prey. pardoned.

Obama's first presidential pardon

Happy Danagiving! Hope everyone had a turbaconducken for the feast!

NoVA. Nation.

Arlington, VA: Straight up gangsta. I’m packing heat and boat shoes.

peep. show.

The third annual Washington Post Peeps contest!

My favorite? #29, the Peep-E one, of course! It’s even made out of bike parts. The Twin likes the As Seen on TV one (#39), Octo-peep (#3) is pretty funny (even though I hate that woman with a passion), and Arethra’s hat rules (#9).

Peeps Show III – washingtonpost.com

singing. sensation.

Didn’t you notice that I sang at the inauguration too? Or were you just distracted by my awesome hat?

dictator. dp.

I, Nation, do solemnly swear..

dana. wood.

Palm trees? Check.
Smog? Check.
Welcome to Los Angeles!

Just went from 30-some degrees to 80+. The Patagonia fleece will no longer be necessary.

And good lucks across to the Eastern Time zone, where The Twin is running the Marine Corp Marathon this weekend!

Run Twin Run!

It’s just like the NYC Half.. only twice.

thirteen. point 1.

Both The Twin and I just found out that we got entries into the New York City Half Marathon!

And you know who’s hosting it.. the Swoosh, of course. Which might make one wonder about a certain store in a certain city of residence for the summer that has yet to be checked off the list. Oh please, I was at the NYC Niketown within 24 hours of being in the city.

Let’s put this baby up on the big board:

Also, going on an impromptu roadtrip to DC this weekend. Where apparently we’re going running. Well, I suppose I do actually have training to do now..

live blogging the last bush SOTU address

9:01 – the twins are in the house. Hopefully they’re sober.

9:05 – Madame Speaker! Pelosi might be a little crazy, but it’s still got a nice ring.

9:05 – walking in: last time he’ll be doing this!

9:06 – Bush’s approval rating: 31%, Congress approval rating: 18%. I hope they realize this isn’t like golf, the lowest number isn’t the goal.

9:07 – Obama and Ted Kennedy are sitting together. BFF4EVA!

9:09 – Nancy’s hair is looking nice, but she’s a terrible liar. ‘Distinct honor’ to present the President?

9:10 – omg, Pelosi is blinking again!

9:11 – trust to make ‘wise decisions’? Evidently he didn’t get his own memo.

9:12 – mention of the recession. DRINK!

9:12 – mention of the housing market. DRINK!

9:14 – the IRS accepts both checks and money orders! HAHAHA!

9:15 – make the tax relief permanent — Repub side in standing ovation, Dems appear to pout.

9:15 – now he’s into spending tax dollars wisely? How much are we losing in Iraq per day? [Note: $275 million]

9:16 – okay, new drinking word: VETO.

More after the jump..

i put the holla in holiday

mixtape. monday.

Good Charlotte
Don’t Wanna Be In Love
Good Morning Revival

turf. management.

Did you know that UGA has a ‘Turf Management’ major? And did you know it’s one of the best in the country (go figure).

Awesome article on how they get all those lines and various designs on the grass for baseball.

seersucker shall rise again

It’s Seersucker Day on the Hill! Yes, it’s that extra-special day when lawmakers on both side of the aisle are neither red nor blue, but striped and wrinkly. The movement was started by, of all people, super-scowly Republican senator Trent Lott 11 years ago to (ah, there are those Republican values!) pay homage to “the South’s fashion gift to the nation to help cope with the heat and humidity of D.C. summers.” Oh come on, Lott. They’re sorta sissy-looking pants, not an emblem of the South rising again. Case in point, even Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) is wearing it.

from Jezebel

house. party.

So CP and I might be the only people who would actually admit to playing fantasy Congress, but hey, it’ll be good training for the 2020 Election.

Here’s the deal:

“We The Creators of this site, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish Fantasy Congress for the United States of America.

In this game, we give you the power to draft and manage a team of members from the U.S. Congress. Enjoy our gift to you, o great nation: the power to play politics!™”
-The Fantasy Congress Team

http://www.fantasycongress.org/fc/

free. bird.

While I’m not an O’s fan, I do find this to be awesome..

Fans Lament Decline and Fall of the Orioles

Some day the Baltimore Orioles will be remembered as the American League version of the Cincinnati Reds. How’s that?

The Reds were the last team to win the National League West championship before the Atlanta Braves began their unparalleled run of 14 consecutive division titles. The Orioles were the last team to win the American League East title before the Yankees began their ongoing streak of nine straight first-place finishes.

The Orioles in first place? The memory fades, it was so long ago.

The Orioles have faded, too. Since they finished first in 1997, their standing has fallen, their payroll has dropped and their attendance has plummeted. Their fans, who used to cram Camden Yards, long for the good old days, and many of them took to the streets around the park yesterday to deliver their message to Peter Angelos, the owner.

