the big bear big bear.

photo by big bear

IMG_7457
Originally uploaded by Scenic Artisan

this is a painting i'm helping to work on. still unfinished.

we were trying to find that combination of making it blend in to the old signage underneath, and making it pop.



i think its coming along well........

Bloomingdale Civic Association Leadership Summit

You are invited to the Bloomingdale Civic Association Leadership Summit by BCA's Leadership Development & Mediation Committee.


"What: Leadership Summit : "Neighborhoods in Transition: Maintaining and Strengthening a Sense of Community"

When: Saturday, June 30, 2007

What time: 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Sponsored by: The Bloomingdale Civic Association (BCA) Leadership Development & Mediation Committee

Where: The Harry Thomas Sr. Recreation Center , 1743 Lincoln Road, NE, Washington , DC , DC 20001

At this second summit neighbors will strategize about ways to strengthen and maintain a sense of community in our transitioning neighborhoods. The focus will not be on bricks and mortar; other committees and organizations do this work. The Leadership Development & Mediation Committee is most concerned with improving the ways in which those who work on bricks and mortar issues relate to and coordinate with each other and the neighbors they purport to represent.

Dr. Mary Hyde, a Senior Managing Associate at the Association for the Study and Development of Community (ASDC) will address the assembly and neighbors will then break out in small groups and, using the guidance provided by Dr. Hyde, share their concerns and discuss how they might work better together.

Dr. Hyde is a community psychologist with 15 years of research and practice experience with various public interest issues. Among other achievements, Dr. Hyde has conducted research in the areas of sense of community, welfare-reform policy, and juvenile delinquency interventions.

Please add your voice to this important conversation about the nature of our community at the Harry Thomas Recreation Center on June 30th at 10:00 a.m. Light refreshments will be provided."

Bloomingdale Farmers Market Sunday 10-2!

Please try to make it out and support the farmers market that will be happening from 10AM - 2 PM this Sunday, and every Sunday until November.


First and R NW (next to the Big Bear Cafe)
rain or shine.

From Robin Shuster:


First, THANK-YOU to everyone who was there last week for the first market of the season! That was so much fun! Come back this week to see all the new things we have. Here are some tastes of this weekend's harvest:

First of all, we have a new producer: Brian of Truck Patch is joining us -- and he is bringing the very first tomatoes of the season! His High Tunnel Tomatoes -- not hothouse, not greenhouse, but tomatoes grown in the ground with a protective tunnel above them that allows him to plant his seedlings a few weeks early. Good slicing tomatoes for hamburgers or bagels or sandwiches . (Lana will probably be using them in the Cafe for her bagels.) Zucchini and other yellowneck squash. Genovese Basil for Pesto. Broccoli, radishes, lettuces, arugula, baby spinach, mesclun, lettuce mix, Bright Lights Swiss Chard, chives, sage, lavender, cilantro.

And he has excellent fresh, pastured pork : boneless and bone- in pork chops, sausages, baby back ribs, tenderloins, fresh breakfast links and sage sausage, bacon. Brian is a good cook and can tell you the best way to cook every cut of his pork.

Reid's Orchard is FRUIT SALAD CENTRAL this week. Cherries, of course, but also early PEACHES, red raspberries for the early risers, gooseberries, red currants, and some apricots. Strawberries....and their first real picking of blueberries.

Sunnyside promises to have TWICE as many veggies as they did last week (when Carlos sold out at 11:30.) Be sure to get their really free-range, grass-range eggs from those hens Lana photographed three weeks ago. Look for summer squash, green green cabbage Italian Parsley, collards, carrots, leeks cucumbers, mini and red onions, kale, collards, chard, Kohlrabi, Basil, Elephant and Silver Skin Garlic, lettuces, escarole, broccoli, cider, apple butter, apple sauce, flowers.

DragonFly has those beautiful bouquets of flowers and their very special black currant and wine vinegars from their own wines.

7th Street Gardens will be have early peaches, salads and veg.

Your Market Manager, Ted McGinn, will be ringing the opening bell at 10 am. So, get some coffee at the Big Bear Cafe and come to market!

See you Sunday.

Robin

Summer Solstice.

I 'd like to wish everyone a happy midsummers night.

PCP bust in bloomingdale.

oh junk.
check this out

shaw community day this saturday

Shaw Community Day
11am-3pm; Saturday, June 23, 2007
On the green at New Jersey and O street NW

did someone say moonbounce??????



see the link here

a business i'd like to see move to the neighborhood.

warehouse theatre cafe

not that i want them to leave their current space, but, you know, if they do.



Is this the kind of business you'd like to see move here?

Bloomingdale Farmers Market Pictures.

I just got back from the bloomigdale farmers market and wanted to share some pictures.

North Capitol Street Business District

Charting the Future of the North Capitol Street Business District

Thursday, June 21, 2007, 7pm to 9 pm, at McKinley Tech High School, 151 T Street NE

You spoke out loudly and clearly - Over 200 residents spoke out in the North Capitol Main Street (NCMS) survey

Results are in - Hear what neighbors say are the "key" obstacles to a vibrant business community and learn why:
Neighbors rarely patronize neighborhood businesses
What type of retail and restaurant options are most desired in the community
Talk back to local businesses - Learn what neighborhood businesses say are major challenges to doing business in the community

Learn from small business experts - Michael Shuman is a nationally recognized small business expert ... teaching small businesses how to compete ... helping to create vibrant communities

an interesting thread about customer service

taken from the comment section at frozen tropics:
Customer service is a HUGE problem in DC, not just on the Hill (but I think it's especially bad on the Hill). I've got several friends that have travelled extensively throughout the US and the world. Each one of them tells me that by and large DC has the worst customer service of nearly any city they've spent much time in.




