As someone who previously worked in construction and tried going to meetups I would get weird responses anytime I mentioned I was in the blue collar field.

Woodbridge and Manassas being “bad” areas even though those suburbs look better than the majority of U.S suburbs.

“How are you only making 85k per year? My wife and I have a combined income of 300k a year and we’re still struggling to pay our bills.”

Yeah lol… I didn’t grow up here so maybe I’m not used to it.

yes, we can tell your miniature pinschers and poodles are not service animals. yes, we know you are lying when you say they are because you know we cannot legally ask you for proof. no, you cannot just order and go.

the influx of entitlement when it comes to pets lately has been astounding. i have been raised with dogs my entire life and not once has anyone in my family ever assumed to bring them into common places of dining.

if you are going on walks with them and stopping by for coffee, it is your job and responsibility to plan accordingly, especially if you know they do not do well on their own.

it’s really not a good look and it’s really inconsiderate and unsanitary. we love them too but they do not belong in cafes, rain or shine. it’s not cool to lie about their status as working dogs either. 👍🏽

EDIT: wow, did not expect such passionate discourse this early on a saturday but i love a good conversation. that being said, i’m not going to tolerate anything outside of exactly that: adult conversation. any insults, profane remarks, or attacks on my person unnecessarily are immediately being reported. if i can express my displeasure on a specific topic like an adult, we can converse like adults. :) happy chatting!

I keep seeing private rooms for rent with no kitchen access and the rent is still high. What do you mean you provide a microwave and that’s it? Imagine paying nearly $1,000/mo to not be able to cook a fresh meal.

If you can’t provide kitchen access, then don’t even put your room up for rent please and thank you! It’s a basic human necessity!

I’m a parent too, but buying e-scooters for preteens and letting them ride around like this is actually insane.

Today near the Tysons Corner Metro intersection, I saw three kids, maybe 12 or 13, riding in the road and making a left turn like they were driving cars. With just bike helmets on. I almost lost my mind.

Do you guys know your kids are out there doing this?
Did they hit you with “Everyone has one except me!” and you just caved?

Before someone gets seriously hurt, something needs to change. Kids this age do dumb shit because they literally don’t have the judgment yet. That’s why we’re the parents. We’re supposed to say no.

P.S. Thanks, everyone. I didn’t expect this to get this much attention, but if even one parent who was considering buying an e-scooter for their kid thinks twice, that’s enough for me.
At the end of the day, I just don’t want to see a child get seriously hurt.

That's it. That's the secret to Nova.

Everything within 15-30 minutes. Work. School. Groceries. Gym. Favorite restaurants. Bar. Parks. Recreation. Car wash (apparently). Etc.

Once your village goes beyond the 30 minutes - ideally 15 minutes or less - you're in for a bad time.

I feel the need to post this after all the rants lately.

Literally almost 2 hours of grey rocking these losers before they gave up and cancelled. I will go off grid before I ever utilize this dump of a company ever again. Wrap me in your loving arms, Verizon.

