OUT AND ABOUT: The Art of Leaving Adams Morgan

Did you happen to see an odd-looking guy standing waiting for the bus at 2:15 Sunday morning at the Duke Ellington Bridge? That happened to be the Oculus foolishly thinking that a 90 bus would come and take him back across the park. But, alas, it wasn't until 45 minutes later that he remembered that the Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority doesn't offer Route 90 bus service after midnight to Wisconsin Avenue from Adams Morgan. (How are people going to get to the 24-hour Soviet Giant, taking the 30s?)

"Remember When You Stole Those Panties From Nordstrom's?" Despite the needless 45 minute wait, the Oculus heard some great dialogue and witnessed some interesting drunken actions from the Adams Morgan party-goer-exodus to the Woodley Park metro.

I saw two twenty-something women get nearly hit by speeding cabs after venturing into the middle of Calvert Street to hail them. What they didn't realize is that cabs are normally all occupied by the time they reach the Duke Ellington Bridge.

What else did the Oculus witness? Two couples fighting; three separate occasions of shirtless men desperately trying to court some women they found at the bar; three cars missing red lights; two cabs in a dual showdown as to who can make it quicker across the bridge; and my favorite: one girl saying to the other: "Remember when you stole those panties from Nordstrom's?"

When leaving Adams Morgan, life in an open book. And for the most part, your actions have no consequences ... Unless of course you nearly slam a piece of greasy Pizza Mart pizza onto the Oculus' shirt by mistake out of pure inebriation. (One patron of the pizza pie establishment on the sidewalk almost hit me with a slice on the shirt ... instead, only globuals of grease hit the shirt, doing enough damage.)