Northern Virginia Vinyl Replacement Windows

...Just a quick shout-out to one of our loyal sponsors, a long-standing Northern Virginia business community member, and a vendor we're all going to need soon.

While it seems like the high-growth, high-density areas of Loudoun County are still "new" communities - houses in these newer neighborhoods do age remarkably quickly. Most "built-to-model" construction leverages fairly average, though reasonable, components - many of which are beginning to fail after these past 8-10 years. Our house was built in South Riding in 1998 - and all sorts of things are falling apart already - like the fixtures, the appliances, the air-conditioning, the wood trim, the weatherstripping and windows, and of course the gas grill. We're heading into a major "renovation" phase of the 10-year "keep the HOA happy" cycle, and first up will likely be the windows (before winter!).

And where's the most reasonable and effective place to get vinyl replacement windows in Northern Virginia? Vinyl-Lite.com.

Vinyl-Lite prides itself on innovation in the commercial and home construction and remodeling industries with custom replacement vinyl windows, doors, vinyl siding and patio enclosures. Servicing Northern Virginia (NOVA - including Loudoun County) since 1978 makes Vinyl-Lite Northern VA's most established replacement vinyl window, vinyl siding, replacement doors, patio enclosures and home or commercial glass product companies in the Fairfax County, Loudoun County, and Prince William County areas. Double Hungs, Casements, Sliders, Awning, Picture, Bays, Bows, and Garden windows are some of their most popular styles. Because they are the actual manufacturer (a very unique business model for this industry, right here in Northern VA), they can design and build a window that fits anyone's needs. They don't take a "one size fits all approach"; rather, they meet your customized, specific home or commercial window needs - on your terms - for very reasonable prices.

Vinyl-Lite's FREE online window quote for Northern Virginia residents is the fastest and most efficient method to purchase replacement vinyl windows in Northern Virginia. This is a proven and very popular way to buy vinyl replacement windows in Northern Virginia without the hassle of high-pressure sales staff or middlemen distributors and retailers.

Quality, direct-from-the-factory custom door and window projects is a Vinyl-Lite specialty. They service commercial or residential door and vinyl replacement window clients in all areas of Northern Virginia, including Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Arlington, Alexandria and other locations. No obligation, free Northern VA window estimates or estimates for all other services and products are available on the Vinyl-Lite website.

About Vinyl-Lite.com

Vinyl-Lite.com is the source for information about Northern Virginia's premier online vinyl replacement windows manufacturer, installer and service provider. Get rapid window quotes and estimates for other projects at this site, from the privacy of your own home or office, along with many examples and photos of satisfied door and window customer projects, window industry information and awards they’ve won as Northern Virginia’s top vinyl replacement windows experts.

Lenah Site for Dulles South High School and Middle Schools - HS7 and MS5

Quite a bit of grass roots activism is generating quickly around approval of a site near Lenah Run selected for two desparately-needed schools in the Dulles South area. It appears that, although the Loudoun School Board spent 3 years evaluating site options and settling on this one, a minority of very vocal opinion in the area is seemingly on the path to convincing the Loudoun Board of Supervisors, led by Stevens Miller (Dulles District Supervisor), that procurement authority should shift from the School Board (as provided by Virginia legislation) to the BOS. These actions and an apparent initiative by Stevens Miller to "put a freeze on the Lenah site to investigate a new procedure for site procurement" (as relayed by local email communications) appear to (A) grossly underserve the needs of area children, and (B) appear not to reflect the mind of the majority of Dulles District constituents.

The Dulles area continues its rapid growth, and evidently, by 2010/2011, the existing schools will be overcrowded (even beyond current crowding) to the point that class sizes will be untenable, children may need to be bussed to other schools, and quality of education will markedly suffer. That is why the current Lenah area selection for HS7 and MS5, consolidated on a single property, is a timely, appropriate and absolutely essential procurement.

We've written a lot in this and other forums about the rapidly decreasing quality of public schools in our County, due mainly to symptoms related to rapid growth and overcrowding - let's take a stand to stem this decline, and provide our children with the educational quality, safety from gang influence and community stability they're entitled to.

The Board of Supervisors and this area's representative need to be reminded of their previous acknowledgements of this dire overcrowding and the need for additional schools in Dulles South, and reminded that their constituents' majority opinion require prioritized attention. Minority opinion is important, but doesn't yield votes. Remind them at the next BOS meetings -

Public input dates at the Board of Supervisors:

Monday, July 7 6:30
Monday, July 14 6:30

(If you've got different, better or revised information than that we've relayed here, please let us know, so we can be as accurate and timely as possible.)

Virginia Transportation: Our 2 cents - we want it back!

