Fossils from the National Museum of Natural History

Now that I’ve been living in DC for nine months, long enough to gestate a baby, should one be so inclined, here are 10 things I love about living here.

1. Watching the fireworks from Friday night Nats games from our rooftop deck. Too bad the Nats are in the basement. I know it’s a recession and all, but is .500 baseball really too much to ask? Excellent fireworks, though.
2. Hearing Reveille, Taps and other bugle calls from the Marine Barracks seven blocks away from the rooftop deck. This is the oldest active Marine post in the U.S., whose location Thomas Jefferson helped select.
3. Eastern Market, especially the truck farmers on weekends, Southern Maryland Seafood, Canales Delicatessen, with its rotisserie chicken and jalapeno sauce, the homemade pasta place, and the Market Lunch counter, despite its onerous seating policies.
4. Walking to the Capitol and the Mall. The Capitol is 18 blocks away, and the Mall is deceptively long, so if it’s more than 90 degrees, we the Metro. But it’s pretty awesome to walk and avoid the Metro and car traffic. Plus, there are often interesting protesters.
5. The Shenandoah National Park, less than two hours away. We went there a couple of weeks ago to celebrate our anniversary and stayed at the Skyline Lodge. While the temperatures in DC were in the high 90s, they were in the 70s at the Park. The views are spectacular and the hikes are challenging. Have a moonshine cocktail or a cigar as you watch the sunset in the valley.
6. Biking on the Rock Creek Parkway. The DC portion of the Parkway is closed to cars on weekends, but the Maryland part is also accommodating to bicycles. Unlike biking in the city, you can get pedal as fast as your legs will take you. Serious cyclists are all over the route, traveling in packs with their garish jerseys.
7. Architecture, specifically the old brick townhouses in Capitol Hill, and their lovely gardens.
8. Diversity of its people: The population of the District of Columbia is quite diverse: 54% black, 40% white, 9% Latino, 3% Asian, 2% multiracial.
9. The license plates: Taxation Without Representation: Yeah! What do we have to do here to get a voting member of Congress?
10. The national museums. The the National Museum of Natural History has the best fossils and dinosaur bones in the world. If you have spent any time hunting for fossils like Petoskey stones, you will be amazed at the clarity and size of its collection. Of course, they have the best dinosaur fossils in the world, too, but I was hugely impressed by the invertebrate Cretaceous fossils. The National Air and Space Museum is great, too, with an iMax theater and space flight simulation. You might want to avoid it on weekends, though, if wandering hordes of children frighten you.

There are many other cool things about DC that I haven’t experienced yet, like the Eastern Shore, the Kennedy Center, the Spy Museum, and Ben’s Chili Bowl. You DC friends, tell me what I’m missing. What do you love about DC?

Next: 10 Things I Hate About DC…

Janet Fox (right) and me with PFLAG's handsome escort, Danny

When I first arrived in DC, the day after driving from Detroit, Oct. 11, the National Equality March was happening downtown. I walked a block down from our hotel and found the PFLAG contingent and walked with them. PFLAG, as you may know, stands for Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. I’ve been to only a couple of PFLAG meetings, in Ann Arbor, but they were important to me.

In October, I didn’t know anybody at the march, but PFLAG is a friendly group and they welcomed me. Cuz that’s what they do! I met Janet Fox, a fellow Hoosier, also transplanted to DC, who has since become a good friend. When it came time for the DC Pride Parade, June 13, we were happy to walk with Janet and her husband Tom in the PFLAG group. The parade was great people-watching. There were the politicians — pretty much all the DC council members were there, each with their own color-coded beads and candy. “Congresswoman” Eleanor Holmes Norton was there. Zip Cars was there, with rainbow-colored Minis. “Some of our best cars are gay,” their sign said. Frito-Lay was there, handing out free samples of Sun Chips and Doritos. There were great floats, drag queens, wigs, high heels, feathers and motorcycles. The crowd was huge, 10 deep around Dupont Circle, even though you didn’t read about it in the Post.

The DC PFLAG contingent, in contrast, was a bunch of middle-aged folks, wearing beads and some carrying signs saying we’re proud of our kids. (We also had a really incredible-looking shirtless young man walking with us. Awestruck bystanders of all persuasions, including a uniformed DC cop, had their photos taken with him.)

What was really astonishing to me was the reception PFLAG got. We heard huge applause. We got scores and scores of high-fives. A young woman jumped from the crowd and hugged me, which made me cry. A man kissed Janet’s hand and thanked her, which made her cry. What does it all mean? Saying we’re proud of our kids doesn’t seem that different than the bumper stickers bragging on our honor students. In fact, our LGBT kids are those same honor students. They’re still smart, challenging, vulnerable and loving. The only difference is that now we know their sexual orientation, or perhaps gender identity, is outside the norm (whatever that is).

