Horror
Dear Halloween Fans:
Isn’t this a wonderful time of the year? When people of a certain
generation (mine) were growing up, at least one television station in
any large city had a weekly broadcast of horror movies, usually on
Friday or Saturday night at midnight. It could be called Creature
Feature, Chiller Theater, Shock, Monster Movies, or Sci-Fi Theater, and
it often had a costumed ghoulish host. In Washington, Channel 20 had
series hosted by both The Great Zucchini and Count Gore De Vol (http://www.countgore.com).
These series showed every black-and-white horror and science fiction
movie ever made, from the shlocky low-budget ones that featured tiny
animals made gigantic by atomic radiation (remember The Killer Shrews)
to the great Universal monster series of the thirties — Frankenstein,
Dracula, Wolfman, the Mummy. It was the source of all our best
nightmares. Since those late-night series have been canceled, the only
time of the year that we can see these movies is mid to late October,
when cable movie stations have pre-Halloween festivals of classic good
and bad horror movies.
Both the good and bad horror movies from the thirties through the
fifties had something that was lost in the sixties and the seventies:
atmosphere. Of course, atmosphere is often just another word for fog,
but the great movies created horror through gothic sets and eerie
lighting and suspense. I never outgrew my fondness for them, but I never
could become fond of the horror movies that replaced them, the slice and
dice movies that derived their horror from the detailed graphic
mutilation and slaughter of hapless teenagers, the Texas Chainsaw
Massacres, Nightmares on Elm Street, Friday the 13ths, and their
countless imitators. The early horror movies dared you to look away from
the screen; the gorefests that replaced them dared you to look at the
screen. The early movies tried to scare the audience, and the ultimate
applause was the audience’s scream. The later movies tried to gross
out the audience, and the ultimate applause was the audience’s
involuntary gag reflex.
Ridley Scott, who directed the original Alien movie, once described
how to shock a movie audience. The method, he said, was to put the
heroine and the monster in the same space, and to have the audience know
that the monster was there somewhere, so that suspense could build up.
Then have the heroine walk down a long, dark corridor, where the monster
could jump out at her at any time. Prolong her walk, so the suspense
builds up. Figure out the exact time when the tension would be at its
height, so the monster’s appearance would have the maximum effect.
Then have the monster jump out a few seconds before that, when nobody is
expecting it.
That brings me to the November general election, which will be here
before you expect it. Who will you be voting for, Frankenstein’s
monster or Dracula, the Wolfman or the Mummy, Freddie or Jason? Can
anybody be trusted to protect us and not turn on us? Will they protect
our city’s assets or loot them to benefit their friends? Will they
protect MLK Library and the branch libraries, the schools and their
students, the health care system and its patients, and our
neighborhoods, or will they answer to other masters? As we walk down
this dark corridor, what’s around the next turn? Are you dreaming or
having nightmares?
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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The Board of Elections and Ethics, discussing Phil Blair’s
complaint on the DC Statehood-Green Party primary voting irregularities,
has been quoted in the Examiner (http://www.examiner.com/a-361343~Mystery_in_Green_party_votes_solved.html)
as saying that DC Statehood Green voters were probably handed Democrat
ballots, explaining where the fifty or so missing votes might be found.
While the number of voters involved will probably not make a difference
in most races in the Democratic Party, it certainly could have made a
difference in the DCSGP primary, where the difference between the
candidates was seven votes. Furthermore, in a closed primary system, it
is illegal for voters from another party to vote in the Democratic
primary.
Several elections ago, I had to argue with the poll workers when they
tried to insist that the Democrat ballot was all they had. I had to sit
in the polls while they called downtown to check about the DCSGP having
a primary, and then finally found our ballots in the back room. I wrote
a letter about the lack of training to the BOEE back then, and have not
personally had a problem since then. But, if what the BOEE says is true,
then that problem is still with us and must be fixed.
Phil Blair has filed another letter that quotes the regulations for
accounting for the ballots in each precinct and asking for the records
of that accounting. If this accounting has been properly done before
certification of the elections, we should be able to tell very quickly
what happened to all the ballots and in which primary voters voted.
