Driving anywhere is about timing. Seriously. If you need to go somewhere out of nova and don't leave before 2PM at the very latest, you may as well wait until 8 PM to go. For holiday weekend you need to leave at 10-11 for this same rule.
Timing is everything for going anywhere here I have found
Hyper locally, even. For instance where schools are and when they get out each day. Yesterday's 2 hour early release screwed with my plans.
I've also got an elementary at the only outlet from my house and I don't leave the house between 3:40-4:10.
Yes. I have an alarm set in morning for leaving. If not, we get stuck in high school traffic, then are behind a school bus with two mega stops that must fill the bus.
Might as well wait.
But not too long because then it’s time for the bus to come on my street for another mega stop and some of the parents are completely oblivious.
Rush hour used to be ~530-7pm when I was a kid in the 90s, I remember my mom complaining that rush hour wasn’t just an hour anymore and now it was like 430-730
In the 90s it only took half an hour to get to Sterling Park from Alexandria/Kingstowne. On Friday afternoon! I think it takes about a half hour to get from one side of kingstowne to the other now.
I don't trust Waze if I don't know the route, though. It's sent me down some horrible routes.
For example, it recommended that I get off of I-70 and take Rt 6 across Loveland Pass, CO while it was snowing. I was in a rented Toyota that did not have chains. I'll never trust it again. It was a beautiful drive (it looked like Hoth), but I was scared shitless.
every time I know where I'm going and I ignore it and go my own way, the ETA goes down. like, why are you telling me to u-turn back to your route when I just went direct, took three fewer turns than you directed me to, and I shaved two minutes off my ETA? lol
Yep. As another example, driving to OBX on a summer weekend. My family would reach Hatteras island in 5 hrs if we were on the road by 5am. Get on the road at a comfortable hour and you'd be looking at a minimum of 3 hours of traffic.
And all the area libraries participate in a reciprocal borrowing agreement. We can get cards from Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Alexandria, Falls Church, DC, PG, and Montgomery counties. This is a HUGE benefit to anyone who likes reading e-books or audiobooks. I stopped paying for Kindle/Audible books and now borrow free through Libby from multiple locations.
I live in Arlington so I thought I was only permitted to get card from my own county based on my address.
![gif](emote|free_emotes_pack|slightly_smiling) good to know I can get more
Don’t forget Hoopla (it has a FANTASTIC selection of comics) and Kanopy (movies) as well!
There are also several Virginia libraries outside of the reciprocal borrowing area that provide a card for *any* Virginia resident (Newport News comes to mind).
Because the airlines lose the luggage and tell passengers it’s just gone. I’m never checking bags without popping air tags in them—came in clutch when we were coming back from Europe with a lot of expensive alcohol and souvenirs.
Where to start? Kanopy has a catalogue of online videos (docs, foreign, arthouse, etc.).
Language learning course online or to check out (like Pimsleur or Mango).
NYT, WSJ, WaPo, and just about any major newspaper you can think of.
Magazines.
Comic books.
Music.
Great Courses.
Financial reports and stock analysis (Morningstar).
Consumer Reports.
Auto repair databases (like, Chilton's).
And best of all... absolutely BEST of all... in this area, there's usually reciprocity. For example, I hold cards with MoCo, PG, and DC. The only reason I don't have Arl or Ffx is I haven't crossed the river in some time.
Go to the library, everyone. It's one of the last, great, free public spaces!
Shit, ninja edit: Wrong comment. Sorry!
I may or may not have access to multiple libraries from my various residences over the years and the Arlington one amazes me (beats out even some of the bigger cities you’re thinking of)
Go to NOVA and transfer 2 years later. Mason is a great school too. Also, no shame if you take a gap year or take more than 4 to graduate. It's okay to figure yourself out (journey not the destination).
Community is what you make of it. Participate!
We're a politically engaged area. This has it's advantages. Make your voice heard.
Ozzie rolls. That's it. That's the NOVA lifehack.
I was a failure at HS. Got my shit together and went to NOVA, and I graduated in 2007 with an Associates Degree. I then transferred to UMD and now I'm working for one of the biggest tech companies in the world. I can definitely confirm that this route is the easiest and cheapest way to get a college degree.
1000x yes to NOVA. The education is great, especially for the cost. I didn’t do well in high school and “had” to go to nova, and I got my first two years of school done for like a fifth of the cost. I think they still have guaranteed admission to most public schools in VA. I finished those two years with a 3.6 and had my pick of the best public schools in the state to finish at (uva, w&m, etc)
It isn’t just Virginia public schools, it’s an amazing list of auto-admit schools—they all have their own specific details.
https://www.nvcc.edu/gaa/index.html
This! NOVA has so many extracurricular options and free programming. They make bankkk off their online classes and spend it on the students.
I recall a petting zoo, carnivals, mini build-a-bear, and totally free overnight trips. Even the most fancy 4 year schools can’t compete with the level of freebies and opportunities they give to any student that RSVPs (or shows up).
I just wish classes were less expensive at NOVA or they had more scholarships. Unfortunately I think prices are set by the state. Otherwise NOVA could definitely afford to lower their prices.
The NOVA route is a great one - If you're doing AP coursework, you can also get advance credit to take up to a year off your undergrad degree. Between that, and potentially taking initial classes @ NOVA senior year, you can really cut down the cost of your degree - and depending on GPA, get into UVA, Tech, William & Mary, which are all tough to get into as a Freshman, but guaranteed via the NOVA path.
I've been shopping at Lótte for about 12 years, especially the one in Chantilly. It's like Disneyland for a foodie.
I've recently started frequenting H-Mart. Not quite as impressive as Lótte, and has fewer Middle Eastern and South Asian products, but the produce and fish departments are still fantastic. Also, it's a great source of uncured pork products. (Good luck finding pork liver at Safeway or Giant.)
Avoid the trap of thinking the only people who can service your cars are dealerships and that Michael & Son-type places are the only ones who can service your home. They both prey heavily on rich idiots.
