I left the Northern Virginia area about 5 years ago to retire to a sleepy, Southern coastal town. I spent nearly 40 years in NoVa, and I was glad to get out of Dodge when the time came. Nonetheless, there are some things I truly miss about the NoVa experience.

Number 1. The great choice of grocery stores NoVa had to offer. Giant, Safeway, Fresh Market, etc. The best my current city can offer is either the Piggly Wiggly or Food Lion. Both absolutely suck.

Number 2. The Fairfax County Public School System. I was glad my kids had an opportunity to attend this fine public school system. The public school system where I currently reside is horrendous. Anyone with any money here sends their kids to private school.

Number 3. The Fairfax County Police. This may surprise many of you, but FC has a very fine force. Sure, they'll nail you if you break the law, which is what they are paid to do. They look and act very professional, IMO. Here, our police make me uncomfortable and I imagine they are quite corrupt. 95% are seriously overweight and look and act as if they barely graduated high school.

Number 4. The Redskins, Wizards and Capitals. Closest professional sports town here is Atlanta - a 6 hour drive away.

Now, what I don't miss.

Number 1. The traffic. Duh! I can get from my home to anywhere I need to get to in 20 minutes or less. Even all the way across town.

Number 2. Winters. It never snows or ices up here.

Number 3. Overpriced housing. I sold my 20 year old Fairfax County home in 2006, moved South and built a brand new home, twice as large, on the water and still had money left over.

That's it for now. I'll post other misses/don't misses as they pop up.

Arthur

Interesting post- I agree with your conclusions. Hello from Fairfax!

I blame most of the traffic on the growth of the exurbs. It really wasn't that bad ten years ago . . .

You should move back...

1) There's only one grocery store now. Wegman's.

2) FCPS is now the only school system in the country which colleges and universities draw their students from. If you didn't go to FCPS, you can't go to college or university anymore.

3) FCPD There's not a single illegal or even LEGAL immigrant living in the county anymore. All citizens seeking entry into the county must present papers at the county line and if they are not in order the now ex-citizen is terminated.

4) DC United Of course, attendance is down what with all of the terminations in #3...but, this makes it the best stadium experience in town now.

5) Traffic Once again, due to #3 traffic is simply not a problem here anymore. One can get from their $2M outhouse in Spotsylvania to DC in just 6 minutes now.

6) Winters Who gives a fuck if it snows? Everyone stays inside now when it snows so, the streets are completely driveable.

7) Overpriced housing The recession has finally come to NOVA. The building industry is now constructing homes out of matchsticks and plywood so, although your home insurance has gone up, the bottom has dropped out of the market. Of course, you'll have to build another house on your land in 5 years...

(Mockingly shakes mangy fist...) "Everything was better before!" Meh...

What about all the douchebags? Do you miss them????
Attachments:

^PERSIANS!!!

so Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ^PERSIANS!!!


You mean Iranians.

the only thing I can agree on from your list is the grocery stores, and I would give that up and do my own farming to get ouutta here

O.K. interesting post. But i think that like most of the things in Fairfax, their public schools are over-rated. Fairfax has money so they look all progressive, and Diverse from the outside but they still have the same problems every school system faces. Mainly every self-important parents that thinks their kid's are special and deserves every special program, ADD med, the county has to offer. Fairfax is the best, everything, just ask them.

Sloppy wet Mexican penis in my butthole. Another in my mouth. I can taste their spicy cum.

no no i mean dirty damn persians

The cops here cause more problems than they solve (at least in my experience). Some of them are absolutely corrupt.

Don't agree with you on the schools either. While I think FCPS does have better teachers than a lot of areas I don't think that matters much. Its the same bullshit curriculum and if you don't succeed in school here you are treated like a leper by the system. In other areas kids are taught there are other options besides college in their communities/ schools and many of those kids do very well in life by starting work right out of high school. Here if you get a 'c' you are basically told to go kill yourself. I think its over the top how much pressure is put on the students in FCPS. Some pressure is good, but too much is overly stressful on the kids and it seems to backfire quite often. I also think its hilarious that all these parents think their kids and schools are so great when in fact FCPS is so full of drugs it probably rivals any inner city school (at least for marijuana).

Interesting post. However, I would disagree on the weather. We get snow 1-2 times a year and a blizzard every 5. About every other year we get a week with 100 degrees. But if you like seasons, it's pretty temperate.

I would miss driving through Old Town Alexandria and Ballston and seeing all the hot women in the summer wearing short skirts.

"But i think that like most of the things in Fairfax, their public schools are over-rated."

True because everytime the FCPS does some type of press release they tout they are the best system in the nation yet no one calls on them to prove it. Just because you spend the most doesnt make you the best, just ask the NY Yankees.

Every place has its downsides. Many places have few upsides.

the traffic has become the worst. been here 20 years, and it's just getting insane.
I have seen the illegal hispanics move in and totally trash and area within a few years. riding my motorcycle is out of the question because of people not paying attention driving.
ticket prices for the local pro teams are insane. baseball is still good.
For some reason if assholes could fly, this area would be an international airport.
I use to love this area.

HOW DARE YOU INCLUDE THE WASHINGTON CAPITALS IN A SENTENCE WITH THOSE TWO OTHER SPORTS TEAMS... HOW DARE YOU!!!

Stop being pussies. We have great here. Well except for Obama.

angered Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> HOW DARE YOU INCLUDE THE WASHINGTON CAPITALS IN A
> SENTENCE WITH THOSE TWO OTHER SPORTS TEAMS... HOW
> DARE YOU!!!


Washington Capitals, Washington Bullets, Washington Redskins
Washington Capitals, Washington Bullets, Washington Redskins
Washington Capitals, Washington Bullets, Washington Redskins

And now the Washington Nationals!!!

Go Nationals!

...and take the fucking Wizards with you.

OMG! Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Stop being pussies. We have great here. Well
> except for Obama.

"We have great here?"
Only English is spoken here...

Hey Arthur,

I did read this when you posted. Didn't really pay attention to the name though. My apologies. :-)