Still Life With Robin: Bin Disappointed

by Peggy Robin

We’ve been awaiting delivery of our new city-supplied trash and recycling bins for weeks, but snowstorm after snowstorm has delayed their arrival. But today was the day! I was so looking forward to this, as my old Supercan had a broken latch -- it’s been that way for years. Using some stiff coated wire and a bit of DIY ingenuity, I rigged up my own lid-latch, which has worked well enough over the years to keep the racoons out…but it’s ugly. Yes, I know it’s kind of an oddball thing to care about, but I am tired of having a Supercan with a wired-attached lid sitting in front of my house on trash pickup days. I wanted one of those new, bigger, better Supercans that DPW had been promising us for weeks but had been unable to deliver due to round after round of relentless snow.

And now it’s here….and the lid doesn’t latch. It’s not that the latch doesn’t work, it’s that it’s not there at all. In a habitat filled with garbage-devouring animals well-versed in the various methods of opening any accessible source of human food, who are not only persistent, but ingenious, and capable of great teamwork and creativity, DPW has inexplicably settled upon a model that practically scream to racoons, “Enter Here - It’s a giant storage pod of delicacies!” As if the lack of a locking mechanism were not enough, the LID DOESN”T EVEN LIE FLAT. It’s cocked open at an inviting angle.

The minute the bin was off the truck, and I saw the lid askew, I ran after the delivery crew to tell them I’d been given a model with an obvious defect. “Look, the lid on this one doesn’t close all the way. I need another one,” I called after the departing Supercan men. One of the crew came back and inspected the lid. “It’s fine,” he pronounced. “They’re all that way on the truck. It will straighten itself out after a while.” Unless I misunderstand the way warped, heavy-duty plastic behaves over time, I don’t see that happening. What I do see happening is a trip to the hardware store, where I will buy some heavy-duty coated wire, and then I will drill a couple of wire-sized holes in the lid, and thread the wire through the holes, and  twist the wire into a loop that can catch on something on the front of the can, creating a hook-and-eye-like catch that even the highest-IQ raccoon won’t be able to uncouple.

Now I know someone is bound to suggest that I get hold of a couple of nice, big, heavy bricks and just set them down on top of the lid, problem solved. But knocking bricks off the top of a trashcan is child’s play for the racoons of Cleveland Park. So it’s back to the wire for the brand-new bin, ugly or not....

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Still Life With Robin is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.

Get Out! - The Events Column

Photo by Thomas S. Mann

We wanted to share some events and activities that list members might be interested in. Have a great weekend -- and week beyond, too. If you know of an event that the 14,000+ members of the Cleveland Park Listserv should know about, email us at events @ fastmail.us.

Bill Adler and Peggy Robin
Publishers, Cleveland Park Listserv
www.cleveland-park.com


Thursday, March 27 from 6:30 - 8 PM, How Washingtonians Talk - Humanitini Happy Hour Event, sponsored by the Humanities Council of Washington. Washington Post columnist Clinton Yates will moderate a panel on the language styles of Washingtonians. Linguistics experts Natalie Schilling and Minnie Annan will report on the results of their research into the speech patterns of Washington, DC residents. Free, but reservations suggested at http://bit.ly/1hxqUF9. At The Couple, 3415 11th St NW.

Saturday, March 29 from 8 AM - 3 PM, United Methodist Women's Book Sale. Browse through gently used fiction, nonfiction, children’s books, DVDs, and CDs. Enjoy coffee and baked goods while you browse. A children's reading nook will have story time from 10 - 11:30 AM. At Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church, 3401 Nebraska Ave NW, at New Mexico. All proceeds benefit global missions that support women and children.

Saturday, March 29, 10 AM - 3 PM, Tree Fest at Tudor Place.This free event marks the planting of a white oak in the North Garden to replace the towering sentinel lost last year. The festival includes an artisanal crafts market, guided landscape tours, information and tips from local environmental organizations, and tree-focused crafts, games, and storytelling for children. Tudor Place is at 1644 31st Street NW, 202.965.0400, https://www.tudorplace.org/article/uncategorized/tree-fest-info/.

