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Najwa Gets a New Do

Najwa got a new do…

 

Najwa's new hair do

Category: Najwa, Nduku Photos  Tags:

Najwa, Hair Done By Dad

If you left it up to me to do Najwa’s hair, this is what you get…

 

Actually it looks a lot more chaotic but mommy always comes to the rescue before I can figure out where Najwa’s hiding the camera.

Category: Najwa, Najwa Photos  Tags:

DC Illustrated: Brookland Cafe Mural

When I lived in the area, it was a non-descript wall that no one noticed unless answering the call of nature from a night out on the scene. Today, there’s a 3-story mural on the side of Brookland Cafe that you can’t miss unless you had too many drinks from a night out on the scene.

12th Street Mural in Brookland in Washington DC

The mural, unveiled Oct. 2010 is titled “A Survivor’s Journey” and depicts survivors of domestic abuse…

Everyday in the District of Columbia, 76 calls are made to the police for help with domestic disputes and violence. The mural will raise awareness about domestic violence in our city, and spread a message of hope and healing.

DASH (District Alliance for Safe Housing) is excited to partner with artist Joel Bergner to create a mural that honors survivors of domestic violence and tells their stories of victory over violence.

On the Joel Bergner’s [the artist] site, he gives a tour of the mural, explaining what the different images represent. It is located at 3740 12th Street NE.

Happy Birthday Nadia Mitchem!

Nduku and I went to One Lounge the other day in Dupont Circle to celebrate the birthday of her friend Nadia.

Nadia Mitchem and Nduku Malombe

Gianni’s Birthday Celebration at POV

Recently, the only birthday parties I’ve been attending have been for the children of friends. Mars’ son Optimus, Gessie and Carl’s daughter Aiyana, Irene’s daughter Nadra, and one of Nduku’s cousin’s two children’s birthdays. Not to mention the spike in baby showers this past year. The last birthday celebration, though, was for grown-ups only. We celebrated Marita’s significant other Gianni’s birthday at POV atop The W Hotel…

Gianni's Birthday at POV

Happy 1st Birthday Optimus

Aiyana's First Birthday

Erykah's First Birthday

Born on Halloween, Erykah Mack celebrated her first birthday with a costume party.

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Mandu Sept. 17, 2011

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Najwa and Her TV Programs

 

Another one of those small Najwa moments in time captured on video. When Najwa starts watching the TV, there’s really not much you can do to get her attention, other than turn it off. Of course she’s learning how to turn on the satellite box and the TV on her own.

As we look back to this day, the shows she likes [that we'll let her watch] may not be popular in the future. I grew up on Tom & Jerry, He-Man, The Flintstones, GI Joe, Transformers and Autobots, Scooby, Thunder Cats and a bunch of others I’ll remember after this gets posted.

Najwa’s generation include Dora the Explorer and Diego, Caillou, Blues Clues, Elmo and the Sesame Street gang [I watched that, too], Chica and the Sunny Side Up Show, Nina and Star with the Goodnight Show, Chuggington, Tinga Tinga [actually, I haven't seen this lately], What’s Your News?, Monkey See Monkey Do, The Wiggles and some others I’ll remember when Najwa jacks the TV from me.

Then again, maybe when Najwa gets my age TVs will be pass´e; and her kids’ shows will be in 3D on handheld entertainment devices.

 

Celebrating the Year of the Dragon

Photos from the Chinese New Year’s Parade in Washington, DC, celebrating the Year of the Dragon…

 
Category: Parades, Photos  Tags:

Najwa at Spring Mill Bread Company

Every now and again we’ll go wherever the wind blows to find something to eat. Barracks Row is a common landing spot to find something new, well, it was for Nduku. She got breakfast from Spring Mill Bread Company, while Najwa, as kids do, entertained herself with the beverage case.

Najwa Gaines at Spring Mill Bread Company in Washington, DC

Najwa Gaines at Spring Mill Bread Company in Washington, DC

Najwa Enjoying the Warm Winter Day

It was a [relatively] warm winter day, so Najwa took a little walk…

Najwa Gaines taking a walk in the neighborhood

Najwa Gaines taking a walk in the neighborhood

Najwa Gaines taking a walk in the neighborhood

Najwa Gaines taking a walk in the neighborhood

Category: Najwa, Najwa Photos  Tags:

Celebrating Aiyana’s 1st Birthday!

The ladies and I headed out to Gessie and Carl’s to celebrate the first birthday of their daughter Aiyana. Last time I saw Aiyana, she was the size of my palm with a head so full of hair she looked like she was wearing a wig. A year later and my goodness how fast kids grow!

 

Walking SW Waterfront Before The Upheaval

We started the year with one of our typical walks, this time at SW Waterfront by the water.

Nduku and Najwa in SW Waterfront in Washington DC by the Odyssey

It won’t be long before this entire area sees another facelift, as it did decades ago during the urban renewal. The Odyssey is one of the boats [or is it a ship? or a yacht?] that is part of the landscape, part of the definition of SW Waterfront. Hopefully it sticks around when the cranes come to rip its new identity out of the ground.

Najwa on Christmas Morning

A few photos of Najwa on Christmas morning…

 
Category: Najwa Photos, Photos  Tags:

Group Photo From Our Holiday Party

A group photo of most of us at Multivision, Inc. during our holiday party…

Multivision Inc

 
Category: Social Events  Tags:

Eckington’s Number One Redskins Fan

The lady and I were riding through Eckington, feeling out the neighborhood as we prepare to purchase a home [eventually], and came across this yard. Now who wouldn’t want to be neighbors with this person?

Story Behind “The Hand” at HSW

The Hand at the Historical Society of Washington DC
“The Hand” which sits on the grounds of the Historical Society of Washington
at Mt. Vernon Square facing K Street NW.

The Hand at the Historical Society of Washington DC

The Hand at the Historical Society of Washington DC

 

The Hand is a sculpture commissioned by Vincent DeForest in 1968 in celebration of the African American struggle for civil rights:

The sculpture was commissioned by activist Vincent DeForest in 1968 to become the centerpiece of an historical mural celebrating the African American struggle for civil rights; the hand and mural together were intended to be part of the Poor People’s Campaign that year. DeForest was a leader in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and wanted to use art as a means to tell the story of African American history.

The mural was composed of panels representing aspects of civil rights struggles, and was erected as part of “Resurrection City” here in Washington. Coming first in May 1968, over 7,000 protesters were living on the Mall when the police tore down the encampment on June 19 and removed everything – including the murals – from the area. The Hand had not yet been installed.

All materials from “Resurrection City” had been hauled to Ft. Belvoir and DeForest managed to rescue the panels and store them safely. These panels are now hanging inside HSW as part of the exhibition Riots are the Language of the Unheard which focuses on events of 1968 here in Washington. DeForest kept The Hand for decades at his home. When he and his family left Washington in the 1990s, DeForest moved The Hand to an alley garden near his former home in Takoma, DC.

In preparation for the 1968-focused exhibition, HSW Executive Director Sandy Bellamy contacted DeForest because she knew he had later worked for the National Park Service and had focused on the preservation of African American landmarks. When she learned that The Hand and the murals were still in Washington she sought permission to include them in the exhibition. The Hand was overgrown and rarely seen in its alley home, now in front of HSW, it is admired every day.

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