Still Life with Robin: Show Us Your Halloween House Pix!

 by Peggy Robin

You may recall my Still Life with Robin column of April 2026, in which I announced that I was going to be spending a lot of time in Philadelphia while serving as the granny/nanny to my infant grandson. Well, here I am, just six months into the job, and while the original schedule had me trading off with the other grandparents, in two-week shifts, that's all gone out the window. Due to unanticipated events beyong anyone's control, I'm now here almost all the time. I've been going home for a few days here and there just to tend to the sort of things that can't be handled virtually. (Yes, there still are a few things that have to be done in person!)

I've missed many things about DC, while adjusting to life in Philly. This may be the subject of a future column, so I won't get started on it here. Let me just say now that one of the things I miss about being in DC is being able to decorate the house for Halloween. I've been doing this even before I had kids. I love Halloween!

I put strings of pumpkin lights across the front porch railing; I have some spiders and snakes, a flying bat, a door sign that says "BOO!"and a really giant black spider that wraps its eight legs around the main porch pillar. I've got a flaming cauldron, and a fairly realistic-looking black cat. But they're all going to stay boxed up this year, as it's looking like I won't be back in DC before the election. So my house in DC, for the first time since 1988 (the year we moved in), will be totally out of it, Halloween-wise. 

Meanwhile, here in Philly, the house-decorating is at full tilt. I've never seen so many 12-foot-skeletons. Our neighbor here has a black cat in a witch hat riding a bicycle, with orange-and-purple wheels that whirl around whenever the wind blows. So many creative decorations --  I'd venture to guess there's a higher percentage of decorated houses, block for block, than in DC. But I can't really say, can I, since I'm missing out on what people are doing to their houses back in Cleveland Park and in other neighborhoods around town.

Last year, I started a Halloween album on the Listserv, and I uploaded lots of photos I'd taken of well-decorated houses I saw in my walks or drives around town in October of 2025. You can see the album HERE. 

This year, since I won't be able to add any photos of the Halloween houses of DC, I'm asking a favor of any Listserv member who's a fellow Halloween enthusiast: Take photos of the best-decorated Halloween houses you see. Upload them to the Halloween album, which will let me see a sample of what Halloween looks like back there -- and what I'm missing.

Here are the upload instructions:

1. Go to the PHOTOS section of the CP Listserv.
2. Click on the HALLOWEEN ALBUM.
3. Look for the green +Add Photos button and click on it.
4. You will see an option to "drop and drag" or "browse," allowing you to choose how you would like to locate your photos on your computer and add them to the album. Pull up each photo you want to add to the album, write a description in the "description" box, (e.g, where the photo was taken, name of photographer, and any comments or details you want to provide), and then click "Add."
5. IMPORTANT!!! Do NOT click "Notify members." The way to notify everyone that your photos are there is to send a message to the Listserv (post it to clevelandpark@groups.io) to let people know you have added photos to the album. Copy the link in the address bar at the top of the page above your photos, and then in your message you can create a name or caption for each photo you've added, and provide the link to that photo -- or create a hyperlinked word or phrase -- so that readers can click to view that photo.
6. Repeat for each photo you want to upload.

I have attached four of my favorites from Halloween 2025. The Listserv has a limit of 4 photos in a single message, and they all must be in .jpg format, and the total size of photos in a message must be under 500kb (that is, under 0.5 MB). Of course, if you upload your photos to the Halloween album, you can put the links to view the photos in your message to the group, and you are not limited to just four photos. 

Photo by Gail Rebhan

Maybe your photo will win the Listy for Best Photo in our annual December awards!

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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! SPOOKY SEASON starts this weekend at DC libraries

 by Peggy Robin

Some of DC's neighborhood libraries are giving you a two-week jump on Halloween activities with events this Friday, October 16th, Saturday, October 17th, and Monday, October 19th.