Saturday, March 29 at 10:30 AM, Cherry Blossom Tea Party Storytime at the Cleveland Park Library. Children and parents are invited to a special Tea Party Story Time to celebrate the Cherry Blossom Festival. We will serve tea and Miss Patty will be reading cherry blossom- and spring-themed books and introducing some new springtime songs.Free. The library is at 3310 Connecticut Avenue NW, http://dclibrary.org/node/40964

Sunday March 30 at 5 PM Concert by Soprano Alessandra Marc and Issachah Savage accompanied by Pianist Francis Conlon, performing Songs, Operatic Scenes and Spirituals. Free. Voluntary contributions will benefit the Hairi Relief Charities. At the Church of the Annunciation, 3810 Massachusetts Avenue NW, one block west of Wisconsin Ave.

Monday, March 31 from dusk to 11 PM, Virtual Cherry Blossoms at the Tidal Basin. As the cherry blossoms are predicted to bloom late this year (April 8-12, when for the past 21 years the average has been March 31, the National Park Service has arranged a special event to bring the colorful floral spectacle to us on time through the use of CGI technology. “Green screens” will be placed behind the trees along the walkways encircling the Tidal Basin, and from computer-outfitted barges afloat in the center of the Tidal Basin, images of the trees in full bloom will be projected onto the screens, delivering a virtual explosion of blossoms before our eyes. Cost to the taxpayers: $0, as this triumph of computer-generated artistry is happening only in our imaginations. We wish it were real, but alas, it is the weekly fake event.

Tuesday, April 1 from 6 - 8 PM, Exclusive one-night art show, “An American Story” - the kick-off event to the 75th Anniversary Celebration.of the Lisner-Louise-Dickson-Hurt Home. Please RSVP by March 28th to dlyle @ lldhhome.org. The LLDH Home is located at 5425 Western Avenue, NW, www.lldhhome.org. For more about the 75th Anniversary Gala, visit: http://www.lldhhome.org/75th_anniversary_gala.html

Tuesday, April 1 from 7 - 8 PM, Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein: A community conversation. American University’s Books That Shaped America Series continues on April 1 with a community dialogue on the first science fiction novel to become a bestseller. Patrick Thaddeus Jackson, Assoc. Dean for Undergraduate Education, SIS, leads the discussion. Personnel from the new Museum of Science Fiction (MOSF) will also be in attendance. This event is free and open to all members of the Washington, DC community. Attendees are encouraged—but not required—to have read the book. Light refreshments will be served. No RSVP necessary. In the Abramson Family Founders Room at the School of International Service, American University, 4400 Massachusetts Avenue NW. For more info go to: www.american.edu/spexs/btsa.

Thursday, April 3 at 6 PM, Tudor Nights: Japonisme, Inspiring Western Tastes. To celebrate the return of the Japanese cherry blossoms, Tudor House is hosting an event featuring Asian-inspired appetizers, wine and other beverages including the evening’s signature cocktail, and an exploration of the mansion’s reception rooms by evening light. Best of all, enjoy an insider’s close-up with objects from the collection that reflect the late 19th-century fascination with Japonisme. For ages 21+. Tickets: $20 for non-members; free for members - go to: http://bit.ly/1iDREXO.

Thursday, April 10, 2014 from 12 noon - 2 PM, From Cargo to Vase: Floral Imports 101. Step into spring at this skill building luncheon event hosted by WIIT (Women in International Trade) where you’ll learn from Caroline Feitel of the Embassy of the Netherlands about the scope and variety of floral imports from the Netherlands. Take a walk through the Aalsmeer flower auction, learn how you can decorate your office and home with tulips and daffodils, and get tips from local floral designers. A few lucky attendees will be able to leave with one of the floral arrangements demonstrated. Sandwich luncheon served. At Amgen, Inc., 601 13th Street NW, Suite 1200. WIIT Members: $25, Non-Members: $50; Advance registration required - visit: http://wiit.org/upcomingevents/?ee=28

Still Life With Robin: Popping Up in Cleveland Park

Photo courtesy of Michael Hartman, Thos. E. Clark Inc.

by Peggy Robin

Pasteria Floriana has popped up in the former Pulpo Restaurant space in Cleveland Park, but just until March 27. (The Washington Post has the story at http://wapo.st/1giGSS9). The “pop-up” restaurant is a recent trend -- a little weird but I like it. The advantages are obvious:

• It make good use the space of a recently departed restaurant, rental space that might otherwise sit vacant and deteriorating until a long-term tenant can be found.
• It allows a restaurant owner to try out a new concept without investing --and risking-- too much time, money, and energy.
• It give food critics, and adventurous foodies, and even ordinary occasional restaurant-goers some new tastes to sample, with the promise of the fully realized incarnation of the new restaurant turning up at some point in the not-too-distant future.

