Falls Church News-Press - March 20, 2008

Index Editorial..................2 Letters................2, 6 Comment........10-13 Community News & Notes..............14-15 Business News & Notes...................16 Sports.............18-19 Roger Ebert....22-24 Press Pass..........25 Calendar.........26-27

Sodoku................29 Comics.................29 Crossword...........29 Restaurant Spotlight ............................30 Classified Ads......34 Business & Services Directory..............35 Weekly Focus .36-37 Critter Corner.......38 Business Listing..39

The George Mason girls high school basketball team isn’t the only local team that’s deserving of your attention and admiration this year.

George Mason High School’s own Team 1418, or Vae Victis — meaning “woe of the van-

quished” in Latin — as they call themselves, has won the 2008 Chesapeake Regional FIRST Robotics Competition, held March 15 at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. Mason placed first out of 60 competing schools, dominating virtually every event they competed in through the preliminary, quarter-final, semi-

final and final rounds.

The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition features teams of high school students around the world battling to build the robot best suited for a specific task, which is revealed to Continued on Page 20

A scarcely-known resource provided to the City of Falls Church by the Virginia State Legislature in 2005 drew keen interest Tuesday as leaders of five area arts organizations addressed the monthly luncheon of the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce.

The City became one of only a handful in the state authorized to form an “arts and cultural district,” replete with tax and other incentives when Del. Bob Hull, in consultation with then F.C. Assistant Manager Wyatt Shields, added its name to a short list of new applicants during the 2005 legislative session.

In the course of exchanges between the spokespersons for the regional arts non-profits and Chamber members Tuesday, this obscure fact came to light, along with the fact that the City has never taken advantage of the opportunity.

When asked for a show of hands on whether the City should establish an “arts and cultural district,” over three-dozen local business leaders filling the room at the Italian Café raised their hands.

F.C. Chamber Chief Gary LaPorta stressed that the informal and spontaneous show of hands did not constitute any kind of an official vote, but the sentiment was clear following the speakers who, among other things, showed studies documenting the positive economic impact of arts institutions in any community.

Ann Rodriguez, president and CEO of the Arts Council of Continued on Page 4

Page 2

March 20 - 26, 2008

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Vol. XVIII, No. 3 March 20 - 26, 2008 • City of Falls Church ‘Business of the Year’ 1991 & 2001 • • Certified by the Commonwealth of Virginia to Publish Official Legal Notices • • Member, Virginia Press Association • • Audited Circulation: 30,500 •

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The timing could not have been better. In the afterglow of completing the approval of the transformative $317 million City Center project, arts and culture leaders in the City of Falls Church reached out to the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce this week in hopes of forging a novel alliance. The opportunity is clear: With the new downtown now approved, the design and ambiance of the nine-acre area now becomes the center of attention. The business and arts communities can now come together to see that the seeds of a true renaissance city are sewn.

This begs the questions of architectural design, public art and streetscape amenities conducive to the display, and appreciation of quality arts of all kinds, including visual and performing. The fact that the City has the capacity, granted by the State Legislature, to forge a specially designated “arts and culture district,” replete with options for generous investment incentives, makes all this even more attractive.

In the interests of ensuring the Falls Church public has its opportunity for input on the look of the new City Center area, City Hall has promised an open design charette to which all will be invited and encouraged to chip in. Of course, this will be advisory in nature only, and the real questions of architectural design, for example, will be rooted in how good an impression the developers, in this case Atlantic Realty, want to make on current and future clients.

But as we’ve noted before in this space, Falls Church has the distinct advantage of an architecturally-innovative new development that has potentially set a new standard for whatever else will get built here. That was the unique Glasgow School of Art Nouveau architecture that went into the construction of Bob Young’s Read Building, at 402 W. Broad St. That new building is one of a kind for the entire Washington, D.C., region, and Young is poised to follow on it with another Art Nouveau-inspired building, this one reflecting the Viennese School, in the 800 block of W. Broad. This one, a fourstory office building, will be the new home for the retail division of the Falls Church Post Office.

This kind of unique and tasteful art, in the form of architecture, could readily be augmented by the wholesale embracing of the arts and culture by the City in its new central zone. It would, more than any new retail district, serve to make the city into a regional destination, capitalizing on what the State Theatre, as a regionally-acclaimed live music venue, has already done. The City should cooperate with its existing, fledgling non-profit arts organizations, and with a willing Chamber of Commerce, to make the entire City, its look, its feel, its people, sing.

As a small city that has long prided itself on the quality of its educational system, there would be nothing more appropriate than for the City of Falls Church to gain a regional reputation and a special magnet for the arts at a level where they’re accessible to everyone.

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Editor, In last week’s letter in the News-Press declaring her candidacy for City Council, Margaret Housen opens by stating, “it’s time for a change.”

Not being sure what this means, permit me to suggest that such change begin with her committing to a campaign based on facts and thoughtful statements instead of innuendo, misinformation, and wild assertions. Her letter is exhibit one in this regard.

Let’s start with the statement that the Mayor and Vice Mayor “have served as rubber stamps” for the current and

preceding City Manager. The City Manager is accountable to and supervised directly by the Council. Given this relationship it is upsidedown thinking to conceive that the Mayor and Vice Mayor and/or the other Council members could be rubber stamps.

Next is the statement “on their watch City residents now pay some of the highest taxes in the area.” Since Ms. Housen has lived here for such a short time she may be unaware that the tax rate was $1.13 during the Mayor and Vice Mayor’s early years on the Council. However, for 2006 and 2007 it has been

$1.01 – a fact that puts Ms. Housen’s assertion in an entirely different light.

Next, the Council has indeed encouraged “developers to continue building,” despite the bursting of “the real estate bubble.” Quite simply, this is the sensible thing to do because, among other things, it will bring in the needed revenue to help sustain our City services and stellar public schools.

For example, the well known developer, Bob Young, has just broken ground on a new office building that will bring in about $150,000 in annual revenue when completed.

When the Council approved the City Center it by no means “thumbed its nose at a good percentage of City residents.”

In fact those who signed the referendum petition amount to just seven percent of the

City’s 11,000 residents. Also, the petition was finalized after the February 28 approval of the City Center, being certified by the Arlington Circuit Court March 5th and accepted by the State Board of Elections March 7.

Lastly, the statements “the City is essentially broke” and there is a “$100,000,000.00 water account we don’t know about” are absurd. If Ms. Housen had taken the time to attend the City Manager’s March 10 budget presentation she would have learned about the City’s sound financial condition. Likewise, neither I nor anyone else in the City Government with whom I have spoken about it have ever heard of a $100 million water account.

Hal Lippman Falls Church City Council More Letters on Page 6

March 20 - 26, 2008

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March 20 - 26, 2008

F.C. Granted Opportunity

By State for ‘Arts District’ Continued from Page 1

Fairfax County, presented a summary of the positive economic impact of non-profit arts and culture organizations and their audiences in Fairfax County.

She said that the compelling case made in the 2005 study helped to ensure that the County budget contribution to her organization would not drop, despite the especially tough fiscal times this year.

Laura Hull, CEO of the Falls Church-based Creative Cauldron, a non-profit that provides educational workshops in the performing and visual arts for children and adults, said that her organization is working with Falls Church Arts to secure and build out a modest “flexart space” at the new Pearson Square project on S. Maple Street, that was proffered to the City in the original negotiations to permit the construction of the project.

She said the space would be used as an “incubator” for

arts of all types in the City and region, and that more backing from the City is needed to bring it to pass.

If the F.C. City Council takes up the opportunity to create an “arts and cultural district,” it could utilize, according to Virginia law, a reduction in permit and user fees, and any type of gross receipts tax for up to 10 years. It could also provide regulatory flexibility in such a designated zone, which could include special zoning, permit process reform, exemption from ordinances and other incentives binding on the City for 10 years.

These incentives would open up the community and its existing arts organizations to receive additional investment and funding resources to establish, among other things, a permanent infrastructure for the arts in a designated area.

In addition to Falls Church, only the independent cities of Alexandria, Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Petersburg and Winchester and the towns of

“Should Falls Church form a special ‘Arts & Culture’ district?”

• Yes • No

Blacksburg and Chincoteague • Don’t know/Dont’ care are authorized by the state to establish such districts.

Vote on-line at Blacksburg is reportedly in the process of creating an arts district in conjunction with the Don't know construction of a major new per5% forming arts center at Virginia Results of Last Tech.

Yes In addition to Rodriguez and 32% Week’s Question: Hull, representatives of three “Is the proposed 3 cent thriving arts organizations in Falls Church spoke at the tax rate hike in Chamber luncheon Tuesday, F.C. reasonable?” including former Vice Mayor Marty Meserve of the Falls No Church Arts, Tom Gittins of First 63% The FCNP On-Line polls are surveys, Friday and Nancy McSlarrow of not scientific polls.

Choralis.

All had impressive stories of their growth and aspirations, all room scheduled for Friday, groups, the main chorus with having been established in the March 28 from 7 to 9 p.m. up to 90 voices and a smallCity since 2000.

Gittins founded First Friday er chamber group known as Falls Church Arts, founded in 2001, and the monthly event, Echo. Operating out of the Falls in 2004, is currently partner- held on the first Friday of every Church Presbyterian, it offers ing with Creative Cauldron for month beginning around 6 p.m. youth scholarships and a weeka year-long series of cultural at various downtown Falls long summer youth festival. Its events called “The DaVinci Church locations, has attracted next major concert is a perforPassport.” It is preparing its participation from more and mance of Haydn’s “Creation” Countdown#7 032008.pdf 12/27/07 12:18:02 PMon June 27 at the NOVA annual all-member art show and more artists and businesses. sale, with an opening reception Choralis was founded in Alexandria-based Schlesinger at the Don Beyer Volvo show- 2000 and includes two choral Auditorium.

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Former Vice Mayor Sam Mabry announced this week that despite qualifying for the City of Falls Church’s May 6 City Council election ballot, he will not run for a third term after all.

Mabry said he intends to devote his efforts, instead, to passing the referendum that will be on the May 6 ballot restricting residential development in the City’s commercially-zoned corridors. He expressed strong disapproval to what he characterized as an unsuccessful attempt by City officials to keep the referendum off the ballot, referring to a court petition for a delay that City Attorney Roy Thorpe has claimed was done solely in the interest of achieving legal clarity.

The surprise development reduces the field to seven candidates seeking to fill three open seats on the Council. Mayor Robin Gardner and Vice Mayor Lindy Hockenberry lead that field as incumbents seeking reelection, each to third terms.

Mabry was first elected to the Council in 1996, and after losing in 2000, ran again and won in 2002. He did not seek re-election in 2006.

He was considered the strongest in the field of non-incumbents that is now composed of Nader Baroukh, Ed Hillegas, Margaret Housen, Patrice Lepczyzk and Lawrence Webb.

In a statement e-mailed Tuesday morning, Mabry explained, “Why I decided against a Council run at this time,” stating, “After witnessing the City Attorney, a Council member and the Mayor’s husband together in court at one table, standing against the citizen’s right to petition for a vote, with arguments the Court found without merit, on what has been a five year massive conversion of commercially zoned property for condo and rental use, the choice was easy…defend and promote the May 6 referen-

dum to protect the schools and our small city with all possible resources.”

Meanwhile, the board of directors of the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce became the first organization to go on record opposing the referendum, which would bind the City to a fixed limit of 40% residential, and minimum of 60% commercial, on any new project.

The board voted to approve a resolution affirming mixed use, and stating that “the referendum question on the May 2008 ballot in the City of Falls Church would deter continued market driven mixed-use by forcing development to meet restrictive guidelines.”

The Chamber’s resolution also committed the organization to “develop a mixed-use coalition to support the maintaining of the mixed-use approval process as it currently exists” in Falls Church.

The resolution that will appear on the May 6 ballot is virtually identical to one that was soundly defeated by voters in November 2004. The margin of defeat was taken as a “vote of confidence” for the City’s leadership at the time, and a signal to the wider development community of the City’s openness to new mixed-use development.

As a result, the Atlantic Realty Company came forward with a $317 million City Center redevelopment plan that won final approval from the City Council in a unanimous vote last month.

That project is expected to bring almost $3 million in annual tax revenues to the City, and the impact of earlier mixed-use projects, both those completed and those under construction, have eased the pressure on the City’s residential property owners for a steep hike in their taxes during the present budget deliberations.

One of the seven current members of the Falls Church City Council, David Snyder, is on record supporting the referendum.

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Editor, Elections! US vs. THEM! We are for (vague slogans #1 & #2)! We have to stick together against Them! This isn’t about who’s In and who’s Out: this is about being loyal to our friends. We have to help.

Let’s get to work. (.. sigh) The substance is, as always: How to afford our great schools while keeping taxes down? Our collective answer, after years of thought and politicking, is new commercial development – to compete with Tysons (and now the Internet, too).

The professional design firm we hired advised us build a Great Place: the “how” was to bait our “commercial hook” with a juicy “residential worm.”

So we did.

And what did we get? Four times? Much new residential –

March 20 - 26, 2008

which inevitably brings more schoolchildren – but little new commercial: twice over a financial risk.

Where’s the beef? Well, I was there, and what happened is that our elected leaders (me included) waited passively for developers’ proposals.

We didn’t aggressively pursue what the citizens asked for, and the Design professionals said the key was – a Great Place. So four times we got a not-great-place with non-architecture.

So this time, this political volunteer is from Missouri: Show Me, candidates, what you are doing NOW to get what the citizens want and the professionals advise: a Great Place.

Enough sitting passively.

Enough vague slogans. Enough incumbents’ biiig credibility gap.

Fellow political volunteers: be from Missouri. Say “Show Me”, and ask “Where’s the beef?” before leaping to help – even though they are our friends and neighbors. You know me from local politics: you know I’m such a political “sweetie” that I have to stay out of the rain (sugar melts). Go thou and do likewise – until candidates show us the beef.

Ron Parson Falls Church

Editor, As we approach the May 6 city council elections, the Citizens for a Better Community and the candidates they have endorsed for city council would like you to believe a lie.

Both the Mayor and the Vice-Mayor are running for reelection on the proposition that they have executed strong fiscal oversight of the city budget, and as result; despite the down-turn in real estate values, only need to raise the property tax rate by three cents to $1.04 per $100 of assessed value. That is a three cent increase on what was already the highest tax rate of any Northern Virginia jurisdiction.

And, this “meager” three cent increase comes despite the fact that city revenues are getting a pop from the proffers developers have paid to turn Falls Church into the new Ballston replete with apartments and condos, and despite the fact that city revenues have increased from $39 million to over $70 million since 2002.

I guess spending every penny of an almost 80% increase in city revenues over five years and having to depend on shortsighted development and a tax increase to keep the city “fiscally solvent,” might be good government; but wouldn’t I be foolish to believe such a thing?

Fortunately, there are eight city council candidates this year.

Aaron Taliaferro Falls Church

Editor, I am really shocked at the way Hillary Clinton has attacked Obama, also Bill.

I was for her but now have completely changed my mind.

Who wants a back-biter and slander monger for president?

Bad enough to have two in one family collecting lifetime benefits from our taxed-to-death citizens.

Why did Bill seal Hillary’s records when he was president, if she didn’t have something to hide? He knew she would run for president one day and sealed them. I and my family and friends believe that no one should run for president of our country unless they have served in the military to know from personal experience what our soldiers face every day.

Something is wrong with our morals. It’s time for the Clintons to get out of our faces.

Jo Stevens Falls Church

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W. Broad Repaving Efforts to Re-Start Road construction, including milling and paving, will commence today through March 28, closing one lane in each direction in the 400 block of W. Broad St. (Rt. 7) between the hours of 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., Falls Church officials reported today. Access to businesses and residences and left turns will be limited for short periods (approximately an hour) while asphalt is being laid and cooled.

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Running for the Democratic nomination for Congress in the 11th District, Doug Denneny announced he’s received the endorsement of Rep. Phil Hare (Ill.-17), a strong advocate of veterans rights. Denneny, a Gulf War veteran, received the endorsement of VetPac and VoteVets. Denneny is running against Gerry Connolly, chair of the Fairfax Board of Supervisors, former U.S. Rep. Leslie Byrne and Lori Alexander. In another development this week, all four candidates have been invited to appear at a spring brunch hosted by the Virginia Partisans Gay and Lesbian Democratic Club on Sunday, May 4.

Sen. Webb Comments on Iraq War Milestone On the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq yesterday, Sen. James Webb (D-Va.) issued a statement that included the following: “The invasion and occupation of Iraq began five years ago today in the absence of a clearly articulated strategy that should have defined our national objectives, as well as the circumstances that would bring about an end point to our military presence in that country. Five years later, the American people are still waiting for the kind of political and diplomatic leadership that will end the occupation, stabilize the region and allow our country to focus on other, vital strategic challenges around the world.�

Besen Slated for Mar. 30 Local PFLAG Event Wayne Besen, author of two acclaimed books, whose column, “Anything But Straight� appears exclusively in the Falls Church News-Press, will appear at a forum sponsored by the regional Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) on Sunday, March 30, at 2 p.m. at Falls Church’s Temple Rodef Shalom, 2100 Westmoreland St. The event is free and open to the public. Besen was named one of Advocate magazine’s “People of the Year� for his work as the founding executive director of Truth Wins Out, dedicated to unmasking the “ex-gay myth.�

Hicks Named Falls Church Engineering Chief William Hicks, P.E., was named this week the City of Falls Church’s new Engineering and Construction Division Director, effective this Monday. He was formerly the senior water resources engineer at the Northern Virginia Regional Commission, and had previously been watershed program administrator for the City of Alexandria. In his new post, he will oversee engineering services, building permit processing, storm and watershed management, and environmental program planning and administration, including recycling.

NOVAM Names New Executive Director The Falls Church-based Northern Virginia AIDS Ministry (NOVAM) announced the appointment of Carol G. Jameson as its new executive director. Ms. Jameson most recently serviced as vice president of supportive family services for the regional non-profit Northern Virginia Family Services, and was there 14 years. Prior to that she worked for the Whitman-Walker Clinic and Inova Juniper Program, two regional programs serving individuals with AIDS. Affordable Housing Seminar Slated April 3 “Putting a Falls Church Face on Affordable Housing� is the title of a “community information exchange� hosted by the Falls Church Housing Corporation and Homestretch Thursday, April 3 at 7 p.m. in the fellowship hall of the Falls Church Presbyterian Church. With an introduction by Falls Church Mayor Robin Gardner, the keynote address will be delivered by Melissa Bondi, who serves as housing director for the Smarter Growth Coalition and Arlington County Housing Commissioner.

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What’s the most underdiscussed issue of this presidential campaign?

Housing. Housing prices are off about 10 percent from their peak, and experts expect them to drop another 20 percent or so. Without policy changes, several million households will default on their mortgages over the next few years.

Roughly 14 million homeowners will owe more than their houses are worth.

Uncertainty about mortgage-backed securities will continue to whack at the foundations of the banking system.

Who’s to blame?

Who’s not to blame? The mortgage brokers were out of control. Regulators were asleep.

Homebuyers thought they were entitled to Corian counters and a two-story great room. Everybody from Norwegian town elders to financial geniuses decided that house prices would always go up. This was an episode of mass idiocy.

Why should the government do anything?

Shouldn’t people be held responsible for their stupidity and greed?

Our economic system is based on the idea that people take responsibility for their own decisions.

It would be ruinous if people felt free to take horrendous risks knowing that the government would bail them out if those decisions didn’t pan out.

Nonetheless, individual responsibility is not absolute. As behavioral economists demonstrate every day, human beings are powerfully and unconsciously influenced by the ideas and assumptions that float around in the social ether. If the financial elites misprice risk and offer delicious loans to consumers, then many of those consumers will end up grabbing the loans, the just and the unjust alike. We should at least see if there’s a way we can ease the pain those people are bound to suffer.

Besides, in case you haven’t been watching the Fed lately, we’re in the midst of a potentially disastrous financial crisis. People worry about moral hazard issues in normal times. But in times like these, they put those concerns on the back burner.

But shouldn’t the market be allowed to work? If housing prices are bound to fall anyway, we might as well get them down to their natural level as quickly as possible.

That’s the lesson of the Japanese financial crisis.

People aren’t going to buy houses if it seems that

prices will continue their gradual fall for another several years. If people who made bad decisions are allowed to stay in homes they can’t afford, then prudent people who made good decisions will lose opportunities to move up to nicer places.

All that’s true, but bubbles can move both ways.

Just as housing can get overpriced during a frenzy, it can get under-priced during a panic. It makes sense to try to find some circuit breakers so the housing market doesn’t totally collapse. Moreover, there are social costs to mass foreclosures. People build up social capital in their neighborhoods, which they lose if forced to move out.

Well, if the government is going to intervene more in the housing market, what principles should we use to organize the response?

First, no bailout for the true greedheads: the speculators, the flippers, the people who bought second homes they couldn’t afford. Help only those who can stay in their homes with a modest amount of aid. Don’t succumb to lenders who want the government to buy up their bad paper. On the other hand, as Douglas Elmendorf of the Brookings Institution points out, it would be self-defeating to crack down on the so-called irresponsible lenders so harshly that you skew their incentives to lend in the future.

So what policy ideas are out there?

None are wholly satisfactory. On the Democratic side, Barack Obama and Chris Dodd are proposing federally backed loan guarantees. People in danger of defaulting could get new mortgages that reflected the new, lower value of their homes. Lenders would write off some value, but it would be better than nothing.

