The official DCist online shop is now open for business! You know all the profits go to charity, right? more ›

If you missed it yesterday, we opened up voting in a little contest to help design a DCist t-shirt and choose a charity that will benefit from the sales. more ›

DCist t-shirts at last, with profits going to charity! The logo appears on the front, with optional slogan or graphic on the back. Vote for your favorite slogans and charity now. more ›

Nightlife impresario Joe Englert may already own a good chunk of the bars on H Street NE, but he's still working to brand an area that has about as many identities as it does places to get a beer. more ›

At least one local entrepreneur is trying to make some money off of this weekend's record snow fall. A commemorative "I survived Snowmaggedon '10" T-shirt can be yours for only $24! more ›

We're highlighting odd or interesting pieces of pop culture we find popping up around Pope Benedict XVI's visit to D.C. and New York this week. more ›

We're highlighting odd or interesting pieces of pop culture we find popping up around Pope Benedict XVI's visit to D.C. and New York this week. more ›

To say D.C. is not known for its fashion sense is an understatement. The people in our fine city get slammed again and again for their inability to dress themselves in anything other than career wear. Luckily this holiday shopping season offers a little incentive in the form of trunk shows for those of us who'd like to look better and help us score some spiffy new duds. As gifts, of course. more ›

Well, we are reaching the end of the season. The Nationals stand two games away from their stated, and admittedly pathetic, goal of 72 wins -- one better than last year. They have 5 games remaining, two against the Mets and three against the Phillies, all on the road. Given that the Nats are 30-46 on the road this year, these last two wins should be tough. That said, the Mets seem desperate to see the Phillies in the playoffs this year, and the Nats have won three of the last four against Queens' finest, including last night's 13-4 win. Lets face it, anytime your team gives up a home run to Ryan Langerhans you know you are in trouble. more ›

FRIDAY: >> Octogenarian fiddler Joe Thompson (at right), said to be the last black traditional string band player, plays a free show at The Kennedy Center's The Millennium Stage with fellow folk musicians Wayne Martin on fiddle and Bob Carlin, a clawhammer style banjoist. 6 p.m. >> Space rockers The Gulf sold out their D.C. show in April, and are coming back to play at the Red and the Black with the Joonies, Twin Earth,... more ›

When the Drive-by Truckers rolled into the 9:30 Club on July 15, 2006, it was the closest I’ve ever come to actually losing consciousness at a rock show. The gig was beyond sold-out, more vacuum-packed with sweaty bodies than any other supposedly sold-out 9:30 show I can remember. On top of that, the show fell on one of those spongy, airless summer nights that that can make the period between Independence Day and Labor... more ›

>> Larry Flynt has 30 solid leads on potential congressional sex scandals, and was especially shocked to learn something juicy about a yet unnamed senator. [CNN] >> Via Matt Yglesias, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports the latest hilarity in the Duke Cunningham saga: First, he's snitching to the FBI, so look out, Brent Wilkes. Second, he apparently was miffed that Wilkes got the “younger and cuter” of the prostitutes Wilkes hired for them on... more ›

Near sunset on a Tuesday in the middle of May, Lana Labermeier and her husband Stuart Davenport were sitting outside their then-unfinished new Bloomingdale coffee shop, Big Bear Cafe, enjoying a hard earned cold beer after a long day of landscaping work. Unfortunately, their neighbors could hardly let them rest. "When are you gonna be open?" shouted one man from his car. "Are you hiring?" asked another. "What's this going to be?" "Aren't you... more ›

There have been many great performers in Music Land, for example Bono, Freddie Mercury, and Madonna, just to name a few. There are also many folks who go out of their way to exude cool via ironic t-shirts purchased at Urban Outfitters and meticulously unkempt hair. It’s one thing to dance with a pretty girl in the audience, but how many rock stars put a guitar in her hands and then proceed to wrap their... more ›