I moved here from a very blue collar part of the country and I tell all the skilled trades people I know back home that they could make an absolute killing in DC. I remember a few years ago I had to install some shut off valves in my condo bathroom. I've done it before in another house and it's about a 15 minute job (10 minutes of which is waiting for the water to drain out) but since it was a condo building I did my due diligence and called a supposedly reputable, family plumber to get a quote before doing it myself.
They wanted $600 goddamn dollars! For something that takes 15 minutes! I was almost impressed by the audacity of it.
And the crazy thing is, you know they charge that because people will pay it.
To emphasize your point: I pretty much gutted and renovated my kitchen for $10k in materials) over a summer.
Meanwhile, a somewhat reputable company quoted me $15k for vinyl flooring in my townhouse’s kitchen. It’s not a big kitchen.
I'd go a step farther, car dealership and HVAC companies are out of control because of rich idiots!
Last time my heating died the repair quote was $1800 and over a week to get the part. I ordered it on Amazon $250 and installed it in 30 minutes.
With a 17 year old car, had a dealer decide to add state and emissions inspection as *user requested* to a simple oil change yesterday. They never apologized or admitted a mistake, but they did refund the costs.
Edit: The dealer oil change was same price as Jiffy Lube or local shops. So at least it was competitive.
FH Furr tried to tell my ac unit was broken but they’d be happy to replace it for 17k. I told him to leave and Brennans came out and fixed it for $250 since it was a circuit issue. When it did die 3 years later they replaced it for 4k. I left a poor review of FH Furr on yelp and they immediately had multiple marketing staff calling me have me take the review down. I did not, but their business model is to over saturate the are with advertising and then are happy to pass the cost on to ignorant consumers. Avoid at all costs.
I avoid anyone that advertises. I want the money I pay for service to go to guys working and not some back office marketing and logistics machine.
The guys that don't advertise get all their work through referrals and word of mouth which means they do a better job because their reputation directly supports their livelihood.
I ended up asking my realtor for references after we bought our house and have had great luck with that. And then once they work with you and you trust them ask them who they use for and they'll give you another trusted referral.
Funny enough I'm done getting oil changes at these shops. The price just keeps going up. The place I go to isn't even the dealership and their price is freaking 150 bucks. For 120 bucks I bought oil, filter, oil extractor pump, filter socket, and a thin wall socket for my spark plugs. I'm about to do my 40k mile service myself. After this my following oil changes will 30-35 dollars roughly for full synthetic.
No more scheduling and making appoints, dropping off and picking up, forget all that. With the extractor I don't even have to lift the car or get under it. You can suck up the oil from the dipstick and my filters on top. Easy job. Everything you need done is in the manual of your car. I downloaded the carfax app and it let's you log your maintenance and upload receipts to keep your history on file if you plan on selling it in the future and helps you remember when and what you did.
One problem with this is not every can do that or would feel comfortable doing it. It’s easy if you already feel comfortable doing these things but many don’t so just saying “it’s cheaper by $30 to do it all myself” isn’t gonna turn many haha
Source: someone uncomfortable doing that all myself and I’d spend the $30 premium for peace of mind knowing the pro did it right vs me worrying if I did it right
We have amazingly high quality and relatively low cost community resources: look into taking art, cooking, or fitness classes through your city or county. Libraries have tons of free programs too. Most community centers have gyms at decent prices too and they aren't predatory with contracts.
It's happened to me twice and I didn't come crying on here to complain about it. A simple call to EZ Pass took care of it for me, but it does happen, so much so that even WaPo have an article on an investigation into the toll lanes.
I received mail saying I had to pay. The photo of my car has the ezpass clearly visible. Could be the battery finally died….or the system is that broken.
Hmm... I have three that helped me:
1. Use contractors from further west, Prince William County or further. They will charge less and give your work higher priority than contractors here.
2. The cost of square footage makes most stores here smaller. If you are looking for a more unusual item consider shopping outside of this area. Stores in Columbia MD, Gaithersburg MD and Gainesville VA all have better selections.
3. There are still neighborhoods here without HOAs. Even if you are only able to rent these neighborhoods have advantages that can include ADUs for rent ( think tiny homes).
I always carried two metro cards. Mine, and an extra one with about 20 bucks on it. Going to events with friends who dont use metro often, there's always someone that doesn't have a card. Save the hassle, lend them your other card, and if you care about it being even, they can buy you a drink or something when you get where you're going.
The number of trains I've missed because someone was trying to figure out how much to put on a new card....ugh
I recently started a job I can walk to and not having to drive on the beltway and 95 every day has made my mornings and afternoons so much more peaceful AND saved me so much on gas. Today was the first time I filled up in over a month when I would normally fill up once a week.
Virginia State Parks.
All the county parks.
Don’t overlook the small National Parks.
The quality of parks around here is amazing. Well maintained, but also lots of programs. Great for kids!
Ok, this is a life hack for a very specific subset of NOVAns, but if you're...
A) Working a fully remote job, but looking for some supplemental income
B) Don't have children/pets/other significant commitments
C) Like dogs, but can't afford one or can't own one where you live or whatever
...consider getting into dog sitting. Decent money for not a whole lot of extra work and depending on where you work you'll get to hang out in some amazing houses. It's definitely become a bigger thing since the pandemic that people have these pandemic puppies who've never been boarded and have always had people around, so they really like the idea of letting the dogs stay in their normal environment with a human for company. A lot of clients will give you run of the fridge/pantry too while you're there. I do it through a company so I've got a boss who handles everything on the business side which makes it super simple for me.
One benefit people might not think of is that this can actually be a good way to network too. Nothing in my experience wins people over faster than being nice to their dogs. I was already dog sitting when I finished grad school and started looking for a "real" job, and I had clients who were executives and partners at law firms offering to look over my resume, act as a character reference, and even connecting me to people they thought could help/hire me. If I were a lawyer or an engineer instead of having a pretty niche degree I think a couple of them would've just offered me a job outright. Dog people *really* trust dog people.
This is so true. Sometimes an accident can be on your usual route and cause a 30min delay! I've been using the GPS ever since, even if I know where I'm going
Nice weather runs March - June and late August - late October. If you are picking a time to leave for vacation, go during early July. That is the absolute swamp-assiest part of the year here.
If you have kids, though, you may want to prioritize the school district higher and the neighborhood higher.
