Andrea Nill's Blog

Worse Than a Rat on Crack

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 11:06:53 EDT

After almost a year of squealing at the rats that scurry throughout DC, I instinctively squirm at the sound of any furred-four legged creature rustling in the shadows. It’s always a little embarrassing when the beast turns out to be nothing but a harmless squirrel. Yet, in DC and other cities, it appears the vermin’s fluffy-tailed cousin might be something worth shrieking over.

A visiting friend of mine recently documented her assault by a DC squirrel on her camera phone. I was surprised to receive a cryptic text message while at work containing a photo of an unhinged squirrel with a zigzagged tail madly licking a food wrapper. The minor crime which started with a fight over an ice cream sandwich and ended with some small scratches took place on the President’s Park, behind the White House.

Apparently, according to urban legend, DC squirrels have been speculated as being, quite literally, on crack. London tabloids have written extensively on the subject, “…Crack squirrels are recognized phenomena in the US. They are known to live in parks frequented by addicts in New York and Washington DC.” The tabloids claim that it is a result of squirrels coming across the crack stashes that crack heads are hiding in front lawns.

What’s not to love about CakeLove?

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 16:56:48 EDT

Tuesday’s entry highlighted all that DC has over New York City, however, the DC cupcake scene merits a blog post of its own.

On my last trip to nyc I was dragged to The Magnolia Bakery and told that waiting in the 45 minute line which wrapped around Bleecker and 11th streets was a small price to pay for the best cupcakes in the world. I was nearly salivating as I anxiously awaited the sweet crumbs that even impatient New Yorkers (including skeletal Sex and the City characters) are willing to stand in line for.

My experience at the Magnolia Bakery was anti-climatic. DC has crappy pizza, so-so sushi, and absolutely no place to get a decent bagel. However, hungry Manhattanites willing to go to extremes to get a quality sugar fix are missing out. Magnolia’s cupcakes are good, but they don’t even compare to a DC cupcake.

In Defense of DC

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 22:37:45 EDT

As the summer winds down, DC begins to empty out. The metro is a little less crowded and the streets of Adams Morgan are starting to clear up. Meanwhile, I’m losing friends like flies as they embark on their regular migration up to New York City. Yet, as I resist the magnetic pull towards NYC I remind myself of all that DC has over New York’s glimmering island:

The Metro vs. the Subway
Looking at the at the NYC subway map is like staring into a bowl of noodle soup. No matter where I go, I always plan on either accidentally getting on the wrong train or boarding an unmarked express train into my time schedule. What makes the NYC subway even more maddening is the absence of a time screen advising commuters when their train will arrive. A certain peace of mind comes with knowing and accepting the fact that my train won’t be arriving for another 20 minutes, as opposed to the mental and physical agony of standing in the un-air-conditioned and poorly ventilated NYC metro and drowning in my own sweat for what seems like an eternity.

Snow Days
DC is hot in the summer—but NYC is hardly ever more than a few degrees behind us. However, in the winter a few degrees can be the difference between freezing temperatures and an Indian summer. Not to mention, half of DC shuts down with even the slightest forecast of wintry weather—instilling a child-like optimism in the hopeful hearts of office space workers all winter long.

First Fridays and the Art of Gallery Crawling

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 16:20:21 EDT

Friday is already the best day of the work-week—and for those whose artsy fartsy souls are enslaved to 9-5 jobs, the first Friday could be the best Friday of the month as Dupont art galleries open their doors to DC’s office space audiences by extending their hours from 6-8pm. However, this monthly affair that is not so imaginatively named “First Fridays,” generally doesn’t spotlight the best art in DC—that is if you are limiting to yourself to what is neatly framed, hung, or displayed.

The Kathleen Ewing Gallery, which features vintage and contemporary photography, is always hit or miss. This month’s exhibition, entitled “Tails of Art: A Survey of the Animal in Photography, Painting, Drawing, and Sculpture,” sounds like a miss. It consists of Kathleen Ewing’s personal photo collection of prized farm animals, pets, and wildlife.

The $1,000 prints by April Katz at the Washington Printmakers Gallery are nice—for a computer desktop maybe. The 2007 National Small Works Show that is being showed alongside Katz, might be more promising.

Farm Food for City Slickers

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 16:26:10 EDT

Whether it’s fighting angry mobs for what’s left on the bare shelves at the Soviet Safeway or if you often find yourself biting into a bitter and spoiled piece of fruit after waiting in a 45 minute “express” line at Giant to pay for it—your nervous and digestive systems deserve better. However, the trek to Trader Joes is almost as unappealing as the idea of funding Whole Foods’ chief exec—John Mackey’s—radical politics and shady business practices. Your neighborhood Farmer’s Market provides a low-stress and high quality grocery shopping experience that supports local farmers while keeping its customers happy and nourished.

