
Reston Town Center Ice Skating Pavilion Donates $5,697.50 to Reston Character Counts! Coalition
Reston Town Center Ice Skating Pavilion raised a record-breaking donation of $5,697.50 for Reston Character Counts! Coalition during the rink’s opening weekend in early November.
Column: Term Limited
In a couple of days Governor Bob McDonnell will present a proposed budget to the General Assembly for the next two years. Early announcements about what it contains have been good: critically needed funding for mental health and restoration of funding to education programs. What is unique about the budget is that Governor McDonnell will not be around to defend or to implement it. The Constitution of Virginia limits the governor to one term. A governor can run a second time as Mills Godwin did in the 1960s, but the terms cannot be successive.
Column: What Interest Served Bailing Out Crumbling Utility?
Once upon a time, I am told, Reston Lake Anne Air Conditioning (RELAC) actually provided a relatively competitive cooling service to 500 residences around Lake Anne using chilled water delivered through a maze of underground pipes. It was the 1960s and air conditioning was still in its infancy. Compared with today’s A/C systems, RELAC at its best would be like an original Polaroid compared with a 2014 digital camera.

Crowds Enjoy Reston Ice Rink
The Ice Skating Pavilion in Reston Town Center is a hot destination.
The temperature was holding pretty steady in the lower 30s, there was ice off the rink as well as on it, and the occasional snow flurry drifted about Reston Town Center on Saturday, but none of those potential obstacles kept the Ice Skating Pavilion from being plenty packed. Although there were a few skaters with obvious skills making the rounds, it seemed that the majority were more suited to the novice category, judging by the numbers of flailing arms, "derriere skaters" and the amount of time the staff spent helping would-be Apolo Ohnos and Ashley Wagners regain their skates and their balance. It was also pretty obvious that no matter what level of expertise each skater brought to the arena, everybody was having fun.

Painters Unite to Make Friday the 13th Someone’s Lucky Day
Friday, Dec. 13 was anything but unlucky for one Reston family, tenants in one of the 53 townhouses owned by Cornerstones Housing Corporation in Reston, Herndon and Centreville, that are rented at affordable rates to persons earning half or less than the area’s median income.
Backwards Thinking
Considering that I’ve been cancer-centric now for nearly five years, one would have thought I might have learned and totally embraced an alternative concept: forward living – and less thinking about past causes and their possible current effects. Certainly cancer causes physical manifestations and symptoms that are diagnosable and indicative of trouble. But it’s the unseen effects that in some cases cause as many difficulties. What I am referring to is the mental and emotional toll a terminal diagnosis and short term prognosis can have on the patient’s perspective on life and living, and what’s presumptively thought to be left of it.
Preserve 3-2-1 for Housing
Housing for all income levels near transit supports vibrant communities and job growth, reduces traffic.
In the latest edition of The Herrity Report, Springfield Supervisor Pat Herrity proposed "redirecting developers’ $3 per square foot contribution for buying rent-controlled housing units into a trust fund to pay for public school renovation and construction."

Home for the Holidays: Surviving a Long Trip
Keeping children entertained on lengthy airplane rides.
Liz Henry is nervous about her upcoming flight to San Francisco. It’s not TSA regulations or long lines that are causing her anxiety, however. It is traveling alone with her three children — all of whom are under the age of 6.
Teaching Children To Be Charitable
Experts say modeling, nurturing are keys to raising generous children.
Elena Santiviago walked her 6-year-old son down the aisle of a grocery store near her Arlington home. They picked up five boxes of toothpaste and two bottles of mouthwash, several bars of soap and a few sticks of deodorant. The shopping trip was part of a school project in which students fill holiday stockings with personal hygiene items for the homeless.

Art Educator Releases Two Books
Stories offer children and parents innovative ways to explore art.
Elizabeth Augenblick Smith, 10, spent a recent Saturday afternoon gluing strips of brightly hued tissue paper to create a collage. There were no rules or guides to follow.
Classified Advertising December 18, 2013
Read the lastest ads here!
Classified Advertising December 11, 2013
Read the latest ads here!
New Approach to Mental Health
Reforms in wake of tragedy involving state senator's son.
Advocates for mental health services have been calling for improved services and increased funding for years, although the issue has been pushed aside year after year.
Gifts for the Foodie in Your Life
Local gourmets share their favorite products for the food lovers on your list.
Whether you’re shopping for a seasoned cook or a budding culinary enthusiast, buying presents for a foodie can be a daunting task. What’s the best pan? The coolest gadget? The latest trend in desserts? Local gourmets come to the rescue with culinary goodies to entice even the most discerning of food aficionados.

Opening Up
Open floorplan plus cathedral ceiling equals Mclean ranch stylishly re-invented.
Assess a circa-1952 ranch on a shady street in McLean with an eye towards maximizing value. Among the shortcomings: rooms that are too small and dark; a kitchen that hasn't been remodeled in 25 years. A tiny breakfast room. A rear grade too steep for an addition. A front elevation with no visible front door.
Holiday Décor: Make It Sparkle
Local designers offer suggestions for home decorating.
’Tis the season for decking the halls. Whether your style is traditional and colorful, muted and demure or metallic and glittery, three local designers offer distinct holiday decorating ideas to spark your creativity.

Come Home to a Luxury Bedroom
Local designers unveil inviting spaces that are perfect for dreaming of sugarplums.
Bedrooms are no longer just for sleeping, at least according to some local designers. They’re for relaxing and watching television, but they’re also for reading and for eating a lazy weekend breakfast. In fact, some modern bedrooms are probably larger than their owners’ first apartments. Three local tastemakers unveil master bedrooms that are so opulent and amenity-filled that it’s surprising their owners ever want to leave.

A New Luxury Kitchen for the Holidays
Designers describe the perfect spaces for baking, cooking and entertaining.
With the holiday season in full swing, many people are finding themselves spending more time in the kitchen. Whether you hate to cook or love it, it can be more enjoyable when done in the kitchen of your dreams, complete with state-of-the-art appliances and custom-made marble topped islands.
A "Scancer" Update
Since you asked, or rather indulged me the past few weeks by wading through my two "Scanticipation" columns anticipating a result, I am happy to finally share that result with you: "Stable and better." These are the exact words e-mailed to me by my oncologist in response to my post-Thanksgiving inquiry about my CT Scan completed on the 27th.