Good Thursday morning, Alexandria!
⛅️ Today’s weather: There is a 20% chance of brief showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening, with mostly sunny weather and a high of 89°F. Light winds will shift from east to south in the morning. On Thursday night, the chance of showers continues with partly cloudy skies, a low of 73°F, and southwest winds around 8-10 mph.
Salma Faqirzaava wants to be an attorney, but that future was impossible in Afghanistan. Now she’s back in school and learning English in Alexandria.
Eight months ago, Salma and her parents moved to Alexandria, where she enrolled in Alexandria City High School, finding herself navigating the busy hallways of the second largest high school in Virginia.
Before the pandemic, I ran a Reddit forum that brought people together for local happy hours. It became a great outlet for an in-person social life: you could get out, get to know people nearby, and have a familiar group to spend time with. I enjoyed being the person who helped make that happen.
Getting people together became harder after the pandemic. Friends moved away, had kids, or settled into different routines, and organizing a night out took more effort. I still wanted that camaraderie, but having people to invite didn’t necessarily mean we could get something on the calendar.
I’m in my late 30s and live in Old Town. About a year ago, I joined Choros, a local membership community that helps guys build friendships through small-group activities. Since then, I’ve been to close to 50 hangouts, and it’s given me a regular group of guys to do things with around Alexandria and beyond.
I host board game nights and help host a monthly happy hour at the Commodore in Old Town. I’ve done escape rooms on King Street, trivia, food festivals in Del Ray, movie discussions, and Dungeons & Dragons (which can be especially tricky to get going as an adult with a busy schedule). Having that variety means I can find something that fits my mood and schedule, and there are usually familiar faces when I get there.
One of my favorite things, though, is getting on my bike, picking a destination, and making a day of it. Through Choros, I’ve found a consistent crew to ride with almost every month. That’s the kind of thing I wanted more of: people who enjoy the same stuff and make time to get out and do it together.
I still like hosting and bringing people together. What makes Choros useful is having a community to draw from, so every plan doesn’t depend on the same few friends being available. Other guys suggest and host things too, which gives me plenty of opportunities to join something without organizing it myself.
Over time, seeing the same guys at different activities builds familiarity. You have conversations to pick back up and another reason to make plans together. That’s how it’s become a circle of friends for me.
If you’re in Alexandria, check out Choros and come to one of our monthly happy hours at the Commodore. I’d be happy to meet a few more neighbors, whether you’re into board games, bike rides, or just getting out for a drink. There’s plenty happening here, along with activities throughout the rest of the D.C. area.
Whether it’s adding the Death Star to a pastoral scene to Mario Kart characters to a watercolor trail, “reimagining paintings” can be a fun way of spicing up otherwise blasé works.
The Alexandria Library is hosting an event tonight (Wednesday) specifically dedicated to painting over an existing painting.
Alexandria’s new speed cameras have already issued over 3,500 warnings. Soon, the city says those will become speeding tickets.
The City ran a two-week warning period at the end of the last school year and will start another one beginning Monday, Aug. 21, as the new school year starts. The City warned that the speed cameras will begin ticketing starting Sept. 18.
Event location
Woodson High School
9525 Main Street
Fairfax, Virginia 22031
Northern Virginia Fairfax Families for Safe Streets (NoVA FSS) cordially invites you to attend and support our upcoming World Day of Remembrance (WDoR) for Road Traffic Victims.
World Day of Remembrance is an annual event where we honor those whose lives were prematurely ended after being struck by a person driving. This year is particularly painful and sad as we think about the recent death of a 13-year-old Frost middle school student who was struck and killed by a person driving a truck on Pickett Road. We will also honor the nearly 30 other people (as of today’s date) who have been killed on Northern Virginia streets while, walking, biking, or rolling since last year’s day of remembrance.
One Alexandria artist aims to spark joy in the mundane with her one-of-a-kind, handcrafted pottery known for its elegance and vibrant colors.
Meet Bhavani Arabandi, the sole owner of Samhara Ceramics based in Old Town Alexandria. Arabandi is a full-time sociologist and researcher, but she spends her evenings in her studio, enveloped in the beautiful mess she calls her passion: pottery.
Those crossing between Virginia and Maryland tomorrow night may want to avoid the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
According to a traffic advisory, the bridge will be opening for maintenance multiple times tomorrow night (Thursday), starting at 11 p.m.
Good Wednesday morning, Alexandria!
☀️ Today’s weather: The forecast predicts sunny weather with a high temperature of 86°F and a northwest wind at 7 mph during the day. In the evening, it will be partly cloudy with a low of 70°F. The northwest wind will decrease to 5 mph and become calm later in the evening.
Connect & Sip Cafe, a coffee shop in the works at 1320 Prince Street a local family, is headed to the Board of Architectural Review next month with hopes it can clear the way to an opening this fall.
The family had earlier set their sights on a summer opening, but a representative told ALXnow that they’re holding off on opening until the family gets a permit to install a new sign, lights, and refurbish the front of the worn-down building.
After six years leading Heard, a nonprofit that brings the arts to incarcerated adults, Jane Collins is hanging up her hat.
Collins, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel, founded the nonprofit in 2017 by hosting a writing contest between participants of ALIVE!, Friends of Guest House and Together We Bake. Collins has been executive director ever since, growing the nonprofit to teach thousands of Alexandria adults in the Alexandria Detention Center, the Arlington County jail, and in more than a dozen local nonprofits.