This week's special session for Virginia's legislative bodies in Richmond regarding transportation appears, appears utterly abysmal, deadlocked, useless, etc. - according to most reports on the subject. Furthermore, reports from sources like the Washington Post indicate "some legislators have already dismissed the session".

This will be short, simple, necessarily politically ignorant. We're getting peeved, sitting in hideous traffic trying to get downtown to jobs that protect America.

Evidently the cost of the session is $20,000 a day, to Virginia taxpayers. Using very rough and probably ill-informed math, that amounts to 2 cents from each tax-paying citizen.

We want it back.

Being so bold as to represent all clear-thinking, traffic-hating, non-partisan residents of the Dulles South area of Northern Virginia, we demand the following from our legislators - in fact, we as constituents DIRECT you to execute the following:

1 - go home, reconstitute, have a beer, and get plans together for the next session, keeping in mind the following points.
2 - give us our 2 cents back. We're out of gas.
3 - take your party badges off; start thinking like professionals.
4 - come back to the next session rested, refreshed and ready to work really hard to keep your jobs - we're ready to vote you and your cronies out the door so fast your heads will spin (listen up! the Internet is talking to you - it's not happy, and has a big stick).
5 - consider and immediately accept all reasonable bills that direct methodical, practical cost-savings measures, that seek to raise transportation revenues via non-tax activities - such as those from one of our locals, Bob Marshall.
6 - pass a bit of a tax, on everyone - frankly, with our gas costs (basically broad-based consumer use taxes in themselves) having risen two dollars a gallon over a very short period, a few more cents really doesn't disturb us - if it did, we've got much bigger problems. It may be NOVA and Hampton Roads who've got the biggest problems, but the entire State, all businesses and all citizens benefit from better traffic conditions.
7 - try again on the special tax-raising initiatives for NOVA; ask us, we'll help.
8 - go home, and maybe we'll invite you back to our barbecue, noting your accomplishments.

Dulles South, Northern Virginia

Loudoun Insurance Press Release

Here's great news from a reputable, local provider of Loudoun Insurance products, in our very own South Riding, VA.

Khalid Umerani of Chantilly (Fairfax County and Loudoun County Insurance) has been recognized by Allstate Insurance Company for high standards in customer satisfaction, customer retention and financial service sales. Umerani has achieved the distinctive Allstate Regional Champion's award, which is Allstate's symbol of outstanding achievement.

Full details and more information about this press release can be found at Dulles South Online - Loudoun Insurance.

NOVA Insurance Group offers a lot of really good, timely Loudoun insurance news and information for area residents in Loudoun, Fairfax and elsewhere about life events, insurance needs and other topics very relevant to our families, homes, businesses and communities - regardless of whether you're in the market for insurance or not.

For example - those gearing up on this first day of Summer for motorcycle activities - be sure to check out this great recent post concerning Loudoun motorcycle insurance!

Dulles South and Loudoun Transportation Information

Take a look at the most recent Dulles South Traffic and Transportation presentations given at the Dulles South Business Alliance (DSBA), concerning transportation planning, funding and activities in the area. Presentations include one on the "Dulles Loop Implementation Group" (DLIG) status, one from the "Northern Virginia Transportation Authority" (NVTA), and one on the "Washington Airports Task Force" (WATF) 2008 priorities.

All provide a reasonable picture of real progress being made towards alleviating traffic issues in this area of the county, though there are many years of planning and construction to go. Lots of interesting nuggets.

Loudoun Extra - Welcome to the Neighborhood

A very interesting and well-debated story popped up at the Wall Street Journal last week, concerning the "Flop" (as they called it) of the Washington Post's foray into hyperlocal journalism, i.e. Loudounextra.com.

The story quotes, "Almost a year later, however, the Web site is still searching for an audience. Its chief architect has left for another venture in Las Vegas, and his team went with him. And while Post executives say they remain committed to providing so-called hyperlocal news coverage, they are re-evaluating their approach."

The article does reach one right conclusion - "Mr. Curley's (the chief architect) crew was trying to reach a much different audience than they were used to. Unlike Lawrence, Kan., which had a small populace linked by an easily identifiable set of interests, Loudoun County is a 520 square-mile area with seven towns whose residents share little else besides a county government."

We'd like to point out that both the WSJ and Washington Post really missed the mark with respect to connecting with Loudoun County online. For one, Loudoun County isn't only "7 towns" - a tremendous number of residents actually live in HOA-controlled subdivisions and developments, or "interstitial" areas between (is that redundant?). Secondly, residents share quite a lot, not only many variations of regional affiliations, but also vicarious interests as experienced through their children, jobs and sports teams. Third, LoudounExtra decided to "overlay" its unique brand and method of online journalism on top of the County and its constituent readers, rather than "integrate" and "socialize" it. Here's why.