There should be a total number of ballots of all types (regular,
provisional) that were voted or spoiled, that add up to the number of
people who came into vote in each primary — DC Statehood Green,
Democrat, or Republican, and the cards that people signed, which are
color coded by party, should match the number of ballots distributed. I
really hope we get full confirmation that the BOEE is training poll
workers correctly for the upcoming election, that the correct procedures
for accounting of ballots have been followed in the primaries and will
be used in the general election, and that the BOEE demonstrates that it
takes equal care for all voters in the city, no matter their party
affiliation. Right now I am not feeling too confident about these
issues.
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Voters Elected Fenty for His Constituent Record, Not His Political
Staff
Mary C. Williams, mslaw1121@aol.com
I don’t understand all of the brouhaha over Fenty’s firing of
political campaign aide Alec Evans. Given the spin that some reporters
have put on this story, some might believe for half a second that Evans
was this critical political machine solely responsible for Fenty’s win
in September. While he may have contributed something over the past
year, his presence was not the reason that residents turned out in
historical numbers to cast their votes for Fenty. I speak as an early
Fenty supporter, who recognized that Fenty was a leader who had skills
and energy to effect change in a terribly dysfunctional government.
The bonus is that he is a marathon runner. As it turns out, our next
mayor really needs to have not only brains but enormous endurance. The
race to improve the quality of life in this city and the beleaguered
school system is not going to be a sprint or a walk in the park. It will
be a grueling test of wills and physical endurance, a miles-long haul
without an end in sight, with meetings after meetings, 24/7. So if those
who signed on to help on the job can’t keep up with the leader at this
early juncture in the race, when it involves just knocking on doors and
greeting people to ask for their vote, I think that it not only is a
wise move but necessary that Fenty cut him loose and find a replacement.
We need dedicated and committed people to serve. Meanwhile, we have a
race to win. Few, if any, voters went to the polls in September to vote
for Alec Evans. We need to stay focused on the upcoming goal. So go out
on November 7 and vote for the Marathon Mayor. Run, Fenty, Run.
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Unpleasant and Overpriced Verizon Center
Gabe Goldberg, gabe at gabegold dot com
Having led a relatively sheltered life, I recently attended an event
at the Verizon Center for the first time in a very long time. My wife
likes horses and riding so we went to see the Friday horse show. Buying
the ticket a couple weeks ago at the Verizon Center box office was
unpleasant; the clerk was gratuitously nasty through the process. Then
she insisted on seeing a drivers license for me to use my credit card. I
use the card several times a week and nobody asks for identification,
and I think doing that is prohibited by Visa/MC contracts. The ticket
cost included a $1 “service charge” — at the event’s own box
office. That’s like Giant’s charging a “cash register” fee to
buy groceries!
The worst part was the night of the performance. Before the show, we
ate at a very nice and pricey nearby restaurant and had our leftover
food in a container. We (or, more accurately, the leftovers) were
refused admission. The nice just-following-orders door clerk said we
could either eat the food outside or dump it. So we pitched half of an
expensive meal to enter the Verizon sanctuary. I guess Verizon is afraid
that someone bringing in food might be able to resist their overpriced
beer, fries, and whatever else they peddle. But being in the middle of
an increasingly upscale neighborhood and surrounded by restaurants, why
annoy patrons with the ridiculous no-leftovers-admitted policy? The back
of the ticket reads like a bad software license — the customer assumes
all risks and has no rights. But nowhere is mentioned "can’t
bring in leftovers." It will be a long time before I set foot there
again.
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DC Speed Trap
Gabe Goldberg, gabe at gabegold dot com
A couple days ago I was cited for doing 53 mph westbound in the E
Street tunnel, posted as 30 mph. The one-way tunnel serves as a long
approach ramp to the I66 bridge to Virginia. Anyone actually driving 30
mph would endanger himself and others; traffic moves at 50 or better
since the tunnel is a highway. At 53 I was simply keeping up with
traffic, not passing anyone and certainly not driving recklessly. So I’m
inclined to fight the ticket on the basis that the posted speed limit is
unreasonable and unsafe. Many interesting web sites offer information on
dealing with traffic tickets. Any DC-specific suggestions would be
helpful and appreciated.
