Been riding the Metro trains around a lot lately. There's something about this time of year ... I ride the Metro more often during the changing seasons. This guy in the picture got off at the same stop I did, Eastern Market. He walked over to the area by the Marine Barracks on 8th and I Sts SE. It use to be a seedy neighborhood, now there's a new Starbucks.
Looking Through Metro Center
On the way home I panned this shot of the other metro headed in the opposite direction. I grabbed a transfer from the subway and used it on the bus. Usually the bus guy charges you 35 cents with a subway transfer. He let me go with just the transfer. Lucky because I didn't have any change.
Went to the zoo with my brother to check up on the animals. It looks like they are really taking care of them now. Why do they call them "Giant" Pandas? Were there once normal and small sized Pandas that were eaten by the giants? This is Mei-Xiang chomping on a bamboo stick. Her name means "beautiful fragrance" in Chinese.
The Sights We Could See, My Brother and Me
My brother Rog is in town this week from San Francisco. He has a few long meeting to attend. He is an engineer for the Environmental Protection Agency. He is in charge of keeping the drinking water safe on American Indian reservations on the West Coast. We could use more people like him in D.C. Our water has so much lead it could make any alchemist a fortune. I met up with him after my morning class and we walked all over like a couple of tourists. The Cherry Blossom Festival is a beautiful time of the year.
This weekend started Spring and the Cherry Blossom Festival here in D.C. However, the above picture is a tulip tree in the Capitol's front yard. The tulips bloom at the same time as the cherry blossoms and a larger and more colorful. Why don't they have a tulip fest? My friend Karl flew into town from Tampa Bay today to do some more training down at the Marine base in Quantico, Va. A group of us walked down to the National Mall from my friend's house on Capitol Hill. It was a fun walk because ... it just was. Good people create good times. They had the kite festival today down by the Smithsonian Castle. I had my wide-angle lens and no other equipment, less options and more finding good light. I felt like a jerk (more than usual) running around with my camera while my friends all waited for me to catch up.
I don't think anyone was hurt in this fire. There were four fire trucks and no ambulances. I was walking past 18th and New York Ave NW today after attending the wake of a bartender friend who died last weekend. Tommy didn't show up for work a couple days in a row. His boss went to check on him and found him lying on the couch. They believe he died peacefully.
Over the River and Through the Woods
I decided to take the quiet way home today, down past the zoo. Even there I caught a glimpse of a patrol car on Adams Mill Rd. taking the back way to Mt. Pleasant St., a reminder of the mayhem of weekends in D.C. Sometimes I get tired of living in the center of town, out-of-towners fill the streets with reckless driving and sidewalks with discourtesy.
Henrik is a photojournalism professor at the Corcoran College. Here he tries his best to to clear a "low" eight-foot doorway with a distinguishing balloon hat made for him by one of his students and my classmate, Arianne. Yes she has balloon skills. Tonight we had our 2nd Year Photojournalism Show in the Corcoran's White Walls Gallery. I showed up after all the fried chicken and cornbread was devoured. The show was still loads of fun. I kept thinking I was going to end up at the Senior Fine Arts opening up stairs but I never quite made it. When I arrived the show was slow, the pace steadily picked up as the night went on. I was glad to see my new "internet friends" Ari and Donovan at the show. I was also grateful for the critics and complements from well known visiting photographers, professors, strangers, as well as my friends and neighbors.
Academic Dean Sanctifies Alcohol at Opening
This is John the Dean of Academics "okaying" our beer at the opening tonight. Since not much of the Sophmore Class is "of age" those of us who were legal had to get special permission to drink alcohol during the opening. It wasn't too much of a hassle ... plus it's nice to feel special.
I went to a great show at the Black Cat tonight with my friends Jen and Ari. I finally got to see Tom Heinl(above), a crazy musician from Eugene, Oregon whom I missed while I was there last Christmas. We also heard the music of Clearlake and the Decemberists. This was one of the best shows I've ever seen, and most crowded. Too bad my friends Andrew and Maris are in Paris.
Brandon is a junior-year fine arts major at the Corcoran College. Occasionally I stop by his place and say hello to him on my walk home. He knows my beliefs are Amish when it comes to video games and he usually finishes up his game if he's playing when I get there. However, one of our mutual friends, Mike stopped by too and convinced me to play a fighting game against him. I won like 1 out of 5 games. (I don't believe my lack of skill is the actual reason I don't like video games.) Mike defended the games by saying, "We got school and no time to play sports ... gotta do something!" Brandon laughed, but agreed.
This is my friend Karl. He is a Marine down in Tampa Bay. I met him at the airport today. It was the first time I saw him in at least two years. At one time we both worked at Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C. For a while we lived together in a trailer park. Later we moved out and upgraded to a brick house on the main drag of Jacksonville, N.C. When I got deployed he made sure all my things were okay. He took my car to storage and corresponded with my family about storage issues. We use to drive down to Florida together on leave. We went to the barber shop every week to get our hair cut. We drank Guiness together. I am really glad I got to see this guy again. He's probably headed to Iraq in a couple months. I remember back when his wife, and mother of his daughter, was just his girlfriend ... I even remember before that. We share the memories that make life worth living.
Today I left Florida and my family. It was a great last day there and an fun night back in D.C. The flight I got on was over-booked as usual. I boarded the plane only to find that they double-book the entire isle I was assigned to -- meaning someone was in my seat! While the stewardesses figured out the dilemma I stuffed my carry-ons into an overhead bin and walked to the back of the plane to use the restroom. When I came back out they had started to sort things around. I stood patiently in the isle while it seemed everyone else was taken care of first, and they were. Then they called me and said, "It's your lucky day." I was sitting in first class. I even ate the free first-class meal and had the genuine first class company of Fran. When I got my baggage my friend Katie picked me up from the airport. We went to the Russian bar, Maxim for Nigerian Night. Then we walked around this lively city. On my way back home through busy Adams-Morgan I talked to a couple friends who were driving by. The streets were packed. The clubs let-out and fights were brewing. I stopped by the Blue Room to say hi to Solomon (Solid-Man) and Susan. I meandered up the crowded street through fights and disorderly conduct. Spring Break is underway.