In the experience of what turns out to be very astute local journalists, Internet
professionals and marketing practitioners, marketing online to Loudoun County, and in fact to all of Northern Virginia (NOVA), has very little to do with zipcodes, high tech and explicit data, and everything to do with user-defined neighborhoods, relationships and conversation.

While Loudoun may appear to outsiders as the bastion of high-tech (with AOL, for example), in practice, the majority of residents actually aren't either well-versed or "time-enabled" to turn to the Internet and Web 2.0 capabilities for much local information or news. These are the residents who enable the persistence of at least 5 local print newspapers, who communicate primarily by email, who talk on their cellphones a lot, who really refuse to discuss education online (it's simply too sensitive), and who drive many hours a day in "offline" activities related to families or jobs. These are also the residents who are either fiercely loyal to their area of the County or NOVA (which may have little do with zipcode or township affiliation, and more to do with their children-driven activities and jobs), or are part of the transient melee of government-related workers who haven't, or won't, stay long enough to grow roots. Fundamentally, if you're not communicating, interacting and conducting business together offline in this County, chances are high you're not doing it online. You can't easily browse a website in your car, or on the soccer field, after all - nor should you want to.

The successful purveyor of online information to Loudoun will also understand that, in order to actually meet readers online, you'll need to get engaged in the neighborhood or focused-interest forums that already exist. Well-read discussion forums like the Brambletonian, heavy-hitting comment threads over at Leesburg Today, the enthusiastic Blog stable at Loudoun Times, the Myspace crowd of South Riding, the neighborhood email lists of Ashburn, very notable and recognized niche blogs like Too Conservative and our own Gateway to Loudoun County (and the "original" Living in LOCO), "Mommy" sites and forums like I Am Modern, Yahoo Groups, regional portals like Dulles South Online, local wikis like Loudounpedia, etc., etc.

In short, Loudoun County actually had a very well-established online "social media" presence before LoudounExtra hit the wire, that was basically ignored both online and off. Except, perhaps, for the daily highlights of local blogs at "Linked Up in Loudoun" - note that this "blog" area of Loudoun Extra was habitually underserved, with persistent links to old or inactive blogs, and not much outreach or "share in advertising revenue options" for blogging enthusiasts.

The last major area of stumble for the site has to do with the power of the Search Engine. Simply visit Google for example, and search for phrases like "loudoun news", "loudoun restaurants", "loudoun schools", "loudoun businesses" "loudoun politics", etc. What do you find? In nearly all cases, the first entries in Google's search results are local newspapers, portals, businesses, etc. (many of our sites, in fact!). It's even more pronounced in MSN's Live Search. Sure, LoudounExtra shows up in the top 10 some of the time - but with its budget, clout, WAPO heritage and seemingly invincible technology capacity, LoudounExtra should have been "search engine optimized and marketed" (SEO/SEM) to the hilt, and showing up first on all these searches. It wasn't.

Perhaps the most telling example of corporate policies impacting marketing/SEO practices is in the "Title Tag" (what you see at the top of your browser window) of the main site - it simply gives the name of the site and sponser - vs. describing what it actually is (how about "Loudoun County Local News, Information and Sports"?). Even though the site itself was technically first-class, it was a digital content "silo" - content simply wasn't reused, distributed or marketed enough elsewhere on the web (i.e. search engine or social media marketing). For example, visit Google Videos and search on "Loudoun Politics". You'll get some great and ground-breaking Loudoun County political videos from the Loudoun Independent newspaper, along with other user submissions. Zilch from LoudounExtra.

It's also important to note that the local online establishment didn't exactly ignore LoudounExtra. Much effort and expense went into upgrading local websites, adding social media functions, increasing hyperlocal internet marketing activities, and altogether responding actively online to such an imposing and sudden threat to readership, traffic and ultimately advertising dollars. Even the offline, print content around county improved in response (which wasn't matched by the respective offline county section of the Washington Post). In fact, there existed before, and now even more, quite a bit of respectable, coordinated and word-of-mouth activity among the local information merchants (who are also neighbors) regarding protecting their "turf" against out-of-county agents.

In all, the story WSJ tells isn't unsurprising, to the Internet denizens of Loudoun County. It's also a good lesson to both Large Media Organizations and to those who might be subsumed (listen up, Vegas!).

Loudoun County Gangs, Awareness and Intelligence

Yesterday's Loudoun County Gang Awareness seminar, put on by the Loudoun Sheriff's office and the Gang Intelligence Unit at the Dulles South Safety Center in South Riding, was a really great overview for the public on how to recognize and respond to gang activity in the neighborhood. Here's some nuggets and comments from the seminar.

