Good Thursday morning, Alexandria!
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny, with a high near 85. Northwest wind 7 to 9 mph. At night: A slight chance of showers after 2am. Partly cloudy, with a low around 65. West wind around 6 mph becoming light and variable after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Just behind Iowa City but just above Peachtree Corners, Fortune Magazine listed Alexandria as the 18th best place in the country to raise a family.
While it’s not as high as other rankings, Fortune Magazine described Alexandria’s dining scene and lively neighborhoods as major attractions.
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.
El Mac is painting a mural in Alexandria.
The Los Angeles-based muralist will paint a new piece at the corner of 901 King Street over the course of the next two weeks. The design is still under wraps, and building owner Mike Dameron of Windmill Hill Design Build is trying to stay out of his way.
The owners of an Alexandria rooming house could have gotten a significant paycheck from developers for the property, but the home owner is working with the city to keep it affordable.
At a City Council meeting last night, the Council unanimously authorized to pay $1.95 million from the city’s American Rescue Plan Act grant funding to renovate and preserve a rooming house at 1022 Pendleton Street.
Join us for an evening of made-up-on-the-spot improv comedy! We'll be calling on you to give us suggestions for a totally unique show that'll never be seen again!
Show is 18+ recommended. We perform free shows for the Alexandria, VA and surrounding community. Donations help us rent space, supply drinks, and defray other costs!
The Tall Ship Providence sailed up the Potomac River to its new permanent home at Waterfront Park in Alexandria on Tuesday, and the floating Senator John Warner Maritime Heritage Center will start offering interactive tours for the public starting this Saturday, June 17.
The effort to build the maritime center goes back to 2018, and construction started last year. In April, the center was floated up from Baltimore and final touches have been added to the two cottages housing an education center where visitors will get an immersive lesson about sailing during the Revolutionary War.
Good Wednesday morning, Alexandria!
⛈️ Today’s weather: A chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 2pm. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 78. Southwest wind 9 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. At night: Mostly clear, with a low around 60. West wind 6 to 10 mph.
A 56-year-old Maryland man faces multiple charges after allegedly planting peephole cameras in bathroom air vents in Alexandria and Baltimore restaurants, and then attempting to extort money from the owners by pretending to be a customer who found the cameras.
The Alexandria incident goes back to March 2022, when the suspect called the police from the Tempo restaurant (4231 Duke Street) and reported a hidden camera attached to a vent over the toilet in the men’s room, according to a recently released search warrant affidavit.
A longtime ACPS educator and a principal from Chesterfield County Public Schools are the finalists for the executive principal position at Alexandria City High School.
Alexander Duncan III, the Minnie Howard Campus administrator, and Marcia Rice, principal at Meadowbrook High School, answered a variety of questions Monday night in a Zoom meet-and-greet moderated by former ACHS principal John Porter.
A new exhibit in the Alexandria Archaeology Museum (on the third floor of the Torpedo Factory, 105 N. Union Street) highlights a “microcosm of the city” on Lee Street.
The new exhibit dives through the layers of history at one site in Old Town, along with glimpses at a few other waterfront sites.
