Session 9: January 2014
January was a success. Next session is in May, with a short intersession in late March.
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Saturday
4 January
2014 -
Faster, Stronger, Fewer Semicolons! Build a Website With Jekyll
Designers, developers, and web hobbyists: Create a speedy, secure website. No database needed!
user Instructor: David Ramos
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Sunday
5 January -
How the Sausage Gets Made (Literally)
Discover the magic of filling a hog intestine. Really.
user Instructor: Michael Clark
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Monday
6 January -
Corporate Social Responsibility: Fact or Fiction?
Why does BP fund renewable energy research? What’s up with McDonald’s running a children’s health charity? Do corporations actually care or do they just pretend to?
user Instructor: Halley Aelion
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Decoding the Russian Alphabet
Cyrillic isn’t as intimidating as it may seem to the uninitiated. This crash course will have you pronouncing words like a native speaker.
user Instructor: Karyn Dubravetz
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Wednesday
8 January -
Make It Work! Mending and Fixing Clothes
Stop throwing away socks with holes, stapling loose hems, and turning to safety pins when buttons make a break for it.
user Instructor: Juliana Rincon
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Thursday
9 January -
Mass Incarceration in America
This class will examine our society’s use of the criminal “justice” system as a mechanism for producing mass suffering and prisons as a mechanism of control over certain populations.
user Instructor: Alec Karakatsanis
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Friday
10 January -
Salsa for Beginners
And by “salsa,” we mean the dance, not the delicious condiment.
user Instructors: Regina Lam, Victor Yang
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Saturday
11 January -
Francais pour Amusement: French Conversation Workshop
Parlez avec les autres francophones tout en engloutissant des croissants.
user Instructor: Philippe Martin
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The Rise of Rock ‘n’ Roll, 1945 to 1962
The down and dirty history of how rock music became indispensable to American culture.
user Instructor: Neal Fersko
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Recycling D.C.’s Nutrients Back to Its Soils
Tour DC Water’s Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant to find out how sewage is transformed into healthy meals for plants.
user Instructor: Bill Brower
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Songwriting for Superheroes
It’s a rhyme! It’s a chord! It’s Songwriterman! Or Songwriterwoman!
user Instructor: Courtney Dowe
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Sunday
12 January -
Money Resolutions 101: Getting Out of Debt
Do the words Sallie Mae conjure shivers? Have you been willfully blind to the balance on your credit card bill? Get it together and make a plan.
user Instructor: Catherine Wood
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Back to Basics: Finding Your Own Personal Style
Hate every last article of clothing in your closet? It’s time to take control of your wardrobe and make it better represent you. No flair for fashion required.
user Instructor: Pearlette Merriweather
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Build a Website That Sells Something (in Under Three Hours)
You don’t need to be named Zuckerberg to make money online. We’ll show you how to quickly create a webpage for selling your product or service.
user Instructor: Will Ward
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Monday
13 January -
Malagasy Language and Culture
Malagasy is unique to the African island of Madagascar and its expatriate communities. Discover this rare language and the culture of its speakers.
user Instructor: Jessie Beck
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Tuesday
14 January -
Tenants’ Rights in D.C.
Your landlords may be super-flaky and greedy, but are they also breaking the law?
user Instructors: Daniel Hornal, Marc Borbely
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Spice Up Your Writing With Culinary History
Did you know that Kraft mac and cheese has a royal provenance? Have you ever thought of your everyday dishes as exotic cuisine? Learn how to find and utilize that kind of information to enrich food writing of all kinds.
user Instructor: Claudia Kousoulas
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Statehood and D.C. Equal Rights: How to Be an Effective Advocate
A lack of equal voting rights is so central to D.C.’s identity that it’s inscribed on our license plates. But what can you do about it?
user Instructor: Tim Hampton
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Thursday
16 January -
Bitcoin for Beginners
So, this Bitcoin thing: What is it? Is it all black market-y? Is it safe to use? And, most importantly, can you buy a pizza with it?
user Instructor: Darrell Duane
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Hands-on! An Introduction to Massage
Wield the power of massage in the war against stress!
user Instructors: Aries Indenbaum, Elizabeth Goldberg
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Saturday
18 January -
Road Trip! Exploring the Murals of Richmond
Break out of your D.C. comfort zone and admire Richmond’s vibrant street art, created by artists from around the world.
user Instructor: Erika Rydberg
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Pass the Kuaizi: Learning Chinese Through Food
Moo shi chicken is delicious. But what does “moo shi” actually mean? Find out, and learn a little Mandarin in the process.
user Instructor: Mei Mei Chang
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Create Your Own Art Light Box
Spruce up your wall space with a softly glowing creation. AND learn to wire a lamp.
user Instructor: Heloisa Escudero
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Sunday
19 January -
Too Much Information: Intelligence Archives After Government Collapse
All those files oppressive regimes keep on rabble-rousers don’t just disappear when the regimes do. Spies worked hard to gather that intel — what happens to it?
user Instructor: David Blum
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Deck Out Your Apartment Without Stepping Foot in IKEA
Be the envy of all your peers with a home full of unique, inexpensive, second-hand finds.
user Instructor: Holley Simmons
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Monday
20 January -
British Television Appreciation
Mine this rich vein of quality comedy and drama, crap reality shows, lurid documentaries, quiz shows, and snooker.
user Instructor: Holly J. Morris
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Performance Art: Past and Present
Jackson Pollock and Lady Gaga have something in common, believe it or not. See how performance-art practitioners of yesteryear inform pop acts and high art today.
user Instructor: Claire Howard
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Wednesday
22 January -
Hear the Rhythm: How to Read and Scan Metrical Poetry
It’s everywhere, meter, but do you know what ‘tis?
