Opinion 

Unemployment has been on my mind a lot lately. (Well, since the beginning of March, it’s been on my mind almost constantly.)

My husband, Bill, has worked for the government his whole life. The first 20 years for the U.S. Air Force and later for large companies like PRC (purchased by Litton in 1995, evolved into Litton PRC, then Litton Industries, Litton TASC, and then absorbed by Northrup Grumman).  More recently, he worked for SAIC.

The only job Bill ever left voluntarily was through retirement from Air Force. Every other career change came about because the structure of the company changed or the contract he was working expired without renewal. This span is the longest he’s gone without work in 44 years. It’s been difficult for both of us, financially and emotionally.

Still, you know my motto: “Hope for the best; prepare for the worst.” 

With that in mind, I had the dreaded “talk” with my spouse. I asked, “What if you don’t get hired at all this year? In four months, you’ll be 63-years-old. I know there is not supposed to be anything like age discrimination and 63 doesn’t seem too old in a world where it’s common to live into the eighth decade. I know you’re smart and your career as an Oracle DBA has always been in high demand, but the condition of the federal job market is so unstable right now. What if you just can’t get another job comparable to the ones you’ve loved?”

Bill does not want to talk to me about that. He does not even want to think about that. I, however, feel compelled to consider alternatives, ready or not. I don’t have a lot of experience in job searching so I started by defining the future of employment into these two categories:

1. What Bill does
2. What Bill may have to do

I started off with the idea that the jobs Bill does for a living may be available in the private sector. I accept his pay will be lowered. (Although, if you are currently making zero, any job is a raise!) Then I assume he will not be using his clearance, which is expensive to obtain and if allowed to lapse will be difficult to re-activate.

All right, I admit I’m unhappy his job may no longer be in the service of our country, but there will be some positive changes, like less commuting time! For 24 years, Bill has never had a commute less than an hour each way. (The worst commute was when he worked in Bethesda. The best commute was when he was able to take a van pool to the Pentagon.)

I want to share the progress I made, the results of my search and the “what’s next” factor, but I don’t want to bore you with an overlong article, so I’m going to continue the saga next week.

Meanwhile, if you have helpful advice or insight, leave it in the comments. I often find the comments to be more enlightening than a post and appreciate the sincerity of people who are interested in what I write and willing to help work on the problem. I’ll be back here at potomaclocal.com next Sunday with Part II.

Opinion

At some point in my life, I began describing myself as “solidly middle class.”

I don’t know exactly when that occurred. I know I was very poor growing up, but I don’t recall thinking, “I am poor, therefore, I am lower class.” I know I was often given clothes from someone’s child who had outgrown them, and I do recall my cheeks burning when it crossed my mind that the person who gave them to me might see me wearing them. To the best of my recollection I never encountered any humiliation, but I may not have recognized it at any rate, because I was more excited about having “new” clothes than I was worried about the donor!

Through most of my husband’s military career, we qualified for free and reduced price lunches for our children. In the first ten years, we actually qualified for WIC, but I don’t ever remember thinking we were lower class. I was nearly offended when were told by school officials we qualified for these programs. I was not offended that some people needed these programs, but rather, that anyone might think WE needed these programs. We didn’t use those available benefits. Instead, to make ends meet, I began working in military clubs, first as a waitress, later as a supervisor, and toward the end of our tour at Scott AFB, I worked as a night manager.

My husband, Bill, and I worked opposing shifts so we didn’t have to pay for child care. We had one car, and lived in substandard housing on base. That term may be obsolete, but at the time  it meant no central air conditioning, no carpet, small rooms and very old. (For all you folks that think military pay is great because military get “free” housing, I hope you’ll read this page that describes the current situation for housing). It is much better than when we were young, but still distributed by rank and grade. I may have occasionally felt a bit of “colonel envy,” but I still never felt lower class.

As corny as it sounds I have always believed if you work hard and are willing to make sacrifices, you will ultimately obtain a payback on your investment of time and energy. I don’t want to be rewarded…I just want what I have earned to pay off.