There are significant administrative problems with this idea, of which the sponsors are fully aware. How would you make sure only the worthy qualified for the guarantees? In a world of securitized mortgages, how do you track down the actual owners of the debt to renegotiate? Nonetheless, they think the plan would get us through the crisis.

John McCain’s staffers are acutely aware of the problem, but are having trouble coming up with a response they think would work. One idea is to use the low-income housing tax credit to subsidize those who would otherwise default. The idea is sensible, but if the housing crisis provokes a campaign bidding war, the Democratic plans are bigger.

So I guess we’re all bailout artists now?

We do seem to have reached some Bernankeera consensus. In normal times, the free market works well. But in a crisis like this one, few are willing to sit back and let the market find its own equilibrium.

WASHINGTON -- A salute is due Adm. William Fallon, who tried to prevent a wider war with Iran.

After serving one year as commander of U.S. Central Command, Fallon has resigned, saying he was quitting because his differences with official U.S. policy had become a “distraction.”

But there is a widespread perception that he was pushed out by the neo-conservatives among President Bush’s aides, especially Vice President Dick Cheney, because of Fallon’s reluctance to go along with the administration’s hawkish moves toward Iran.

Cheney, who took five consecutive draft deferments to stay out of the Vietnam War, does not mind keeping the U.S. in the Iraqi quagmire he helped create. The same goes for Sen. John

McCain, R-Ariz., the presumptive GOP presidential candidate, who said that leaving Iraq is not a U.S. option.

McCain once said the U.S. could stay in Iraq for 100 years.

As head of Centcom, Fallon’s command ran from the Mediterranean to South Asia and included Iraq, where he ran afoul of Army Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander there.

Petraeus would maintain the 130,000 presurge U.S. troop-level in Iraq, probably till the end of the Bush presidency. Fallon was concerned that keeping so many troops in Iraq could leave the U.S. unprepared for any new crises that might occur elsewhere.

Petraeus is scheduled to report on the war in Iraq to Bush in early April and, in view of the lessened violence there, is expected to present his usual upbeat assessment of how things are going. Petraeus plays ball and gives the presiContinued on Page 38

The unthinkable is about to become the inevitable.

Last week, Robert Rubin, the former Treasury secretary, and John Lipsky, a top official at the International Monetary Fund, both suggested that public funds might be needed to rescue the U.S. financial system. Lipsky insisted that he wasn’t talking about a bailout. But he was.

It’s true that Henry Paulson, the current Treasury secretary, still says that any proposal to use taxpayers’ money to help resolve the crisis is a “nonstarter.” But that’s about as credible as all of his previous pronouncements on the financial situation.

So here’s the question we really should be asking: When the feds do bail out the financial system, what will they do to ensure that they aren’t also bailing out the people who got us into this mess?

Let’s talk about why a bailout is inevitable.

Between 2002 and 2007, false beliefs in the private sector -- the belief that home prices only go up, that financial innovation had made risk go away, that a triple-A rating really meant that an investment was safe -- led to an epidemic of bad lending.

Meanwhile, false beliefs in the political arena -- the belief of Alan Greenspan and his friends in the Bush administration that the market is always right and regulation always a bad thing -- led Washington to ignore the warning signs.

By the way, Greenspan is still at it: accepting no blame, he continues to insist that “market flexibility and open competition” are the “most reliable safeguards against cumulative economic failure.”

The result of all that bad lending was an unholy financial mess that will cause trillions of dollars in losses. A large chunk of these losses will fall on financial institutions: commercial banks, investment banks, hedge funds and so on.

Many people say that the government should let the chips fall where they may -- that those who made bad loans should simply be left to suffer the consequences. But it’s not going to happen. When push comes to shove, financial officials -- rightly -- aren’t willing to run the risk that losses on bad loans will cripple the financial system and take the real economy down with it.

Consider what happened last Friday, when the Federal Reserve rushed to the aid of Bear Stearns.

Nobody expects an investment bank to be a charitable institution, but Bear has a particularly nasty reputation. As Gretchen Morgenson of The New York Times reminds us, Bear “has often operated in the gray areas of Wall Street and with an aggressive, brass-knuckles approach.”

Bear was a major promoter of the most questionable subprime lenders. It lured customers into two of its own hedge funds that were among the first to go bust in the current crisis.

And it’s a bad financial citizen: the last time the Fed tried to contain a financial crisis, after the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management in 1998, Bear refused to participate in the rescue operation.

Bear, in other words, deserved to be allowed to fail -- both on the merits and to teach Wall Street not to expect someone else to clean up its messes.

But the Fed rode to Bear’s rescue anyway, fearing that the collapse of a major investment bank would cause panic in the markets and wreak havoc with the wider economy. Fed officials knew they were doing a bad thing, but believed the alternative worse.

As Bear goes, so will go the rest of the financial system. And if history is any guide, the coming taxpayer-financed bailout will end up costing a lot of money.

The U.S. savings and loan crisis of the 1980s ended up costing taxpayers 3.2 percent of GDP, the equivalent of $450 billion today.

Some estimates put the fiscal cost of Japan’s post-bubble cleanup at more than 20 percent of GDP -- the equivalent of $3 trillion for the United States.

If these numbers shock you, they should. But the big bailout is coming. The only question is how well it will be managed.

As I said, the important thing is to bail out the system, not the people who got us into this mess. That means cleaning out the shareholders in failed institutions, making bondholders take a haircut, and canceling the stock options of executives who got rich playing heads I win, tails you lose.

According to late reports on Sunday, JPMorgan Chase will buy Bear for a pittance. That’s an OK resolution for this case -- but not a model for the much bigger bailout to come. Looking ahead, we probably need something similar to the Resolution Trust Corp., which took over bankrupt savings and loan institutions and sold off their assets to reimburse taxpayers.

And we need it quickly: things are falling apart as you read this.

March 20 - 26, 2008

At first blush, Sen. Barack Obama’s speech delivered Tuesday, in response to the growing controversy of his relationship to his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, seemed eloquent, moving and even epochal.

Indeed, it was a balm to the insensitive and hostile reaction that characterized Obama’s initial reaction to the video clips from Wright’s sermons that began firing up the Internet last week. Obama’s first impulse was to denounce the sermons and to jettison Wright from his campaign, betraying a friendship that was decades old.

Of course, Obama’s change of heart was not solely due to introspection. He got a very loud earful from Afro-American pastors and other leaders for his initial handling of the matter, helping to convince him he’d better correct the impression he’d created.

So his speech was a carefully crafted attempt to embrace his old pastor friend, to appreciate, but not endorse, his fiery rhetoric, and at the same time say that the Obama campaign embodies the effort to move beyond the old days of racial divide in America.

No question about it, Obama is a compelling speaker, and comes across as a healing and hopeful influence on at least some of the superficial evidences of division in our land. The world is a better place for Obama being in it, and whether as president, or in any other capacity, he hopefully will play a major role for decades to come.

There is a solid grounding in personal conviction that animates much of what he stands for.

But stepping down from the euphoria generated by his speech Tuesday, it is important not to lose sight of the fact that it was delivered for political “damage control” purposes, with the aim of weathering a serious challenge to the viability of his presidential aspirations.

It will be left for history to judge whether, on that level, his speech achieved that goal. I have commented before on the huge difference between leading a civil rights movement, and running for president of the U.S. To put it in religious terms, one role is prophetic, the other is pastoral. Most simply, in a president, the American people want someone who will make it easy for them to sleep at night.

The Rev. Jeremiah Wright is not just any old preacher from Chicago. In fact, he for years has been considered tantamount to a rock star in the 2.2-million member United Church of Christ denomination, frequently asked to speak at large denominational gatherings to inspire the whole wider church body. He has been held up for years as a glowing example in the progressive-minded U.C.C. of how to reinvigorate the mainstream church by focusing passionately on social justice issues. (Among other things, the U.C.C. officially endorses gay marriage).

Wright’s preaching style connects with the pain he encounters in his congregation, and on the streets around his church. You can hear that pain in his voice, in heartfelt sermons that tell his flock that God embraces their frustration and anger at the cultural realities that have kept them in poverty and despair.

Obama soundly denounced some of Wright’s sermon content, but what if Wright’s declaration, “Some say God bless America, I say God damn America,” had been delivered in the days of the Hurricane Katrina fiasco? How many people would have agreed wholeheartedly with him then?

After Hurricane Katrina, America saw the Ninth Ward for the first time, the nation’s underclass, routinely kept out of the public eye, rendered helpless by the criminal negligence of its government.

The “racial divide” is not fiction, as comparisons of wage, unemployment and prison population numbers show.

But Obama sought to explain the Rev. Wright by generally relegating grounds for the “racial divide” to the past. In a particularly outrageous claim, he sought to equate Afro-American anger against racial prejudice with the racist sentiments of his white grandmother.

If it had been me, instead of treating the Rev. Wright like a crazy old uncle, I would have said his passion for social justice, and especially the pain in his words, have legitimacy, regrettably so, and are exactly the reason I am running for president. His words are a clarion call for achieving the kind of just nation the Obama candidacy seeks.

It’s good to have Obama around, but it’s even more important to have the Rev. Wrights of the world around, to let us never forget that prejudice and hatred are far from dead, and moreover, that anger expressed against them must not be equated with them.  Nicholas Benton may be emailed at nfbenton@fcnp.com

Page 11

PHILADELPHIA -- In many ways, Barack Obama’s speech on race was momentous and edifying.

You could tell it was personal, that he had worked hard on it, all weekend and into the wee hours Tuesday. Overriding aides who objected to putting race center stage, he addressed a painful, difficult subject straightforwardly with a subtlety and decency rare in American politics.

Certainly, Obama was exercising sophisticated damage-control on his problem with Jeremiad Wright. But he did not pander as Mitt Romney did with his very challenging speech about Mormonism, or market-test his own convictions, as most politicians do.

Unlike what the Clintons did to Lani Guinier, responding to her radical racial ideas by throwing her under the bus, Obama went to great pains to honor the human dimension of his relationship with his politically threatening “old uncle,” as he calls him.

Displaying his multi-hued, crazy-quilted DNA, he talked about cringing when he heard the white grandmother who raised him use racial stereotypes and confess her fear of passing black men on the street.

He tried to shine a light on that clannish place where grudges and grievances flourish. After racing from race for a year, he plowed in and took a stab at showing blacks what white resentment felt like and whites what black resentment felt like.

(He was spot-on about my tribe of workingclass Irish, the ones who have helped break his winning streak in New Hampshire and Ohio, and may do so in Pennsylvania.)

He rightly struck back at right-wing hysteriamongers. “Talk-show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism,” he said, “while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.”

Obama’s warning about race in America was redolent of Eugene O’Neill’s observation about Ireland: “There is no present or future,” O’Neill said, “only the past happening over and over again.”

His speech was pitched to superdelegates queasy about his spiritual guide’s Malcolm Xism, the virulent racial pride, the separatism, the deep suspicion of America and the white man -- the very things that Obama’s “post-racial” identity was supposed to have transcended.

The candidate may have staunched the bleeding, but he did not heal the wounds. His naive

and willful refusal to come to terms earlier with the Rev. Wright’s anti-American, antiwhite and pro-Farrakhan sentiments -- echoing his naive and willful refusal to come to terms earlier with the ramifications of his friendship with sleazy fundraiser Tony Rezko -- will not be forgotten because of one unforgettable speech.

But then, the most intriguing thing about the speech in the National Constitution Center here, near the statues of the founding fathers who signed the document declaring that “all men are created equal,” was not even the part about black and white. It was the new color that Obama unexpectedly wore: gray.

The black and white plaguing the Obama camp was not only about skin color. Facing up to his dubious behavior toward his explosive friends, he had his first rude introduction in his political career to ambivalence, ambiguity and complexity.

Obama did not surrender his pedestal willingly.

But he was finally confronted by a problem that neither his charm nor his grandiosity would solve.

He now admits that he had heard the Rev. Wright make “controversial” remarks in church, and that he had a “lapse of judgment” when he let the much-investigated Rezko curry favor by buying the plot of land next to his and selling a slice back so Obama could have a bigger yard.

Newly alert to the perils of not seeming patriotic enough, he ended a speech in Pennsylvania the other morning with “God bless America!”

A little disenchantment with Obama could turn out to be a good thing. Too much idealism can blind a leader to reality as surely as too much ideology can.

Up until now, Obama and his worshipers have set it up so that he must be so admirable and ideal and perfect and everything we’ve ever wanted that any kind of blemish -- even a parking ticket -- was regarded as a major failing.

With the Clintons, we expect them to be cheesy on ethics, so no one is ever surprised when they are.

But Saint Obama played the politics of character to an absurd extent. For 14 months, his argument for leading the world has been himself -- his exquisitely globalized self.

He should be congratulated on the disappearance of the pedestal. Leaders don’t need to be messiahs.

Gray is a welcome relief from black and white.

Page 12

It had been a devastating week for Barack Obama. The rationale for his entire campaign was hope and reconciliation. Yet, for days, his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, was shown on television delivering rabid and racially insensitive sermons denouncing America. Rightfully sensing his candidacy may be history if he did not respond, Obama answered with a spine-tingling, tear-evoking historical speech that was so remarkable, it drew comparisons to addresses made by Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. It was visionary, daring, and bold – evoking a flood of praise and the showering of lofty “M-words.”

Magnificent – moving – majestic – magical – mesmerizing – mellifluous - monumental.

Above all, it was a sincere and honest discussion that avoided all the “P-words” that have defined political discourse on race since the Civil War. Patronizing – pandering – politically correct – polarizing Indeed, it was so inspiring that Obama supplanted Oprah as the “Big O” on his campaign. The speech was as timeless as it was timely and will be talked about for generations. In essence, Obama brilliantly gave people – of all races - permission to justify their grievances and grudges – while taking them by the hand and showing them an enlightened way forward.

He also deftly handled the ranting reverend problem with a strategy of distancing without disowning. In doing so, Obama was credited for showing the two were not ideological Siamese twins, while scoring points for personal loyalty. It was a feat so astonishing that the only other politician who could have pulled it off – maybe – was Bill Clinton in his prime.

The address was also politically astute.

For example, Obama reassured Jewish voters concerned with Rev. Wright’s comments by saying that, Israel was a “stalwart” ally and the problems in the Middle East emanated from, “the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam.”

When he said that Rev. Wright, “helped introduce me to my Christian faith,” Obama was trenchantly using the example as an opportunity to tell voters – yet, again - that he was not a Muslim, as right wing opponents have repeatedly suggested.

Obama also boosted his candidacy by hitting patriotic themes – such as when he said, “In no other country on earth is my story even possible.” He referred to the “decency and generosity of the American people,” and said his convictions were rooted in “faith in God and my faith in the American people.”

Perhaps most clever, was the way Obama forthrightly explained his connection and affection for Rev. Wright by comparing him to an old uncle and using the phrase, “For the men and women of Reverend Wright’s generation.” Clearly, Wright was a substitute for John McCain and the message was clear: McCain is stuck in the past and Obama represents the voice of a new generation that wants to move beyond yesterday’s sins.”

All politicians – even Obama – need bogeymen, real or imagined. Brilliantly, Obama joined people of all races together in the fight against the “real culprits of the middle class squeeze – corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by special interests economic policies that favor the few over the many.”

This speech was particularly tantalizing for gay and lesbian people because if a president wants to pass pro-gay legislation, he or she will have to effectively articulate why it is a moral imperative. This speech allowed us to envision President Obama assuaging Christian conservatives by telling them that their work to protect families is honest and sincere. However, their attempts to use discrimination as a tool to strengthen traditional families are harmful and misguided. By forthrightly addressing an explosive issue, such as race, it was a guide to how Obama might build support for GLBT issues.

While Obama did not solve the racial divide in America or the problem of his long association with Rev. Wright in one speech, he did a better job than anyone else could have under the circumstances. One can’t help but marvel at the skills of this political Houdini, who turned a crisis into a crowning achievement. It is too soon to plaster his face on Mt. Rushmore, but this performance guarantees more people will rush to Obama’s revived campaign.

Wayne Besen is a columnist and author of the book, “Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals and Lies Behind the Ex-Gay Myth.” 

March 20 - 26, 2008

This week marks the beginning of the Iraq war’s sixth year. In that time, nearly 4,000 American soldiers have given their lives in the line of fire, 30,000 have been injured, and we’ve spent over $520 billion and counting.

For this great sacrifice we have little to show for it. The military surge that began over a year ago has contributed to the dampening of violence in Baghdad. However, this has been as much a result of Shiite groups having already run the once majority Sunni out of town.

The country is now divided in a sectarian fashion that, while producing short term security gains, makes addressing long term issues of how the country will be able to move forward just as difficult as before.

The Iraqi Parliament, despite receiving the security buffer the Bush Administration stated was necessary for democracy to flourish, has failed to deliver on virtually any of the political goals required to govern the country in peace without the need for foreign soldiers keeping the competing sectarian militias at bay. Just this week, another major boycott by influential Sunni leaders has scuttled reconciliation discussions yet again.

The sacrifice our soldiers in Iraq have made should at the least be matched by an Iraqi determination to make their own country whole by proceeding with the political deci-

sion-making necessary for a democratic state. We’ve given five years for this process to play out. Yet in that time, for every success our brave men and women have achieved, the Iraqis have countered with impasse and gridlock.

The American people support and our national security interests demand a new direction in Iraq – a war that has cost our nation dearly, degraded our military readiness, diverted resources from the global fight against terrorism, and harmed our reputation in the world.

Congressional Democrats and our party’s standardbearers, Senators Clinton and Obama, are calling for a responsible, phased redeploy-

ment of our troops out of Iraq.

President Bush and his allies stand in the way of our efforts to bring the troops home, but I am confident that a majority of the American people want a change in Iraq and will voice that support this November.

With new leadership in the White House, a way home can be found.

While our focus on Iraq enters its sixth year, we must also not forget about the conflict that continues in Afghanistan, and the fact that Osama bin Laden is still atlarge.

Next week, I will be joining a congressional delegation trip to the region, to examine both the Afghan and Pakistani security situations, in part to determine what level of funding our efforts to stop the Taliban from regaining a foothold in the region require. While Iraq gets most of the media attention these days, these two nations are probably an even more significant frontline in the battle against radical Islamic terrorism.

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March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 13

News of Greater Falls Church

Richmond Report

There’s a new grocery store in unteers are providing free tax help to town, and it’s gorgeous! The longresidents until April 15 at the Mason awaited Super Giant grocery store District Governmental Center, 6507 in Loehmann’s Plaza opened last Columbia Pike in Annandale. WalkThursday, and seems to be an instant in service is available on Mondays success. The bright and airy buildand Thursdays, 1-8 p.m.; Tuesdays, ing contains many “green” features Wednesdays, and Fridays, 9:30 a.m. that make it environmentally friendly, – 1 p.m.; and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 1 including a white membrane roof that p.m. All returns are filed electronicalreflects the sun’s rays and skylights that ly. Items to bring include: last year’s Mason District are engineered to capture sunlight and tax return, a photo ID, and your Social Supervisor; adjust interior lighting accordingly.

Security card. For more information Fairfax County After the ceremonial ribbon-cut- Board of Supervisors about AARP Tax-Aide, visit www. ting, I accompanied Jamie Miller, public aarp.org/taxaide, or call 1-888-227affairs manager for the Stop and Shop Supermarket 7669. This is a very popular free program, so be Company LLC which owns Giant, on a tour of the sure to allow yourself waiting time. new store. New features include a hardcover book The Annandale Christian Community for Action and DVD section and a com-puter screen in the deli (ACCA) serves families in need throughout the department where you can enter your order, continue Bailey’s Crossroads, Seven Corners, and Annandale shopping, and come back later to pick it up. No more areas. In addition to providing a child care center, waiting in line! The store also sports a staffed seafood a food pantry, and emergency rental assistance, counter, a pharmacy, and a Starbucks, which was ACCA volunteers also collect and deliver furniture doing a lively business when I was there. to families in need. Items needed include single, Long-time neighbors of the new Giant related double, and queen-size mattresses and box springs that the shopping center has come full circle. in good condition (no sofa sleepers), chests of When Loehmann’s was first built, I was told, drawers, dressers, kitchen or dining room tables and there was a Kroger store on the site for a short chairs. Please contact ACCA at 703/256-9513 to time. Consumer’s Supermarket, owned by the schedule a pick up of your gently used furniture.

Greenbelt Cooperative which also owned the The Mason District Spring Town Meeting SCAN furniture store, later served the com- will be held this Tuesday, March 25, beginmunity in that space. After Consumer’s left, the ning at 7 p.m. at the Lecture Hall of the new space was renovated into smaller retail units and, Glasgow Middle School, 4101 Fairfax Parkway, finally, torn down to make way for the new Super Alexandria. County Executive Tony Griffin will Giant. The Loehmann’s Giant is open Monday discuss his proposed county budget for FY 2009, through Saturday from 6 a.m. until 11 p.m., and and answer questions. See you Tuesday! on Sundays from 6 a.m. until 10 p.m.

Welcome to a new business in Mason District!  Supervisor Penny Gross may be emailed at Have you filed your taxes yet? AARP vol- mason@fairfaxcounty.gov

It’s good to be last fall have been home again now continued forward that the 2008 reguinto the next bienlar Session has connium, along with cluded, just a few some additional days over the 60across-the-board day limit. reductions for state In a time of agencies and a diminishing revsmall reduction in

By Mary enues, the General local aid.