There is a thread over at frozen tropics about the improperly named "Clothing Cafe", which isnt a cafe at all. Whats interesting is the talk of customer service in DC.

I certainly have also noticed the poor service in DC. As a business owner myself, i take great pains to ensure the happiness and satisfaction of my clients. As a former waiter, barista,cook and bus boy i have worked in places that demanded excellent customer service. I never thought it was hard to deliver. Jump over to Baltimore and you get treated excellently, even at crappy places. DC? not so much.

I certainly don't go back to places where i was treated poorly. Except for the Argonaut, cuz only one waitress was bad and i'll just sit at the bar if she's working. everyone else there rocks.


Happily, i've had outstanding service at bloomingdales own Big Bear Cafe.

howard town center

everything is a center, huh?


look here for info about the "center" thats going in at georgia and v street.



"center of the universe"
by Roger Cutler

Bloomingdale Farmers Market this Sunday!

Please try to make it out and support the farmers market that will be happening from 10AM - 2 PM this Sunday, and every Sunday until November.


First and R NW (next to the Big Bear Cafe)
rain or shine.

a note from Robin Shuster, the market organizer:


Reid's Orchards will be bringing fresh raspberries, sweet cherries, strawberries, crisp and juicy apples (from storage), basil and many potted herbs (different kinds of thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, chervil, parsley, cilantro) plus a variety of tomato plants for your sunny gardens. No, it is not too late to plant tomatoes. Catilin will also have lettuce gardens and other container vegetables.

Sunnyside Farms, our certified (Oregon Tilth) organic farm will have beautiful free range eggs from chickens who pranced around large pastures when Lana and I visited them a few weeks ago. Sunnyside will have lots of greens and salads: kale, chard, collards, lettuces, arugula, red and green mustard, baby turnips, baby beets, applesauce, apple butter, cider plus kohlrabi, the alien vegetable

Dragonfly Farms will be bringing a variety of beautiful cut flowers and bouquets and some potted plants plus their very special Black Currant and Varietal Grape vinegars. I visited their farm in Maryland yesterday. They have an 80 acre farm, 70 of which is a beautiful, cool, green forest. Their grapes take up 5 acres and the currants another 3 acres. The flowers are planted in other fields and the vegetables are in rows between the currants. Many of the squash and cucumbers are planted in large Oak barrels.

Baker Lamb: Joan has 12 acres of pasture for her sheep and she treats them very well, indeed!

big bear cafe

big bear cafe
Originally uploaded by Scenic Artisan

i swung by the big bear this morning.
the coffee was pretty damn awesome. all french press style. nice touch.

plus the decemberists were on the speakers.

So many things tomorrow.

1. go get coffee at Big Bear.
2. stop by the Fun Day-Health & Information Fair at First and Florida NW
3. The Crispus Attucks Park Yard Sale

4. or if you want to go exploring in NoVa, come see me at the Ballston Art and Craft Market

if anyone hits these events, please email some pictures to post, or better yet, put them up on the bloomingdale flickr page.

coffee

for your coffee needs

a webste about brookland, our great neighbors to the north east.

Brookland DC

This Saturday in Bloomingdale

Fun Day-Health & Information Fair, Saturday, 6/9/2007 12PM- 4PM

Please be advised that there will be a schedule of significant events taking place at the pocket park on First Street and Florida Avenue, N.W. on Saturday, 6/9/2007.

Specifically, Mayor Fenty's Office of Constituent Relations and Services, the Fifth District Police, the Department of Parks and Recreation, Advisory Neighborhood Commission 5C- SMD 5C01, and the Bates Area Civic Association, Inc., are co-sponsoring an afternoon of fun and educational opportunity.

In addition to a challenge match in basketball between officers from the Fifth District Police and local youngsters, the DC Office of Employment Services will have its mobile van on site to provide information on and referrals to jobs that are now available across the region; the Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department will be there to provide information on health and fire safety; Amerigroup has been invited to participate and will organize a series of health screenings that will be made available to those who attend (free of charge); the DC Department of Parks and Recreation will organize a number of fun activities for youths; of course, there will be refreshments; and the special guest for this event will be Ward Five Council Member Harry (Tommy) Thomas, Jr.



also, that really big yard sale.

map of dc with bloomingdale in red.

from the wikipedia entry for bloomingdale.

the petworth geyser

wow. you gotta see this

post focuses on neighborhood blogs

Blogging the Block
It's Local Matters That Matter Most For Community Chroniclers


The DC blogger they interviewed was Jaime Fearer of Stop Blog and Roll. Read it here:

Stop Blog and Roll Interview

Big yard sale at crispus attucks park- NEXT saturday

BLOOMINGDALE'S
BIGGEST
YARD SALE!

Saturday, June 9th, 8am - 2pm

Want to Sell at the Yard Sale?
Register by May 26th
to get the Early Bird Discount


Click HERE for registration form