That kind of thinking rules the way I perceive our older neighborhoods. I am such an advocate for older communities because I don’t see the time and effort invested to make them pay off. My perception (and I assure you I am not alone) is that our older communities are being allowed to fail. Like kids with new toys, we have cast aside the old ones. We keep building vast new developments, but neglecting the very heart of our communities.

I don’t really believe there is such a thing as a caste system in Prince William County, but for the sake of argument, tell me: Where do the lower class live? Where do the middle class live? Where do the upper class live?

Opinion 

A large number of people in Prince William County are unsure what the Neabsco District is. Many folks actually pronounce the name, “Nabisco,” like the maker of Nilla Wafers, but alas, the Nilla Wafers have 313,000 fans, while the Neabsco Action Alliance page has a mere 87.

We are, in fact, Neabsco. It is pronounced: “knee-ab’-sko” and the district name is tribute to the Neabsco Creek that runs through the area. There’s a Wiki description here, but there is very little information and what is written only confuses things. The entry states Freedom High School is in Neabsco, (a census designated place of 13,068). Freedom High School is actually in the Woodbridge Magisterial District.

Far more interesting is the Wiki for Neabsco Creek, an entry submitted by the Prince William Conservation Alliance, providing a little history about the area and detailing the condition of Neabsco Creek. The Neabsco Creek is often cited as an example of what NOT to do for anyone interested in land and water stewardship. There’s some detailed reports from the EPA here and here. Perhaps the most detailed and simplest to read synopsis of the condition of Neabsco Creek is here, in an article posted in the blog, “Your Piece of the Planet.”

All of Dale City and a few other nearby developments are part of the Neabsco District. Dale City is approximately 15 square miles, and the Neabsco District is by far the smallest land mass of the remaining six magisterial districts. All magisterial districts are based on population. Somehow, we’ve managed to pack about 85,000 people into this district.

We have the smallest land mass, but with a number of residents equal to all the other districts. All around us, in every other district, development and redevelopment is occurring. As each community evolves, we can see beautiful landscaping and architecture. We see ever more expensive homes, resulting in a higher tax rate for all of us to pay for the resulting services and infrastructure required.

So, while we have no new roads and few improvements, we have no beautiful entrances or gateways, we are paying the same tax rate as everyone else in PWC. (A point of clarification: for the most part, our tax bills ARE lower, because our property value is less.)  Most of our schools are old and in need of modern renovations. I’m not even going to address our shopping and dining in Dale City in comparison with other communities.

Why, when I mention such deficiencies, do people attempt to refute statements such as the above?

I’m not saying we don’t have anything to brag about. We do! We have the best Farmer’s Market, we have Andrew Leitch and Waterworks, and we have the Hylton Boys and Girls Club. We have a diverse population and long established churches with a committed population.

Is that enough for you?

If you’d like to discuss this column or the state of our community. I invite you to attend the Neabsco Action Alliance meeting on Tuesday, September 10. We meet monthly, usually with a top notch speaker, who can answer our questions and help us determine a better future for our residents.

This month we’ll meet with Matthew F. Villareale, Assistant Public Works Director, Department of Public Works, Prince William County. Join us at 7 p.m. in the Occoquan Room at the McCoart Building at the County Complex.

Visit Neabsco Action Alliance on the web for more information. Here is a link to the magisterial district maps, with insets for the Congressional. House and Senate Districts. 

Opinion 

Do you work for the federal government? Are you in the military? Do you work for a contractor? You already know what sequestration is doing to your business, your livelihood, your retirement plans. Oh, but are you a hair stylist, a lawn maintenance worker or an auto dealer? Guess what? Sequestration is affecting you, too.

I attended a Town Hall recently, hosted by Delegate Rich Anderson of the Virginia 51^st District. He was accompanied by Bryce Reeves, Virginia State Senator from the 17^th District and Terrie Suit, the Virginia Secretary of Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security.  

