Is JRC acquisition a prelude to consolidation?

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Bob Benz

Is the Journal Register acquisition prelude to more consolidation? http://t.co/NwqF4gc via @niemanlab

Posted in Assorted Bob, Media Bob | Comments Off

Is Social In Google’s DNA? …

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Bob Benz

Is Social In Google’s DNA? via @techcrunch http://t.co/E8IhUPy

Posted in Assorted Bob | Comments Off

The K Street shuffle

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Bob Benz

My office is at 15th and K in DC, just a few blocks from the White House. At lunchtime, I often wade out among the wonks, lobbyists, power brokers, homeless, hucksters and federal cogs in search of food.


View Larger Map

While I was returning from a Korean food truck yesterday clutching my veggie bibimbap and listening to my colleague prattle on about server loads and memcache settings, I spotted my favorite DC wildlife: a family of tourists — mom, dad, son and daughter — walking in wide-eyed wonder, clutching maps, seeking the next spectacular site the nation’s capital has to offer.

It made me pause to think about how lucky I am to live here. Then I ate my bibimbap.

 

Dave Crossley, Dani Longoria Torano, Bernadette E. Kazmarski, Dee Dee Constantine, Deborah Durden Dilmore liked this post
Posted in Assorted Bob, D.C. Bob | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

What’s going on

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Bob Benz
What's going on by Suffering the Benz
What’s going on, a photo by Suffering the Benz on Flickr.

After dinner at Marvin at 14th and U, Lara and I ascended to the upstairs bar, where we had a few drinks and watched Friday night unfurl on the street below.

Marvin is a culinary tribute to the two years DC’s Marvin Gaye spent in Belgium. I had the country-fried chicken and waffles over collard greens. Awesome.

Friday nights have become a DC tradition with me and Lara. It’s our date night. She picks a different restaurant each week, where we meet to eat and unwind. It definitely gives me something to look forward to during the weekday grind.

Elaine Edge Noffke liked this post
Posted in Assorted Bob, D.C. Bob, Music Bob, Restaurant Bob | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off

Gorgeous stained glass windows…

Posted on July 15, 2011 by Bob Benz

Gorgeous stained glass windows of Aleister Crowley, William Burroughs and many more by Neal Fox http://zite.to/q32zx4 via @zite

Posted in Assorted Bob | Comments Off

Is Twitter traffic underrated?

Posted on July 15, 2011 by Bob Benz

Twitter drives 4 times as much traffic as you think it does http://zite.to/oMamrk via @zite

Posted in Assorted Bob, Web Bob | Tagged , , | Comments Off

Colombia comes to D.C.

Posted on July 10, 2011 by Bob Benz
Woodworker by Suffering the Benz
Woodworker, a photo by Suffering the Benz on Flickr.

We had several more great tastes of D.C. culture this weekend, starting with Shakespeare’s “Merchant of Venice” on Saturday and culminating with an exhibit of Buddhist cave art today.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of “Merchant” was awesome, setting the play in 1920s New York City’s Lower East Side. Great production. On Sunday, we checked out a 3D exhibit of Buddhist cave art from China at the Smithsonian’s Sackler Gallery. We also took the opportunity to browse the permanent collections at the Sackler and Freer galleries, which are connected by an underground walkway.

And there’s always something going on on the National Mall. Before visiting the Sackler, we stopped for West African food at a booth at the Folklife Festival on the National Mall. Afterward, we drifted around the various booths highlighting Colombian artisans, including the woodworker in the photo above.

What an amazing place to call home …

Posted in Art Bob, D.C. Bob, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Imagine a world with no Macbeth

Posted on July 9, 2011 by Bob Benz

The First FolioThe New York Times recently had a good story on the Folger Library’s “Fame, Fortune & Theft: The Shakespeare First Folio.” In addition to prompting me to add the exhibit to my to-do list, the story made my head spin with the following paragraph:

“If it weren’t for the First Folio, there would be no extant copies of ‘The Tempest,’ ‘Julius Caesar,’ ‘Macbeth,’ ‘Twelfth Night’ ‘As You Like It’ or ‘The Winter’s Tale.’ All the world wouldn’t be a stage; no countrymen would lend anyone their ears; and life wouldn’t be a tale told by an idiot, signifying nothing.”

Wow. Imagine the cultural gap we would have suffered had the First Folio not been published and preserved. And then start wondering what cultural gems were lost when they weren’t afforded the same treatment …

Posted in Assorted Bob, Bookworm Bob, D.C. Bob | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Stop trying to be so respectable

Posted on July 5, 2011 by Bob Benz

Slate starts series on how to fix horror flicks: Part I: Stop trying to be so respectable. http://t.co/Azi98NZ

Posted in Assorted Bob, Movie Bob, Zombie Bob | Comments Off

Pierogies at Domku

Posted on July 2, 2011 by Bob Benz
Pierogies at Domku by Suffering the Benz
Pierogies at Domku, a photo by Suffering the Benz on Flickr.

Lara and I have been wanting to check out Domku in the Petworth neighborhood of D.C. for a while. Last night, we gave it a shot.

In short, we enjoyed. It’s a great, comfortable space and the cuisine is a quirky mix of Slavic and Scandinavian. I ordered the pierogies. They were good, but I’m used to eating them smothered in butter and onion. Here they’re served with sour cream. Lara went for the Swedish meatballs. Also good. The Brussels sprouts were awesome and we also enjoyed the tomatoes and feta appetizer.

The best discovery, though was the aquavits — vodka infused with various cool herbs. The red chile aquavits rocked.

Despite Prince of Petworth blog commenters’ criticisms about service, we thought the service was great. Definitely not fast food, but that’s not what we were after.

Posted in Assorted Bob, D.C. Bob, Restaurant Bob | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off