Full gallery after the jump

Read More "Photos: From the Series: Nature" »

Winner after the jump

Read More "Photos: Bird Fight" »

Today I leave the best job I ever had, and that counts a brief stint at Trader Joe's where I tried to get health care after knocking over several cases of Two Buck Chuck with my ass. As asst. managing editor at Washington City Paper for the past two and half years, my job has been mostly plumbing, behind the walls, keeping things running without a nasty backup. But one cannot be merely a plumber and still be employed at an award-winning alternative weekly decimated by its ownership in the digital age. One has to blog.

I know all of you loyal City Desk readers have been following my posts with great vigor. And, so, as my parting gift to you, I give you the highlights of my tenure here (critters, baking, dudes living in their basements, Michael Phelps, D.C. brunch culture [FYI: It still sucks], and did I mention Michael Phelps?), as well as a super sappy goodbye.

Read More "And With a Heavy Heart, I Leave You. OR: Suck It, Haters." »

In a posh hotel in downtown D.C., Dixie, a beagle mix, is sniffing out bed bugs. She can find them in walls, under carpets, and mixed up with cockroaches inside a spinning training device. Mattresses, the most common hiding place for these seed-size suckers of human blood, pose little challenge.

“She only gets fed if she finds a bed bug,” says her trainer and handler, Blaine Lessard, as he reaches into his belted pouch for a piece of kibble. Read More "How To Figure Out If You Have Bed Bugs: Get This Dog To Come Over" »

Hell hath no fury like a robin whose eggs have been tampered with.

I learned that early this morning. Exiting my Petworth abode, I spotted a squirrel scampering pell-mell down a tree across the street. Was he fleeing a jealous mate? Had my roommate's snakes gotten loose?

Neither, it turned out. The squirrel had merely trespassed on a robin's nest, and the robin was not amused. It pursued the frantic rodent down the tree, up the street, through gutters, under cars, and finally onto my lawn, before the squirrel sought asylum within the wooden latticework of my porch.

Home free? Not a whit. Sounds of scuffling indicated that the robin, unflappable, had broken through and was now tormenting a beast three times its size. By the time the ragged combatants emerged, the robin had clamped his beak to the squirrel's tail. A great general flailing ensued; then, mutual retreat. Peace, or something like it, had been restored.

Are the robins particularly mean this year? Do they have ancestral beef with the squirrels? Has anyone seen anything like this before?

Photograph above by photoholic1

From a poster on the Shepherd Park listserv:

"Looks like a Raccoon has nibbled a hole and his/her way into our roof/perhaps attic. We noticed the raised piece of roofing late last week, and today are hearing sounds of activity from the fireplace. Today, a neighbor told my husband he has seen the raccoon scrapping at our roof and on the roof of a house behind ours across the alley. He suspects baby raccoons are, or will be on the scene soon, which as I write might explain the sounds I am hearing now. I need some advice as to who to call, what to do, possible costs involved and any other thoughts on the subject. From the sounds and frequency, coupled with my kids skiddishness, I likely need to move fast on some course of action. I thought I had saved list serv posts seen before on the subject, but don't see any in my saved msg-box, so responses are greatly appreciated!"

Happy Wednesday, D.C.! You might remember City Paper's kind-of-a-big-deal Inauguration Photo Contest, whereby we elicited "dope" photographs from readers across the land. Two weeks later, we announced the winners. Recently, we even decided to send the winners their super-special swag, inspiring fourth-placer Aziz Y. to photograph his pooch in our delightful knit cap (above right). I think Beaujon's was more of a statement, natch (above left)—but hats off to Aziz and his BFF, regardless.

Newsier stuff below the jump.
Read More "Our Morning Roundup: Front Pooch Edition" »

I saw this print at my vet's yesterday; the bathroom has a series of signed prints by a French artist showing dogs peeing. OK, whatever, Europeans, but one of the prints was worth noting:

How often do you get to see a dog checking out dog prostitutes? He's like, "Homina, homina: dog prostitutes," and his owner's like, "Oh no you don't," and they're like, "How-how, big boy."

This detail is particularly weird:

Prior to my landlord coming over this morning, an occasion that has happened approximately three times since my husband started renting from her 13 years ago, we decided to pretend we do not have a cat.

My husband got up first and reported to me he put the litter container "in the closet that you can't open without everything falling out." The bag of food he put under the bathroom sink. I then got up and emptied the water bowl and placed it and the full bowl of food in the bathroom cupboard. The litter box conveniently fit under the couch. I then got out the vacuum, attached the hose, and sucked up any evidence of stray litter and known accumulation of cat hair.

My landlord arrived on time, at 9 a.m. Approximately two minutes later she was making a kissy noise in the direction of the cat, whom I had forgotten to hide.

A cleaning crew inadvertently let Lucy, an Australian shepherd/husky mix, loose from her basement apartment in Mount Pleasant. Her owners, Dan Wood and his girlfriend, Sarah Darnell, have since papered D.C. with posters. The posters urge people to call immediately, as "Lucy is shy." But today, 15 days since she started her adventure, Lucy is still still lost.

She has, however, been spotted. The day she got out, she ran through the National Zoo, where, in an image straight out of a Curious George, she was chased out by zookeepers with nets.

Read More "Lucy, the Ninja Dog, Is Still Lost" »