“There are so many complaints,” said Nestor Aparicio, organizer of the protest and owner of the sports talk-radio station WNST. “The community feels helpless, betrayed. We’re on 14 hours a day, and the other day I said, ‘Let’s talk about last night’s Orioles game,’ and we didn’t get a single phone call.”

When Angelos spoke on the telephone yesterday, at about the time the protesters were gathering at bars on two sides of Camden Yards, he did not seem fazed by the demonstration. He rejected its legitimacy, saying, without mentioning his name, that Aparicio was running it to enhance his talk show.

“This fellow, who has been going on for a number of years in a thoroughly irresponsible way, has a call-in show, I think,” Angelos said.

Aparicio, who said he is a distant cousin of the Orioles Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio, said, “This is not a publicity stunt for the radio station.”

Stunt or not, The Associated Press reported that nearly 1,000 fans walked out of the park en masse during the fourth inning of yesterday’s game against Detroit. Aparicio estimated the number at 2,500.

In better days, at the start of the Camden Yards era, the Orioles drew more than 3 million fans for nine full seasons in a row, reaching 3.7 million in the 1997 championship season. In the last four years of that economically robust period, the Orioles finished in fourth place, and by the fourth fourth-place finish, attendance was barely above 3 million.

This season the attendance is headed for the lowest total (less than 2.2 million) since 1988, the season in which the Orioles lost their first 21 games. The Orioles won the A.L. East title in 1997 with a $64 million payroll, second in the major leagues to the Yankees’ $67 million. The Orioles’ payroll remained second to the Yankees the next two years, but then began plummeting — in successive seasons to 5th, 12th, 14th, 15th and 21st in 2004.

They began this season with a $72 million payroll, according to commissioner’s office compilations, up from $51 million in 2004.

“We’re doing the best we can with a $75 million payroll,” Angelos said. “It’s tough to deal with teams that have double the payroll or triple. We expect to be increasing that payroll to compete.”

How much of an increase?

“In order to be competitive in the American League East,” the owner said, “you have to spend $100 million at a minimum, unless you push the right buttons and have the insight that Billy Beane and Terry Ryan have.”

Angelos, who doesn’t care for the title general manager, referred to the general managers of the Oakland Athletics and the Minnesota Twins, who are among the best in the business, putting together low-payroll teams that perennially contend.

General managers have not lasted long during Angelos’s 13-year ownership. He has either fired them or alienated them. Most often he has made their lives difficult by imposing a stifling oversight.

His reputation is such that he is even reported to do things he may not be responsible for. One person with knowledge of a recent deal said Angelos prevented a July 30 trade that would have sent shortstop Miguel Tejada to Houston for a package of players, including pitcher Roy Oswalt, whom they were then supposed to send elsewhere, most likely the Mets.

Angelos said yesterday the Orioles didn’t want to trade Tejada for a player, Oswalt, who could be a free agent after this season, but he didn’t acknowledge killing the trade. The general manager of another team said it was not Angelos’s move that killed the deal.

But Angelos does have a reputation among agents for turning off free agents. Player agents, who did not want to be identified so they wouldn’t hurt future negotiations, said Angelos’s low-ball offers annoy players, who then look for jobs elsewhere. Those same agents said that with the owner looking over their shoulders, his general managers are unable to pursue free agents aggressively.

Angelos also doesn’t like to pay draft choices large bonuses, forcing the Orioles to select lower-rated, less expensive amateurs.

Like many other teams, the Orioles planned to build a program in the Dominican Republic, but it has been on hold for years because Angelos has been reluctant to spend the necessary funds.

Speaking generally of player signings or moves, Angelos said: “I don’t stop anything. We have discussions, what it’s going to cost, what it’s going to look like and what the prospects are for it to be a successful trade. If the consensus is there, we’ll do it.”

One positive development has been the absence of Angelos’s sons, John and Lou, from the team’s operation. Earlier in Angelos’s ownership, the sons, especially John, were involved and not productively.

And Angelos sees signs of improvement, most notably with the team’s young pitchers, headed by Erik Bedard. “I think we have the makings of a first-class pitching staff,” he said. “We have four young pitchers who are doing well. If their talent and commitment hold true, I think in a year or two they’ll be one of the best pitching staffs in the American League.”

The fans can’t wait.

NY Times

"suffrage is for suckers"

This is what happens when you go to an all-girls private school..

First, from el Presidente:

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Christian
Date: Aug 24, 2006 2:23 PM
Subject: Re: oh, madeira.. riiight.
To: DP

Seriously, this is overkill. What the shit?!

