"Blogging?" uploaded to flickr by Anonymus

Writing a blog is great — its a platform to engage with readers on issues you think are important.  Writing for more than one blog is not always great.  Nobody knows better than me what it takes to produce a product you can be happy with while dealing with the time limitations inherent in running a small business.

Earlier this year I was fortunate to get involved with the start-up of a great new hyperlocal blog.  Community involvement is close to my heart, so when I was asked to write for a blog focusing on my Capitol Hill neighborhood, I was thrilled.  Washington, DC has some of the “bloggiest” neighborhoods in the country, but there was nothing serving the Hill.  That was back in March 2009, and since then The Hill is Home has taken off!  Writing a weekly column about local businesses and serving on the editorial board of THIH is a great privilege, so that is where I am now focusing my blog time.  Head over and check out some of the fantastic coverage this group of citizen journalists puts together each day!

In the meantime, aside from THIH, Black Lab has been busy with some great projects.  Lately we’ve been supporting a business association’s strategic planning exercise, reworking the content on a dentist’s website and doing some communications and branding for a designer.  Quite the variety of projects but, then again, that’s why we love what we do!  We were also honored to win the inaugural award for Business Volunteer of the Year from CHAMPS, Capitol Hill’s Chamber of Commerce, in November 2009.  Go check our About page for more details and keep an eye out for more news from Black Lab … we’ll be working on a new website once we get a chance to catch our breath.

The change in personal behaviour an initiative like this can engender may seem small, but there are people out there counting on the collective behavior to change entire cities and even entire states. Some good examples have come out of Michigan lately. You don’t need live in Michigan to feel their pain. I’ve been there and have some good friends from Flint too. (GM used to employ 100,000 people in Flint. Today, the entire company does not employ that many people.) These are serious times for ALL the people who live there and billions of dollars in bailout money are not coming their way. That is why I was interested to hear about  statewide, regional and city buy local programs.  The statewide campaign, Buy Michigan Now (Note: not an advertisement to Canada), has already demonstrated success keeping business owners optimistic. The second is a regional program promoting farmers in Northwest Michigan, including how to get those harvests in local schools.  The last program, focused on Detroit, is even more interesting to me because, at a time when investment capital is fleeing the state and Detroit in particular, the people behind the project with the working name LoFi are looking to launch a business. Their concept is a loyalty card that will encourage consumers to patronize Detroit businesses. These guys have a hill to climb but I’m sure I’m not the only one crossing my fingers that they get the cash they need to prove you can start a successful business, today, in Detroit.  Consumers are starting to notice these programs too.  Could Michigan be a lab for how to help consumers make more deliberate choices?

Can I get every single thing I need in my neighborhood?  No.  While Capitol Hill is great for variety and uniqueness, there are things we are sorely missing.  For instance, I’ve never seen so many exercisers in one concentrated area, yet there is not a single place to buy a serious pair of running shoes.  If the choice is between seeing a movie at the broke down theater in Union Station and not seeing one at all …. well, lets just say I have some new releases to catch up on.  (Thanks to CHAW and the Capitol Riverfront we still get to appreciate the big screen.)  Our one and only television fizzled out in June so its been a TV-free summer since the options at Radio Shack are rather limited.    More than anything, it would be amazing to have more clothing retailers.  If you’re under 3, your options are improving.  For the rest of us, variety comes with a trip downtown or to a Virginia mall.  I was heartbroken when the adorable shop on E & 10th, SE closed a couple of years ago and there hasn’t been anything else comparable since.  I’d gladly trade a gaggle of dry cleaners and a hair salon or two for some great places to refresh my wardrobe.  The worst part?  It isn’t like we don’t have the right demographics for these things.  With an average household income of $82k, we could stand to have a running store, you know?

So now that my experiment is done, I’ve learned that it isn’t exactly over.  Shopping locally has made a big improvement in my quality of life — less time in the car or on metro, more time getting to know the businesses in my area and the people who make them tick.  Plus, a month is really quite short.  There are so many things I didn’t get to — the theater and a dance class to name two — that I think I’ll be occupied with this for a bit longer.  As I’ve seen and read more about buy local I’ve also come across some interesting ideas I’d like to try out so stay tuned, there could be more blog worthy anecdotes coming your way …  but for now, I’m off my soap box.