(More information can be found at Loudoun's Gang Response Intervention Team Site)

- Relatively speaking, Loudoun County is in a reasonable position regarding dealing with the prominence and activities of gangs; our rates of gang-related criminal activity are much lower than all surrounding jurisdictions - one reason is the great "head start" our County got in addressing gang activity, through training partnerships with Fairfax County. Most violence in our county is "gang-to-gang", with the #1 crime in Loudoun being public graffitti, a.k.a. "newspapers of the street".

- Loudoun's Gang Intelligence Unit started in 1999 with one Part-time Investigator - it's grown now to 8 FT positions, along with regional and federal government partnerships and "virtual presence" through Student Resource Officers in the schools. Immigration (i.e. ICE) is especially collaborative with local law enforcement, immediately addressing and removing illegals associating in gang activity from the country.

- Street Gang participation (apparently noted as "domestic terrorism" by some Judges) is a Felony in Virginia, which isn't the case in DC, MD or West VA. Both the legislature, court systems and police groups have responded quickly and aggressively in identifying and implementing this degree of punishment; it seems to have really begun to help in the past 24 months, with gang activity down across all of Northern Virginia. The school systems in particular have "come a long way in the last 4-5 years", in recognizing and responding to gang activity.

- By far the single, largest common denominator with respect to Gang startup and participation (over 80% of members are under 18!) is lack of parental supervision at home - this is regardless of income level or social status.

- MS-13 (light blue colors) and 18th. St. (red colors) are 2 primary gangs with Loudoun representation; there's not an "overly-large" "Blood" representation, and not a lot of "all-girl" gangs at all.

- The majority of activity by the Gang Unit's "clientele" is so far clustered in areas of Sterling Park, Countryside and Ashburn, with South Riding (only at 4-5 actual "incidents" active cases logged so far in the 4 month-old county database system, out of about 100).

- Primary things the public can do include immediately notifying the Police or the Gang Intelligence Unit (1-866-NO-GANGS) of ANY gang-related, suspicious activity, including presence of new or updated graffitti. Also, parents need to be very cognizent of their child's activities and "representation" (i.e. clothing, accessories), that may indicate gang activity. In Virginia, there's "no expectation of privacy" for children in a home you own - so be sure to regularly inspect your house, and their rooms.

- Evidently there's been a "huge thing" occuring with respect to online Gang-related or indicative activity, leveraging Myspace in particular, centered around South Riding - be sure to absolutely monitor and control your child's Internet activities (for Internet Safety tips/techniques, see our Dadministrator Loudoun Internet Safety) blog.

All-in-all, a very good session with lively feedback.

Just a Great UVA Picture

...from the University of Virginia Reunions 2008 Weekend - what a magnificent setting and show they put on!

Fairfax-Loudoun Businesses Pair Up to Offer Regional Washington DC Omni-Media Marketing and Communications

(Press Release)

KME Internet Marketing (KME) of South Riding, Virginia announces a strategic alliance for Washington DC regional Internet Marketing and Communications with Trivision Studios of Chantilly, Virginia.

This partnership enables end-to-end delivery of coordinated, integrated and highly-effective omnimedia marketing and communications for our clients, including powerful and creative marketing, entertainment and multi-media campaigns on the Internet, in print, with distributed electronic media, and broadcast via TV and radio. This Northern Virginia partnership also creates the most targeted, flexible, relevant and comprehensive opportunities for local businesses and organizations to promote their own brand, products, services or events to audiences in the Metropolitan Washington, DC region or anywhere in the world.

This alliance is an especially powerful and relevant business event in the DC area, originating in Northern Virginia's Dulles South area of western Fairfax, western Prince William and eastern Loudoun Counties. With the rapid growth and expansion of local businesses, national and international commercial interests in this area, this partnership provides very critical, focused and coordinated business services in an otherwise segmented and difficult-to-negotiate regional advertising market. This alliance also showcases the availability and advanced capabilities of two leading representatives of Northern Virginia's world-class Internet technology, new media and professional services community, and in particular highlights the effectiveness of regional collaboration between Fairfax and Loudoun County technology leaders.

Read more about this Northern Virginia Media and Communications announcement...

Local School Runs the Board with Regional and National Teams, Individual awards...

After many months of training, warm-up competitions and local contests, athletic dominance was achieved by our local school in several categories of regional and national competition. Following successes at the early Spring Regional Invitational meets, both the boys and the girls tied for 1st among 275 other school teams at nationals. The competition was intense, but several of our athletes maxed their scoring with perfection on the courts, in the Gold divisions. This regional powerhouse ended another very strong year of superior Olympiad performance, in all categories...

...of 4th-8th grade academics, of course. (Which sport were you expecting?)

