This image may look like something you'd find in a small modern art gallery. It's anything but -- it's a Metro map, creatively distorted for a world in which our existing Metro system maintained the lines and connections it currently has but every station was laid out in a circle. more ›

Note: The video contains some simulated graphic violence With ever constant spat between cyclists and drivers in D.C., let's imagine if we included the other main sub-sect of local transit: Metro riders. For those of us less inclined to attempt to pop a wheelie on a metro platform or train aisle, perhaps those urges can be satiated with Happy Wheels, a ragdoll-physics Flash game by Jim Bonacci. While there are already 1.7 million user-made levels, the Dupont Circle Metro station lands prominently as a feature level in the main game. more ›

In today's edition of the D.C. Register, the District government outlines guidelines for "Smokin' Hot Dice," a new scratch-off ticket game being introduced by the D.C. Lottery. It's a pretty simple game that is offered in other states. In short, the scratch-off costs $2, every ticket "wins" something ($1 is the minimum), and the big reward is $1,000. The chances of a player pulling in that grand prize? 0.00000 percent, of course! more ›

Senators Obama and McCain may finally have taken the gloves off last night in the final of their three Presidential debates, but here in Our Nation's Capital on Saturday, the tone will take a turn for the civil, at least for a couple of hours. From 2 to 4 p.m., an unknown number of hunters and, like, hunteds will play a most dangerous game of cat and mouse in a web of intrigue where there can be only one victor and everything will change in the blink of an eye. Well, most of that probably won't happen, but there will be a big game of Cruel 2 B Kind, "a game of benevolent assassination." more ›

With point guard Antonio Daniels out for 2-4 weeks with a sprained knee, the Washington Wizards were more than shorthanded going into Saturday night's game against the visiting Sacramento Kings. Rookie Nick Young started in Daniels' spot in the back court and scored five of the team's first seven points, but it was the hot hand of DeShawn Stevenson that led the Wizards to a 92-79 win. more ›

I doubt anyone is at the "Gilbert Who?" stage yet, but anyone who's been watching the Washington Wizards play since Agent Zero went down would be hard pressed to deny that the team has been just plain fun to watch these last few weeks - perhaps because with the big gun out, they are playing like a team. Last night three players had double-doubles and a total of six players scored in double figures... more ›

Talented European prospects Jacub Klepis and Jame Pollock left the Washington Capitals' farm team this week to play in Europe. The Capitals will no longer have to pay their salaries, but they will also no longer have them around to call up when their star players get injured. Klepis played half the season for Washington last year, gradually developing into a decent center, and showing signs that he could become more of an offensive force... more ›

Remember those billboards that popped up in the 1980s that counted up the national debt, dollar by dollar? Pretty scary, huh? Well, District voting rights activists want something similar for their cause. Today the D.C. Council held a hearing on legislation that would allow the city to place two large LED billboards -- one outside the John A. Wilson Building and the other outside the new Washington Nationals stadium -- that would display the amount... more ›

Ticket holders for Saturday's Wizards v. Raptors match up probably made their purchases with visions of Gilbert Arenas and Chris Bosh dancing in their head. With both stars injured for the game, instead it turned into the Roger Mason Jr. v. Jason Kapono show. It turns out this wasn't a bad thing at all. After not playing at all in Thursday's loss in Philadelphia, Mason Jr. came off the bench to score 15 big... more ›

In Trader Jim's first move of the off-season, the Nationals have traded catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church to the Mets for outfielder Lastings Milledge. Milledge batted .272 last year with 7 HRs, 29 RBIs, .341 OBP and .446 slugging, though he only accumulated 184 at-bats. Church had similar averages last year, but with almost 300 more at-bats only had 8 more homeruns and 41 more RBIs. Schneider only hit .235 last year, with... more ›

In the midst of trying to pull the Capitals out of last place, new coach Bruce Boudreau (2-1-1) has the challenge of finding enough playing time to let the young guys--and except for goalie Olaf Kolzig and a few free agents, they're all young guys--develop to their potential. Boudreau has already won top marks from embedded blogger Mike Vogel for letting Steve Eminger play his second game of the season. It will be interesting to... more ›

Good morning, Washington. Given that A Charlie Brown Christmas was on TV last night, this story seems especially rough. Apparently some folks stole $1500 worth of Christmas trees from the Boy Scouts that were selling them. Remember kids: leave your clearly marked tree receipt out for Santa if you want your presents delivered promptly and with a minimum of additional paperwork. Latest On Taylor Murder Investigation, Funeral: The Post reports on the few details... more ›

George Mason capped a successful holiday week by beating South Carolina yesterday to take third-place in the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Fla. Will Thomas paced the Patriots with 22 points and 11 rebounds, solidifying his place on the All-Tournament team. George Mason kicked off their tournament with an 87-77 win over 18th-ranked Kansas State. John Vaughan's 21 points led the team, which put all five starters in double figures. Folarin Campbell's 25 points made... more ›

This weekend the Capitals won their first two games under new head coach Bruce Boudreau. WashingtonCaps.com Senior Writer Mike Vogel announced that Boudreau had turned the team around by fixing the power play. This is true, but Vogel writes that he fixed it by "promoting Nicklas Backsrrom (sic) and Mike Green to the first unit and moving Alex Ovechkin up to his more customary forward spot from the point, where he had been stationed for... more ›

The worst case scenario for the Washington Wizards came to pass today. Gilbert Arenas had surgery earlier today to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee and will miss the next three months. Arenas sat out the Wizards last two games with soreness in the knee. Antonio Daniels will likely move into the starting lineup at the PG spot and, as a result, rookie Nick Young should move up in the rotation. He's... more ›