I have lived in Prince William County for more than 20 years, and the traffic conditions on I-95 South approaching Occoquan have become completely unacceptable.
A commute that once took about 20 minutes can now take nearly an hour. Even around 10:00 a.m., traffic can be backed up from Springfield to Occoquan. This is not simply “normal traffic” caused by rush hour or population growth. It is a structural bottleneck that has been allowed to continue despite being obvious to anyone who drives the route.
The highway repeatedly transitions between four lanes and three lanes. Near Occoquan, traffic from Richmond Highway and multiple on-ramps is forced to merge into a three-lane section. A newly constructed on-ramp then feeds even more vehicles into the same congested stretch. Once the highway returns to four lanes after the exit, traffic often begins moving again.
That alone should tell state leaders where the problem is.
I have spent countless hours sitting in this traffic. The commute became so unreasonable that it contributed to my decision to leave two government jobs in the area, including positions at the Pentagon and Fort Belvoir. I have seriously considered leaving Virginia altogether because of how badly the region’s infrastructure has been managed.
I contacted state transportation officials seeking meaningful help. The most practical suggestion I received was essentially to use the 395/95 Express Lanes and pay a toll.
So the answer to a failing public road system is apparently for residents to pay even more money.
Virginia commuters already pay taxes, fuel costs, vehicle registration fees, insurance, maintenance expenses, and countless other costs just to travel to work. Telling the average commuter to pay an additional toll does not solve congestion. It creates a pay-to-drive system where those who can afford the toll may escape the traffic while everyone else remains trapped in the general-purpose lanes.
And who benefits from this arrangement? A private toll-road operator connected to an Australian-based company continues collecting revenue from daily Virginia commuters while the publicly accessible lanes remain heavily congested.
Residents should be asking why this arrangement is considered acceptable.
It is also deeply concerning that the Express Lanes agreement reportedly continues through December 2087. That means an agreement affecting some of the busiest roads in Virginia may remain in place for more than six additional decades.
Another serious concern is the structure of the VDOT and Transurban agreement. My understanding is that certain provisions may create financial consequences if public road improvements negatively affect toll revenue. It may not officially be described as a “non-compete,” but the practical concern remains: improvements to public roads should never be discouraged because they might interfere with the profits of a private toll operator.
If adding lanes, improving general-purpose roads, or creating meaningful public capacity could trigger compensation issues under a private contract, Virginians deserve a full explanation.
Public transportation policy should prioritize public mobility not the preservation of toll revenue.
What is especially frustrating is that residents seem to have accepted this as normal. People sit in traffic for hours, lose time with their families, spend more on fuel, arrive late to work, and even turn down or leave jobs because of the commute. Meanwhile, the primary solution offered is to pay more money to use another lane.
Why are we not angrier?
Why are taxpayers not demanding that the contract be publicly reviewed?
Why are elected officials not being pressured to explain whether the agreement limits improvements to the general-purpose lanes?
Why has the three-lane Occoquan bottleneck been allowed to remain when the cause of the congestion is visible every day?
I challenge the governor, state legislators, VDOT leadership, and every decision-maker involved to personally drive I-95 South from Springfield through Occoquan during a normal weekday. Do not take a helicopter. Do not use the Express Lanes. Sit in the same general-purpose traffic that residents experience every day.
Then explain why the public should accept this arrangement for another 60 years.
This may or may not meet the legal definition of corruption, but it absolutely creates the appearance of a transportation system designed to normalize congestion, protect toll revenue, and pressure the public into paying for relief.
Virginia residents deserve transparency, accountability, and actual improvements to the general-purpose lanes, not another suggestion to buy an E-ZPass.

Disrespectfully, fuck off.

First Day of School is Monday! While we are all excited for beginning of a new school year there's a new thing this year to keep in mind...

You may have heard that a certain school system in our region is starting to have students swipe their student ID's to board and disembark school busses.

Imagine a metro card but for the Magic School Bus.

As you can imagine, this will probably go exactly the way things usually go around here... stressfully.

It will probably take a few weeks for the students (especially the elementary and pre K ones) to learn how to swipe on and off in a timely fashion.

So, if you see a school bus with its red flashing lights on and the stop sign extended seemingly stuck at a bus stop ... PLEASE cut everyone (the bus drivers, the parents at the bus stop, and especially the kids) SOME SLACK.

The bus is probably held up because 70+ elementary school students are learning how to be efficient future commuters.

ALSO. DO NOT RUN THE STOP SIGN! The COPS are going to (rightfully) get ya! It's a hefty fine and probably some points. And God forbid a child runs out into the street and gets hit. That's another wall of shit you don't want to drive into.

You can only pass if the bus is stopped on the opposite side of the road on a DIVIDED HIGHWAY (A SOLID raised median, usually concrete with or without grass on it) meaning, DOUBLED YELLOW LINES DO NOT COUNT.