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Why Is Everyone So Interested in DCPS All of a Sudden?
Gina Arlotto, Save Our Schools, citymom@dcaccess.net
In the last issue of themail [October 25], Gary hit the nail on the
head. It is very apparent to many parents of children in DCPS that the
driving factor behind so many people wanting to get involved in school
issues is the very fact that DCPS controls many extremely valuable
pieces of property. Add to that the nearly $3 billion in modernization
funds and you have a dangerous mix. All one has to do is to look at
where the money pouring into our school board races is coming.
Developers, private contractors, private foundations, and charter school
operators are all writing checks as fast as they can to one of our Board
President candidates, and belatedly to Fenty’s campaign, now that
Cropp is out.
DCPS is in crisis, but the parents and teachers I talk to all over
the city feel a bit of optimism for the future. Janey has moved quickly
and decisively issuing an MEP and a MFP that, while still needing some
tweaking, show hopeful, positive visions that are, at least, much more
than we’ve ever gotten in the last ten years. Janey also has
rightfully called for a moratorium on charter schools to give DCPS time
to plan and organize for the modernizations. Unfortunately, in the midst
of all this optimism, we have charter school leaders stating that:
“DCPS is dead. Now is the time to bury it,” and that with mayoral
control we could put “wasted classroom space . . . into an independent
real estate trust -- attracting private investment. . . .” (T.R.
Ahlstrom, headmaster of Washington Latin charter school, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/27/AR2006102701326.html)
A mayoral takeover will only throw DCPS into more chaos and
uncertainty, right at a time when the system is showing signs of being
on the right track. Save Our Schools, an organization I co-founded to
advocate for a quality DCPS and to support our neighborhood public
schools, is backing a write-in campaign for mayor to show our opposition
to any plan that would take the control of our schools away from our
elected school board. If you want to register a protest vote, please
write in Julius Hobson (1922-1977), DC’s own civil rights activist and
former elected member of our school board, for mayor. With Fenty talking
to big city mayors all over the country and touting his plan to take
over the schools, before he is even elected, we felt the need to act
quickly. We need a mayor who will support our Superintendent, not
displace him. Our children deserve continuity and stability, not
uncertainty and chaos, all because some very wealthy people have decided
they want a piece of the action.
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Board of Education Races
Ann Loikow, Cleveland Park, a loikow at verizon dot net
I strongly agree with Gary [themail, October 25] that the sleeper
issue in these elections is who is going to control all the public land
and facilities owned by the school system. I support the election of
Timothy Jenkins, as he appears to be the one candidate with real
experience in education at a number of levels and as one who is not
primarily concerned about using our schools as development
opportunities.
This issue has come up recently in a number of different forums. As I
said on June 15 for the Federation of Citizens Associations of the
District of Columbia before the council’s Committee on Education,
Libraries and Recreation regarding the fate of our central library:
“The Federation and its members do not want government officials to
look at public lands and facilities as possible cash cows to be sold to
some favored private developer. Land is scarce in the District and over
time will only become more so. Washington, D.C. is planned city and part
of that planning was to acquire, whether through purchase or from the
Federal Government, land for schools, libraries, parks, streets and
other government facilities that is located at convenient places
throughout the city. Over the years we have also made major investments
in developing this property. We urge the Council to be very, very
cautious in disposing of public property for once we get rid of it, it
is very unlikely we will ever have the funds to be able to acquire it
again.”
District voters need to keep this in mind when they vote in the
school board elections on November 7.
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Education, Not Real Estate
Ron Linton, rmlch@rcn.com
In all the conversations I have had with Adrian Fenty and all the
discussions I’ve participated in or listened to in the Fenty team, I’ve
never heard anything about gaining control of real estate. I believe
that Adrian Fenty sincerely intends to force the improvement of public
school education.