Assembly was able Margaret Whipple Further, many to adopt a budget capital projects that that meets many would have been needs. K-12 educapaid for in cash if tion was protected; revenues had come funds were included in as originally forefor the biennial rebenchmark- cast will now be part of a bond ing of public education costs, package. A number of savings an updating of the state’s share strategies have been employed of the Standards of Quality. to further reduce the reliance on Teachers will receive a 2% sal- General Fund revenues. ary increase in July, 2009. In Now that the Democrats addition there will be a mod- have a majority in the Senate, est increase in the number of I was appointed to the Senate at-risk four-year-olds who will Finance Committee. I chair one be enrolled in preschool. of its subcommittees - Economic For higher education, there Development and Natural is some additional funding for Resources – and serve on two operating expenses of colleges others: Health and Human and universities, a 2% increase Services; and Transportation. I in faculty salaries each year, am gaining much more detailed and nearly $33 million for knowledge of the agencies and research over the biennium. their budgets.

Mental health was a top priOne of our major tasks was ority this year, especially after to agree on a revenue forecast. the tragic event at Virginia The Senate used the forecast Tech. Along with comprehen- presented by the Governor. sive legislation to reform the His estimate was based on the system in a number of ways, recommendations from the the budget included an addi- GACRE (Governor’s Advisory tional $42 million to improve Council on Revenue Estimates) emergency mental health ser- though he took the lower of the vices. estimates they provided.

The budget includes addiSome Senate Republicans tional funding for foster care believed the revenue estiand adoption services; fund- mate should be even lower, ing for health care “safety although there was never a net” activities including com- reason given except that they munity health centers and free felt it was too optimistic. Of clinics; and provides $41.6 course, they may be right, but million for 600 new mental the Senate can only operate retardation slots. on objective evidence.

In the natural resources I was disappointed that 14 area, $20 million was provided Senate Republicans, including for agricultural best manage- the leadership, used that as a ment practices that will reduce reason to vote against the budnon-point sources pollution. get even though all members That’s the good news. of the House and 26 Senators The bad news is that these voted for the budget as it is our improvements could only be responsibility to do. financed by making cuts in other areas.  Senator Mary Margaret The 5% cuts the Governor Whipple may be emailed at made in most agency budgets district31@sov.state.va.us

Our Man in Arlington It has been a remarkable week culturally for the Bartons, and another reason why Arlington is such a great place to live.

We had a string of cultural events that we had to attend ichard and a bunch committee Barton of meetings, too.

Retired life can be remarkably busy!

The first was Signature’s production of Kander and Ebb’s “Kiss of the Spiderwoman” on Thursday night.

It was a spectacular production. The remarkable set is the first sign of what is to come.

A prison in an unnamed South American country consists of stacks of cages, one on top of another. They are the dark cells of the inmates and the offices of their guards and torturers. The center of the stage is the cell of Molina (Hunter Foster), a gay man in jail for having sex with an underaged boy and Valentin (Will Chase), a political prisoner from whom his captors expect Molina to get some vital information in return for his release.

Molina is a major movie

R

buff, and fills the bleak hours telling Valentin the tales of great movies, starring the alluring Spider Woman (Natascia Diaz). The music and the energetic dancing drive the show to its tragic, but emotionally satisfying, ending.

Friday, we went to see the new Arena Stage production of “Death of a Salesman,” another upbeat play! Arena is currently housed in a former Crystal City movie theater while its theater complex in Southwest Washington is undergoing a major expansion.

The play belongs to Willy Loman, played well by Rick Foucheaux. But to me, the really tragic figure is his wife Linda (Nancy Robinette) who loves Willy while recognizing all of his weaknesses and delusions.

On Saturday afternoon, we trekked over to the Regal Theaters in Ballston Common to see a live Metropolitan Opera simulcast of “Peter Grimes,” Benjamin Britten’s dark opera about a fisherman who is driven to his death by suspicious and narrow-minded villagers who suspect that he has murdered

two boy apprentices. The chorus and the orchestra were magnificent, as were the stars.

And finally, Sunday evening we had a wonderful respite from the gloom and doom by going to the cabaret performance of the great cabaret singer Karen Akers, again at the Signature Theater. We sat in the black box theater at small round tables, sipping wine and munching quietly on hors d’ouevres marveling in one of the great cabaret singers of all time as she sang Kander and Ebb songs. It was mesmerizing.

Arena’s production is part of an Arthur Miller festival running for the next few months.

Signature’s production is part of a Kander and Ebb festival also running for the next few months. And the Metropolitan Opera’s live webcasts are shown periodically in some six hundred movie theaters all over the world. You can see them all, and you should, right here in Arlington. Isn’t that great?

Richard Barton may be emailed at rbarton@towervillas.com 

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Page 14

March 20 - 26, 2008

Local Student Earns Dean’s List at Eastman Daniel Robert Vozzolo, a resident of Falls Church and a freshman majoring in applied music (percussion) at the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester, has been named to the Dean’s List for academic achievement for the fall 2007 semester.

Vozzolo is a graduate of George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church.

Dean’s List at RoseHulman Johnathan Sullivan, a junior

at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and a Falls Church resident, has been named to the Dean’s List for the winter quarter. In order to be named to the Dean’s List students must earn at least a 3.3 grade point average. Sullivan is majoring in Mechanical Engineering.

GMHS Athletics Mulch Sale The George Mason High School Athletic Boosters are currently holding their 15th annual mulch sale. A 3 cu. ft. bag of mulch is $5, but for customers who order 25 bags or more, the price drops to $4.50.

Delivery is free within Falls Church City, with a delivery date of Saturday, April 5. The order deadline is March 31. An order form is available at www. fccps.org/gm/athletic-boosters/index.htm, and this order form should be mailed, including your address, phone number and e-mail along with a check payable to GMABA, to Linda Hamill at 1002 Poplar Dr., Falls Church. For more information, contact hamfam@cox.net.

Falls Church Resident Sails in the Netherlands 11-year-old Kendall Swenson from Falls Church

qualified to represent the United States in the 23rd International Optimist Easter Regatta in the Netherlands.

Nearly 300 of the world’s topranked sailors under the age of 16 will be gathering on Lake Braassemermeer for the Easter Regatta. Swenson left for the Netherlands on Friday, with the competition to begin Friday, March 21, going until Monday, March 24. More information and results of the competition are available at teamusaholland.googlepages.com.

Washington, will be recognized in a reception on Tuesday, March 25 between 6 – 7 p.m. in the Vola Lawson Lobby of City Hall (300 King St., Alexandria).

After the reception, Alexandria mayor William Euille and the City Council will make an official proclamation of appreciation for Ms. Harman and the Catalogue. Six nonprofits which serve the City of Alexandria residents organized the event and will be welcomed into the Catalogue for Philanthropy on Tuesday.

Nonprofit Leader Recognized in Alexandria

New FC Engineering and Construction Director

Barbara Harman, the founder of the Catalogue for Philanthropy: Greater

The City of Falls Church General Manager of Environmental Services

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Dr. Madeline Hidalgo Dental Health Q&A Dear Dr. Madeline,

Q: Should I replace missing teeth?

A:

Yes, you should replace missing teeth. In case of missing front teeth, the look of the person will change drastically and in most cases it also has a psychological impact. If you ignore missing back teeth, it could result in a number of problems. The missing tooth can cause neighboring teeth drift, over-eruption of opposing teeth, loss of tooth contacts, trauma to supporting structures of tooth, recession of gingival, etc. Moreover, the joint, which we use for opening and closing the mouth during speaking, swallowing & eating will also be affected if missing teeth are not replaced.

Dr. Madeline Hidalgo, Cosmetic & Family Dentistry An expert in all phases of modern dentistry, including the perfect smiles.

Send your questions to: Dr. Madeline Hidalgo 6521 Arlington Boulevard #112 Falls Church, VA 22042 • 703-237-9025 drhidalgo@mysmileydentist.com • www.mysmileydentist.com

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March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 15

Brenda Creel announced the appointment of William Hicks, P.E. as Falls Church’s new Engineering and Construction Division Director as of Monday, March 17. Hicks will oversee engineering services, building permit processing, storm and watershed management and environmental program planning and administration. Hicks served five years previously as the Senior Water Resources Engineer at the Northern Virginia Regional Commission.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University and is currently pursuing a Master of Environmental Management degree through Duke University.

Falls Church 2007 Business Awards Winners The City of Falls Church announced the 2007 Business Award honorees at a City Council meeting held on Monday, March 10. The City’s Business Awards Committee selected winners from 63 businesses and businesspeople selected by the public. Vantage Fitness won the award for Business of the Year, Clare & Don’s Beach Shack won for New Business of the Year, Design Frames won for Innovative Technology and Nicholas Benton, editor of the Falls Church News-Press, won the award for Business Person of the Year, among other winners. Congratulations goes out to all award winners.

Local Appointed as Assistant County Attorney Jason S. Hobbie, a resident of Falls Church, has been appointed as an Assistant County Attorney for Loudoun County. He graduated from George Mason High School in 1997, the University of Virginia in 2001 and the College of Law at William and Mary in 2006. Jason is the son of Young and Chuck Hobbie, also of Falls Church.

Local Resident wins NFHCA Award

Amanda Case, a sophomore who plays forward on the University of Rochester field hockey team, was one of 14 individual players on the team to win a National Field Hockey Coaches Association award.

The team was one of 83 teams in Division III with GPAs of 3.0 or higher. Case, a graduate of Langley High School, is currently majoring in biology, with a focus in evolutionary biology.

students earned a grade point average of 3.5. Included in this list were four Falls Church residents and four Arlington residents. Seniors Sabrina Askari and Larisa Mount, juniors Molly Rogers and Catherine Connor, Sophomores Megan

Nikken, a direct-sales wellness company known for its products combining science, nature and advanced technology, has awarded Falls Church resident Crystal Gisriel the Wellness Home Certification. Consultants who earn the Wellness Home Certification have learned what it takes to create a healthy environment that fits into an individual’s lifestyle. For more information, please contact Crystal Gisriel at 240-925-2840.

Washington College Releases Dean’s List Washington College has announced its Dean’s List for the fall 2007 semester, where a number of residents from Alexandria and Falls Church were recognized for their academic achievements. All of the following students achieved a grade point average of 3.4 or higher for the semester.

From Alexandria, sophomore Matthew P. Boucher, majoring in American Studies and sophomore Valerie M. Wexler both earned the distinction.

Falls Church resident Michelle D. Cook earned the distinction in her senior year, while she finishes up her major in human development.

University of Mary Washington Honors The University of Mary Washington recognized 721 students for the fall semester to the Dean’s List, meaning these

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March 20 - 26, 2008

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Falls Church Housing Corporation & Homestretch, Inc. and our civic supporters in the Falls Church community including

Citzens for a Better City, Falls Church Chamber of Commerce, League of Women Voters, Village Preservation and Improvement Society and Falls Church News Press are proud to present

COMMUNITY INFORMATION EXCHANGE: Putting a Falls Church Face on Affordable Housing

Thursday, April 3, 2008

7:00 - 8:30 PM

Falls Church Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall 225 East Broad Street (enter Hall from entrance facing Broad Street), Falls Church

Designed to help your opinions become better informed and specific to our own Falls Church community. Please come to learn more! â&#x20AC;˘ Introduction - Robin Gardner, Mayor, City of Falls Church â&#x20AC;˘ Keynote Address - Affordable Housing: A key Ingredient for New Urban Smart Growth Melissa Bondi, Housing Director, Smarter Growth Coalition, and Arlington County Housing Commissioner

â&#x20AC;˘ Truth and Fiction about Affordable Housing in Falls Church - Michelle Krocker, Executive Director, Norther Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance, Jeff Peterson, Village Preservation and Improvement Society

â&#x20AC;˘ The real Face of Homestretch Clients: Up Not Down - Christopher Fay, Excutive Director, Homestretch

â&#x20AC;˘ Falls Church Housing Losses and Needs - Dana Lewis, Senior Housing Specialist, City of Falls Church

â&#x20AC;˘ Local Schools: The Corollary Between Staff Retention and Lifestyle - Dan Gardner, President. Falls Church Education Foundation former City of Falls Church Mayor â&#x20AC;˘ What Matters to Business - Garrett Rambler Owner, Vantage Fitness

â&#x20AC;˘ Falls Church H.O.P.E. â&#x20AC;˘ Housing Opportunities Plan Engaged Carol Jackson, Excutive Director, Falls Church Housing Corporation

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Falls Church Pilates is hosting a ribbon cutting and grand opening celebration on Saturday, March 22, 2008. Philippine Ambassador Willy Gaa, Mayor Robin Gardner, Vice Mayor Lindy Hockenberry, Chamber Chair-Elect Ralph Perrino and other notables will participate in the noon ribbon cutting. The public is invited to drop by any time between noon and 3 p.m. for hors dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;oeuvres, champagne, door prizes, and discount coupons. The new Pilates and yoga studio and physical therapy clinic is located in The Byron located at 513 W. Broad Street, Suite 100 in Falls Church. Visit www.fallschurchpilates.com for more info. *** Bethany Ellis, Long & Foster Realtor and Point of View Eyewear are hosting the Falls Church Chamber of Commerceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s monthly networking mixer from 5:30 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 25, 2008. Refreshments and door prizes will be provided for this free event. Point of View is located at 701 W. Broad Street in Falls Church. *** The McLean Chamber of Commerceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Young Professionals group is inviting all area young professionals to enjoy free snacks, drink specials and to gather in the atrium at Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Malleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sports Pub on Thursday, March 27, 2008 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The atrium has reserved seating and two large screen TVs. McLean Young Professionals is planning a Nothing But Net Year for 2008 to offer members professional development, volunteer opportunities as well as other after-hours social networking events. Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Malleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s is in Tysons Corner inside the Crowne Plaza Hotel across from the Galleria. Register to attend on the McLean Chamber website, www.mcleanchamber.org. *** The Falls Church Housing Corporation and Homestretch, Inc. are hosting â&#x20AC;&#x153;Community Information Exchange: Putting a Falls Church Face on Affordable Housingâ&#x20AC;? from 7:00 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 3, 2008. Of particular interest to business leaders will be the discussion on â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Matters to Businessâ&#x20AC;? featuring Garrett Rambler, owner of Vantage Fitness in Falls Church. The event will take place at the Falls Church Presbyterian Fellowship Hall at 225 E. Broad Street. *** Dogwood Tavern will be opening in early April at the site of the former Broad Street Tavern (132 W. Broad Street) in Falls Church. The new restaurant will serve American fare, with a slightly southern slant, in a casual dining atmosphere. As its name indicates, Dogwood Tavern will also play homage to Virginia while offering live acoustic music, a focus on sports, and a new back patio. Owners Chris Lefbom, Adam Lubar and Wilson Whitney are well known in local restaurant circles as they also own and operate Ragtime (www.ragtimerestaurant.com) at 1345 Courthouse Road, Arlington and Rhodeside Grill (www.rhodesidegrill.com) at 1836 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington. *** Also planning an early April opening in Falls Church is Pie-tanza. The locally owned gourmet pizza establishment currently operates a location in Arlingtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lee Harris Shopping Center (2503B N. Harrison Street). Menu items include wood-fired Neapolitan-style pizza, fresh oversized salads, authentic Italian entrees, hot and cold subs and beer and wine on premise. The Falls Church restaurant will be located at 1216 W. Broad Street in the retail space formerly occupied by Pizza Hut. For more information visit www.pie-tanza.com. *** The Kokolopori-Falls Church Sister City Partnership is encouraging local businesses and civic groups to support Falls Churchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sister city by sponsoring the Benefit Reception to be held on Thursday May 1, 2008 at 7 p.m. at The Atrium of the Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, Virginia. Sponsorships range from $250 to $2,500 and the reply deadline is March 22nd. The money raised will support the health clinic in Kokolopori with urgently needed medicine, equipment, staffing and training. This all-volunteer group spent 99% of the money raised last year on programs, and only 1% on administrative costs. For information and to pledge your sponsorship, contact info@kokolopori-partnership.org. *** The Falls Church Lions Club is inviting business leaders to sponsor and/or play to in its 4th Annual Lions Charity Golf Tournament on Monday, May 12, 2008 at Algonkian Regional Park Golf Course. Lions Club International was ranked best among non-governmental organizations (NGOs) worldwide by the Financial Times in association with the Dalberg Global Development Advisors and the United Nations Global Compact.

For more information about the event, which includes an opportunity to win fabulous â&#x20AC;&#x153;hole-in-oneâ&#x20AC;? vehicles and many other prizes, visit www.fallschurchlions.org. *** Restaurateurs might want to consider several nonprofit employment sources to help secure food service staff. DC Central Kitchen has four 13-week culinary job training classes each year with the next class graduation on April 22, 2008. The DC based food bank also provides graduates and alumni with job placement assistance.

Interested restaurateurs should contact Liz Eisenberg at eeisenberg@dccentralkitchen.org and provide her with a job description, wage information, and other details.

While not solely focused on the restaurant industry, two Falls Church nonprofit organizations can also help local employers secure staff. To find out more about the job placement programs of Homestretch Inc. (www.homestretch-inc.org) contact May Ewald at MEwald@homestretch-inc.org. To learn about the services offered by PRS, Inc. (www.prsinc.org) contact Sarah Wagner at SWagner@prsinc.org. ď ľ The Business News & Notes section is compiled by Sally Cole, Executive Director of Greater Falls Church Chamber of Commerce. She may be emailed at sally@ fallschurchchamber.org

March 20 - 26, 2008

Based on recent experiences, some believe this week’s interest rate cuts soon will send oil to circa $120 a barrel. Others are saying the winter heating oil demand is over and given the world’s precarious economic situation, oil will be down to $80 a barrel by summer. Both sides make plausible cases.

In the meantime, while waiting to see how this plays out, the question of just how much longer Canada will continue pouring so much of their national heritage into U.S. gas tanks has been in the news lately and deserves some consideration.

In recent years, Canada has been sending about 2.3 million barrels of oil each day, more than we get from the Persian Gulf, south of the border. The United States also gets about 3.4 trillion cubic feet a year of its natural gas from Canada. Many in the U.S. are expecting that increasing imports of synthetic oil extracted from Alberta tar sands will keep the U.S. functioning for many decades as other sources of oil decline.

If you are not that familiar with the Canadian energy situation, there are a few things you should know. Canada produces about 3.4 million barrels of real and synthetic (tar sands) oil each day and consumes about 2.36 million. So far, so good.

Canada is energy independent just like the Saudis, Russia, Mexico, and Venezuela. But I just told you something that doesn’t add up. If they are sending 2.3 million barrels per day to the U.S., they must be importing about 1.2 million barrels a day and indeed they are. Most of eastern Canada, including about half of Ontario, imports oil from abroad and is paying world prices. Of course, they are selling at world prices so the problem in the long run is not the balance of payments, but the availability. Add in some Canadian-style taxes and drivers north of the border are currently paying about $4.25 a gallon for gasoline unlike their fellow oilexporter, Venezuela, where they are paying about 17 cents.

Another major factor in this equation is the NAFTA treaty with the U.S. which requires Canada to keep dividing its oil production with the U.S. in the current proportions, even if production is declining. Neither country may reduce the propor-

Page 17

tion of its energy exports to the other relative to the “total supply” of the exporting country during the prior 36-month period. Among other things this makes it tough to sell oil to China, should the Canadians be of a mind to do so.

The next big problem is that conventional oil production in Canada has just about peaked.

As is well known, there is a huge quantity of hydrocarbon in the form of tar coated on grains of sand in Alberta – some say 180 billion barrels (a 5-year supply for the whole earth), some say more than a trillion. The key

point however is that it takes massive amounts of heat, currently provided by cheap natural gas, to melt the tar off the sand grains and the whole operation leaves behind the most gargantuan environmental mess ever conceived by man.

The last thing you need to know is that the Canadian constitution leaves resource exploitation up the provinces (such as Alberta) which can sort of do anything they want, while putting the Federal Government (Ottawa) in charge of the environment. While the current Alberta government is second only to Beijing in its devotion to economic development at all costs, Ottawa although currently in Conservative hands takes its environmental responsibilities seriously.

For many years now, knowledgeable Canadian observers have been complaining about the situation. Why is “energy independent” Canada importing 55 percent of its oil requirements at world prices while sending 2.3 million barrels a day to the United States? How can Canada meet its Kyoto obligations while increases in tar sands oil production will increase their share of Canada’s greenhouse gas production from the current 18 percent to 25 percent by 2020? Why are we using so much natural gas to melt off the tar when natural gas production is projected to decline? Last fall there was furor in a parliamentary hearing when the speaker told the body that Eastern Canada will soon be “freezing in the dark.”

Last month, Ottawa announced details of tough new environmental regulations that will require new tar sands operations starting in 2012 to implement carbon storage and capture. The plan which applies to industrial and coal-fired power plants all over Canada aims to achieve a 20 percent reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.

The political maneuvering and wrangling over these new regulations will likely go on for some time. The most obvious effect will be a major increase in the costs of building new tar sands production capacity which is already so expensive that some companies are starting to pull back.

From the U.S. point of view, the prospects for continuing Canadian synthetic oil production have taken a turn for the worse.

Anyone who mutters “oil sands” when confronted by the prospect of depleting oil production needs to do some homework. As conventional oil production in Canada starts to decline in coming decades, it is doubtful that increased production of synthetic crude will be available to make up for the decline much less to increase Canada’s production.

The big question in the next 10 years is what happens to NAFTA and the proportionality clause that sends so much Western Canadian oil down into the U.S. A big issue is that currently there is no pipeline bringing oil from Western to Eastern Canada. Trains are just not up to moving oil in the volumes it is consumed today.

If the calculations about the course of the world’s oil supply are correct, in two or three years prices are likely to increase markedly as demand simply outruns supply no matter the state of the world economy. When Canadian gasoline prices, currently a dollar or so a gallon higher than in the U.S., increase by several more dollars, political pressures on Ottawa will increase rapidly.