What’s not to like? Even if the pop-up’s offerings are less than stellar, there’s opportunity for the dishes to be re-worked, the service to be smartened up, the setting to be redesigned.

In the short space of a few months between the demise of Pulpo, at 3407 Connecticut Avenue, there have actually been two pop-ups. Soon after Pulpo’s closing, there was the Hawaiian restaurant Hula Girl, a product of the owners of the Hula Girl food trucks (see http://bit.ly/1iP7Vd80) which featured Teriyaki tofu steaks, macaroni salads, dishes made with Spam and other additives favored in the 50th state but rarely part of mainland chef’s repertoire. So you might say that Pasteria Floriana is the pop-up after the pop-up.

Or you could count it as the third pop-up in that space, taking into consideration of the fact that prior to Pulpo, there was Bandolero, a “modern Mexican” pop-up by celebrity chef Mike Isabella. (Flashy Bandolero was always somewhat out-of-place in poky old Cleveland Park; it’s much better suited to the hustling-bustling part of M Street in Georgetown where it found its true home. See http://www.yelp.com/biz/bandolero-washington-2  to get a sense of its decibel level, as well at its cuisine.)

What will come next for 3407 Connecticut? An international barbecue place (as suggested in the Washington Post article)? Or a Peruvian chicken restaurant (as reported in the Prince of Petworth blog -http://bit.ly/1bLTTZ2)? I’m in suspense … but glad to know, due to the pop-up trend these days, that if the new restaurant doesn’t work out for whatever reasons, that the space won’t sit empty long. Another pop-up may come along with a new concept, more surprises, more innovation. In any event, I don’t think we’ll ever go back to fast-food-boom times of the ‘80s and ‘90s, when that space was a McDonald’s. (At least I hope that trend is gone for good.)

And now for a longer walk down Memory Lane: Here’s a link to a photo of what was the original use of 3407 Connecticut Avenue: The Thomas E. Clark Plumbing Showroom http://bit.ly/1ldeedg. Pretty snazzy!

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Still Life With Robin is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and All Life Is Local on Saturdays.

Get Out! The Events Column

Photo by Bill Adler

We wanted to share some events and activities that list members might be interested in. Have a great weekend -- and week beyond, too. If you know of an event that the 13,000+ members of the Cleveland Park Listserv should know about, email us at events @ fastmail.us.

Bill Adler and Peggy Robin
Publishers, Cleveland Park Listserv
www.cleveland-park.com 


Thursday, March 20 from 7 - 8:30 PM Forum for Candidates in Contested April 1st Primary for Mayor, with guest moderator Mark Plotkin - Note update on the location! The April 1 Mayoral primary is heating up and the demand for forum attendance is strong. To that end, the CPCA has changed the forum’s location. Our forum will begin promptly at 7 PM in the meeting room of John Eaton Elementary School, Lowell & 34th St NW. The CPCA will hold its regular monthly business meeting prior to the forum, starting at 6:30 PM. Refreshments will be served. More info: http://www.cpcadc.org/meetings/march-candidates-forum/. Free. 

Thursday, March 20 from 7 - 9 PM, At-Large Council Candidates Forum, sponsored by the Ward 3 Democratic Committee, at the Methodist Home at 4901 Connecticut Ave. NW. All Democratic candidates that will appear on the April 1st Democratic Primary ballot have confirmed their attendance. In alphabetical order, they are Nate Bennett-Fleming, Anita Bonds, Pedro Rubio, and John Settles. The forum will be moderated by Dorothy Brizill, Executive Director of DC Watch. For more information see www.ward3democrats.com.

Thursday, March 20 from 6:30 - 11:30 PM Forum for Candidates in the 2018 Mayor’s Race. If you have already made up your mind about the race for Mayor in 2014, then it’s high time to start thinking about who to get
behind in 2018. While we don’t have the names of announced candidates this early, the forum will feature “open-mic night” style speeches by anyone and everyone in the audience who would like to be considered to lead the District of Columbia less than five years from now. There’s no candidate too fringe-y for this event, because it is most assuredly the week’s fake event. At the new UDC Student Center --which hasn’t been built yet but probably will become reality sometime in the next 4 years (not that it matters for a fake event).