All three serve on the Commission on Military Installations and Defense Activities, a Commission appointed by Governor McDonald, to protect the interests of 100,000 active duty military and over 800,000 veterans in the Commonwealth of Virginia The Commission also includes:

·         The Honorable Richard D. Brown of Henrico, Secretary of Finance
·         The Honorable Jim Cheng of McLean, Secretary of Commerce and Trade
·         The Honorable Marla Graff Decker of Henrico, Secretary of Public Safety
·         Lieutenant General (USAF-Ret) Al Edmonds of Alexandria
·         Lieutenant General (USMC-Ret) Emerson N. Gardner of Arlington
·         Admiral (USN-Ret) John C. Harvey, Jr. of Charlottesville
·         Lieutenant General (USA-Ret) John R. Wood of Alexandria

Opinion 

The focus of that commission and this Town Hall are active duty and retired, but these cuts affect everyone in the state of Virginia.

Noodling around Facebook is the equivalent of chatting around the water cooler. I read so many comments and opinions that fall into a few categories:
1. the sequestration cuts are the Republicans/Democrats/Congress/Senate/President’s fault.
2. The budget deficit is caused by President Bush or Clinton or Obama.
3. We spend too much on war or benefits or pensions.
4. We don’t have enough jobs, education is too expensive, and health care is killing us.
5. Over-regulation, lack of enforcement, a sense of entitlement, and a rift in the population in this         country.

Pick one or two of the above. Add your own reason. Hell, blame all of them! Better yet, blame none of them.

I’m resigned to the fact sequestration is turning my hair gray. Since my husband lost his job six months ago, it’s become one of the cuts I’ve made to our budget. I cannot afford the monthly expense of going to a salon to have my hair colored.  So the business that I frequented is losing the price of my ten visits a year. The stylist is losing her commission and the young woman who does shampoos is losing her tip.

We’ve nearly stopped completely going out to eat, only doing so when it’s part of an obligation. The restaurants, the servers, and the bartender feel the effects of sequestration.

It’s not so difficult for us to sacrifice those small pleasures. Bill retired from the Air Force as an E-6, so we never became accustomed to living “high on the hog”, although in the last 10 years, since we learned to live debt free, we did have some discretionary spending. We were able to afford a couple of vacations in that time. Now, we can’t.

That’s how sequestration impacts everyone, not just active duty or retirees, not just contractors or federal workers. We are all feeling the cuts.

We clamor and cajole to be heard, to share our opinions, and to convince others of our “rightness”. We are forever trying to get people to see OUR point of view.

I am no different. I plead guilty. I fully admit to using any means possible to wake up and connect the community where I live. I use blogs and Facebook as well as many other types of social media like Twitter and LinkedIn.

I interview community leaders in a video series, Nights at the Round Table. I leave my opinion on blogs and at the Washington Post, and numerous other on-line news sources. I send email, I write newsletters, I sit on committees and boards and councils, and I talk. I talk to anyone who will listen and try to explain my point of view, my concern, my caring for where I live. I talk to friends, strangers and politicians who are often some combination of those three preceding nouns.

I don’t just talk. I also try to lead by example. I am not ashamed or embarrassed to pick up trash from the gutter or edge an overgrown sidewalk. The people who leave that trash for some 60 year old woman to pick up should be ashamed, but for me, it’s a mission.

Sometimes, while I’m spending  hard hours in the heat, pushing and pulling an edger, creating a choking cloud of dust, straining my arthritic joints and praying that if I die on the spot, no one will say, “She died doing what she loved.”

I don’t love doing that. I don’t love picking up used condoms and tampons that people with no shame have discarded on the street instead of disposing properly. I don’t love painting over graffiti and I don’t love stepping in dog feces while mowing some god-forsaken piece of property that doesn’t belong to me. I don’t love the endless hours of my life I spend reporting dump heaps and illegal signs.

What I do love is my community. It’s worth fighting for and it’s worth working for.

I complain, but I try to fix what’s wrong. Not everyone likes that. Some people are afraid that acknowledging what is lacking is detrimental to our appearance. Many people seem to think it is not their business or it is not their responsibility. Some people think drawing attention to our shortcomings is a mistake. I think it’s a mistake to ignore those shortcomings. None of the problems will go away of their own accord. That’s why Neabsco Action Alliance was created.