This year's awards ceremony at the Nysmith School for the Gifted, in Herndon, was a virtual cavalcade of honors any area high school or college would be hard-pressed to match. It was amazingly refreshing to witness cheering students, a packed audience of family and friends, very proud teachers and absolutely beaming children accept the very top honors and awards from regional and national competitions (like Odyssey of the Mind, Mathcounts and the Thomas Jefferson Math Open, Wordmasters, Science Fairs) along with individual honors bestowed on exceptional students in all grades, all subjects.

Where most local papers, discussion boards, media and parents are consumed with school sports team successes, this very close community is consumed with athletics of the mind, and nationally competitive results in spelling and geography bees, mathematics, science, music and art, logic and critical thinking are absolute proof that this school does right by its students. We desperately need more acknowledgement in this area of the country, like the example Nysmith sets, that academic excellence is truly the objective of the educational system, and is how the US will generate its future scientists, inventors, philosophers, business creators and other world leaders.

For reviews of other great Northern Virginia Private School Reviews, see I Am Modern, a Women's Lifestyle Magazine and Social Forum.

The Best Time to Consider Energy-Saving Replacement Windows for Northern Virginia

Here's some timely and interesting information from a long time family business and local window replacement and installation provider in our area...

The Northern Virginia and Loudoun County area is a region of significant temperature and weather variations, though not typically to utterly unreasonable extremes. Springtime weather may change from very hot and humid to cold and rainy in a single day, while mid-winter temperatures in the 70’s (for January!) tend to occur every few years. Therefore, your choice and options for replacement windows in Northern Virginia should take into account the rapid changes and variations of weather, without necessarily focusing solely on seasonal averages. Your new or replacement windows should assist your overall energy conservation goals by effectively separating warm from cold air at all times, whether the cold air is outside the window, or inside the home. These objectives are relevant for any kind of window, from vinyl windows to wooden, from double-hung to single-pane patio doors or enclosures, and from home windows to commercial siding.

This time of year (late spring) is an especially good time to have your Northern Virginia windows examined, repaired and/or replaced. (Note that window repair should be considered for any type of window scratch, crack, stain or other factor that would decrease the effectiveness of heat transfer or reflectivity). Long rain events occur with decreasing frequency, thunderstorms are not yet into their summer cycle, temperatures are moderate and both heating and air conditioners are likely not being utilized as much. Installing during the time will allow you to set a baseline from which your energy cost savings resulting from installation of new, energy-efficient windows can be more accurately measured over the coming years.

Energy Advantage Low-E Glass is a high performance, energy efficient window glass made with an invisible coating that blocks heat flow. It was invented by Roy Gordon, a Harvard University “Thomas Dudley Cabot Professor of Chemistry”, in the 1970’s, with full-scale manufacturing and production started in 1989 by Libbey-Owens Ford, a company with more than a century of experience making glass. Low-E glass is manufactured with a microscopically thin and transparent layer of metal or metal oxide that reflects infrared “heat” energy back into the home, greatly enhancing the thermal performance of the window. “Low-E” refers to “emissivity”, which is a measure of the ability of a surface to absorb or reflect heat. As an energy efficient glazing technology, Low Emissivity (or Low-E) glass is a poor absorber of heat.



Keep reading over here...

Where in the world is Loudoun County?

One of the difficulties in creating marketing and communications messages using automated Internet tools and "Web 2.0" strategies, is that not all geospatial technologies have yet become "smart" enough from a semantic perspective. What we mean, is that if one uses online tools to describe an area of the country (like "Dulles South") that doesn't fall neatly into geopolitical boundaries (i.e. "intergeostitial"), or isn't recognized via major geospatial services with specific latitude/longitude boundaries, the online tool isn't likely to understand what you mean. People understand what you mean, if you write about it with good contextual descriptions, but locator services aren't all yet leveraging the most advanced information sources and semantic indexing technologies.

Here's an example - it seems "Loudoun County" doesn't exist in the world (in Mixx's view, "we couldn't find Loudoun County, VA anywhere in the United States")...




So, now that we've described it to Mixx, we've done our small part in establishing another online gateway to Loudoun - make sure you do your part!

Laying the Groundwork for Year-Round Public School in Fairfax?

The signs are all there - speaking with a few long-time teachers and parents, it's apparent that movement may be afoot in Fairfax County for year-round school. Elective Summer School offerings are curtailed or cancelled. The population trends are dictating fewer realistic options for a more diverse parent crowd (with more single parents and dual income families) regarding options for daycare during the Summer months. Rampant evidence abounds regarding the extra time, expense and disservice to students with respect to their loss of accumulated knowledge over Summer vacation, and the need to "catch up" or "make up" the next year. Ideas and plans to reduce persistent overcrowding include year-round schooling, which offers more options for scheduling extra-curricular activities, staggered classroom schedules, and more useful, efficient use of school facilities overall. Several schools in Fairfax are already offering year-round classes, with much success. Benefits to existing teachers and those being recruited include flexible work schedules, reduced stress, and time for professional planning.

