NEWS
Thursday, December 11, 2003
DC resident, professional reporter, and my friend Mike Grass has started a blog about DC called "The Oculus: Observations of the Nation's Capital and Its Culture." A U-M grad, in Ann Arbor Grass was a news reporter, editor, and editorial page editor at the Michigan Daily. Grass has a deep knowledge of DC, I'm excited to follow his blog (He got 13th place in the most recent Urban Challenge competition in the city, after all.) And if another one of my friends starts a blog, I will officially have no time to do homework. Screw 15 minutes of fame - in the future, everybody will have their own channel. Here's a quirky press release he sent some friends:"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 11, 2003
Grass Enters Weblog World
WASHINGTON -- Michael E. Grass, 24, has, on his day off, created his first weblog. While "The Oculus: Observations of the Nation's Capital and Its Culture" won't talk much about politics, it will explore the art of living in D.C., along with discussions on architecture, the popular virtues of intellectual urbanity and a whole host of "other topics that will become evident over time," Grass said.
Grass, who writes for Roll Call, is a 2002 graduate of the University of Michigan and was a reporter and editor at The Michigan Daily. While Grass grew up in East Grand Rapids, Mich., most of his family is from the Washington area. The first Grass family members arrived in the nation's capital 140 years ago and were prominent in the German and Swiss societal
circles. His great-grandfather, August Grass, was the city's top residential woodcarver and carpenter. The famed Heurich Mansion, near Dupont Circle, is the nation's foremost example of Beerhouse Baronial architecture and has the largest amount of Grass woodcarvings in the city.
The two-time National Geography Bee state runner-up has never lost Trivial Pursuit and wows his friends and colleagues with random useless knowledge. They also call him up frequently for directions, as his navigation skills are unmatched in their accuracy.
"This will be an organic process. We'll see where it goes," Grass said, adding that he doesn't want it to be some time waster. "But it probably will be, but someone out there will find what I have to say interesting."
Posted by Rob at 5:10 PM
