LunaK should be on this, but she doesn't have Old School rights for some reason (not sure why I do really)

12/21/2009 8:06:39 PM

Hey guys. Let's have a drink sometime!

12/21/2009 9:41:03 PM

I'll be back on the 27th. Lets have a drink that week!

12/24/2009 9:10:18 PM

i'm in Annapolis - i could be convinced to actually meet people from TWW if there is alcohol involved

12/25/2009 1:42:06 AM

I'm back, I'm on break, have nothing to do all week...

12/27/2009 9:13:34 PM

i'm in.

12/29/2009 11:00:24 PM

Well, my birthday is New Year's, I think we're going to Front Page NYE.

12/30/2009 11:24:11 AM

tired of damn snow

2/5/2010 8:53:31 PM

^

Always manages to fuck up my weekend plans too.

2/5/2010 9:09:16 PM

any of you in that massive snowball fight?

2/8/2010 4:29:58 PM

Built a snowman at the footsteps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Brace yourselves, another 8-12 inches tomorrow.

2/8/2010 6:07:48 PM

sup

2/9/2010 4:46:30 PM

Quote :

"Fairfax Connector will not be operating on Wednesday, Feb. 10."

Well, that clears things up.

2/9/2010 10:02:47 PM

snow day

2/10/2010 1:21:39 PM

I don't like having to wake up at 6:30 to figure out if I have to go to work or not.

So it's nice when they realize the day before that things are fucked.

2/10/2010 1:51:49 PM

I don't think I've seen a blizzard this bad even when I lived in western Massachusetts.

2/10/2010 2:36:11 PM

I think when all this snow melts we will find our missing house cat....

2/10/2010 10:54:47 PM

I shoveled my driveway twice yesterday, the second time after the snow completely stopped. Now it is covered again with blown snow. I think I will wait until 10 minutes before I leave to shovel again...

2/11/2010 8:46:20 AM

Anyone get stuck in the latest Metro disaster?

For those who don't know, a train derailed just outside of Farragut North a little after 10 a.m. Only three very minor injuries reported so far.

Red line was shut down for about two hours, but is allegedly "back on schedule."

Thankfully, I'd already been at work for a little over an hour, but this is my station.

2/12/2010 1:42:12 PM

4-8 Inches on Monday ...............

2/14/2010 6:06:46 PM

ugh. I can't stand this shit. I thought I'd be OK without car, it's damn near impossible to get to work when there are no sidewalks

exhibit A:

2/14/2010 9:22:24 PM

Unless you live like down the street from the metro, I dont see how you can have a life without a car...it would drive me crazy....even with the metro, if you just want to go driving you cant...heck my work is about a 15 minute walk from my house, but I rarily do that because I am always leaving 5 minutes before I need to be there.

2/18/2010 6:15:57 PM

I have a 1.5-2 hour commute, so yea it's driving me crazy. I'm hoping to get the hell out of here and buy a car as soon as possible.

2/18/2010 9:02:47 PM

I have my car here, but I very rarely use it. I live a block and a half from a metro station. Sometimes I drive on weekends, but mostly I can walk/metro everywhere.

I can understand why some wouldn't like that, but I definitely love it. Of course, I've only lived here for eight months.

2/19/2010 12:20:50 AM

I'm very jealous that Thecycle23 is so close to a Potbelly's

2/19/2010 10:13:05 AM

the people at my potbellys know my name and my order because i eat there every day. (there's one right across the street from my office)

they're my potbellys family

2/19/2010 10:19:27 AM

I hate that Charlotte doesn't have one. I could eat their salads everyday.

2/19/2010 10:22:58 AM

i eat a chicken salad salad with fat free vinaigrette and a cookie

EVERY

DAY.

2/19/2010 10:24:07 AM

I used to take the Metro to work everyday. It was about a 35 minute trip when you add in all the time it takes to walk to and from the station.

Then one weekend, I drove in to work. Took 10 minutes. I stopped taking the metro after that.

2/19/2010 12:12:33 PM

^LOL. I like that. Might make DC more efficient.

2/19/2010 8:21:25 PM

My rail/bus commute out to Reston every day takes about an hour, while the drive takes anywhere from 30-45 minutes. I don't mint it at all - it's relatively stress free and I get some reading in. Being two blocks from the Court House station helps.

