The Washington National Cathedral is among the landmarks worldwide that will observe Earth Hour. (Nikki Kahn - The Washington Post) The Washington National Cathedral will go dark this Saturday night as the landmark observes Earth Hour.

The cathedral’s exterior lights will be dimmed at 8:30 p.m. for the annual, world-wide event, which tries to raise awareness of energy issues, reports the Associated Press.

Earth Hour organizers encourage people, businesses and cultural sites to turn off their lights for one predetermined hour, 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. local time.

A new car sharing service might be particularly well-suited for the Georgetown neighborhood. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) (Chip Somodevilla - GETTY IMAGES) #DMVReads is a feature designed to help readers share the best local stories with one another. Share your favorite local story of the day with the hashtag #DMVReads, and we’ll feature the best in a lunchtime blog post.

Try it with this Twitter button:

Every Friday afternoon in our #DMVReads picks, we highlight five of the best stories from the local blogosphere. If you have a local blog post you’d like to be considered, submit the link here.

Here are the top blog posts from the past week:

– Georgetown Metropolitan thinks that the two new car sharing options in the District may be ideally suited for Georgetown residents.

The cherry blossoms may have bloomed early, but it’s not too late to catch a glimpse of the pink and white buds.

According to Robert DeFeo, the Park Service’s chief horticulturalist for the region and manager of the annual cherry-care budget, Friday is the peak for the Kwanzan variety of cherry trees.

Here are our picks for the top local stories to start your day:

Improvements on the “hell train,” even as ridership increases. In 2010, substantial delays and a notorious breakdown earned MARC the dubious nickname. Now, nine of 10 trips are on time.

Alleged Va. Crips charged in teen prostitution ring. The alleged gang members recruited girls from Fairfax County on Facebook, in school and at bus stops, then forced them to stay through threats and violence, authorities say.

Six firms picked to grow D.C. medical marijuana. All are in Northeast Washington; one is partly owned by Montel Williams. There’s no word yet on dispensaries.

(Creative Commons image via Flickr.com/iamdavidgaines)

UPDATED 4:25 p.m.

With a pet store, yoga spots, a theater, several watering holes, a thrift store, a 7Eleven, a Capital Bikeshare outpost and even a Safeway just up the road, the Atlas Corridor’s H Street NE is one of the city’s most rapidly gentrifying areas.

It seems like the only thing missing is — wait for it — a bicycle shop.