January 11, 2008
Overheard in D.C.: What's Important in the World
Washington has arguably some of the most interesting conversations in the United States. Where else can you find people who know about and are ready to debate the fate of Pakistan, military strategy in Iraq, which presidential campaign staff is doing the best job, the arcana of House rules, and minutiae about the U.S. code. It's a great place to be around a lot of well-informed people.
Quote of the Week
Two 20-something guys studying at a Starbucks in Georgetown:
(Ten minutes of studying in silence)
Guy 1: "Dude, we haven't talked about something really important yet."
Guy 2: "What's that?"
Guy 1: "Jamie-Lynn Spears being pregnant."
After the jump, terrifying condiments, Lincoln Park, and Clinton Portis.
Keep us informed of other important conversation. Hit us up at overheardindc (at) gmail (dot) com.
Photo by nivad
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What, on a brain burger?
On the Bethesda Metro escalator:
20-something woman to male friend: "The other day I touched ketchup and I freaked out."
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I love those Hector Popper books.
In a Dupont office cube farm:
Worker 1: "The Lord is looking out for me today."
Worker 2: "What??
Worker 1: "You know. Dumbledwarf."
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But driver, I have a transfer!
January 9th, 7:30 p.m., on a packed orange line train to New Carrollton.
Apropos of nothing, as the doors were closing at Farragut West:
Metro operator (yelling): "This is not a bus!"
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Forgot to mention, I own a tank.
In the Cannon HOB Elevator:
Asking coworkers about whether the neighborhood northeast of Lincoln Park (14th and D NE area) is safe.
Female Coworker 1: "Oh, it's really safe there. I love it, I've never felt afraid."
Female Coworker 2: "So, I would be safe walking home from the Metro at like 8:30 p.m.?"
Female Coworker 1: "Walk? Are you crazy? I would never walk alone in that neighborhood. You'll get mugged or raped or something."
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Maybe he's hoping George Michael is on the bus.
Saturday evening, one of the 90 buses traveling down U Street, shortly after the Redskins-Seahawks game.
An older gentlemen gets on the bus and announces to the whole bus the score of the game. No one on the bus seems to care, but the man continues to talk about the game and lecture what is wrong with the team. After 5 minutes of lecture, we get to this:
Man: "I mean, we ain't in Denver anymore, Clinton! Portis gotta realize we don't do no fancy runnin' in the NFC East--we just run. You ain't in Denver. You just run. You play Gibbs football now, Clinton. Just run. Right, driver?"
Metro Bus Driver: (says nothing)
Man: "Clinton needs to step up his game! You need to take it to a new level for Redskins football. A NEW LEVEL. You hear me?"
Metro Bus Driver: (says nothing)
Man: "Take it to another level, Portis, is what I'm saying. Times in your life, you got to take it to a new level. Just like you had to take it to another level when you started working for Metro, right, my man?"
Metro Bus Driver: "Uhhhh...no?"
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I love those Hector Popper books.
In a Dupont office cube farm:
Worker 1: "The Lord is looking out for me today."
Worker 2: "What??
Worker 1: "You know. Dumbledwarf."
why is this funny?
Bwahahahahahaha! Oh, wait, nevermind. NONE of that was remotely amusing.
"Maybe he's hoping George Michael is on the bus."
What the hell does that even mean?!?
george michael=dc sports reporter of some repute
Trifecta it's funny 'cause the headline is Hector Popper (instead of Harry Potter) because the person calls him Dumbledwarf instead of Dumbledore...crap I get that and I've only ever seen the first movie once...
And "registeringsucks" thanks for showing your stripes as a total D.C. newby.
Though seriously, how cool would it be to run in to George Michael the singer on a DC bus?!
Actually, it would be much cooler to run into him in a public restroom, although I'm pretty sure he's not a football fan, unless by "football" you mean "rough trade."
maybe the ketchup chick thought it was blood
Yeah, I've lived in DC for 8 years and don't pay much attention to sports, but that has nothing to do with how unfunny this is.
re: george michael
i totally thought arrested development there for second. errr...
What's important in the world? I defer to that classic of classics, Conan the Barbarian:
Mongol: Conan! What is best in life?
Conan: To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women!
Very sage.
Promise: Washington has arguably some of the most interesting conversations in the United States.
Reality: Insipid, vapid brainfarts.
Way to smash the stereotype that DC is full of dullards.
Oh please, I don't follow sports either. I couldn't name a sports coach to save my life. Now if he didn't know who Jim Graham or Marion Barry was...
Oh please yourself "3 toed Sloth"...first of all George Michael was a sports CASTER not COACH.
And honestly, if you can't name a sports coach to save your life, you have never read/looked at/listened to one Washington, D.C.-based media outlet in your life (let alone in the past week).
And frankly, I think we all do WITHOUT KNOWING who Jim Graham is.
There is nothing quite so vapid as someone who feels the need to brag about knowing nothing about sports ... save for someone who feels the need to brag about not watching TV.
Right, because it is impossible to skip the sports section of a DC-based media outlet. Your argument, it fails.
Who's bragging?
"Redskins' Gibbs Resigns As Coach" was the Post's front page headline on Wednesday. kthxbai
You don't know who George Michael is??? Ouch...that's like not knowing who Bob Ryan is, may his sweet lightning strike you.
I personally could care less about Jim Graham...yet another useless DC council-weasel. I would think someone would know many more people before knowing Jim Graham, but that's just me.
Uh, did you skip the front page of every Washington media outlet this week too?
My point is you cannot prove that someone is new to DC because they don't know who a sports figure is.
Some of us really don't care about sports at all.
And some sports figures are so ubiquitous that even those who avoid sports would have to shut themselves into a cave not to have heard of them.
There was a time in Washington when George Michael was such a figure.
Ubiquity from an indictment, conviction or murder perhaps.
Dear numbskull:
Please look up Heath Shuler.
He is, or was, actually VERY well known around the country as well, due to his hilarious sports show "George Michael Sports Machine"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_George_Michael_Sports_Machine
Your argument fails, so you fall back to attacking the subject matter.
Sports would be good for you. It would teach you to lose gracefully.
maybe he should've used Michael Wilbon or Tony Kornheiser instead.
I must have been distracted by the "Clinton and McCain Rebound to Take N.H." headline instead.
can't we all just get along?
28 comments and not one remarking the bus driver's take on Metro. Forshame!
OMG, you freakin' weirdos! Can you stay on point? Sports are irrelevant to my comment. Unless you have a reason why this post was funny, STFU.
I thought your point was you don't brag about not watching sports. We all got that.
Sorry - I just realized - was your point that the Web site that you read for free featured a post that provided insufficient amusement value for the $0.00 that you paid? That was the buried lede.
sigh...okay, I'll do it just because it hasn't been done yet...
"People who don't know about Washington sports are like Hitler" THERE. Ya happy?
"People who don't know about Washington sports are like Hitler" THERE. Ya happy?
Actually, they're more like Osama Bin Laden