mail ReElectPhil@aol.com

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Sacred Space Sacred Art at All Souls
Peter John Stebbins, studiohouse.walbridge@verizon.net 

A sensual collage of experimental and experiential dance and music presented by Nancy Havlik's Dance Performance Group; All Souls Choir, John Strang Music Director; Jubilee Singers, Lenard Starks, Director; The Drummers of All Souls; DC Children's Choir, Angela Powell Walker, Director. At All Souls Unitarian Church, 1500 Harvard Street, NW. Performances Friday, May 10, 8:15 p.m., and Saturday, May 11, 7:30 p.m. Pre-performance workshops listed at http://all-souls.org/sacredspaceart.html. $10 suggested donation.

I encourage you all to visit the web site and attend this event. In addition to all that is offered in terms of music and dance and workshop; I am installing works from David Bethuel Jamieson's last completed series, The Chalk Drawings. A series of more than 40 Derwent watercolor pencil drawings on Canson Mi-Teintes, this showings marks the beginning of a memorial tour celebrating the life of Dave and his contributions in this tenth year since his death from AIDS related complications on July 30, 1992. The Chalk Drawings will travel to Provincetown's Unitarian Church this summer, and in the fall will be in Burlington, Vermont. The works come home to Walbridge for a complete installation in the winter of 2002/2003. I have digital pics of selected works available by request, and am always happy to show selected works by appointment.

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DC WE READ Events
Patricia Pasqual, changedc@yahoo.com 

Seattle did it. Chicago did it. And now it is Washington, DC's, turn to have a citywide book club, DC WE READ! Join your neighbors and friends at a book discussion or film screening of Having Our Say: The Delany Sister's First Hundred Years. This program which was organized by the DC Public Library aims to promote reading and community dialogue. Visit http://www.dclibrary.org for up-to-date schedule of event changes and additions.

May 11, 2:00 p.m., Read and Lead: A How-to Workshop for Book Discussion Groups, sponsored by the Humanities Council of Washington, DC (a Branches Program). Refreshments provided by Starbucks Coffee and Walkers Shortbread. Library locations: Woodridge and Washington Highlands.

May 23, 6:30 p.m., It’s Your Job to Help Somebody! The Delany Family Motto. The Delany family was committed to giving back to the community. Join us for a discussion about volunteering and philanthropy in the African-American community and other communities. Sponsored by the Humanities Council of Washington, DC. Library location: Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, Room A5

May 29, 6:30 p.m., From the Beginning: An Introduction to Having Our Say. An introduction to the book led by Dr. Janette Dates, Dean of Communications, Howard University. Footage of the Delany sisters will be shown during the program. Library location: Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, Room A5. [Listings of June events in this series will be published in Sunday's issue of themail.]

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CHIME Presents Middle Eastern Music
Dorothy Marschak, dmarschak@chime-dc.org 

This week, the 17th in CHIME’s "Music Around the World" series this year journeys again to the Middle East, via Petworth Library. On Saturday, May 11, at 2:00 p.m., Leo Sarkisian will give a free performance-demonstration of Middle Eastern music. He will play examples of Arabic, Turkish and Armenian music on the Kanoon, a 74-string zither harp that is one of the oldest musical instruments, still played in the Caucasus, Middle East and North Africa.

Ethnomusicologist Sarkisian is an expert on African, Middle Eastern, and South Asian Music. He is the host of “Music Time in Africa,” the longest-running Voice of America program, based on his travels throughout Africa recording and broadcasting its many kinds of music. Formerly he was Music Director for Tempo International in Hollywood, preparing background music for movies and television. His work there included recording expeditions in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and other South Asian countries. He has given local performance-demonstrations at the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, the University of Maryland, and the State Department. Petworth library is at Georgia Avenue and Kansas Avenue, NW. For directions, call the library at 541-6300. For information about the program or CHIME (Community Help In Music Education) visit our web site at http://www.chime-dc.org or E-mail us at info@chime-dc.org

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Open Space Forum No. 10
Ivor Heyman, ivor.heyman@verizon.net 

Do you want to learn how to deal with power struggles in the workplace? Open Space Forum No. 10: "When Persuasion Fails -- Dealing with Power Struggles in the Workplace," will be held Saturday, May 18, 4:30 - 7:00 p.m., at DCJCC, 1529 16th Street, NW (enter through Q Street entrance). Fee: $5. Bring a snack for the group and peanut butter and jelly for the Morris Cafritz Center Hunger Action Program. Hosted by: Ivor Heyman (iheyman@mediate-facilitate.com) and the Morris Cafritz Center for Community Service.