Family Movie Double Feature: Celebrate Halloween

Friday, October 16 at 10:30 AM

Chevy Chase Neighborhood Library

5 - 12 Years OldAdults

Capitol View Library Creative Art Contest

THEME: SPOOKY HOUSE(S)

Friday, October 16 and Saturday, October 17: All Day

Capitol View Neighborhood Library

13 - 19 Years Old (Teens)

Southwest Library Presents: Monster Movie Matiness

Saturday, October 17 at 12:00 PM

Southwest Neighborhood Library

5 - 12 Years Old

Spooktacular Crafts

Monday, October 19: 3:30pm - 4:30pm

Chevy Chase Neighborhood Library - Meeting Room 1 (4-60 Person Capacity)

Age group:   5 - 12 Years Old

Come in and make some spooky crafts!

See the whole Spooky Season calendar at https://www.dclibrary.org/spooky-season-library

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The "Get Out!" highlighted events of the week are posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All LIfe Is Local on Thursdays.

Still Life with Robin: Smile for the Camera

 by Peggy Robin

 

Last year I said I was thinking of making it an annual tradition for the "Still Life with Robin" column to feature the nominees for the Nikon Funny Wildlife competition -- and now I'm making good on that promise.

 

You can see 22 of the 35 nominated photos shared in a photo gallery shared by The Guardian. Be sure to read the little write-up that goes with each photo, telling who, where, and how the photo was shot; that is your best assurance that you are not looking at a bunch of crazy images put together by AI after being fed a prompt such as "Create a still image of a cheetah that looks like it's doing a handstand" or "Show me a photo of a colorful little bird enjoying a spa-like bath in the petal of a flower blossom".

 

You can see 35 of the 42 short-listed finalists at https://newatlas.com/photography/comedy-wildlife-awards-2026-shortlist/

 

As a little preview of what you'll find, I'm sharing these three images (my favorites):

"Hair check before the family photo" (meerkats) by Subi Sridharan

 "Nature’s window" (damselfly) by Lee Frost

"Fashion fades. Feather coats are forever" by Tapani Linnamäki

From the CNN report: "The final winners, decided by a judging panel, will be announced at an awards night in London on December 8. Finalists’ works will then be exhibited until December 13."

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Still Life with Robin is posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on most Saturdays.

Get Out! Cathedral Commons Fall Festival, Sat Oct 3 from 2-5pm

by Peggy Robin

Cathedral Commons welcomes families for an afternoon of fall fun, food, and festivities. Don’t miss a live performance by 123 Andrés at 2:30 p.m.! 🎶🍂

Saturday, October 3rd

2 PM - 5 PM

3701 Newark St NW Washington, DC

 

RSVP Here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cathedral-commons-fall-festival-with-123-andres-tickets-1999531276875

 

Activities Include:

• Special Performance from 123 Andres at 2:30PM
• Pumpkin Decorating
• Arts & Crafts
• Face Painting & Glitter Tattoos
• Food Trucks
• Live Music
• And more!

Bring the kids and invite your friends. We can’t wait to see you there!

 

Cathedral Commons

3701 Newark St NW

https://www.cathedralcommons.com/

 

Traffic advisory from MPD 2D:

The following street will be closed to vehicle traffic on   Saturday, October 3, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.:

       Newark Street from Wisconsin Avenue to Idaho Avenue, NW

The following street will be posted as Emergency No Parking on Saturday, October 3, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.:

       Newark Street from Wisconsin Avenue to Idaho Avenue, NW

  

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The "Get Out!" event of the week is posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Thursdays.

Still Life with Robin: When is a punny new business name not that funny?

by Peggy Robin

For those of us who still remember the long lines on Sunday mornings at Whatsa Bagel (popular in the 1990s and early 2000s), the news from the Popville blog is very welcome: 

“Over Doughs Bagels is going into old Captain Cookie Space. Handcraft Donuts taking over former Sakusaku. (3417 Connecticut Ave, NW)” 

Full story here: https://www.popville.com/2026/09/bagel-and-donuts-dc-cleveland-park/

I'm wondering, however, if store name-punning in this case is taking a wrong turn. "Over Doughs" is a homonym of "Overdose" -- not a fun thing for wordplay -- that's my first reaction. Am I being too stodgy? People do talk about overdosing on carbs, and I suppose they can do that without having it resound in a bad way with people who associate an overdose with a fatal or near-fatal ingestion of illegal drugs.