Friday, March 21 and Saturday, March 22, 10 am - 4 pm both days, and Sunday, March 23, 1 - 4 pm, the Friends of Palisades Library will hold its huge Spring Used Book Sale. Thousands of books are for sale at low
prices. Most books are $1 each; $10 per bag on Saturday and Sunday, except children’s books, 50 cents -- $1. A new feature of this sale will be a silent auction of specially priced, more valuable books: first edition, out-of-print, unique, and hard-to-find volumes. The downstairs permanent Sale Room will be open during the sale, don’t forget to stop by Bargain Alley (downstairs near rear door) where all books are 25 cents each or $2 per bag. The Library is located at 4901 V Street NW, corner of MacArthur Blvd & V St. NW. 

Saturday, March 22 and Sunday, March 23, 1 - 3 PM both days, Book Signing by Stephen R. Brown, author of DC Photo Book: An Insiders View of Washington, DC. Brown’s dynamic images capturing DC springtime and cherry blossoms have appeared in Smithsonian, Time, Fortune, The New York Times, National Geographic Books, Life and Newsweek. His photographs have been exhibited in solo shows throughout the world. Most notably, they were featured in “Indelible Images: 100 Years of War Photography” and “Odyssey: 100 Years of NGS Photography,” both of which were initiated at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Free. Location: The
International Spy Museum, 800 F Street, NW. To order the book go to: http://amzn.to/1cC0Cp7 For more info see: http://stephenbrownstudio.com/dc-photo-book-spy-museum/ 

Saturday, March 22 10 AM - 12 PM, St. Elizabeths West Campus Walking Tour. Join the DC Preservation League in partnership with the General Services Administration for a walking tour of the historic west campus
of St. Elizabeths Hospital, a National Historic Landmark. Tours of St. Elizabeths campus are being offered on a limited basis depending on the course of construction activity. Space is limited and reservations are
required. Because of security issues walk-ons will not be permitted on the tour. More info at:
http://www.dcpreservation.org/event/st-elizabeths-west-campus-walking-tour-6/  

Saturday March 22 at Law Day Open House, 10 am to 2:30 pm at UDC Law School. Congressman John Conyers will be on hand to speak to prospective students and will also speak at the subsequent public forum entitled, “Job Creation to Address Income Inequality and Reinvigorate Our Communities.” Law Day will feature presentations by (and opportunity to ask questions of) staff, faculty, students and alumni as well as a simulated law class. And lunch is included! To register go to http://www.law.udc.edu/event/LawDaySpring14. To register for the Jobs Forum that follows, go to http://www.law.udc.edu/event/JOBS. At UDC School of Law at 4340 Connecticut Ave. NW, 5th Floor.

Saturday, March 22 at 1 PM, Levine Music presents the Young Artist Contest and Jam Session, part of the 2014 Washington Women in Jazz Festival. Free for Levine students, $10 for the general public. At Lang
Recital Hall, Levine School of Music, 2801 Upton St NW. To reserve go to: http://www.levineschool.org/performance/events-calendar/event/660 

Sunday March 23 at 3 PM, Concert by Pianist Wen-Yin Chan. Works include Bach's Partita #4 and Beethoven's "Appassionata” Sonata, plus three lovely waltzes by Chopin (op. 34). The concert will be followed by a reception and the opening of a show of art by local artist and singer Jennifer Rutherford. Location: Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church is at 3401 Nebraska Avenue NW, corner of New Mexico. Free; a free-will offering at the concert will go entirely to the pianist. Ample free parking available. 

Tuesday, March 25 at 12:15 PM, US Holocaust Memorial Museum volunteer Jacqueline Birn speaks about her childhood in France during World War II. Born in Paris, France, to Dutch Jewish parents, Jacqueline’s early childhood was normal. Everything changed when Germany invaded France. She and her family fled for the Vichy-controlled southern region of France. In late 1944, after Paris was liberated, they returned to Paris
and resumed life. They learned that more than 200 members of their extended Dutch family had been deported and murdered in Sobibor and Auschwitz. In 2007, Jacqueline Birn retired from the Foreign Service Institute and began writing her memoir, A Dimanche Prochain: A Memoir of Survival in World War II France. Free. At Temple Baptist Church, 3850 Nebraska Avenue NW.

Wednesday March 26 at 2 PM, Book discussion: Irish author Colm Toibin’s novel Brooklyn is the subject of the Tenley-Friendship Library’s book book group. Free. The library is located at 4450 Wisconsin Avenue NW.

