Good morning, City Desk readers. I hope you all had a happy [insert holiday here].  My household celebrated the day by lounging around in tall tees, eating ice cream out of the carton, and watching the entire fourth season of Weeds (OMG! The ending so totally threw me off. Deets later--don't want to spoil the show for n00bz!)

And now some news:

• New Columbia Heights reports on a new gang cruising 14th St. called the "Whipsters"--not what you think, trust me. (Unless the first thing that came to your mind was a variation on "hipsters," in which case you're kind of right.) The Whipsters have open membership on Facebook! (Keep your eyes open for gang signs painted in raw breast milk and crushed berries from local berry collectives.)
• On Dec. 15, Christmas Eve (aka, Dec. 24) developers broke ground for the new Anacostia library. And Now, Anacostia has more info and some floor plans.
• The folks at Congress Heights on the Rise have the final 2008 numbers from the MPD's All Hands on Deck initiative: "MPD officers made 462 arrests, recovered nine firearms, and seized $35,925 worth of drugs. All five AHOD’s netted more than 2,300 arrests. Overall, assaults involving a gun are down 13 percent and robberies committed with the use of a gun are down 12 percent compared to this time last year."

$35k worth of drugs yet only nine illegal firearms? Ya'll know what that means, dontcha? The price of pot is going up, up, up! So much for catching an after-Christmas fire sale on qp's of purple haze...

Btw: Every single one of those 2,300 arrests that was drug-related translates to an adult, teen, or pre-teen, who--for the rest of his or her life--will be ineligible to receive federal financial aid for higher education. Two thumbs up, Cathy Lanier, for perpetuating the urban-poverty cycle!

Photo courtesy of Flickr user indi.ca

The economy may be going to hell and inauguration fever might be the issue of the day, but it's still Christmastime. Which means Wilson Building denizens are doing their annual gift exchange. Many opt for the classics: David Catania opted for his usual Godiva chocolates. Jack Evans is doling out classic works of literature. Yvette Alexander is giving out personalized holiday ornaments.

Others take it to another level. To wit, At-Large Councilmember Kwame R. Brown, who is distributing to his colleagues custom bottles of hot sauce:

Yep, that label features Brown together with the president-elect, along with the inscription: "OBAMA-BROWN: The Year We Made History!!!" The sauce is actually produced by local outfit Uncle Brutha's---it's their Fire Sauce No. 10---but it carries a custom label. It reads, in part, "A Change to Uncle Brutha's™ is a Change to the BEST!...As an advocate for change in this historic election, Uncle Brutha's™ wants to show its support for Councilmember Kwame Brown and Senator Barack Obama, and help them bring a 'Brand New Flavor' to Washington, D.C."

Read More "Wilson Building Gift Grab Begins" »

Quick rant: I've been riding on Benning Road pretty regularly since this past spring. And it is still being worked on. It's a fucking disaster of uneven pavement, narrowing lanes, construction debris. It's an obstacle course. Does anyone know how long Benning has been under construction? Does anyone know how much longer we will have to endure?

Bloomingdale (for now) wonders if there are two Bloomingdales. A letter from a District official confuses things.

The Triangle reports on new developments for a project called the "Yale Complex." This has to be the worst name for new housing development.

Upset the Setup has already determined what the new Common album is really worth.

Southwest...The Little Quadrant That Could previous a really cool X-Mas event: "The Washington Waterfront Association invites all to attend the annual Parade of Lighted Boats in the Washington Channel on Saturday, December 6th, 4:00pm, Flotilla at 5:00pm..." Too bad Duke Cunningham won't be part of these festivities.

Black Plastic Bag reports that the Vinyl District has some big news.

D.C. Foodies tests a recipe for curried carrot and sweet potato ginger soup:

"This is the perfect time of year to create vegetable stocks because there really is only so much you can do with carrots, celery and onions. You can then freeze the stock using freezer bags, a freezer hearty container or in ice cube trays. And since it’s winter, you will need a lot of stock for the many, many, many soups and pot roasts one inevitably makes when it turns cold."

Wonkette has a theory on why downtown smells like shit.

A must read.