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Board of Education Versus New Mayor
Jonathan R. Rees, jrrees2006@verizon.net
I believe that there will be an ugly tug of war between the Board of
Education and our next mayor, most likely Adrian Fenty. I believe that
the Board of Education will resist vehemently a takeover, will argue
that a mayoral takeover is not needed, and that the plan presented for a
takeover is flawed. They will rely on recent reports by the New York
Times that say that mayoral takeover of schools nationwide have not
proven to be a success anywhere, and that even NY state is talking about
seizing control of the NYC schools back from Mayor Bloomberg.
I believe that Adrian Fenty, when all is said and done, will be a
bigger failure as mayor than Sharon Pratt Kelly was. His early-on fights
with the council and others will water down his efforts to take over our
schools by members on the council. Vincent Gray, who so much wants to be
our next mayor; Kwame Brown, etc., will not want to see Fenty succeed.
Special interest groups who do not like Fenty will jump in to help trip
him, and he will not get the respect he wants from outside DC to make
certain things happen.
I believe Fenty will fail in his efforts to make our schools better,
that two years from now we will all regret having voted for him, and
that Vincent Gray and Jack Evans will come up with plans to better our
schools without a mayoral and/or council takeover.
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This is a late addition to the discussion on public mixed-use
buildings started by Richard Layman in the October 11 edition of themail.
In his submissions, Mr. Layman has expressed unbridled enthusiasm for
the current effort to build new, mixed-use libraries in the District
with private sector functions as part of the package. While I am all for
maximizing the use of our public buildings, there are some problems with
the current approach. First of all, there is the troubled history of
mixed use in the District. In my neighborhood, the new Shaw Junior High
School was built with a pool in the basement and an adjacent park so
that it could also serve as a recreational center. Unfortunately, the
pool and eventually the entire park were abandoned by the Recreation
Department. Whatever the cause for this sad state of affairs, the
department does a decent job of managing its new single-use facility at
the Kennedy Playground a few blocks away, I would not push for more
mixed-use public buildings in the District until there was an explicit
and coherent policy behind the effort.
A second problem that I have with the current drive for mixed-use is
its emphasis on our libraries. If you look around the District, there
are police headquarters, fire stations (check out Engine Company 3 on
13th Street, NW), recreation centers, and schools that are sitting on
valuable sites. However, the library system is the only District agency
called upon to leverage real estate in order to finance its capital
needs. While the Mayor’s Library Taskforce stressed the need for more
mixed-use buildings, there were only two examples available. The fact
that the mixed-use library projects in Salt Lake City and Vancouver were
both done to address a particular problem (revitalizing run-down
sections of downtown) and even share the same architect (Moshe Safdie)
suggests that mixed-use may not turn out to be a major trend in library
design.
We may have a particularly unattractive example of mixed-use advocacy
in the District’s proposal for a new central library. Proponents want
to build a new (smaller) central library on the old Convention Center
site, name it for Martin Luther King, Jr., but include high-end retail
as part of the project. How would we respond if ads of questionable
taste (“Have Your Dream: All Prada reduced during the month of
January!”) started to appear on the side of our new memorial to Dr.
King?
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While I think that Kathy Henderson is the greatest (had I lived in
Ward 5 I likely would have voted for her), I respectfully disagree with
her interpretation of my statement (which Gary Imhoff reprinted [themail,
October 25]) about the relative lack of sophistication of ANCs in the
matters that come before them, especially with regard to the Florida
Market issue. My written testimony on the Florida Market is here: http://urbanplacesandspaces.blogspot.com/2006/10/testimony-on-florida-market-new-towns.html.
First, despite my various writings, I am not necessarily against the
exercise of eminent domain authority, or even city-provided funding and
incentives. However, I do think that the exercise or provision of such
should always be performed with great care, and not to the benefit of
particularly well connected people at the expense of the less well
connected. Second, I find it appalling that the equivalent of private
bills favoring a particular group can be entered as proposed legislation
before city council without requiring a public tendered request for
proposals that is open and transparent, with stated criteria for
evaluation; an independent analysis of alternatives; and an independent
economic analysis of the claims made within such a bill.
