Weekend Picks: All about the green

Friday Night

Celebrate SPE (St. Patty Eve) at Fado's where they are celebrating New Year Eve style. They will be having Guinness giveaways throughout the night as well as a countdown just before midnight to get everyone geared up for the best Holiday of the year!

Saturday

There are too many bars around DC to get green beer to name so I'll just send you to this list by the Washington Post.

The mayhem will be starting early so plan accordingly!

SoberRide is back for St. Patty's Day. Between 4 p.m. March 17 and 6 a.m. March 18, you can get a free ride home from SoberRide if you dial 1-800-200-TAXI. You may have to wait for your cab, but a 30-minute wait is better than getting into a dangerous situation.

Sunday
Chances are you had a pretty crazy Saturday so I suggest laying on the couch and catching up with everyone's good friend, ti-vo. At least that's what I'll be doing!

DC Snacks

For those of you who don't subscribe to the DC Daily Candy listserv, here's a cool link from today's email. DC Snacks will deliver food, drinks and a lot of random stuff. Serioulsy, who among us has not desperately needed Solo Cups and/or Ben & Jerry's at 1 a.m.

One ugly building!

With the Metro having major issues this morning on the red line, I decided to walk to work from Chinatown instead of standing on a crowded platform for 30 minutes. I realized after I started walking that it may not have been the best idea given the amount of blisters I got gallivanting around Georgetown last night but it was still nice to be outside enjoying the weather instead of suffocating waiting for the red line.

Anyways, I've done the walk down H street before but its always been after work with co-workers heading to a happy hour in Chinatown, so I never really noticed what an eyesore the buildings on that road are! Specifically, the Government Accountability Office (GAO)... the picture does not do this building justice! I truly feel sorry for anyone who has to work there. It was built in 1951 and doesn't look like it has been renovated since.

According to its history, the GAO used to be in the old Pension building, which is now the National Building Museum - one of my favorite buildings in DC. I'm guessing they wished they stayed there. The most shocking thing to me is that in 1995 the GAO building was named to the National Register of Historic Places as a symbol of modern block-type federal office design. Modern?? I think not! That side of Chinatown is so run down and now I realize its because no one wants to build next to this ugly building. DC is filled with so many beautiful places, they really should start tearing down the eye sores before they give it a bad reputation.

its all about the silhouette, maggie...

as maggie and i hoofed it back towards the green line from happy hour thursday, we simultaneously noticed a girl with almost impossibly skinny knees. as maggie voiced this observation aloud, i immediately quipped "well, its all about the silhouette, maggie...". let me explain.

shoe trends this year are very noticeable. you have the option of poofy boots paired with the skinny pant, flats paired with the skinny pant or anything peep-toed, platform wedge and/or metallic paired with the skinny pant (obviously, the skinny pant is in). this particular woman had opted for the poofy boot option. the contrast of the pant fitted through the knee and the bulbous boot top created the illusion (or silhouette) of this girl's knee being about the size of my elbow. it is grotesquely fascinating and the trend doesn't seem to show any signs of tapering off despite the rising temperatures. the skinny knee creates the impression of skinniness overall.

in a similar vein, the pairing of a pant with a high heel shoe creates a longer leg (also making you look thinner) and a pointed toe on said shoe puts on the finishing touch, as it creates a tapering effect in the viewers vision. hence, the silhouette that your shoe creates goes a long way towards shaping an outsiders immediate impression. i learned most of this while i was watching a late night run on QVC (the home shopping network's rival).

so ladies, if you want to look like you lost 5 lbs. without actually hitting the gym or dieting, its all about the silhouette...

Have a good what?!?!

It's just a given that every region has it's own dialect and colloquialisms (yes, I spell-checked that) and with no one in D.C. being from D.C., we have a range of sayings from all over the U.S. and the rest of the world.

Now, I'm not a grammar person and usually, I don't mind these little sayings, but there is one that has really been getting on my nerves. I see the same security guard leaving work every day and he always, in a very strong African accent, happily says "Have a good one!"

Maybe it's that I feel it's impersonal and that the security guard should know me and have something more relevant to say. Maybe it's that I feel he should know whether it's morning, afternoon or night and should respond accordingly. Maybe I should spend some time at Bed, Bath and Beyond or Home Depot but I don't think I'm going to have time. One thing I do know is that the next time he says "Have a good one", I'm going to ask him "Have a good what?" and see what happens.

What nonsense sayings make your blood boil. Leave a comment and we'll discuss.

DC Police Crack Down on Driving While Talking

Taken from NBC4's website:

WASHINGTON -- District of Columbia police said they are increasingly handing out citations to people who drive while talking on a cell phone.D.C. law requires drivers who want to talk on a cell phone while driving to use a hands-free device.City officials said police issued about 8,300 tickets for talking on cell phones while driving last year. In 2005, there were about 7,500 tickets issued for the action, an increase in 2006 of about 11 percent.

Police said they are now stepping up efforts to crack down on the offense, giving $100 citations for talking while driving. Authorities said they still give warning tickets for illegal cell phone use but not always.The hands-free cell phone law has been in place in the District since late 2004.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said the key to safety is driver education and visible enforcement. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration andthe Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, nearly 80 percent ofstudied crashes are caused by driver inattention. The groups cite cellular telephone use as a common distraction.

First Tuesdays in Adams Morgan

Just like U Street's Third Thursday Shopper Social, Adams Morgan MainStreet hosts the first Tuesday Shop & Eat Special.

New this month is chic Urban Escape Salon, written up in the best magazines, which is offering 20% off of all color services. And check out the brand new store for Shake Your Booty, newly opened at 2206 18th St NW with 15% off of all the new Spring Arrival shoes, and the 18% store-wide sale at Toro Mata.

Check out the deals below...

Restaurants: Food and drink for two persons for $25 (plus tax)
The Grill From Ipanema (1858 Columbia Rd NW)
Chloe (2473 18th St. NW)
Saki (2477 18th St. NW)
Bossa Bistro (2463 18th St. NW)
Left Bank (2424 18th St NW)
La Fourchette (2429 18th St. NW)
Felix (2406 18th St NW)
Bourbon (2321 18th St. N.W.)
Tom Tom (2333 18th Street NW)
Spaghetti Garden (2317 18th St. NW)
Duplex Diner (2004 18th St. NW)
L'Enfant Café (2000 18th St. NW) after 8pm
El Tamarindo (1785 Florida Ave. NW)

Retail: Sales of 10% - 30% off selected items or store-wide
Fleet Feet (1841 Columbia Rd. NW)
Miss Pixie's (2473 18th St NW)
Toro Mata Art & Furnishings of Peru (2410 18th St. NW)
Kobos African Clothiers (2444 18th St. NW)
Brass Knob Architectural Antiques (2311 18th St. NW)
Shake Your Booty (2206 18th St. NW)
The District Line (2118 18th St NW)
Skynear Furnishings (2122 18th St. NW)
Meeps Vintage (2104 18th St. NW)
DeVinos (2001 18th St. NW)
Urban Escape (1781 Florida Ave. NW )