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The Redskins and The Curse of Landover

SUNRISE, POTOMAC RIVER

It's easy to blame Dan Snyder for the dismal record of the Redskins under his ownership, and his  "me-first-with-the-money" management ethic gets part of the blame, but Jack Kent Cooke was a miserly SOB, too, and yet his Redskins were Super Bowl champions. At least his Redskins when they were a Washington, DC-based team. The big change came when the team was pulled out of DC and planted in the suburbs, in Landover, and it has been cursed ever since. We won't have a winning team again until the team is returned to where it belongs - Washington, DC.

Let me take you back for a moment to those dreamy days in the 80s, when the Redskins did nothing but win. Washington was a different city. Congress and the White House got along a whole lot better, we weren't in two wars, Wall Street was under some control, and we, as a community, came together every weekend in a exuberant shared purpose: beating the pants off the other guys. After a victory, especially the big play-off victories, fans would spill into the intersection of Wisconsin and M Streets until the police arrived to (sorta) restore order.

What was extra cool about having the team in DC, at least on home game weekends, was that the city's bars filled with fans before and after the games. Jack Kent Cooke and his wife, Melania Marlena, would host a dozen or more swells in the owner's box. After the game, the Cookes and some of their guests would head to Duke's/Morton's on Connecticut Avenue. This was such a fixture in his life that when he won his Super Browl trophys, Jack put them at the front entrance of the restaurant for all to see and share. 

While Jack and Marlena partied at Morton's downtown, many of the Redskins players would show up at Morton's in Georgetown and elsewhere. They had their own table at the front of the restaurant. John Riggins was a regular at my husband's bar, Nathans, and when he was too banged up to head to the bar -- and had to be checked into Sibley instead - he'd have Nathans deliver to him, bedside, a full dinner of homemade fettucini alfredo and a bottle of Moet. 

Need I say those were the days. 

Today fans spend their before and after time stuck in traffic, Dan Snyder sleeps in his box the night before a game and then goes home after, the players show up at the occasional fundraiser but not carousing in town, and we're not winning. Snyder's public face is that he's not losing if he's making money on tickets and the stadium, but I've interviewed him, and there's a well of insecurity in the man, and most of all he wants to be liked (just like Sally Fields.) The quickest path to that goal would be to invest in an "A" quarterback, coaches and other players. As I stated, Jack Kent Cooke could be angry and cheap, but he knew he had to spend money to win, and so he did. Perhaps kicking and screaming, but still, he stepped up.

Add to all of this the team name issue, which seems to bring with it some of the darkest karma.

Time to step up, Dan. Change the name. Move the team back to DC. Swallow some of the profit loss. Work it out. Get back on the road to victory. Seriously, otherwise, in addition to the Shanny era, you will be blamed for everything: recession, wars, Congressional gridlock, Occupy Wall Street, the Tea Party, and on and on. 

 

My First Two Capital Comment Posts

WHY A FOOD PHOTO? BECAUSE IT'S THE BEAUTIFUL LUNCH I HAD TODAY WITH COLLEAGUE SHANE HARRIS AT RIS

And we're off...

Yesterday and today saw my first two posts on washingtonian.com's Capital Comment blog. This is fun. I'm exhausted but it has nothing to do with the job, except that I have to be there in the morning and last night (or this morning) I stayed up until 1am to watch the awesome game #6 of the World Series. A 6 am alarm is more than startling under those circumstances. 

Anyway, here are my first two stories:

A WASHINGTONIAN IS APPOINTED FRENCH SOCIAL SECRETARY

WANT TO BE HATIN' ON DC? BRING IT TO THE DCSHITLIST

I want your stories! Bring 'em to me. (Please)

"The Black List" Opening

AT&T''s LYNDON BOOZER w/ MARTHA JOYNT KUMAR & TIMOTHY GREENFIELD-SANDERS

The National Portrait Gallery this evening had a party to celebrate the opening of "The Black List," an exhibition of photographs of notable black Americans, all of them shot by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders. The event was courtesy of AT&T. I went with my sister-in-law, Martha Joynt Kumar and her husband, Vijay Kumar. Martha is a presidency scholar, so after we looked at the principal exhibition we visited the adjacent galleries to view the portraits of former U.S. presidents. 