Still Life With Robin: Between Now and Springtime

Photo by Thomas Wolf (via Wikimedia Commons)

by Peggy Robin

These first two weeks of March have been long, cold, and excessively wintry, and while the weather has finally turned fine today, it looks like we’re in for another blast of the nasty stuff on Monday -- seehttp://wapo.st/1fyYb1m (“Significant Snow Risk on Monday”).  All I have to say is NOOOOOOOOOOO!

Fortunately, spring is officially around the corner, arriving with the vernal equinox in 5 more days, on Thursday, March 20 (see http://www.cute-calendar.com/event/first-day-of-spring/6383-northern-hemisphere.html).

To help us make it through the final slog to spring, I thought I would name the days of celebration or commemoration between now and then. I’m actually starting with yesterday, March 14, because it’s one of my favorites --Pi Day -- and it’s never too late to start memorizing the endless decimals of pi. You can do this until the end of time….

March 14. Pi Day. Why? Because it’s 3.14, of course! If you want to be precise about it (not really possible with pi, because it’s an irrational number), Pi Day begins on March 14 at 1:59 and 26 seconds in the wee hours of the morning. Why not at 1:59 PM? Because in scientifically correct style of astronomical timekeeping, there’s no AM and PM; the 24 hour clock is used and 1:59 in the afternoon is rendered 13:59:26 -- and that’s not pi. For more about Pi Day, see http://www.piday.org/ or http://bit.ly/1oTs3e2.

March 15. It’s the Ides of March, which, despite today’s disarmingly lovely weather, is a day of bad tidings and treachery. It’s a day you might want to stay in bed, especially if you’ve been previously warned by a soothsayer, and absolutely, if you’ve got a bunch of seething, plotting underlings that you just can’t trust. See:http://bit.ly/1fFQpYc.

March 16 is Freedom of Information Day (James Madison’s Birthday). This date is commemorated with events that promote open government and public access to information, as well as protection of our Constitutional liberties. See: http://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/freedom-of-information-day/  andhttp://www.ala.org/advocacy/advleg/federallegislation/govinfo/opengov/freedomofinfo.

March 17. St. Patrick’s Day! http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/common/st-patrick-day. But you didn’t need me to tell you that, or how to celebrate it.

March 18: Sparky the Firedog’s Birthday, a/k/a Fire Safety Day. Observe this day by changing the batteries in all your smoke detectors. See: http://www.sparky.org/parentpage/parents.htm.

March 19: Return of the Swallows to San Juan Capistrano (St. Joseph’s Day):http://www.missionsjc.com/preservation/swallowsstory.php. If you can’t go to the historic Mission in California to watch the swallows return, you can see them on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZCf1qV94r4

And before you know it, it’s March 20, and spring is here. See: http://earthsky.org/tonight/sun-crosses-celestial-equator-at-march-equinox. Whew!

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Still Life With Robin is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.

Get Out! The Events Column

Leprechaun (public domain image)

We wanted to share some events and activities that list members might be interested in. Have a great weekend -- and week beyond, too. If you know of an event that the 13,000+ members of the Cleveland Park Listserv should know about, email us at events @ fastmail.us.

Bill Adler and Peggy Robin
Publishers, Cleveland Park Listserv
www.cleveland-park.com


Thursday, March 13, Friday, March 14, and Saturday, March 15: Wilson High School presents The Two Gentlemen of Verona, a story of love, friendship and betrayal. Our production is set in present day New Jersey and will run for one weekend only. At 7:30 each evening and a Saturday matinee at 2:30. Tickets: $15 for adults; $5 for students at wilsondramatickets @ gmail.com. Tickets are also available at the door.

Saturday, March 15 from 2 - 4 PM, Author Liliane Willens will discuss her book “Stateless in Shanghai,” as part of the Glover Park Village “Artists in the Afternoon” series. Ms. Willens’ book is a memoir of life during the Japanese occupation of China, and the years afterward, up until the beginning of the Communist regime. At Guy Mason Recreation Center, 3600 Calvert St NW. Free, reservations requested - register at http://bit.ly/1exaXxV

Saturday, March 15 at 3:30 PM, Get ready for St. Patrick’s Day with a craft workshop that will teach you how to make Celtic-themed items. Free. At the Juanita E. Thornton/Shepherd Park LIbrary, 7420 Georgia Avenue NW, http://dclibrary.org/node/40706

Sunday March 16 at 1:30 PM, St. Patrick’s Peeps Day! Kids 5 - 12 can celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by building a leprechaun trap with Peeps. Free. At the Georgetown Library, 3260 R St NW,
http://dclibrary.org/node/40888

Monday, March 17 at 7 PM, St. Patrick’s Day Performances. The Greater Washington Ceili Club presents a St. Patrick’s Day celebration with Irish dances, ballads, and musical numbers, including a singalong of “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.” Free. At Seabury at Friendship Terrace, 4201 Butterworth Place NW.