There is something seriously wrong with how the DC government
conducts business, given the frequency of how often this occurs. The
lack of sophistication goes far beyond ANCs, although at the higher
levels I believe the failure to create regularized and transparent
processes and procedures is deliberate -- it allows for the creation of
a habitat (a.k.a., “cesspool”) where it is far easier to make deals
and satisfy special interests.
Third, in my testimony I quote from a Boston Globe op-ed about
ways to provide open evaluation of eminent domain proposals. The
provisions offered are extendable to the evaluation of proposed
private-public partnerships such as that laid out in the New Towns
proposal. The authors suggest: requiring, as Justice Anthony M. Kennedy
suggested in his Kelo concurrence, that any exercise of eminent domain
for economic development have a primarily public purpose rather than a
merely incidental one. Requiring the government to demonstrate the
public benefit through a full-scale financial analysis that could be
challenged in court. Requiring that eminent domain not be used for a
solely fiscal purpose and that it instead must be part of a
comprehensive land use plan. Requiring that the affected neighborhood
have adequate participation in the planning process, a right that would
be backed up by state-provided technical assistance upon the
neighborhood’s request.
Finally, concern about the New Towns proposal should not be
geographically bounded. For one, the area abuts Ward 6, and Ward 6
residents live closer to the Market compared to neighborhoods located in
Ward 5. Probably more of Ward 6 is closer and more Ward 6 residents than
Ward 5 residents live close to the market -- especially compared to all
the people bused to the hearing from Fort Lincoln. Yet the two abutting
Ward 6 ANCs (one has a boundary one block away), have not been consulted
about this matter.
Of course, it is troubling that the Ward 5 ANCs heard and acted on
only the one side that was presented to them, by the New Towns
proponents. The ANCs did not seek out, hear, and consider alternative
perspectives. It is likely that the ANCs did not evaluate the claims
that were proffered. Plus, the ANCs seem to be relatively unconcerned
about the sidetracking of the original and innovative revitalization
strategy suggested by the Office of Planning (which has been ordered to
shut up by higher ups in the Executive Branch). This is the source of my
statement that ANCs can be relatively unsophisticated when considering
such matters.
In any case, the Florida Market should matter to us because we live
in the District of Columbia, not because of the particular Ward we live
in. Furthermore, exercise of eminent domain authority and the provision
of government subsidies should be a matter of interest to all District
residents, regardless of where we live or the location of the particular
site where government power is being exercised and/or subsidies
provided.
What I call the too often “tyranny of neighborhood parochialism”
has got to stop. It serves the city — and neighborhoods — poorly.
And it starts with ANCs.
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Regarding Paul Williams’s inquiry in themail [October 25] about
blue water flowing through the fountain at the Navy Memorial, I recall
seeing an explanation for it in one of John Kelly’s columns for the Post.
Exact details escape me, but the coloration is tied to some sort of
water treatment. I first noticed it last summer and figured it was
supposed to evoke colors seen by sailors on the deep. (The water at that
time seemed to me more green than blue.) Not true. It’s purely
maintenance, according to Kelly.
This might be analogous to what was done years ago at the long
reflecting pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial. That body of water had
become choked with algae and was rather fetid. The Park Service added a
dark inky tint that deprived the invasive plants of light. At a
distance, the water’s surface appeared black, which made it a fine
element in photographs of that area. The algae retreated, other more
agreeable things began to grow in the water, and the pool eventually
attracted wild ducks. I doubt the Navy is going for wildlife at its
memorial, but there must be something in the water that is not good for
their fountain.
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Algae? [Hiss!]
Mark Eckenwiler, themale at ingot dot org
In the last issue, Paul Williams asked why the Navy Memorial fountain
water is unnaturally blue lately. For once, I can attest that the Post
is ahead of themail’s curve, in that John Kelly answered this very
question over a month ago: “To deal with the ongoing algae problem,
memorial officials consulted the National Park Service, which is
responsible for monument maintenance. Because algae grows poorly in dark
water, a nontoxic commercial dye was added to the fountains. They’ve
been adding about a pound of liquid dye per week. It’s likely the
chemical will be used through October, when the fountains are turned off
for the winter.” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/09/AR2006090900854_pf.html.