THE ENTRANCE TO "THE BLACK LIST" EXHIBITION 

Of course the 18th and 19th century paintings are compelling, but of the contemporary works I was surprised by the paintings I liked the best: Richard Nixon, George Bush and George W. Bush. Not surprised so much for political reasons -- the portraits are not political -- but the demeanor of the men portrayed. Nixon's portrait is by Norman Rockwell. He looks so happy. But then, it was painted in 1968, when everything was on the way up for RMN. There's a large portrait of Bill Clinton by Chuck Close. I wonder if it will stand the test of time?

RICHARD NIXON BY NORMAN ROCKWELL

GUESS WHO?

The party was made special by the presence of a number of the individuals who were the subjects of the photos, including Academy Award-winning actor Forest Whitaker and, of course, phographer Greenfield-Sanders. Also, good wine and food, such as hot soup, fried chicken and make-your-own ham biscuits.

For more on "The Black List" exhibition, please read this piece by my Washingtonian colleague, Sophie Gilbert, here. 

The Madoff Suicide Fail

HAPPIER TIMES (splash news)

On behalf of the many folks who got bilked by her husband, it's legit to doubt Ruth Madoff's claim that she and Bernie attempted suicide. It's the part about saying they used Ambien but not being able to say how many pills they took, and how they just woke up in the morning, and then - in the interview - how she smiled after recounting the story, recalling how happy she was to wake up and be alive.Sort of like the way his clients felt after waking up to realize all their money was gone. This is not an attempted-suicide story, it's a sympathy-grab story that doesn't play.  Ruth, some unsolicited advice: best to stay off the grid. 

The only sympathetic portrayal of Ruth Madoff was Lily Tomlin's on "Damages" last season. Tomlin gave her nuance and pathos. She's not able to do that for herself.

When Not To Believe A Publicist

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR (ABC News)

...in quotes like the following, from Page 6, spewed in regard to whether Christiane Amanpour is unhappy at ABC's "This Week" and begging CNN to take her back: An ABC rep said, “I just got off the phone with Christiane, she says that’s total nonsense. She’s very happy at ABC News. She’s not going anywhere. She’s had the most extraordinary year. She’s a critical, essential voice.” A CNN rep declined to comment on “speculation.”

Hahaha. Right.

DSK's Other Offense

FOOL'S REAL ESTATE? THE DSK HOME ON DUMBARTON STREET IN GEORGETOWN

You may think Dominique Strauss-Kahn's crime is his alleged inapporpriate treatment of women, but how about this for hubris in home sales? For some weeks now DSK and his wife, Ann Sinclair, have had their 2720 Dumbarton Street home on the market - privately, quietly. Washington Fine Properties realtors have showed it to a select few, but everyone on the block knew it was on the market when the furniture went out the door. Anyway, now the sale is public, plus the $5 million+ price tag. Sure, it's a nice house and I'm told by those who have jumped the fence and played in it that the pool is swell. 

Here's the offense: no parking! I repeat: NO PARKING.  What's Georgetown real estate come to when a buyer has to pay $5 million to park his/her Mercedes-Jaguar-Range Rover at the curb, get hit with periodic tickets from the grim parking enforcement storm troopers, and drive around endlessly on weekends trying to find even a half-legal space. There should be law! Any home over $5 million should be required to have parking (and a pool)!'

Not so long ago the rule was a Georgetown seller couldn't ask more than $2million without having parking included. Clearly, those days are over.

The DSK home will get sold, the buyer's name will be made public, but there will be this lasting stink: fool's real estate. 

On the plus side, if it does sell for the asking price we will know that Georgetown real estate's recent flat period is over. 

 

Are Vincent C. Gray's Days Numbered?

MAYOR GRAY AFTER HIS APPEARANCE ON THE Q&A CAFE

...that's what I hear councilmember David Catania is telling close friends. The forecast being whispered in District Building circles? A December indictment followed by a January resignation. What do you think? Possible? Not Possible? 

   It wasn't so long ago the Mayor-elect and I were finishing a Q&A Cafe interview with a happy swing dance at the Georgetown Ritz. 

Congratulations to Paul Wahlberg and his Brother...