The Hill List is your weekly email guide to dining, shopping, and entertainment on the Hill. This list is open to the public. Join: champs@capitolhill.org

I’ve had this discussion with a few people: is this project about staying in a geographic area or is it about only doing and buying things from local producers? My response is that it is a little bit of both. Over the past three weeks I have proven to myself that I can get (almost) everything I need within my neighborhood. The local producer part is equally about the type of neighborhood I live in — there are many local businesses and few chains — and my personal preferences. There is a 7-11 convenience store about 4 blocks away but I almost never go there. The Johnny’s neighborhood market 2 blocks away has most all of the absolute necessities, and the P&C Market 4 blocks away carries good wines, artisanal cheese, organic beef and Vernor’s ginger ale. Neither of these is open as many days or as late as the 7-11 but I see the owners and managers regularly and when I ask for P&C to check into carrying my favorite flavor of Honest Tea (Peach White Tea, if you’re wondering), I know someone ACTUALLY does look into it. (It’s because their distributor doesn’t carry it — but I’m keeping up my one woman campaign. I noticed they’ve started carrying the Peach Oo-La-Long as a stop gap measure. Thanks guys!)

Truthfully, though, I’m not opposed to chains or big box stores. Consumers can benefit on the price side when a business has the ability to get lower prices from their suppliers because of bulk purchasing. Our TV died a few weeks ago, before my buy local commitment but not so long before that we had a chance to get a new one. When we do finally get a TV, we’ll probably go to Best Buy or Costco. They have lots of options and generally lower prices. They do not offer a pleasant shopping experience or a knowledgeable sales staff. You’re pretty much on your own when you walk in the door, but you go in knowing that will be the case. Oh, and I think its great these places exist, but keep them in the strip malls of Northern Virginia. I do not want one in my neighborhood. I don’t mind the drive, really.

Where this philosophy really does make a difference is impact on the community. In my first post, I mentioned a statistic from the Sonoma County, California buy local program, Go Local First. Their materials say that buying from a locally-owned business rather than chain stores keeps your money circulating 3 times longer in the local economy. Well, okay … It would be my guess that most people who work on Capitol Hill either live in the neighborhood or nearby. It isn’t like downtown DC where people will commute in for a job in a shop. So I have a fairly good chance of keeping some of my money circulating locally by shopping at ANY store in the neighborhood. Well, yes and no. Yes, shopping at the Harris Teeter grocery store means I’m supporting a business that employs many local workers. But the only money that continues to circulate in the economy is wages paid to those workers. Contrast that with picking up some plants at Surroundings at Lincoln Park. The owner of this local shop lives and works here so when you buy something from him, some of the wages he pays continue to circulate in the local economy and, on top of that, so do some of his business’ profits. He makes improvements to his store, he buys personal real estate in the neighborhood, etc. By contrast, all of the profits from Harris Teeter go right back to Matthews, NC and their parent company Ruddick Corporation.

I would by no means consider myself a purist when it comes to this subject. Tradeoffs must be made. I cannot get my favorite cereal at the neighborhood market, nor can I pick up an HD television at the Sunday flea market at Eastern Market. I might be able to get one from the back of a truck at the unSafeway in NE, but that’s a different kind of participation in the economy. I guess I’m just getting a better sense not only of where I draw the line for compromise between local and non-local providers and, at the same time, finding that it is easier than I thought to get what I need by shopping local.

Anybody else been giving this a try? What are you finding?

Mary McLeod Bethune statue in Lincoln Park

I was not totally unaware of this before. I have a dog which, in my neighborhood, means visiting Lincoln Park at least once a day. If one were to name a hub of Capitol Hill it would certainly be Eastern Market. However, by removing all my other non-local options and forcing myself into the mindset of relying exclusively on local outlets, I’ve become acutely aware of two things: first that they not only meet but also satisfy my needs, for which I am increasingly grateful; and second, I am very invested in decisions and actions that impact them.