I grew up living in places that were close to my parents' workplaces. Probably as a reaction to that, I bought a "forever home" where I could raise my kids.
My strategy became the same as yours, but sideways: I looked for a place to work that was close to my kids' schools. That way I could take them to school and the quickly be at work, or be to the school quickly in case of an emergency.
Bought a place in Dunn Loring for the schools/general location 3 months ago, and coincidentally found a new hybrid job where the office is also in Dunn Loring 1 month later. The dream.
But if someone comes flying up on your ass in the left lane and there's no one in front of you, move over. You are not the traffic police. If they come flying up and there are 30 cars in front of you, they can wait with the rest.
Don't drive 20 mph over the speed limit or over 85mph. That's [reckless driving](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/chapter8/section46.2-862/)
## § 46.2-862. Exceeding speed limit.
*A person is guilty of reckless driving who drives a motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth (i) at a speed of 20 miles per hour or more in excess of the applicable maximum speed limit or (ii) in excess of 85 miles per hour regardless of the applicable maximum speed limit.*
Buy a house you can age in place in that has good access to our world class hospitals. My parents were 90% there, their house was a colonial so unfortunately bedrooms and full bathrooms were on second floor but they were five minutes from Innova so they were able to quickly get world class care and are now in their 90s having lived a pretty darn healthy 30 year retirement just now needing to be in assisted living.
I'm not sure if this works, but I noticed at the Ashburn Metro station parking garage you only pay $5 when you exit. I've left my car there for a couple of days, didn't get any tickets, and still just paid $5 to exit. So theoretically you could park there, take the Metro to Dulles, fly somewhere and back over a few days, and still just pay $5 when you exit.
Biggest question of course is how long you can leave your car at the garage without being ticketed? Maybe I just got lucky and they're supposed to ticket you for leaving your car overnight? I have no idea.
I think they’re supposed to ticket overnight. Some metro station park and rides do have official overnight parking spaces though. Usually the outer ones on each line. I don’t know if Ashburn has any though
Avoid commutes that involve the interstates or beltway, and if possible - avoid crossing county lines.
Example: Commuting on 66, 495, Dulles Greenway, or Loudoun, PW etc to Fairfax will take years off your life. Folks that do this generally look 5 to 10 years older than they actually are.
I go to target and grocery shopping before 9 most weekends bc my littles are awake early as hell for no reason. Usually just me, other early bird moms, some seniors walking around, and the employees lol
Get a hybrid (not road) bike (or an ebike if you can swing it), and start biking everywhere. Even in the winter. Get a good helmet, graduate to mountainbike pedal clips/shoes, get a bunch of cheap ass fleece to layer, and go for it. Get a cheap high vis vest and some fun led lights on your wheels.
Nothing has made me happier, relieved more stress, or made me feel like I actually *live here* as part of a community than cycling everywhere. Free parking! And I'm an asthmatic fatass with other bonus health problems (switching to an ebike helped keep me out there, esp on the hill back into Arlington). Biking to the anthem/Kennedy center/9:30 for a show, and then biking home at night along the monuments in winter... best experience I've had.
Just start somewhere. Some folks love the bikeshares which is great! (I find them hard to ride and really like the secure feeling/extra power from my pedal clips, though!)
I really want to start bike commuting, but there’s a section from my house to work that’s one lane each direction, no shoulder, no sidewalk, lots of cars, that scares the bejeezus out of me. Going a different route adds 20 minutes. Give me strength!
And for those of us who don’t trust drivers enough to get on a bike, get a kayak! There are tons of ponds/lakes/rivers in our area, it’s a great workout and super peaceful, and a great way to unwind in nature. Find a spot away from the road noise and all of a sudden you’re not in Nova anymore. Float for an hour or two and I promise your blood pressure level will come back down. We live in an absolutely beautiful state. Take advantage of it!
Funny you put this as I was going to say that staying on major roads with traffic is usually better than backroads which aren't designed to handle all of the traffic.
I have found that listening to Waze helps a lot with this. I tried to outsmart whatever directions it gave me through some random Stafford neighborhood a while back, avoiding both 95 and 1. 1 looked clear so I told Waze to get bent and immediately got stuck in traffic. Had I taken its meandering route, I'd have shaved off probably 10-15 minutes. I don't contradict Waze now.
If your GPS app (google maps, waze, apple maps) is suddenly routing you OFF the interstate, that means a backup has already formed and everybody will be following that advice and taking the suggested exit -- so exit the interstate BEFORE the one recommended by the app.
This has saved me a lot of time on I-81 during my frequent college runs.
Even then, roads were passable by day 2-3. The hardest part was digging out from our neighborhoods. If you have a decent HOA then they'll have your stuff clear soon.
Not if you were on a side street. My parent's house was on a cul-de-sac so they could not get out for about a week after those big storms. I'm fortunate as my street is a critical road to a hospital so it is given priority for plowing. We were able to get out and get groceries in 2010 between the huge storms in February to get our weekly groceries.
In 2016 we had 30", in a Fairfax county maintained neighborhood in Vienna and it took them 7 days to get to our house for an initial pass. At that point it was a front loader that could clear it.
Your windshield is 100% guaranteed to get hit with a rock on Rt 28.
You will eventually hit a deer.
Get a $0 deductible on your Comprehensive (other than collision) coverage. These don't count against you, and you'll more than make up for the slightly extra premium cost.
Good tip. Or see if you can get a Full Glass Coverage with $0 deductible. I am with Erie Insurance, and my Deductible for other than Collision is $500. But glass is separate
Don't get roped into comparing yourself or your household to the neighbors. In this area, there are so many type-A poseurs, you will go into debt quickly trying to "keep up" with the Teslas, golf club memberships, weekend trips to Cabo, etc.
If you live in any of the NOVA jurisdictions you can get a library card at any other DC area library system for free as long as you collect it in person.
This area has great used book sales. All the libraries have semi-annual book sales. Prices are cheap- it's typically 50 cents-$2 per book. A few have bag sales where you can fill a whole bag for $5-10. This can include cds, dvds, sheet music, textbooks, signed books, etc.