PAUL WAHLBERG, ON THE LEFT. (courtesy of Wahlburgers)

UPDATE Jan 22 2014: Paul now has a reality TV show, "Wahlburgers." Read about it here. For fans of Paul's, he also plays a role in my memoir, Innocent Spouse, which chronicles the insane life of owning a saloon at the busiest corner in Washington DC. Paul's great cooking lifted up the place and was a happy diversion from battling the IRS (we won) and swimming in quicksand, especially digging into his fried clam bellies, and that thing he did with salmon. 

Congratulations to Paul Wahlberg, former chef at Nathans, who opened his Wahlburgers burger place today near home in Hingham, MA. His business partner is brother Mark Wahlberg. 

After Paul left Nathans he and his wife returned to the Boston area. For a while he was back in the restaurant biz, and then for a while went on location to cook for his actor brother (sound familiar? as in "Entourage") and then returned to Hingham to open his own place, Alma Nova (named after Mom, Alma). Alma Nova is next door to the prototype Wahlburgers.

DONNIE, ALMA, PAUL AND MARK WAHLBERG AT THE OPENING OF WAHLBURGERS (courtesy of Wahlburgers)

I hope for Paul that this is just the first installment of his burger business. Go Paul! Open one in DC. Then, Top Chef! (Looks like he won't need Top Chef)

Zoom Zoom (Austin, Greenwich, NY, DC) - on NYSD Today

BEAUTIFUL LONG ISLAND SOUND, JUST ONE OF MY STOPS LAST WEEK

My New York Social Diary column today, my last for now, begins in Austin, returns to DC, and then up to NYC and Greenwich. A good week, in other words. Read it all here.

So, with that, I'm off to work at Washingtonian. 

Occupy Austin, and Hook 'em, Horns

THE "OCCUPY AUSTIN" PROTESTERS MARCH UP CONGRESS STREET  TOWARD THE STATE CAPITOL

Here's a glimpse of the Occupy Austin movement as it manifested itself yesterday in a march held before the UT-OSU football game. Those heading to the game formed a long march, too, only the football fans were a sea of burnt oranze, the OA marchers were adorned mostly with posters.

We went to the football game and it was something to behold. My first state university game. Quite a spectacle. There's so much going on, so much to watch, plus also a football game. Unfortunately the Longhorns lost, but that didn't stop anyone from having a good time. I will be recovering for a week from my weekend in Austin, because in Texas, like Texas, they party big.

OUR CREW

OUR HOST, FORMER LIEUTENANT GOV. BEN BARNES, WITH SPENCER

OUR VIEW FROM BEN'S BOX. HOOK 'EM, HORNS.

There was so much more that went on in the 48 hours we were in Austin. All of it fun and interesting, including a behind the scenes private tour of the LBJ Presidential Museum. A visit to Allen's Boots. Great Mex and great American food. But, at the moment, it's time for a little rest.

INSIDE A REPLICA OF LBJ'S OVAL OFFICE, BUT WITH THE REAL FURNISHINGS

SPENCER, ME AND LYNDON BOOZER AT THE LBJ MUSEUM

Cafe Milano and the Alleged Assassination Plot, on NYSD Today

Yesterday I went over to check out the lunch at Cafe Milano, in the wake of speculation connecting it to an alleged terrorist plot to assassinate Saudi Ambassador Adel al-Jubeir. Is it the mystery restaurant mentioned in the FBI account of the scheme? My thoughts are on New York Social Diary today. Read the story here.

Voila Et Voila

MOULES FRITES AT ET VOILA ON MACARTHUR BOULEVARD IN PALISADES

Just about every time I drive along MacArthur Boulevard and pass Et Voila restaurant I am curious about the place. Today, spotting an empty parking space, I stopped and went in for lunch. It was a pleasure. Because of its Belgian roots I ordered the steamed mussels in broth, with French fries and a green salad, but there were many other tempting dishes on the menu. The fries were probably the best I've had in Washington. Dessert was pear tart with beer ice cream. Yes, beer ice cream. Yum.

It's a narrow and compact restaurant, but therefore cozy. It has four or five seats at the bar, where I sat. Good wines by the glass -- I had the '09 Chablis -- and an extensive beer menu, as is appropriate for a Belgian bistro. There are two tables outside.

