Movies That Send the Wrong Message...

I was watching television this morning when a trailer for the upcoming film, Orphan, flit across my screen. I don't know very much about the movie, but its synopsis according to its wikipedia page is as follows:

A husband and wife who recently lost their baby adopt a 9-year-old girl who is not nearly as innocent as she claims to be. The tragic loss of their unborn child has devastated Kate and John, taking a toll on both their marriage and Kate's fragile psyche as she is plagued by nightmares and haunted by demons from her past. Struggling to regain some semblance of normalcy in their lives, the couple decides to adopt another child. At the local orphanage, both John and Kate find themselves strangely drawn to a young girl named Esther. Almost as soon as they welcome Esther into their home, however, an alarming series of events begins to unfold, leading Kate to believe that there is something wrong with Esther—this seemingly angelic little girl is not what she appears to be. Concerned for the safety of her family, Kate tries to get John and others to see past Esther's sweet facade. But her warnings go unheeded until it may be too late.

I'm no professional critic, but I'm pretty sure this film won't do much to encourage adoptions. In fact, I'd go so far as to say Orphan is fairly detrimental to the plight of orphans. Which, if we are to believe this movie, might anger the lot of them and incite a wave of creepy orphan violence.

Angelina Jolie, take note. Your next baby might turn out to be a demon. Fair warning.

Some other examples of irresponsible movie making include the current Transformers flick, which I'm sure has already succeeded in deceiving scores of adolescent boys into believing that someone who looks like Shia Labeouf could get a girl as smoking as Megan Fox. I'm not saying Labeouf is ugly, but come on. He's no Fox. Now if his leading lady was Tori Spelling, maybe it would be a bit more believable. But, then no one would see Transformers. A quandry indeed.
And Ice Age? It's just historically inaccurate. What kind of lessons are we teaching the children?

However, I should probably note my disclaimer: I haven't seen any of these movies. So, you may want to disregard everything I just said.

Get your Tweet On

Looking for something weird and wacky to do this weekend? Or maybe you're on the prowl for something just a bit different. Here are a few twitterings from the DC blogosphere today:

• @yelpdc "Bee" a friend and get the buzz out! Friday - Saturday is the "Don't Step on a Bee Day" Celebration at Buzz Bakery. From http://gregslistdc.com:

Buzz bakery, coffee shop, and dessert lounge will celebrate National "Don't Step on a Bee Day" on July 10th to help raise public awareness of the crisis in U.S. beekeeping and the potential implications for the nation's food supply. On Friday, July 10th, Executive Chef Josh Short will offer his Bumble Bee cupcakes, a signature creation of vanilla cupcake filled with a chocolate center, iced with vanilla buttercream and topped with a bumblebee, for $2.75 each. Other honey-themed treats flying out of Short's kitchen will include, wildflower honey ice cream for $2.25 a scoop, "Bee Hive" sugar cookies for $2.25 each and Tupelo Honey panna cotta with fresh berries, priced at $3.95 each.

Buzz will also give kids free "honey cups"-mini vanilla cupcakes with housemade honey frosting-available first come, first serve in honor of the special day.

• @brightestyoung Best (Holy) Weekend Bets: All your DC plans here: http://bit.ly/34kxJS. My favorite listing:

We’re sure to sell out this week so come early. We’ll probably also run out of chairs, so bring an extra towel to lay on. Noon-8pm, Capitol Skyline Hotel, 10 I Street SW.

Don’t try to use Koogle, the Kosher Google, it’s down on Shabbat, so get all the details here: BYT Summer Camp Week 7: JESUS CAMP @ Capitol Skyline Hotel. Also not to be missed, a bunch of people exposing their dirty sinful naked bodies in Baltimore.

• @thingstododc Tomorrow: Forty-Plus Mixer at Sobe in Arlington & "Speed Dating" Singles Party (for 20's/30's) at Ultra Bar in DC. www.thingstododc.com

• @expressnightout The Donovan House hotel provides a taste of the East with its new eatery, Zentan. http://tinyurl.com/mpvte8

THOMAS CIRCLE isn't exactly a hub of restaurant activity, surrounded as it is by sleepy hotels and apartment buildings. However, the Donovan House Hotel is hoping to fill that gap with its new Asian fusion eatery, Zentan.

• @thisismarissa Kind of good: Mt. Pleasant is getting a yoga studio. Kind of lame: No prices listed online = Probably expensive as $@#%! http://bit.ly/O6ca1

• @expressnightout The Freer and Sackler Galleries' 'Made in Hong Kong' film fest isn't just guts and guns. http://tinyurl.com/m8x27q

The Freer and Sackler galleries and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office hope to raise the profile of one territory's directorial brain trust with the "Made in Hong Kong" film festival, kicking off Friday. The series presents a nicely balanced range of films, despite HK's reputation as a place that spawns movies drenched in blood, violence and perversity.

