Color us honored! When we thumbed through the massive, two-lb. "Best Of D.C." edition of this week's Washington City Paper, we were surprised and delighted to find that publication's readers had awarded us "Best D.C. Web Site." Best locally-focused blog, OK, but best web site? Washingtonpost.com was a runner up? Allow all of us here at DCist HQ to deliver a collective "gee golly." That was just awfully nice of you, City Paper readers. Make......

A month ago, the Washington Redskins needed to win out the rest of their season and receive a ton of help from the rest of the NFC in order to make the playoffs. And it needed to start in the short week between a Sunday's loss to Buffalo and a Thursday night game with Chicago. And then it needed to start after Sean Taylor's funeral. And then it needed to continue despite losing starting quarterback......

Over at Huffington Post, Andrea Batista Schlesinger of the Drum Major Institute has a nice roundup of what she thinks are the best public policy initiatives of 2007. Number six on her list is the D.C. Voting Rights Act, and she has a solid grasp on why congressional representation for the District is so important:Eleanor Holmes Norton, D.C's indomitable delegate, can debate with the best of them, but without the D.C. Voting Rights Act, neither......

If you're a regular reader of the Arts Agenda, be sure to check out yesterday's summary of the benefits of becoming a member of one of the local arts venues in D.C. Right after we put that online, we heard that WPA is relaunching their online database ArtFile (one of the benefits of becoming a WPA member is a free artist profile on the site, where you can store images of your work). Visitors can......

Jim Bowden has been a busy man this offseason. Since we last left the Nationals, they have acquired outfielder Elijah Dukes, infielder Aaron Boone, pitcher Tyler Clippard, and catcher Paul Lo Duca. They have also signed outfielder Wily Mo Pena to a one year deal. Betting that he can't possibly have two horrible years in a row, the Nats have also signed outfielder Ryan "more strikeouts than total bases" Langerhans to a one year deal.......

The cold weather - and holiday festivities - descended upon Gothamist. The Rockefeller Christmas tree was lit, Broadway stagehand finally ended their strike, and NASCAR decided to run their victory lap through Times Square. There were disturbing photographs revealing the working conditions in which many city manholes are produced and ninjas were also a hot topic, either robbing homes or entering into alibis. But the city was really rocked by how Rudy Giuliani's visits......

December begins tomorrow, and that means only one thing: it's time to take that special person in your life to a holiday concert. Do you want to subject him or her to the same old carols, something historical, or something really weird? Here is a list of your options, not including the many performances of Handel's Messiah or The Nutcracker, to be previewed tomorrow. THE BEST OF THE BEST: >> For those who never want......

Former D.C. Police Chief Charles Ramsey has been named police commissioner of Philadelphia by Mayor-elect Michael Nutter, reports the Associated Press. Ramsey came to D.C. in 1998 after serving for 31 years in his hometown of Chicago, and became Washington's longest-serving police chief in more than three decades, serving as top cop in the District until the end of 2006, when he was replaced by incoming Mayor Adrian Fenty. Since we've had a little bit......

When the City Museum closed its door in late 2004 after a mere 18 months in existence, the one place to go for a comprehensive history of Washington, D.C. disappeared. But for those of you interested in the city's history, the next few days should be quite satisfying -- it's time for the annual Washington Studies Conference. The conference, now in its 34th year, kicks off tomorrow at The Carnegie Library building (801 K Street,......

Last night a few of us made our way to Nellie's Sports Bar, where the Washington Blade was giving out its Best of Gay D.C. awards. We were honored to pick up the prize for Best Local Blog, with their kind description:When D.C. residents need to keep up on local events, art, sports, restaurants or pretty much anything else related to life in the District, they head to DCist.com... The blog is truly a community......

Written by DCist Contributor Elisabeth Grant It was the best of times (for pumpkin lovers), it was the worst of times (for pumpkin haters). It's that time of year again; the leaves are starting to change, the weather's promising to get a little cooler (finally), and everything is starting to taste a little more pumpkin-y. But eaters and drinkers beware, not all pumpkin flavors are created equal. They can range from too-sweet fake to more......

Early yesterday morning, the tragic news was announced. On Myspace, a bulletin appeared that read: Ian Mackaye, lead singer of influential hardcore band Minor Threat as well as Fugazi passed away today in a Baltimore hospital room. Outside a Fugazi show in New Jersey last night, the singer was struck by a car passing by the front of the Ventura Theatre. Brunswick police say that the driver allegedly stopped, but then fled the scene. There......

A man walks out on stage. He sets down a bottle of water on the floor. Grabs the microphone, wrapping the cord around his hand a few times before clenching his fist around it. He then begins to speak, and continues to do so for almost three solid hours. Without a break, without even bending down to sip from the bottle of water he'd brought with him. And that's a Henry Rollins spoken word show.......

>> Diddy's in town tonight, which means only the most masochistic of locals will be waiting in line to get in to new nightclub Ibiza. Our advice? Stay out of the 1/2 mile radius around 1222 1st Street NE completely starting from 10 p.m. to around dawn. It's just going to be too full of desperate people looking to catch a glimpse of the party host -- like a Saturday night in Adams Morgan......

It's round two of the official opening of the fall art season. If you didn't get to check out all the openings last week (and who humanly could have?), spend part of your Saturday afternoon perusing the rest -- our reviewer particularly enjoyed the show at Flashpoint. But block off your evenings for the parties to celebrate the following openings: >> Up in Bethesda, it's the big night for the Trawick Prize finalists, as they......

