Memorial Day Weekend in the Shadow of Logan

No need to leave town when the Logan Circle area goes all out for Memorial Day weekend which is appropriate since Logan is named for General John Logan who is credited with creating the Memorial Day holiday.

First up is the Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle clubs annual Buffalo Thunder rally a few blocks away at the African American Civil War memorial.  This annual event attracts hundreds of bikers to the memorial for a ceremony before biking down to the Mall to join Rolling Thunder.

Next is a Memorial Day ceremony at Logan Circle.  Speeches, music and reenactors that culminated in a Wreath laying ceremony in front of General Logan's statue.  

Last but to least, up the street again to the Cafe St Ex Chili Cook-off benefiting Garrison Elementary.  Chili, beer, burgers, and games for adults and kids!

Great weekend but there was one sour note.  Really? A VIP tent on T Street for a chili cook-off?  On Memorial Day?  Not sure General Logan would approve.

A Ransom Note for Mother's Day!

At the end of my junior year of college, I delayed my return from Indiana University for a week to party network which meant I would arrive home Mother's Day weekend.  Along with my return for the summer I would be bringing a semester's worth of dirty, smelly turn-the-socks-inside-out-and- spray-with-deodorant-and-wear-again laundry. To announce this, I painstakingly cut out words and letters from magazines and newspapers to create a "ransom style" note to mail that said something to the effect of:

"YOU wiLL Never sEe your Son AGAIN unless Y0U Agree to do HIS Laundry!"

Arriving on Mother's Day Eve I discovered a "ransom style" reply taped to the front door:

"WHAT sOn?"

Happy Mother's Day Mom!   Love, miss you and I probably should confess that I lied when I said there were no laundromats in Bloomington, Indiana--but I guess you really knew that all along!!

14th and U Farmer's Market Reopens

Finally!   The Market reopens for the season!

Saturday May 7 (9:00 am to 1:00 pm) 2011  14th and U St NW in front of the George "Superman" Reeves Center (Washington, DC)


Vendors include:

Kuhn Orchards
Truck Patch Farms
Mountain View
Northern Neck Produce
Dolcevezza
Plantmasters
Whisked

 

My Baby Boomer Birth Certificate

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With all this birther nonsense I decided to look at my baby boomer birth certificate for the first time in many years. Not sure what the birth certificate says about me and the person I would become but it certainly reveals something about government and society at the time.

The good news--the State of Texas officially certified that I am legitimate! Yep, there it is in Box 6 "Legitimate? Yes."  How awful it must be for those who were branded by the state "Legitimate? No" during this era.

Box 9 and Box 14 indicate that my parents "Color or Race" is white. Apparently there was no need to record my own "Color or Race."  I wonder what was input for color or race if you weren't white.  Hmm.

For conspiracy theorists:

1. An unfamiliar font is used on this document.   I believe it is called "Typewriter."

2. I am clearly named "Herbert Jr" on this document but my father's name is listed as "Hebert Sr."  So which is my name?  Am I Hebert or Herbert?  A Jr or not? Hebert of DC?   Does this mean I can never be President and since I was born in an Air Force hospital is this part of a lifetime government cover up? 

I urge all to pull out your birth certificate and check it; sadly the document may be required more and more for identification in the future.  What did I say about a birth certificate reflecting the past?  Unfortunately it may also reflect government and society in the future.

* Personally identifying information was blurred out on this form

The Final Word on the Government Shutdown

Shutdown-Mageddon: The BAD News is that DC Parking Enforcement Will be Suspended!

Whether on televised newscasts or online, the chattering Shutdown-Mageddon class all agree on one thing in regards to the looming Federal government shutdown: “The good news is that DC parking enforcement will be suspended!” [insert snicker here]

I never thought I’d be defending DC parking enforcement but it’s time we had an adult conversation here.  I’ve certainly made light of DC’s relentless parking enforcement in the past although to be honest I have only received one ticket in 25 years that wasn’t my fault. Admittedly, that’s still one ticket too many but the Two Inviolable Rules of DC Parking are:

1. If you park illegally in DC you will get a ticket.

2. See Rule #1

Like it or not but parking meter fees and parking enforcement fines are revenue generators for cash-strapped DC.   Can’t tax Virginia or Maryland commuters… well at least we can nab ‘em when they park illegally!

If I understand the 2012 DC budget these fees contribute to about $157 million in non-tax revenue. If the shutdown continues how will these revenues be made up? More taxes on DC residents? More cuts in services? We know our Masters in Congress won’t be kicking in any extra assistance to make up for their lack of adult supervision.

Commuters will have no incentive to pay parking meter fees and will park willy-nilly all day with little risk of being ticketed--it appears the police will only ticket the most egregious of violators. DC will also lose revenue and taxes generated from city parking garages since why would you pay $18 a day to park if you can freeload on the street? Restaurants and business in downtown already hurt by Shutdownapocalypse anticipate that metered parking will be available for customers but instead they will be clogged by the invasion of the parking squatters.

So is the elimination of DC parking enforcement a good thing? Nope. Just one more kick in the DC budget from our Congressional Overlords.

“Thank you Sir, may I have another?”

The "Other" Cherry Blossoms (With Bonus Cheesetastic Video)

Want to get your cherry blossom on but don't feel like fighting the mob scene at the Tidal Basin?   Some of the most beautiful cherry blossoms in the Metro area aren't at the feet of  Thomas Jefferson, but are up the road in Bethesda's Kenwood neighborhood located just beyond the DC border.  The 1200 white and pink blossom Yoshino cherry trees line the streets of Kenwood, creating an umbrella of flowers over the homes and roads.

Despite living in the area for 25+ years I had never seen them and luckily picked the perfect day last Sunday to enjoy their spectacular, natural beauty.


The trees are on private property so if you visit please stay off the lawns and definitely don't climb the trees, no matter how tempting!

There were several stands usually staffed by children, selling cookies, snacks and drinks for charity.

BONUS CHEESETASTIC VIDEO!

BONUS VIDEO is taken in Kenwood Circle filled with throngs of people enjoying the Spring day. (This is my first video with music--be kind about the somewhat lame cover of the Byrds "Turn! Turn! Turn! (to Everything There Is a Season)"!