I don’t think my daughter really knows what an ironing board is, as it rarely makes an appearance at my house. Luckily, design for the children are all fangle.

I appreciate fine tailoring as much as the next person, but I’d be hard-pressed to say it gives me infinite pleasure.

“Hustling Dust” would be a great band name.

I know this is the outlier of the bunch, but I had to include it. Ken’s come a long way since his early days, especially given the hair gel and capri pants. Robot Chicken really needs to add this to a future episode.

I don’t know how long our venerable toy store will maintain operations, but 90% of the stuff in there can be filed in the “detritus” section. Once it closes down, we should have a 24-hour rave in the space before a new tenant moves in. Enjoy it while it lasts!

Courtesy of The Google – Sushi Jin in less-fiery times.

Silver Spring Patch reports that no one was injured and the cause of the fire is still under investigation. When I first heard there was a fire on the block, I assumed that it was one of two things: (A) Someone set American Apparel on fire; or (2) Quiznos got out of hand with the toasted sub thing. Neither of those have turned out to be true.

As you may have noticed…
The holiday season took its toll on putting much time into the blog. Hoping to get things fired back up with more news from Silver Spring that’s fit to print. For Thayer Avenue residents, that includes talking about gems like this:

This makes sense, as our beloved Safeway provides a respite for homeless people, poorly-stocked shelves, and mediocre store-brand dairy products. Discuss amongst yourselves.

I know we have plenty of grocery stores with good meat counters. Snyder’s is one of the best, and it’s more affordable than Whole Foods (though WF has some good stuff of their own). But that’s just not cutting it any more. I want a guy who I can always rely on to be behind the counter. Someone who knows me by name and always has my favorite stuff behind the counter. Someone who I can call for half a pig and pick it up the next day. Someone who will take these charts and bring it down to a level I can easily understand and afford.

In short, I want a real butcher. A one-stop shop that has meat. And only meat. As much as I’m into barbecue, I’d fire up the grill even more if I had a resource like this. And if I could easily get my hands on a whole pig, I would buy one of these in a heartbeat. I would think an area this big – with such diverse, meat-eating cultures – would have enough people to support a dedicated butcher shop, and I’m sort of shocked we don’t have one.

If I’m missing something, please do tell. And while I know there are good halal and kosher butchers around, that’s not what I’m talking about (i.e., PORK). If I won the lottery tomorrow, I would quit my job and take an apprenticeship at a butcher in New York or something and do it myself. If there are any aspiring butchers out there thinking about taking the plunge, I can gather a small horde of carnivores to support you.

In other news…
Unfortunately it’s in Germantown, but it looks like Montgomery County is finally on tap to get a Wegmans grocery store. And while I continue to push for a Harris Teeter in the (will-it-ever-happen) Falkland Chase Development, a Wegmans a little closer to home would surpass (and perhaps eliminate) the Giant. And the crappy Thayer Avenue Safeway.

For those participants who just want to participate in the walk and leave afterwards:

• About 150 surface lot spaces are available at Lot 3 which is located on Fenton Street in between Thayer Avenue and Silver Spring Avenue.
• About 900 parking garage spaces are available at parking garage 5 located at the intersection of Bonifant Street and Dixon Avenue.
• About 100 parking garage spaces are available at parking garage 4 located on Fenton Street in between Silver Spring Avenue and Sligo Avenue

For those participants who want to stay in the Downtown Area on Ellsworth Drive and remain to the later hours 10:30 – midnight

• Wayne Avenue Garage located between Fenton Street and Georgia Avenue
• Townsquare Garage located on Ellsworth Drive between Cedar Street and Fenton Street
• (Be mindful that these garages are the most commonly used and that the parking garages may experience temporary closures)

For those participants who are attending the AFI movie screenings and want to remain late and grab a bite to eat at Tastee Diner before going home:  11:30 p.m. and beyond

• About 1300 parking spaces are available at parking garage 7 located on Cameron Street located between Fenwick Lane and Camerons Street by the Courthouse
• About 1300 parking spaces are available at parking garage 2 located on Cameron Street located between Georgia Avenue and Spring Street

In the event that someone locks their keys in their car, needs a jump start because of a dead car battery, or wants a buddy escort back to their car they can call our Redshirt Hotline until midnight.  The number is (240) 876-2911.

A map of the area with parking garages and surface lots is available on the Downtown Silver Spring web site.

Two easy ways to get yours:

1. Hop on over to the Official Site and order with credit card or PayPal. You can also contact us directly for special shipping, direct (local) pickup, etc. All the info is on the order page.
2. Buy one the night of the walk at AFI. Warning – the lines stand to be long.

Also, we’ll be liquidating our t-shirt inventory from last year, so if you’re one of the first couple dozen or so to order, we’ll throw in a t-shirt. Sizes and quantity are limited. Visit the site for more info.

Get ready!

