Kevin Costner's Russian's Rusty: Washington DC Metropolitan Area Thread II

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Haaaa that's great. I spend too much time on the placid Red line and not enough on DC buses!

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 13:10 (eighteen years ago) link

DC buses are awesome, I always take them over the metro if I can. Back in 99, I used to take one of the Georgia Avenue lines.. one day there was a guy ranting and raving the whole way from Mt Vernon Square to Petworth about how he was going to kill somebody and women were the f**king devil. Around where New Hampshire meets Georgia Ave the (female) bus driver threw his ass off. Not one person on the bus seemed perturbed by this in the least or to even notice. I was trying to look like I wasn't freaking out.. not being used to the buses back then..

― dar1a g (daria g), Friday, 21 October 2005 15:41 (eighteen years ago) link

730 it is then?

― Aaron Grossman (aajjgg), Friday, 21 October 2005 16:33 (eighteen years ago) link

7:30 is looking good.

Bus question: does anyone actual read and plan around the bus timetables, or do you just show up at the stop whenever and hang out until the bus does or does not show up?

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 17:21 (eighteen years ago) link

I don't personally use the bus but my boss does and they seem to work like clockwork, he has the schedule down pat and never has an issue.

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:22 (eighteen years ago) link

i do the latter, but i would try to know the schedules better if i took the bus more often - the rail is way faster from where i live to work...

― petesmith (plsmith), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:22 (eighteen years ago) link

in my experience (with the 52/53/54 bus) the timetables mean nothing. they're supposed to come every 7 minutes or something; usually you'll get three in a row every 15 minutes.

did you see the in the post yesterday that the taxi authority is "experimenting" with metered cabs?

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:37 (eighteen years ago) link

I thought they already did that and canned it and that's why they have the zone system because, surprise, gypsy cabs try to screw people when they run on meter systems?

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:39 (eighteen years ago) link

For the first time since Congress banned the devices in 1933, there are meters in District taxicabs, ticking away the miles and minutes in, glowing red digital numbers.

weird

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:43 (eighteen years ago) link

anyway, unless you know exactly what the districts are and the fares are and the surcharges are, they'll screw you anyway. except when i lived in arlington, half the time the driver would be like "so how much do you usually pay?" because they didn't know either.

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:45 (eighteen years ago) link

1933??? Well that was not my understanding of the issue! I prefer the meter system anyway because I can be pretty sharp about watching to make sure I'm not getting shafted but the zones, I have no fucking clue on.

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:50 (eighteen years ago) link

Yeah, I saw that article--something about how short trips would no longer be very profitable, so cabbies may be unwilling to take quick fares?

I dunno, I've only taken a DC cab like twice.

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 17:51 (eighteen years ago) link

Mookie are you FAPing on Thursday???

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 17:51 (eighteen years ago) link

planning to, yes. earlier is good!

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 21 October 2005 17:54 (eighteen years ago) link

WOO

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 17:56 (eighteen years ago) link

cabs are bullshit. i only take when extremely drunk. i live one zone from work, but the 5.50 base fare plus the 1 dollar gas surcharge plus the 1.50 tip 'cause .50 is mean means that my cab ride is $8 for about 6 or 8 blocks.

― Aaron Grossman (aajjgg), Friday, 21 October 2005 18:34 (eighteen years ago) link

I love the zone map; there's one in every cab, but it looks like it was drawn up by the Dept of Mystification. It could be a map of Pittsburgh for all I know.

― Stephen X (Stephen X), Friday, 21 October 2005 18:36 (eighteen years ago) link

How WAS pittsburgh, Stephen?

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 18:41 (eighteen years ago) link

WHY HAS TIME FROZEN?

― TOMBOT, Friday, 21 October 2005 18:42 (eighteen years ago) link

The thing is if I take a DC cab from Adam's Morgan to VIRGINIA it also costs $8 or $9. WTF???