However, when the sound of the word "overdose" is the first thing you hear in your mind when you see the sign on a new place of business, do you make that benign association? Or do you think, "God, that's awful!"?

Just asking....

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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! Sat, Sept 19 Is Woodley Park Day AND Chevy Chase Day

by Peggy Robin

You can do TWO neighborhood days in ONE day if you start at Chevy Chase, DC when the festivities start at 1 PM and then head south on Connecticut Avenue till you reach Woodley Park -- and make sure you get there with enough time to enjoy all the fun before the day ends at 5 PM. 

Here's the schedule for each:

Chevy Chase DC Day

September 19, 2026  1:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Chevy Commons, 5601 Connecticut Ave., NW

Come and enjoy one of  Chevy Chase’s favorite neighborhood traditions! 

Events Schedule:

Cardio Dance with Ashley (Ashley Newman-Owens) - BB Court - 1:00 - 1:15

Tai Chi demonstration (Edward Pratt - CC Instructor) - In the Gym - 1:15 - 1:30

Ballet Elite performance (Lynne Welters) -  BB Court - 1:30 - 2:00

My Gym Bethesda Chevy Chase - exercise for kids (Mandy Lemar) - 2:00 – 2:15 pm - BB Court

Speakers in front of the library: From 2:30 - 3:15

Mayor Bowser 

Chairman Phil Mendelson 

CM Lewis George 

CM Frumin 

Introduction of At-Large Council Members:

Anita Bonds and Elissa Silverman

Infinity Martial Arts demonstration (Uriah Breunig) – BB Court - 3:10 - 3:30

The vaccine clinic will be in the CC Lobby area from 1 - 4 pm

New event! National Capital Astronomers (Guy Brandenburg). Local astronomers will safely show you the surface of the sun, using a commercial Hydrogen-alpha scope and a hand-made “Solar Funnel” on a hand-made telescope.  Join them on the grassy area on the Connecticut Avenue side of the library, from 1 – 4 p.m.

New Event! Rocking Painting. 1 - 4 pm.  The Unveiling of the Rock “bookworm” and Naming Contest Winner at 3:30.

More info: https://cccadc.org/ 

Woodley Park Day

Saturday, September 19  •  1 PM - 5 PM

2650 Woodley Road NW - The Lawn @ Arie Wardman Park

Come enjoy a great day with neighbors and friends at Woodley Park Day. Free Kid-Friendly Activities, Music, Food, and lots of Fun!

1:30 - 4:30 PM: Face painting, caricature artist, bracelet making and other crafts, balloon twisting and more - will be hosted in front of Aerie at Wardman Park.

1:30 - 4:30 PM: Michael Thomas Quintet

2 - 4 PM: Free Shave Ice!!

Plus tables featuring non-profit organizations and food from local restaurants

More info: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/woodley-park-day-tickets-1998117021800 

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The "Get Out!" Event(s) of the Week is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Thursdays.

Still Life with Robin: Gene Weingarten's "Requiem for a Tree"

 by Peggy Robin

Some days I think about writing a column on a subject, and then I read someone else's column on the same subject and think to myself, this person's already said everything I was planning to say, and more. That's how I feel about the loss of the grand willow oak of Dupont Circle that came down in the big storm of September 3-4, 2026. It's been much in the news, and Gene Weingarten made it the subject of his Substack column The Gene Pool yesterday; you can read the whole thing here:  https://geneweingarten.substack.com/p/requiem-for-a-tree

He tells his own story of when he first saw the tree as a 19-year-old student journalist from NYU, here in DC to cover the large anti-war protests that took place over three days in May, in 1971. He leads up to his first sight of it like this:

Day One had been joyful. The Beach Boys performed.

Day Two was fitful — the camping permits for the park were revoked and people were asked to disperse and go home. Most did. Some — the angriest — did not.

Day Three was filled with fury. That was May 3, when I met the tree.