Tuesday, March 18 at 6:30 PM, It’s the 2nd Annual Rock Paper Scissors Tournament, a bracket-style competition to benefit Playworks DC, which promotes healthy play at 13 local elementary schools. At Penn Social, 801 E St NW, Tickets ($15 - $20) and info at http://bit.ly/1hlHISE. And yes, this is a real tournament, NOT the weekly fake event!

Wednesday, March 19 at 10 AM, Seminar on encrypting your brain waves. You can secure your phone from NSA snooping; you can secure your email by encryption, and now you can learn how to secure your thoughts. NSA has developed clairvoyant technology to read your brain waves; learn how to exercise mind control techniques to protect the secrets in your brain from NSA intrusion. At the Brain Users Group of DC (BUG-DC) meeting at the Cleveland Park Library auditorium. (You don’t need to be clairvoyant
to see that this is the weekly fake event.)

Thursday, March 20 from 7 - 8:30 PM Forum for Candidates in Contested April 1st Primary for Mayor, with guest moderator Mark Plotkin. Free. At the Cleveland Park Library ~ 1st floor meeting room. Sponsored by the Cleveland Park Citizens Association, which will hold its regular monthly business meeting prior to the forum, starting at 6:30 PM. Refreshments will be served. More info: http://www.cpcadc.org/meetings/march-candidates-forum/

Friday, March 21, 7:30 PM, The Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital presents a film that examines green burials. Sounds morbid but it is actually a touching and sometimes funny celebration of
a life well-lived, and an acknowledgement of death as part of life. “A Will for the Woods” follows Dr. Clark Wang as he battles lymphoma while thoughtfully planning his funeral with his loved ones. Determined that
his last act should not harm the environment but rather help protect it, Clark discovers the green burial movement. At St. Columba’s Episcopal Church, 4201 Albemarle St. NW. Doors Open 7:00 PM, with food for sale by Zenful Bites, movie at 7:30. Free popcorn (while it lasts!) Noted journalist Ray Suarez will moderate a Q&A with the directors following the film. $3 at the door. RSVP on Facebook here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/501996416575974/

Still Life With Robin: Down With DST!

Photo by Steve Collis

by Peggy Robin

Daylight Saving Time starts at 2 AM tonight. I wish we could all boycott it! Let’s not spring ahead --let’s all stand pat. Why should we have to run around the house twice a year, resetting the time? What made sense during World War II (which is when daylight saving time was mandated for the whole country) is just a nuisance these days. Farmers have always hated it (the rooster keeps on crowing at the crack of dawn, no matter what time the clock says it is). Ask any parents of a baby or toddler about the havoc done to their children’s nap schedule. Or think how you feel when you’re hosting a gathering on the Sunday morning after the time change and you’re wondering where everyone is. All this extra stress … and all for a seriously outmoded notion of energy conservation.

Here are a few good reasons to stick to a single time all year round:

* It doesn’t *really* save energy. See: http://phys.org/news/2014-03-daylight-energy.html

* It *does* waste money and time: http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/bulletin/us-economy-lost-433982548-because-of-daylight-saving-time/

* It’s even bad for your health:http://www.slate.com/blogs/business_insider/2014/03/08/when_is_daylight_saving_time_it_starts_march_9_and_it_s_bad_for_your_health.html

* It’s confusing -- hard to keep track of which states are on Daylight Saving Time and which ones have opted out. (The non-observant parts of the US are: Most of Arizona (except the Navajo Nation), Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Parts of Indiana used to opt out but since 2006 the entire state has been united in observing daylight saving time, despite being split into different time zones.  See:http://www.timeanddate.com/time/us/arizona-no-dst.html

Do these arguments make sense to you? Then sign the petition to end the twice-yearly clocking of America. The only trouble is what petition to sign. Apparently the people who want to unite behind a single, unchanging time can’t manage to unite behind a single petition. Here are FIVE different petitions on the subject:

https://www.facebook.com/StopTheTimeChange

http://www.standardtime.com/

http://www.petition2congress.com/6284/end-daylight-savings-time/

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/eliminate-bi-annual-time-change-caused-daylight-savings-time/ShChxpKh

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/end-daylight-savings-5

I’d sign them all, but I can't be bothered right now. I've got to get to work figuring out how to reset all my clocks, watches, appliance timers....so many things and so little time.

