A postage stamp first issued in 2003 could wind up costing the United States Postal Service quite a bit if an appeals court sides with the artist who claims his work was appropriated without his permission. more ›

The T Street Station Post Office is moving up the block, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton announced in a press release yesterday. The mail depot, she said, will be relocating to the Franklin D. Reeves Center at 14th and U streets. more ›

Despite the fact that the U.S. Postal Service will likely lose another $5 billion in 2012, any plans to shut down post offices will be met with a fight -- especially by members of Congress. Locally, D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton is claiming some wins. more ›

If you thought that the U.S. Postal Service was done making cuts to its brick-and-mortar operations, well, you were mistaken: word comes today that the USPS is now considering shutting down around ten percent of its retail outlets nationwide. more ›

Yesterday, the United States Postal Service announced that next year's batch of collectible Forever stamps would feature a very Washingtonian scene -- a rendering of the cherry blossom trees in full bloom. more ›

The U.S. Postal Service will reportedly start delivering mail addressed to "Tysons Corner, VA" in the 22102 and 22182 zip codes this month. more ›

Ah, the holiday season -- the time of year when you make the people that keep your day-to-day life on the tracks aware that you appreciate their effort. Postal workers, sanitation employees, your paperboy or girl, a doorperson if you have one -- it's always a smart move to make sure that you keep those people happy. Some neighborhoods and apartment buildings in Washington even take up an envelope or jar and present their local servers with a collective gift, which kind of makes us feel all gooey inside. But if you were thinking about tipping with cash, you might want to think again. more ›

The U.S. Postal Service resumed mail delivery in the D.C. metro area on Monday, managing to deliver to approximately 80 percent of customers, USPS spokesperson Deborah Yackley said. Regular mail delivery was suspended on Saturday due to the snowstorm. more ›

We just got an update from the USPS on additional postal service disruptions in the D.C. area on Inauguration Day. On top of the zip codes and retail post office locations we already told you about, the 20036 zip code will also experience partial or non-delivery, and the following post office locations will also be closed: 800 K Street NW and 437 L’Enfant Plaza SW. Remember also that there is no mail service on Monday, January 19, in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. more ›

Federal employees who work in the District of Columbia, Montgomery or Prince George's Counties in Maryland, Arlington or Fairfax Counties in Virginia, or the cities of Alexandria or Falls Church in Virginia, are entitled to take Inauguration Day, January 20, as a holiday. But what about the USPS? The quasi-governmental agency doesn't get to take the day off, but at the same time, Secret Service measures will prevent mail carriers from delivering mail in parts of the city. The Postal Service sent us a breakdown of how it's going to work:

The Postal Service will make every effort to provide retail and delivery service to customers on January 20; however, congestion and road closures in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area may prevent us from providing normal service. Blue collection boxes in the vicinity of Inauguration Day festivities may experience late or next day pick up if vehicular restrictions prohibit access and personnel are unable to retrieve mail from the receptacles. more ›

>> The United States Postal Service increased postage rates today. First class letters now cost $0.41 (first ounce) and $0.17 for each additional ounce. New rates and fees for all classes of mail went up today except Periodicals, which is delayed until July 15. You can apparently find a handy chart of all the new rates in a pdf here, though we're having a little trouble downloading it in Firefox. One more reason to... more ›

Sadly, the video the url printed on the boxes points to is a pretty unsatisfying teaser hyping the release of the stamps (and make sure you add "www" to the beginning -- leaving it off leads to a dead link). Not that anyone has accused George Lucas of being behind anything remotely satisfying in the last, oh, ten years or so. But we can still appreciate the fun in having these mailboxes around town. Have you seen anymore? more ›

FRIDAY: >> Baltimore's Fertile Ground return to 9:30 Club for a concert with collaborator Raheem DeVaughn called Let's Do It Again. Also singer Anthony David. 9 p.m., $22. >> Gallery Openings of Note: Maria Friberg opens her show, titled embedded, at Conner Contemporary, reception 6 to 8 p.m. That's embedded #4 at left. Also we checked out a preview of Colby Caldwell's new show, Small Game, at Hemphill Fine Arts on Wednesday, and definitely recommend... more ›