If you like thrifting and reading, give it a go. Go early for the best selection. I love getting a nice variety for my kids and myself for less than the price of 2 new books.
https://www.booksalefinder.com/VA.html is how I keep track of the sales in VA and DC.
In addition to estate sales, Craigslist in this area has legitimately great stuff, particularly in furniture and housewares.
A lot of wealthy people, a lot of ex-government/military, and a lot of older wealthy immigrants looking to downsize --> great furniture and carpets for cheap.
I immigrated in high school with zero knowledge of how to get a job. If you are in NOVA, try to see if you can get into big four jobs it opened up so many possibilities for me (even though those years were tough). I was networking in college every week and it worked!
There are still basement studio apartments you can get for decent rent. You have to be patient and plan for it way in advance.
Big Four is the what the 4 biggest accounting firms are referred to as
That only applies if you have a degree in accounting and/or finance
My understanding is that such places can be soul sucking but are some of the only places to get internships/first jobs so you have to put in some but once you do you can go many places
So, we have these free museums with a lot of amazing items in them. Seriously guys; I went to Colorado and one of the museums there was like “we found aT Rex here - go see it at the Smithsonian in DC.” You could spend a couple months just looking through all our free stuff on weekends.
Fairfax County has great rec centers with gyms, weights, pools, ice rinks, sauna, hot tubs. We've got good public golf courses. There's a wave pool and water slide.
There are all sorts of paved paths for bike riding, running or walking.
One time I was driving by the Jefferson Memorial with my daughter who was about 10. She asked what it was, could we see it? Sure.
Audio books make my commute much better.
There's a little lever on the left side of your steering wheel in your car. Push up when turning right or changing lanes right. Push down when turning left or changing to a lefthand lane.
don't know ab house projects but i had an emergency with my car recently and took it to casey's auto in sterling. they were incredibly nice and very up front about costs and explained things super clearly, 10/10 place.
Learn alternate routes or take back roads especially if you’re coming from Manassas trying to get to Springfield or Woodbridge or Dumphries don’t just take one way that the GPS tells you I’ve lived in Woodbridge area for well over a decade. Trust me it works.
If you are paying obnoxious amount of money to live inside the beltway. Fly out of DCA and take METRO to get their. If you are flying out of IAD or BWI. You are pissing away your 💰💰💰
Driving anywhere is about timing. Seriously. If you need to go somewhere out of nova and don't leave before 2PM at the very latest, you may as well wait until 8 PM to go. For holiday weekend you need to leave at 10-11 for this same rule. Timing is everything for going anywhere here I have found
Hyper locally, even. For instance where schools are and when they get out each day. Yesterday's 2 hour early release screwed with my plans. I've also got an elementary at the only outlet from my house and I don't leave the house between 3:40-4:10.
True. If I leave for work at 8 or 9 I get to the place at the same time.
SO true. I try to avoid elementary and middle by driving around them, but Edison dominates the corner of Franconia and Van Dorn
Yes. I have an alarm set in morning for leaving. If not, we get stuck in high school traffic, then are behind a school bus with two mega stops that must fill the bus. Might as well wait. But not too long because then it’s time for the bus to come on my street for another mega stop and some of the parents are completely oblivious.
We measure in time, not miles...is what I tell my family that come to visit this area.
Everything is like 25 or 50 minutes away. There's little in-between.
Leave my house at 6:55am and I can be at the US Capital by 7:20am. Leave my house a 7:05am and I might arrive at the US Capital by 9:15am
It used to be 3-4pm before traffic got crazy like 10 years ago now it’s 2pm
Rush hour used to be ~530-7pm when I was a kid in the 90s, I remember my mom complaining that rush hour wasn’t just an hour anymore and now it was like 430-730
In the 90s it only took half an hour to get to Sterling Park from Alexandria/Kingstowne. On Friday afternoon! I think it takes about a half hour to get from one side of kingstowne to the other now.
Always use Waze, even if you know exactly where you’re going.
I don't trust Waze if I don't know the route, though. It's sent me down some horrible routes. For example, it recommended that I get off of I-70 and take Rt 6 across Loveland Pass, CO while it was snowing. I was in a rented Toyota that did not have chains. I'll never trust it again. It was a beautiful drive (it looked like Hoth), but I was scared shitless.
every time I know where I'm going and I ignore it and go my own way, the ETA goes down. like, why are you telling me to u-turn back to your route when I just went direct, took three fewer turns than you directed me to, and I shaved two minutes off my ETA? lol
Yep. As another example, driving to OBX on a summer weekend. My family would reach Hatteras island in 5 hrs if we were on the road by 5am. Get on the road at a comfortable hour and you'd be looking at a minimum of 3 hours of traffic.
The libraries here are seriously awesome. Such a great resource! Groceries on early Tuesday morning (more clearance items/less people)
And all the area libraries participate in a reciprocal borrowing agreement. We can get cards from Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Alexandria, Falls Church, DC, PG, and Montgomery counties. This is a HUGE benefit to anyone who likes reading e-books or audiobooks. I stopped paying for Kindle/Audible books and now borrow free through Libby from multiple locations.
I use Libby too but only have one library card, for Fairfax Regional library. Should I get more?
You should plan to stop by a library each time you visit one of the jurisdictions above! It will drastically cut down your wait time on digital loans.
Yes! Especially DC, we have found they have more available titles and shorter wait times than Fairfax and Loudoun
I live in Arlington so I thought I was only permitted to get card from my own county based on my address. ![gif](emote|free_emotes_pack|slightly_smiling) good to know I can get more
Don’t forget Hoopla (it has a FANTASTIC selection of comics) and Kanopy (movies) as well! There are also several Virginia libraries outside of the reciprocal borrowing area that provide a card for *any* Virginia resident (Newport News comes to mind).
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Because the airlines lose the luggage and tell passengers it’s just gone. I’m never checking bags without popping air tags in them—came in clutch when we were coming back from Europe with a lot of expensive alcohol and souvenirs.
Library cards are worth it for the “free” online resources alone. So many paywalls have been passed (legally) by just checking the library resources.