Here are some more photos from lunch at Et Voila:

Here's more good news: Et Voila is open every day. The location is 5120 MacArthur Boulevard. The phone is 202.237.2300. The website is here.

Washington - Shaken, Not Stirred - on NYSD Today

A visit to the Martin Luther King, Jr., National Memorial this weekend got me wondering what MLK would make of the "Occupy Wall Street" movement, and the general self-centered disconnect of the nation's capital, while the establishment party's on.

A sample: 

Standing there, looking up at him, I thought about what MLK would make of the “Occupy Wall Street” movement. Would he be supportive? Probably so, if for no other reason than it is about venting frustration. He’d probably understand The Tea Party, too, because he understood vexation with the established order. We, especially baby boomers, and our children, have become woefully well behaved. Whatever happened to outrage? Is our great national energy now relegated to text voting on dance shows, posting an updated “status” on Facebook and standing in line at Starbucks? It feels that way. So, speaking only for myself, I say hooray for protest movements. Enough with complacency. 

Read the full column here. 

Verizon Kindly Offers to Invade My Privacy

A few weeks ago Facebook made clear it would share my personal info with the advertisphere, as if it was a good thing for me. Now, it is Verizon. If you have Verizon Online you likely received the same email. If they want to give me a kick back, like free service, we can talk. Otherwise, fuhdgeddaboutit.

Here's the email that arrived, naturally, during the dinner hour:

Dear Valued Customer,                                                                                                                   en 
 
Your privacy is an important priority at Verizon. (Ah, I don't think so.)  We want to let you know that Verizon will soon participate in a program that will improve the ability of advertisers to reach our Verizon Online customers based on your physical address (and, in so doing, make us a few coins).  The goal is to provide online ads that may be more relevant to you (note to Verison: the logic is oxymoronic).
 
This program uses your address to determine whether you reside in a local area an advertiser is trying to reach (because you refuse to respond to them any other way, and we've offered to separate the desirable from the undesirable zipcodes).  However, Verizon won’t share your address with advertisers as part of this process.  Advertisers won’t know it’s you specifically or where you actually live. (But they'll know more about me than they do now.)  If you do not want us to allow advertisers to send you ads based on your geographic area you can let us know by selecting here. (Yes, thank you. Done.)

Sincerely,

Verizon

 

Memo to Georgetown: Check Out Foggy Bottom

 FOGGY BOTTOM'S VERY COOL NEW BLOCK, WHICH SHOULD MAKE GEORGETOWN A LITTLE ENVIOUS

Have you walked over to Foggy Bottom lately? To the block that once was George Washington Hospital, then a hole in the ground, and now apartments, offices, and a quite cool collection of bistros, markets and, especially, an innovative Whole Foods Market. As I wandered the amazing new Whole Foods I wondered, "why isn't this in Georgetown? Why isn't this in Georgetown Park?" It makes Glover Park Whole Foods feel out of date. How? All kinds of new ways to shop, a lot more self-serve, and food concessions -- almost like food halls, but better -- with everything from Kaz Sushi Bistro to made-to-order grilled burgers. The only thing missing is self check-out. The check-out system is a little controlling, but still functional, like Trader Joe's.

Here are some pics:

 







The store has two levels. I didn't get downstairs, because the main level has everything I'm after -- lots of fresh food, ready to go. They also have a parking garage. The garage entrance is on 22nd Street. You go through one gate, down to the 3rd level, and through another gate, which is two too many gates, but you get 90 minutes free parking (with a receipt) and after you've gone through the drill once you'll have the system mastered. 

 INSIDE "BURGER, TAP & SHAKE," WHERE THE BURGERS START AT $6, THE SHAKES AT $5 AND THE FRIES AT $3

Out the door and around the corner are other interesting places to explore, and the folks at Vornado should take a look, if they haven't already. Why not fill Georgetown Park mall with a range of interesting eating places? Chelsea Market is the prototype. Georgetown is so needy in this regard. We have Dean & Deluca, which too often feels a day away from closing, but we are behind the curve in the restaurant scene, and if we're not careful we'll become known as a mecca of tourist traps and unchallenged group ownership. 

