Yesterday was the trade deadline for the NHL. The Caps were not alone in finalizing last minute deals

1. Mick Jagger has a 28 inch waist, and struts the equivalent of 12 miles during a concert. 

2. In 1923, during a horse race, jockey Frank Hayes suffered a heart attack and died.  The horse, Sweet Kiss, went on to win the race

Last night at the newly rechristened Verizon Center, the Caps finally got the best of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Alex OVechkin had another great game with a goal and two assists. He’s currently second in the NHL in goals scored and top ten in overall points. Ever since the Olympics, he really seems to have settled into his surroundings.

For the second game in a row, a pigeon was flying around the arena and landed on the ice. It had to be shooed away by the players and the crew. Since we’ve won two games in a row with a pigeon on the ice – some of our fans are now calling for using “rally pigeons” as our good luck charm. Detroit has its octopi, Florida has its rats, maybe DC will have its pigeons.

MapQuest released its API for web developers to use in creating their own tools, features, web sites, and services.  What’s so cool about MapQuest’s API vs. the other guys?  So far, it’s the only one to enable independent developers to incorporate routing and directions in their work.  So, for example, you might have a mashup that allows tourists to build their own walking tours based on favorite local styles of architecture … or Civil War buffs to follow the paths of the major armies … or bird watchers to hopscotch the shortest route between recent sightings of a rare species … or clubbers to meander around the best martini bars in lower Manhattan.  And to help encourage some of that creativity, we’re having a little contest.  Check it out.

Recently someone asked me how I feel when a veteran Capitals player asks or demands to be traded. Over the last seven years, I

Last night was a big night at the Verizon Center.  During the Caps 5-2 win over the Islanders:

Alex Ovechkin scored his 40th and 41st goals of the season

Today’s New York Times has an interesting follow up to the National Geographic article I posted about last week.  

I have a great friend named Ken Holden

This year’s Academy Awards offered another dramatic example of the shifting loyalties — and behavior — of the moviegoing public. Unlike past years, when many of the major category nominees came from big-budget, blockbuster films, this was the year of the little guy.

This year’s Academy Awards offered another dramatic example of the shifting loyalties — and behavior — of the moviegoing public.  Unlike past years, when many of the major category nominees came from big-budget, blockbuster films, this was the year of the little guy.   Of the sixteen films nominated in major categories (best and supporting actor/actress, director, and film), not a single one cracked the top fifteen in 2005 domestic gross.  The highest finisher — Walk the Line — was the only one even to break the traditional $100 million milestone in U.S. receipts, something that 18 other un-nominated films (in those categories) managed to do last year.   The Best Picture nominees offered an even more striking contrast, with the finalists coming in at # 26 (Brokeback Mountain), # 49 (Crash), # 63 (Munich), # 90 (Good Night and Good Luck), and # 97 (Capote).    And that anecdotal shift from the Oscars was also highlighted in the overall numbers for the movie business, with movie attendance dropping in 2005 for the third straight year.   The good news for the movie business, and for consumers, is that there were a lot of great films released in 2005, many by smaller and boutique studios, and that there are an increasing number of ways for consumers to get and watch their favorite movies:  from DVDs and mail rentals to premium cable, pay-per-view, legitimate downloading options, and satellite.   That massive shift in consumer behavior, however, is going to require an equally large shift in the economics of the movie industry itself, as companies learn to profit from consumer demand for better movies, delivered faster, on any device, to any location.  We — and our friends in the movie industry – have already taken some interesting steps in that direction, and I hope and expect we’ll take many more over the next couple years. 

AOL has just announced that we are opening our AIM platform and releasing a complete toolkit to companies, communities, and developers who want to tap into our network.

AOL has just announced that we are opening our AIM platform and releasing a complete toolkit to companies, communities, and developers who want to tap into our network.  

Our goal is to team up with developers to create a completely live and interactive  experience across the Web and beyond.  No matter where you go on the web, you should be able to connect in real time to the people that matter to you – the people in your Buddy List.  There really is no limit to the possibilities:  take your Buddy List with you to check out videos on YouTube, use your cell phone to change the away message on your AIM desktop, set your profile to whatever song is currently playing in iTunes or winamp.  Very cool.