December 2009

There were 42 posts published in December 2009 (this is page 2 of 5).

Where I’ve worked: Dart Drug

One of my many nametags

I was mistaken in saying the nameless computer store was my first job in Virginia. That honor actually goes to Dart Drug Corp. Dart Drug was a chain of D.C.-area drug stores similar to CVS only dirtier and much less professional. Dart was the creation of Herbert Haft and his big-haired, feuding family. But well before the Haft family turned on each other the company was going through troubled times. The management of the chain had just bought the company and the business always seemed to be on the brink of collapse.

I had been talked into working there by my friend Evan MacKenzie. It was a job, and even at a pay rate of $3.66 per hour it was better than nothing (or McDonald’s, I figured at the time). I never considered it a long-term employer but it suited my needs for a time. If there’s one good thing about a skimpy paycheck it’s that it’s less likely to bounce. So in September of 1986 I applied for a job and soon pinned on my name badge at the Dart Drug store in the Sugarland Plaza shopping center, 247 Harry Flood Byrd Highway in Sterling, VA.
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Don’t bring a gun to a snowball fight

This weekend’s blizzard dumped over a foot of snow on Washington, D.C. and folks were out Saturday having a good-natured snowball fight. Suddenly a Hummer gets hit with a snowball rolls to a stop. A plainsclothes police officer pulls out his weapon and goes after the crowd. Later the D.C. police claim the officer, Detective Baylor, never unholstered his weapon, in spite of what the video and pictures clearly show.

What’s worse, ABC affiliate WJLA’s horrible reporting pins the blame on “antiwar protesters” dressed in “archist” garb, which from the video appears completely baseless. I suppose anyone who covers his face during a bone-chilling blizzard must be an anti-war anarchist.

I respect the work that police officers do, but Det. Baylor is in obvious need of a long vacation. No one should pull a gun on a snowball fight. Get real.

I feel for the uniformed cop that responded to this call. You can see him pleading with the crowd at 2:28 in the video to just shake it off and keep playing, all but admitting the detective has lost his cool. The guy is stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Winter solstice

Today is the winter solstice: the first day of winter and the start of the sun’s long climb back up the sky. Not only that, it’s a beautiful, sunny (if cold), peaceful day. It’s the kind of day that makes me glad to be alive.

Hey man watch this!

After going a year without wearing my watch, on Friday I finally got the band fixed. I took it to a jeweler right outside of my neighborhood. Not only did I get my best watch fixed, I dropped a bag of watches needing batteries on him, too. Those will take longer for him to fix, as he’s slammed with holiday business at the moment.

It’s weird having a watch after not having one for so long. It sure looks nice, though!

(The title comes from a redneck’s last words, of course).

Parson Brown

So exactly who is this Parson Brown? Does he really look like a snowman? Where does he spend all of his time if he’s never in town?

Also, is it really appropriate to say “no, man” to a man of the cloth? And why is he so nosy, asking couples if they’re married? Is this really any of his business? I mean, these people are just going for a walk: it’s not like there’s too much PDA or anything.

I just don’t understand all of this “winter wonderland” stuff.