Case in point: the Hine school redevelopment. I sort of knew that the prime Pennsylvania Ave. parcel of land this now closed middle school sits on would be redeveloped soon, but my opinion didn’t go much further beyond happiness that there would be some new retail options in a couple of years. Now that I’ve spent so much time seeking out the food and fun I need to keep myself sated and occupied (and, as a side benefit, doing it mostly by bicycle), I’ve gained a more nuanced appreciation for the unique personality of all the little pockets of homes and businesses in the area. Wherever I’ve lived, I’ve always been interested in the people — always known the neighbors and such — but now I’m much more interested in the community that comes from the interaction between neighbors and local commerce. So when I saw sketches of one Hine plan that had the name of an urban, trendy clothing store sketched in, my reaction was almost visceral. Where previously I may not have cared so much, now I was moved to action. There is no question Capitol Hill needs more clothing and furniture stores, but from what I see, we are more suited to unique businesses like the U Street model, not the big chains of downtown or Georgetown. This topic is being discussed throughout the neighborhood right now (including City Paper, interesting perspective from this blog, and this one, and loads of others) and can get rather heated so I’m not wading into any specific discussions here. My point is, before I would have probably been happy knowing a big, empty building on a prime spot would be redeveloped. Now, though I’m not so much gearing up for battle like some, I am invested enough to have submitted comments to the city along with a couple of fellow business owners.

Back to the task at hand …. In terms of goings on, during Week 2 I managed to entice a couple of friends to skip the downtown lunch scene and visit some of my favorite local spots. I have always been fascinated by the impact of circles of influence, and these two trips are perfect examples of how it can work. As a customer, I’m really a finite resource. I only have so much disposable income to spend, and only a small portion of that disposable income goes to lunch and an even smaller portion of that is spent at a particular restaurant. BUT, if I introduce people from my circle of influence to my favorite spots, then the impact of my tiny sliver of disposable income at a particular shop can suddenly become limitless because it is added to my friend’s who will then bring in people from her circle.

From taylordeli.wordpress.com

Litteri's Calendar from litteris.com

There were also some great meetings and chats during Week 2 with other business owners who work at home and, like me, need to get out of the house once in a while, so we took advantage of the comfy chairs at SOVA (where I interviewed a local designer for an upcoming post on The Hill is Home) and the centralized convenience of Port City Java, Tunnicliff’s (twice in one day for me!) and Peregrine Espresso. I also had a fantastic time at the Capitol Riverfront 80s Summer Movie Series, at Tingey Plaza behind the new Dept of Transportation and near the baseball stadium. Perhaps the biggest local move I made during Week 2 was switching my internet service. I ditched Verizon and am now with DC Access. After weeks of awful service from Verizon, it was a relief to move my business to a company just a few blocks away. I see the owners in the neighborhood and the same person returns my messages when I call or email. +Sigh+ It is such a nice change.

It was quite a busy week. But if you’re interested in reading more, check out my posts for The Hill is Home on Hill spots that made the Washingtonian Best Of list for the summer and a local small businessman looking for ways to grow his business so he can provide jobs for local youth.

Now is probably a good time to mention that I’m NOT getting anything from H3 Renovations for writing this series. That crown moulding in the living room that didn’t make it into the budget? Still not there, and probably won’t be for a while. I was simply perplexed with the dichotomy between my home renovation experience and the usually disastrous experience you hear about. Often overlooked, I think Carlos proves how important operational discipline is to managing a successful project with a happy client.

Now that’s out of the way ….