Deep in the incestuous (professionally speaking) world of indie rock, there is Rilo Kiley. Based out of Los Angeles, it isn’t that much of a surprise that the band was founded by two former child stars, Jenny Lewis of Troop Beverly Hills fame, and Blake Sennett, aka Salute Your Shorts’ Ronnie Pinksy, aka Joseph 'Joey the Rat' Epstein from Boy Meets World. More interesting is the number of popular side projects on which these... more ›

Barcelona, the sparkly new EP from Virginia’s Soft Complex transcends easy genre labeling. Containing three original tracks and their remixes, one could (and this one does) describe the disc as offering the best of Ben Gibbard. Ben who? Why Ben Gibbard, the force behind indie darlings The Postal Service and Death Cab for Cutie. Like the beloved Portland quartet, Soft Complex explores love, loss and lost love. Taking a quasi-literary apprach, the songs feel... more ›

You may recall a little fun we had back in March with a campaign to name the song "Come to Washington" by Lincoln Ross the city's unofficial anthem. To jog your memory a bit, we here repeat the song's first verse: more ›

Look, you guys all knew we were a hopeless bunch of indie kids. The discussion that began on Tuesday has been decided by a vote (several actually) of our readers, and while the choice may strike some as bittersweet, we will ultimately play the anthem we have, and not the one we might want or wish to have at a later time. Congratulations to The Postal Service, whose song, "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight," is the only official Washington anthem DCist will ever recognize. more ›

"The District Sleeps Alone Tonight," by the Postal Service. more ›

So, here's the story so far: yesterday we posted about a campaign to name Lincoln Ross' "Come to Washington" the official anthem of the District. Many commenters chimed in with other options, and it was suggested that we take a vote. So we did (current results are above). And then other people kept chiming in. Here, then, is what we're going to do. Below are additional suggestions that have been made. We're going to... more ›

Good morning, Washington. The bad news is that today looks like it'll be a little bit cloudy. The good news is that as of 8 a.m., WMATA reports no Metro service alerts. The weekend promises just the opposite: Saturday and Sunday's weather will be pleasant, but WMATA says that all five Metro tracks will be undergoing work. Add in the local disruptions that will be caused by Sunday's Marine Corps Marathon, and you've got some... more ›

We here at DCist go to a lot of concerts. A trip to the 9:30 Club is usually less "event of the season" and more "Wednesday." Last night's Stars and Death Cab For Cutie show was a resounding exception. This is one we're not gonna forget anytime soon. Both bands put on nearly flawless shows that really raised the bar. more ›

Good morning, Washington. Today is forecast to be sunny with a high of 88 — sounds good to us, as this morning's news has put us in the mood for some fresh air. First, a worker at the Postal Service's Brentwood facility has been diagnosed with Legionnaire's Disease. And second, NIH employee Michelle Ledgister has been indicted for the anthrax threat she allegedly made to a Florida tax office. It hardly seems fair — D.C. air is bad enough already without the addition of headlines about deadly airborn diseases.

Herndon Council Votes On Day Laborer Site: Tuesday's planned vote on the controversial issue was delayed because of the large number of citizens who wished to speak about the issue. Last night everyone finished saying their peace, and the votes were cast. In a 5-2 vote, the site was approved. The council members said it was one of the most difficult votes they'd made, and the Post quotes member Harlon Reece as saying, "Here we sit, expecting this local government to resolve a national immigration problem that is out of our control."

VRE Delays Continue: Riders of the Fredericksburg line will continue to experience alterations in service due to track work by CSX. It's probably no consolation to inconvenienced passengers, but we can't resist pointing out that things could be worse.

Briefly Noted: WMATA to increase fees for parking during 'skins games... D.C. pool fees suspended thanks to a corporate sponsor... Mayor's office releases Spanish-language brochure... Grassroots group urges Williams to run for mayor again... Nats lose to Phillies, trail them by half a game...

Panda photo posted to DCist photos by Flickr user GreenBeanKillah