On the Red Line

Are you looking for something new to be paranoid about? Now, you can learn how to collect and grow the bacteria living in your home.

Keith Lampel of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the Food and Drug Administration will be teaching two sessions at the Marian Koshland Science Museum. In the first class on July 9th, he’ll teach you the basic techniques you need to know and send you home with the appropriate equipment.  During the second session on July 16, you discuss the results of your at-home experiments.

The class costs $15 for both sessions and reservations are not required. The nearest Red Line Metro stop is Judiciary Square.

(Photo by extraspecial)

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1. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing Workshop
2. “Your Brain on Music”

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The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) is celebrating the start of Carnaval with free Latin jazz and salsa dancing.  Eileen Torres of Salsation Productions will be there, along with her dance ensemble, to give salsa demonstrations.

The whole shebang is free and kicks off at 5 PM in the Kogod Courtyard. The nearest Metro stop to the SAAM is Gallery Place-Chinatown.

(Photo by ruurmo).

Related posts:

1. March 7 and 8: Dance Bethesda
2. July 1-3: Free Yoga in Rockville

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The Strathmore’s free summer outdoor concert series continues this week with Jonathan Batiste.  Batiste is a 22 year old jazz pianist from New Orleans. This Julliard graduate comes from a long line of musicians and first played with the Batiste Brothers Band when he was eight years old.

The music starts at 7 PM. The Strathmore is a very short walk from the Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro stop.

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1. Feb. 17: Discover Strathmore
2. July 1-3: Free Yoga in Rockville
3. June 7 and 8: Dupont-Kalorama Museum Walk
4. A Metro Moment
5. Feb. 29: Symphony With A Twist

Tags: free, grosvenor, music, strathmore // Add Comment »

A small film festival highlighting the career of Jim Henson is on its way to the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring. This traveling series will open with The Muppet Movie on July 12th and Muppet History 101 on the 13th.

Other movies on the schedule include: Muppet Music Moments, Labyrinth, The Dark Crystal, The Muppets Take Manhattan, Muppet Fairy Tales, A Better World: Living in Harmony, Commericals and Experiments, and Dog City. Several of these programs include footage from the vaults of The Jim Henson Legacy and you won’t see them anywhere else.

This film festival coincides with the new touring exhibit from the Smithsonian: Jim Henson’s Fantastic World. This exhibit will be at the Ripley Center from July 12 through October 5th.

Tickets for any of these can be purchased at the AFI box office or online.Your nearest Metro stop will be Silver Spring.

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1. May 2: The 48 Hour Film Project
2. June 1: Israel @ 60, A Capital Celebration
3. Feb. 13: Czech film at the Avalon
4. Silver Spring Restaurant Week
5. Uncle Tom’s Cabin in North Bethesda

Tags: dc, events, festival, film, maryland, silver spring // 4 Comments »

There’s another interesting free show at the Kennedy Center Millenium stage this weekend. This time it is Los Texmaniacs. They play a mix of conjunto, Southern rock, and blues. You’ll find them on the Millenium Stage at 6 pm Sunday night.

The band is in town for the Smithsonian Folk Life Festival, which started June 25th. This year’s festival themes are Bhutan, Texas and…well…NASA. And yes, that last one doesn’t make much sense to me either. Perhaps there’s more to the folk heritage of NASA than I know. Regardless, you can catch Los Texmaniacs in the Texas section of the festival along with Marcia Ball, CJ Chenier (son of Clifton Chenier), Guy Clark, and many others.

Related posts:

1. Feb. 17: Discover Strathmore
2. May 28-June 6: A Cappella, Singing Solo

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Here’s a weird tidbit of news found via the Washington D.C. Metblogs:

Apparently several Metro employees were arrested on prostitution charges. They had apparently had been procuring prostitutes for customers within the Metro station. They were nabbed after being approached by an undercover cop–who first became aware of the situation after picking up a flier while in Brazil.

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1. Free Yoga During DC Yoga Week

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A new non-profit called “Charity for Debt” is starting up in the D.C. area. In exchange for volunteer work, current students and graduates can earn money that is paid directly toward their student debt. Volunteers will be paid up to $20 an hour, and that money will be funneled tax-free to their student loan payments.

Right now, they’re attempting to round up a pilot set of volunteers and sponsors in the D.C. and Dallas, TX areas. Assuming these pilot projects are a success, you can expect to see them expand to other parts of the country.  You can learn more about the program through their Facebook group or their blog. Also, you can submit an application to become a volunteer at their website.

No related posts.

Tags: charity, dc // 1 Comment »

Sacred Space Yoga in Rockville will be offering free Kundalini-style yoga from July 1st through July 3rd. The classes are from 8:30 to 9:30 am. They ask that you bring at least a towel and some water.

The nearest Metro stop will be White Flint.

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1. Free Yoga During DC Yoga Week
2. May 24: Rock Creek Park, Maryland Style
3. Water Problems Continue
4. June 7 and 8: Dupont-Kalorama Museum Walk

Tags: free, maryland // Add Comment »

On June 28th, DC SMASHED is holding a scavenger hunt to benefit charity.  The idea is this: 1) Show up with a team of 4-6 people, preferably in costume. 2) Pay a $50 fee to participate. Extra charitable donations will boost your scavenger hunt score. 3) Scavenge for items all around the Dupont Circle Area and complete tasks to earn more points.

After all is said and done, there will be a free party for participants at an undisclosed location. Proceeds from all this nonsense go to support The Reading Connection–a literacy-based organization that works with at-risk kids. Actually, the whole point of DC SMASHED (Society of Mature Adults Seeking to Help, Entertain, and Donate) is to support charity through ridiculous activities.

Related posts:

1. May 17: Strut Your Mutt
2. Farmers’ Markets
3. June 7 and 8: Dupont-Kalorama Museum Walk

Tags: contests, dc, dupont circle, events, oddities // 3 Comments »

The Dumbarton House is hosting a discussion by chocolatier Eric Johnson on hot chocolate. During this June 19th tasting, Johnson will share an 18th century hot chocolate recipe as well as truffles from Krishon Chocolates.

The Dumbarton House will also be open past normal hours during this evening event. The tasting runs from 5:30 pm to 7:30pm and so will guided tours of the house. The house itself dates back to 1703 and is an example of the Federal period’s architecture.

The event costs $20 and requires advance registration. The nearest metro station will be Dupont Circle’s Q Street North exit.

(photo by rachel is…)

Related posts:

1. June 5: Congressional Conversation
2. June 6: Bob Saget

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