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Still Life With Robin is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.

Get Out! - The Events Column

Photo by Thomas S. Mann

We wanted to share some events and activities that list members might be interested in. Have a great weekend -- and week beyond, too. If you know of an event that the 13,000+ members of the Cleveland Park Listserv should know about, email us at events @ fastmail.us.

Bill Adler and Peggy Robin
Publishers, Cleveland Park Listserv
www.cleveland-park.com


Friday March 7 from 5 - 9 PM and Saturday, March 8 from 10 AM - 5 PM, The 39th Washington Antiquarian Book Fair, featuring over 70 fine booksellers from around the country with collections in virtually every area of interest imaginable: classic literature, science and medicine, geography, modern first editions, travel, sports, children’s and illustrated books and the arts. At the Holiday Inn Rosslyn at Key Bridge, 1900 N Fort Myer Drive, 
Arlington, VA, 22209. A two-day pass is $14; tickets purchased on Saturday are $8. Proceeds benefit Concord Hill School. For more information, visit www.wabf.com, email the Fair Manager at bcampbell @ wabf.com, or call 202-363-4999.

Saturday, March 8, from 1 - 3 PM, Save Rock Creek Park Trees from English ivy, an invasive vine that grows up tree trunks and will eventually weaken and kill the tree. Volunteers (age 16 and up) will use hand tools to cut ivy from tree trunks. Tools, gloves, and training on how to identify and cut English ivy will be provided. Location: We will be working in the Melvin Hazen section of Rock Creek Park and along Beach Drive. Meet at Picnic Area #1 across from Peirce Mill off of Tilden Street. Please dress for the weather and wear sturdy shoes, no sandals. Bring water and feel free to bring your own tools and gloves if you have them. Students can earn SSL hours, but please bring needed forms.

Saturday, March 8 at 10 AM, Author Talk: Simple strategies to help moms stay relaxed, energized. Alexandra Hughes and Ruth Polden of theblissspace.com will present an educational, inspiring and supportive talk designed for mothers who experience stress and worry as part of their daily lives. The talk aims to help mothers to turn their motherhood experience into a lighter and more relaxed experience. Free -- suggested donation of $5-$10 to help cover costs. At Tenley-Friendship Library. For more information, visit http://c6741535.myzen.co.uk/theblissspace.com/events/.

Saturday, March 8 at 7 PM, Handel’s Messiah presented by the the Westmoreland Congregational United Church of Christ's choir. The concert will present portions of The Messiah rarely sung by a full choir. This concert is free. A goodwill offering will be taken to support the Marie Reed Elementary School in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington, DC. The church is located at One Westmoreland Circle.

Saturday, March 8, from 7:30 - 10 PM, Havdalah Cafe Cabaret. Rabbi Mark Novak and MInyan Oneg Shabbat invite you to the second Havdalah Cafe and Cabaret on the covered porch of The American City Diner. This is a participatory night - bring something to share - a song, a poem, a story, a rap, a joke, a magic trick, an imitation, some juggling - it's up to you - and we'll weave everything together into an evening that promises to be a lot of fun. Space is limited to the first 35 people. Reservations are strongly suggested at http://www.minyanonegshabbat.org/havdalah-cafeacute--cabaret.html. Free. Everyone is invited and encouraged to perform. Food will be available for purchase.

Sunday, March 10 from 10 AM - 2 PM, DPW and Geico Insurance are sponsoring a pothole avoidance class in the parking lot of RFK Stadium. If you've been driving and haven't hit one of the thousands of potholes that are cropping up throughout DC, well, then you haven't been out of your driveway. At this four-hour class you'll learn how to anticipate and safely maneuver around potholes. To ensure that there will be no damage to your tires or axles on the course, each pothole has been lined with styrofoam repurposed from discarded coffee cups collected by DPW recycling crews. The class is free and open to the public. Pre-registration is not necessary because this is the weekly
fake event.