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Emergency Contacts on Drivers’ Licenses
K. Edward Shanbacker, shanbacker@msdc.org
Whether or not the Florida system is brilliant, as Joan Eisenstodt
writes [themail, October 25], there is already a national system in
place for emergency contacts. It is the ICE number. ICE stands for “In
Case of Emergency.” It is a contact number that should be on your cell
phone address book. First responders are trained to look for the ICE
number in a victim’s cell phone list of contacts. Unlike the idea Ms.
Eisenstodt proposes, the ICE number need not be static for the full four
years of a driver’s license term, but can be changed as need be. It’s
a system already in place and seems to have advantages over the idea
from Florida. One could argue that doing both is optimal.
[Not everyone has a cell phone and not everyone has a driver’s
license, but most adults will have one or the other, so emergency
contact numbers on both would seem to be the ideal “belt and
suspenders” solution. However, from Joan’s description of the
Florida plan, the contact numbers are linked to the driver’s license
by the licensees themselves, over the Internet. I suspect, therefore,
that they can be modified at any time in the same way. — Gary Imhoff]
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Joint Utility Discount Day, October 31
Candace McCrae, candace.mccrae@dc.gov
On Tuesday, October 31, the District Department of the Environment’s
Energy Division along with their partners, the Public Service
Commission, the People’s Counsel and the four D.C. utilities — PEPCO,
Washington Gas, WASA, and Verizon — are hosting Joint Utility Discount
Day (JUDD) at the DC Convention Center. For nearly two decades, the
groups have joined forces to sponsor this event which allows low-income
DC residents to apply for financial assistance with their energy bills
as well as take advantage of home weatherization services and discounts
offered by the four utilities. Each year, nearly 6,000 low-income DC
residents participate in JUDD to learn how to maintain healthy and
affordable households.
All DC residents in need are encouraged to apply at the DC Convention
Center from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The address is 801 Mt. Vernon Place, NW.
DDOE is currently accepting emergency applicants whose PEPCO or
Washington GAS service has been disconnected or they are out of heating
oil. Then, on November 20, eligible residents may apply for energy
assistance and discounts. For more information or to schedule an
appointment, interested persons should call DDOE’s Energy Hotline at
673-6750.
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Trick or Heat Blanket Drive, October 31
Tina Schumacher, tina.schumacher@ketchum.com
This Halloween, FedEx Special Delivery and the American Red Cross of
the National Capital Area have joined forces to collect blankets for
local Red Cross community partners that provide shelter and protection
from the winter elements. The FedEx Special Delivery vehicle will
collect donations of new, twin-size blankets near the Bed, Bath and
Beyond in Chinatown from 12:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October
31.
The Trick or Heat Blanket Drive is part of an American Red Cross
winter preparedness program to encourage DC area residents to keep extra
blankets in their cars and offices in case of a winter emergency.
American Red Cross volunteers will be on site to give additional cold
weather health and safety tips.
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School Board Candidates Forum Broadcasts, October 31 and following
G. Ivory, givory@dcpcsa.org
On October 25, the University of the District of Columbia hosted the
DC School Board Candidates’ Forum, which was cosponsored by the DC
Public Charter School Association and District of Columbia Public
Schools. View it on UDC TV, Channel 98 on Comcast and Channel 19 on RCN.
Broadcast times are Tuesday October 31, 8:00-11:00 p.m.; Thursday,
November 2, 8:00-11:00 p.m.; Saturday, November 4, 8:00-11:00 p.m.; and
Sunday, November 5, 8:00-11:00 a.m.
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National Building Museum Events, November 1, 2, 5
Lauren Searl, lsearl@nbm.org
All events except Construction Watch Tours at the National Building
Museum, 401 F Street, NW, Judiciary Square stop, Metro Red Line.