• @wonkette Ulah Bistro: Everything’s Pretty, and So Tasty Once You Take It Apart: Eating out is an enjoyable process .. http://tinyurl.com/lzuqoa

Eating out is an enjoyable process because you don’t have to do anything besides decide what you want to eat and then eat it. However, when eating out becomes a complicated ordeal, like it can be at Ulah Bistro, well then we may have a problem.

• @16thstreetj Only a few spots remaining on the two @JonDemand buses going to Six Flags on July 19. Deadline to order is Sunday. http://bit.ly/SeyM5

• @ChrisBurnsDC Mansion Party Tonight. RT: @USRoyalty: RSVP at usrmansionparty@gmail.com - The list closes at 2pm.

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Ain't nothing like Twitter for finding a good time. Please share if you plan on attending any of these events!

Thank You!

A hearty thanks to DCBlogs and the Express for their linkage! Yesterday's post about my first press conference was picked up by both today. Always a lovely thing to wake up to!

New Artist: US Royalty

Washington, DC local boys make up US Royalty, an indie rock band and my latest obsession.

The group has 2 EPs under its belt and the guys are currently working on material for their first full length album. They performed recently at SXSW to rave reviews, and have fast risen to the top of the DC music scene.

Theirs is a sound both catchy and eclectic. In a recent DCist interview, lead singer John Thornley, guitarist Paul Thornley, drummer Luke Adams and bassist Jacob Michael cited Oasis and Kings of Leon as some influences, but were wary of defining themselves with a particular style. Said Thornley:

"I think we appreciate a lot of stuff so I think we take each song by itself. We write a whole bunch of songs and then we try to figure out how do these fit in together. Like we played one song for our first couple of sets and then we wrote a new song and we’re like, “OK, let’s drop the other one because we have one now that fits better.” But I think we do better in an album setting because the albums seem kind of disparate in a sense. There’s different kind of aspects of rock and roll and in the context of an album they make a little more sense."

Whatever their influences, one thing is clear: these guys rock. You can see them this Thursday at their "Mansion Party" at 16th & Riggs for a mere $10.


I also hear from my new roommate, who happens to know the guys personally, that they frequently play at Chi Cha Lounge. I definitely plan on popping in soon.

Check out their new video for "Raincoats."

Baby's First Press Conference

Yes, folks. It's true: I covered my first press conference at the Capitol yesterday as a member of the press.

I'm still all a-tizzy. I wrote a brief about the event, "Faith-based groups weigh in on health care."

So freakin' cool.

Not so cool though? I couldn't find the right entrance to the Capitol and had to go in through the Visitor's Center. And I called every Hill intern I knew for help navigating the building. Cut me some slack, it was my first time there on business.

I looked pretty professional once I got there, but I'm not sure the other reporters called their mothers immediately following the conference to gush about how prodigious it was. But let's be honest, wouldn't you do the same?

Circus a la Jackson

If you thought things couldn't get any crazier, consider the following: Michael Jackson's casket is currently en route to the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. It's going to be onstage throughout the entire tribute.

Come again?

If it wasn't a circus before, having Michael Jackson's lifeless body center stage as stars dance and sing around it to hundreds of MJ fans certainly pushes the ridiculous factor to 11. Making matters worse, there's talk that he might be on display. That's right. Open casket.

I can't think of anything else more inappropriate. Except maybe dressing his corpse up in a red leather jacket, attaching him to wires and making him dance "Thriller" marionette-style. Too soon?

Michael Jackson certainly was an American icon, and his tragic death has resparked interest in what was a tremendous musical career. But so far today, I have not seen one story on Iran, healthcare or the economy. I can't be certain, but I'm pretty sure there are things happening in the world today other than Michael Jackson's funeral.

However, the anchors on CNN don't seem to think so. Or those on MSNBC. Only Foxnews.com is featuring a story decrying the extensive coverage of Michael Jackson's funeral, titled "What About Our Boys? Family of GI killed in Afghanistan on same day Michael Jackson died decry King of Pop's wall-to-wall coverage." But, the importance of their story is somewhat downplayed when it's right next to a huge block of Jackson stories.

Oh my. When will this Jackson hysteria die down? Probably when the DC Metro starts running normally again. Meaning, not for quite awhile.

The Un-Tourist

Where in DC do you take a tourist who doesn't want to be a tourist?

This Fourth of July weekend, I helped host a reunion for two of my best friends from college. Sara lives here and Emily is from New York. The latter has been here before, so the former and I wracked our brains to come up with an itinerary that showcased un-touristy Washington. That meant staying away from the monuments, major museums and, *shudder*, tourists.

Now, I've made no secret of my conflicted relationship with tourists. Despite all my objections, I can usually usually stomach the map laden, sunscreen soaked, Air and Space destined hordes that clog the city in the summer months. But the thought of running amongst them on Independence Day brought cramped memories of Inauguration, which I fondly describe as being "the most amazing experience that I never want to repeat again. EVER."