This one block has Burger, Tap and Shake, a bar and burger joint; Devon & Blakely, which appears to be a hip sandwich and salad concept, but a little weird up in the gills about photos being taken ("No, No. Take your camera out of here. No photos. No photos!") ...not exactly modern in a cell camera world. Later I inquired with the manager, who said it was due to fer the look would be copied somewhere else. (I think I saw "this look" 5 yrs ago in LA, but whatevs). But moving on, there's Circa, with an all day menu, and Mediterranean Roti. Lots of outside seating. Also a Sweetgreen, with seating.

These places are easy walking distance from Georgetown, but I wish they were all in Georgetown.

Across the street (on K between 22nd and 21st, north side) is a great new burger place, Bobby Flay's Bobby's Burger Palace. I say "great" and "new" based on one visit, but my burger was delicious, cooked just the way I like it, with some crunchy char on the meat, and the lettuce, tomato and onions tasted freshly cut. My strawberry milkshake was very good, not too thick, not too sweet; the french fries -- sweet potato -- were still hot and crispy, not soggy. I hate cold/soggy fries, but get served them all too often. 

AL FRESO DINING AT ROTI

 WHITE TABLE CLOTHS AT CIRCA FOGGY BOTTOM

Face it, 95 per cent of the time you order fries in a restaurant they are frozen. There are exceptions. But most restaurants serve frozen fries, just as they serve frozen fish, lobster meat that arrived at the restaurant in a plastic bag, not alive and in its shell, and burger patties that come pre-cut. Budgets robbed restaurants of freshness. But there are ways of dealing with frozen fries that maintain their integrity, ways of cooking them, especially using fresh oil - not oil that's been around all day and also used for the calamari. Better yet, cook them twice! (I always ask for well done). If you order a lobster dish, ask your server. "Is the lobster meat from a fresh steamed lobster in your kitchen or from lobster in a bag?" 

But I digress.

Check out Foggy Bottom. I hope Vornado will, too. I also hope Vornado will consider immersing itself in the community a little more. Come to the events. Speak to CAG and the ANC, make yourselves available, get to know people, have an intimate lunch with the local bloggers like Topher Mathews at The Georgetown Metropolitan, Beth Solomon at Georgetown Dish, Shaun Courtney at Georgetown Patch. Maybe have lunch in Foggy Bottom. hahaha.

My New Job: Editor-At-Large, Washingtonian magazine

"It's official," wrote Garrett Graff in an email this evening, and so now the news can be shared with you. I have taken a postion as editor-at-large with Washingtonian magazine. It is the same position Garrett held before he became editor. I will be contributing to "Capital Comment" and washingtonian.com, and also do interviews and stories. That's the rough outline from Garrett, but no doubt more focus will come when I start work Oct 24.

In mid-August, with the book tour finished, and my advance gone, I began job hunting, not sure of what would be out there. My wish list went like this:

1. Mail order bride for a Texas oil baron
2. Anywhere other than DC
3. The corporate world

Media was not on the list - at all - mostly because I had no desire to return to TV from whence I came. I'd worked in network news for 30 years, small business ownership made me a grown up, and TV is not a comfortable fit for grown ups.

I considered corporate communications and, remarkably, there were job offers! Also, healthcare, which means a lot to me. It's a challenging and important field. I also explored academia. What I heard over and over was the general desire to hire "experience" and "maturity." So baby boomers, there's hope.

But when Garrett presented the idea of being his editor at large, I was intrigued. I worked for a magazine, Time, long ago, but it is a weekly. I'd never worked for a monthly. Also, Washingtonian is family owned, which is appealing, and they plan some changes, which I like. It's fun to be part of change. And I like Garrett. We've known each other a few years. Not well, but well enough. He has a solid reputation, as well as an awe-inspiring CV. 

The bulk of my experience is in network television, and film production, but in all those jobs, while the title was "producer," or "bureau chief," or "host," I was also a writer - writing scripts, but also writing essays and questions to outline interviews for colleagues such as Charlie Rose, Chris Matthews, Ted Koppel, Larry King and David Brinkley. My first job in television was as Walter Cronkite's writer on The CBS Evening News, which followed Time. Basically, I've always been a writer....and journalist.

My background is in national and international news. Not local. But Washington is not a conventially "local" city. Washington is a hub of national and international intrigues, manipulations, events, and so much more, as I have been analyzing on New York Social Diary for four years. In fact, my 4th anniversary with NYSD is tomorrow, Friday.

