Metro Connection

Coming out to play is what spring is all about, and in the local plant world, one of the first things to emerge come spring is the smelly "skunk cabbage." It simulates death to pollinate itself and can even melt the snow around it! Environmental reporter Sabri Ben-Achour takes a walk to find out this primitive plant's secret.

[Music: "(Love is Like a) Heat Wave (As Made Famous by Martha and the Vandellas) (Karaoke Version)" by Party Tyme Karaoke from Karaoke/Party Tyme Karaoke: Oldies...

Washington's professional soccer team, D.C. United, is considered the most successful team in Major League Soccer history. The team just kicked off its season, and thousands of fervent fans turned out to show their support. Soccer aficionado Jerad Walker was there, and brings us this story on the especially die-hard local fans of D.C. United.

[Music: "Kick in the Head" by Dean Martin from Dino: The Essential Dean Martin]

A time-honored pastime here in D.C. is the lobbying game, and the multitudes of lobbyists on Capitol Hill play it well. But Congress isn't the only local governmental body that gets lobbied. Lobbyists also have their sights set on Metro. Transportation reporter David Schultz gives us the lowdown on how former chief executives of Metro are lobbying the transit agency.

[Music: "A to B" by The Futureheads from The Futureheads / "Games People Play (Karaoke Version)" by Stingray Music (...

Coming out was just the beginning for D.C.'s oldest troupe of performing Drag Kings; today they come out and play their created male characters for a crowd of adoring fans once a month. Yet, as members of the D.C. Kings tell Lauren Hodges, it took practice, and a lot of courage, before they found applause.

[Music: "Sharp Dressed Man (Streetlab Mix)" by ZZ Top from salacioussound.com]

Several of D.C.'s public-school buildings have been renovated recently, but others are just crying out for repairs. The task of maintaining the schools, and preparing them for children and teachers each day, falls to a certain someone who often goes unnoticed: the school custodian.

DCPS has approximately 450 custodians, and education reporter Kavitha Cardoza tells Rebecca Sheir more about these "keepers of the school buildings."

[Music: "Clean Up Woman (Karaoke Version)" by...

Spring Valley used to be a chemical-warfare testing ground; now it's an upscale neighborhood in Northwest D.C. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is spending $180 million to clean up the community, and has been at it for almost 20 years. But as environmental reporter Sabri Ben-Achour tells us, there's still work to be done.

[Music: "Fields of Gold" by Hank Marvin from Guitar Man]