As a regular at the Mt. Pleasant Farmer’s Market, my weekend goals include peeling myself out of bed before 1pm on Saturday mornings to make it to 17th & Lamont before the market closes. All the food is locally grown, which makes me feel less guilty about ogling the grass-fed bison meat and splurging on free-range poultry, organic strawberries, and edible flowers. My favorite item is the chunky homemade applesauce that consists of only three ingredients: apples, cinnamon, and cider. The baked goods at the Breadline stand rival the ones at Heller’s Bakery across the street. There’s also a variety of moderately-priced staple foods to fulfill every craving and nutritional need.

Fake Happy and Stay Happy at Happy Hour

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 11:57:38 EDT

For better or for worse, DC is a city of happy hours. There’s nothing wrong with unwinding with friends from work, but for some of us, office happy hours can be the breeding ground for drama and rumors. I try to avoid them as much as possible, but a lot of times it’s better to make an appearance than to pathologically shun them altogether. Here are some tips on how to keep a smile on your face and leave happy:

Timing is Everything: Plan on arriving midway through the happy hour. At this point everyone is usually loosened up, but not sloppy. Stay while the gossip is still juicy, leave before it gets raunchy. Have an exit strategy.

Avoid Going Round After Round: Rounds quickly turn into a costly and never-ending cycle of debauchery as each participant is socially obligated to partake in the consumption and purchase of a long succession of drinks. This can get expensive and messy. Buy yourself a drink and close your tab. If you get caught in a chain of rounds, you’re trapped—never leave before your turn to buy is up.

DC2NY: A New, Upscale Ride for Traveling Penny Pinchers

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 00:49:19 EDT

There’s good news for all those who scorn the Chinatown bus--its Jewish, and slightly less stinky counterpart, Vamoose, will no longer be the only other option for thrifty DC-NYC travelers.

The new discount bus service, DC-2-NY, is upgrading services by offering customers complimentary beverages and wireless internet services. This is good for thirsty workaholics, facebook addicts, and compulsive bloggers alike.

Since the biggest deficiency of a Chinatown bus is its less than hygienic bathroom, free drinks could pose an uncomfortable dilemma. However, according to the DC-2-NY website, consuming beverages will not present a problem since the new and supposedly comfortable buses will also have sanitary bathrooms. That means I’ll be able to quench my thirst without wiggling in my seat from the New Jersey turnpike to Penn Station. Passengers will also be spared the aggravation of additional waiting time, as the buses won’t stop in Baltimore or Philadelphia.

On Mixing Business With Pleasure

SoCapAndrea — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 04:05:42 EDT

Business trips aren’t exactly glamorous when you’re an entry-level employee. Being on the bottom of the totem pole means that I’m the first person in the office to be jet-set away to the pastoral skies of the Midwest for weeks at a time. That’s why I was so excited when I was finally assigned to spend a few days in sunny Southern California on the company’s tab.

You could be jealous that my sun-kissed fingers are typing this post after having soaked my feet in the Pacific for a couple hours. But my heart dropped yesterday when my boss told me I had to extend my stay. The idea of spending an extra three days risking my life on L.A.’s angry highways made my blood boil. I’m tired of starchy hotel pillows, salvaging receipts, and having two cell phones and a blackberry figuratively leashed around me and literally weighing down my purse.

However, there are a few things I’ve learned along the way that infuse business trips with at least a little bit of pleasure:

Making a Free Meal Out of a Good Deal

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 20:43:55 EDT

A couple months ago I got an unusual invitation to a quasi-fancy dinner from a habitually frugal friend of mine. It wasn’t until I turned down the offer that he excitedly admitted that the dinner would have been free for both of us.

Apparently, the seafood restuarant, McCormick & Schmicks (M&S) was offering $15 gift certificate coupons online that were good only after making an online reservation for the restaurant. The other catch was that only one coupon per table could be used. My friend’s initial plan involved making separate reservations for the two of us at different tables. Though we would’ve been dining solo, we could still catch up over cell phones or via clandestine hand signals. For him, a free dinner was worth the inconvenience.

It wasn’t until my friend took a look at the menu that he began to panic—with main dishes starting at around $17, the logic behind the offer was probably M&S’s assumption that with two or more people ordering drinks and at least one full course, they could generate a profit even with the coupon. We still could’ve eaten very cheaply alone and at separate tables—but my friend wasn’t looking for an inexpensive dinner, he was committed to eating for free.