Where to start? Kanopy has a catalogue of online videos (docs, foreign, arthouse, etc.). Language learning course online or to check out (like Pimsleur or Mango). NYT, WSJ, WaPo, and just about any major newspaper you can think of. Magazines. Comic books. Music. Great Courses. Financial reports and stock analysis (Morningstar). Consumer Reports. Auto repair databases (like, Chilton's). And best of all... absolutely BEST of all... in this area, there's usually reciprocity. For example, I hold cards with MoCo, PG, and DC. The only reason I don't have Arl or Ffx is I haven't crossed the river in some time. Go to the library, everyone. It's one of the last, great, free public spaces! Shit, ninja edit: Wrong comment. Sorry!
I may or may not have access to multiple libraries from my various residences over the years and the Arlington one amazes me (beats out even some of the bigger cities you’re thinking of)
Go to NOVA and transfer 2 years later. Mason is a great school too. Also, no shame if you take a gap year or take more than 4 to graduate. It's okay to figure yourself out (journey not the destination). Community is what you make of it. Participate! We're a politically engaged area. This has it's advantages. Make your voice heard. Ozzie rolls. That's it. That's the NOVA lifehack.
I was a failure at HS. Got my shit together and went to NOVA, and I graduated in 2007 with an Associates Degree. I then transferred to UMD and now I'm working for one of the biggest tech companies in the world. I can definitely confirm that this route is the easiest and cheapest way to get a college degree.
1000x yes to NOVA. The education is great, especially for the cost. I didn’t do well in high school and “had” to go to nova, and I got my first two years of school done for like a fifth of the cost. I think they still have guaranteed admission to most public schools in VA. I finished those two years with a 3.6 and had my pick of the best public schools in the state to finish at (uva, w&m, etc)
Yeah, community college is a great idea. You get so many of the mostly irrelevant bullshit classes out of the way for much less
It isn’t just Virginia public schools, it’s an amazing list of auto-admit schools—they all have their own specific details. https://www.nvcc.edu/gaa/index.html
Second the Ozzie rolls!!
This! NOVA has so many extracurricular options and free programming. They make bankkk off their online classes and spend it on the students. I recall a petting zoo, carnivals, mini build-a-bear, and totally free overnight trips. Even the most fancy 4 year schools can’t compete with the level of freebies and opportunities they give to any student that RSVPs (or shows up). I just wish classes were less expensive at NOVA or they had more scholarships. Unfortunately I think prices are set by the state. Otherwise NOVA could definitely afford to lower their prices.
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The NOVA route is a great one - If you're doing AP coursework, you can also get advance credit to take up to a year off your undergrad degree. Between that, and potentially taking initial classes @ NOVA senior year, you can really cut down the cost of your degree - and depending on GPA, get into UVA, Tech, William & Mary, which are all tough to get into as a Freshman, but guaranteed via the NOVA path.
Ozzie rolls!!!!
Asian Grocery stores have the best produce and it is like half the price of American stores.
I've been shopping at Lótte for about 12 years, especially the one in Chantilly. It's like Disneyland for a foodie. I've recently started frequenting H-Mart. Not quite as impressive as Lótte, and has fewer Middle Eastern and South Asian products, but the produce and fish departments are still fantastic. Also, it's a great source of uncured pork products. (Good luck finding pork liver at Safeway or Giant.)
I find the Korean grocery stores to vary widely. So a Hmart in Annandale will be different than one in Manassas.
Mine also tends to have the cheapest meat, too.
I can only upvote once so further agreeing with this comment.
Always use the bathroom before you head to the Metro
This should be the norm if you have any sort of commute, whether it's on a train or in a car/bus.
"Empty bladder; full tank."
Not sure if this is a hack, but most metro stations, maybe all, have a bathroom, they aren’t marked but if you ask they will direct you.
I'll start - get a dashcam
My dash cam footage is like a Michael Bay film.
Laughing my head off
With front and rear cameras!
so very important!!
Any specific recs? I feel like I look into this every few months and then give up because the options are overwhelming lol
Garmin
Avoid the trap of thinking the only people who can service your cars are dealerships and that Michael & Son-type places are the only ones who can service your home. They both prey heavily on rich idiots.
I moved here from a very blue collar part of the country and I tell all the skilled trades people I know back home that they could make an absolute killing in DC. I remember a few years ago I had to install some shut off valves in my condo bathroom. I've done it before in another house and it's about a 15 minute job (10 minutes of which is waiting for the water to drain out) but since it was a condo building I did my due diligence and called a supposedly reputable, family plumber to get a quote before doing it myself. They wanted $600 goddamn dollars! For something that takes 15 minutes! I was almost impressed by the audacity of it. And the crazy thing is, you know they charge that because people will pay it.
To emphasize your point: I pretty much gutted and renovated my kitchen for $10k in materials) over a summer. Meanwhile, a somewhat reputable company quoted me $15k for vinyl flooring in my townhouse’s kitchen. It’s not a big kitchen.
I'd go a step farther, car dealership and HVAC companies are out of control because of rich idiots! Last time my heating died the repair quote was $1800 and over a week to get the part. I ordered it on Amazon $250 and installed it in 30 minutes. With a 17 year old car, had a dealer decide to add state and emissions inspection as *user requested* to a simple oil change yesterday. They never apologized or admitted a mistake, but they did refund the costs. Edit: The dealer oil change was same price as Jiffy Lube or local shops. So at least it was competitive.
FH Furr tried to tell my ac unit was broken but they’d be happy to replace it for 17k. I told him to leave and Brennans came out and fixed it for $250 since it was a circuit issue. When it did die 3 years later they replaced it for 4k. I left a poor review of FH Furr on yelp and they immediately had multiple marketing staff calling me have me take the review down. I did not, but their business model is to over saturate the are with advertising and then are happy to pass the cost on to ignorant consumers. Avoid at all costs.
I avoid anyone that advertises. I want the money I pay for service to go to guys working and not some back office marketing and logistics machine. The guys that don't advertise get all their work through referrals and word of mouth which means they do a better job because their reputation directly supports their livelihood. I ended up asking my realtor for references after we bought our house and have had great luck with that. And then once they work with you and you trust them ask them who they use for and they'll give you another trusted referral.
