Where ever you are, and whatever you’re doing on the holiday, we encourage you — at least for a day — to put aside the frustrations of the world and treat your fellow humans with uncommon patience and empathy.
By the time Saturday rolls around, you’ll be reading the Rethink Energy column here. The “challenge” referenced in the column is actually not much of a challenge at all — it’s a couple easy things you can do to save energy and money next year. Not a bad New Year’s resolution.
The high temperature today and tomorrow is expected to hover around 70 degrees. In the meantime, cloud cover will make it hard to spot Santa tonight, and Ol’ Saint Nick might want to bring a rain jacket, with storms and flash flooding expected.
A white Christmas is fairly rare in Arlington, and this year is no exception. On any given year, Arlington has around an 11 percent historic probability of having snow on the ground on Dec. 25. Anecdotally, cool and dry seems to describe the most common Christmas Day here.
A week ago, BikeArlington organized a “Holiday Lights Ride” to visit some of the most decked-out homes in Arlington.
Among their stops:
ACPD says it will be upping patrols and setting up DUI checkpoints from Dec. 18 to Jan. 3. Nationwide, there’s an increase in drunk driving deaths around Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
From an ACPD press release:
Holiday parties are in full swing, holiday cards from friends and loved ones are arriving by the truckload and a potentially record-breaking holiday travel period is upon us.
How are your fellow Arlington residents doing, in terms of embodying the holiday spirit of patience, generosity, positivity and concern for one’s fellow man?
Transport Panel Approves of I-66 HOT Lanes — The Commonwealth Transportation Board voted yesterday to approve the creation of high occupancy toll lanes on I-66 inside the Beltway. It’s estimated that by 2040, almost twice as many users of eastbound I-66 inside the Beltway will be headed to Arlington compared to those heading to D.C. Meanwhile, two Democratic state lawmakers from Fairfax and Loudoun counties want to force the state to start planning to widen I-66 sooner rather than later. [Washington Post, InsideNova]
County Responds to I-395 HOT Lane Plan — Arlington officials say they hope to reach a “mutually beneficial outcome” to a state proposal to extend the I-395 Express lanes north to the D.C. line. The proposal calls for expanding the HOV lanes from two to three lanes while converting them to high occupancy toll lanes. The County says any proposal should “not undermine Arlington’s successful investment in congestion-reducing transit-oriented development in Pentagon City, Crystal City, or Shirlington.” [Arlington County]
A short, plastic visitor with blue eyes, a red suit and a long white beard has been popping up on porches around the county.
The Arlington, VA Traveling Santa began his journey shortly after Thanksgiving. Since then, he’s been visiting families throughout the county, showing up on their doorsteps unannounced. Similar to a holiday chain letter, Santa is trying to make as many stops as he can before Christmas Day.
The Candy Cane Crawl is planned from 1-9 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 19.
“Thousands of participants will quench their thirst on exclusive drink deals as they explore Clarendon and celebrate the holiday season one bar at a time,” according to the event’s website.
Dems Vote For Redskins Team Name Change — The Arlington County Democratic Committee voted Wednesday to officially call on Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder to change the team’s “offensive” name. Some Democrats opposed the vote, suggesting that “nobody would take the resolution particularly seriously.” [InsideNova]
New Trend: Karaoke Leagues — Team karaoke leagues and costumed karaoke competitions are all the rage in Arlington, D.C. and New York City, according to a Wall Street Journal trend piece. [Wall Street Journal]
More Metro Delays — A disabled train outside of the Farragut West Metro station produced big delays for those heading into Virginia via the Orange, Silver and Blue lines this morning. [Twitter]
Local Credit Card Holiday Spending — Arlington residents are charging an average of $718.43 on credit cards for holiday gifts this year, estimates the website Nerd Wallet. While that seems like a high number, collectively those in Arlington buying holiday gifts without using a credit card are missing out on $138,846.46 in rewards points, the website says. [Nerd Wallet]
A North Arlington house has been named one of the “15 Most Decked-Out Holiday Homes in America.”
The house, on N. Abingdon Street at 16th Street N., near Virginia Hospital Center, is a perennial draw around holiday time. It features an array of lights, wreaths, Santa Clauses and other Christmas decorations.
Shirlington Tree Lighting Rescheduled — Due to rain, the Shirlington tree lighting event scheduled for tonight has been rescheduled. The holiday event is now set for Monday, Dec. 7 from 6-8:30 p.m. [Facebook]
Yona Now Open in Ballston — New ramen restaurant Yona opened for lunch yesterday in Ballston, attracting a “packed house” for $15 bowls of ramen. The restaurant, at 4000 Wilson Blvd, plans to start serving dinner on Friday. [Yona, Twitter]