Prince William County is a wonderful place to live. We are not perfect, nor will we ever be. I celebrate the good parts but I continue to look for solutions for the  parts that need improvement. That starts at the ground level with community maintenance and rises to policy decisions. I address as many issues as I can fit in a day and if I can’t fix it myself, I advocate issues to people who may be able to help.

Opinion 

This is the definition of  “hood”  from the Urban Dictionary, a great source for modern communication. 

1. The ghetto.

2. Someone who is from the ghetto.

3. Someone who acts like they are from the ghetto.

Other Slang: Hoodlum, gangsta, thug, pimp, street-rat, street urchin, etc.

There are actually a couple more definitions under the same entry, but since they are sexual in nature and have nothing to do with this text, I’m leaving them off. You can read them yourself if you’re interested.

A friend of mine started a Facebook conversation yesterday, asking if anyone else was offended by the term, “hoodbridge”. I immediately seized upon that query because I am offended when I hear that term. I was surprised to discover that no everyone feels the same. In fact, apparently there are at least 13,622 people not offended!

I had always assumed the word “hood” evolved from “hoodlums,” a term frequently used by my grandma to describe the boys I liked. Indeed, my grandma may have watched “The Hoodlum” in 1915 and carried that image with her.

The image must persist, because in 1997, Laurence Fishburne and Vanessa Williams made a movie by the same name. The description for their version of “Hoodlum” involves black gangsters in 1930 Harlem trying to horn in on Dutch Schultz numbers racket.

In fact, this morning, I looked up the term, “hoodlum” and find it has evolved from simply including motorcycle riders of the 60’s and guys my grandma didn’t like to this version, again from the Urban Dictionary. So, I’m still having a hard time understanding why people think it is all right to use the term, “hoodbridge”

I’m more willing than many to learn about new things. I love technology and I love people, so I find it troubling there is such a breach of understanding between me and at least 13,622 others.

Here’s the comment I added to the discussion: I guess it is a perception in the way we want to be known. Perhaps some people think it’s cool to denigrate our community. Maybe some people don’t see the harm. Surely, some people see it differently and yes, our community is changing.

The real problem is we are not communicating with each other. We have no opportunity to meet each other, whether young, old, white, black, Hispanic, rich, poor.

We need a community center that doesn’t cater to diversity, but allows us to meet on common ground. Holy Family has a festival  on Sept. 7, that embodies this, but we need a regular venue where older white people can listen to young black rap and then respectfully discuss what we like or don’t like or a place where the Hispanic community can tell us how they feel about life in Dale City and we can tell them the same.

Our values are different, our perceptions are different, but nearly every one of us has the same basic need. We want to live as well as we can afford. Our families are important and we want to be proud of where we live.

I’m working toward that as a goal. Everything I do, all the boards, committees and groups I work with are to help define a better future primarily for Dale City residents, but in general for anyone who is interested in the same thing.

Let me know what you think in the comments.

Opinion 

I first read about an Elio in an article that reported the purchase of a defunct General Motors factory in Shreveport, Louisiana. The factory had been closed after production of the Hummer ceased as Americans discovered just looking cool may not be reason to invest the price of a small home into a vehicle that guzzles gas like a sponge soaks up water.

I love restoration, repurposing, and reclamation. I also love technology and innovation. I am an early adopter, as evidenced by the number of products I purchase, usually at a premium price and often before the bugs are worked out. I trace that history back to a time when I bought one of the first digital watches for my husband as a gift. I paid an exorbitant price, only to follow that same watch for years as the price dropped lower and lower. Lots of other manufacturers began making digital watches, imports and knockoffs abounded and soon my exclusive gift was as common as icicle Christmas lights.