My car just sits there for a couple weeks at a time - enough snow finally melted away for me to get in the door on Saturday...dead battery

2/24/2010 11:38:38 PM

Quote :

"any of you in that massive snowball fight?"

I haven't been to this thread in a while, anyway, the answer is YES. I was all up in it. Here's some video I took:

2/26/2010 6:09:58 PM

Anyone going to see the cherry blossoms? Is it worth it?

4/3/2010 5:57:37 PM

Cherry Blossoms are beautiful, but during the day the entire Tidal Basin is packed. Worth doing once at least while you're in DC.

4/5/2010 11:06:45 AM

not as crowded this year as it's been years past, imho

gorgeous out there though

4/5/2010 8:43:01 PM

I'm spending my first summer in around 4 years away from DC. I can't wait, I love this city, but after 4 years I need to get the FUCK away for a while.

5/2/2010 9:27:00 PM

I will be starting a new assignment in Tyson's Corner first thing in June. I actually worked in the area before, but I always lived in Frederick and commuted on 270. I will not be doing that that anymore

So, let me hear some advice on :
A) Short term apartment 1-3 mo
B) Possibly a place to buy

Short term rent needs to be walking distance from Metro, I would like it to be in the "walkable" part of town (at least similar to Frederick downtown area, I thoroughly enjoyed it), I need to be able to park 1 vehicle somewhere walking distance and secure. I m open right now on cost of the rent, but I would like to keep it under 1400/mo if possible. Studio or 1 br will be fine. I prefer modern interiors and lots of light. I really like converted spaces (buddy lives in a cconverted factory in BMore, but there seems to be a lot less of those types of places in DC.

Oh yeah and i'd defenitely be down for meeting some TDubbers, esp. if there's alcohol involved

I am still thinking over buying a place in the area, and a lot more open on that one (Studio in Georgetown/Downtown? One bedroom in Alexandria? Rowhouse in Anacostia?). It will be a home for me and my wife and in a couple years we would use it as a rental property as we move on to the next job. Obviously I will be doing a lot more research after I move, but off top of your head, do you know of any major advantages/disadvanteges with owning in DC vs owning in VA DC metro area?

5/3/2010 2:40:29 PM

i'll need some advice on places to live as well. i'm gonna be moving up to the area this summer for a new job in arlington. one of my cousins wants me to move in with him, but he lives out in burke, and i don't think i want to deal with the commute. i don't really know a whole lot about the area outside of fairfax, so i'd really appreciate it if anyone wants to take me under their wing in the next 2-3 months before i move up there and offer suggestions

5/9/2010 3:43:15 PM

I'm not as familiar with DC, but here are my initial thoughts on NoVA.

Rat Soup, if you're going to be working in Arlington for just the summer and want to live in the neighborhood, I recommend trying to find something along the Rosslyn-Courthouse-Clarendon-Ballston metro corridor. It's a bit pricey, but you'll have easy access to DC and to a lot of the hot spots in the area. Where exactly in Arlington will you be working? Another good alternative is to look into areas around Dunn Loring and Vienna metro stations. Those areas are more affordable, and you still have easy metro access. Alexandria may not be a bad option either.

Igor, the only truly "walkable" areas that are metro accessible outside of DC proper that I know of would likely be again around Rosslyn-Clarendon-Ballston and Pld Town Alexandria. However, the former is pricey, and Alexandria might be a bit of a headache going to Tysons. If you don't need to be right in a walkable area, somewhere like Dunn Loring or Vienna might not be bad as you'll be near Tysons but are still close to the metro.

In terms of buying, you could always buy a condo again along that Rosslyn-Clarendon-Ballston corridor. You'll pay an arm and a leg for ones near metro stations ($350k starting for newer 1BR/1BA), but if you pick the right buildings, your value will hold. Except for the really overpriced ones from right before the housing bubble burst, most of the units in the area have held their value or even increased. The location is convenient, and you'll have no shortage of renters given its prime location and easy access to DC. In summary, you may not experience massive growth in property value, but you won't lose property value, and the rental market is strong.

If you're looking for growth though, word has it that the area near Dunn Loring metro will be the next big place. They're supposedly developing a new walkable community there, so property values will probably start climbing.

