Happy Funtime Friend Service

Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

Alycia — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 17:05:10 +0000

Ok, I know it’s wrong, but I want to go to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival at some point because a co-worker of mine whose wife is really into the knitting said that he goes because of the lamb kebobs. Yes, not only do they fleece ‘em, but they then grill them as well (that’s sadistic and friggin’ awesome in my book). The festival takes place May 2-3, 2009 (this weekend!) at the Howard County Fairgrounds in Friendship, Maryland. There’s all kinds of events from spinning and dyeing classes to felt making and weaving demonstrations. Hell, there’s even a sheep beauty pagent of sorts (they call it the “Parade of Sheep Breeds”). Find more information and directions, etc. on their site: http://www.sheepandwool.org/

And if you go, bring me back a kebap!

Birbiglia – He’s in the Future Also

Alycia — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 22:17:48 +0000

Everywhere I go — there’s more Mike Birbiglia. He performed at the taping of This American Life and now this. A tour. The first time I heard Mike Birbiglia’s stand up he was opening for Jon Stewart at Merriweather Post. We’d missed the majority of his routine thanks to lousy dinner planning, but we caught his bit about playing Scrabble with Snoop Dogg. That was all I needed to hear. Now he’s coming to the Warner Theatre in DC on October 10th. It’s a pretty big venue for a stand-up, but I think he’ll fill it.

Grab your tickets now: http://www.livenation.com/edp/eventId/407207

This American Life – Live Taping

Alycia — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:17:59 +0000

This American Life - Live Taping

Stating that something will be “beamed via satellite” to select theatres sounds antiquated, but that’s the charm of This American Life which will be taping a stage show tonight, April 22nd, in New York City (natch) and “beaming” it using “technology” to movie theatres where we TAL nerds will sit munching on our German licorice and/or fancy schmancy malted milk balls from Dean and Deluca. Because I can’t just eat regular Whoppers like the rest of you.

Get tickets by visiting the This American Life’s site.

Update: If you missed the show, they’re doing an encore presention on May 7, 2009 in participating theatres, which is cool because the show featured both Mike Birbiglia and Joss Whedon… Joss Whedon singing. Yes, that Joss. Again, tickets from This American Life’s site.

Behind Closed Doors

Lisa — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 17:15:22 +0000

You’ll notice a theme – we like other people’s houses. Especially people who live in nicer places than ours. And the DC area is rife with house tours. I always liked the Georgetown House Tour with one exception – they used to spread it over two days and there were always one or two houses that you really wished you could go to that were open the other day. But now, they’ve solved that – it’s all on one day, this Saturday, and 11 (!) houses. Well, really 10 houses and one church. But that Church is historic and pretty plus they are including the Rectory on the house tour. And they host a Parish tea in Blake Hall to revive you once you’ve walked all over visiting all those houses.

Tickets are $45 and can be bought the day of the tour at the Church (corner of O and Potomac). The tour carries on rain or shine. They give you map and a booklet and you can set your own path and pace. Grab a friend and see what it’s like to live behind the brick walls in Georgetown.

Kevin Smith Plays Carnegie Hall

Alycia — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 14:55:23 +0000

The show is mid-week, June 17, 2009 @ 8PM, which sucks for us out-of-towners. Times like these that I do wish I were a New Yorker then I go up there and someone moons me as I wait for a train and the desire to live there passes. Tickets go on sale today, April 16, 2009 at 11am. Yeah, that’s short notice.

Tickets are available through Carnegie’s at www.carnegiehall.org or by calling (212) 247-7800.

We never promised you a Rose Garden

Lisa — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 13:50:05 +0000

This weekend the Rose Garden, the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden the Children’s Garden and the South Lawn of the White House will be open for the annual Spring Garden Tour. Also on view (from a distance) will be the very popular new “Victory Garden” or the White House Kitchen Garden as it is officially known. Read all the details about what you can and can’t bring so there are no surprises, but basically you can’t bring much. Strollers, wheelchairs, and cameras are permitted.