Wednesday, November 1, 6:30-8:00 p.m. Join in a discussion about the
latest trends and technologies for your home. Dr. James Seferis, a
member of the National Materials Advisory Board of the National Research
Council, will explain how materials from the interior of jets can be
used in your home. Then interior designer Sharlyn Underwood, ASID, LEED
AP, will demonstrate how green design can be tangible to everyone
regardless of their current knowledge on the subject. After the lecture,
visit the exhibition The Green House to explore examples of cutting-edge
materials in use. This program is presented in collaboration with the
Koshland Science Museum. $12 Museum members, friends of KSM, and
students; $20 nonmembers. Prepaid registration required. Walk-in
registration based on availability. Register for events at http://www.nbm.org.
Thursday, November 2, 12:30-1:30 p.m. Building for the 21st Century:
Increasing Your Home’s Value and Performance. Consumers recognize that
upgrading kitchens and baths, and building new space, adds value to a
home. But remodeling is also a perfect opportunity to add performance
and health improvements that will lower energy bills. Darin Hughes, high
performance building expert and senior vice president at Green Homes
America, will describe how to incorporate smart choices into remodeling
to achieve greater value, comfort, and energy cost savings. Free.
Registration not required. Building for the 21st Century is sponsored by
the US Department of Energy.
Sunday, November 5, 12:00-4:00 p.m., Family Program: Block Kids.
Participants create their own buildings using boxes and other craft
materials. For a second project and a contest, young people make a
building using interlocking plastic blocks and additional materials --
the top three entrants receive awards! This program is co-presented with
the Greater Washington, DC, Chapter #67 of the National Association of
Women in Construction. $5 per student. For 1st - 6th graders.
Registration required by October 23 at 301-272-8275 or rita.thompson@clarkconstruction.com.
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DC Public Library Events, November 1 and throughout month
India Young, india.young@dc.gov
Wednesday, November 1, 12:00 p.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial
Library, 901 G Street, NW, A-9. Deaf certified financial planner Louis
J. Schwarz discusses economic trends in the deaf community over the
years. All ages. For more information, call 727-2145.
Wednesdays, November 1-December 6, 7:00 p.m., Juanita E.
Thornton/Shepherd Park Library, 7420 Georgia Avenue, NW. Shepherd Park
Speaks: An Author Series of local authors from the Shepherd Park
community. November 1: The Nun and the Bureaucrat: How They Found an
Unlikely Cure for America’s Deadly Hospitals by Clare
Crawford-Mason. November 8: Living in Babylon/D.C. Poets Against the
War by Esther Iverson. December 6: Unconfirmed but Desirous: Dr.
Rovenia Brock by Faith DeVeaux. Adults. For more information, call
541-6025.
November 1-30, Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Library, 901 G
Street, NW, Room 110. Chess League for Teens. Vaughn Bennett, an
instructor at the Olympic Chess House and the CABLE Foundation, will
instruct young adults in chess. The following neighborhood libraries
will also host the program: Capitol View every Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.;
Francis A. Gregory on Fridays at 4:00 p.m.; and Washington Highlands on
Thursdays at 4:00 p.m.. Teens can participate in the Chess Challenge
every Saturday at 2:30 p.m., at MLK. All participants and finalists will
receive trophies and prizes. This program is made possible with a grant
from the DC Public Library Foundation. All ages. Public contact:
727-5535.
Wednesdays, November 1 and 15, 11:00 a.m., Martin Luther King, Jr.,
Memorial Library, 901 G Street, NW-Computer Lab, Room 315. Computer
Training Classes for Seniors. Are you computer savvy? Want to be? Learn
your way around a personal computer and to navigate the World Wide Web.
First Class-Senior PC Basics; Second Class-Senior Web. For more
information and to sign up, call 727-1335.
Wednesdays, November 1, 15, 29, 6:00 p.m., Georgetown Neighborhood
Library, 3260 R Street, NW. The Fruits of Silence, The Power of
Meditation. Learn about the benefits of meditation from the Brahma
Kumaris Center of Washington, DC. Adults. DC Public Library is not
responsible, nor does it endorse health information given to
participants during the program. For more information, call 282-0213.
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Ward Three Board of Education President Forum, November 1
Ann Loikow, Cleveland Park, a loikow at verizon dot net
The Ward Three Democratic Committee will sponsor a forum for
candidates for DC Board of Education President on Wednesday, November 1,
from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m., at the Washington Home, 3720 Upton Street, NW
(one block east of Wisconsin Avenue and Upton Streets, NW). Parking
available on the premises. Refreshments will be served. Come hear the
candidates discuss important educational issues and take the opportunity
to ask questions of the candidates.