The fire that gutted Eastern Market this week left the historic Capitol Hill marketplace facing an estimated $20 to $30 million in repairs. Undaunted, this Sunday vendors will set up shop for the weekly flea market, and the streets surrounding the building will play host to the 44th annual Market Day festival. more ›

>> D.C. United host rivals New England in a game nationally televised on ESPN2. Posters and t-shirts await the first 10,000 and 3,000 entrants, respectively. Be sure to get there early for food, drink, and some party rock courtesy of Love Seed Mama Jump in Lot 8. [RFK Stadium (tickets still available), 7 p.m. kickoff; pregame festivities at 5:30 p.m.] >> Don't forget the Onion's D.C. kickoff party with Georgie James, Neil Hamburger, Aziz... more ›

We had been looking forward to seeing Swedish indie darlings Peter Bjorn and John for some time, but as sometimes happen with indie darlings, Monday's sold out 9:30 Club show underwhelmed. The trio, who have been all over Pitchfork and the blogs, play understated, finely crafted 60s-ish pop. They've been together since 1999, but their third album, 2006's "Writer's Block," catapulted them to indie stardom, mainly due to the single "Young Folks." The rest of... more ›

I was taken aback by an email I received this morning, alerting me to a newly-created hoax website that offers T-shirts, coffee mugs, and buttons inscribed with a simple Metro logo and the phrase "Metrobus Kills." This is not funny, and I will not post a link to the site. However, it puts a very fine point on a problem that has been simmering for a dangerously long time. This past Saturday, Metrobus claimed... more ›

FRIDAY: >>Do you like Hall and Oates and Haddaway? Who doesn't? The Black Cat is hosting Crap, a dance night of bad music on purpose. We advise loosening your Macarena muscles and preparing your ears for "singers" like Don Johnson, Eddie Murphy, and Bruce Willis. 10 pm, free. SATURDAY: >>There are more art openings than we can shake a sculpture at today, so check out our Arts Agenda for a rundown. >>Anything called "Underwear Party"... more ›

I'm a Black-Cat-or-smaller, low-spectacle rock band kind of Girl. Venturing to the Verizon Center to see a pop sensation perform to thousands of fans last Friday definitely took me out of my element. But bring together I don't know how many dancers, four drum kits, three keytars, two turntables and one man by the name of Timberlake on an unbelievably tricked-out stage in the middle of the floor and, well, I can find plenty... more ›

In a few short weeks, your fearless editor will finally be attending her very first Wizards game, and I'm getting more excited by the day. I've reportedly got a great seat (thanks, Matt!), the Wizards are having a fantastic season, and the game in question will find the boys facing down the Los Angeles Lakers -- a team I would be hard-pressed to despise more. Awesome. So of course, in preparation for the big day,... more ›

Last year, we gave you a gift guide that was local, local, local. We suggested books, art, music and D.C.-specific creations for you to put on your wish list and give to your loved ones for the holiday season. Well, though there are only five days till Christmas this time around, we thought we'd throw it out there again anyway for those of you who, like us, have procrastinated on the gift-giving, but still want to hand out something meaningful. (Do still check out last year's guide; a lot of the suggestions still pertain and are still available.) more ›

What does the term "garage rock" conjure up for you? Perhaps it's the wave of young upstarts in the 1960s who comprise the genre's original incarnation. The Wailers, The Pretty Things, and countless other groups of rebellious youngsters making primitive, minimally-produced noise in American suburbia. These bands became a-dime-a-dozen, and would sparkle and fade -- or not sparkle at all -- before dying out. If they were lucky, they racked up a small fanbase. And if their fans were lucky, the bands would leave one or two bootleg recordings before "creative differences" or sheer apathy led to their hasty demise. more ›

There's more to this weekend than axe-wielding haunted house props and bars full of Sexy Nurses sexily vomiting from too many Jäger bombs. Those of you who feel pained at the thought of breaking out the zombie costume again have a wealth of options to satiate your creative side without resorting to make-up that'll make you break out like a 15 year-old for the next month. Now that I've completely earned the ire of half my fellow, but inexplicibly pro-Halloween DCist staffers, let's get to the agenda. Jeans and t-shirts encouraged at all events. more ›