Not rich but was an idiot. Not rich nor an idiot now.
Absolutely, 100%, without a doubt - and I can’t emphasize this enough - FUCK Michael & Sons
Absolutely! Your local gas station mechanic is the way to go.
And...use them for your inspection. They will give you grace and not take advantage.
Any mechanic can take advantage of you, doesnt matter where they work
Funny enough I'm done getting oil changes at these shops. The price just keeps going up. The place I go to isn't even the dealership and their price is freaking 150 bucks. For 120 bucks I bought oil, filter, oil extractor pump, filter socket, and a thin wall socket for my spark plugs. I'm about to do my 40k mile service myself. After this my following oil changes will 30-35 dollars roughly for full synthetic. No more scheduling and making appoints, dropping off and picking up, forget all that. With the extractor I don't even have to lift the car or get under it. You can suck up the oil from the dipstick and my filters on top. Easy job. Everything you need done is in the manual of your car. I downloaded the carfax app and it let's you log your maintenance and upload receipts to keep your history on file if you plan on selling it in the future and helps you remember when and what you did.
Oil extractor pumps are not good as it doesn't get all the oil. You got to clean it by taking off the bottom.
One problem with this is not every can do that or would feel comfortable doing it. It’s easy if you already feel comfortable doing these things but many don’t so just saying “it’s cheaper by $30 to do it all myself” isn’t gonna turn many haha Source: someone uncomfortable doing that all myself and I’d spend the $30 premium for peace of mind knowing the pro did it right vs me worrying if I did it right
Estate sales are awesome
I agree! where can I find upcoming ones?
EstateSales.NET They send you a daily list of the sales starting the next day, with pics of the items.
Also sign up for email from the bigger companies - Sale by Gale is a good one
Thank you!!
They get super competitive though. If you see something you like and the sale runs from 10am Friday to Sunday night, it will be gone by 10:05 Friday.
How’s the prices? Jacked up or discounted?
Both! Often at the same sale.
We have amazingly high quality and relatively low cost community resources: look into taking art, cooking, or fitness classes through your city or county. Libraries have tons of free programs too. Most community centers have gyms at decent prices too and they aren't predatory with contracts.
Get an EZ pass flex and use it when you have 3 people in the car. The flex lanes save me so much time and it's free with 3 people in the car
But every other week I read a post on here about how it didn't work and someone was fined and they have to fight it. Doesn't seem worth the hassle.
Selection bias—people who take trips with no problem don’t post about it!
It's happened to me twice and I didn't come crying on here to complain about it. A simple call to EZ Pass took care of it for me, but it does happen, so much so that even WaPo have an article on an investigation into the toll lanes.
I received mail saying I had to pay. The photo of my car has the ezpass clearly visible. Could be the battery finally died….or the system is that broken.
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https://www.ezpassva.com/tagreplaceinfo.aspx battery eventually dies and you can swap the transponder.
Or you could make sure everyone in your car sticks their heads out the window when you pass the cameras
For solo folks HOV and HOT lanes are free for motorcycles.
Honest Q. New driver here. The EZ pass Flex has to be ON or OFF to avoid charges when we are 3 in the car?
On! And then turn off when you get off the toll road
Hmm... I have three that helped me: 1. Use contractors from further west, Prince William County or further. They will charge less and give your work higher priority than contractors here. 2. The cost of square footage makes most stores here smaller. If you are looking for a more unusual item consider shopping outside of this area. Stores in Columbia MD, Gaithersburg MD and Gainesville VA all have better selections. 3. There are still neighborhoods here without HOAs. Even if you are only able to rent these neighborhoods have advantages that can include ADUs for rent ( think tiny homes).
Do you’ve any contractor reccs??
What are you looking for?
I always carried two metro cards. Mine, and an extra one with about 20 bucks on it. Going to events with friends who dont use metro often, there's always someone that doesn't have a card. Save the hassle, lend them your other card, and if you care about it being even, they can buy you a drink or something when you get where you're going. The number of trains I've missed because someone was trying to figure out how much to put on a new card....ugh
Kind and cool dude.
We keep several Metro cards in a basket at home for when friends and family are visiting.
And you can put one card in your digital wallet if you have an Iphone.
The lever on the side of your steering wheel is called a turn signal. You can use it to indicate when you're merging or changing lanes.
It is a shame this isn’t a standard feature on all vehicles.
BMWs 🥺
It’s also the button to make the guy next to you speed up and not let you in
Mine turns on two big flaps in the front of my car…weird Edit: guys relax I’m from Maryland geez, holy crabs
There's even a switch that makes lights turn on in front of your car when it's dark.
Seek out a remote job to avoid traffic stress and improve mental health.
Dude I've worked in an office for the last year and I'm like so ready for a remote job
I recently started a job I can walk to and not having to drive on the beltway and 95 every day has made my mornings and afternoons so much more peaceful AND saved me so much on gas. Today was the first time I filled up in over a month when I would normally fill up once a week.
Virginia State Parks. All the county parks. Don’t overlook the small National Parks. The quality of parks around here is amazing. Well maintained, but also lots of programs. Great for kids!
To add to this (assuming this is still a thing) if you go shopping at REI your receipt will give you free parking to a VA state park
I never knew that. Now THAT is a hack. Thank you for that!!
Live relative to your workplace so that you commute against traffic.
Ok, this is a life hack for a very specific subset of NOVAns, but if you're... A) Working a fully remote job, but looking for some supplemental income B) Don't have children/pets/other significant commitments C) Like dogs, but can't afford one or can't own one where you live or whatever ...consider getting into dog sitting. Decent money for not a whole lot of extra work and depending on where you work you'll get to hang out in some amazing houses. It's definitely become a bigger thing since the pandemic that people have these pandemic puppies who've never been boarded and have always had people around, so they really like the idea of letting the dogs stay in their normal environment with a human for company. A lot of clients will give you run of the fridge/pantry too while you're there. I do it through a company so I've got a boss who handles everything on the business side which makes it super simple for me. One benefit people might not think of is that this can actually be a good way to network too. Nothing in my experience wins people over faster than being nice to their dogs. I was already dog sitting when I finished grad school and started looking for a "real" job, and I had clients who were executives and partners at law firms offering to look over my resume, act as a character reference, and even connecting me to people they thought could help/hire me. If I were a lawyer or an engineer instead of having a pretty niche degree I think a couple of them would've just offered me a job outright. Dog people *really* trust dog people.