There's also The Q&A Cafe, which was created ten years ago this month. Amazing, isn't it, that it thrived for a decade? More than 300 notable individuals have appeared for hour-long interviews. Garrett is open to finding a way for me to continue to do the show and to use the transcripts in the magazine. There's much to explore in this regard. The Ritz-Carlton Georgetown is closing Fahrenheit restaurant, where the show has been based for the last two years. They plan to convert the room into a meeting and conference facility. So, we'll see. I love doing interviews. Anyone who has watched the show knows that. 

Alsio, I should be able to continue as a contributor to NYSD. Maybe not every single Monday, but still there. As I told my dear dear editors, David Patrick Columbia and Jeff Hirsch, two of my most favorite humans, if I won the lottery tomorrow ... their site would be enough to keep me satisfied for eons. But I have a child in college and a mortgage...and monstrous debts...so! 

Still open, though, to being a mail order bride for a Texas oil baron. I'll throw it all over for that job.

Im writing this from the back of a very bouncy taxicab, so...more later.
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

H. Bloom Wants To Get In Your Vase

H.BLOOM FLOWERS AND MATCHING MACAROONS

H. Bloom florists have a clever strategy: seduce with flowers. It works. They've been sending beautiful bouquets of flowers to insiders all over Washington, and today they hosted a VIP luncheon for the most select potential customers. Couldn't have picked a prettier day, that's for sure. Plus, the H. Bloom arrangements looked glorious in the private dining room at The Four Seasons Hotel. Lovely views, lovely light, delicious champagne, steaks and seafood. Sigh.

 AN ASSORTMENT OF H. BLOOM ARRANGEMENTS

H. Bloom co-founder and CEO Bryan Burkhart hosted the luncheon, greeted the guests one at a time, and then talked about his company's unique perspective on flower delivery: his is an online-only service, with a range of choices, which subscribers can send to themselves, their offices, to friends and/or loved ones. They can come arranged in a vase or loose for personal styling. 

H. BLOOM CEO BRYAN BURKHART

It's no surprise, really, that Bryan comes from a techworld background. He brings that kind of entrepreneurial spirit and intensity to the business of flowers. He seemed to have thought through his strategy. Founded in New York City, the company expanded to Washington, Chicago and San Francisco, with plans for further expansion. 

BRYAN BURKHART TELLS THE H. BLOOM STORY TO HIS VIP GUESTS

At the end of the luncheon we were each encouraged to pick a bouquet and bring it home. I chose two dozen long-stemmed red roses wrapped tightly in banana leaves. Lovely. Others chose orchid arrangements, mixed florals, the "classic" with lilies and roses.

Is Washington a flower city? Hmmm. I've never been really sure. I can't imagine not having fresh cut flowers in the home. But I'm one of those people who if down to her last $1.00 would divide it between family, flowers, perfume and food.

Here's what the New York Times said of the service: We sampled two assortments (and after five days both were still healthy): an “arrange your own,” for $31.57 with tax, and a “classic” arrangement, for $38.11. The former came wrapped in brown paper, stems clamped with tiny water-filled tubes, and its blooms — yellow hyacinths, orchids, solidago, aster and a huge aspidistra leaf — were nice enough. The “classic” however, was lovely: roses, white hyacinths, viburnum and heather.

 TABLE ARRANGEMENTS FROM H. BLOOM

The subscription service begins at $29 a month. As a starter, why not sign up with the recipient being your lover, or would be lover? This might do the trick. 

Scheele's Market Wins A Reprieve

 THE SUN SHINES ON SCHEELE'S MARKET FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE

I stopped into Scheele's today to talk to Mr. and Mrs. Lee about their meeting last night that was to focus on whether the store would close or stay open. They both had big smiles, and Mrs. Lee gave me a big hug. She said all the issues were worked out, they have a new agreement, and Scheele's will remain open for the foreseeable future. They said they met with "the committee," which sounds like something out of "24," but this is Washington, after all. Whatever works. 

So, we still have a corner market at 29th and Dumbarton, the area workers still have Mrs. Lee's sandwiches, we still have Georgetown Bagelry bagels on weekend mornings, and on and on. And you can buy a signed copy of my book there, too! How's that for a full service market? 