The real problems will come when shortages develop in Eastern Canada while oil is still being pumped into the U.S. At that point, a major paradigm shift in the U.S.-Canadian energy relationship is likely to occur.  Tom Whipple is a retired government analyst and has been following the peak oil issue for several years.

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I know a lot about college basketball. My girlfriend knows a lot about shoes. I know this because last year she dragged me to Discount Shoe Warehouse so she could she spend her NCAA Tournament pool winnings. I have since recouped the financial damage, but the mental scars may never heal.

Even for experts, picking a winning bracket is a crap shoot. John Wooden couldn’t pick a perfect bracket even if he had Miss Cleo on speed dial.

You could pour over statistics, RPI ratings and geographical considerations for days and still be defeated by your mother who picked all the teams with blue uniforms, giving the edge to the Catholic schools.

I already hate my bracket.

It’s preposterous. I have at least five picks that are almost certain to doom me to another year of shoe shopping, but I’m going to stick with them.

Here is the thinking behind my top four upsets ... and the counterpoints that make me think these will be the final four nails in my bracket’s coffin.

Drake over Connecticut At the end of February, UConn looked like a Final Four contender. Then they lost to Providence (again) and fell in their first Big East Tournament game to West Virginia. Against the Mountaineers, UConn did not contest shots and West Virginia got great looks at the hoop and converted them.

If there’s one thing that Drake does well, it’s shoot.

Also, this season the Huskies have had a tendency to play to the level of their opponents, playing close games against DePaul (11-19), South Florida (12-19), Cincinnati (13-18), Central Florida (16-15) and the MidEastern Athletic Conference’s Morgan State. Those aren’t exactly tournament-caliber teams. If the Huskies take a night off, the Bulldogs of Drake will burn them.

This pick will fail miserably because: The Huskies’ A.J. Price is a faster guard than Drake has seen all year and Hasheem Thabeet could use Adam Emenecker as a toothpick.

Pittsburgh over Memphis Memphis hasn’t beaten a tournament-caliber team since Siena on Jan. 3. The Panthers have the ability to gum up the Tigers’ silky smooth offensive sets with some hard-nosed defense and Pitt’s DeJuan Blair

March 20 - 26, 2008

could be a handful in the low post. I have a theory that Blair will frustrate Memphis big man Joey Dorsey into early foul trouble and allow the Panthers to exploit the Tigers inside.

Last but not least, for all of the great non-conference games Memphis won, only three of them came on the road, at neutral site Madison Square Garden. In two of those games the Tigers failed to break 65 points. If the game is in the 60s, I really like Pitt’s chances.

This pick is as weak as Conference USA because: Pitt’s aggressive defense could put them in foul trouble. Relying on a freshman (Blair) to outplay a senior (Dorsey) is risky.

Butler over Tennessee Butler is tournament tested, has a great backcourt and plays tremendous defense. Tennessee will want to run and gun, but I don’t think Butler will let that happen. If Butler can set the tone with a half-court game, the Bulldogs will pull off the upset.

I also didn’t like Tennessee’s defense-optional performance in the (weak) SEC Tournament.

This pick is as ugly as Bruce Pearl’s orange blazer because: Tennessee scored in the 80s against Xavier, Gonzaga and Western Kentucky on the road.

Butler has only hit that mark in regulation three times this season. If Tennessee gets a decent lead, Butler might not have the firepower to close the gap.

Notre Dame over UNC The Tar Heels lost on their home court to NIT-bound Maryland, so playing in Charlotte is hardly a guaranteed win.

Tyler Hansbrough may be a beast on the glass and score at will, but he does not play great defense. The only time the Heels played someone with a big man as talented as Luke Harangody they were pushed hard BYU on a neutral court (with Trent Plaistead scoring 24 and grabbing 17 rebounds for the Cougars).

Notre Dame’s supporting cast is far superior and will easily be the best non-ACC opponent Carolina’s faced all season.

Mike’s girlfriend is already shopping online because: When it gets tough for Hansbrough he plays even harder. When things weren’t going Gody’s way against Marquette in the Big East Tournament, he threw up his hands to the referees.  Mike Hume may be emailed at mhume@fcnp.com.

When the final buzzer sounded in last Friday’s game at the Siegel Center at Virginia Commonwealth University, the metaphorical clock struck midnight on the Cinderella that was the George Mason High School girls basketball team and no Prince Charming was waiting to return their lost glass slipper at the end of the night.

The Region B champion Mustangs withstood a barrage of Floyd County three-pointers throughout the second half, each time answering with their own attack to continuously cut the lead. In the end, however, it was the Buffaloes out of Region C who stood tall, winning 66-62 in the Single A, Division 2 semifinals.

With 20 seconds left and her team up by four, Floyd junior guard Brittany Avancini stole an errant pass in the open court and burst down the middle for a wide-open layup, sealing the victory for the Buffaloes. It turned out to be just that kind of night for Floyd, who capitalized on nearly every Mason turnover.

Utilizing a stifling full-court press defense, as well as a halfcourt zone designed to double team the ballhandler at every opportunity, Floyd forced 28 turnovers, turning them into 25 points.

For a while though, it seemed as though destiny was on Mason’s side, that the clock would never reach mid-

night and signal the end of the Mustangs’ miraculous run.

Upsets were nothing new for the Mustangs, who downed defending state champion Clarke County as well as Strasburg, the AP’s number one team in the state. After last week’s trouncing of Middlesex, Mason reached the state final four for the first time since 1998.

Going up against the quick and experienced Floyd County — the Buffaloes have been to the state tournament each of the last three years, including a loss in last year’s final to Clarke County — proved to be too much for coach Bill Broderick’s squad, who saw every final charge they made in the fourth quarter promptly answered by the red-hot shooting Buffalos.

Within the final three minutes, Mason drew within two points of reaching the state finals, but each time Floyd answered with a bomb from beyond the arc. Sophomore Chantal Thomas, in what was one of her best games of the entire season, converted a three-point play on the baseline, pulling her squad within two. However, that play was sandwiched between two threepointers for the Buffaloes.

Avancini’s steal, though, was the ultimate dagger for the contest. A put-back by Mason sophomore Nicole Mitchell with one second left cut the final margin to four.

Mitchell and Thomas nearly single-handedly kept

the Mustangs in the game on the offensive end. Junior Kim Kenny and Meredith Hamme, who had dominated throughout the Region B tournament, were held to a combined 14 points.

Using her trademark aggressiveness and an almost innate ability to snatch rebounds, Mitchell had 18 points — the sophomore made all eight of her shots from the field, almost all layups — and grabbed 14 rebounds. Thomas, likewise, was crucial down the stretch, hitting all four of her free throws to go along with 16 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Even though they did not put up the same numbers that had garnered the Mustangs wins earlier in the season, Hamme and Kenny still made their presence known at VCU, chipping in eight and six points, respectively. Hamme had six assists and three steals, while Kenny tacked on nine rebounds and two assists.

Senior Bailey Walton, who torched Middlesex a week earlier with three three-pointers, added nine points and five rebounds. All in all, the scoring was fairly balanced for the Mustangs, who played 10 deep, keeping their subs fresh to counter Floyd’s press.

The scoring for the Buffalos, however, was anything but well-distributed, but it proved not to matter in the slightest.

Avancini had 31 points, hitting just over 50 percent of her shots Continued on Page 19

March 20 - 26, 2008

A resident of Northern Virginia for a year now, and becoming a familiar presence in Falls Church, U.S. Men’s Figure Skating phenom Parker Pennington is intent on making his athletic talents work for a good cause.

Pennington, 23, a four-time national champion in various youth categories who finished as high as seventh in the senior men’s competition at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, harbors the dream of qualifying for the 2010 U.S. Olympics in Vancouver.

He moved to this area to train with renowned figure skating mentor Audrey Weisiger at the Fairfax Ice Arena, where the likes of Olympians Michael Weiss and Timmy Goebel, and upcoming stars like Tommy Steenberg, have honed their skills.

But for the next month, he’s balancing his on-going training with organizing a major benefit for the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation at a rink near his childhood home in Connecticut.

He’s lined up figure skating headliners like Dan Hollander and Emily Hughes to join him in the special benefit slated for Saturday, April 12, at the Newington Arena in Newington, Connecticut.

The special reason for this effort: Parker’s dad Larry

Continued from Page 18

from the field. The junior had an up and down night, though, scoring 11 in the first period, zero in the second, but came out of the locker room on fire, tacking on 20 in the second half. The next leading scorer for Floyd County was Carmen Bolt with nine.

Mason bested Floyd County in nearly every single offensive category, including field goal percentage (54.5 to 40.4), three-point percentage (37.5 to 30), free throw percentage (78.6 to 60.9), rebounds (34-29) and assists (14-10). However, crucial statistics, including turnovers and steals, went in the favor of the Buffalos, ultimately deciding the final outcome.

Students at George Mason were let out of school with an excused absence on Friday, as parents, peers and teach-

Page 19

Pennington, a veterinarian, suffers from muscular dystrophy.

“My parents have been there for me every step of the way from the first time I stepped on the ice at age three and instantly realized this was something I really wanted to do,” Pennington told the News-Press in an interview last week.

“My dad has sacrificed tremendously for my career, and he’s a trooper. He still goes to work everyday and maintains his practice at the same level since he was diagnosed eight years ago,” he said.

Pennington said that his dad was willing to stay at home and provide for the family while he, his mother, and brother Colin moved to Cleveland, Ohio, to dedicate all his time for two years to train and improve his skating skills there.

His parents have often traveled with him to competitions strewn far and wide around the globe over the past decade, from Japan and China to Finland, Bulgaria, Italy and Slovenia. His brother came along for moral support when he competed in the U.S. Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota in January.

Despite slipping from his seventh place finish in 2007 to 12th this year, Pennington has not abandoned his goal, which is to compete in the Olympics.

The April 12 benefit is billed, “Parker Pennington Presents: Skate for Life!”

ers were in full force in the transplanted Mustang “Red Zone.”

“We are so thankful to have such a community, and that they got to become a part of our community, the sea of red that came to both VCU and Robinson,” commented Hamme. “They definitely share a big part in our accomplishments.”

When reviewing the season, it is impossible to not mention the word “family” — the word printed on their black warm-up shirts — when describing these girls. Every player on the team bought into the whole aspect of unity early in the season, and it certainly helped carry them to the Siegel Center last weekend.

“Every team I’ve been on has been something special, but this has been my favorite season,” said Hamme, a four-

The idea for it came about simply enough. Chatting with the mother of one of his skating students in Connecticut last summer, Parker learned she worked for the local chapter of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. She advised him on whom to contact in the organization to work on organizing a benefit, and the MDA has provided a helping hand as he’s undertaken one of the most ambitious efforts of his life.

“I am on the phone and trading emails about this almost constantly now,” Pennington told the News-Press. “I had no idea when I started how much would be involved. But I enjoy it, it keeps me really engaged.”

He’s had to cope with organizing the event at almost every level, from securing the facility, convincing his skating colleagues to participate, setting up the ticket sales and the silent auction and, generally, doing his best to keep everyone on the same page.

He interested Hollander in the idea while chatting with him at an event in Detroit last fall. Hollander is a two time national bronze medalist, the 2000 American Open professional champion, and has been a cast member of the Champions on Ice for a decade.

Emily Hughes signed on for the benefit, being the 2007 national silver medalist, the 2007 Four Continent Championships silver medalist,

year varsity starter. “It wasn’t because we got to states, but because of what got us to states. We’ve come much further than anyone expected us to. We’ve won things that trophy don’t embody.

“Basketball is not going to be the same, because I’m not going to be playing with these girls. They became my family beyond basketball, and I hope that will lay the groundwork for other Mason teams in the future. We walked out of that gym knowing that we accomplished something great.”

Hamme perhaps best embodied the “never say die” attitude of the squad, as she came back from major knee surgery and a second knee injury in two years to start throughout the miraculous Mason playoff run.

With the loss, the George Mason community bids fare-

and the 2006 national bronze medalist.

Others who have signed on so far include Sean Rabbit, Tommy Steenberg, Ashley Brickman, Molly Jesperson, and naturally, Colin Pennington.

Still more big names may be added.

Pennington said that while the bulk of the publicity for the

well to the storied careers of the aptly named “Super Eight of ’08,” whose leadership and guidance turned the Mustang “family” into state title contenders.

Hamme, Walton, Annie Zweighaft (three points in the semi-final loss), Olivia Scott (two points), Rachel Kazman, Stephanie Pinch, Hannah Baumgardner and Rebecca Jackson will all graduate in June, but the legacy they have left in the halls of Mason will nonetheless linger for years to come.

Note: Floyd County moved on to the Virginia Single A Division 2 finals on Saturday against Lancaster High School. The Buffalos were victorious over the Region A champion Red Devils, 64-50, making Floyd the fourth state champion in a row to have finished runner-up the previous year.

event will be in the Newington area, he’s hoping that his fans everywhere, and those of figure skating in general, will also pitch in with contributions for this great cause.

For advanced tickets ($15 for adults, $10 for children 6-12, 5 and under free), sponsorships, questions or to make a contribution in lieu of attending, the public is urged to contact the Muscular Dystrophy Association, 148 Eastern Blvd., Glastonbury, CT 06033, phone (860) 633-4466. Checks can be made payable to MDA, writing in “Skate for Life Show” on the notation line.

(Next week: Part II of the News-Press interview with Pennington. He waxes philosophical about the essence of figure skating and his new mental approach).

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Page 20

March 20 - 26, 2008

teams the first week of January, the start of the build season.

The task is usually a team game involving the movement and manipulation of large, difficult objects. When Mason’s team found out what they had to build their robot for, they had six weeks to design, build and tune it before mailing it off to be held for competition.

This year’s featured object was an 8-lbs., 40-in. inflatable ball. The game they needed their robot to compete in was a combination of racing, basketball and roller-derby.

“The main way to score

points was to knock these balls off an overpass over the track and run it around the track and across the finish line to score two points,” explains John Ballou, the team’s longtime mentor and sole adult supervisor. “If [after making a lap] you’re able to throw the ball over the overpass, you score eight points.”

Mason worked almost nonstop for the first six weeks of the year to build its machine.

“On the weekdays we met every day after school from 3 – 6 p.m.,” says sophomore and three-year Vae Victis veteran, Matthew Rollo. “On weekends we’d come in at about 10:30 a.m. and leave at 8 p.m.”

In addition to actually building the machine, Mason also had to raise considerable funds, to transport it and get it to run.

“We went to Aurora Flight Sciences and got $2,000 from

THE ROBOTICS TEAM with its victorious creation. (Photo: Courtesy John Ballou)

them. We used it to buy a new laptop, which we needed desperately,” says Junior Matthew Finein, who joined the team last year.

When the time for the competition finally arrived, Mason didn’t have to go it alone. Each round, the Mason team was joined by two robots from other teams, hopefully complimenting each-other’s specialties.

“The secret to picking good alliance partners is picking robots that are just as specialized as you are,” says Ballou. In the preliminary rounds alliances are randomly selected, but in the finals, team captains, like Mason, got to pick the robots they thought would complement them best.

When it was time for the final rounds, Mason picked Team 11 of Mt. Olive High School in Flanders, N.J. and Team 2016 of Ewing High School in Ewing, N.J. Mason’s robot knocked the balls off the overpass and fed them to their alliance partner, who specialized in chucking the balls over the overpass for eight points. Their other alliance partner’s job was to ignore everything and zip around the track, scoring two points per lap.

Feeding and ball maneuvering weren’t Mason’s only specialties however.

“If there was one thing our team was good at, it was programming,” says Ballou. The first 15 seconds of each match are for “autonomous mode.”

During that time, each machine must try to score points running entirely on scripts written by the team with no driver input.

“Our robot was able to circle the track on its own, something only three out of the 60 robots there were able to do. That allowed us to score points before anyone could even try to stop us.”

The Mason team is currently reminiscing about their victory and trying to raise enough money to take the team to the National Competition in Atlanta, Ga., April 17. While their first place performance has secured their spot in the tourney, what isn’t secure is the money to get there — the team needs to raise about $15,000.

Donations supporting the team can be sent to George Mason High School, 7124 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA, 22046, attention to Edna Baldo with the notation GMHS Robotics Team.

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March 20 - 26, 2008

Mediation Conference at GMU Nearly 1,500 students, teachers, counselors, administrators, parents and community volunteers from Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), and schools in Arlington County, Alexandria City, Loudoun County and the District of Columbia participated in the 16th annual Northern Virginia Regional Student Mediation Conference, Pathways to Peace, at George Mason University last week.

Participants learned skills and strategies to reinforce the work that they do to make their schools safe and respectful learning environments.

The conference’s theme focused on conflict resolution skills through workshops encouraging mediation, communication, teamwork, listening, trust, respect and anger management. High school peer mediators from approximately ten high schools helped facilitate the workshops. The first day of the two-day conference was dedicated to around 400 middle school students from 20 schools that were in attendance. Tricia Jones of Temple University addressed students and those from the Education Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution in her discussion on “Changing the World: Youth Mediators Across the Globe.”

Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Gerry Connolly delivered the welcome message.

The last day of the conference was designed for the 1,000 elementary school students from about 80 schools. Mediators from Hayfield Secondary School presented a skit showing the young mediators how their skills in conflict resolution can help resolve everyday conflicts at their schools. Newly trained mediators focused on managing the mediation process.

Experienced mediators gained advanced skills for mediating difficult situations and using conflict resolution skills outside formal mediations. Highly experienced mediators went on to learn strategies for mediating group conflicts. Additional workshops focused on building peaceable schools and communities, marketing mediation and using improvisational skits to promote conflict resolution skills in the school community.

HS Students Argue Supreme Court Cases Seniors at Langley High School held the school’s annu-

Page 21

al Case Day with a moot court of the controversial Supreme Court case, the District of Columbia vs. Heller. The case questioned whether the District of Columbia’s law that permits ownership of rifles and shotguns, but bans handguns, infringes on the right to keep and bear arms as outlined in the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Langley students taking Advanced Placement (AP) government argued the case, with students Owen Masters, Tracy DeMocker, Sasha Amini and Jordan Slick serving as lead counsels before a mock Supreme Court. The mock court consisted of attorneys, law professors, school administrators and student justices Katy Money and Liam Phibbs. In addition to the oral arguments, the school invited interest groups related to the case to come and hold debates on similar issues, bringing the case to life and enabling students to learn more about the U.S.’s legal process. Over 300 AP government students worked on committees to plan the details of the day.

Raptor Birds Fly by Oakcrest Sixth and seventh graders at Oakcrest School welcomed the Raptor Conservancy of Virginia (RCV) last week as a supplement to sixth grade adaptations of animals study and to the seventh grade animal unit. RCV education presentations utilized the display of live, non-releasable raptors to inform children and adults about native wildlife, raptor rehabilitation, preservation of habitat and respect for these wild neighbors. Raptor biology was the main focus. RCV has found that allowing people to see some of the native raptors up close helps increase both appreciation of these wonderful birds and understanding of their place in the wild. The presentation included a discussion of the work involved in caring for 250 new raptor patients a year, in addition to the RCV resident birds. RCV is a nonprofit volunteer organization dedicated to rehabilitation and release to the wild of injured, ill or orphaned native Virginia birds of prey.

2008 Triennial School Census The Falls Church City Public Schools will join Virginia’s 131 other school divisions in conducting the 2008 Triennial School Census of

children. The census count is conducted every three years, and the data is used to determine how much sales tax revenue should be returned to local communities.

“It is important for all families with children up to age 19 to respond to the census, even if their children attend private or parochial schools, are home-schooled, or are away in the military or at college,” said Hunter Kimble, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations. “Otherwise, the city will receive less than its fair share of state sales tax revenue.”

An accurate count of schoolage children is expected to generate nearly $1,000 per child per year for Falls Church City. Even if residents don’t have children, it is important that they respond to the census to ensure a complete count that includes all households. The school census count of all children will help school divisions measure current population trends and make projections for future needs.

This data includes information on preschoolers, toddlers and infants.

The commonwealth returns 1.125% of the revenue collected through the 5% state sales and apply the tax to localities to support public education, which is approximately $1.1 billion for the current fiscal year. The money may be used by school divisions for operations, maintenance, capital projects and debt service. Falls Church City residents will soon receive infor-

mation in the mail regarding the triennial school census. City residents may respond online at www.fccps.org/census or they may return the form by fax or mail to the school board’s central office.

Armstrong Uses Bulbs to Fight Global Warming Armstrong Elementary School will use its 2008 Johnie Forte, Jr., Memorial LitterRecycling grant to purchase compact fluorescent light bulbs for every student and then challenge each student to purchase a second compact fluorescent bulb to be installed in his or her home. Johnie Forte, Jr. grants, worth $500, were awarded to 18 Fairfax County public schools in February by the Clean Fairfax Council and the Fairfax County Recycling Program. The ultimate goal is for families to purchase the bulbs from area businesses, thus forging a collaborative partnership with the

community. Armstrong stands behind the Environmental Protection Agency’s research showing that if every American home replaced just one incandescent bulb with an ENERGY STAR-qualified compact fluorescent bulb, the U.S. would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of more than 800,000 cars. Through this initiative, Armstrong Elementary hopes that these environmental-based lessons empower the students and make them understand that they are now doing their part to help change the future of the Earth. “The role of a school is to equip students with the motivation and tools to help them change their lives and make the world a better place,” says Armstrong principal Shane Wolfe. “With the simple gift of a fluorescent light bulb, we have helped students on an entirely different level.”