This is inherently a good idea, for a county and school system prepared both to offer and maintain this "sea-change" in local culture, and which has been gradually acclimating the local populace to the idea. Loudoun's perhaps still a bit too rural for such drastic change - but we think as Fairfax goes, so too should at least a few "test cases" in Eastern Loudoun (Eastern because of the population stressors, but perhaps also Western to alleviate rampant overcrowding) to test the waters.

Afghanistan Archaeological Treasures - Opening this Weekend in Washington DC

Looking for something to do downtown this Memorial Day 2008 long weekend? Here's a really interesting exhibit opening at the Washington DC National Gallery of Art.

For the first time ever, the U.S. is exhibiting Afghanistan's re-discovered ancient archaeological treasures dating back to 4,000 years in a 17-month nationwide tour, called Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul.

Organized by National Geographic and the National Gallery of Art, in cooperation with National Museum of Afghanistan, Kabul, the show is officially kicks off on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. and will run its tour through Houston, San Francisco and New York, ending on September 20, 2009. According to sources, National Geographic struck a $1 million deal with the Afghanistan government to bring these artifacts to the U.S.

As part of the opening ceremonies for the exhibition on May 25th, the National Gallery of Art will feature a special presentation about children's songs in Afghanistan, which will include a performance by Washington, D.C.–area Afghan-American children. The songs are from the songbook, Qu Qu Qu Barg-e-Chinaar , which is a compilation of children's songs, discovered much like the hidden treasures that were found in the vault of the Kabul Museum in 2003. In late 2001, Louise Pascale, a former United States Peace Corps volunteer, was the one who searched for and found the worn and faded original copy of the songbook, which she had created back in the 1960s along with the help of Afghan poets and musicians.

Our own local Trivision Studios, in Chantilly, Virginia, was instrumental behind the design and production of the songbook, which can be ordered by calling National Geographic Books at 1-800-842-6002 (mailorder@nga.gov) or TriVision Studios at 1-888-600-5528.

Trivision Studios offers international, national and local (based in metro-Washington DC) Marketing and Communications services to businesses, organizations and entertainers.

Southern Loudoun Hospitals Need to be in Dulles South

While our eyes have frankly been glazed over by the back and forth between HCA and INOVA, being fought in newspaper and mailed advertisements ("HCA's in the wrong location!" and "The new hospital needs to be near the Ashburn population Center"!), a recent mailing caught our eye, and we'll be turning more attention towards this issue as it materializes. (We just read through the comments and diatribe over on the Living in Loco - sure to be more to come!).

A mailer came out from the "Hospital Alliance for Southern Loudoun", mailed out of Middleburg. Can't seem to find any info on this group online, nor in the mailer, other than its plea for a "Hospital in Southern Loudoun where the need for services and convenient access to care is so desperately needed". We obviously, totally agree with this statement, though it would be nice to know specifically whether this is a backer with financial interest of some sort, of INOVA.

With a large family, we've made many trips to the hospital over the years from South Riding - electing usually, in the middle of the night, to go to Fair Oaks - it's the most direct and familiar route to us. Births have been over at Fairfax, given their reputation for excellence in all types of OB/GYN areas, including emergencies (although our last couple of experiences there were far less satisfactory than the first few). We've been to the occasional specialist at Manassas - but haven't actually ever gone to Leesburg. It's simply to far, and, frankly, a bit of an unknown area to those of us down here in SouthEastern Loudoun (Dulles South) area.

While the new Dulles South Urgent Care facilities recently opened on Rt. 50 are somewhat helpful, we absolutely need a "real" hospital in this area - and one that isn't "blocked" from our access by the nightmare traffic (during rush hours) heading into Fairfax on 50, heading up to the Ashburn/Brambleton area, or south into Manassas.

So, we are entirely in favor of the message put out by this "Hospital Alliance for Southern Loudoun" - though we don't really care whether it's HCA or INOVA who develops land already owned on Rt. 50. Just get the hospital done, be sure to proffer improvements to th Rt. 50 and North/South routes in and out, and be sure to become active, involved members of the Dulles South community.

I Am Modern Magazine for Moms - Summer Issue!

The latest issue of I AM Modern Magazine for Moms is here, now printed in Virginia on environmentally-responsible, FSC-Certified paper. It is a wonderful and packed edition filled with very useful information, from Yoga Studio Reviews to the latest fashion finds.