With this in mind, Sara and I put together a list of activities that no tourist could possibly compile. And indeed, Emily was the lone "tourist" at most of these activities. Next time you host an out-of-towner, I suggest you give these destinations a try -- especially if the date coincides with a major national holiday:

Meals
If the three of us had to name favorite activities, eating would probably rank at the top. Considering how important food is to us, I steered us toward some great restaurants off the beaten path. We patronized smaller, neighborhood places in Woodley Park, Cleveland Park and Columbia Heights instead of the flashier ones down in Metro Center and Gallery Place. Yanni's Greek Taverna offered some wonderful outdoor seating and continues to be my favorite place to grab a gyro in DC, The Heights served up a particularly delicious grilled salmon with sweet soy with an atmosphere half trendy and half homey, and Open City holds its own as the best casual brunch spot north of Dupont Circle. Open City is also great for bringing together different groups of friends; the two us were joined there by several members of my former a cappella group, a couple of whom are frighteningly now grown up. A good time was had by all.

Activities
As I said earlier, monuments and museums were no-nos, so we had to think outside the box in terms of destinations. We settled on a visit to Eastern Market, a perfect outdoor activity that doesn't involve (too many) tourists. Even though the Capitol loomed overhead as we made our way toward the market, the Mall felt like a world away. Around us were regular Washingtonians, making their weekly purchases at the food stalls, seemingly oblivious to the 4th of July chaos only a short ways away. Later that night, we snagged a bottle of wine and brought it to the top of Sara's work building a few blocks west of Farragut North. There, we took in the fireworks on the Mall from a bird's eye view, far away from the sticky throngs below.

Nightlife
The sure fire way to avoid tourists is to go to a bar with a hidden door. Go figure. The Eighteenth Street Lounge fit the bill with it's inconspicuous entrance on Connecticut Avenue. It was a great choice -- at 10:30 pm on Friday, a long line for next door Public Bar snaked along the sidewalk, but we scooted into our venue right away. Inside, there was nary a tourist to be found. I sincerely doubt the same was true for Public Bar. The next night after the fireworks, we ducked into Vapiano on M Street, a restaurant better known for its pizza and pasta and lesser known for its amazing drink specials. Though dozens of groups passed by its glass doors, the inside remained uncrowded as we downed $4 glasses of (surprisingly palatable) white wine. Afterwards, our group migrated to the one place forbidden to most tourists: the (epic) house party. A hearty thank you to David for hosting one awesome shindig. I can't remember the last time I stayed out until morning light, but if ever there was an appropriate occasion, it's the Fourth of July.

In all, I believe Sara and I showed Emily authentic DC, and if nothing else, a good time. Where do you take your un-tourists?

New Music: Mashups Galore!

I was recently turned on to The Hood Internet, a website devoted to the art of the mash up. Now, I have a conflicted opinion of mash ups. Often, they seem forced and at times are unpleasant to the ear. Even when a mash up "works," I usually think the original is better.

However, Girl Talk has some great mash ups -- and some not so great ones -- but the former are good enough to make me reconsider my opinion of the genre.

The Hood Internet features some mash ups that work (and like Girl Talk, some that don't), a couple of which stand out. A "WEEZER vs DRAKE" mash up mixes Weezer's "El Scorcho" and Drake's "Best I Ever Had," and the result is something intriguing I'm not sure either artist could have concocted on their own.

Check it out. What are your thoughts?

I'm a Writer! Sort of...

It turns out my stint at Tryst was a short one, and today I find myself starting an editorial internship near McPherson Square. Hallelujah! I'm well on my way to becoming a legit, for real, honest to goodness journalist!

Baby steps, baby steps.

But the contrasts between my former life as a public relations guru and my most recent incarnation as a journalist (well, sort of) are stark:

1) LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! I used to be able to roll out of bed, walk 13 minutes down Connecticut Avenue and PRESTO! I had arrived at work. This morning, I took the Metro to Farragut North and walked four blocks to my new office. However, I had to watch 2 completely packed trains come and leave before I eventually crammed myself into one. Tomorrow, I'm trying the bus-- which, I'm sure, will bring its own set of frustrations. I officially hate public transportation.

2) WEARY IS THE ROAD OF THE INTERN. Now that I've graduated from college, I had thought my days as an intern were behind me. How wrong I was. I'm qualified for a position in communications, as proven by my previous position and numerous internships. I was even responsible for the hiring of interns at my last job. Journalism, as it turns out, is another story entirely. I have to start at the bottom, but it's something I'm well prepared to do.

3) INADEQUATE WARDROBE. I know every woman thinks this, but in my case it's true. My last job allowed me to wear jeans every day, meaning that although I didn't get to play dress-up, I wasn't forced to purchase any kind of pantsuit, cardigan or blazer. Now, in my new "business casual" environment, I'm struggling to put together appropriate ensembles. I'm thinking a trip to H&M is in my future. Or maybe, The Salvation Army. Ah, to be young and poor.

Despite everything, words can not describe how excited I am to be writing on a daily basis at this internship. I think I can handle one more year of pasta and canned foods.