Page 22

March 20 - 26, 2008

“HILARIOUS!” Ben Lyons, E!

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For middle-schoolers who love movies from the Judd Apatow funny factory, the best thing about “Drillbit Taylor” is that there’s finally a PG-13 edition they can see without bringing Mom, or convincing the ticket seller they’re really at the multiplex to catch “Horton Hears a Who!” It aspires to the naughty sensibility of “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” “Knocked Up” and especially “Superbad,” but at a level toned down to pass the ratings board’s muster. And so you get outspoken adolescents sputtering at each other in language that’s off-color, but never really foul, and nothing racier than long shots of Owen Wilson showering naked on the beach as passers-by gawk.

More to the point, you don’t get those movies’ moments of unabashed, earthy hilarity, or the sense that those moments are there for the purpose of saying something. Producer Apatow and his director-for-hire, Steven Brill (“Mr. Deeds”), keep the

Drillbit ................... Owen Wilson Lisa.......................... Leslie Mann Don.................... Danny McBride Ronnie......................... Josh Peck Emmit ................. David Dorfman Ryan . ..................... Troy Gentile Wade . .................... Nate Hartley Filkins ........................ Alex Frost Paramount Pictures presents a film directed by Steven Brill. Produced

smart-ass dialogue flowing, but it’s in the service of pretty mundane storytelling.

The most obvious parallels are to “Superbad,” famously concocted by writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg when they were 13 and pretty much about their geeky but glib young selves. That one had Jonah Hill as Rogen’s junior surrogate, and in “Drillbit” (by Rogen and “Beavis and Butt-Head” alum Kristofor Brown) the role goes to Troy Gentile, another brash, bulky, curly-headed kid. Nate Hartley is the skinny, stammering sidekick, and there’s even a pipsqueak hanger-on (David

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by Judd Apatow, Susan Arnold and Donna Arkoff Roth. Written by Kristofor Brown and Seth Rogen.

Photographed by Fred Murphy.

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Music by Christophe Beck.

Running time: 102 minutes.

Classified: PG-13 (for crude and sexual references throughout, strong bullying, language, drug references and partial nudity).

Dorfman), whose pesky nature makes one yearn for some mellow McLovin.

Where “Superbad” was set at the pivotal time around graduation, “Drillbit” begins at the beginning, on the first day of high school. Right away the three freshmen nerds are targeted by psychotic senior Filkins (Alex Frost), who gets his jollies locking them in the trophy display case and grabbing them at the urinals at the least opportune moment.

Finding no sympathy from their parents or the doofus principal (Stephen Root), the trio takes to the Internet to find a bodyguard, which leads to a funny montage of applicants reminiscent of the 40-year-old virgin’s night of speed dating.

Among those clowning around as tough-guy wannabes: Chuck Liddell, the fighting champion, and Adam Baldwin, echoing his title role in “My Bodyguard,” the 1980 version of this movie.

Ultimately the job goes to smooth talker Drillbit Taylor (Wilson, who shot this movie before the attempt to take his own, um, career break). The trio falls for his patter about being an Army Ranger discharged for “unauthorized heroism,” but in reality Drillbit is a deserter and a two-bit thief living in the woods.

He sets out to indulge these kids just until he can rob their parents’ houses and flee to Canada, but in the course of giving them bogus self-defense lessons, he starts to feel protective of them and goes to their school posing as a substitute teacher, falls for the pretty English teacher, blah blah blah. The big final confron-

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 23

S

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hop Shop (Drama, not rated, 84 minutes ) Twelveyear-old Ale (Alejandro Polanco) is an accomplished hustler, whether re-selling bags of candy on the subway with a polished sales pitch or stealing hubcaps. He lives with his 16-year-old sister, Isamar (Isamar Gonzales), in a tiny plywood room inside an auto mechanicâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shop in a chaotic

neighborhood bustling with similar unauthorized parts and body joints known as Willets Point, or the Iron Triangle. Looking at this immense scrap heap of corrugated tin roofs, mufflers and radial tires, and you could be in Mumbai or Cairo or Mexico City. But this is Queens, N.Y., USA. From Ramin Bahrani, the director of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Man Push Cart.â&#x20AC;?

Rating: Four stars. (Jim Emerson)

now Angels (Drama, R, 106 minutes). Though the title conjures freshly fallen snow, laughter and happy-golucky romance, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Snow Angelsâ&#x20AC;? is a David Gordon Green film, and that means tragedy is a given.

There is indeed romance in this film, but also breakups, betrayals, death and sadness. The threat of violence looms over the fall/winter landscape as an unsure teenager maneuvers his first love at the same time his parents split up; and a newly separated mother asserts her independence in destructive ways as her fragile husband tries desperately to maintain a connection to her and their 4-year-old daughter. Stellar performances by Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell, Olivia Thirlby, Michael Angarano and Amy Sedaris in a role quite unlike her usual goofball parts.

Rating: Three and a half stars.

(Teresa Budasi)

U

tation unfolds as you expect it to, and the credits roll.

As is often the case, Wilson is slumming here, and he goes beyond the call of duty in getting across the pathetic nature of Drillbit, a guy who seldom acts on his convictions because he seldom has any. About his only skill is his gift of gab, which lets Wilson spew the self-assured, mesmerizing bull-pucky we know from â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Wedding Crashersâ&#x20AC;? and elsewhere. Of the other adults, a standout is Ian Roberts (from the Chicagomade improv group Upright Citizens Brigade), funny as the skinny kidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s macho-man stepdad. â&#x20AC;&#x153;How about some chicks on the wall here?â&#x20AC;? he bellows in the boyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bedroom, decorated

FELD ENTERTAINMENT

nder the Same Moon (Drama, PG-13, 109 minutes). There is a little bit of fairy-tale moondust sprinkled over this story of a 9-year-old boy who runs away from his home in Mexico to find his mother in Los Angeles.

The story is formulaic and a little syrupy, but sensitive performances and skillful storytelling Ad Size: 3.792â&#x20AC;? x 6â&#x20AC;? from writer Ligiah Villalobos (of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Go Diego Goâ&#x20AC;?) ENTERTAINMENT and director Patricia Riggen Section: hold our interest. Rating: Two and a half stars. (Nell Minow)

with magic memorabilia. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s likeNo.: a nerd paradise!â&#x20AC;?RD0800755A Job Denied the big, outrageous WASHINGTON, DC Engagement City: that comedy set pieces usually liven up Apatow movies, the Media: teens in â&#x20AC;&#x153;Drillbitâ&#x20AC;? do a lot of Insertion breakingDate(s): stuff and hurting each other in pursuit of laughs that probably wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t come. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about 40 minutes of story in this 102-minute movie, and stretching it out means putting the nerds through an exasperating cycle: cowardice, then confidence, then cowardice, and on Mobile Users: For Showtimes - Text Message SHUTTER and your ZIP CODE to 43KIX (43549) and on. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no wedgie, but after STARTS FRIDAY, MARCH 21 Check Local Listings for Theatres and Showtimes a while, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Drillbit Taylorâ&#x20AC;? feels like its own form of torment. ď ľ Darel Jevens is a staff writer and editor for the Chicago Sun-Times.

WASHINGTON SUB PRESS 2X3.5 THU 3/20 ALLIED DC AC

Alan Katz, one of the silliest-dilliest authors 2499 N. Harrison St, Suite 10 you'll ever meet, will read poems from his newest Lee-Harrison book Oops! (Grades 2-5), which features 100 Shopping Center funny, original, kid-friendly poems. There will Lower Level Entrance (Next to H&R Block) be lots of silliness and a lot of interaction between the authour and his audience. Mr. Katz is the 703-241-8281 award-winning authour of the Silly Dilly songs aladlamp@speakeasy.org Mon.-Sat. 10am - 8pm collections (ages 4 and up) including Take Me Sun. 11am - 5pm Out of the Bathtub, I'm Still Here in the Bathtub, $5 OFF Are You Quite Polite and Don't Say That Word! any purchase $25 w/ this coupon All ages are welcome, especially grades 2-5. overExpires 4/30/08 Please call to register.

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he Year My Parents Went on Vacation (Drama, not rated, 105 minutes). A boyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s-eye view of turbulent Brazil in 1970, the year 12-year-old Mauroâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s radical parents go underground and Brazil wins the World Cup. Filmmaker Cao Hamburgerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s warm film chronicles Mauroâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s adoption into the new milieu of a Jewish-Italian neighborhood in Sao Paulo. Rating: Three stars.

(Bill Stamets)

Continued on Page 24

Page 24

March 20 - 26, 2008

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Dulin-Easter2008-News Press

Dulin Church United Methodist

3/13/08

10:44 PM

Page 1

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 25

There’s a cliched concept in music that an artist’s first album is the easiest one to make because it’s the album they’ve been waiting their whole life to make.

So is the experience a similar one for an established, platinum-selling band when there’s a 14-year gap between albums?

Yes and no, according to Rob Hyman, lead singer of The Hooters.

“It feels like a second debut, as well as a complete continuation,” Hyman says of The Hooters’ latest work, Time Stand Still, the band’s first original album since 1993’s Out of Body. The gap included a hiatus from 1995 to 2001.

“We started in 80-81 hitting it hard and then in 95 [we split], so that’s 15 years,” Hyman says. “That’s something

you wish for and certainly we all wanted to do it, but it was the same routine.

Write a record, do a tour, write another record, do another tour and just try to have a life in between. At some point we were somewhat fatigued, especially on the road. One day you wake up and you’re not getting any younger and you’re thinking about other things in life, like family and kids.”

Over their time apart, Hyman and his Hooters cohorts — John Lilley, Eric Bazilian, David Ousikkinen and Fran Smith, Jr. — collected riffs and worked on a number of tunes individually or while playing with other musical collaborations. When the group began work on the new album, the effort was eased by the material they accumulated in each other’s absence.

The continuation Hyman mentions

The News-Press crew is turning up these tunes at NCAA tourney time: Mike Hume— Eye of the Tiger by Survivor

 

Nicholas Benton— Tupelo Honey by Van Morrison 

Jody Fellows— Let’s Get It On by DMX

refers to the band’s straight-ahead rock sound that endured even after the group’s temporary split.

“It was pretty natural for us to get together again and become The Hooters,” Hyman says. “We can be years apart, and then the five of us get together, pick up our instruments, and we are The Hooters, a band that knows each other as well as anybody can.”

On Time Stand Still, The Hooters successfully rekindled the sound that pushed them to the top of the charts in the mid-1980s with their debut hit, Nervous Night. That album sold over two million copies, prompting Rolling Stone to name the group “Best New Band of the Year.”

Now, a little older, a little wiser and after taking time off to “have a life,” The Hooters are trying to reinvigorate some of the support that has allowed them to endure as a bit of a cult band since reconvening in 2001.

While the signature “Hooter” sound remains familiar after all these years, there have been quite a few changes since the band took its leave, particularly concerning the music business. As The Hooters try to reengage their fans, they’ve turned to modern technology like MySpace and YouTube.

“We had the big record company budgets and parties and we saw the excess, and up and downs of that whole thing,” Hyman says. “Now it just seems like a new day and we are learning as we go.

We’re trying to be savvy as we go.”

Those efforts include a completely Internet-made music video for “I’m Alive,” the lead single off of Time Stand Still. The video, created by a production team based in Germany, features a variety of splicedtogether YouTube clips of fans performing The Hooters’ song. The end result is at the same time amusing and impressive.

The one thing technology can’t improve, Hyman maintains, is a live show. Fans in the D.C. area, will have the opportunity to check The Hooters out in person when they perform at the Birchmere in Alexandria on March 29.

While the band is excited to promote their new album, Hyman is unsure exactly what the big picture looks like from here on out.

“I think it will take on its own life, it always seems to anyway,” Hyman says.

“Right now it’s a deliberate pace as people are involved in other projects. I think it’s like, let’s commit to it for a year or two and see where it leads.”

• For more information on The Hooters, including a look at the “I’m Alive” video, visit www.thehooters.net.

Page 26

March 20 - 26, 2008

Send community event submissions to the News-Press by e-mail at calendar@fcnp.com; fax 703-532-3396; or by regular mail to 450 West Broad Street #321, Falls Church, VA 22046. Please include any photos or artwork with submissions. Deadline is Monday at noon for each week’s edition.

Community Events THURSDAY, MARCH 20

Bunnies, Bunnies Everywhere.

Listen to ‘The Bunnies’ Picnic by Lezlie Evans and other stories as kids gets ready for spring; intended for children 2 1/2 to 6 years old. Aladdin’s Lamp (2499 N. Harrison St. Suite 10, Arlington). 11 a.m. 703-2418281.

Story Hour. Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. Mon. – Thurs. 10:30 a.m. 703-2485077 (TTY 711).

Mr. Skip. Kids’ music. Stacy’s Coffee Parlor (709 W. Broad St., Falls Church). $5. 10:30 a.m. For more information, call 703-5386266.

MONDAY, MARCH 24 Stories and Rhymes. Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). For 2-5 year olds. Free. 10:30 a.m.

For more information, call 703248-5030.

Rotary Club. Rosemary Lauler will speak about “Devotion to Children.” Harvest Moon Restaurant (7260 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). $10. 6:30 p.m.

FRIDAY, MARCH 21 Theater Classes. Free weekly theater classes for kids. Round House Theatre (8641 Colesville Rd., Silver Spring, Md.). Free. 4-5 p.m. For more information, call 301-585-1225.

SATURDAY, MARCH 22 Farmers’ Market in Falls Church.

Falls Church City Hall (300 Park Ave., Falls Church). 9 a.m.

– noon.

Mr. Skip. Kids’ music. Stacy’s Coffee Parlor (709 W. Broad St., Falls Church). $5. 10:30 a.m. For more information, call 703-5386266.

White House Easter Egg Roll.

Tradition dating back to 1878; featuring the Jonas Brothers as entertainment. White House (1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, D.C.). Free. 8 a.m.- 2 p.m. 202456-7041.

African American Family Celebration. Traditional Easter Monday event. National Zoological Park- Smithsonian

Institution (3001 Connecticut Ave. NW, D.C.). Free. 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. 202-633-4800.

TUESDAY, MARCH 25 Stories and Rhymes. Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). For ages 18-36 months. Free. 10:30 a.m. For more information, call 703-248-5030.

Falls Church Lion Club Meeting.

Bill and Pat Shattuck are presenting a program on the Old Dominion Eye Foundation. A Cote Café (6876 Lee Hwy., Falls Church). Free. 6:45 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26 Twilight Tales. A walk-in story hour for children ages 3-6. Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free.

7 p.m. For more information, call 703-248-5030.

Music around the World. Sing along and listen to the cello performed by Brigitta Guenther, a former Arlington Symphony cellist. Aladdin’s Lamp (2499 N. Harrison St. Suite 10, Arlington).

11 a.m. 703-241-8281.

&

Shen Wei Dance Arts. Twelve dancers will create an original visual art work with tempura paint on white canvas known as “Connect Transfer”- an innovative aspect of Shen Wei Dance Arts. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (2700 F. St. NW, D.C.). $15-$48.

7:30 p.m. For more information, call 202-467-4600.

My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish and I’m in Therapy. Steve Soloman’s one man comedic show. Bethesda Theatre (7719 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, Md.). 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. $40-$75. 301-657-7827.

Happy Birthday, Wanda June!

American Century Theatre’s

revival of this ridiculous comedy; playwright Kurt Vonnegut. Gunston Arts Center (2700 S. Lang St., Arlington). $23-$29. 8 p.m.- Wed-Sat. 2:30 Sat-Sun. 703-998-4555.

SATURDAY, MARCH 22

Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company.

The Harlem based modern dance company performs in Fairfax.

Center for the Arts- George Mason University (Route 123 and Braddock Rd., Fairfax). $22-$44. 8 p.m. For more information, call 703-9932787.

Shen Wei Dance Arts. Twelve dancers will create an original visual art work with tempura

Meet poet and author Alan Katz.

Read poems from his newest book “Oops!” Aladdin’s Lamp (2499 N. Harrison St. Suite 10, Arlington). 6 p.m. 703-241-8281.

THURSDAY, MARCH 27 Story Hour. Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. Mon. – Thurs. 10:30 a.m. For more information, call 703-248-5077.

Northwest Arlington Lions Club Citrus Sale. Proceeds go to charitable projects in Arlington.

Overlee Pool lower parking lot (6030 Lee Hwy.). 8 a.m. 703-2437938.

Rotary Club Meeting. Kathy Allan will speak about the City of Falls Church Environmental Services, including Earth Watch. Harvest Moon Restaurant (7260 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). $10. 6:30 p.m.

T

Theater Fine Arts FRIDAY, MARCH 21

JSSA. Parents of Young Adults with Asperger’s Syndrome and Related Disorders group meetings. JSSA (3018 Javier Rd., Fairfax). Please call 703-204-9100 to register.

paint on white canvas known as “Connect Transfer”- an innovative aspect of Shen Wei Dance Arts. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (2700 F. St. NW, D.C.). $15-$48. 7:30 p.m.

For more information, call 202-467-4600.

SUNDAY, MARCH 23

Major Barbara. George Bernard Shaw’s drama tells the story of a major in the Salvation Army and her estranged father.

Shakespeare Theatre- Sidney Harman Hall (610 F St. NW, D.C.). $35-$80. 2 and 8 p.m. For more information, call 202547-1122.

�� E���� R��������� NCAA Men’s Basketball

R

First and Second Round Regional Tournament, Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., Thursday and Saturday

Y

ou’ll have a hard time finding tickets for Thursday’s four games (two sessions of two games each, one beginning at 12:20 p.m. and the other at 7:10 p.m.), but it should be easier Saturday (one session of two games, beginning at 2:10 p.m.) after four teams will have been eliminated. There is an embarrassment of riches in this sectional.

There is No. 2 seed Duke representing the ACC, always a good show whether you love or hate them, and always-popular West Virginia, a Big East entry. Purdue is a dark horse out of the Big 10, and Baylor made an eye-popping run at the start of the Big 12 season. Georgia won the SEC tournament, and Arizona, of the Pac 10, is always a first-rate act. Xavier of the Atlantic 10 comes in as a No. 3 seed.

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 27

live_music&nightlife THURSDAY, MARCH 20 L��� J���. Sign of the Whale (7279 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). For more information, call 703-5731616.

T�� G���� S���, W�� T����� ��� ��� S�������, L������,TX ��� C������ S��������. Roots/ Rock. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E Vienna). $10. 8 p.m. For more information, call 703-2551566.

A������. Russian Rock and Roll.

The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $20 in advance/$23 day of show. Doors open: 7 p.m. Showtime: 8:30 p.m. For more information, call 703-237-0300

FRIDAY, MARCH 21 T���� R�����. Folk/Rock/Soul.

Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E Vienna). $15. 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 703-255-1566.

Beenie Man. Dance. H20 (800 Water St. SW, D.C.). 9 p.m. 202397-7328.

M� F������� H������. Pop/Rock.

Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E Vienna). $15. 10 p.m. For more information, call 703-255-1566.

L��� R������. Rock. The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $19. Doors open: 7

p.m. Showtime: 9 p.m. For more information, call 703-237-0300.

SATURDAY, MARCH 22 K������ N����. Sign of the Whale (7279 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). 10 p.m.- 1:30 a.m. For more information, call 703-5731616.

M� F������� H������. Pop/Rock.

Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E Vienna). $15. 7 p.m. For more information,c all 703-255-1566.

J����� W�����. Blues. The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $26. Doors open: 7 p.m. Showtime: 9 p.m. For more information, call 703-237-0300.

Capitol Hill Bunny Hop. Visit 11 bars around Capitol Hill. The Dubliner (520 N. Capitol St., NW, D.C.). $13; $10 with two cans of food. 1-9 p.m.

SUNDAY, MARCH 23 O��� J�� S������. With Sam Prather. Twins Jazz (1244 U St. NW, D.C.). 8 p.m. 202-234-0072.

MONDAY, MARCH 24 O��� M��. Hosted by David Cotton.

Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E Vienna). Free. 7 p.m.

Parlor Mob. Rock. The Rock and

Roll Hotel (1353 H. Street, NE, D.C.). Call 202-388-ROCK for more information.

Falls Church). 6:30 – 9 p.m. For more information, call 703-5386266.

P������ R����. Pop/Rock. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E Vienna). $15. 7:30 p.m. For more information,c all 703255-1566.

K������ ��� ��������. Sign of the Whale (7279 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). 10 p.m. – 1:30 a.m. For more information, call 703-5731616.

O���-M�� P�����. Arrive early to get on the list. Bar Nun (1326 U St. NW, D.C.). $5. 9 p.m. For more information, call 202-6676680.

C���� P������ ��� J����� T������. Acoustic Pop/Rock.

Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E Vienna). $10. 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 703-255-1566.

TUESDAY, MARCH 25 S��������� S�������. Pop/Rock.

Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E Vienna). $13 in advance/$15 at the door. 6:30 p.m. For more information, call 703-255-1566.

W��� � G���� A�������, C���� T���� ��� T�� A���������.

Rock. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E Vienna). $10. 6:30 p.m. For more information,call 703-2551566.

Ameican Diabetes Association Fundraiser. Proceeds go to charity. Tattoo (1413 K St. NW, D.C.). $10 minimum donation. 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26

THURSDAY, MARCH 27 L��� J���. Sign of the Whale (7279 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). For more information, call 703-5731616.

D�� N������ ��� D����� S����.

Acoustic. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E Vienna). $15. 7:30 p.m. For more information, call 703-255-1566.