Mrs. Lee said my Sunday post helped. Who knows? But we should all patronize and speak up on behalf of our sole-proprietor neighborhood businesses. That's how we keep them healthy. For example, do you get your prescriptions filled at CVS or Morgan's Pharmacy? Please switch to Morgan's. They work with doctors, take insurance, keep track of your history, and deliver to your doorstep. It's very personal service, and a terrific neighborhood haunt. The best kind. Like Scheele's.

Celebrating the Sporting Life, on NYSD Today

 THE NEW WING OF THE NATIONAL SPORTING LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

This week brings big things out in Middleburg, Va., where the horse country swells will gather on Saturday night to celebrate the expansion and renovation of The National Sporting Library and Museum. I was given an exclusive first look, and took lots of photos for my NYSD  column. The NSLM is worth a visit, regardless of whether you've ever been on a horse or hunted dear deer (I think of them as dear) or birds. Lots of art, lots of sculpture, lots of scholarly books. My story and photos are here. 

Also in my column today, photos from the big party marking the end of "Don't Ask/Don't Tell." 

Scheele's Market to Close, But May Have Reprieve

 OPEN? NOT MUCH LONGER

TUESDAY UPDATE: If you read my post of today you'll learn the good news that the Lee's got a reprieve and Scheele's will remain open. 

MONDAY UPDATE: I stopped by Scheele's this morning to talk to the Lee's. Apparently, subsequent to their "closing" sign being posted and my item below, the landlord phoned them and said she does not want them to close, and both parties are having a meeting tonight to "try to work it out." Fingers crossed.

EARLIER: This is news I don't want to report. It's too depressing. "Another brick in the wall..." At Scheele's Market -- which has operated continuously as a Georgetown neighborhood market for more than 100 years -- Kye Lee has posted a sign that says she and her husband will have a closing sale soon. When I asked what that meant, Oscar, the weekend clerk, said the market would close at the end of November. Damn. The bell has rung for Scheele's several times in the recent past, but I gather this time it is for real.

For up to date history, here's something from Scheele's Facebook page:

Scheele’s Market, a venerable Georgetown landmark throughout the latter part of the 19th century, all of the 20th century and continues in operation today, is located in one of the most exclusive Georgetown neighborhoods known as the “East Village”. Scheele’s Market was originally located on 28th Street having been started by David Francis “Dave” Scheele. The market moved to 29th Street, its present location, in 1895. Following Dave’s death in 1922 the market was purchased by his brother, George Scheele, Sr. In 1970 George Sr. passed away and ownership of the market passed on to his son, George Jr. who ran the market until 1983 when he retired. He continued owning the property and leased the business to several people with the last being the Lees who continue running the business today. After 118 years, on February 7th, 2011, the property was sold by the Scheele heirs to Jordan O’Neill.

When Scheele's closes that means we will be down to one neighborhood market in the East Village, if you don't count 7/11 and CVS, and I def don't. The one remaining market is Sarah's, which changed ownership in the last year and, in my opinion, has declined. Maybe with Scheele's closing they will see an upturn in business. Maybe they will step it up. Maybe Sarah's will sell Georgetown Bagelry bagels, as Scheele's does on weekends. That would be a good step. And bring back the Black Jewel popcorn, please.

Here's what a Scheele's fan posted on Yelp: 

I feel funny ranking Scheele's on Yelp, because it feels so personal. It's that dependable convenience store that every neighborhood should have. It's the reason you move to the city, so you can walk two blocks for approximately 93% of your cooking needs. A far better selection than anything in the vicinity, Scheele's makes optimum use of its small space. And Mr. Lee is awesome, friendly guy. Just to illustrate how well stocked they are, here are a few features you'd be surprised to find in a small convenience store, smaller than most 7-11s: 

-An impressive beer and wine selection 
-An array of fresh produce 
-An array of cheeses and meats 
-An array of virtually anything you need in the spice rack or pantry, it's halfway between a grocery store and a convenience store. Maybe I'm hyping it up to much...I can't help it, I love this place! 

NOTE: It actually stands in stark contrast to the nearby 7-11 which has one of the worst selections I've ever seen from the chain.

We need our neighborhood markets, but it's up to the neighbors - and benevolent landlords - to keep them alive.