Part of installing central air conditioning was putting an air handler in our attic. For this to happen, we needed to cut a hole in the ceiling at the front of the house big enough to fit the air handler and convenient enough for maintenance. A side benefit of this was, for the first time, we would have access to our attic for storage because they would be installing a set of fold-down stairs. I cannot stress what a big deal this is. When you live in an urban area you make tradeoffs. I can walk or ride a bike to most anywhere I need to go on a daily basis, my “front yard” is a 2 square block park maintained by the National Park Service and I never have to sit in traffic for an hour just to get to and from work. In return, I find strange objects in my front garden, I collect parking tickets and the idea of storage space is a complete myth. That is to say, if the crew leader, Ricardo, cut a hole in the bedroom ceiling with a pair of dull scissors I would not have even noticed, I’d be so happy just to have the extra space.

Now you can understand why I was surprised to see the attic access and stairs redone not once, but twice. The first time had to do with the trim — I never actually saw what was wrong, I was so blinded by my eagerness I totally missed it. The second time the entire apparatus had to be removed and repositioned. At that point we actually discussed chucking the whole thing and starting over because of an issue with our existing ceiling (again, its an old house so you never know what you’ll find). Ultimately the second time was a charm and now all our suitcases, camping equipment and other assorted items that had once been in the scary basement were relocated to the new penthouse suite.

At the time, my only opinion about this process can be summarized in one word: hurry. We were near the end of the project and beyond the end of my patience with having the house in disarray. Having this task finished meant I would have some space to start putting things away and restoring order to my surroundings. Honest to goodness, I couldn’t see what was wrong and was probably ready to overlook anything in order to mark this task as finished. But Carlos was insistent. They were small things — a seam in the trim, a narrow gap in the access door — but he wanted them fixed. And he was absolutely right. Now that been a couple of months, I know those little things would have driven me crazy. As part of the first phase of the project, I had all the mouldings and door & window casings changed so that they matched because the fact that they didn’t was my #1 pet peeve. Yep, it was on the list above “no central air conditioning”. So though the issues with the attic were small things, getting them right made a big difference.

Up next: Be upfront with your opinions.

- Spent lots of time at the newly opened Eastern Market picking up veggies from the Calomiris family and meat from Union and Canales. Also managed to get everything I needed for my contribution to a long weekend for 7 on the Eastern Shore. We had quite the car load but, if I wasn’t going to be on Capitol Hill for the holiday weekend, I did my best to take the Hill with me.

- I made it to Results Gym for a workout but managed to spend more time at Lincoln Park when the weather was nice (and when the dog got antsy).

- Went to an amazing Nationals game – yes, it really was a good one – where we held the lead over Atlanta through the entire game. We got there early enough to watch the first four innings from a nice rail-side seat on the Red Porch. It was a great way to end the weekend.

Something I didn’t expect? Having my tens of readers know just how often I skip going to the gym in the morning. This will definitely be a motivator. I also have a couple of doctor visits coming up. We’re going to draw the privacy line there, but rest assured, I also stay loyal to my neighborhood whenever possible when it comes to medical care. I’m also already making my list of “things we need”. At the top right now? A movie theater that doesn’t make you cringe.

Regrets thus far are trifling. I didn’t include Langston Golf Course in my boundaries, so I guess it’ll be a while before I get the clubs out. The big one is missing out on the Washington Kastles. Last year was an amazing experience being right in the middle of the city watching some great tennis. The stadium has an intimate set up, so you’re up close to all the players — miles closer than the seats you can get for Labor Day weekend at the US Open. I may have to take a hiatus … or wait for Legg Mason.

Week 2 preview: delicious sandwiches at Taylor Gourmet, and a trip to SOVA with some fellow business owners from my own street.

Here’s how it will work: I am committed to spending the next month getting everything I need from the local area. When I started thinking about doing this, the first question I had to answer for myself was: What is Capitol Hill? That’s a big question but, seeing as how this is a buy local initiative and not an existential discussion, I had to make some choices. So, here are my boundaries:

West: North/South Capitol Street; East: RFK stadium
North: Florida/Benning Avenue; South: Southeast waterfront

It will be my goal to get anything and everything I need within these parameters. Sound easy? We will see. Looking prospectively at my calendar, I have a couple of lunches, some work meetings and a baseball game lined up already, which should be a breeze. There are a few trips to the beach on the horizon so I’m working out a plan to get all the food, drink and other necessary supplies for a weekend in the sun from my friendly local businesses ahead of time My challenges: avoiding a restaurant rut and finding good hostess gifts for those ubiquitous summertime backyard BBQs that are sure to pop up. So, if you have some suggestions that will help out in those areas, please share!