Good morning, Washington, and welcome to another beautiful fall day. Let's start it with a question for the group — which of the following better exemplifies the proud tradition of local news: WTTG's repeated pre-commercial teases last night warning that "this teddy bear is responsible for the deaths of thousands"? Or this snippet of audio from The Simpsons? Richmond Nixes Transportation Funding: The Virginia Legislature's special session is off to an unproductive start, as the Post reports. The session was called with one purpose: to figure out a means of funding a solution to Northern Virginia's traffic woes. But the Republican-controlled House is staunchly opposed to levying new taxes; Tuesday's decisive vote signalled an unwillingness to compromise. Looks like the governor's alleged optimism may not have been justified. Capitol Security Bosses Were On Leave During Breach: WUSA brings word that a number of top Capitol Police officials were taking lengthy breaks from the job last week, when an armed gunman broke through security and wandered the Capitol until being subdued by civilians. The officials were using up comp time that a recent policy change had forced them to utilize or forfeit. There doesn't seem to be a clear indication that a lack of oversight enabled the security breach — but it sure doesn't look good. BREAKING! Kids These Days Are Out Of Control!: The Post profiles an alarming new development: area students' fondness for t-shirts with provocative slogans printed on them. Astoundingly, the kids are somehow gaming the system, using double entendres and subtle turns of phrase to stymy school administrators' enforcement efforts. It's almost like they're deliberately trying to alarm their elders! More on this important story as it develops. Briefly Noted: D.C. charter schools' poor performance matches that of public schools... Wilson Bridge begins new life as Wilson Reef... Maryland MVA employee faces charges of selling fake IDs... Nats literally off-track... Va. receives millions in new homeland security grants... Md. senatorial race becomes suddenly puppy-centric... Suspect arrested for 15 year-old's murder... This Day In DCist: One year ago we covered an anti-war march and visited Colorado Kitchen. Two years ago we were spotting Segways. Image posted to DCist Photos by Flickr user iceman882 more ›

TUESDAY Tired of running into the virtual junta of returned Peace Corps volunteers living in our fair city and being forced to listen to story upon story about how working in an office every day will just never be as fulfilling as digging that well in Cameroon? Then this event is not for you. Former Peace Corps volunteers read from and sign A Life Inspired: Tales of Peace Corps Service. Peace Corps, 111 20th... more ›

The Nats did a nice thing for 15,000 of their closest friends on Sunday afternoon. After soundly defeating the Phillies, 6-0, on a day perfectly suited to the game of baseball (75 degrees, cool breeze, sunshine), the team had a Picnic at the Park for season ticket holders. Now I have not purchased season tickets, but I was with a friend who did, and so I went along for the ride. This sort of mass... more ›

Our sage grandfather once told us that you've got three options when confronted with a problem. You can live with it, fix it, or avoid it. Our problem is the weekend onslaught of tourists. With the spring luring out-of-towners to the District in 17-year-cicada-like droves, we're simply not in the mood to deal with the super-obese family sporting matching "F.B.I. Witness Protection Program" T-shirts, blocking the left side of the Metro escalator, and imprudently buying $3 bottles of tap water from the huckster vendor outside of the Air & Space Museum. Accordingly, we apply Pop-Pop's time-tested rule and select the "avoid it" option. And by that, we mean that we skip town for some wine-tasting. more ›

By DCist contributor Campbell Roth. more ›

In the spirit of DCist feature Three Stars (and we heart the music section), we're launching Design Capital, which will highlight emerging local designers. Today we start with Morgan Hungerford of Muss Line, a designer who’s never met a vintage piece she couldn’t tear apart and sew back together into something infinitely cooler. Meet Muss Line. Designer Morgan Hungerford's indie clothing line (she got the name from a children's book) is a mix of hand-screened... more ›