I had most of my week last week hijacked by a kid birthday and the circus that is auditions at Duke Ellington School of the Arts. The school is gorgeous and I will be happy if my son gets in, but let’s just say that I’ve seen enough of one of their auditoriums to last me a couple of lifetimes– and it looks like I get to see it again today. Send good vibes and snacks, please.
On a separate note, can I just complain for a hot minute about how insane applying for *high school* is? When I was 14 years old, I attended my local high school and it was an underwhelmingly normal experience.
On with the news!
Our last buzz was sorely incomplete because that afternoon, we learned that Spring Mill Bread Company is leaving their cozy little spot on the southwestern corner of 8th and G Streets SE. What’s taking their place? A new branch of Call Your Mother Deli! Bagel enthusiasts are very excited and we see a bagel comparison post in our future (maybe). But can we take a moment to be properly indignant about the crazy rents that are keeping Barracks Row from being at full capacity? This is not okay. Eater
Art fans around the Hill will miss the beautiful energy of the Corner Store, a home and art space cofounded and curated by Kris Swanson and her husband Roy Mustelier. The Hill Rag has a nice retrospective on what this space and its resident artists meant to the community. Kris was gracious enough to let me interview her for a school project, where she discusses the artistic process (Vimeo). Thank you for being the first place where I showed my photos. I still have the commission check pinned to a bulletin board in my room, Kris. Thank you.
We’re still going a little batty for the Girl Scout activists trying to champion the brown bat as DC’s mammal (WAMU) — a campaign with much more research and weight than when the cherry was declared the District’s official food. To clarify, Yoshino cherry trees do not produce a fruit that is edible for humans unless you’re stranded in some island and there is nothing else to eat. Washingtonian
By now, we’re late to the “AOC doesn’t know where to eat in DC” kerfuffle, and her subsequent apology. You can catch up in this Washington Post article by Tim Carman, just in case you missed it. It’s okay. We all miss things. But you know what? We are in love with our corner stores. They may not be the bodegas of New York City, but I know I would be lost without Capitol Hill Supermarket. Our friend Barred in DC did an extensive post about corner store sandwiches around the Hill. Clearly, AOC needs someone to take her a G-Man sandwich to the office and I volunteer Raman as tribute.
PoPVille has some info on a carjacking from last week. Ugh.
Apartment buildings– especially the new ones around H Street NE–– are the new art galleries and we love it. Washington City Paper
JDLand has a rundown of the latest retail coming to, uh, JDLand. That is all.
Interested in the Southeast Library renovation? Larry has the latest on that project at Capitol Hill Corner.