I complained to Metro once when my train was offloaded at Arlington Cemetery (back a few months ago when there were all those rail fires) and we were all left to find our ways home from a station with no buses or taxis -- when they could have easily offloaded us at Rosslyn instead. They sent me a free ride ticket for my troubles. It's a little piece of paper -- not a farecard. To use it, you have to show it to the station manager when you enter, so he/she can open the gate for you. Then when you get to your destination, you have to get the station manager to let you out. So far I haven't found myself with an extra 10 minutes in the morning to deal with this "gift." Leave it to Metro to make a free ride much more complicated than it needs to be -- ever heard of a $1.35 farecard, Metro? more ›

Fans of Petworth bar Temperance Hall better get up there for their Sazerac cocktails as soon as possible—the bar is on its way out. Don't throw out your arms in plaintive questions to the heavens yet, though. While the bar will go, a bar will stay; the property has been sold to the folks behind Columbia Heights' The Wonderland Ballroom. Following a tip from Prince of Petworth, we caught the Wonderland owners, Matthew McGovern... more ›

"Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled (two-thirds of each House concurring therein), That the following article is hereby proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when ratified by conventions of three-fourths of the several States: "Article – Section 1. The eighteenth article of amendment to the... more ›

“Before there was Harlem, there was U Street,” and before there was national Prohibition, there was the Sheppard Act. Passed by a Congress intent on making the District of Columbia a beacon of temperance for the saloon-soaked nation, the Sheppard Act closed Washington’s four breweries and nearly three hundred licensed liquor establishments on November 1, 1917—two years before it outlawed the sale of alcohol in the rest of the country. Congressman Morris Sheppard successfully had... more ›

By now it is Chamber of Commerce cliché to write of "U Street’s revitalization." Most residents have read the historical postings along U Street NW and know, by way of slogan at least, that "before Harlem, there was U Street." At the height of Washington’s segregated past, a few decades after segregation was imposed by Congress against the will of a vocal many white and black District residents, U Street NW was the city’s celebrated... more ›

The world's most popular sporting event, soccer's World Cup, gets underway tomorrow in Germany. Unlike 2002 when matches took place in the wee hours, this year's start from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Eastern time, meaning it's a lot easier to hit a bar or two and watch a game. Some DC area bars and restaurants are opening early for the fans, including Pour House on Capitol Hill, Lucky Bar in Dupont, and Fado... more ›