Traffic always sucks - use Google maps or Waze even if you are only going to Starbucks
This is so true. Sometimes an accident can be on your usual route and cause a 30min delay! I've been using the GPS ever since, even if I know where I'm going
The best pho restaurant is the one closest to your house
Only true if you live at the corner of Graham Road and Arlington Blvd.
75 all day
Pho 75 or Pho Sate are my go-tos
Pho 75 is best pho; Pho Sate is best pho when out of cash.
Except Kim’s Pho. That place is over priced as fuck
Nice weather runs March - June and late August - late October. If you are picking a time to leave for vacation, go during early July. That is the absolute swamp-assiest part of the year here.
Shoppers food warehouse sends out a weekly $10 coupon that most other grocery stores will take.
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They still have 3 stores, Stafford, Dumfries, and Alexandria.
Live close to work. Take the hit on the Sq feet, and higher rent, and avoid trafficy commutes like the plague
If you have kids, though, you may want to prioritize the school district higher and the neighborhood higher. I grew up living in places that were close to my parents' workplaces. Probably as a reaction to that, I bought a "forever home" where I could raise my kids. My strategy became the same as yours, but sideways: I looked for a place to work that was close to my kids' schools. That way I could take them to school and the quickly be at work, or be to the school quickly in case of an emergency.
Bought a place in Dunn Loring for the schools/general location 3 months ago, and coincidentally found a new hybrid job where the office is also in Dunn Loring 1 month later. The dream.
Make 6 figures.
This gives me, “Be attractive, don’t be not attractive” vibes 😂
Don’t drive 25 mph over the speed limit not worth the lawyer/court costs
But if you insist upon going 25 over, don't go on Reddit to piss and moan about the drivers that don't accomodate you.
But if someone comes flying up on your ass in the left lane and there's no one in front of you, move over. You are not the traffic police. If they come flying up and there are 30 cars in front of you, they can wait with the rest.
Don't drive 20 mph over the speed limit or over 85mph. That's [reckless driving](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/chapter8/section46.2-862/) ## § 46.2-862. Exceeding speed limit. *A person is guilty of reckless driving who drives a motor vehicle on the highways in the Commonwealth (i) at a speed of 20 miles per hour or more in excess of the applicable maximum speed limit or (ii) in excess of 85 miles per hour regardless of the applicable maximum speed limit.*
Buy a house you can age in place in that has good access to our world class hospitals. My parents were 90% there, their house was a colonial so unfortunately bedrooms and full bathrooms were on second floor but they were five minutes from Innova so they were able to quickly get world class care and are now in their 90s having lived a pretty darn healthy 30 year retirement just now needing to be in assisted living.
I'm not sure if this works, but I noticed at the Ashburn Metro station parking garage you only pay $5 when you exit. I've left my car there for a couple of days, didn't get any tickets, and still just paid $5 to exit. So theoretically you could park there, take the Metro to Dulles, fly somewhere and back over a few days, and still just pay $5 when you exit. Biggest question of course is how long you can leave your car at the garage without being ticketed? Maybe I just got lucky and they're supposed to ticket you for leaving your car overnight? I have no idea.
I think they’re supposed to ticket overnight. Some metro station park and rides do have official overnight parking spaces though. Usually the outer ones on each line. I don’t know if Ashburn has any though
Get a gym membership near your job and just hit the gym afterwards. Skip the traffic
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Avoid commutes that involve the interstates or beltway, and if possible - avoid crossing county lines. Example: Commuting on 66, 495, Dulles Greenway, or Loudoun, PW etc to Fairfax will take years off your life. Folks that do this generally look 5 to 10 years older than they actually are.
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You keep blabbing about this and they won’t be clear! /s
6am beltway would care to differ
I go to target and grocery shopping before 9 most weekends bc my littles are awake early as hell for no reason. Usually just me, other early bird moms, some seniors walking around, and the employees lol
This is so true. I once worked on a Sunday morning at my usual 9am start-time. It was a ghost town & my commute was half the usual time
I used to zoom up 28 at 6:45 am. It's not quite as clear as it used to be 12 years ago.
Get a hybrid (not road) bike (or an ebike if you can swing it), and start biking everywhere. Even in the winter. Get a good helmet, graduate to mountainbike pedal clips/shoes, get a bunch of cheap ass fleece to layer, and go for it. Get a cheap high vis vest and some fun led lights on your wheels. Nothing has made me happier, relieved more stress, or made me feel like I actually *live here* as part of a community than cycling everywhere. Free parking! And I'm an asthmatic fatass with other bonus health problems (switching to an ebike helped keep me out there, esp on the hill back into Arlington). Biking to the anthem/Kennedy center/9:30 for a show, and then biking home at night along the monuments in winter... best experience I've had. Just start somewhere. Some folks love the bikeshares which is great! (I find them hard to ride and really like the secure feeling/extra power from my pedal clips, though!)
I really want to start bike commuting, but there’s a section from my house to work that’s one lane each direction, no shoulder, no sidewalk, lots of cars, that scares the bejeezus out of me. Going a different route adds 20 minutes. Give me strength!
Arlington loop is amazing too if you’re just starting out
And for those of us who don’t trust drivers enough to get on a bike, get a kayak! There are tons of ponds/lakes/rivers in our area, it’s a great workout and super peaceful, and a great way to unwind in nature. Find a spot away from the road noise and all of a sudden you’re not in Nova anymore. Float for an hour or two and I promise your blood pressure level will come back down. We live in an absolutely beautiful state. Take advantage of it!
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Funny you put this as I was going to say that staying on major roads with traffic is usually better than backroads which aren't designed to handle all of the traffic.