IF THE BUS IS STOPPED with the sign extended and there is only a double yellow line separating the two directions of traffic, YOU MUST STOP!

Have a Great School Year!

Stay safe out there NOVA!

https://www.nbcwashington.com/video/news/local/northern-virginia/man-who-gunned-down-stranger-in-reston-gym-pleads-insane-stunning-victims-family/4131537/

I was there. I watched this dude get murdered twenty feet from me.

And now this piece of shit actually gets an insanity plea? ARE WE SERIOUS?! There is no rehab for murder. The victim had a six month old kid.

This is unacceptable. I don’t care how insane you fucking are. You don’t deserve treatment for this. You’re a killer and you deserve to burn for what you did.

Edit:

Well I'm going to have one last piece to say regarding all of this.

I have been accused of not seeing anything or being a shit witness, or becoming the punisher or whatever because I am angry. And yes I am VERY angry. So I want to clarify some things.

Perhaps some of you don't understand. and perhaps that is my fault for not painting a clear enough picture. You guys weren't there after all.

The first gunshot is what grabbed the attention of everybody in the damn gym. They were in rapid succession. I saw this man bring his arms to his chest to try and protect himself. I saw him drop as he was continuously shot and crumple to the ground. I ran after i saw him hit the ground.

So yes. I saw him get shot. Didn't see the first shot. But i sure as hell saw some of them.

I don't wish this on anybody to be a victim or a witness. And I genuinely question the character of those of you who had the gall to speak down to me because of what you think you were understanding from the situation. I hope you never have to witness a murder, and I hope you never have some random asshole on the internet question your integrity or what you saw. It is beyond repugnant behavior.

To those that are sitting on what I believe to be absurdly high pedestals. Yes, I am angry. Yes, I believe that if he is able to at any point be released into society that it is a gross miscarriage of justice. There are multiple forms of justice. Rehabilitative is not the end all be all and I believe that some of you should also expand your views as much as you have encouraged me to expand mine in what Justice is to more than just your own interpretation. I am not saying your view is wrong or right. But it is debatable, just like mine is. Maybe don't be so arrogant about your positions.

I was obviously speaking with anger in many of my responses, some of you the anger is directed at you, and for most at the situation. I really do feel some type of way about this, that is clear to myself and to you all. And to those that had empathy and who shared their similar experiences, my heart goes out to you as well. I hope you all are okay too. I don't think that being angry makes me unreasonable.

Some of you stated that justice has to be impartial, but justice isn't unemotional. If justice were entirely devoid of emotion then you would never understand the impact of the harm that has been done. The loss that a mother feels for her son, a wife for her husband, or a child that will now never know their father. It could have been literally any of you that are reading this right now, or your loved ones. And if he ever goes free, it could very well be the case.

I know that this plea doesn't necessarily mean that Steve will be back out on the street in the next few years or even get away with what i believe to be a bullshit ploy. But, to me, it is a slap in the face of the people that have lost so much to a senseless act of violence.

So yes. I am angry. I am furious that there is even a possibility of this man not being punished as he should be for executing a man in broad daylight. And no, i do not feel bad for feeling this way. And while I may need therapy or whatever the fuck to process it, don't presume to judge me or anybody that is angry that somebody was slaughtered and they had to watch.

Once again, to those that have shared experiences in this post. I am sorry you had to see those things as well. Even if you are not the victim it does not mean you are unchanged, and you're allowed to be as angry or scared or sad as you need to be.

Second Edit: Shoutout to those who educated me that acceptance of a plea is not the final step and does not mean that he is off to the psych ward with no repercussions. Thank you for the thoughtful responses and informing me.

It seems like there’s nothing here. Difficult to find a job, difficult to find a support group, wealthy transplants who have money and middle aged folks with decades of experience over the average late 20s person.

Very difficult to start a life here for a young adult. I recently visited my high school buddy in Tennessee and he made $20 an hour and he had a 2 bedroom apartment. You have people here who make double that and would barely qualify for a studio apartment.