Free Weekend Orchestra Concerts With Heavy Instrument Petting

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 14:19:42 EDT

It’s finally cooled down enough to sit outside without drowning in the salty waters of your own sweat. That means DC audiences have a fleeting opportunity to enjoy, rather than endure, the outdoors with the National Symphony Orchestra this weekend. The orchestra will perform two free concerts at the Carter Barron Amphitheatre at 16th and Colorado Ave Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30pm.

Friday night’s concert will be lead by the National Symphony’s Associate Conductor, Emil de Cou—one of the country’s foremost maestros who has been vocal about his frustration with what he calls the "perceived snobbery" of classical music and the fine arts. This concert promises to be different from others for many reasons, as De Cou revealed that he takes advantage of the creative license he has at summer shows like these to introduce an element of surprise to the performances. Tomorrow’s show, “An Evening of Tchaikovsky” brings a taste of Russia to DC’s Rock Creek Park, featuring works such as Swan Lake, Euegene Onegin, and a violin concerto from The Seasons performed by Russian-native, Natasha Bogachek, who one can assume mastered Tchaikovsky during her studies at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory.

On Ice Cream and Why Not to Cry for Argentina

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 17:10:25 EDT

There are few things that have the capacity to ease the agony that comes with DC’s notoriously insufferable heat waves. For a fleeting, but deeply satisfying moment, the ice cream at Dolcezza in Georgetown helps you forget just how unbearably hot it is.

Argentina’s founding fathers lacked the same foresight as our own when they decided to build their nation’s capital in a place that is marked by oppressive heat and humidity during the summer months. However, that’s probably where the similarity between the two country’s capitals ends. One of the many things that made Buenos Aires a year-round tastier place to be during my time studying abroad there was the city’s bountiful quantity of the some of the best ice cream shops in the world.

At 9:30 Club, Mis Amigos Are Your Amigos

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 14:30:38 EDT

The six-piece Venezuelan band, Los Amigos Invisibles, describes their music as the “new sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera—a mixture of Latin dance and sex culture.” These introductory first lines of Los Amigos Invisibles’ new album don’t give a clear indication of what the old gozadera is, but Los Amigos Invisibles promise to provide an invigorating definition of what the new gozadera is at their show at the 9:30 Club on Saturday.

Gozadera is a Spanish phrase that stems from the verb gozar, which means to enjoy or delight in. Similarly, Gozadera is a way of passing time through lively moments of spirited celebration and lighthearted fun. At a Los Amigos Invisibles concert this inevitably means rocking out to the rhythmic, hip-shaking electro-conga beats that blend disco, funk, and rock with the zesty flavors of salsa, meringue, and samba.

Wine Tasting for Snobs, Posers, Amateurs, and Savants

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 14:00:55 EDT

Growing up and then going to college in the Finger Lakes Wine Region of upstate New York, I’ve never been more than a couple miles away from a decent vineyard. But even though I’ve been drinking wine since my first communion, I can barely tell the difference between a mature Merlot and a flabby Zinfandel (other than being able to affirm that they taste better than the blood of Christ). As imperceptive as my taste buds are, wine tasting events are always a lot of fun. Maybe it’s the little gourmet crackers and pungent cheeses that the wine is usually paired with—but for reasons that surpass the mere pleasure that accompanies intoxication—I was pleased to learn that there are plenty of wine tasting opportunities in DC for palates and pocket books of all sizes.

Sparky’s Cafe Falls Victim to Chichi Urban Development

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:45:03 EDT

To be honest, I wasn’t planning on ever writing about my favorite coffee shop, Sparky’s. Call me selfish—but there’s a handful of places in DC that I hoard to myself in a futile attempt to guard their mystique from the cookie-cutter, character breaking effects of popularity. But it doesn’t matter much now since I heard that Sparky’s was abruptly and mysteriously shut down last week.

Store neighbors said they noticed that Sparky’s employees coming to work last week were surprised to find the front doors bolted shut. A liquor license has been posted on the window giving a new, chichi-sounding restaurant, “Cork,” permission to sell what will presumably be overpriced wine to Logan Circle’s middle aged bourgeoisie. According to a fellow Sparky’s fanatic, a note from the owners is tenuously scribbled on the door promising that the place will reopen at a different location with a new focus on “vegetarian oriented fare.”

Nintendo Nerds Feed DC Musicians

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 16:41:10 EDT

“Video Games Live” seems like a gimmick that my old middle school band teacher would’ve come up with to clog the mean mouths of fifth graders with flutes and squeaky clarinets. Instead, it’s the product of major orchestras throughout the world selling out and teaming up with the video game industry to produce a musical “celebration” of the catchy, but grating melodies you hate to love. The National Symphony Orchestra will give two performances of Video Games Live Friday and Saturday, June 29 and 30, at 8 p.m. at the Kennedy Center.

