Paint

I’ve taken up painting. The thrill of buying art supplies is a completely new pleasure I never knew existed. More pleasurable than the painting itself, in some ways.

The act of painting so similar to the act of writing — in that both are equally painful.

I start off with an idea, full of excitement of hope…and then after I’ve begun, once the broad strokes are down on the page or the canvas, all I want to do is get it OVERWITH. Playing with brushstrokes is fun (above), and is much like blogging. No pressure, no definite destination to reach. Having an idea and attempting to execute it to perfection, however, is a different story.

This is the effect I was going for, but ended up not having the patience to get there. One click with photoshop, though, and I’m there. But I can’t hang it on my wall.

Indulgence

Me new trainers need some scuff.

Yazuzu

Middle Eastern food via 2001: A Space Oddysey in Adams Morgan.

Tabard Inn

Attention Austin, Texas

Do I have any readers there who might have a couch I can crash on for SXSW in March? Do I have any readers there at all?

Ayayay

Chipotle Nutrition Facts Serving Size: 1 Burrito Amount Per Serving Calories 1120 Calories from Fat 383 % DV* Total Fat 43g Saturated Fat 14g Cholesterol 114mg Sodium 2725mg Total Carbohydrate 122g Dietary Fiber 9.5g Sugars 3g Protein 59g Vitamin A 100% Vitamin C 4% Calcium 30% Iron 22%

Chipotle Nutrition Results provided by:
Chipotle Fan.com

Happy Holidays

#45

Separated At Birth?

The phenomenally sexy Clive Owen:

and the almost-as-sexy Daniel Craig aka James Bond:

Sending the Wrong Message

In case it’s not clear that is a snowman. And his feet are dangling about 6 inches off the ground.

#44

In case it is not obvious that is the White House in the background.

#43

D.C.’s  new crime map web site, where you can find out what crimes have occurred recently in a neighborhood near you.

#42 – New Crosswalks in D.C.

Photo via DCist.

#41

#29

#40 – Top of My Street

#39 – Ethnic Strip Mall Eats

Believe it or not, suburban strip malls are increasingly the place to find cheap, good ethnic food. Within a 5-minute drive of my house I have Afghan, Cuban, Peruvian, Brazilian, Indian, Greek, Italian, Vietnamese, Thai, tons of Mexican and tons of Chinese. All in strip malls, some nestled right in with the chains we have come to expect of suburbia, like Outback, Macaroni Grill, and Applebees. But most of them are in nowhere strip malls like the one pictured–cheap rent in a bad location with little traffic and a bunch of questionable stores for neighbors. It’s the suburban equivalent of a ghetto.

Not a good slice of pizza to be had for miles and miles, though.

UPDATE: A blog has been keeping track of the Washington area’s strip mall ethnic eats. Scroll down for his pics.
UPDATE 2: There’s actually an interesting Washington Post article on the subject as well.

…the good ethnic restaurants downtown are either trendy (think Rasika and Indique, both of which reinterpret Indian for upmarket American eaters), or cater to the wealthy international crowd (such as the Spanish Taberna del Alabardero near the International Monetary Fund and World Bank). For the best buys, though, you have to get in the car and head out to the sprawl. These days, the most authentic, spiciest food comes at cheap, ugly strip malls, far from the District and miles from the Metro.

#37 (Stolen)

On a drive to Arlington yesterday I saw these freaky giant spears sticking up in the air near the Pentagon (sans crane) and wondered what they were. I tried to get a pic but it’s rather dangerous to try to take pictures while driving 60 mph on a 6-lane highway, it seems. (I also tried to get pics of the huge blackhawk-type helicopter flying very low over the highway but all I managed to capture was sky. Welcome to Washington.) So I did a little research and found out that the spear formation is the new Air Force Memorial in Arlington, Va., which was just completed and there’s a dedication ceremony this weekend. I can’t say that when I first saw it I thought of the “Bomb Burst Formation”, which is what it’s supposed to look like:

But I do like it. It’s a really freaky sight from the highway.

#35

I promise to do better on the Picture A Day project.