I Am Modern Magazine for Moms is a Northern Virginia Women's and Mom's Lifestyle Magazine, part of the I Am Modern Social Media Network of print products, social meetups, website and forums, blogs, and other distributed content. This magazine can be found at many local, family-friendly retailers currently around Loudoun County, VA, or can be mailed via subscription.

Read more here...

Rt. 50 Healthcare Meeting and Brambleton Summer Concerts

Public Meeting on the future of Rt. 50 Health Care, Wednesday, May 14th, 7 pm

Pleasant Valley Methodist Church, 43987 John Mosby Hwy, Chantilly, VA 20152

Please join Inova Loudoun Hospital CEO Randy Kelley for an update on the status of Rt. 50 Health Care. Mr. Kelley will discuss and take questions on the future Inova Medical Center – Dulles South. Other topics will include the current Dulles South urgent care facility and other Inova plans for Loudoun. Light refreshments will be provided.

Brambleton Hosts Sizzlin' Summer Concert Series at Town Center
(Find more Loudoun and Northern Virginia Concert Information at Dulles South Online)

Dance music from the '70s and '80s, country rock, Latin sounds, and reggae, will drift through the community of Brambleton when the Summer Concert Series comes to the Town Center. Exciting live performances are scheduled several Thursday evenings a month, beginning on June 5.

Sponsored by the Brambleton Town Center Associates, the concerts are open to the public at no charge. Enjoy dinner out at one of the Town Center's vibrant new eateries, and then bring a chair or blanket to the Town Center plaza and join the fun from 7 to 9 p.m.

Kicking off the first performance, on June 5, is The Groove (www.groovetheband.com), featuring music from the '70s and '80s. Then on June 19, Rebelicious (www.rebeliciousmusic.com) takes center stage with its mix of classic rock and country.

On July 3, enjoy Trio Caliente (www.triocaliente.com) with its unique Latin, gypsy rumba, and jazz beat. On July 17, popular artist Doug Segree (www.dougsegree.com) and his band play their version of soft rock tunes.

Reggae band, Jah Works (www.jahworks.com) visits on Aug. 7. Gonzo's Nose (www.gonzosnose.com), playing music from the '80s and '90s, concludes the summer series on Aug. 21.

For additional information, visit Brambleton's website, www.brambleton.com, or call the Brambleton Visitor's Center at 703-542-2925.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day is coming, here in Northern Virginia - I know it, I can feel the anxiety building....is a card good enough? Do I need to send flowers or a gift? Should I actually throw the kids in the car and drive for a visit?

Luckily, the Internet exists. Along with the Internet, comes email - a very lazy, disembodied vehicle with which family obligations regarding in-person communications can be addressed, in 30 seconds at zero cost (after technology capital investment and depreciation are factored in, of course).

Instead of a self-help book or snippets from Oprah/Rosie about what to do with your life, send an ebook, like the Mom-Force (for those Moms who want to get back into the workforce). Instead of organizing a visit with friends and family, introduce your Mom to an entire social network, magazine and online forum, like I Am Modern Magazine and Mom's Lifestyle Social Forum (complete with Spa Reviews!). For the very practical-minded, send along a complimentary Northern Virginia Handyman or Northern Virginia Landscaper - to fix those pipes or fight those weeds. Heck, send along a San Diego-style Hummer Limo, for a quick breakfast outing.

Lots of ideas and couch-control options out there - just make sure your laptop batteries are charged.

Dulles Rail Picks up where it left off

Today's WAPO reports the "stark reversal" of the FTA in planning to approve the proposed 23-mile extension of Metrorail into Loudoun County and Dulles Airport.

The issue seemed to utterly disappear from the news and commentary for the past few months, as a foregone conclusion of failure, while officials and politicians evidently continued to wrangle in private. It's absolutely good news for Loudoun, and a cornerstone of the county's ongoing efforts to lure more commercial taxpayers into the county, keep cars off the swollen roads, and encourage more "reverse commute" workers to head into Loudoun for work. We won't actually see this until successive phases of the project, however, as the first phase ends at Wiehle Ave. in Reston. But that's close enough, especially for those in Loudoun battling the Toll Road or Rt. 50 every morning to get deep into Fairfax or downtown to DC.

The discussions appear also to be only semi-politically driven, as leaders from both sides of various aisles were instrumental in their support - the Democrats led by Kaine and Republicans led by Warner and Wolf. It makes obvious sense to draw conclusions that the politicians are motivated by upcoming elections to cast their parties and their candidates in the best possible light over this very public and important issue - but their motivated support also simply makes good economic sense with our Northern Virginia communities suffering through hideous downturns in the housing market and associated industries, and facing all sorts of county and education cutbacks in light of reduced tax revenues.

