Textured Wall

Pupatella is an Arlington food cart-turned-pizzeria that is so good I'm reluctant to even mention it, as I'm afraid they'll get too popular and I'll never get a seat.

Peaceable School Zone

Adams Elementary School, near Kalorama / Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. Photo taken during a lunchtime walk using Hipstamatic for iPhone.

Farragut Square, Saturday morning

Waiting for the 42 bus at Farragut Square just before 8 a.m. Men on were power-washing the sidewalk a little further down. Otherwise, everything is quiet. Photo taken using Hipstamatic for iPhone.

Bank, Dupont Circle

The Falling Man | Esquire

A remarkable article by Tom Junod, circa Sept. 2003, about the people who jumped from the World Trade Center after the 9/11 attacks and one distinctive photo from that day: “Do you remember this photograph? In the United States, people have taken pains to banish it from the record of September 11, 2001. The story behind it, though, and the search for the man pictured in it, are our most intimate connection to the horror of that day.”

Jellyfish

We paid a visit to the small-but-impressive jellyfish exhibit at the National Aquarium in Baltimore last month.

Evening Run

Arlington 9/11 Memorial 5K, Pentagon City, Arlington, Va.

Arlington 9/11 Memorial 5K

Rob and friends Justin and Morgan ran in the Arlington 9/11 Memorial 5K, sponsored by the Arlington County police, fire and sheriff departments.

Roadside Flowers

Wildflowers along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, Va.

Windowbox Flowers

Evening Shadows

Cupcake Gone

Buzz, a favorite coffee shop/bakery on Slater’s Lane in Alexandria, has the most adorable bumble bee cupcakes: vanilla cake with chocolate ganache filling, sugary frosting and an adorable pipe cleaner bee on top. I’m slowly amassing a collection of those …

Lunch Today

TaKorean food truck, specializing in Korean BBQ tacos. Today the truck was parked at Franklin Square in DC for lunch. Verdict: The beef and chicken, on their own, are very good. But the flavor gets lost in the blandness of …

Pentax Lens

Super Stud

Part of a protective structure built to shield the Custis Trail from I-66 construction above.

Snowpocalypse 2009

A massive snowstorm hit the Washington, D.C., area last week, dropping 1-2 feet of snow in about 36 hours. The result was a bit of a winter wonderland, even as it massively snarled local transportation and air traffic. Below are …

Fort Sumter

While in South Carolina for Thanksgiving, Ashley, Aunt Lulu, Rob and I took a daytrip to Charleton, taking a ferry out to Fort Sumter National Monument. Fort Sumter is best known for being the target of the first shots fired in the Civil War.

Random trivia I hadn’t heard before: Fort Sumter rests on a sandbar that was fortified with thousands of tons of New England granite — or, as one park ranger put it during our visit, “You’re standing on Yankee soil!”

Photos below:

(If you can’t see the photos above, they’re available on Flickr.)

Great Falls in Fall

Rob, Dari and I made an afternoon trip to the Maryland side of Great Falls, at the C&O National Historic Park.

Andrew Bird and St. Vincent

Rob and I recently saw Andrew Bird play at the 9:30 Club, with opener St. Vincent. This was my third Bird show this year (saw him solo in February, then opening for the Decemberists this summer), and I very nearly passed on it, but for the presence of St. Vincent on the ticket. And I’m so glad I went, because the show was fantastic and Bird the best I’ve seen him.

One concert-goer took a video of Bird, with St. Vincent’s Annie Clark, performing Bob Dylan’s “Oh Sister” during the encore:

Setlist | Photos From The Show »

Superhero Supply

Rob, Dari and I went up to New York on Sunday / Monday in part to attend a taping of The Daily Show.

While in town, we checked out the Vermeer and (very cool) samurai exhibits at the Met, ate a lot of good food (including the requisite halal cart visit) and made two pilgrimages to MUJI for pens and notebooks.

Another big highlight for me was my first visit to the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co., a small storefront with imaginative (and theme-appropriate) products that’s a “front” for 826 NYC, a creative writing center for schoolkids that occupies the back half of the building (hidden behind a secret door in the store). It’s a cool concept, and I think the experience is helped immeasurably if you buy into it. I submitted to a free “de-villainization” and had to swear a hero’s oath at checkout. Very geeky-fun.

Photos from the store:

Marathoner

Earlier this month, Rob ran his first marathon, finishing with a time of 4:39:57. (Our friend Michaela ran as well; this was her second marathon.)

Photos from the race and afterwards:

Niagara Falls

Last night’s episode of The Office, set in Niagara Falls, reminded me of this beautiful time-lapse video of the city by Matthew Wartman:

You can see the video in its full HD glory on Vimeo.

Light My Way

U2 put on quite the show last night at FedEx Field, part of their “U2 360” tour.

More Photos From The Concert »

Moraine Lake

On our way out of Banff, we visited Moraine Lake, with its impossibly turquoise glacier-fed water. If you ever go to Banff, I’d list this among the must-sees — but be sure to go early in the morning, before the …

Lake Minnewanka

Yesterday evening we went out to Lake Minnewanka, just outside the town of Banff, for a stroll / mini photo expedition. We didn’t spot the famous “crasher squirrel,” but we did see many a ground squirrel and chipmunk, which were …