C A P I C O S T I A

East-of-River locals, old and new, crammed into a forum on urban renewal, hosted by R.E.E.L. (River East Emerging Leaders) at Department of Employment Services Headquarters , on Tuesday night. In another 'Don't be afraid of gentrification' forum, civic officials and River East newcomers (some, REEL members) butted heads with long-standing Southeast residents. Engaged and enraged, locals demanded information about upcoming development, east of Big Annie, ..and refused to be condescended to. In the face of overwhelming skepticism, questioning their loyalty to old-time residents, REEL took the progressive route, inviting all River Easters to join the organization and become a part of seeking solutions to decades-old OLD problems, ..instead of blocking progress. "[REEL and DC officials] not being real with us," a middle-aged resident confided in me, last Tuesday. "They talking about how all this development's supposed to improve everythin...

  [Urban Eats Café; photo from PBS]   Surprised and delighted to find live music and cafe life, just past the D.C. state line and sitting next to an art gallery, in Mount Rainier, Maryland. Seriously. I am not imagining this. When I recently learned that the  Urban Eats Arts and Music Cafe has just celebrated two years in business, at 3311 Rhode Island Avenue (Mount Rainier, MD), ..I was thrilled! As I'm always looking for places like this, away from the bustle of Downtown Washington and Capitol Hill, and rarely finding them, ..clearly, I have been missing out. There's a cafe area, with charming, little tables for two or three, and a couple of larger, roadhouse tables for small meetings, over coffee. There's the prerequisite, cozy, little lounge area - a coffeehouse standard - with cushy sofas and loveseats, ..where a good buddy of mine reads his comics, while locals soak up the FREE WI-FI on t...

Looking for roomy, sensibly priced apartments or condos in the picturesque, lushly forested Southeast Hills neighborhood of Hillcrest ..AND within walking distance of upcoming Skyland Town Center? Have a peek at this YouTube video, from Washington, D.C. Apartments... And see for yourself.

The house at 3607 Suitland Road is another GEM in the well respected, sought-after, safe, middleclass neighborhood everyone, west of the Anacostia, is talking about - Hillcrest , of course! On first glance, this house's pillared veranda recalls the stately, Georgian mansions of the Old South, ..and elegantly enough to impress. It's a great home for a young, urban professional in a quiet, tree-lined Southeast Hills neighborhood that looks and feels alot like Van Ness or Friendship Heights, with the cafes and night life of Capitol Hill, barely seven or eight minutes away! Perhaps, you should ask D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, if the Safeway and the post office are close enough to comfortably walk to, ..since he's in the neighborhood. "The Mayor's just around the corner from me," sounds none too shabby, at all. I do it all the time. On that note, the house's homage to Southern colonial style leaves its Victorian-look glass door oddly matched. A ful...

You want the skinny on this property from someone living, right here, in Hillcrest? Well, here it is... Your friends will be surprised how much this woodsy, quiet,  safe,  middleclass neighborhood - great for young couples with children OR happily retired - looks and feels like  Rock Creek Park  or Chevy Chase. This house is located in the BEST the Southeast Hills have to offer, with bars and  cafe life  on Capitol Hill barely five minutes away! Safeway, post office and retail are close enough to walk to, in a neighborhood safe and friendly enough to enjoy the stroll! Maybe, you'll jog past a U.S. Congressman - we've actually got one around here, somewhere. I can almost see Skyland Town Center from here. Almost. Upon completion, it will be a short walk from 2109 Thirty-first Place' s doorstep, ..and ground-breaking starts, Fall 2013! Yes, ..I said town center. Looks like a SMART investment...

  I just saw, for the second time, the most facinating and INSPIRATIONAL film on LINK TV, ..and it is ALAMAR, by Mexican filmmaker, Pedro González-Rubio! In the film, we a fisherman raising his son, on and beside the ocean. We see a father, who involves his child in the immediately relevant work and economy of their family, ..giving his son a TRUE sense of self-esteem, ..in ways an endless string of meaningless, irrelevant, organized activities (Ancient Tibetan basket-weaving, hip-hop yoga, Israelli bagel-painting, etc) NEVER could.  We see a father, who plays in the natural world with his son ..and a child, who never stops being excited about learning. We see a child, who knows his place..and, trusting that it is a cherished, loving and protected place, has no need to constantly and wastefully question and challenge authority, ..growing up without the subsequent uncertainty, insecurity and life-crippling anxiety that so many of our American kids are experien...

  HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU! Thank you so much for all of the encouraging e-mail and just for looking us over, in 2012! Coming next week, ..2013 begins with more Bullethedd, Iron Munkee, Twinkly Blanket (above) and BRAND-NEW, quirkier-than-ever  Steak Island vignettes. See the best of 2012, by visiting the 'Archives' at Bullethedd.com Mel Dyer