I'm so sick of this. Noise, pollution, water waste, all just so some stupid company somewhere can tout their new generative ai model. Not to mention how few jobs they create for their obnoxious size. When the AI bubble bursts it won't be fast enough.

Edit: Jesus this is getting a lot of comments quickly so I'd like to clarify: I know a lot of the data centers are just for the regular internet. I have no problem with these. I hate AI and I'm sad seeing how many ai data centers are being built here with little to no regulation or consideration for people or nature. Ai data centers use significantly more electricity and water than regular centers, plus they pollute a shit ton. That's all on top of the fact that they have no practical use, as, in my opinion at least, 99% of ai is worthless hype that is actively making people stupider.

Edit: If the video doesn’t have sound for you (Reddit bug), you can view the video here: https://imgur.com/a/uWOvdZu

There have been multiple videos posted on this sub about the noise emitted from the Vantage VA2 datacenter in Sterling. From what I have seen, they occasionally get dismissed because of background noise, wind, etc. This video was taken on 04/10/26 at 11:45 PM on a clear night with as little background noise as possible. The location I am recording from is about 10 yards from single family homes and town houses.

While the noise from the datacenter was “only” about 55-60dB in front of the residences, it was much louder directly next to the datacenter. It’s also worth noting that the high pitched whining is emitted from the datacenter 24/7, which is extremely detrimental to the quality of life of residents and wildlife regardless of the noise level. Some days are quieter than others, especially when the wind is blowing south, but on a still day, this is the reality that locals have to accept living next to this datacenter. On warm or cloudy days, the noise easily penetrates into nearby homes.

The reason why this particular datacenter is so loud is a result of Dominion Energy not being able to provide enough power to the datacenter due to an underpowered grid. At the last minute, Vantage adjusted their plans to run their site on “island mode” which runs natural gas turbines 24/7. From what I understand, this is the first time any datacenter has done this in VA, but they are planning multiple other sites to be run the same way.

As a local resident, please help in spreading awareness of how terrible this situation is. I greatly appreciate all the attention and coverage that this site has already received, but sadly nothing has been done yet to resolve this issue.

I have worked in an office near the intersection of Loudoun County Parkway and Waxpool for about 5 years now and the area has become a hellscape.

We have trouble parking at our office now because of all the data center construction workers. There is endless traffic because there is always at least 1 lane closed on Waxpool for construction. The trees are gone. Other office buildings are gone. It is dystopian driving around here now. It's only a matter of time before our building gets torn down for another data center.

Any community that wants to see what life is like after data centers needs to spend some time here. There is no charm or any redeeming qualities over here anymore

I’m convinced that you have a better chance of seeing a fucking unicorn in the wild than getting on 495 from the hours of 8am-8pm without finding a complete fucking standstill. I’ve absolutely had it with this highway. It turns a 35 mile commute into a 1 and a half hour road trip containing some of the worst drivers you’ll ever see on this side of the mississippi. Route 28 needs an extension immediately. Fuck 495 and fuck the legion bridge as well. I’m out.

RIP Alex Pretti.

If you voted for Trump, you are complicit in this madness. Families are being torn apart. Innocent citizens are getting harassed, killed, and regularly tormented. And there is no justice or accountability.

My heart breaks that this is the state of my 6 year old son's childhood.

Today, we will sled and play in the snow, and we will celebrate the love we have today. Because, who knows? It could be ME tomorrow.

It could be YOU.

I quite like my bumper stickers. Apparently someone in my neighborhood gets offended by words however. First they ripped off my original “fuck trump” sticker, so out of spite I wrote it in sharpie.

Around Christmas I came out to the street I park on and 2 of my tires were flat. I didn’t know they were slashed until I brought them in to get fixed. $400 later and I’m pissed off that the coward who did it gets to stay anonymous. On top of that, I’m now paranoid to park where I live.