Mid-Atlantic Art News has the scoop on this year's Trawick Prize winners. The annual award, produced by the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District and funded by long-time regional arts supporter Carol Trawick, is widely known as one of the area's most highly regarded visual arts prizes. The winners list often comes with a little (sometimes well-founded) griping from the art community, but there's no doubt that the winners earn some serious respect -- as well......

Good morning, Washington. Well, it couldn't last forever: this week's temperatures are edging up after all. And while things are still relatively pleasant, tomorrow's high of 98 still sounds unappealing to our recently-spoiled selves. D.C. Goes After Posters: WJLA brings encouraging news for anyone who's been sorry to see a lingering ad for a years-passed protest event: the city government is cracking down those who illegally post notices on traffic and utility boxes. Among......

Night of the Living Theater...by Dead Playwrights largely presents exactly what you'd expect to happen if notable writers from the ages were asked to take their scripts to modern-day producers and pitch them for Hollywood treatment. But while the five works highlighted in the piece may frequently lack surprises, the work as a whole still adds up to enjoyable, briefly-diverting entertainment. The best of the short skits is "A Lot of Talking", which smartly echoes......

LAist was comped front row seats by the Dodgers due to Malingering being struck by a foul ball last week, and she came back with some great photos, and earlier made fun of 4th of July on Venice Beach. But the biggest stories of the week was that the Mayor's Hot Tamale was revealed, and that a Kwik-E-Mart was erected in Burbank. Phillyist was busy doing the Fourth of July up right, exercising their......

Sure, we told you about this last week, but we're telling you again because we are persistent and like helping local kids. We happen to think you should, too. Get your taste buds ready for the first annual Brainfood Grill-Off. This Iron Chef-like event will have teams, consisting of local chefs and Brainfood students, competing for the “Brainfood Skillet Award.” Marc Silverstein, of The Food Network’s The Best Of series, will be hosting the event......

Five years ago, Carol Trawick began funding the highest paying art competition in the area at the time. The Trawick Prize, held at Creative Partners, was open to artists working in all media, with the high cash prizes often won by new media artists working in video, digital technologies and installation. Encouraged by Fraser Gallery owner Catriona Fraser, Trawick began a similar competition open only to painters three years ago: the Bethesda Painting Award. The......

Feel Like Vegging Out? Or, do you have strong feelings about vegetarian dining in Washington? Don't lie, all you Eating In complainers are out there, I know it! Here's your chance to shine. VegDC is having a contest to determine the best vegetarian restaurant in Washington. I know, I know, a contradiction of terms, but stick with me here… With nearly 30 vegetarian-only eateries in the region, VegDC is right to start whittling down the......

When the going gets tough for District voting rights, we pull out real hardware -- the kids. Specifically, the Young Suffragists. The organization, made up of kids aged 4-12, has been advocating for District voting rights since 2003 in the hopes that by 2012, when its youngest member turns 18, they'll all be able to vote for a representative and a senator for the District. And best of all, they're cute, can't easily be handcuffed......

Dorothy Brizill, the Executive Director of DCWatch, the ubiquitous local government watchdog group, was arrested and charged with assault yesterday after Tara Bridgett, an aide to deputy mayor for education Victor Reinoso, said Brizill grabbed her shirt and yanked the ID badge hanging from a lanyard around her neck. Brizill, who has been a local legend in D.C. politics for twenty years for her hardcharging questioning of municipal goings on, had been meeting with Reinoso......

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. In Gothamist's neck of the woods, they found out that many things are possible: A man caught a 40+ pound fish off the Rockaways and took it home on the subway. Graffiti......

The United States Botanic Garden is a favorite summer destination, and the list of reasons to visit has gotten longer. In a recently opened exhibit, Celebrating America’s Public Gardens, the nation's most important public gardens have sponsored mini-displays in two sections called Green Today, Growing Tomorrows (in the National Garden, at the Mall end of the grounds) and A Sense of Place (on the Conservatory Terrace, facing Capitol Hill). In the latter exhibit, each garden's......

'Tis the season for outdoor venues, and it just so happens the greater D.C. area has a plethora of them. Outside the confines of our beloved Fort Reno, Wolftrap, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Nissan Pavilion, and a few more decent venues all exist within an hour of the District. They might require a bit of a hike, and usually a car, but if you have the means, might as well pick up a cheap lawn seat......

That's right. Caps are in the finals! Admittedly, the Capitals are not in this year's Stanley Cup Finals. That honor is shared by the Anaheim No-Longer-Mighty Ducks and the Ottawa Senators. However, many Capitals are still in the finals. No, we're not talking about Ottawa's Antoine Vermette, who was only a Capital for one beautiful summer day, when the Caps claimed him off waivers and then traded him right back to Ottawa. We're not even......

We pretty relentlessly mock lists that involve listing the best of ________ (location, dining establishment, watering hole, venue) in the District. Be it a national publication or even our own Washington Post, sometimes it seems that the rankings reflect what's easiest rather than what's actually best. After all, is Starbucks really the best Washington has to offer by way of coffee? So when we saw that Esquire had published a list of the best bars......

Yesterday's WUSA newscast brought an exclusive interview that'll be of interest to anyone living near Shaw: apparently the Fifth and O and Seventh and O crews have agreed to a truce. The linked video includes a group interview conducted by Bruce Johnson in which the gang members express bewilderment at the extent of their years-long feud, and hope for a lasting truce. We certainly wish them the best of luck. Several current and former DCist......