The Washington, D.C. area is full of news. It is after all the hub of American politics
and full of culture and history. Every
grade school student in the U.S. dreams of one day attending the upper school
field trip that will take them through the halls of the Smithsonian or have
them face to face with the Lincoln Memorial.
Those that live here in and around the fine city of D.C. often take the
cultural and historical opportunities for granted. In that same way the small and interesting
stories in our city can be lost in the midst of all the stories deemed more
front page worthy.
Here are some interesting items of news that you may have missed and truly need to know:
- Kudos to the “green thinking” committee that decided to forego the use of chemicals to rid the Washington Historic Congressional Cemetery of unwanted brush. Rather than subjecting the area to a chemical clearing of poison ivy, vines, brush and ground cover, the plant pests will face eradication from a herd of 100 goats. The goats will not only leave the area clear from unwanted vegetation but they will be fertilizing the ground as well. The 35 acres of the cemetery founded in the 1800’s and located on Capitol Hill will begin hosting the herd on August 7. They will remain there grazing for six days.
- It’s no secret that point guard John Wall is playing for the Washington Wizards or that he signed a five-year $80 million dollar contract last week. It may have escaped your notice that he has generously offered $1 million to Washington, D.C. charities. That is definitely news worthy.
- Last week on the Metro platform at L’Enfant Plaza an expectant mother on her way home from her doctor was surprised by the quick birth of her baby boy. Amir Mason Taylor was born to his mother Shavonnte Taylor at 10:31 a.m. with the help of a stranger. Luckily the stranger happened to be an off-duty emergency medical technician who used another stranger’s shirt to wrap the baby up will medical help arrived. The baby was born on August 2 and was not due until August 17. So, if you were on one of the trains going by last Friday on the Green Line – that is what all the excitement was about! The news has been covered all over the world in newspapers and online news sites from the U.S to the U.K and Japan.
- A recent report by Forbes has listed Washington, D.C. as the ninth most miserable sports city in the United States. Depending on which sport you follow you may either agree or disagree with the ranking spot. Enough said.
- Saturday, August 3, the first Million Martian Meeting was held in Washington, D.C. Yes, you read that right. The meeting was to bring together the organizers as well as the volunteers that could very well be the first settlers of the Red Planet. Plans are underway to take groups of volunteers to live on Mars by 2023. The trip is one-way and the first phase of the plan will begin in 2016 with a supply mission. Other phases will include scouting for the best location as well as delivery of living units. As of May 2013 there were more than 78,000 volunteers that had applied. For those of you interested in signing up you must be at least 18. Of course, it is beyond reason why you would want to live on Mars when you could live in Washington, D.C. – perhaps that is why they gathered in DC, to weed out the less serious!
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