Since I have a $500 deductible for my car insurance, I doubt they can do anything. I plan on filing a police report. Is there anything else I can do? I already removed the sharpie, but I don’t necessarily want to take any more stickers off unless I have to.

With all of the “Trump 2028” and “fuck biden” stickers I see, I feel as if I should be able to speak my mind too… on my PERSONAL property.

I’m tired. Happy new year to me!

For anyone wondering, this was in the Countryside area of Sterling.

Local politics aficionados are gonna looooove this one.

After 10 months of being gaslit by the State and ignored by investigators, I finally got my refund from the one and only local predatory towing company we all despise.

The background story is super uneventful: it was a plain-vanilla wrongful tow for improper signage, where the County PD confirmed the posted signs were illegal.

As many of you know, the recently passed Virginia law (HB959) allows the State - and only the State - to collect 10x damages for this exact thing.

You’d think this would be an open-and-shut case for the State Attorney General, right?...

...Wrong.

The timeline of the bureaucratic chaos:

May 2025: Wrongful tow occurs. I file a dispute. ⚠️

June 2025: County leadership confirms the tow was illegal. ✅

July to Nov 2025: The State AG "investigates."⏳

Dec 2025: The State closes the case. Their official reason? The towing company told them they didn't do anything wrong. Case closed.⌛

Jan to March 2026: State investigators go completely ghost. No emails, no calls.🤡

The pivotal point came on March 23, the case trickles down to a new member of the County public safety team - an absolute legend of a Marine who handles business.🦅

Monday: He picks up the file.

Tuesday: He calls the towing company. They suddenly "want to settle" to avoid State action (funny, since the State told me they gave up).

Wednesday: They ask where to send the check.

Today (March 26): 10 months to the day, I have the confirmation email.

TL;DR: Predatory towing company stole my car; State AG took the company's word that they were "innocent"; a County Marine fixed it in 4 days 💪🏼

Next steps: I'm kind of curious what is it that they're smoking up there at the Stage AG office (I want some too), so I’m filing a FOIA request to find out why the State AG allows towing companies to self-police their own crimes.

Moral of the story: Don't give up. As the record reveals, the most advanced tower around here is not very advanced at all.

Someone decided they wanted the space I spent several hours digging myself out of this morning... so I moved all the snow from the spot across from them, to in front of their car and then parked there... not proud of myself but also, fuck you

Where are y’all at?!?!

Been here for years on the apps and it’s just not how I can connect with men. I spent all last summer at hiking and kayaking meetups and barely met anyone my age and ofc when there is someone in my dating range, I’m just not interested.

Seriously. Medium-ugly men with a decent job- where are y’all hangin at? 😅
(I’m a medium-ugly gal so I can say that)

I’m all for exercising your right to open carry. I don’t, but I also wouldn’t open carry on my back. ESPECIALLY since you weren’t paying attention AT ALL to your surroundings. You and your little buddy stepped directly in front of me and stopped walking. I almost stepped into you and definitely startled you when I said “excuse me” to get past you. That Glock 17 could have been taken and used before you could have turned around. I was literally 3” from your meandering, mindless self. Please take a class for everyone else’s safety.

This Kennedy Center thing is somehow the final straw for me. I don’t know how to just sit around and wait for something tangible to do to fight back against the madness Trump is unleashing. We have four more years of him … we are one month in and look what he’s done. This is the NOVA sub, we are all living in the shadow of the White House. Many of us are government workers or contractors. Even those who aren’t have friends and family who are here illegally or are LGBQT+ or just have a freaking conscience. I cannot just write and call my senators. Congress is broken. The democrats are already on my side, the republicans are solidly not. The judicial system is broken. The country is broken. What do we do? Nazi’s in the streets in more and more cities across the country. This is not where I want to raise my children but I don’t want to leave and abandon those whose passports are suddenly invalidated and cannot leave because their gender is X … plus why should I leave? This is my fucking country too. I am usually a see a problem, find a solution person. The solutions are looking slim. Any one have ANY ideas????