This week may have sucked for you but hey at least you’re not Chelsea Manning. Congrats #DC, you’re not that fat; Reefers delight in the Reefs re-opening; Speaking of reefers, The Blaze to start chilling on the Hill; Speaking of REAL reefers, medical marijuana could be subsidized soon; Silly intern, you’re …

Meet Jeremy Essig. Jeremy is a full time comedian from St. Louis, MO. His comedy has been labeled “intelligent cynicism.” He’s appeared on NPR many times, and if that doesn’t make you a smart comedian, I don’t know what does. His Twitter followers include Members, Senators and Mayors on both sides of …

History in action (50 years on) Zombies are real (pigeons ) “I’m the batman” (-Ben Affleck ) Earthquake-iversary (today) Photo by Noe Todorovich

That is some bull [shark] Get real [dr. phil] Tense: HuffPo and [Aaron Sorkin] Photo by Bossi

Guess what opened today, K Street? [dunkin] The making of a DC high school [fast times] Bill Cosby could be on U Street [right now] Photo by Bossi

Nice while it lasted [weather] We advocate hand-to-hand combat [uber vs dc] Things at the White House are [sunny] eBay gold [doritos for sale] Pick a dog [any dog] Photo by Noe Todorovich 

FamousDC travels to Caldas da Rainha, Portugal, where there’s been bullfighting for the last 136 years. Photo Credit: Famous DC’s favorite shadow contributor @davidpopp and his lovely wife. He writes, “Flat Stanley, eat your heart out!”

Photo by Jeremy Art.

It’s grassy. It’s open. It’s blank space between monuments. At least one person’s asked you where it is, while standing on it. You’ve been there with out of town visitors. Yes, it’s the National Mall. You think you know it inside and out. Well, unless you’ve got some strong anti-aging …

All cleaned up [abe] Keep two hands on that thing [smartphone] 518 pitches [natitude] Train got tripped [silver line] via Kevin Wolf

The Smithsonian National Zoo held their eighth annual Brew at the Zoo benefit this past week. Apparently no one can say no to llamas, lions or beers, evident since the event sold out days before. Spread over one of the Zoo’s open areas, the benefit was packed with people tasting over 60 craft and microbrews (Capitol City, Abita, Chocolate City, DC Brau, Port City, Redhook, Saranac, Dogfish Head, Allegash and Devil’s Backbone, just to name ten). VIP attendees were able to get up close and personal with a llama, small mammals and lizards, but everyone could visit the majestic lion oasis. The District’s biggest beer and conservation fans toasted to various good causes at the National Zoo: animal care, education, wildlife conservation, and research efforts. All the while, a baby animal was born: The Pale Alephant, a new brew from Port City Brewery, was created and named for the occasion. Fueled by food from the likes of Pepe, BLT Steak, Jack Rose, Tonic, Rocklands, Red Hook and Goodies, DC’s finest took a few hours out of their Thursday night to talk shop, beer and animal welfare.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, opened in 1972 to much fanfare, took the banner of “central library” from the Mt. Vernon branch for which Andrew Carnegie donated funds (Carnegie Library at Mt. Vernon Square). After a study from Booz Allen confirmed the downtown area needed a modern library, the MLK Jr. Library was constructed. Now, the 40,000 square foot glass and steel hulk stands apart from its neighbors, not quite traditional DC style and not quite contemporary, but altogether bold. Originally (that’s 1896 originally), Congress decreed DC needed libraries “to furnish books and other printed matter and information service convenient to the homes and offices of all residents of the District.” Now, in an age where libraries can go bust thanks to digital resources, the library offers classes on modern subjects like how to use Adobe Illustrator (gasp!) and Vine (gosh!) and will have a Digital Commons space soon. Since it will be renovated (already in process), it’s worth a stroll through the stacks to get that pop-70s feel one more time.

The 9:30 Club as you know it today- an award winning, freestanding venue just north of U Street- wasn’t always on the corner of 9th and V NW. As a less-than-five-years-category newbie to DC, I’ve been to a couple dozen concerts at the 9:30, but didn’t know much about its history (including its  mysterious …

The Little White House. The Cutts-Madison House. The Howard T. Markey National Courts building. You’d be forgiven for missing these places. While centrally located, another home distracts you from their existence – the White House. Madison Place hides in plain sight. The grand Federalist and Italianate style homes on this closed street look like they should sit on acres of land, but they are instead built right alongside on another. Built between and 1820–1910, these mostly nineteenth century townhouses are obscured and shaded by the trees in President’s Park.

In the shadow of the DC Court of Appeals (or the National Building Museum, depending on the time of day) is a tribute so subtle, you might mistake it for a simple park. Three acres of space lined with cube-trimmed trees at Judiciary Square hold two rows of curving marble walls. Fierce adult lions and small lion cubs are perched atop these walls. The lions are a reference to the image in this quote from Proverbs, which is written in stone beneath one of the bronze cats: “The wicked flee when no man pursueth but the righteous are bold as a lion .” On those stone walls, the names of 19,660 fallen law enforcement officers are carved.