Suffrage is for suckers.

also response from Lizzie: (which I should note also is a government worker)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Elizabeth
Date: Aug 24, 2006 2:25 PM
Subject: Re: oh, madeira..
To: DP
Madeira makes my head hurt.

yes, I’m serving suffratinis.

——————————
The email:
On 8/24/06, DP wrote:

you know it’s gonna be a good email when the first sentence kicks off with “For those of us looking forward to celebrating the 75th anniversary of women’s suffrage tomorrow…”

HAHAHAHA.

i’ve got my suffrage party already planned, how bout you?

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Alumnae Office
Date: Aug 24, 2006 2:19 PM
Subject: Celebrating the 86th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment
To: DP
Reprinted from The Washington Post, 8.25.95
Elisabeth G

For those of us looking forward to celebrating the 75th anniversary of women’s suffrage tomorrow, the nationwide hoopla over the observance is a little ironic, because the original event, while momentous, wasn’t exactly the stuff of historical tableaux.

five. guys.

BEST BURGERS EVER COMING TO ATL!!

http://www.fiveguys.com/

article from ATL met blogs:

look out vortex and the earl, there is some competition coming to town

posted by james at 10:22 AM on August 02, 2006

photo courtesy of Peiling Tan

i grew up around washington d.c. and one of the eateries that was always pure heaven for me was a no-frills burger joint called five guys. and it’s not just me, five guys is consistently voted in washington publications as THE place to grab a burger.

actually no trip home is really complete without at least one stop at a five guys. not sure what it is they do to ‘em but the burgers and the fries are absolutely out of this world. the place is totally no-frills too, bare bones with a tiny menu; burgers, hot dogs, fries.

well, i had no idea of this until i was headed over to edgewood retail complex yesterdary to buy a firewire hard drive for my mac, but five guys is headed to georgia *. in fact it appears that there is already one location open in acworth, two planned in alpharetta, the aforementioned one at edgewood and another at Lindbergh center.

i cannot stress this enough, if you love hamburgers you absolutely have to check out five guys. it is, to use a cliché, unreal.

and maybe now i won’t have to go home so much.

http://atlanta.metblogs.com/archives/2006/08/look_out_vortex_1.phtml

birfday. ups.

Happiest of birfdays to our favorite DC drunkard.

Christian P, your Presidente in 2020.

fri. dizzy.

Friday, but of the non payday variety.. boo hiss.
The National Christmas Tree has been lit! Apparently the government doesn’t play the whole set up xmas stuff in late Oct deal.

Aside from next week’s paycheck, more things to look forward to:
- Howie Day is releasing a Live from.. album. And for the record here’s a pic of me and HowHow from a million years ago (or like winter of 2000).. proving once again I know how to pick ‘em.
- Schmitty’s birfday on the 16th!
- Dave & Lauren’s slightly more classy (we would imagine) housewarming party. As for bringing stuff, nobody worry, the beer funnel will be covered.
- And, the last full week of work before taking 11 (yes, eleven!) days off! (headed to the burg on the 23rd)

Jingle Jog 5K – last race of dominating my age group.. tear.

And you thought you had financial issues. $270 mil??
Speaking of money, I’ve decided that I’m grown up enough to open a CD account. That and I have a real live paying job, which is also key.

I completely and utterly loathe this woman.

Kinda like your own bobblehead.. but optical illusion style: Turn Your Head

I’ve finally revamped the dpisms section, hopefully more to come, but for now it’s a big improvement.

presidental. crew.

Okay, so this time I wasn’t lying.. the opening scene of Commander in Chief featured a rowing President Gena Davis on the Potomac, in a real scull (not a bathtub) and from the Potomac Boat Club, smack down next to Key Bridge.

And a satellite map for your viewing pleasure cause GoogleMaps are just so damn cool. Just for fun, here is where I lived (and the pool I frequented) while I was living in Arlington, aka Ballston Place.

And PS, I’m glad that I had no intentions of rowing in DC, as there’s a four year waiting list to get into any of these places..

I’m hoping I’ll find some screencaps of the rowing scene (which was not bad at all), but until then here’s President Mac in the Press Room.

But guess what the best part is.. this is obviously on the set of the show. Guess who’s been in the real Press Room..

It’s actually not as scenic as you would think (basically only the stage looks nice, the rest is quite cramped and dumpy for the reporters). This is the best picture by far though.Related:
http://dpnation.blogspot.com/2005/10/my-president.html

bore. dom.

So on one of the feeds today we have a view of the entrance to the West Wing at the Whitehouse. There is a uniformed marine at the door (signifying the President is at home), standing like a statue, all day, unmoving. So here’s my question – is this job supposed to be an honor or just completely suck?

I mean, I have a tv, AIM and the internet at my disposal.. and sometimes it still gets slow. I can’t even imagine..