R���� C���� � T�� P����������. Alternative Pop Rock. The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $13 in adance/$15 day of show. Doors open: 7 p.m. Showtime: 8:30 p.m. For more information, call 703-237-0300.

O��� M�� N����. Sign up at the door, anyone is welcome. Stacy’s Coffee Parlor (709 W. Broad St.,

P������� A����...

J

ust because you’ve dropped 50 bucks on office pools this past week, doesn’t mean you half to watch your bracket hopes go down the drain. While your picks choke this Saturday, you can be first in line at Asylum for free ice cream. That sort of makes up for your crappy selections, right? If that still doesn’t cheer you up, maybe you can feed your sorrows with a little something from Asylum’s top rated vegan menu. At the same time, you’re helping out Washington, D.C.-based animal advocacy charity, Compassion Over Killing (10% of the day’s sales from their vegan menu will be donated to C.O.K.) Making its D.C. debut will be Boston-based Wheeler’s Black Label Vegan Ice Cream, with free samples being offered up between 2 and 4 p.m. So, take a break from all the bracket busting this Saturday, your nerves will thank you and, let’s face it, you never win those pools anyway.

What: Ice Cream Tasting & Animal Charity Benefit When: Saturday, March 22, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Where: Asylum, 2471 18th St, N.W., Washington, D.C. Visit www.VegDC.com for more information and RSVP at info@cok.net or 301-891-2458

Saturday, April 12 — Sakura Matsuri Street Festival. Martial arts demonstrations, traditional crafts and more. (Pennsylvania Ave. between Ninth and 14th Streets). Free. 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. 202-8332210.

Sunday, May 4 — Jackson Art Center Opening. Showcasing the works of artists in its Spring Open Studios. Jackson Art Center (R St. NW, between 31st and Avon Place). Free. 12 - 5 p.m. www. jacksonartcemter.com.

C������� S���������� Be sure to include time, location, cost of admission, contact person and any other pertinent information. Event listings will be edited for content and space limitations.

Please include any photos or artwork with submissions. Deadline is Monday at noon for the current week’s edition.

Email: calendar@fcnp.com Fax: 703-532-3396; Attn: FCNP Calendar Mail: 450 West Broad Street, #321, Falls Church, VA 22046

Page 28

The portal is about to open on a season dear to the Gaelic and Celtic folk of Ireland and Scotland and, indeed, their millions of descendants all over the U.S. March 20 brings in Alban Eiler, known elsewhere as the spring solstice or vernal equinox. Weather be damned, it means spring has arrived and will last until June 20, the longest day of the year, when we will encounter Alban Heruin, the summer solstice.

In between, we have such frolics as St. Patrick’s Day on March 17 and Tartan Day on April 6.

St. Patrick’s Day honors the patron saint of Ireland who drove the snakes into the sea where they became sharks, politicians and TV reality show producers. Tartan Day celebrates that time in 1320 when King Robert the Bruce and his Scottish parliament sent off a letter called the Declaration of Arbroath to the Pope in Rome asking him to get the English off their backs.

That worked so well that England rules Scotland to this day.

Both historic events, as well as the arrival of Easter, spring and a bunch of other traditional religious and secular days, will in this span be marked in many communities with once-a-year church attendance, parades, festivals, dances, silly hats and drink specials at your favorite pub -- featuring Scotch and Irish whiskies, in particular.

The line between Scotch and Irish distillations is blurry for some (although the Scots, along with Canadians, spell whiskey without the “e.”) The difference comes primarily in the malting stage.

For Scotch whisky, malted barley is dried over peat fires, which allows the smoke to penetrate the grain and create its signature smoky flavor. For Irish whiskey, malted barley is dried in closed ovens, avoiding contact with smoke.

In addition, Scotch whiskies usually are distilled twice, Irish whiskies three or four times, thus increasing their purity and smoothness. In some instances, further aging in used bourbon or sherry casks or a bit of blending creates a crossover taste between the two categories. As is the case with most such things, there is no right or wrong, best or worst. There is only personal preference.

Bushmills is an Irish whiskey preferred by many. It is turned out in the town of the same name by the world’s oldest whiskey distillery, located in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Sir Thomas Phillips founded it in 1608 under license from James I of England.

Bushmills products include 10-, 16- and 21- year-old single malts; Black Bush, aged 8 to 10 years then blended with a small portion of a delicate sweet single grain whiskey; Bushmills Cream, a sweet Irish cream liqueur concoction, and Bushmills Original, aged five years. All are smoothed out by aging in used bourbon or sherry casks, a touch also employed by some other Irish and Scotch distillers.

Bushmills 1608 ($100), recently released as part of the company’s 400th anniversary celebration, is a worthy special blend. Its crystal malt -- which has a crystallized appearance when moist, germinated barleycorns are lightly toasted -introduces a sweet, toffee note to the final product.

Among other popular Irish brands are Jamesons, Powers, Clontarf, Kilbeggan and Tullamore Dew. Virtually all offer a range of ages and strengths.

On the Scottish side of the equation, we run into a situation something akin to the vodka market: so many labels you need a directory to keep track.

Scotch export sales keep rising each year, with the U.S. still the leading consumer but places like China, India and the emerging economies of former Soviet Bloc nations increasing demand.

Atop the heap is Glenfiddich, the world’s top-selling Scotch.

The company made a particular splash last spring when it released its ‘72 Vintage Reserve, a mere 519 bottles extracted from just two numbered casks that had been aging nearly 30 years. Such events are treated with great reverence and jubilation in the whisky world.

The No. 2 distiller, The Glenlivet, is the source of one of my favorite Scotches, the 15-Year-Old French Oak Reserve ($49.95). This is a distinctly non-peaty Scotch, instead offering a sherrylike nose from being aged in Limousin French oak casks usually reserved for wine. That smooths the bite, adds a hint of spice, and provides a long, creamy aftertaste.

Whatever your choice, happy holidays.  William M. Dowd covers the world of adult beverages on BillDowd.com.

March 20 - 26, 2008

Hot & Cold Hands Late in a Tourney Playing hot and cold hands refers to the strategy of entering into a pot solely on the basis of the hand’s merit before the flop. Running a hand hot and cold generally means that you’re willing to play out your cards with no more betting after the flop.

Knowing how and when to play a hot and cold hand is especially important late in a tournament when escalating blinds and antes force players to move all-in rather than make standard sized raises.

When that happens, adjust your starting hand requirements by only playing hands that have a decent chance to win with no more betting after the flop.

Say, for example, you’re sitting at a nine-handed tournament table with a large stack in relation to the blinds. In this situation, even a hand like 4h-5h has value because if you hit a straight, flush, or better, you stand to win a substantial pot by getting fully paid off on your later bets. A hand like, K8 offsuit, though, would have negligible value -- unless your goal is to steal the blinds. And in that case, your hand is totally irrelevant anyway.

Let’s tweak the scenario a bit. You’re still at the ninehanded table but now it’s much later in the tournament and your stack is taking a beating.

Any raise will essentially commit all of your chips. That’s not good. In this situation, you’re going to have to wait for a hand that you can semi-confidently move all-in with.

The question is: With which hand would you rather gamble for all of your chips, 4h-5h or K-8 offsuit?

If you answered 4h-5h, you just might be too in love with suited connectors! The correct answer K-8 offsuit because that hand plays much better hot and cold.

Playing a loose-aggressive style with small suited connectors can be effective early in a tournament. Later, though, as blinds increase and your chips start to dwindle, stick to high card hands. True, 4h-5h plays better than K-8 when there’s a lot of post-flop action, but the K-8 will fare much better in this classic hot and cold scenario.

Face it, sometimes you’ll have to make a desperation move late in a tournament in an attempt to steal the blinds.

You’ll need cards that compete against a range of hands that any other player would

likely call with.

Small suited connectors will almost always be a substantial underdog. In our example, you’d be in huge trouble against any pair, fives or higher. And though you’d still likely be the underdog playing K-8, you’d actually be in much better shape. If your opponent has any pair, sevens through queens, spiking a king on the board will probably win you the pot.

Though I’ve used K-8 in this example, hands that increase most in value in hot and cold situations are those that contain an ace.

With an ace in your hand, you’ll only be a monster underdog against pocket bullets.

Even ace-deuce could be a slight favorite against an opponent who holds a seemingly more powerful hand like K-Q.

Get lucky with an a c e coming up on the board and your opponent is pretty much cooked. Didn’t catch an ace?

Well, he still needs to pair his king or queen to beat you.

So here’s the bottom line.

When you’re forced to move all-in late in a tournament, adjust your thinking away from playing “pretty” hands with implied odds. Instead, stick to hands that have a decent chance to win hot and cold.  Visit www.cardsharkmedia. com/book.html for information about Daniel Negreanu’s new book, Hold’em Wisdom for All Players. © 2008 Card Shark Media. All rights reserved.

Thai Restaurant and Bar Live Music

926 W. Broad St, Falls Church, VA, 22046 703-534-0095

Dinner: Tues-Sun: 5:00-10:00PM Fri & Sat 5:00-11:00PM Bar: Sun-Thurs 5:00-11:00PM Fri & Sat 5:00-1:30AM Live Music: Tues-Thu: 7:30-11:00PM Fri & Sat: 8:30-1:00AM, Sun: 7:00-10:30PM

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 29

Level: 1 3

2 4

SOLUTION TO LAST WEEK’S PUZZLE

3/23/08

© 2008 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Media Services. All rights reserved.

ACROSS 1. Doctor’s order 6. Understand 11. Orgs.

14. Where enfants learn 15. U.S. Grant’s adversary 16. The Wildcats of the NCAA 17. Sunday singers 18. Blue hue 19. VIP with an MBA, perhaps 20. Reason why pranksters Jennings and Rather got email accounts?

23. Helpful hints lady 26. Fit for sainthood 27. Can 28. Where ‘80s Defense Secretary Weinberger swims laps?

33. Proactiv target 34. Mob scenes 35. Sci-fi figures 36. Neuter one of the Beastie Boys?

39. Vanna’s cohost 42. Author Levi 43. Pilsner alternative 44. Something to contend with when trying to get into the Prado Museum or the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao?

49. “Superman” villain Luthor 50. Bearing 51. Put back in office 53. Modern-day luxury ... and a hint to this puzzle’s theme 58. “Car Talk” airer 59. White house?

60. Settle (on) 64. Neth. neighbor 65. On a scale of one ____ 66. They may become unhinged 67. They may be burned 68. “Doesn’t that strike you ____?”

69. Not let happen

Down 1. Jiffy 2. Alas, in Austria 3. “____-hoo!”

4. Youngest SCOTUS member 5. Valiant 6. They may be sour 7. “No god but God” author ____ Aslan

THE QUIGMANS Buddy Hickerson

1

2

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© 2008 David Levinson Wilk

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit www.sudoku.org.uk

crossword / By David Levinson Wilk

8. Grad 38. Film buff’s cable channel 9. Belgrade native 39. New to the beach, maybe 1.

10.Doctor's Gaze order 40. Baldwin of “30 Rock” 6.

11.Understand Kind of clock 41. College book 12. Orgs.

Common tie score in soccer 42. Huff and puff 11.

13.Where Ostentatious 44. Didn’t chug 14. enfants learn 21. Govt. agency that’s ass 45. Units of wisdom?

15. U.S. Grant's adversary backwards?

46. Actress Julia 16.

Wildcats of the NCAA 22.The Cries of surprise 47. Miniscule 17. singers 23.Sunday Confused state 48. “Gracias” reply 24.Blue “No hue ____” 50. “Hardball” broadcaster 18.

25.

“I think we should” 52. Statehouse official: Abbr.

19. VIP with an MBA, perhaps 29. Funnyman Richard 54. Moreno of “West Side Story” 20. Reason why pranksters Jennings and Rather got email accounts?

30. Goal 55. They may need massaging 23. lady S. Dutton 56. Voice above tenor 31.Helpful 1990s hints Charles 26.

Fit for sainthood sitcom 57. Pigeon-____ 32.Can Sch. group 61. Eggs at a sushi bar 27.

36. ____ Lanka 62. Blunder 28. Where '80s Defense Secretary Weinberger swims laps?

37. Fasten 63. Founded: Abbr.

Across

33. Proactiv target

Last Thursday’s Puzzle Solved 34. Mob scenes 35.

BSci-fi B figures C M O D E

E S T O W

R A H M A

A N A I A N N N

R K N O I A T M P H S I S T R L E A O R S

A W E N I N O

E M I T O N A N W I Z A R E A B A I T M O O G I D L O B N T A M A I E T A N E R S R I O D E Z E I N E S N S

G O L D A

O H I O U

S E L F

O N L O O O K S L E S T E R T A L T O R L E E P A I T A N A L I T O N

F R I Z Z L E

T Y E S A T

M O N A C O

E S T H E R

nick knack

© 2008 N. F. Benton

Page 30

March 20 - 26, 2008

Anthony’s Restaurant 309 W. Broad St., Falls Church • 703-5320100 •Type of Food: Greek, American & Italian Cuisine • Features: Breakfast (Sat & Sun Only) • Hours: Mon-Thurs -10 am - 11 pm, Fri - 10 am -12 am, Sat - 8 am - 12 am, Sun - 8 am - 10 pm

Argia’s Restaurant 124 N. Washington St., Falls Church • 703-5341033 • www.argias.com • Type of Food: Italian • Washingtonian’s 100 Very Best Restaurants, Zagat Rated, Full Bar, No Reservations • Hours: Lunch: Mon - Sat 11:30 am - 5 pm; Dinner: Mon - Thur 5 - 9:30 pm, Fri & Sat 5 - 10:30 pm, Sun 5 - 9 pm.

Bubba’s BBQ & Catering 7810-F Lee Hwy, Falls Church • 703-560-8570 • Type of Food: American/Family, Salads w/ Meat & Ribs • Features: Best BBQ East of Mississippi • Hours: Mon-Sat- 11 am - 9pm

Celebrity delly 7263-A Arlington Blvd. (Loehmann’s Plaza), Falls Church • 703-573-9002 • Type of Food: Delicatessen • Features: Catering, Sandwiches, Submarines, Soups & Salads • Hours: Mon-Fri - 9 am - 9 pm, Sat - 8 am - 9 pm, Sun - 8 am - 4 pm

Chicken Corner 2816 Graham Rd., Falls Church (Next to Magruder's) • 703-573-0112 • Type of Food: Peruvian Pollo • Features: Rotisserie Chicken, subs, salads, fresh fish • Hours: Mon-Thu - 10:30 a.m. - 9 pm - 9 pm, Fri-Sat - 10 am - 930 pm.

Frozen Dairy Bar & Boardwalk Pizza 6641 Arlington Blvd. (Sleepy Hollow Shopping Center), Falls Church • 703-534-4200 • Type of Food: Ice Cream and Pizza Parlor • Features: Catering, Homemade Frozen Custard, Pizza Subs. • Hours: Sun-Thur - 11 am - 10 pm, Fri & Sat - 11 am - Midnight

Harvest Moon Restaurant and Lounge 7260 Arlington Blvd. (Graham Center across from Loehmann’s Plaza), Falls Church • 703573-6000 • www.harvestmoon.com • Type of Food: Chinese • Features: Lunch / dinner buffets, banquet facilities up to 700 people • Hours: 11:30 a.m. - 9 p.m. daily.

Hoang’s Grill and Sushi Bar 502 W. Broad St., Falls Church • 703-536-7777 • Type of Food: Pan-Asian • Features: Single and Mingle Thursday Nights. • Hours: MonThurs 11 am - 10 pm, Fri-Sat 11 am - 10:30 pm, Sun - 11:30 am - 9:30 pm

Ireland’s Four Provinces 105 W. Broad St., Falls Church • www.4psfallschurch.com • 703-534-8999 • Type of Food: Irish • Features: Full Bar, Live Entertainment, Sunday Brunch • Hours: Daily - 11 am – 2 am

Koi Koi 450 W. Broad St., Ste. 117, Falls Church • 703-237-0101 • Type of Food: Japanese • Features: Sushi, Sashimi, Grill BBQ, Party Platters • Hours: Mon.–Fri. - 11 am – 10 p.m.; Sat.-Sun.: Noon - 10 p.m.

Ledo Pizza Restaurant & Pub 7510 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church • 703-8475336 • Type of Food: Pizza & Pasta, American/ Family • Features: Full Bar, Wine Menu, 5 TV’s-Sports • Hours: Mon-Thur - 11 am-10 pm; Fri-Sat - 11 am-11 pm; Sun - 12-10 pm

The Original Pancake House 370 West Broad Street, Falls Church • 703891-0148 • www.originalpancakehouse.com • Type of Food: American/Family • Features: Breakfast, Weekday Specials - Breakfast & Lunch • Hours: 7 am - 3 pm Daily

Red Hot & Blue 169 Hillwood Ave., (Hillwood Square), Falls Church • 703-538-6466 • Type of Food: Memphis Style Bar-b-que • Features: Full Service Catering and Delivery • Hours: Sun. - Thu. 11 am - 9 pm, Fri. & Sat. 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.

Robeks 1063 W. Broad St., (West End Plaza), Falls Church • 703-538-4111 • www.robeks.com • Type of Food: Smoothies, Juices, Wraps & Salads • Features: Catering • Hours: Mon. - Fri. 6 am - 9 pm, Sat. & Sun. 8 am - 9 pm.

Sign of the Whale 7279 Arlington Blvd. (Loehmann’s Plaza), Falls Church • 703-573-1616 • Type of Food: American • Features: Seafood Night and Steak Night • Hours: 11:30 am - 2 am, 7 days a week

Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant 6304 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church • 703-2373888; 2153 Chain Bridge Rd., Vienna • 703319-3888 • www.crystalsunflower.com • Type of Food: 99% vegan • Features: Japanese, Chinese, Continental • Hours: Mon-Sat 11:30 am - 10 pm; Sun 12 pm - 10 pm.

Sweet Rice Thai Restaurant 1113 W. Broad St. (next to Don Beyer Volvo), Falls Church • 703-241-8582 • Type of Food: Thai Cuisine • Features: Free delivery ($15 min., limited area) • Hours: Mon. - Thu. 11:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Dinner 5 p.m. - 10 p.m.; Fri. 11:30 am - 11 p.m.; Sat. Noon - 11 p.m.; Sun. Noon - 10 p.m.

Yorktown Bistro 5171 Lee Hwy, Arlington • www.yorktownbistro.com • 703-532-6060 • Type of Food: American/Wine Bar • Features: Romantic Bar and Lounge • Hours: Mon-Thurs - 11 am - 11 pm; Fri-Sat - 11 am - 12 am; Sun 11 am - 10 pm.

Falls Church News-Press Restaurant Guide Rates: $350 for 3 Months • $600 for 6 Months • $1000 for 1 Year

By Mike Hume Since opening the renowned Citronelle on M Street, Chef Michel Richard has piled up awards like “Titanic” at the Oscars. The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington named him Chef of the Year in 2002. AAA has given the restaurant four diamonds every year since 2001. Last year, Washingtonian named it D.C.'s top restaurant.

With credentials like those, you can understand the hype surrounding the opening of Richard's second D.C. restaurant, Central. With a twist on a number of traditional American dishes, a vibrant dining room and a location that makes it an attractive after-work stop for the downtown crowd, Central lives up to every bit of the lofty expectations that came along with Richard's sterling reputation.

To be sure, Central is a very different venue from the dress-to-the-nines Citronelle. Richard's newest restaurant, located on Pennsylvania Avenue, offers a more casual appeal. On two visits to the restaurant, patrons packed in — both around the bar and the modern dining room — and filled the air with a din that surely would have been shushed in most fine eateries. But while the fare, prepared deftly by Chef De Cuisine Cedric Maupillier, deserves your attention, the food is not the focus — a social atmosphere of happy diners is.

The menu offers a wide selection of American favorites (hamburger, rotisserie and fried chicken) presented with “a French flair.” Unlike its more expensive sibling, Citronelle, Central features a number of offerings that won't send you scurrying to the nearest lobbyist for help with the bill. The Hamburger is $16, while the Bangers and Mash, Tuna (or Shrimp) Burger, Fish and Chips, Pied de Cochon (foot of the pig), Mussels and Grilled Salmon all come in under $20. The dishes might be a tad more expensive than similar fare offered at, say, Ruby Tuesday, but consider too that you're only kicking in $5-8 extra to experience world-class cuisine. All in all, Central offers a touch of class for the working class, albeit a white-collar one.

The food itself is every bit as exceptional as you would expect from a restaurant bearing Richard's name. The nearly weightless Cheese Puffs are a smashing starter, and the Filet Mignon Tartare is highly recommended as an appetizer.

For your main course, the salmon — light and flaky and served with a cheese chip — is spot on, while the crab cake has no shortcomings to speak of.

As for sides, the cloud-like mashed potatoes are superb. The brussel sprouts even made me a fan, despite loathing them since my youth. Of course, covering the sprouts in a thick coat of crumbled bacon helped.

It should be noted that the portions are exceedingly ample, again catering to the after-work, group dynamic. Be prepared to share appetizers and side dishes.

The robust, and affordable, wine list is another plus. A bottle of wine, two or three appetizers and a group of five coworkers could enjoy an up-scale — and filling — happy hour for less than $15 per person.

The drawbacks I have found are few. Some of the dishes, notably the braised rabbit with spaetzle, are very heavy and may not sit well on a warm Washington summer night. And while delicious, the Lobster Burger — a patty of lobster served sandwich-style with a Remoulade sauce over a juicy tomato slice and two superthin potato crackers — did not warrant its $33 price tag.

Conversation was sometimes challenging, as the restaurant was noisy on both a Friday and Saturday evening. However, quiet meals are not what Central is serving.