For more information on the forum, please call Ward Three Democratic
Committee Chair, Robert M. Brandon, at 966-5333 or E-mail him at rmbrand@robertbrandon.com.
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Ward 3 Council Candidate Forum, November 3
Alma Gates, agh71139@aol.com
There will be a Ward 3 councilmember candidates forum on Friday
evening, November 3, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., at the International
Methodist Church at River Road and Fessenden Street, NW. Candidates Mary
Cheh and Theresa Conroy have agreed to take part, and the League of
Women Voters will be moderating. Co-sponsors include ANC3C, ANC3D,
ANC3E, the Tenleytown Neighbors Association, the Friendship-Tenleytown
Citizens Association, the Ft. Gaines Citizens Association, and the
Woodley Park Community Association.
Five topics will be covered by the candidates: education, the
environment, growth, public safety, and fiscal management. Each topic
will be given ten minutes. Questions from audience members will be
written on cards, collected by volunteers, and incorporated into each
issue block. The moderator will review cards and select one question per
topic to ask each candidate. Each candidate will have two minutes to
make an opening statement at start of debate, and two minutes to make a
closing statement at the end.
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The Second Annual Vassar FilmFest, November 12
Ann Loikow, aloikow@verizon.net
The Vassar FilmFest is a Scholarship Benefit presented by the Vassar
Club of Washington, DC, showcasing new films by Vassar alumnae/i,
faculty and students. This year’s featured attraction is "Four
Corners of Suburbia" by Elizabeth Puccini, Vassar class of 1987,
which follows four friends together for the weekend on a secluded island
in Maine as they find themselves haunted by the choices they didn’t
make as they confront the meaning of love, friendship, and their lives
in a world of virtual wonders and genetic cloning. It was voted the best
narrative feature at the Crossroads Film Festival. Ms. Puccini, who
wrote, directed and produced the film, will introduce and it.
The festival will also focus the spotlight on documentaries.
Elisabeth Harris, Vassar class of 2000, will introduce and comment on
her film, “The Hermit of Manana,” which is a portrait of a man who
left city living in New York for a life of seclusion off the coast of
Maine. Jamie Meltzer, Vassar class of 1996 and Assistant Professor Film
at Vassar, will introduce and show his own film, “Welcome to Nollywood.”
It is an eye-opening look at the world’s third largest film industry
— in Nigeria. He is also bringing a new group of films by Vassar
students. "Best Told Lies" by Aaron Naar and Seth Cuddeback,
Vassar class of 2008, and a team of students, follows a burned-out cop
as he struggles with mid-life crises. It won the Audience Award and the
Award for the Best Use of Character at the 2006 48 Hour Film Project in
New York. In “The Common Sense Farm,” by Kathleen Russell, Vassar
class of 2006, we visit the world of the Twelve Tribes, a
Judeo-Christian group living communally in New York State and a look at
their fragile relationship with the world. “Que Payasos!” by Anna
Bowers, also Vassar class of 2006, explores what it takes to be a master
clown.
The FilmFest will be held on Sunday, November 12, 2:00 p.m. to 9:00
p.m., at the Jack Morton Auditorium at The George Washington University,
Media and Public Affairs Building, 805 21st Street, NW. The auditorium
is on the first floor of MPA Building which is located on the corner of
21st and H Streets, NW. The closest Metro stop is the Foggy Bottom, GWU
stop on the Orange and Blue lines. Tickets for the films only is $25 and
for the films and VIP reception with the filmmakers is $100. Our second
annual celebration of Vassar films promises to be a stimulating
afternoon and evening. We hope that you’ll join us to view the films
and discuss them with the filmmakers at our VIP reception. The FilmFest
is our chief scholarship fundraiser for DC area students, so please
contribute as generously as you can. For more information, go to the
Washington Vassar Club web site at http://www.vassardc.org or call
301-299-4855.
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