Tours are 10 – 4 on Saturday, April 18 and 11 – 3 on Sunday, April 19. Everyone needs a ticket and tickets will be distributed at the Ellipse Visitor Pavilion located at 15th and E Streets on each tour day beginning at 8:00 a.m (one per person, so everyone who wants to go needs to be in line). Tickets are only distributed for the same day so you can’t get tickets for Sunday on Saturday. And you should probably be in line already.

If you go, please post your pictures and let us know. Extra points if you get a picture of Bo. (The rules say no food or beverages but I wonder if that includes dog treats.)

For Our Next Trick…

Lisa — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 03:58:11 +0000

“…we’ll be playing Rock & Roll.” Those were the words of the lead singer of the Hives tonight at the Verizon Center as they opened for Maroon 5. They are playing a full set at the Black Cat on Wednesday night, and whatever your plans, are change them and go see this Swedish Rock and Roll band and let them woo you. You will be in love by the end of the night – with their energy, their banter, and their music.

See Once – The Live Version

Lisa — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 21:00:41 +0000

If you’ve been near me lately, you’ve been subjected to hearing me talk about the movie Once, the soundtrack, the Frames, how much I miss Dublin, etc. But thanks to the eagle eye of AMK, I just found out that our happy couple from Once are touring under the name The Swell Season and coming to the Lincoln Theatre (U Street, next to Ben’s Chili Bowl) on Sunday, 18th November. Tickets are available as of today at Ticketmaster and are somehow General Admission. I’m not sure how that’s going to work at the Lincoln Theatre, but we’ll see. If you’re going, post a note here or over on iLike at Facebook. We’ll be at Ben’s for dinner before the show.

I was just at the Lincoln Theatre for the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival and it’s beautifully redone and I had just decided I wanted to attend more events there, so if that’s extra incentive (like the soundtrack from the movie shouldn’t be enough) we’ll see you there.

Books on the Mall

Lisa — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 16:08:53 +0000

More festivals – this time with authors. And a great place to get started on your Christmas shopping (I know – it’s early, but trust me, personalized autographs from favorite authors make books seems like great presents). And this Saturday you can get them all in one place – on the National Mall. It’s the Library of Congress Book Festival with pavilions for Home, Fiction, Poetry, History & Biography, Children, Teens, and more. Authors include Terry Pratchett, DC’s own Stephen Hunter and Ann Amernick, Ken Burns, and Dr. Sanjay Gupta. There will be readings and book signings. They do have books for sale but they do run out if it’s particularly popular, so if you absolutely have your heart set on getting something signed, it’s not a bad idea to bring it with you instead of relying on buying it there. Be sure to check the signing schedule – sometimes it’s a tough choice about seeing someone speak or getting a good spot in line. And if the lines get long the authors will limit the number of items they’ll sign to get through everyone, so be understanding if that happens – they’re trying to get to everyone.

Adams Morgan Day 2007

Alycia — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 13:00:47 +0000

If you’ve got a craving for fried things – noodles, rice, and funnels – then make a note to chug on out to the Adams Morgan Day Festival on Sunday, September 9 from noon to 7 p.m. Just be sure to put on some sunblock so you don’t fry your face (still waiting for Lisa to write her memoir My Life in the Shade. Hello? Did you not know the sun lurks just waiting for an opportunity to burninate you?)
Right in my beloved ‘hood, Adams Morgan Day features fest food and two (maybe three?) stages with local performers entertaining drunkards all day. You can catch anything from Chinese dragon dancers to African drummers to bluegrass musicians. Belmont Street is usually dedicated to local artists and craftspeople hawking their cool, but sometimes pricey wares. If the weather’s warm, walk the street, grab a lemonade and some doro wat from an Ethiopian vendor, find a shady spot and dig in.