The remarkable thing about this particular tree is that so many people have strong memories of it or can tell a story that captures something about it or they can express a feeling of kinship for it or appreciate the many summers they sat under its cooling shade in Dupont Circle Park. 

Now that it's fallen, people have spontaneously come forward and decorated the tall stump with their thank-you notes and jotted-down reminiscences. People of all ages -- whether long-time locals or tourists from afar, including those who are seeing it for the first time as giant stump -- have been moved to write something and leave it behind as a token of respect or love.

Gene Weingarten's column has some photos of these notes. I hope he won't mind that I've copied a few here (he shouldn't mind, as long as I'm urging you to subscribe to his Substack column!). 

Have a memory or a thought you'd like to add? There's time, as long as the stump is still standing....

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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! So much to do this weekend! Art All Night, Friday & Saturday | Adams-Morgan Day on Sunday!

 by Peggy Robin

Normally the "Get Out!" column features just one event to highlight each week. But this coming weekend We've got Art All Night happening all over town, spread out over two nights: Friday, Sept 11 and Saturday Sept 12, and then on Sunday, Sept 13th, it's Adams Morgan Day!

FRIDAY & SATURDAY 

DC Art All Night will occur from 7:00 PM to 3:00 AM the following morning on two nights. The festival takes place in all 8 wards with different activations on each night, bringing visual and performing arts, including painting, photography, sculpture, crafts, fashion, music, literary arts, dance, theater, film, and poetry, to indoor and outdoor public and private spaces, including local businesses and restaurants.

Clickable List of Participating Neighborhoods: https://www.dcartallnight.org/neighborhoods-1 

Schedule of All Art All Night Events: https://events.dcartallnight.org/

Download the App and Have All the Info on Your Phone: https://www.dcartallnight.org/aan-app 

SUNDAY

The Adams Morgan Day festival is scheduled for Sunday, September 13, 2026, from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM along 18th Street NW.

Event Details

Date: Sunday, September 13, 2026
Time: 12:00 PM – 6:00 PM (Street closures from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM)
Location: 18th Street NW (from Columbia Road to Kalorama Road, NW), Washington, DC
Admission: Free
Schedule of performances & activities: https://www.admoday.com/event-schedule-2023/ 

What to Expect

Music & Art: Local bands, artists, and family-friendly cultural performances.
Activities: Neighborhood booths, food vendors, and a kids' sports zone hosted by Volo City (12:00 PM – 2:00 PM).
Traffic & Parking: 18th Street NW will be closed to vehicles starting at 8:00 AM with strict towing enforcement for parked cars. Attendees are encouraged to walk, bike, or use public transit.

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The "Get Out!" column is posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Thursdays.

Still Life with Robin: Are the Sploot Days Over for 2026?

by Peggy Robin

The past few days have been weather-wild, haven't they? Not sure whether that storm was a DERECHO or not, but whatever it was, it was one for the record books.

In the aftermath, it's so humid you feel like you're walking through a wall of water instead of air.

But Capital Weather (formerly known as Capital Weather Gang), is predicting that we're now on our way to cooler, calmer weather (well, at least for the Labor Day Weekend!), and that the summer of long 90-degree spells is behind us...we think!

This is good for us, of course....and good for the squirrels, who have no air conditioning in their treetop homes. The main way they attempt to cool off is to assume the SPLOOT. What is a "sploot?" you may ask. Well, here's a good one:

And now a close-up of the squirrel's glazed-eye expression:

P.S. I follow the photographer/artist Artologica aka Michele Banks on Blue Sky, @artologica.net. Here's her self-description: 

Michele Banks Artist inspired by science Friend to squirrels https://www.etsy.com/shop/artologica/

She has one of her artworks in the Glen Echo Art Exhibit that is on now and through the Labor Day Weekend at Glen Echo Park. Here's her BlueSky post about it:

Artologica aka Michele Banks @artologica.net :

This gel electrophoresis watercolor will be in the Glen Echo Labor Day art show glenechopark.org/LDAS from September 5-7

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Still Life with Robin is posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.