It was clear to us that many, many of the people in the crowd have difficult relationships with their parents or other family members, and that they yearn for better. That is heartbreaking. So here’s what I want to say: If you know someone who is estranged from a gay, lesbian or transgendered family member, now is the time to reconcile. Make a phone call, send an email. Tell them you love them. Don’t argue about sin or scripture. Make the first step. It may be the beginning of a journey that could be tough for both of you, but it is absolutely worth it. Keep trying.

And if you need it, your local PFLAG chapter is a great place to talk to people who know what you’re going through.

Nats lose to Reds on June 6

The whole city is talking about Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg’s MLB debut tonight with anticipation rivaling, oh say, Barack Obama’s inauguration, or to put it in a Detroit context, Bob Lutz’s arrival at General Motors back in 2001 — when the hopes of a whole city, nation, or very large corporation seem to hinge on the abilities of one man.

I’m listening to the game right now on my iPhone, and he seems to be achieving success the President and Maximum Bob can only dream of. He just achieved his 12th K. Wait, make that 13. No, 14. Seriously. The Nats fans are screaming their heads off. I can hear them from here, a mile and a half away. Wait, no, that’s a helicopter. That was Strasburg’s last pitch tonight, and fortunately, the Nationals went on to beat the Pirates, 5-2.

We went to a Nats game Sunday, which, sadly did not feature any pitching phenoms. The Reds won, 5-4, featuring a blown save by Matt Capps, which was depressing to watch. Also, no Pudge, who is just back in the lineup tonight after an injury.

Observations about the Nationals:

• Love the Racing Presidents
• Love the electric violin made out of a baseball bat
• Love the half-smokes
• Love the easy access by Metro. It was crazy crowded trying to leave, though, so we walked home, 1.8 miles. We couldn’t do that in Detroit.
• Thank you for singing Take Me Out to the Ball Game at the 7th inning stretch.
• Hate the ticket prices. Our share in the Comerica season tickets in row 22 behind home plate have a face value of $39. The same tickets at Nationals Park cost $170! Maybe that’s why no one was sitting there.

So I’ll look forward to seeing another Strasburg game sometime this summer. I miss the Tigers hugely, but it would be great to see some good baseball when I can walk home from the game.

The Southwest DMV Station Friday.

They don’t make it easy here in the District to comply with the motor vehicle laws. I had 60 days after I arrived in town to get a replacement driver’s license and register my car in the district. It’s been more like, oh, 180. I’d heard the Department of Motor Vehicles was a Soviet-style nightmare, and although I’d really hoped to be able to say the experience wasn’t all that bad, in fact it was. On Friday, I went to “convert” my Michigan license to a D.C. one at the DMV Southwest Center. I arrived at 9:15 a.m., an hour after it opened. Here’s what I needed to bring with me:

• Proof of residency
• Proof of citizenship
• Proof of Social Security number
• Proof of ability to drive

To start with, proving your residency in the District isn’t easy. You can bring a your deed or lease, or a bill mailed to you, but it can’t be just any bill — it must be a utility bill, and a mobile telephone doesn’t count. If, by chance, your utilities are in the name of your spouse, parent or roommate, you must bring a form from him/her testifying that you live there, along with his/her proof of identity. (”Mom? Can I have your passport?”)

A birth certificate or passport proves citizenship. Now, once I’ve proved my citizenship, why is my Social Security number needed? Why is my driver’s license even connected to my Social Security number? This is particularly irritating to me because, sometime in the last 35 years, I have lost my original Social Security card. (By the way, why is this crucial document printed on a flimsy little piece of paper with no discernible anti-forgery measures, such as those found on even the $10 bill?) I’ve always been able to work around it, even when we lived in Belgium, where I had to show them my marriage license to get an identity card. Until now.

So I needed to prove that my Social Security number is what I said it was. I didn’t have my SS card, but I had a W-2 and a tax return, which I showed the gatekeeping triage customer service specialist at first counter. “Is the tax return certified?” he asked. No. Fail! I had only one alternative document and I needed two. He said I needed my Social Security card, or verification from a Social Security Administration office that my alleged number is mine. So I got back on the green line to the Anacostia station, walked four blocks to the Social Security Administration office, stood in line, got a number and sat down in a metal folding chair along with a couple of dozen other people who needed help. The power went out for 15 seconds or so. “Stay calm,” someone shouted. When the lights came back on, all the computers rebooted, and something beeped for another 10 minutes.

Once my turn came, the Social Security clerk was helpful. She needed only my Michigan driver’s license to verify my identity, ordered a replacement card for me and gave me the key document to take to DMV.

I took the green line back to Waterfront-SEU. Walked two blocks to the DMV. By this time it was 11:15, and a bigger crowd had arrived, hoping to get their DMV business done during their lunch hour. Poor fools! I made it past the Cerberus triage agent and received number C341. They were working on C320. About 90 minutes later, they called my number. Once I got to the counter, the woman there was friendly, competent and helpful, and the procedure took only 10 minutes, counting the photo and getting the license. At 1:20 I had my license, four hours after I’d first arrived at DMV.