Turns out there was a fire in the back of the building. And since there would have been plenty of oil for fuel, all they needed was a spark. This was the scene on Sunday afternoon as the owner/proprietor was forced to clear everything out.

I know there was always talk about this place being a front for a brothel or something, and I’m not a big believer in the power of magical oils, but it’s a shame it all had to end like that. No word yet on plans for reconstruction and/or reopening. For the time being, the place is unfit for occupancy.

• Increase fees for use to a $600 minimum. Roughly a 1200% increase from current costs paid by Fenton Street Market.
• No guarantee for Saturday use. Yup – you can get kicked out any time they want to kick you out.
• Prohibit food vendors. Goodbye crêpes.
• Heavy-handed county oversight. That means opening books at any time the county wants to see them, standardizing all promotion – way to suck the life out of something else, MoCo.

Of coruse, there are lots of other stipulations. And for jumping through all these hoops, you get access to ONE one-year contract. Beautiful. Way to screw up, Montgomery County. I can understand the issues behind some of the requirements, but this was a boneheaded way to eliminate something that really helped make Silver Spring a community. Are you pissed yet? Then go tell Montgomery County. And Ginny Gong. I can’t wait to see what ends up in her email box after this debacle.

And in other news…

Next Steps for the Purple Line

The federal government approved the detailed engineering for the purple line last week, paving the way for a two-year effort to get actual logistics and engineering down to brass tacks. I still think I have an easier way to handle this:

I proposed this simpler route about 4 years ago, as I only really plan on going to the west side of the county. This would cut costs immensely. Sadly, some people didn’t think it was funny. They even had a tent up at the Fresh Farm Market last weekend promoting it. Now if we could just get the naysayers to agree to the stop at Wayne and Dale, we’d be good.

If I’m lucky, my daughter will be able to use this in about 20 years.

Giving your 5¢

Beginning at the first of the year, the 5¢ bag tax will go into full effect in Montgomery County. Get ready for bitching and moaning. The only time I ask for a bag nowadays is whan I buy 40s of malt liquor. I think it’s worth the extra classiness. And if you think I’m kidding, you don’t know me.

Speed Cameras on Georgia Avenue

I wrote about the addition of speed cameras back in April when two tickets showed up in my mail at the same day. When I was driving home past night, it appears those two cameras are now gone. Not sure if the removal is temporary, but for the time being, please feel free to resume normal vehicular operation.

ADDENDUM:

Meant to include this with the other news, but just got a link sent to me by alert reader BMSTT:

Alleged Bus Masturbator Charge in Driver Stabbing (Silver Spring)

Discuss amongst yourselves.

It’s finally here, and it rocks. Screen-printed on heavy, archival-quality paper and measuring 19″ x 25″, these commemorative works of art will be available for sale at the AFI box office and online for $25 (plus S&H for online orders).

They’re being printed now, and as soon as we have a delivery date, we’ll announce it and set up a storefront for easy ordering. Quantities are limited, so be ready.

The Zombie Walk is ON

And bigger than ever. We’re still waiting on confirmation on street closures, potential vendors, and the imminent commemorative poster design (via El Jefe Design), but it’s shaping up to be another spectacular event. The walk route is basically the same as last year:

We’ll begin near Sligo and Georgia again, but we’re hoping to have additional space for much cooler stuff this year. We’ll wait to post that once it’s nailed down. Festivities begin about 8:00 PM with the actual walk starting at 8:45. Be sure and get there even earlier if you want any room at one of the local establishments. And while you’ve heard about this year’s movie selection (Dead Snow), AFI has also added another fantastic movie for a double feature. Dead Snow will start up at 9:45, and Shaun of the Dead will play immediately after at midnight. Tickets are already on sale at the AFI web site, so get them early. Both shows WILL sell out before the end of the walk.

For all the up-to-date details, check out the official Silver Spring Zombie Walk web site. Many more exciting things to be revealed in the coming days and weeks.

The Return of my Beloved ESSCA

Yes, boys and girls, it’s that time again. ESSCA just had its first meeting of the season on Monday night. For better or worse, I wasn’t there, having just returned from some extended time in warmer, sunnier climates. Tony Thompson of the U.S. Postal Service was scheduled to speak about the future of the Silver Spring post office (and the non-future of its current location). If anyone was there and stayed awake, please regale us with stories.

From here on out, meetings will be the third Monday of each month (except for January & February when it’s the fourth Monday due to holidays).

Also from the ESSCA listserv, the Department of Recreation is having a meeting tonight (Wednesday) from 7-9 PM at the Civic Building about the Thanksgiving Day parade. Lots of Fenton Street businesses got hosed when they changed the parade route last year to focus on the downtown area, and they’re keeping the same route this year. There will, no doubt, be lots of bitching and moaning and gnashing of teeth.

(Photo courtesy of Lukmire and Associates)

Let that be a lesson to all of you. Hope you’re all okay.

UPDATE: For the record, this appears to the only damage sustained in my office:

Luckily, no peas were harmed or lost.