At this point you may be asking yourself “why bother”? One reason is simply the challenge of finding new ways to get what I need. Another is to get to know this area again — I’ve lived here for 8 years, but the neighborhood has grown and changed dramatically, especially in the last couple of years so its time to take a look with fresh eyes. Last, but not least, is that I’m a big believer in supporting my local community. There’s a statistic that buying locally keeps your money circulating three times longer in the local economy. If I’m investing my resources already, I should see more of a benefit by spending those resources locally.

Follow my experiment via daily updates on Twitter (@SCLinDC) and weekly recaps on the blog. Check in, tell me how I’m doing and share your favorite spots on the Hill!

Enjoy!

Our project, while not a total gut and rehab, was still rather extensive. It didn’t start with the centerpiece project (the bathroom), rather it started in one room downstairs and moved methodically from there. Even though the project started with smaller jobs (building a coat closet, finishing off a partial wall and doing some electrical work), Carlos dropped in every day and did a walk through with me. He reviewed what the crew had done, what they were planning for the next day, we discussed any unexpected things that had come up, he answered all my questions and, on occasion, gave me a to do list.

There are very obvious benefits here: I’m included in the process, empowered to ask questions and we’re fine-tuning our communication. Let’s take this one step further in the chain, though. If you’re working with a client, it is immeasurably important to keep that client happy. But also don’t forget that client has a boss and that person is likely not involved in the day-to-day and knows much less about what’s going on, so taking this approach helps your client look good to the boss too. Though I don’t think my husband would consider himself my boss, he was the other principle in this transaction, but was much less involved in the daily decisions. When he’d come home at the end of the day, I’d give him the same walk through Carlos gave me, tell him any conclusions we’d come to regarding questions on the fly and gave him a chance to provide input on any outstanding questions. The result: he felt knowledgeable and included in the process, he understood why we were making certain decisions and didn’t ever feel caught off guard. Surprises are great for birthdays. They aren’t good when you’re spending a not-insignificant portion of your income on your home.

By the time we got to the centerpiece — the bathroom — we had a well-established working relationship. The project was rolling and we had a shared vision. We still had regular conversations, but daily discussions were no longer necessary. Now walkthroughs were every few days and we talked more about what would be happening over the course of the next week instead of the next day.

Alternatively, if you start hands-off, you may find yourself experiencing this process in reverse. Something goes wrong, communication isn’t strong, the working relationship isn’t good … then you’re forced to be more hands on, and now you’re digging out of a hole. Similar to the first post in this series, it is much easier to spend the time up front than to try and backtrack later.

Up next: Pay attention to the small things.

I like to make lists. Not because I’m organized but because I like the feeling of checking things off and moving on.

We had a partial wall, about waist high, in the entryway and planned to finish it off by building on top of the existing wall and going all the way to the ceiling. One morning I left the house after admiring my newly-finished and freshly painted wall. When I came home later, Carlos had ripped a HUGE hole in the drywall near the bottom. What?! It was finished and we were moving on to other projects! Then he showed me: there was already a crack in the paint at the height of the old wall. He opened up the bottom – the original wall – and found that when it was initially built, the carpenter had put the studs too far apart. Now the old wall was unable to support the weight of the new wall. He fixed the previous, sub-par, work then patched the cracks, repainted and everything is as good as new. Which is nice since it is … brand new.

This scenario repeated itself over and over. When you are pulling down walls in a 100+ year old house, you find all kinds of surprises. We’d caucus as things came up and where a cosmetic fix would work, that’s what we went with. But when Carlos saw something that needed more attention, he made sure I knew. His mantra was that his reputation was on the line and he didn’t want to come back to fix something in two months that should have been done right the first time.

Up next: Be hands on, then establish an equilibrium