With moderate prices largely below the going rate for fine cuisine, and a vibrant atmosphere, Central is certainly worth a look ... as soon as you can get reservations anyway.

Michel Richard's Central 1001 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, D.C. 202-626-0015 Lunch: Mon. - Fri.: 11:45 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Dinner: Mon. - Thurs.: 5 - 10:30 p.m.; Fri. - Sat.: 5 - 11 p.m.; Sun.: 5 – 10 p.m.

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 31

VELOCITY FIVE SPORTS RESTAURANT & BAR 8111 LEE HIGHWAY FALLS CHURCH, VA 22042

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Transportation issues have kept us out of art galleries this week, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get into them.

Artist Opportunities ‘Rosebud Film and Video Festival’ Arlington’s big yearly film festival is currently seeking entries for this year’s events.

Twenty finalists will be selected for screening, with the top five screened at a special presentation gala event. Those five will each receive a $1,000 cash award, with the grand prize winner receiving an additional $500 worth of video tape and production services courtesy of Arlington Independent Media.

Works submitted must have had their first release since Jan. 1, 2006. Entry fee for the competition is $25, which includes a one-year membership in Arlington Independent Media. Entries are due March 30. For complete details, call Jackie Steven at 703-524-2388, or see www.RosebudFestival. org.

‘Arlington Youth Film Festival’ An off shoot of the Rosebud Film Festival, this one is for middle and high school kids residing in Arlington County.

Prizes will be awarded in the High School division.

Deadline for entries is May 2.

No entry fee is mentioned for this one. For complete details, call Jackie Steven at 703-5242388.

‘Once Again, Again; Rhythm And Repetition’ Held by McLean Project for the Arts, the delivery deadline for entries is 5 p.m. on April 11. A cash prize package of $1,500 will be awarded by juror Annie Gawlak, Director of G Fine Arts, Washington, D.C. Mid-Atlantic artists (D.C., Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia) may submit up to four images via CD, with a $25 entry fee. For further information, call 703-

March 20 - 26, 2008

790-1953, or see See www. mpaart.org.

This show is seeking art works that “employ multiple images or repetition as concept and/or technique will be considered. Works moving beyond traditional forms and media are encouraged.”

We can’t speak for the juror, but it’s fairly safe to assume that the same image repeatedly printed out in a variety of colors — aping Andy Warhol — isn’t going to work here. That’s been done a few thousand times too many for this crowd to bite on that lure.

Note: Applications for the Fall 2008 Art Fest at MPA are being accepted through May 1.

‘Uncommon Beauty’ Postmarked deadline for entries is April 18 for this show to be held at Arlington Ellipse Arts Center in conjunction with the Washington Project for the Arts. Considered work must be photo- or video-based, dealing with the notion of feminine beauty.

“The overall focus of the exhibition is not our society’s obsession with diet fads, obesity, and cosmetic intervention. Instead, the exhibition seeks to investigate the underpinnings of beauty and imperfection; how standards and ideals become formed and perceived; and the dynamics of self-esteem, self-hate and acceptance. The intent is to offer something different, unexpected, positive or ambivalent; something that problematizes the notion of beauty without merely bashing it.”

There is a maximum of 10 still images or three video works that may be submitted.

For complete details, see www.wpadc.org/events/calls. html.

‘Artist in Residency/ Installation Project’ The deadline for proposals is May 5 for this solo opportunity at the Target Gallery in the Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, Va. They are looking for an artist to install and work on the art-

work over a two-week period.

Wording in the press release seems to favor process over content ... not that your proposal should be devoid of content. The juror will be George Mason University art professor Dale Ihnken. For further information, see www.torpedofactory.org and click on Target Gallery.

- 10 p.m. in the Atrium at Meadowlark Botanical Garden in Vienna. For more information or to make a donation, email maryll@verizon.net, or call Maryll Kleibrink at 703237-2249 ext. 14.

‘Silent Auction Benefit For Kokolopori: Call for Donations of Art Works’

Though the event dates seem far away, some of the deadlines are closer than you’d suspect. For further information, call 703-248-5077. Forms and details can be downloaded at www.fallschurchva. gov/community/recsandparks/ VendorApplications.html.

The silent auction, featuring Congolese music and food, will benefit maternal and child health in Kokolopori, Falls Church’s sister city in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The event will be held Thursday, May 1, from 7

Falls Church City Craft Shows 2008: Calls for Vendors and Artists

• Monday, May 26: 27th Annual Memorial Day Parade and Festivities. A non-juried

outdoor show, rain or shine.

Application deadline: Friday, March 28 • Saturday, Sep. 13: 33rd Annual Falls Church Fall Festival and Taste of Falls Church. A non-juried outdoor show, rain or shine.

Application deadline: Friday, June 27 • Saturday, Dec. 6 and Sunday, Dec. 7: 16th Annual Holiday Craft Show. A juried indoor show. Application deadline: Monday, July 28.  The Northern Virginia Art Beat is compiled by Kevin Mellema. See www.fcnp.com for photos and more. To email submissions, send them to mulsane@aol.com.

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 33

“Moon over Buffalo” is the latest production by the veteran community theatre troupe, The Providence Players of Fairfax at the James Lee Community Center Theatre in Falls Church.

The zany greek-like comedy, written by Ken Ludwig in 1953 and set in Buffalo, New York in the 1950s, is filled with misunderstandings, mistaken identity and physical comedy as a source of humor.

The madcap farce focuses on the careers of a husband and wife stage touring acting team of George and Charlotte Hay, strongly portrayed by Patrick David and Beth Whitehead respectively.

The scene opens in the middle of their performance of Cyrano de Bergerac and then moves backstage introducing Charlotte’s old deaf mother, Ethel, who doubles as their stage manager and can’t stand her son-in-law, George. Ethel is hilariously well played by Jayne Victor.

George and Charlotte have aspired to be successful Hollywood stars and hope finally to get a break in Frank Capra’s “The Scarlet Pimpernel.” They learn from their agent that Capra

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is heading to Buffalo to catch their live act of Noel Coward’s “Private Lives” as an audition after his original lead, Ronald Coleman, has an accident.

But chaos ensues as their daughter Roz (Susanna Rosenbaum) shows up with her surprise fiancé, and as George gets caught in a secret affair with another actress, Eileen (Mary Goss). Charlotte is torn by her big screen ambition and her anger and hurt over the illicit relationship. She is also tempted to run away by her long-term admirer, attorney to the stars Richard played by Mario Font.

The acting is high quality and the set is very elaborate for local theatre. The costumes were excellent, especially the uniforms.

For more info on Providence Players, visit their website at www.providenceplayers.org Their spring production will be “Steel Magnolias” opening this May.

An Exclusive Invitation to Brighton Gardens of Arlington

Alzheimer’s Caregiver Workshop Series Guiding Families Through the Journey with Brighton Gardens of Arlington Providing direct care to a loved one with Alzheimer’s or dementia can be a rewarding, exhausting and frustrating experience. Sunrise Senior Living understands and has been assisting families with Alzheimer’s and dementia care since 1981.

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Over a six-month period, this series will cover: ÊÊÊUÊ >À }]Ê « }Ê> `Ê1 `iÀÃÌ> ` }Ê i i Ì > ÊÊÊUÊ i> Ì ÞÊ À> Ê } } ÊÊÊUÊ7 ÃiÊ i >Û ÀÊ ÃÊ,i> ÞÊÌ iÊ*À L i ¶Ê-ÌÀ>Ìi} ià ÊÊÊÊÊÊÌ Ê iÃÌÊ > >}iÊ > i } }Ê ÀÊ1 Ü> Ìi`Ê i >Û ÀÃÊ

Alzheimer’s Caregiver Workshop Series Co-sponsored by the Alzheimer’s Association of the National Capital Area

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ÊÊÊUÊ > >} }Ê >Ài} ÛiÀÊ-ÌÀiÃà ÊÊÊUÊ «iÊ/ À Õ} Ê Ü i`}iÊ Ê,iÃi>ÀV ÊÌ >ÌÊ «>VÌà ÊÊÊÊÊÊ i i Ì >° -«i> iÀÃÊ>ÀiÊ«À Û `i`ÊLÞÊ/ iÊ â i iÀ½ÃÊ Ãà V >Ì of the National Capital Area.

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Brighton Gardens of Arlington

RSVP to Gary Hughes at 703-294-6875 or Arlingtonbg.dcr@sunriseseniorliving.com Sunrise Senior Living is committed to furthering the knowledge of senior living topics through events and seminars designed to help and inform seniors and their caregivers.

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`i«i `i ÌÊ Û }ÊUÊ Ãà ÃÌi`Ê Û }ÊUÊ â i iÀ½ÃÊ >Ài For more information and a FREE online newsletter, visit www.sunriseseniorliving.com

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March 20 - 26, 2008

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HELP WANTED Sheet Metal Mechanic or experienced helper.

Dixie Sheet Metal. 703/533 -1111.

HELP WANTED pie-tanza, Gourmet Wood-Fired Pizza & Italian Fare, is now hiring FT & PT Servers, Hosts, Cashier and Food Runners for the opening of our Falls Church location (located next to the West Falls Church Metro). If you want to make GREAT money and have a flexible schedule please apply in person at 1216 W. Broad Street, Falls Church Mamgers will be on site conductiong interviews 10am - 6pm Tuesday (March 25) Wednesday (March 26) and Thursday (March 27) www.pietanza.com

Interior Painting and Installation & Repairs on marble, tiles & stone. Call Jose 703-909-2715

CONDOMINIUM FOR RENT Falls Church City, Very good location, 2BR, 1 BA,, Bright w/ Nice Balcony. Available Immediately $1500. (703) 533-8811 OR (703) 930 - 3518

FOR RENT - FALLS CHURCH CITY Spectacular 2BR+den, 21/2 BA condo in THE Byron. Former model loaded with upgrades. Over 1800 sq.ft. . 2 garage parking places. $3150/mo.

Call Rosemary Hayes Jones, Long & Foster - 703905-7206

ORLANDO/DISNEY 3m from Disney 5br, 4fba, furn beautiful home w/ pool for Daily & Wkly Rental. Sleeps 12. Brochure.

703-241-1537 www.360house.com/76559

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Excellent

HOUSE CLEANING SERVICE Available 7 days a week. Week, biweekly, monthly or one time. Good references in Falls Church City.

10 years experience. For further information call me at 703-848-8322. Senior discount, Ask: Susy.

HOUSE CLEANING SERVICE

Services

Low rates. Good references. Call Dolores 571/2321091.

A&R HOME IMPROVEMENT Interior & Exterior Painting, Drywall Repairs and Installation, Wood Replacement, Bath Remodeling, Stone and Brick Patios, Pressure Washing, Outdoor Illumination. We are licensed and insured.

Call for free estimate - 703-992-7040 Cell: 571-436-3382

CHILD CARE Experienced childcare provider provides quality care for your infant in F.C. home. (703) 241-0605.

GIT RID OF IT For Removal of Junk, Trash, Yard Debris, Appliances, Furniture & Estate clean-ups. Call 703-533-0094/571-251-5962

DIGITAL TRANSFERS Record and tapes to CD. Home videos to DVD. WWW.SAVEITONCD.COM 703-263-9212

GREAT CLEANING SERVICE great references, excellent job call Maria 703.277.1098/703.626.0665

HANDYMAN SERVICE Windows, doors, rotted wood, petdoors, lighting, fans, faucets, fences, bath, Flat screen TV installation and kitchen remodeling. Insured Free estimates. Call Doug (703) 556-4276 www.novahandyman.com

Note Temporary Deadlines Next MONDAY 2 p.m.

HOUSE CLEANING BY JAKELIN Licensed, Honest, Experienced, References. Call 703-863-3821

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JUST CALL JEFF

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES

Need a little help before you need a lot of help?

Call us for brick, stone and all types of repairs and installation. Powerwashing too. Jeff Cadle 703/698-1390

DESPINA STAMATAKIS

PUBLIC AUCTION

Please call Katherine Church @ 703671-1515

Notice is hearby given that the contents of the following rental storage spaces located at Fort Knox Self Storage will be offered for sale.

MARIAS HOUSE CLEANING Good References & experience, 703-395-5971 or 703-231-4135

ABC License

PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES

ORGANIZING

RW& B Inc (DBA Red, White & Bleu Wine and Gourmet) is applying for a beer and wine license through the Virginia ABC. Our address will be 127 S. Washington Street in Falls Church, VA. Owners RW&B Inc, Contact Adam Roth 703-9273225.

Unit Unit Unit Unit Unit Unit

Having the need to become better organized? This is the time to do it. Don’t go at it alone - this is what I do best. Let’s get started! Call 703.981.6993

PUBLIC NOTICE CITY OF FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA

Sale will be held at 2933 Telestar Ct. Falls Church, VA. (703) 698-0022. Thursday March 27, 2008. 1:00 pm. Terms: Cash only. Locks cut at auction.

MORALES LANDSCAPE & LAWN CARE Spring Clean - Up, Mulching, seeding & many others. Call David (o) 703-502-3990 or (c) 571-2214330

PROPERTY IMPROVEMENT and renovations, reasonable rates, painting, drywall, carpentry, deck, fence, siding, tile, electrical, plumbing. FREE ESTIMATES. Please call 703655-2838.

REMODELING & HOME IMPROVEMENT We do: Bath Remodeling - Tile Repair - Ceramic Installation (Back Splash) - Drywall - Stone & Brick Patios - Power Washing. Free Estimate License & Insurance.

571-201-5046 or Luis_4uuu&hotmail.com

Note Temporary Deadlines Next MONDAY 2 p.m.

The News-Press Classifieds

PLANNING COMMISSION PUBLIC HEARING On Monday, April 7, 2008 (Planning Commission) at 7:45 p.m. will hold a public hearing during their regularly scheduled meeting, in the City Council Chambers, 300 Park Avenue, Falls Church Virginia 22046, on the following application: Resolution (TR8-17) Amending and Reenacting Resolution 200430 granting Special Exception Application SE04-0162, for an existing mixed use development, specifically the portion located at 400 S. Maple Avenue know as the Tax Analyst office building.

The Special Exception amendment is required to permit medical office or service uses to occupy a portion of the existing office building first floor commercial space reserved for retail uses.

Interested persons may appear and present their views on the proposed amendment. Information or copies of the plans are available in the City's Planning Division, at 300 Park Avenue, Falls Church VA., Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., 703-248-5040

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137 Roger Pol 141 Roger Pol 234 Tina Graham 336 Fantip Ari Wibowo 601 Norman Hazur 706 Michael Richardson

CBIRT PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE Wednesday, 26 March 2008 - 9 AM City Hall - Planning Conference Room (G-04) The City's Chesapeake Bay Interdisciplinary Review Team (CBIRT) will review the following project for compliance with the Chesapeake Bay Protection Ordinance's (CBPO) General Performance Criteria to ensure that the development disturbs the environment and water quality as little as possible.

Application CB08-03, Proposal to install rip-wrap to stabilize the stream bank and to install a 36" wide mulch path along a portion of the stream at 513 West Broad Street within the Chesapeake Bay Resource Protection Area (RPA) The CBIRT will not review aesthetics, construction scheduling, massing, or functionality. Concerns other than CBPO General Performance Criteria should be directed to the appropriate City staff prior to the meeting.

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March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 35

Professional Services

Professional Services

Walsh & Assoc.

PC Attorneys

COMPUTER REPAIR

•Injury cases & Death cases •Medical/Legal malpractice •Breach of contract •Commerical/Insurance • Car accidents Free Consultation 703-448-0073 Hablamos Español 703-798-3448

• Affordable Rates • Certified Technicians

Home Improvement WILLIAMS PLUMBING For Plumbing & Tile Work call: 703/241-5789 (home) 571/274-6831 (cell) Since 1981

VA License #2705 023803

703-496-7807

XI

XII

I

X

II

IX

III

VIII

QUALITY REPAIR

IIII VII

VI

V

•JERRY DONNELLY • FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA

• (703) 536-6731

Neurofeedback Center of Virginia LLC,

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703-532-3267

DOORS GUTTERS

WINDOWS

REPAIRS

703-560-7663

ShinerRoofing.com/FallsChurch

Roof Replacements Rubber Roofs • Flat Roofs Leak Specialists • Roof Coatings Chimney • Repair Facia&Soffit Decks Built&Repaired • Coatings Wood Repair • Drywall Repair Gutters • Siding • Ext.&Int. Painting 24 hr. Emergency Service

Mike’s Carpet Cleaning 5 Rooms deep cleaned only $98 •Stretching•Mold Remediation •Oriental Rugs•Upholstery•Pet Problems • 24 Hour Emergency Water Damage We Clean the White House!

Call Mike 703-978-2270

Other Services

J. NINA PLUMBING Repair, Remodeling, New, 20 years experience For New and Remodeling Free Estimates Call

(571) 214-3006

M.D. PAINTING AND DECORATING CO.

• Interior • Exterior • Dry Wall Repair • Wallpaper Removal and Paint• • Deck & Wood Pressure Wash and Sealant• • Reasonable Prices • Small and Big Jobs• • Good Quality • Painting and Finishing• • Licensed and Insured• Call for Free Estimate Cell: (703) 966-2954

MOTTERN MASONRY DESIGN Specializing in custom firplaces, patios, walkways, walls, driveways.

Small and large repairs.

Free estimates Licensed and insured.

All work guaranteed.

703-496-7491

www.motternmasonry.com JOSEPH HOME IMPROVEMENT Drywall • Paint Exterior / Interior, Bath & Kitchen Remodeling, Basements, Handyman, Moving, Clean Garage, All kinds of hauling Licensed Work

Cell 703-507-5005 Tel 703-507-8300

Home Improvement

(571) 330-3705

Driveways • Steps Sidewalks • Patios Small Jobs Welcome

Licensed and Insured. Free Estimates.

With Personal Service

Lawn & Garden

Miss Theresa

Psychic & Taro Card Reading Advise & Help with All Problems such as: Love, Business & Relationships See What the Future Holds for You All Readings $10.00

Call 301-317-7965

Seven Brothers Landscaping Service

Make a Joyful Splash!

703-241-4990

Create unique art masterpieces using acrylics, water-based oils, pencils and an innovative variety of tools and brushes.

Spring Cleanup, mulching, mowing, edging, trimming.

Residential & Commercial Tree Service & Snow Removal

Spring Special •Yard Cleanup •Mulching • Edging • Trimming • Pruning • Planting & Removal • Lawn Care • Power Washing • Deck • Siding • Painting • Hardscapes • Other repair services

Free Estimates

703-508-3976 or 703-323-9251

Weaver Enterprises

with

Eileen Levy

Held at 111 Park Avenue Falls Church on Tuesday Evenings from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm Cost: $90 On-going monthly enrollment Enroll on-line at www.creativecauldron.org Or call 571-239-5288

Food & Dining

Kitchens & Bathrooms Tile • Hardwood Floors Wood Trim • Painting • Drywall

www.bentonpotter.com

In Falls Church 703-992-9255, in D.C. 202-416-1660

ROOFING SIDING & TRIM

Joseph

Benton & Potter, P.C. Government contract law, all areas of business and corporate law.

James Roofing & Home Improvements

Cleaning Services

Licensed Free Estimates 703-593-3383

www.fastteks.com

FALLS CHURCH

Home Improvement

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NOTICED! in the News-Press

Ask about our specials!

Free Estimates Call 703-503-0350 Licensed and Insured

Ledo Pizza Caterers Tysons Station • 7510 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, VA

(703) 847-5336

Pizza • Pasta • Wings • Subs • Salads • Desserts

www.FCNP.COM

REMODELING & ADDITION, CERAMIC, TILE, FINISHED CARPENTRY, CROWN MOLDING, CHAIRS, DECK RAILS, STAIR, WINDOWS, DOORS, CONCRETE, SIDEWALKS, DRIVEWAYS, BRICK INSTALLED & REPAIRED

703-532-3267 Phone # Cell Number

703-848-8322 703-901-2431

Ask about our specials!

703-532-3267 to advertise!

Business & Service Directory 1 x 1” Ad 3 mo. = $220 • 6 mo. = $420 • 1 yr. = $770 1 x 1.5” Ad 3 mo. = $330 • 6 mo. = $630 • 1 yr. = $1155 1 x 2” Ad 3 mo. = $440 • 6 mo. = $840 • 1 yr. = $1540

1 x 2” ad 1 x 1.5” ad 1 x 1”

Page 36

March 20 - 26, 2008

Mayor Robin S. Gardner . . . . . . . . . .

Vice Mayor M. R. Lindy Hockenberry . . . .

City Council David C. Chavern . . . . . . . . . .

Harold Lippman. . . . . . . . . . .

Daniel Maller . . . . . . . . . . . . .

David F. Snyder. . . . . . . . . . . .

Daniel X. Sze . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

City Manager Wyatt Shields. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Home Page <www.fallschurchva.gov> * Indicates TTY 711 Accessibility

MARCH 20 School Spring Break/ No School for Students

Street Sweeping for Areas South of Broad Street

City Meals Tax Due (Commissioner of the Revenue)

Story Hour, 10:30 a.m.

Human Services Advisory Council, 7 p.m.

First Day of Spring

21 School Spring Break/ No School for Students

Good Friday 22 Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-Noon Easter Egg Hunt at Cherry Hill Park, 10 a.m.

Easter

Story Hour, 10:30 a.m.

Easter Egg Hunt Rain Date, 4 p.m.

City Council, 7:30 p.m.

Volunteer Fire Department Training, 7:30 p.m.

Story Hour, 10:30 a.m.