Sunday, March 9 at 4 PM, The Duke University Chorale under the direction of Dr. Rodney Wynkoop, will be performing a varied program. Following the concert, there will be a reception to meet the artists and greet one another. Admission Free, donations accepted. At the Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church, One, Chevy Chase Circle, NW, 202-363-2202, www.chevychasepc.org

Sunday, March 9 from 5 - 6 PM, The Baker’s Dozen of Yale University performs in St. Albans School's Trapier Theater (corner of Mass  Wisconsin Aves). The Baker’s Dozen, known across America as one of the nation’s oldest and finest a cappella singing groups, was founded in the Summer of 1947. In recent years, the group has entertained everyone from orphaned schoolchildren in Puerto Rico to the President of the United States. Their concerts feature an engaging mix of traditional favorites and contemporary hits, from the time-honored “Loch Lomond” to The Temptations, The Beatles, Ben Folds, Sara Bareilles, and more! Baker's Dozen alumni attending the concert (such as local architect Dickson Carroll) will be asked to take the stage with the group to sing their theme song. Don't miss this powerful moment! No tickets required. Suggested donation: $5 students, $10 adults.

Wednesday, March 12 at 7 PM: The Great Latke-Hamentasch Debate, with celebrity moderator Marc Fisher of the Washington Post and a panel of experts, who will investigate the age-old question: Which is better, the latke or the hamentasch? Speakers: Pati Jinich, cookbook author and host of Pati's Mexican Table on public radio stations nationwide; Andrew Joskow, economist and former deputy assistant attorney general, U.S. Department of Justice David Polonsky, director of marketing and communications. Join the fun! Refreshments will be available for in-depth research by the audience. At Adas Israel, 2850 Quebec St NW. Tickets: Adas members $10; non-members $15. Register in advance for a discount at www.jewishstudycenter.org

Wednesday, March 12 at 7 PM, How to Retire Happy, author talk by former Washington Post Retirement Journal columnist Stan Hinden at Tenley Library. “How to Retire Happy” includes everything that has made previous editions the go-to guides for retirees and near-retirees, plus: tips on deciding where to retire; brand-new material on health insurance and Medicare; and the author’s personal insights on long-term care of a spouse. Book sale and signing to follow the talk. Free. Tenley-Friendship Neighborhood Library is at 4450 Wisconsin Ave NW. More info: http://wapo.st/1iaU96V

Thursday, March 20 from 7 - 8:30 PM Forum for Candidates in Contested April 1st Primary for Mayor, with guest moderator Mark Plotkin. Free. At the Cleveland Park Library ~ 1st floor meeting room. Sponsored by the Cleveland Park Citizens Association, which will hold its regular monthly business meeting prior to the forum, starting at 6:30 PM. Refreshments will be served.

Still Life With Robin: Which Way Is Up?

Photo by Vincent de Groot via Wikimedia Commons

by Peggy Robin

Although we are still months away from air conditioning season, I thought I’d throw this question on the table: When you want to make the room colder by increasing the air conditioning, do you turn the A/C UP or DOWN?

I have consulted both friends and family and have found opinion is evenly split…with both sides hot to defend their own point of view. The ones who say that UP makes it colder tell me that you are making the system work harder. “Turn it up” is universally understood to mean increase the power, volume, effectiveness, of whatever system, appliance, or gizmo you are fiddling with. It’s not an ambiguous call -- no other interpretation is possible, by this logic

Nonsense, goes the reply. If the gizmo in question is an air conditioner, whether a whole house system controlled by a thermostat or a window unit with a dial or digital display, if you want to get more cold air, you must take action to bring the numbers DOWN.  So you must say what you mean to do: “Turn the air conditioning down” -- by which you mean, move the dial or the digital display to a lower number. If you turned it up to a higher setting, you would make it warmer. DUH.

While I’m pondering this dilemma, I’m Googling these phrases on my tablet. I pulled up many hits with answers. Here are three of them:

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/terminology-turn-the-ac-down-o-123967

http://askville.amazon.com/make-room-cooler-turn-air-conditioning/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=3655751

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080703111821AA72odT

Not only did Google not direct me to a clear and  convincing answer, but it brought up a brand new and even more baffling UP/DOWN question. To get to the results of the search which can be found DOWN below the visible area of the screen, you need to flick your finger UP toward the top of the glass surface. When the motion you make is to move your finger up, are you now scrolling UP? Or DOWN? Hmmmm….

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Still Life With Robin is published on the Cleveland ParkListserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.