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 18:43 (eighteen years ago) link

yeah, the map is grebt--especially because UP = NORTHEAST instead of north! what the hell?

http://www.washington.org/UploadedImages/ImageGallery/zonemap.jpg

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 21 October 2005 18:46 (eighteen years ago) link

Why are there random color formations! What does it mean! Why is it not directionally sound! There are so many questions that that map creates, it's worse than the NYC taxi map with GIGANTIC MANHATTAN that apparently stops at 116th St.

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 18:50 (eighteen years ago) link

option 1: the authors were trying to solve the four-color map problem as well as educate the public

option 2: the authors were hobbits

option 3: DC was too cheap to buy bigger paper that would allow for the commonplace north orientation

you decide

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 21 October 2005 19:01 (eighteen years ago) link

if you somehow combined the completely disproportional Metro map with the taxi map your mind would melt trying to decipher the results.

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 19:03 (eighteen years ago) link

http://img368.imageshack.us/img368/3668/taximetro7ak.jpg

― Brian Miller (Brian Miller), Friday, 21 October 2005 19:19 (eighteen years ago) link

aaaaarrrrrghhhh

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Friday, 21 October 2005 19:19 (eighteen years ago) link

Hope everyone has a good weekend. I'm off to drinkie beers at Summit Station. Cheers!

― quincie, Friday, 21 October 2005 19:35 (eighteen years ago) link

I think it's designed to hypnotize the passenger, inducing them to hand over their $9 for a three-block ride with no protest.

― Stephen X (Stephen X), Friday, 21 October 2005 20:02 (eighteen years ago) link

Or to make them thing they're going to Oz.

http://www.eskimo.com/~tiktok/pics/MAP1.JPG

― Stephen X (Stephen X), Friday, 21 October 2005 20:03 (eighteen years ago) link

think

― Stephen X (Stephen X), Friday, 21 October 2005 20:04 (eighteen years ago) link

Too many houses are for sale, experts said. Speculators -- who last year bought homes, not to live in, but to sell or "flip" within a year -- are trying to cash in on the price increases now. "For Sale" signs are sprouting on lawns and depressing prices throughout the market, analysts and Realtors said.
"Anything over $500,000, especially in the suburbs, is just sitting." said Gay Ruth Horney, of Long & Foster Real Estate Inc. in Maryland's Montgomery County, where inventory rose 5 percent and homes stayed on the market 7 percent longer than in September 2004.
Would-be landlords have discovered that they are not able to achieve rents high enough to cover their mortgages. she said.

"The rents aren't high enough to cover their mortgage so people are selling" she said.

― TOMBOT, Friday, 21 October 2005 20:15 (eighteen years ago) link

wow.

i haven't really posted too much on this board, although i frequently read it, but this one really hit the spot. I have been stuck in the d.c.-nyc cycle for about 7 years now. I went to school in nyc and stuck it out after a teaching fellowship.

this summer i thought i was ready to return, and i spent 10 weeks (summer break for those in the education field) working in d.c. trying to fit back in. i love d.c. i grew up there. i try to tell people in nyc how dope the chocolate city really is. i really wanted it too work. but, i can't step up and move back. i spent much of the summer in d.c. thinking about how many great free shows i was missing. i would mock d.c. fashion and dcisms (go-go, redskins, dischord) with my ex-pat buddy who was also in the district for the summer.

yet, once again i miss it. i miss pgc. i read pelecanos and i conjure up the quirks that make it such a great place. at the same time, i realize how different the city is now.

this really isn't going anywhere specific, you can't compare or argue the merits of ny vs. d.c. i'd just be repeating the many sentiments already expressed.

a few asides...

try the Big Hunt for relaxed pints with friends.

the cab map was designed so that folks tooling around capitol hill could taxi about without switching zones.

take the vamoose bus between nyc and dc (avoid the greyhound station at all costs!).

the rents are still better than nyc.

― burna (burna), Saturday, 22 October 2005 03:36 (eighteen years ago) link

AND you don't have to deal with Yankees fans!

― burna (burna), Saturday, 22 October 2005 03:36 (eighteen years ago) link

Uh, unless you're friends with Tom and I, I guess...