School Board, 7:30 p.m.

26 General District Court in Session

Story Hour, 7 p.m.

Environmental Services Council, 7:30 p.m.

27 Story Hour, 10:30 a.m.

Annual Easter Egg Hunt This Saturday The Recreation & Parks Division will host its annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 22 at 10 a.m. in Cherry Hill Park (312 Park Ave.).

In addition to scrambling for eggs and candy, children are invited to meet the Easter Bunny. Please bring a basket to collect eggs. This event is FREE.

Call for volunteers! Volunteers are needed from 8 a.m.-noon the day of the event. Call Jenny Elmore at 703248-5199 (TTY 711) to volunteer.

Historic Architectural Review Board, 7:30 p.m.

28 Armchair Travel Group, 10:30 a.m.

29 Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-Noon 31 Yard Waste, Bundled Brush, & Special Collections

Story Hour, 10:30 a.m.

City Council Work Session, 7:30 p.m.

Student Artwork Available for Pickup All artwork submitted to the 2007 Student Art Contest can be picked up from the Office of Communications in City Hall, 300 Park Ave., East Wing, third floor, Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

Register for the City’s Online Newsletter at www.fallschurchva.gov

Register to Receive Emergency Alerts

The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation for any type of disability, call 703-248-5077 (TTY 711).

Youth Classes

Beginner Horseback Riding (ages 14 and older) Thursdays, March 27-May 1, 11 a.m.-noon or 7:30-8:20 p.m.

Camp Olympia Riding Center, Rockville, MD Learn grooming, saddling, stopping, steering, and posting the trot. Long pants and smooth, hard soled shoes are required. NO tennis shoes, hiking boots, or slip-ons. Helmets are provided by the facility. Weight limit 200 lbs. Transportation is not provided.

Tiny Tunes (ages birth-17 months) Wednesday, April 9, 11:15 a.m. or noon Community Center, 223 Little Falls St. Beloved teacher Susan Hayes delights the tiniest learners with music, movement, puppetry, and sign language! Call 703-248-5077 (TTY 711) to reserve your spot.

Basic Beading for Beginners Adults Thursday, March 27, 7-9 p.m.

Learn the basic techniques for making your own unique jewelry. Using simple tools and quality materials, you will string and finish your own beaded necklace, bracelet, and matching earrings.

View samples or contact the instructor with questions at www.joiedebeads.com.

Classic Tales ‘n Tunes (ages 1 ½-4 with adult) Saturday, April 5, 9:30 or 10:30 a.m.; Wednesday, April 9, 9:15 or 10:15 a.m.

Community Center, 223 Little Falls St. Preview this outstanding theme-oriented program of stories, music, movement, and puppetry, enriched with Spanish and American Sign Language! FREE, but space is limited. To register, call 703-248-5077 (TTY 711).

The following requires paid registration. Call 703-248-5077 (TTY 711) for more information.

Enter Your Masterpiece in the 4th Annual Falls Church City Art Show & Sale Calling all artists – now is the time to get creative! The Recreation & Parks Division will present its 4th Annual Art Show & Sale next month and City residents and employees of all ages are invited to submit original artwork to the show (limit two submissions per person).

Thoroughly Modern Millie at Riverside Dinner Theater Thursday, March 27, 5:30-11:30 p.m.

Experience this Broadway musical from your dining table. Everyone is dancing the Charleston in a 1920s New York full of intrigue, jazz, and change.

Enter young Millie Dillmount from Kansas, intent on becoming “modern” and marrying a wealthy executive.

Photography, paintings (watercolor, oil, or acrylic), and drawings (pencil or pastel) of any size will be accepted. Submissions can be framed or unframed.

All artwork may be submitted to the Falls Church Community Center (223 Little Falls St.) beginning Monday, April 21 and no later than

noon on Friday, April 25. Artists must include their name, phone number, and selling price (if interested in selling the artwork) on the back of each entry. Submissions from children K-12 must include their grade and age.

The opening reception for the free Art Show & Sale will be held at the Community Center on Friday, April 25 from 5-7 p.m. The Exhibition and Sale, also at the Community Center, will be held on Saturday, April 26 from noon-4 p.m.

For more information, call 703-2485077 (TTY 711).

Free Rape Aggression Defense Course The City’s Police Department is offering a FREE Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) program of realistic self-defense tactics and techniques for women, 12 years of age and older. The course is offered in four, three-hour sessions. Classes will be held at St. James School (830 W. Broad St., Falls Church) on Tuesdays, Apr. 8 and 15 and Thursdays, Apr. 10 and 17 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The R.A.D. System is a comprehensive, women-only course that addresses awareness, prevention, risk reduction, risk avoidance, and the basics of hands-on self-defense training. R.A.D. is not a martial arts program. Nationally certified R.A.D. instructors from the City Police Department teach the course.

Become a Certified Emergency Volunteer Responder The City of Falls Church will offer its first Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training course this April and May. Emergency responders will train residents and businesses in basic response skills, including disaster preparedness, fire safety, disaster medical operations, search and rescue team organization, disaster psychology, and more.

CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for the Falls Church City area.

Class schedule and registration information is available at www.fallschurchvfd.org. The course is free and open to persons ages 18 and up. The course takes approximately 30 hours to complete, and classes meet on a series of Wednesday evenings and a few Saturdays.

Registration is on a first-come, firstserved basis with initial preference given to Falls Church City residents.

FOR THE WEEK of

Classes and Events

Medieval Times Saturday, March 22, 3-10 p.m.

Set within the walls of an 11th century Europeanstyle castle,this live horse show recreates a Middle Ages tournament featuring valiant knights and powerful stallions. The fee ($54 children 12 and under; $63 adults) includes a four-course meal, tax, gratuity, transportation, and the show.

For more information on the Easter Egg Hunt, call 703-248-5178.

23 Community Center, Library Closed

25 Juvenile & Domestic Relations Court in Session

Questions or Comments? City of Falls Church, Harry E.Wells Building, 300 Park Avenue, Falls Church,VA 22046 703-248-5003 (TTY 711)

In the event of rain, the Easter Egg Hunt will be held on Monday, March 24 at 4 p.m. in Cherry Hill Park.

Street Sweeping for Areas South of Broad Street

24 Yard Waste, Bundled Brush, & Special Collections

provided as a public service by the city of falls church

The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act.This document will be made available in alternate format upon request. Call 703-248-5003 (TTY 711).

city calendar

The Week

703-534-8644 703-241-0934 703-538-2398 703-237-9089 703-731-8433 703-241-0419 703-538-5986 703-248-5004*

Homework and Organization I (ages 8 and older) Saturday, March 29, 10 a.m.-noon Learn how to organize your activities and environment,so that you can be more independent.Bring any issues that you may have with homework or organization and your hardest assignments.

Bellobration Friday, April 4, 5 p.m. or Saturday, April 5, 1 p.m.

George Mason University Patriot Center (transportation provided) Bring your family to see Bello, the daredevil clown, acrobats,elephants,horses,tigers and more! Before the show,step onto the arena floor for an all-access pre-show with dancers, clowns, and other stars of the show! Registration ends March 29.

City of Falls Church Farmers Market Every Saturday from 9 a.m. - Noon

Sign Up for a Summer Sports Camp Mustang Baseball Camp - June 16-20 Are you a baseball player looking to improve your skills? Directed by the George Mason High School (GMHS) varsity coach, campers will learn skills in fielding (infield and outfield), hitting, base running, and game situations. This camp is designed for boys and girls ages 8-13. Each participant will receive a T-shirt.

Mustang Basketball Camp - June 16-20 Presented by GMHS Varsity Basketball coaches, this camp is designed for campers ages 8-13 who want to improve their basketball skills. Campers will receive a T-shirt and a basketball.

Mustang High School Basketball Skills Camps - June 23-July 18 These high-level skills camps are run under the direction of GMHS boys and girls basketball coaches.

Camps are designed for rising 8th through 12th grade players who have high school level basketball aspirations. Camps will cover offensive and defensive skill sets and will help prepare all participants for a higher level of basketball. Camps will cover position breakdown, drill work, and game situations.

For more information on these and other summer camps, contact the Recreation & Parks Division at 703-248-5077 (TTY 711). The 2008 Summer Camps Brochure can also be viewed online at www.fallschurchva.gov.

Book Collection Drive The Falls Church Area American Association of University Women (AAUW) is collecting books for its annual book sale to be held on April 11 and 12 at the Falls Church Community Center. The book sale benefits scholarship programs for women.

The AAUW needs all kinds of books, hardcovers, paperbacks, novels, non-fiction, children’s, cookbooks, etc., that are suitable for re-sale (no magazines, encyclopedias, text books, or damaged books, please). To arrange for your tax-deductible donation of books, call 703-941-5643.

Falls Church Recreation & Parks Division 223 Little Falls Street Falls Church, VA 22046 703-248-5077* Phone Numbers Open Gym/Weather Hotline 703-248-5125* Special Events Hotline 703-248-5178* Fax 703-536-5125 Senior Center 703-248-5020*/21* Community Center Hours Monday-Thursday 8 a.m. - 10:30 p.m.

Friday 8 a.m. - Midnight Saturday 8:30 a.m. - Midnight Sunday Noon - 6 p.m.

Open Gym Hours Open Gym hours are updated on a bi-weekly basis and are also posted on the Open Gym Hotline, 703-248-5125*. All hours are subject to change. * Indicates TTY 711 Accessibility

March 20 - 26, 2008

Page 37

ly Focus

Chairman: Craig Cheney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Vice Chairman: Ronald Peppe II . . . . . . . . . .

School Board Rosaura Aguerrebere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kathryn Chandler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Susan Kearney. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Kieran Sharpe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Joan Wodiska. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Superintendent: Dr. Lois Berlin . . . . . . . . . . .

government and the falls church city public schools

mArch 20-26, 2008

For more news about the Falls Church City Public Schools visit: www.fccps.org

2008 Triennial School Census Underway The Falls Church City Public Schools will join Virginia’s 131 other school divisions in conducting the 2008 Triennial School Census of children. The census count is conducted every three years, and the data are used to determine how much sales tax revenue is returned to local communities.

“It is important for all families with children up to 19 years of age to respond to the census, even if their children attend private or parochial schools, are home-schooled, or are away in the military or at college,” said Hunter Kimble, Assistant Superintendent of Finance.

“Otherwise, the city will receive less than its fair share of state sales tax revenue.”

projections for future needs. These data include information on preschoolers, toddlers and infants.

The commonwealth returns 1.125 percent of the revenue collected through the five percent state sales and use tax to localities to support public education, which is approximately $1.1 billion for the current fiscal year. The money may be used by school divisions for operations, maintenance, capital projects and debt service.

Falls Church City residents will soon receive information in the mail regarding the triennial school census. Residents may respond online at www.fccps.org/census or they may return the form by fax or mail to the school board’s Central Office.

An accurate count of schoolage children is expected to generate nearly $1,000 per child per year for Falls Church City. Even if residents don’t have children, it is important that they respond to the census to ensure a complete count that includes all households.

The school census count of children also helps school Completing the triennial school census online takes divisions measure current less than five minutes of your time, but means population trends and make thousands of dollars for local schools.

FCC-TV Spotlight: 2008 Falls Church Chamber of Commerce Awards Gala Tune in to Falls Church Community Television (FCC-TV) to watch the 2008 Falls Church Chamber of Commerce Awards Gala. See who received awards for their contributions of time and talent to the Falls Church community. The program will air on FCC-TV at the following times: • Sunday, March 23rd at 10:00 a.m. • Monday, March 24th at 10:00 a.m. • Tuesday, March 25th at 12:00 p.m.

• Sunday, March 30th at 11:00 a.m. • Monday, March 31st at 7:30 p.m.

FCC-TV airs on Cox Channel 12, Verizon Channel 35 and RCN Channel 2. For more information about FCC-TV, or for a complete schedule of programs on FCC-TV, visit www.fcctv.net or call 703-248-5538.

BIE Partner of the Week Tomoko Kawasumi & Kiki Organic Doggy Kitchen School involvement: Read to Thomas Jefferson Elementary students for Read Across America week.

Why Tomoko is a BIE partner: “It was fun to bring Kiki to see the students. We both really enjoyed reading to them. As a small business owner, I am grateful for the support of the community, and am happy to give back however I can.”

Why Kiki is a BIE partner: “Howwwl!” The Husky helped students practice how to safely greet a doggy.

For more information about sharing your expertise through the BIE Partnership, visit www.fccps.org or contact Marybeth Connelly at connellym@fccps.org.

School content published in The Weekly Focus is written and edited by the Falls Church City Public Schools. For more information, contact the Falls Church City Public Schools Communications Office. Phone: (703) 248-5699 Fax: (703) 248-5613.

703-237-6931 703-534-4951 703-536-8638 703-536-7564 703-532-0321 703-536-3130 703-533-1248 703-248-5601*

* Indicates TTY 711 Accessibility

School Board Opposes State Funding Changes The Falls Church City School Board is sending a strong message to the Virginia General Assembly that changes in the state’s funding formula is not in the best interest of students. At its regular meeting, March 10th, the board passed a resolution opposing changes to Virginia’s education funding methodologies, which would shift more of the state’s education cost burden to local governments and to local taxpayers.

dards, to attract and retain quality teachers and to ensure student success in a rapidly changing global marketplace. A change in legislation that reduces education funding even further would be detrimental.”

“School systems throughout Virginia are already underfunded by the state,” Chairman Craig Cheney said.

“We are under greater pressure than ever to meet strict educational stan-

The school board’s resolution is available on the Web site at www.fccps.org/board/resolution.

Virginia’s funding formula determines how much money each school division receives. The formula takes into account population, median income and other factors to determine distribution.

SCHOOL CALENDAR DATES ARE SubjEcT To chAngE March 20– 21 Spring Break (Schools Closed / Day Care Open) 24

7:15 p.m. Mason @ Parkview (G Lacrosse) 7:30 p.m. Parkview @ Mason (B Lacrosse)

25

TJ Spring Picture Day 4:30 p.m. Mason @ Wash. & Lee (G Tennis) 6:00 p.m. Mason @ Freedom (Softball) 6:30 p.m. School Board Work Session (City Hall) 7:30 p.m. School Board Regular Meeting (City Hall)

A copy of the resolution will be sent to the Virginia General Assembly.

7:30 p.m. Mason @ Potomac Falls (G Soccer)

Green Bins Arrive at MEHMS, Mason

7:30 p.m. Potomac Falls @ Mason (B Soccer)

More than 240 new recycling containers have arrived at Mary Ellen Henderson Middle and George Mason High schools. The green bins are the first purchases made through a generous grant from the Village Preservation and Improvement Society (VPIS).

VPIS board member Barry Buschow says VPIS tries to spend its money “in the most appropriate way to maintain the character of Falls Church.” George Mason High School teacher Peter The containers have been placed Mecca and members of the school’s environin each classroom in both schools mental club show off 1 of more than 240 new as well as in areas where students recycling bins at Mason and MEHMS.

7:30 p.m. PTA & 5th Grade Band Concert (MEH) 26

5:00 p.m. Broad Run @ Mason (Baseball) 7:00 p.m. Elementary PTA (TJ) 27

Historical properties and modern-day homes are on the 2008 Falls Church Elementary PTA Home & Garden Tour. The annual fundraising project helps support the outdoor classrooms at Mount Daniel and Thomas Jefferson Elementary schools.

This year’s event is scheduled for Sunday, May 4th from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The tour is a unique opportunity for the general public to visit a diverse selection of magnificent homes and gardens located within the boundaries of Falls Church City.

For more information or to reserve tickets, visit www.fallschurchpta.org/hgtour.

The Falls Church Elementary PTA wishes to thank Falls Church Cabinetry, Moore Architects, Cox Communications, Terra Landscape and Design and Pie-Tanza Restaurant for their support.

Summer Day care Registration opens

Falls Church City Public Schools is accepting registration for summer day care and the middle school summer activities program. The programs will be offered from June 16th through August 22nd from 7:00 a.m. – 6:30 pm each day.

Children entering the 1st through 8th grades are eligible to attend. An exciting summer is planned with special guests, fabulous field trips, swimming, a daily literacy program, arts and crafts, music and much, much more.

Registration forms are available at www.fccps.org/asap. The program is open to all community children. Those who do not attend the Falls Church City Public Schools must submit a copy of immunization records and an original birth certificate with their day care registration.

Space is limited, so register soon to ensure your children’s enrollment in the summer day care program!

7:30 p.m. Family Life Education Advisory Committee (GM) 7:30 p.m. Budget Work Session w/ City Council (City Hall – Training Room)

29

2:00 p.m. Alumni Soccer Reception (GM) 6:00 p.m. Elementary Family Party (Community Center)

congregate.

PTA home & garden Tour Set

5:00 p.m. Potomac Falls @ Mason (Softball)

31- SELP Testing (All Schools) 4/25 April 1 7:00 p.m. School Board Work Session (MEH) 2

7:30 p.m. PTSA (GM)

(MD) Mt. Daniel Elementary (TJ) Thomas Jefferson Elementary (MEH) Mary Ellen Henderson Middle (GM) George Mason High Check the FCCPS Web site for more calendar information. www.fccps.org

Summer School Dates Announced

Mark your calendar! The Falls Church City Public Schools summer sessions have been scheduled for the following dates and times: Mount Daniel Elementary School July 7 – July 31 (M-TH); 8:30 AM - 12:00 noon Thomas jefferson Elementary School July 7 – August 1 (M-F); 9:00 AM - 12:30 PM Mary Ellen henderson Middle School July 7 – August 1 (M-F); 7:30 AM – 11:30 AM george Mason high School July 7 – July 25 (M-F); 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Page 38

March 20 - 26, 2008

BACK IN THE DAY dog. lazy ick qu The fox sly p e d j u m the over dog. lazy is the w No for all time cows od go me to to coaid of the pastheir Now ture.

15 s Yearo Ag

time is the all for cows good me to to coaid of the pastheir Now ture. time is the all for cows good me to to coaid of the their.

15 & 10 YEARS AGO

IN THE

Falls Church News-Press Vol II, No. 52 • March 18, 1993

Falls Church News-Press Vol VII, No. 53 • March 19, 1998

Continued from Page 10

-dent the answers he wants.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates, also on the team, indicated Fallon was right to quit.

“Admiral Fallon reached this difficult decision on his own, said Gates. “I believe it was the right thing to do, even though I do not believe there are, in fact, significant differences between his views and administration policy,” Gates added.

The Pentagon chief, who has held top jobs in government for years, is a survivor who learned long ago to ride the right horse.

He praised Fallon, saying he was “enormously talented and very experienced, and he does have a strategic vision that is rare.”

While the differences

CRITTER CORNER 10 Year s Ago

It is now the time for all good to go cows to aid of the p a s their ture . * * * * * Throw Pour it it up. up

Candidate Pulls Out of School Board Campaign “One of the five candidates who qualified to be on the May 5 ballot for Falls Church School Board has withdrawn this week. Dr. Mitchell B. Wallerstein notified the City Registar of Voters Tuesday, citing his recent appointment as vice president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacAurthur Foundation, which has its offices in Chicago.

“Wallersteins withdrawl...”

Local Restaurants Howl Over Planned New Meal and Unity Taxes “Falls Church restauranteurs expressed outrage at prospects of inscreases in tax charged by the City on meals and on another attempt to lift caps from the taxes they pay on utility use.

“The Falls Church City Council will hold its first open public hearing on the proposed budget for the forthcoming fiscal year this Monday night at 7:30 pm in the council chambers at City Hall...”

Helen Thomas

NEWS-P PREESS

It is now the time for all good to go cows to aid of the p a s their ture . * * * Throw * * Pour it up. it up

between Fallon and the bellicose White House were well known, they came to a head in an article in the April issue of Esquire Magazine written by Thomas Barnett, a former professor at the Army War College.

Barnett wrote that if Fallon left his job anytime soon, it could signal that Bush intends to go to war with Iran.

Gates called that assertion “just ridiculous.”

“Recent press reports suggesting a disconnect between my views and the president’s policy objectives have become a distraction at a critical time,” Fallon said in a statement. He said it would be “best to step aside and let our military leaders move beyond this distraction.”

Fallon appears to be a mili-

tary man with peaceful intentions. The Esquire article quoted him: “What America needs is a combination of strength and willingness to engage.”

The change of command in the Persian Gulf also comes as a time when the U.S. is marking the fifth year in a mindless war with no end in sight.

Fallon was a rarity in the top military ranks. To tell the truth to the commander-inchief often has a price.

Ask Gen. Colin Powell, former secretary of state, who sacrificed his credibility when he spoke to the United Nations on Feb. 5, 2003, and delivered a pack of falsehoods to justify the U.S. attack on Iraq.

Powell later called it a “blot” on his career.

IT'S A MYTH that cats don't like water. Cats looooovvvveeee water and, like most News-Press readers, depend on it to survive. Case-in-point, Falls Church resident Mario, who lives with the caretakers of his house, the Giovaniellos. When anyone uses his kitchen sink, he dashes over to observe the magically appearing water, and to help himself to a bit. When the faucet isn't on, Mario spends his time hanging out with his feline companions Bruno and Bianco, or he stares at the faucet and wishes someone would turn it on. So Critter Corner dispels yet another critter-related myth. Of course even cats like Mario probably wouldn't like it if you threw water onto them, but neither would you.

If you would like to see your pet here, e-mail us at crittercorner@fcnp.com or send a picture and short description to Falls Church News-Press c/o Critter Corner, 450 W. Broad St., Suite 321, Falls Church, VA 22046.

© 2008 Hearst Newspapers

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