Here’s how my experience stacks up against DMV Key Performance Indicators: The average time waiting for a driver’s license or ID — note that this time is only the time from gatekeeping triage agent to the counter agent, not counting the time you stand in line waiting to see the first agent — at DMV in 2009 was 23 minutes. 81% completed their visit in 40 minutes or less, worse than in 2008, due to the closing of the Brentwood Station. Another DMV KPI: they hope to have 83% of customers rating Driver Services as Satisfactory or better this year. Good luck with that.

Next week I am getting my car inspected and, I hope, registered in the District.

Great Falls, Maryland from Laurie Mayers on Vimeo.

A couple of weeks ago, we hiked the Billy Goat Trail B at Great Falls, Md., with my sister Karen and her husband Paul, as part A of the trail was closed due to flooding. It was a good workout, but not tough. So the day after Easter, my college-age daughter and I went for the Billy Goat Trail A. It ended up being quite a warm day (83 degrees), and the trees had not yet leafed out to provide shade, so our biggest mistakes were not bringing water or wearing sunscreen.

I live a pretty urban life here in the District. There’s the Metro, buildings, sidewalks, concrete, streets, farmer’s market, and a few little patches of parkland on the triangles created when L’Enfant added all those diagonal streets to the city grid. I do miss big trees and water.

Turtles soaking up the sun

Fortunately, Great Falls is just 15 miles from D.C. I’ve been to the Maryland side, starting my hikes from the Great Falls Tavern (if only it really were!) Visitor’s Center. The park is hugely popular on the weekends. If you show up at noon or later, the parking situation is like Twelve Oaks Mall on Black Friday, meaning you’ll have to creep behind someone walking back to their car in hopes of nabbing their space.

Billy Goat Trail A was thoroughly challenging (though not technical), with hands and feet required to scramble at several points. The most intimidating part was a narrow ridge set into a cliff. Vertigo, anyone?

The other fascinating part of the hike is the story of the 184-mile C&O Canal, the culmination of George Washington’s dream to make the Potomac navigable. By the time the canal was finished, however, it had been rendered nearly obsolete by the railroads. Now, though, it’s a really excellent place to hike and ride a bicycle.

Christopher Barger on the outlook for the Tigers from Laurie Mayers on Vimeo.

The Washington Nationals and the Detroit Tigers start their baseball seasons today, the Nationals at home against the Phillies and the Tigers in Kansas City. I am sorry not to be at either stadium on Opening Day, but will definitely catch Pudge Rodriguez in his current home later this season. The Tigers have upset some fans by trading star and all-around nice guy center fielder Curtis Granderson to the Yankees and by paying $8 million for evil aging Yankee/former Red Sox Johnny Damon. In any case, I saw social media evangelist Christopher Barger in Detroit last week (disclosure: client) and asked him about the coming season. (This is my first video; I’ll do better next time with the edits and the unsteady cam.)

Circumcision protesters at the Capitol Saturday

I don’t know why, but these stories keep popping up, so to speak. Now that the Tea Party protesters have gone home, along with the thousands protesting for immigration reform — who were practically ignored by the media, due to bad timing — this week’s protesters were few in number but equally provocative.

Standing on the Capitol’s South Lawn on a sunny day, when the Mall was full of families flying kites and tourists ogling cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin, these “intactivists” held several attention-grabbing signs.

So I went to their web site, StopInfantCircumcision.org, which has a charming, early ’90s web design, reinforcing the impression that this is a fringe group without enough funds to build itself a decent web 2.0 site, accompanied by Facebook fan page and Twitter feed. But if you click on the “I’d rather not know” button on their homepage, you’ll see a photo of a baby undergoing the procedure. He certainly appears to be in pain. And let it be said that the American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend routine circumcision for babies, but yet more than half of U.S. parents of baby boys choose the procedure.

The Stop Infant Circumcision site also has an interesting article about Nobel Laureate George Wald’s adoption of the movement and his attempt to interest the legendary New Yorker editor Wallace Shawn in an essay on the topic. Shawn declined, and 25 years later, New Yorker senior editor Hendrik Hertzberg told circumcision opponent Van Lewis, “I am not at all surprised that Shawn turned it down. The reason, I’m sure, is that he was incredibly queasy about anything involving bodily functions and/or private parts. He wouldn’t have even allowed the word ‘foreskin’ into the magazine, let alone publish an entire article about the cutting off of same.”

So while the gentlemen at the Capitol seemed a bit wacky (the Uncle Sam hat and the tie-dye, for example, not leading to an impression of seriousness) they do have their points. But, really, wouldn’t the Washington Monument have been a better site for the protest? Or, better yet, the Ypsilanti Water Tower?