This weekend the Capitals decided not to add a great goalie to pull them up from the dregs of the standings. After losing seven of eight games, the Caps were in last place. This gave them the first chance to pick up Ilya Bryzgalov, a goalie placed on waivers because he didn't enjoy playing backup on the Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks. Two years ago, Bryzgalov posted one of the greatest playoff shutout streaks in... more ›

Who says the Washington Wizards didn't improve over the offseason? Last night DCist made our first trip down to the Verizon Center this season and noticed plenty of changes; fancy new press credentials (now with marketing slogans!), shiny, new flat screen monitors in press row in section 104, that snazzy $50 million scoreboard that puts a whole new spin on the Kiss-Cam and a new red carpet themed video set to Kanye West's "Bigger,... more ›

According to Forbes magazine, the Washington Capitals are the third most worthless team in the National Hockey League. This is a big step up from last year, when they were number one! Of course, being businessmen and not hockey fans, the boys at Forbes have failed to take into account the kinds of younger, developing players that the Caps hold, ready to carry them to success either this year or in the immediate future. If... more ›

The Germans have a lot of long words that encompass very difficult concepts. Words like "schadenfreude," "Hubschrauberlandeplatz," and "Verantwortungszuständigkeiten." I don't know if they have word for the frustration you feel when you've thought that your team had already managed to overcome the mistake you thought was going to cost them the game -- like a fourth-quarter Ladell Betts fumble -- only to discover that the relief-shattering error that was going to lead to a... more ›

Written by DCist contributor Brett Gellman The Maryland Terrapins (4-5, 1-4 ACC) enter Byrd Stadium for their home finale tonight when they take on #8 Boston College (4-1, 4-1 ACC) in an Atlantic Division showdown. The Terps are reeling from a three game losing streak after falling to UNC 16-13 last Saturday while the Eagles national title hopes fizzled after Florida State stunned BC 27-17. Both teams look to rebound after the disappointing losses. While... more ›

.354 from the field .203 from three point land 91.7 points per game No matter how you look at the numbers, it's clear the Washington Wizards struggled in the opening week of the NBA season, a fact reflected in their 0-3 record. The team looks disjointed on offense, taking bad shots and turning the ball over with impunity. And by giving up 105+ points per game - good for 26th in the league -... more ›

By DCist Contributor Aaron Morrissey Dogfish Head Alehouse, the third (and we assume not the last) in a planned series of eateries that serve lovers of the venerable Delaware-based brewery with the American basics, is now open in Falls Church, and DCist popped by to survey the scene in advance of Tuesday night's official Grand Opening party. There’s nothing outstanding about the place upon entering. The immediate thought was the episode of The Simpsons in... more ›

Londonist got the big scoop of the week with what may be the first images of notorious street artist Banksy in action. They also got on a runaway train without an operator provoking a response from the transport authorities. Elsewhere, London's answer to Central Station is about to open for business, and Londonist got a sneak preview. Meanwhile, spooky goings-on beneath London Bridge, where a cache of skeletons provided an apt story for Hallowe'en.... more ›

Good morning, Washington. It's Friday, and the city is still reacting to yesterday afternoon's announcement about how our new taxi meters are going to work. We already told you about the $4 flag drop, which many people are already saying is too high, and the fact that taxi roof lights will go on and off automatically to indicate whether a cab has a passenger, which everyone seems to agree is long overdue. One more thing... more ›

D.C. United's MLS season is on the line tonight at RFK Stadium (7:30 p.m.). After a dominant regular season that saw United go 10-2-3 at home, they return to RFK for possibly the last time this season. Standing in their way is their playoff nemesis, the Chicago Fire. In 5 total playoff games against the Fire, D.C. has yet to score a goal. United will need to find net if they wish to move on... more ›

It's getting hard to keep track of what to think about the Capitals this year. At the beginning of the year, they won three straight games, and even spent an hour as the league's first place team. Then they lost a few, won one, and tried losing again. Last night, in what should have been a hopeless battle against a hot team, they put together a seven to one victory over the grammatically challenged... more ›

The Red Sox has permeated nearly every facet of Bostonist's lives. When they're not live-blogging the games, waxing poetic about the games, thanking Curt Schilling for his splendid work, or telling Dane Cook to watch his hair, they're watching certain presidential candidates hop on the Red Sox bandwagon (sorry, Gothamist). The Sox are so branded on the local brain that people are using the Series to spice up their sex lives. Speaking of spice, Bostonist... more ›

The press ahead of D.C. United’s first round playoff clash with the Chicago Fire last night leaned heavily on D.C.’s poor record against the Fire, especially in recent playoff history. A lot of it also talked about Chicago’s big signing, Mexican national team veteran Cuahtemoc Blanco. And to some extent, there was some talk about D.C.’s injured stars, Jaime Moreno and Luciano Emilio. Both players picked up injuries in United’s completely meaningless season finale last... more ›

Former Capitals coach Bruce "Butch" Cassidy (who famously wrote his plays on napkins, and then brought the napkins to practice) has just been fired by the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League after they lost six straight games. The firing from the junior team confirms the suspicions of many Caps fans who remembered the 2003-2004 season and though the coach might have been slightly less than qualified for the NHL. Cassidy joined the Capitals... more ›

Written by DCist contributor Brett Gellman The Maryland Terrapins (4-2, 1-1) take on the 19th ranked Virginia Cavaliers (6-1, 3-0) in a nationally televised homecoming contest tomorrow night at College Park in what is shaping up to be the best ACC matchup of the entire day, and yes, that includes Miami-FSU. The Terps, who are coming off a much-needed bye week, squeaked out a 28-26 victory against Georgia Tech two weeks ago after Travis Bell’s... more ›