I'm not sure what the big real estate hot spots are within DC right now. Columbia Heights was big for a while, but I don't think you can get any real bargains there anymore. The waterfront area around Nationals Stadium was on the cusp of supposedly taking off, but the recession has disrupted development efforts down there. Never a big fan of Georgetown; always hit me as being overpriced not just in terms of property but cost of living. Traffic is always a bitch there.

5/9/2010 5:28:15 PM

Quote :

"Rat Soup, if you're going to be working in Arlington for just the summer and want to live in the neighborhood, I recommend trying to find something along the Rosslyn-Courthouse-Clarendon-Ballston metro corridor. It's a bit pricey, but you'll have easy access to DC and to a lot of the hot spots in the area. Where exactly in Arlington will you be working? Another good alternative is to look into areas around Dunn Loring and Vienna metro stations. Those areas are more affordable, and you still have easy metro access. Alexandria may not be a bad option either."

well when i said i was moving up there for a job this summer i meant i'd be permanently relocating, or at least for the next couple years. i only had phone interviews for the job, so i haven't actually been to the location, but i'm pretty sure it's a couple blocks up from pentagon centre on army navy drive. i think i'd like to live closer to that area or maybe alexandria as opposed to the areas near dunn loring or vienna. i just don't know if i'd be able to afford it my first year or not depending on what places i looked at. and i'm thinking i might have to look into a one bedroom place since i don't really know anyone who lives up there. i've seen a couple newer looking apartment buildings online, but they're all pretty outrageous. i'd definitely like to be able to walk to work or be able to take a short ride on the metro though.

5/9/2010 6:11:27 PM

Oh, my bad. While I'm not a big fan of Crystal City and Pentagon City (pretty dead at night with a few small exceptions), there are a few relatively affordable areas. Alexandria may not be a bad option if you're working in Pentagon City since the blue line runs right through there.

Supposedly there are some cheaper places in the area between US-50 and Wilson/Clarendon Blvds (in the neighborhoods of Courthouse and Rosslyn). I'll have to ask a few friends, see if they know anything specific.

5/11/2010 12:00:43 AM

I've lived in the Colonial Village apartments in Court House for about 4 months now. The main attraction was relative affordability and easy Metro access, but I've been pretty happy all around. A 1BR place there seems to average around $1400.

A little old (build 1920's, first garden style apartments in the country and on the National Register), but the location is super convenient to bars, restaurants, Metro, DC, parks, bike and foot trails...and in the springtime I can't see anything outside my windows but trees.

5/11/2010 11:12:32 PM

^ are there any pictures of that place? it seems nice, but i can't really find any

5/15/2010 2:52:29 PM

they're all individually owned (I think) so there's not really a webpage for the place or anything like that

a few here: http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/search/apa/nva?query=%22colonial+village%22&bedrooms=

most of the units are pretty comparable, some may be slightly more updated/modernized, floor covering and kitchen size were the variables I noticed most when looking around

my particular unit has communal laundry machines, basement bike storage, and a small cage in the basement for storing whatever

5/16/2010 6:48:43 PM

soon

5/16/2010 7:52:10 PM

2 weeks!

Thanks, RedGuard. It looks like we should be able to get a sublease for a couple months considering the timeframe, and if not, there are some really nice (if overpriced) fully furnished short-term apartments both in Arlington and DC that we can afford to check our for a couple of months and see how I we like living in each area. Meanwhile we'll be able to check out a few places that are for sale. We will be sure to look into the Rosslyn area.

Another question, how bad is investing into a Coop property? They seem to be lower priced than comparable condos, and the fees seem to be the same or lower. I guess there is a reason for it? I've heard to stay away from them, anyone has any experience to prove otherwise?

5/17/2010 9:34:26 AM

Bye DC, see you in 3 months!

I have nowhere to live when I get back, crashing with my girlfriend for a little probably.

5/19/2010 11:49:09 AM

so even though we have them in MD already, we are apparently getting a bo's at union station now.

walking distance bo's ftw.

5/21/2010 11:45:47 AM

Oh SNAP.

I'm super pumped I found a Jersey Mikes in Germantown, which actually just opened a few weeks ago apparently. One opened in Laurel back in March, but that's too far. Now that I live in Gaithersburg, the Germantown location is like 10 min away.

5/21/2010 3:13:44 PM

'fraid I don't know much about how Co-op properties work.

Can testify that Colonial Village has a great location. I live across the street from there, and its really convenient.

5/21/2010 4:05:56 PM