Come become an iambic pentameter wiz.
Recognize patterns in speech, music and rhyme.
Do more than just tapping your fingers in time.user Instructor: Elijah Mendoza
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Conflict Resolution With Difficult People
Learn how to deal with that coworker/relative/roommate who pushes all of your buttons at once. And not with a passive-aggressive note. Or arsenic.
user Instructor: Chris Geyer
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Thursday
23 January -
Prisons, Profit, and Human Beings
This follow-up to KCDC’s popular Mass Incarceration in America class delves deeper into the criminal “justice” system by examining profit motives and financial incentives.
user Instructor: Alec Karakatsanis
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Anyone Can Make Comics
Learn the basics of drawing and self-publishing your own print comic books. No experience required!
user Instructor: Josh Kramer
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Saturday
25 January -
Money Resolutions 101: Planning for the Future
401Ks aren’t sexy, but neither is hoarding gold bullion under your bed. (OK, that’s a little sexy. But not practical!) Stop living paycheck to paycheck and set an agenda for the coming decades.
user Instructor: Jon Menaster
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Holocaust History Through a New Lens
Join a U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum educator for a behind-the-scenes look at the exhibit “Some Were Neighbors: Collaboration and Complicity in the Holocaust.”
user Instructor: Sonia Booth
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Sunday
26 January -
Basic Vegan Baking: Breads
Come learn how to bake without using animal products! And consume some delicious carbs.
user Instructor: Salvatore Bohrer
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Protests, Politics and Penalty Kicks: The 2014 World Cup
Come find out how geopolitics, globalization, and international soccer will intersect at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
user Instructor: Harrison Stark
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Monday
27 January -
Edit Anything!
We’ll provide the red pens.
user Instructor: Holly J. Morris
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We’ve Got Spirits!
That’s right, it’s a hands-on class about vodka, rum, whisky, tequila and gin!
user Instructor: Liz Liberman
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Tuesday
28 January -
How to Make a Not-Terrible Website
Learn the inner workings of a website and how to build your own from a self-taught programming guru. Laptops not necessary.
user Instructor: Robert Thomas
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Hive and Horde: The Collective Organism in Myth and Popular Culture
From the Greek chorus to the Borg, groups that act as one have long fascinated writers, filmmakers, and other creators. Join us for some deep thinking about the concept and its impact on our lives.
user Instructor: Salvatore Bohrer
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Get Knotty
Introduce yourself to ropework from both practical and decorative standpoints.
user Instructor: Galen Hon
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Wednesday
29 January -
Write Your Bucket List!
What’s on the agenda before you kick the you-know-what? Nothing specific?! Let’s change that. Unless you’re immortal.
user Instructor: Kirby P. Riley
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Go Fly a Kite!
Get ready for the Cherry Blossom Kite Festival with this workshop, from which you’ll depart with a lovely handmade kite.
user Instructor: Amanda Leslie
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Thursday
30 January -
Ice Skating for Non-Olympians
You won’t be ready for Sochi after this class, but the ability to remain upright at the rink is better than a gold medal.
user Instructor: Mike DeLiso and Melissa Richards
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Sunday
2 February -
DIY Clap-On Electronics
“Clap on! Clap off! Clap on, clap off, the Clapper!” Remember those ads? Learn how that sophisticated bit of as-seen-on-TV tech worked.
user Instructor: Rikki Irwin
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Monday
3 February -
Poetry and Sodomy: Argentine Writers of the 20th Century
The Argentine literary scene is booming, with poets born in the 1980s and after coming into their own. Learn about the influential poets and writers who came before.
user Instructor: Nenet III
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Burning Man for Beginners
This class is for anyone interested in learning more about the notorious annual desert event. (It’s not all art, drugs, and orgies.)
user Instructor: Darrell Duane
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Tuesday
4 February -
Rolling in Dough: Pop-Tarts From Scratch
Join the D.C. non-profit Brainfood to make and devour homemade (and less junkfood-y) Pop-Tarts.
user Instructor: Brainfood Community MVPs
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Wednesday
5 February -
Dirty German
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Sexy Deutsch is here for you!
user Instructor: April Seager
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You Are the First Organization That You Must Master
It’s all you, baby. Find the leader within yourself — it’s there, we promise, and we’ll help you find it.
user Instructor: Kaytura L. Felix
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Thursday
6 February -
Bye, the Farm: Easy Vegan Cooking
Join the D.C. non-profit Brainfood to bake and (and summarily devour) any easy dish with no meat, eggs, or dairy products.
user Instructor: Brainfood Community MVPs
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Translation: A Brief History
Learn about the emergence of translation as an academic discipline from the 19th century to the present.
user Instructor: Andrew Robbins
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An Introduction to French Comics
You’ve heard about American and Japanese comics — come learn about another linguistic world and its comics culture.
user Instructor: RM Rhodes
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Saturday
8 February -
Make a Camera Obscura
Learn what happens inside a camera by making one big enough that you can put your head inside.
user Instructor: Diana Sanchez
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Sunday
9 February -
Group Meditation
Join like-minded KCDCers and meditate as one.
user Instructor: Dawn Quintanilla
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Monday
10 February -
Can Slacktivists Change the World?
Signing online petitions doesn’t do much by itself. Come learn what does.
user Instructors: Micah Effron, Zoë Alexis
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playbackthetape: VHS Archaeology for Beginners
It’s time to rewind. That dusty box of tapes in your parents’ attic? Yup, we’re digging in!
user Instructor: playbackthetape
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Tuesday
11 February -
It’s On Like Mahjong
Learn to kick ass at this ancient game of skill and chance.
user Instructor: Sam Huang