IMG_5984, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

I know we’ve sort of covered this before but I’m wondering what the threshold is for deciding on installing bars on your windows? (Ed. note: I’m not talking about basement window bars I’m talking about first floor window bars and God forbid second floor window bars.) I figure if all the houses on the block have bars then you should probably get bars too? But what if only a few houses have bars, then do you get them also? I mean many of the homes in Dupont Circle used to have bars but they don’t have them anymore? So what is the threshold for taking the bars off? You get what I’m saying right?

IMG_5975, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Every time a follower hands me a Watchtower at the Petworth metro the follower tends to be in their 60s or 70s. Where is the youth? Who will hand me my Watchtower in 10 or 20 years? Or is that why they are giving me the Watchtower so frequently…oh I get it, never mind.

IMG_5997, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Check out the flower sculptures on the roofs of these homes? Is it purely decorative or is it functional like a lightning rod?

IMG_5990, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Can it be both?

New development (controversy) coming to 14th and U St. from A Portable Snack.

Columbia Heights News has the skinny on the proposed plaza improvements with a nice graphic.

Anyone know what will become of Walter Reed Medical Center when the government vacates?

More opportunities to volunteer.

Where can we get Christmas trees?

More general contractor recommendations.

Window replacement choices requested and selected.

IMG_6027, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

This is a really well done new construction on 11th St. I believe near U St.

IMG_6023, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Dang, now that they mention it, who would feed my fish? Do they have insurance that would take care of that?

As I was walking home from work a young lad perhaps 15 or 16 was walking past me with his girlfriend.  This was the one sentence I overheard him say: “I’ll never forget the first time I saw my moms locked up”.  Or something like that.  My God.  I could not imagine my life if my mom had been in jail and in this case on more than one occasion.  There but for the grace of God…   I grew up in New York with my Mom and Dad driving me to soccer games every weekend.  I am who I am now, not because there is anything in my DNA, or because my parents were rich (both civil servants), but because I had fantastic parents who raised me properly and did everything in their means to give me a good childhood.  You know former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak once famously said, if I were born Palestinian I would probably be a terrorist.  And if I had seen my mom locked up I would probably be selling drugs and toting a gun or at least in someway “off track”.  I’m not saying this particular kid is mixed up in the game but I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case.  On a lesser note, it also makes me think about the littering problem.  If a kid like that is littering what the hell does he care about tossing trash on the ground when his mom is in jail.  Maybe he simply wasn’t taught that littering disrespects his neighborhood.   I’m just saying the incident gave me pause and made me realize it is not fair just to automatically blame the kids who are mixed up in a rough lifestyle, its something to think about.  I suppose this is where mentoring could really help…maybe the only thing that could help.

IMG_6005, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

What do you think about this third level? Do you think it is period or a newer construction made to look Victorian? (Ed. note: I’m not sure if that is actually in the Victorian style but I didn’t know what else to call it!)

IMG_6022, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

This is the sign out front of a tattoo parlor located at you guessed it, 926 U Street, NW. Incidentally, I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo lately but I couldn’t decide what I wanted to get. Well, I think that question has finally been answered…

IMG_6004, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Hate changing your porch lightbulbs? Hate the environment and don’t want to purchase the new environmentally friendly longer lasting bulbs? Perhaps kicking it old school would be a good choice. This house sports a gas fed porch light. It’s kind of hard to tell from the photo but it looks great. I’ve also noticed a whole block of row homes on 13th St, just north of Logan Circle has the gas fed lights out front as well. Perhaps this is becoming a trend?  I wonder how difficult they are to maintain. Personally, I think I would kill myself. I am one of few people (thankfully) who tried to change my stove hood without turning off the electricity first. Why? Because I didn’t want to reset all the clocks! And yes, I got the shock of a lifetime. I also re-lit my boiler one year with out turning off the gas all the way, so perhaps this is not the light for me… What do you guys think pretty cool or more trouble than it’s worth?

IMG_6013, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

Someone mentioned this restaurant in a previous post’s comments section. Apparently it is owned and operated by Ethiopians and there was some speculation that perhaps Italy’s occupation of Ethiopia may have been an influence. Anyone else know the story behind this restaurant or have eaten here? Most importantly, how’s the food?

IMG_6016, originally uploaded by Prince of Petworth.

I had really been looking forward to checking out the 9th and U St. Flea Market…little did I know. The photo above almost cost me a serious ass kicking. I’m kind of like Vinny Testaverde, one more ass kicking and it will do me some serious permanent damage. So even though that is not the greatest picture you have to appreciate it just a little bit given the circumstances. You see when I tried to take the above picture the proprietor of the stand beneath it pretty much freaked out. And her very large friend advised me not to take any photos. After some serious pleading – alright fine – crying, I promised only to capture the sign and not any of her merchandise for sale. So please ignore the jackets in the picture for my own safety. Please.

Anyway, the Flea Market is one of the most eclectic markets I’ve ever seen. They sell everything from electronics, to fruit, to socks, to African sculptures, to shoes, to jackets, to canned salmon, well you get the point. Now I took a number of photos which you’ll be able to see after the jump and my suspicion is that this market may not be totally on the up and up. Let’s just say some of these electronics and such may have “fallen” off the truck. That is the only explanation I have to explain the looks I received as I was taking photos and jotting down notes. Well, there is also a very large immigrant community at this market and perhaps, some may still be undergoing some paperwork because the iciness of the stares I got resembled the look on Rocky Marciano’s face when he stared down Joe Louis.

I really don’t know how to sum up this experience but if you leave your camera and note pad at home you won’t have any problems and you can find some pretty interesting items, that is for sure. If you are going for the electronics you may want to bring a certain moral flexibility…

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