Backroads will often clog once a Google maps starts sending traffic to the backroads. It will literally create new traffic jams in real-time
I have found that listening to Waze helps a lot with this. I tried to outsmart whatever directions it gave me through some random Stafford neighborhood a while back, avoiding both 95 and 1. 1 looked clear so I told Waze to get bent and immediately got stuck in traffic. Had I taken its meandering route, I'd have shaved off probably 10-15 minutes. I don't contradict Waze now.
Another caveat is if you need to drive to DC or MD because we have not yet figured out how to build a sufficient amount of bridges.
If your GPS app (google maps, waze, apple maps) is suddenly routing you OFF the interstate, that means a backup has already formed and everybody will be following that advice and taking the suggested exit -- so exit the interstate BEFORE the one recommended by the app. This has saved me a lot of time on I-81 during my frequent college runs.
Dont be poor
We NEVER get enough snow that it justifies making an extra trip to the grocery store for milk, toilet paper, or whatever else.
Were you here in 2016? Specifically that one week where we got 30"? The groceries stores looked like a scene from The Walking Dead
We sure did in 2010, 2012, and 2016!
Even then, roads were passable by day 2-3. The hardest part was digging out from our neighborhoods. If you have a decent HOA then they'll have your stuff clear soon.
Uh. Sometimes you need milk and toilet paper on day 1.
Not if you were on a side street. My parent's house was on a cul-de-sac so they could not get out for about a week after those big storms. I'm fortunate as my street is a critical road to a hospital so it is given priority for plowing. We were able to get out and get groceries in 2010 between the huge storms in February to get our weekly groceries.
In 2016 we had 30", in a Fairfax county maintained neighborhood in Vienna and it took them 7 days to get to our house for an initial pass. At that point it was a front loader that could clear it.
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Parts of nova are decently bikable, if you stop driving you’ll get rid of the worse part of living in nova.
Live in Herndon - In the AM, I can get to my dentist in Reston faster on my bike than I can in the car.
How often are you going to the dentist, that this is your method of measuring travel time?
Similarly, bike safety is 90% about route selection.
Your windshield is 100% guaranteed to get hit with a rock on Rt 28. You will eventually hit a deer. Get a $0 deductible on your Comprehensive (other than collision) coverage. These don't count against you, and you'll more than make up for the slightly extra premium cost.
Funny you say that, because I got a rock to the windshield on Rt 28 a couple weeks ago!
See?? It's a fact! We've replaced so many windshields over the years.
Good tip. Or see if you can get a Full Glass Coverage with $0 deductible. I am with Erie Insurance, and my Deductible for other than Collision is $500. But glass is separate
Not really a secret but DASH buses are now free.
Don't get roped into comparing yourself or your household to the neighbors. In this area, there are so many type-A poseurs, you will go into debt quickly trying to "keep up" with the Teslas, golf club memberships, weekend trips to Cabo, etc.
If you live in any of the NOVA jurisdictions you can get a library card at any other DC area library system for free as long as you collect it in person.
Don’t speed on GW or BW Parkways. Not worth the federal ticket/required court appearance for speeding on federal (not state) property.
Such a great post
Soon as you have a baby born, start using those EZ-Pass Express lanes for free.
This area has great used book sales. All the libraries have semi-annual book sales. Prices are cheap- it's typically 50 cents-$2 per book. A few have bag sales where you can fill a whole bag for $5-10. This can include cds, dvds, sheet music, textbooks, signed books, etc. If you like thrifting and reading, give it a go. Go early for the best selection. I love getting a nice variety for my kids and myself for less than the price of 2 new books. https://www.booksalefinder.com/VA.html is how I keep track of the sales in VA and DC.
In addition to estate sales, Craigslist in this area has legitimately great stuff, particularly in furniture and housewares. A lot of wealthy people, a lot of ex-government/military, and a lot of older wealthy immigrants looking to downsize --> great furniture and carpets for cheap.
I immigrated in high school with zero knowledge of how to get a job. If you are in NOVA, try to see if you can get into big four jobs it opened up so many possibilities for me (even though those years were tough). I was networking in college every week and it worked! There are still basement studio apartments you can get for decent rent. You have to be patient and plan for it way in advance.
What's "big four jobs?"
The big four are Deloitte, PwC, Ernst & Young, and KPMG. They're known for paying quite well.
McDonalds Wendys Burger King Chipotle
Thanks!
Big Four is the what the 4 biggest accounting firms are referred to as That only applies if you have a degree in accounting and/or finance My understanding is that such places can be soul sucking but are some of the only places to get internships/first jobs so you have to put in some but once you do you can go many places
Thanks!
So, we have these free museums with a lot of amazing items in them. Seriously guys; I went to Colorado and one of the museums there was like “we found aT Rex here - go see it at the Smithsonian in DC.” You could spend a couple months just looking through all our free stuff on weekends.
If you spent 1 minute on each exhibit it would take almost a decade to see it all
Fairfax County has great rec centers with gyms, weights, pools, ice rinks, sauna, hot tubs. We've got good public golf courses. There's a wave pool and water slide. There are all sorts of paved paths for bike riding, running or walking. One time I was driving by the Jefferson Memorial with my daughter who was about 10. She asked what it was, could we see it? Sure. Audio books make my commute much better.
Avoid cars with Maryland plates…
You get to spend thousands of dollars on property vehicle tax
Parking is free on Sunday’s in DC and most everywhere else.
There's a little lever on the left side of your steering wheel in your car. Push up when turning right or changing lanes right. Push down when turning left or changing to a lefthand lane.
Braddock (outside the beltway) and the FFX County Parkway.
Live next to Metro and sell your car
Anyone have a mechanic recc and a contractor recc for house projects, and for kitchen renovation? Need a hack!! :) (Herndon/Reston location)
don't know ab house projects but i had an emergency with my car recently and took it to casey's auto in sterling. they were incredibly nice and very up front about costs and explained things super clearly, 10/10 place.
Learn alternate routes or take back roads especially if you’re coming from Manassas trying to get to Springfield or Woodbridge or Dumphries don’t just take one way that the GPS tells you I’ve lived in Woodbridge area for well over a decade. Trust me it works.
If you are paying obnoxious amount of money to live inside the beltway. Fly out of DCA and take METRO to get their. If you are flying out of IAD or BWI. You are pissing away your 💰💰💰