Though the Super Mario Brothers theme produces a certain degree of childhood nostalgia, I’d never pay $25-45 to hear a professional orchestra subject itself to its symphonic reinterpretation. The outrageous theatrics, however, tempt my curious pocket book. A musically synchronized light show and hypnotic video screen display are complemented by an interactive segment during which selected audience members will actually play a game onstage with a live orchestral soundtrack featuring the music of Halo, God of War, and other arcade game classics.

From Pea Flinging to Perry Bible Fame

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 13:15:44 EDT

Nick Gurewitch and I became friends in ninth grade after I was the lucky target of flying peas that were being strategically launched by bent plastic forks originating from his cafeteria table. Nearly nine years later, Nick is now entertaining and inflaming larger audiences with his popular comic strip, The Perry Bible Fellowship (PBF for short). From fan club facebook groups to his own wikipedia article and a book deal, this salad bar sniper is now getting paid to share the strange and juicy fruits of his imagination in publications such as Maxim, the Philadelphia City Paper, The Chicago Reader, The Guardian, and ION Magazine.

Rock & Roll Hotel: Haunted Funeral Homes Make Good Bars, Bad Stages

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 12:38:09 EDT

You can convert just about any space into a bar, but the owners of Rock & Roll Hotel have failed to meet the challenge of turning the former Robert O. Freeman Funeral Services into a suitable concert venue. The acoustics at the R&R Hotel would make any virtuoso sound like a crying banshee. The French Kicks’ show on Friday was no exception.

If you like high school garage bands you might not mind, but I would prefer to leave behind the years of pretending to like the music that my adolescent boyfriends were fermenting in their basements. Even though The French Kicks are no musical geniuses, first-time R&R Hotel listeners would never think that they’re a polished Brooklyn quintet. The usually soothing symmetric sound waves of their melancholic melodies and dreamy harmonies crashed and demolished against the stale air. The cheap microphones gave off a tinny noise of ravaged metallic dissonance that grated sober nerves and drove me upstairs to the bar.

A Sexually Inhibited Guide to Dupont

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 13:30:04 EDT

It’s not every day that America’s best-dressed drag queens parade down the streets of our nation’s capital throwing an assorted variety of free condoms at the feet of sexually receptive DC mobs. That’s why I was so disappointed that I didn’t experience last weekend’s Capital Pride celebration. Don’t fret if you missed out too—there’s an exciting overabundance of spots to hit up in Dupont for similarly satisfying homoerotic experiences. However, these places don’t fit every mood or social situation. Luckily, Dupont is a neighborhood that has something to offer for every sexual taste. Don’t get me wrong—I physically prefer boys who chase girls, but I also enjoy the friendly company of boys who like boys and girls who kiss girls—yet sometimes it’s unflattering and just plain disappointing when a charming Dupont bartender hits on my date instead of me. Check out these places when you’re craving a watered down, but thirst-quenching time with a zesty splash of Dupont-style tang and pizzazz:

An Open Letter of Apology to My Bang Salon Stylist

SoCapAndrea — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 13:22:18 EDT

Dear Jim,

My tresses were lost when I moved to this city. I didn’t know who or where to go to get a decent haircut. Most salons seemed ritzy, shoddy, or passé—but not Bang Salon on 16th & U. You were the first straight man whose hands I let near my hair with mousse, shears, or dye. Your tattoos made me nervous. I could tell you were nervous too.

I never thought that a year later I would trust you with such a delicate procedure. I associate the act of dramatically dismembering my hair with traumatic experiences in my life. This time it wasn’t a reckless chemical reaction to a bad breakup or unrequited love that provoked my self-mutilation. It was hot—93 degrees—and my hair was six inches too long. I apologize for glaring at what you were doing in the mirror even though I commanded you to lacerate my hair. I hmmmmed. I haaaawed. I gave you psychotically distraught and contradicting demands. I madly contemplated turning the clippers on you.

When Good Art Trumps Free Food

SoCapAndrea — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 10:43:06 EDT

There’s never a crumb of food at the gallery openings on 14th & P and the wine—though plentiful—tastes like dead water lilies. The quality of the exhibitions that opened this past weekend made such deficits inconsequential. The art itself is aesthetically delectable, creatively satisfying, and intellectually nutritious.

Folded into a corner of the second floor of 1515 14th street, there’s the Curator Office’s exhibition entitled “Three Part Harmony: Definition, Delicacy and Detail in Drawing.” The name sounds stiff. The drawings aren’t. There’s a color pencil reinterpretation of Bosch’s erotic “Garden of Earthly Delight” hanging next to a drawing of a furry front side of a male torso along with other framed obscenities. Though most of the pieces lack delicacy, they are defined and detailed mad crackers that are fun to look at.