Power imbalances are inherent in all hierarchical organizations. This month's Open Space Forum will discuss how you can deal with the power imbalances and resulting power struggles that exist in your organization. The Open Space Forum meets on a monthly basis, bringing together a group of people from diverse backgrounds to discuss issues in an open and inclusive way. Please visit http://www.mediate-facilitate.com for more information on the Open Space Forum.

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16-18-Year DC Babe Ruth Baseball Tryouts
John Vocino, vocinodc@hotmail.com 

Here's the latest on the Capitol Hill Dawgs, the DC Babe Ruth entrant to the PGBR's 16-18-year-old baseball summer league. Tryouts/workouts are the next two Sunday evenings, 5/19 and 5/26, at Taft JHS/Dwight Mosley Recreation Center in NE (on S Dakota Avenue, north of Rhode Island Avenue -- http://mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?country=US&address=18th+%26+Perry+Sts.%C+NE&city=
Washington&state=DC&zipcode=&homesubmit.x=48&homesubmit.y=15
).  Tryouts/practice start at 6 p.m.

Games are on Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays and Saturdays, starting at 5/29 through 7/7. Taft/Dwight Mosley will be our home field for two games per week. (Note: those players who are unable to play this schedule are invited to play with dcbaseball.org's Anacostia Mariners and DC Dukes; all players invited to play on with the Dukes and Mariners after the end of the PGBR season). Pass the word to players and interested volunteers/assistant coaches.

For more info, please contact Jack Polidori (320-2918 cell, japolidori@nea.org); Al Scott (313-2748 cell, ascott@dcconvention.com); John Vocino (997-0554 cell, vocinodc@hotmail.com); or Luis Cardona (487-0159 cell, luiscardo@hotmail.com). 

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CLASSIFIEDS — WANTED TO BUY

Bicycle
Simin Ho, HoS@GAO.GOV 

Searching for a bike to buy. Price range up to $70. Please call Simin at 512-6928.

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CLASSIFIEDS — HOUSING

Large Furnished Room for Rent
Donald Lewis, Donald.Lewis@starpower.net 

Nonsmokers looking for responsible house mate to share home, groceries, meals, cleaning, etc., at $800 per month. This largest room in house is beautifully furnished with Asian antiques; the hall bathroom is only shared with guests. Five blocks to Tenley Metro on Red Line or easy car parking; cooking skills, neat/cleanly and cat lover a plus; part-time renter ideal, short-term renters welcome. Available May 27 for summer or longer; E-mail or phone Don or Lynne at home, 362-9494 before 10:30 p.m.

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Vegetarian Environmental Household
Mary Vogel, maryvogel@yahoo.com 

Living lightly lifestyle. Ten minutes to Capitol Hill; pleasant .8 mile to Cheverly Metro. Spacious bedroom with balcony looks out on forested backyard, large screened porch. Energy-saving amenities, native plants, garden space as well as 2.5 BA, CAC, W/D, FP, etc. $475/mo. + 1/3 utils. 301-883-5983 (w), 301-772-9276 (h).

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CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS

Videographer Needed Inexpensively!
Joan Eisenstodt, jeisen@aol.com 

I need to find someone to do a two-minute video of me accepting an award. You know, like the Oscars when the winner can't be there. Time is of the essence. Please E-mail me if you do this, or know someone who does, in DC (not the 'burbs.)

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No Buyer’s Agent
Pat Bitondo, PBitondo@aol.com 

My husband and I have lived in DC since 1959. Altogether, we have purchased six houses and sold one or two. We used a Realtor only in the first instance and purchased and sold independently after that. I personally feel that you do not need a buyer's agent. You probably don't need a real estate agent either, but since you would be new to the District, I would advise it. A good, honest real estate agent will do the job. I repeat, don't get mixed up with a buyer's agent. I am not in real estate, by the way.

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