At last, DC’s SmartBike bikesharing program is launching today, and our tired legs and lungs couldn’t be happier.  Still, it’s already running into problems–the availability map reveals six of the ten locations already have all their bikes checked out.

Wayan at We Love DC doesn’t think much of the program, dubbing it “Dorkbike”. Hardly! Those rear wheel covers aren’t good-looking, and helmets should be provided, but this program will be a good thing for DC that gets even better as more stations (Georgetown!) are added.

Photo from Flickr user Joe in DC used under a Creative Commons license

Some of us are busy planning ways to sneak a free Frappucino, but for those of you who are too ethical or just not ballsy enough, Starbucks is now offering a new way to get your caffeine fix for cheap. Starting today, 16 ounce iced drinks are $2 after 2 pm - but only if you have a “treat receipt” stamp proving that you bought a drink that same morning.

The special (which was previously available only in Miami, Chicago, and Seattle) is pretty genius: after picking up their morning coffee, customers will justify an afternoon drink by telling themselves that “it’s only $2,” and those 16 ounces of ice-cold caffeine will keep them awake just late enough to be exhausted wrecks the next morning, starting the cycle all over again.

Via Examiner

In this week’s Date Lab, she says: “I’ve also dated guys who haven’t been so nice, but I’m really good at making excuses for people.”

He says: “Quickly insecurity evolves into a web of mistrust and accusations.”

If the DL team was looking for an epic mind battle of tears and fears in this week’s edition, the duo’s questionnaire answers set them up for success. Despite the inauspicious beginning, though, they’re both attracted and things seem to be going well. She offers him her number, and they both rate the date a 4.

When he tries to follow up, though, she gives him a total brush-off when she meets someone else (not returning his calls, then explaining why in the Post interview.) For someone who accuses other people of not being nice, would it have killed her to send him a thanks-but-no-thanks text? Yeah, it’s a little uncomfortable, but man up.

Rating: 3. The daters are pretty generic and uninteresting, and rejection always sucks. The comments are pretty wild, though.

Chances of Success: 0. Once you’ve been turned down in a major newspaper, it’s pretty safe to say that’s the end.

It’s been a yogurt summer in Northwest DC. Two ‘real fro-yo’ joints opened in Dupont, and Sweetgreen is still serving their Sweetflow. The overpriced fro-yo caught wallets in a cunning pincer formation, meeting both sweaty-DC-summer and cutesy-trend-related needs.

•Tangysweet, on 21st and P near Dupont Circle, looks like a Euro dance club, with big color-changing neon tube lights that curve into tables. It can feel like a club, too, because the place is frequently packed, especially late at night (TS stays open ’till 2 AM on the weekends). The ‘Original’ yogurt is slightly citrusy and the toppings are fresh, but the other flavors (green tea and pomegranate) are pretty bland.

•Mr Yogato, on the other hand, seems more like a kid’s playroom, with cute drawings and tiny chairs. If the Mr. Robato comes on the loudspeaker and you sing along, you get a 10% discount. They also lower the price for answering trivia questions, wearing a Mr. Yogato stamp on your head, or coming in with a kickball uniform on (how, exactly, they determine what a kickball uniform looks like is unclear).

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DC band Georgie James is heading to Splitsville. They enjoyed the Voice Bump in their very own cover story and were recently the subject of an Emmy-nominated film, but neither one could keep them together. Earlier today, they broke the bad news on their website:

“After three years, Georgie James is calling it a day. We’re proud of the album we made and everything else that we were able to do during our time together. We are both working on our respective solo projects (John’s can be found at ww.myspace.com/titletracksdc and Laura’s at www.myspace.com/lauraburhenn) and hope to have albums out early next year. Thanks to everyone that helped our band over these past few years. And thanks to those who’ve listened to the music and come out to the shows. It is greatly appreciated. See you around soon. - John and Laura/Georgie James”

It was fun while it lasted. Check out that cover story to remember them as they were, not as they are.

via DCist

As buses go, GUTS buses aren’t that bad.  They’re a convenient way to get from Georgetown to the Metro; they run fairly regularly on weekdays; and they’re free—a ride on the DuPont GUTS bus combined with a brisk fifteen minute walk down Connecticut brings my daily commuting cost to zero.

Still, I do have a few bones to pick.

1.  Some of the GUTS bus drivers won’t let people without Georgetown IDs ride the bus.  Two of my housemates—one from Skidmore, one from Bates—often run into this problem when taking the bus to and from their internships.  Some drivers will just let you sign a piece of paper if you don’t have a GoCard, but others refuse to let you on.  My advice to non-Georgetown GUTS bus riders: persist—the rules are on your side.  From the GUTS bus website:

Faculty, staff and students with a valid Georgetown University ID card can ride along any GUTS route at no charge. Physicians, staff and patients with valid GUH ID may ride the Rosslyn and Dupont shuttles. Visitors and persons doing business on campus may also ride free of charge and must show a picture ID at the time of boarding.  [emphasis added]

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Compiling another ‘top ten sexiest’ list for what must be an extremely hierarchically-minded readership, Cosmopolitan.com picked its favorite Olympic athletes. We can forgive them this one, though, because topping their list is our old friend Andrew Campbell (SFS ‘06) who joins nine other ridiculously sculpted athletes, including shoe-in Michael Phelps.

Campbell would make Vox Populi’s list, too, because he blogs. I wouldn’t mind subscribing to his feed, if you get my drift.

 Ever wanted a delicious Georgetown cupcake but couldn’t stomach the $2.75 price tag?  Well now’s your chance.  Hit up the popular Georgetown cup-cakery, say the words “Daily candy” and pick out your cupcake free of charge.  They close at seven, so hurry!

Montgomery College, a Maryland community college, has banned all tobacco on campus, meaning students will have to shlep off campus before lighting up or chewing (or doing whatever they do to get to that nicotine fix).  The college is temporarily hiring “healthy campus advocates” to roam around and lay down the law. Hypothetically, students could be kicked out and employees could be fired for repeatedly breaking the rule.

The policy’s a little invasive for my tastes. Chewing tobacco is clearly a personal, not public, risk. Montgomery had already banned smoking within 25 feet of buildings, so it’s not as though non-smokers’ virgin lungs were being attacked as they innocently exited buildings (as is the case at Georgetown, some might argue). It seems like the risks of second-hand smoke were pretty negligible.

But the march towards a smoke-free existence is relentless.  One GW professor quoted in the Post article predicted that within five years all campuses will be smoke-free.  Seeing as Georgetown only got around to banning smoking in dorms in 2004, that seems overly optimistic to me.  Regardless, this trend, coupled with the recent doubling of cigarette taxes up to $2 a pack in both the District and Maryland, means tough times for DC nicotine addicts are about to get a lot tougher.

With free food, live music, T-shirt giveaways, and even a moonbounce, the Corp’s Summer Day 2008 has all the key ingredients of the April original. Except, maybe, enough people to make it feel like an actual party, since campus is significantly less populous in the summer. Get drunk and it won’t bother you.

12-5 pm, Saturday, Copley Lawn.