Many people hold off when a new product comes on the market. I try, but when I see something delightful like Leap Motion I can’t wait! I had to have that device, just like when Atari launched Pong in the early 1970s. (I sincerely hope the Leap device doesn’t join my Roomba in the closet of “I loved you briefly”)

So, I nearly understand the government when it comes to trying something new. America is behind in so many competitive markets because we test endlessly, launch expansive and expensive studies and often base decisions on outdated or no longer relevant data.

That pretty much sums up the way I feel about the Bi-County Parkway. I watched the Board of County Supervisors meeting and I heard the Virginia Secretary of Transportation as he explained how long this project has been on the books. I’ve read a zillion blog posts. I’m on an email list both for the “Say No to the Bi-County Parkway” and the NVTA.

I have to say I am opposed to the highway, not for any of the numerous, legitimate reasons I’ve heard or read. I oppose the Parkway exactly because the idea has been around so many years. I’m really tired of government basing decisions on outdated concepts.

What has happened to our ability to innovate and think creatively instead of modeling our future on the past? How do we keep planning roads, parking, schools and housing without including innovations or at least possible innovations like Hyper-Loop? What if instead of more cars on the roads, there are actually less? What if we are not commuting at all?

When you first saw a Smart Car did you really think anyone would drive them?

Perhaps not all innovations are keepers, but did anyone really suspect in 1986 (27 years ago) that a small company, (Cisco) with four employees, would be the vanguard of all routers in the world today? (FYI, I typed this on Word 2013 loaded on my Windows 8 touch screen, on an HP Envy 23 that I bought last year.)

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. --  Prince William Trails and Streams Coaliton (pwtsc.org) recently hosted an inaugural Tour of the Towns -- Tour of Prince William Century Ride. 

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Opinion 

A couple of weeks ago, I watched a very nice man and his wife approach the lectern at a Prince William County Board of County Supervisors meeting  (Click the link, then advance the video to about the 45:00 mark, or use the slide bar to drag down to citizens time.)

The Ormsbys came to talk about changing the ordinance to allow them to have chickens in their yard. I don’t know if the Ormsbys were familiar with how recently the local ordinances were amended, but in April of 2011 there was a major overhaul that really got a lot of feathers ruffled! This zoning text amendment was a huge document. Staff labored to craft the best solution for all parties.

I felt very sympathetic to the Ormsbys. It was their first foray into the way Prince William’s Government works. I believe they thought that after Supervisor John Jenkins got their letter requesting an overhaul of the ordinance, it would be forthcoming. The Ormsbys were sincere in their desire to raise chickens and have even created a Facebook page, titled CLUCK.

I am also sympathetic to the idea of raising your own food because I am relatively certain we are all being poisoned by the additives, chemicals, antibiotics and hormones in our food.

I also have a number of friends who think the county should stop making life “difficult” for residents and allow folks to live any way they choose on their own property. Unfortunately, my sympathy ends right about there.

There are endless problems in a non-HOA neighborhood. Your grass or weeds grow through the fence into my neatly kept lawn. Your dogs lift their leg and urinate on my flowers, killing them. Your dog barks. Your dog is supposed to be on a leash. Your dog left feces on my lawn.

Your cat thinks my herb garden is a big litter box. You cat is killing the birds. Your tree is hanging over my house, car, or driveway. It’s dropping apples or helicopters or sweet gum balls.

Your teenager is playing music too loud. You’re taking up every parking space with all your vehicles. Your yard looks like a dump heap. Your kids’ toys are in the street. Your kids are in the street. You haven’t mowed the grass. You left grass clippings on the walk or in the street.

You’re running a business, parking commercial vehicles, have too many people, or are working on cars in the street.

I really don’t know if chickens are a bad idea in a residential neighborhood. I haven’t been around them much since I was a kid, visiting my uncle’s farm. What I do know is it took a lot of time and effort to create that ordinance. We spent quite a few tax dollars to get that right.

More than that, I know we already have enough problems in our older neighborhoods. It’s difficult and expensive to get ordinances amended and odds are good if you please one neighbor, you offend two more. Why, the next thing you know, someone will want to grow corn in their front yard!

For further reading, try these links: Chicken Sanctuary, Pet Chickens, and Abandoned Chickens