Dulles Rail can't get here fast enough - hopefully there won't be any more delays, and hopefully there will be fewer "back-room" deals and discussion necessary to keep it moving over the requisite hurdles.

Take a Limo to your Next Loudoun Concert!

Running errands around Loudoun County or Northern Virginia, driving children to school, or simply out for a stroll, every once in a while you'll notice it. It's unmistakable and hard not to notice, or stare at - that long, glittering denizen of the rich and powerful known as the limousine or "limo". Sometimes it's a nondescript black Lincoln, or "stretch" town car, other times it's a super-modified Hummer or long, white beast with 3 rear axles and a built-in hot tub. Many "limos" aren't actually sleek, dark and low-riding cars; they're actually smaller, custom-equipped vans or buses. The car's not as important to consider and evaluate as the thought of who might be inside, and what they might be doing (or thinking of you!). Outside of Hollywood's Oscars night, however, you might be surprised at who's being treated to a fabulous and stress-free ride.

You know them! It's probably your neighbor, or some group of friends or business acquaintances you actually know inside that limo. And not dressed in bow-ties or gowns, either. Very likely a group of your neighbor's kids, heading off to this year's Prom. For you, the prospect of an exciting limo ride is probably reserved only for the most special and predictable of occasions, like a wedding, prom or anniversary. For many of those around you, limousine service is a very reasonable luxury, and in fact a quite rational and affordable decision for many types of outings. It may even be standard business or entertaining necessity, more inexpensive and reliable than regular taxi service.

For example, there are several global computer consulting companies with large campuses and educational facilities outside of cities such as Washington DC, Chicago and San Diego, some up to 90 minutes beyond the airport. Rather than support the constant stream of one and two-person, expensive cab rides, the companies contract with San Diego limousine providers for service to and from the airport. Most stretch limos can accommodate up to 10 passengers, and most passengers are your typical rank and file employees attending training. The companies save a lot of money, ensure reliable and consistent service for their employees, and add a touch of panache to the start and end of some long training sessions. Many businesses with employees located outside of town, away from the public transit system, routinely offer limo service for after-hours service - again, it's a reliable, professional, courteous, safe, clean and ultimately very comfortable and stress-free way to end a very late and tiring day.

Around your neighborhood, perhaps you've noticed limos appearing at times of year other than prom season. It very well may be a group of friends sharing a ride to a professional sports arena, where parking and traffic is otherwise a nightmare. A limousine service might be picking up several couples for transport to a local, Loudoun County concert or event, thereby avoiding the dangers associated with late evenings out in strange places, including sleepiness, "driving while drinking" and getting lost in less civilized areas of town. You might even see a bunch of 4th-graders happily piling into a private limo for a special birthday party, and to visit the Baltimore Aquarium or DC Zoo - much easier to organize and account for the children, ensure their privacy, and get on-call, front row drop-off and pickup service. Using a professional limo service can also provide peace-of-mind when transporting loved ones or children - there's a competent driver, a service organization and a team of people making sure the entire experience runs smoothly and safely. (It'll also make your Loudoun Auto Insurance agent happy!).

In short, it's really you who belongs in that limo - along with your friends, family and business associates. Sure, the high-rollers and entertainment elite ride only in limos or personally-chauffeured luxury cars - but you can and should also, especially if there's more than one. Get there quickly, safely, comfortably and at a very reasonable group price, and keep the paparazzi guessing at who's behind those darkened windows!

Dulles Urban Legends Part I

Here's the first of what we hope are more "Urban Legends" in this end of Loudoun County. You know, things everyone's "heard of", and tacitly accept, but don't really know the source. Printable, historical gossip.

We've heard (but obviously neither believe nor encourage it) that, at "high tide" on the Dulles Toll Road (i.e. between 8 and 9AM), it's actually possible to travel the entire length (from Rt. 28 to the main toll plaza) without ever coming to a complete stop. Legally, of course, and in preposterously-heavy traffic. How so?

The "Dulles Slalom", of course. We probably don't have all the details, and are simply recounting this as totally unverified conjecture - like in a dream, or, in this case, a message from the road gods. "Legally merge far left at the on-off ramp mid-point; merge far right 300 yards before the exit; ride the offload boost; rinse and repeat until the HOV lane opens" - we believe we heard the road gods say. In our dream, we may have actually seen or experienced this event happen - where various lanes stop completely, at seemingly strange intervals - but a single car or small pellaton seems to never get caught in the crush. They just sail right through, making the most of the tiny yet predictable advantages generated by the supposedly unpredictable highway rhythm.

Any other Dulles Urban Legends out there?

Time to start ruminating on Clinton, McCain and Obama

We've held off commenting on the Presidential race - but it's just getting too entertaining to