― Allyzay knows a little German (allyzay), Saturday, 22 October 2005 20:43 (eighteen years ago) link

or marrying one :(

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Sunday, 23 October 2005 02:46 (eighteen years ago) link

Or standing next to some out-of-town yokel purchasing a garish pink Stinkees hat from a vendor near the White House grounds.

― ng-unit, Sunday, 23 October 2005 17:54 (eighteen years ago) link

I can't remember the last time the Redskins scored 52 points. It's a joyous day!

― Super Cub (Debito), Sunday, 23 October 2005 22:30 (eighteen years ago) link

WTF? They what!!!??? I had a temp job all day and missed the whole thing!

I can't remember that ever happening since the days of Gary Clark/Art Monk/Ricky Sanders. Awesome.

― dar1a g (daria g), Monday, 24 October 2005 02:31 (eighteen years ago) link

That game was kind of sad, the commentators had nothing to talk about except how much it sucks being a rookie 1st-pick QB and having to go 15-1 your first NFL season because your team is still rebuilding. Oh and the Redskins' finally winning the turnover battle and Portis' first TD of the season, blah blah.

Anyhow we tried out the John Harvard brewpub downtown on Friday, it was way too brightly lit but the clientele wasn't annoying which was a nice bonus. Our waitress gave another thumbs up for the Black Cat downstairs, we haven't been back to U street in too long, perhaps.

― TOMBOT, Monday, 24 October 2005 11:45 (eighteen years ago) link

John Harvard's has a bargain happy hour, and the beer beats the pants off Gordon Biersch and Cap City. I like the location, too - a bit hidden and empty on the weekends. And beer on cask.

― Brian Miller (Brian Miller), Monday, 24 October 2005 12:56 (eighteen years ago) link

Yeah but the buffalo wings are kind of the worst in the city, totally microwaved bottom-of-the-bag extra small drummies and broken flats. I do a better job butchering wings myself at home!

― TOMBOT, Monday, 24 October 2005 13:47 (eighteen years ago) link

The Big Hunt has a 15 cent (or is it 10 cent?) wing night, I think it's on Tuesdays. I was there not too long ago, still a pretty chill place to hang out.

― dar1a g (daria g), Monday, 24 October 2005 14:39 (eighteen years ago) link

I began a 3-yr relationship at the Big Hunt.

― Mary (Mary), Monday, 24 October 2005 16:05 (eighteen years ago) link

I went to the Crossroads,the Caribbean music club out in Bladensburg, MD near the Peace Cross over the weekend. Not metro-friendly, and the soca band did not come on till 1:35 a.m. but it was fun.

― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 25 October 2005 14:56 (eighteen years ago) link

Early-morning soca! But what's the Peace Cross?

― Stephen X (Stephen X), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 15:34 (eighteen years ago) link

How long do you all think you'll be at the Pharmacy Bar? Is everyone really going to get there at 7:30 or are you likely to not arrive til somewhat later? I think I have to be over on Capitol Hill around 7:30, except maybe I could change that... arrgh.. logistics.

― dar1a g (daria g), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 17:29 (eighteen years ago) link

At the intersection of Bladensburg Road, Route 1, and Md.450 crossing over from D.C. into P.G. County in Maryland is a tall World War I(?) era statue/memorial called the Peace Cross. If any of you were wondering about demographics, the crowd at soca shows is 99% Caribbean immigrants (ranging in ages from 20 to 50). Lots of Trindadian flags being waved.

Have fun at Pharmacy.

― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 25 October 2005 18:17 (eighteen years ago) link

How'd you find out about the soca show?

― Stephen X (Stephen X), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 18:22 (eighteen years ago) link

I guess I should be embarrassed that I don't know anything at all about soca?

I forgot that I can't make it on Thursday because I have an extramarital date that has been in the works for months! My date is also married, but both of our spouses gave the OK. We are going to the Brickskeller for drinks and then to a sexy scientist seminar!

I have not been on a date in years WHAT SHOULD I WEAR???

― quincie, Tuesday, 25 October 2005 18:54 (eighteen years ago) link

lab coat
...and nothing else!

― carly (carly), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 18:55 (eighteen years ago) link

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