How do you know someone is from the DC Metro/NoVa?

[Anonymous]

You can just tell. Was in a salon today and four women walked in. Immediately I could tell they weren’t from here. Eventually, they were talking and it came out where they were from. Just such different dress than anything here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can just tell. Was in a salon today and four women walked in. Immediately I could tell they weren’t from here. Eventually, they were talking and it came out where they were from. Just such different dress than anything here.

I suspect they weren't wearing the informal DC area uniform of black or gray sackcloth?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm close to 60 years old and still say:
Cap center (I always chuckle after I say it)
Call team the Bullets
Still say Redskins
Will always say National
DMV - nope, but my son uses it

These are good. To be honest I am not even sure what Cap Center is currently called 😂 (it was also mci, and something else I think?)

Capital One Arena. They get really testy if you don't use the right name for it when you are there.

Wasn’t it Verizon center for a while too??

My dad had original Caps season tickets when the arena was in Landover, MD, Cap center

And MCI Center before that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are stressing about Russian School of Math, AoPS, SATs, or getting into Ivies.

I went to a W school feeder for 7th grade and was asked to take the SATs that year by the JHU CTY program.

Then I moved away. I enjoyed the new location better. Being in MoCo for 1.25 school years left a mark. I came back after college for a job for 8 years but left to raise my kids elsewhere.

But I still like this site. And I about fell over when an actual educated in Russia immigrant brought Beast Academy materials to a parent meeting at my school district. I was the only one who knew what she had there.

+1.


The DMV is not normal. It is a bubble.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They are stressing about Russian School of Math, AoPS, SATs, or getting into Ivies.

I went to a W school feeder for 7th grade and was asked to take the SATs that year by the JHU CTY program.

Then I moved away. I enjoyed the new location better. Being in MoCo for 1.25 school years left a mark. I came back after college for a job for 8 years but left to raise my kids elsewhere.

But I still like this site. And I about fell over when an actual educated in Russia immigrant brought Beast Academy materials to a parent meeting at my school district. I was the only one who knew what she had there.

+1.


The DMV is not normal. It is a bubble.

And “normal” is…?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They are stressing about Russian School of Math, AoPS, SATs, or getting into Ivies.

I went to a W school feeder for 7th grade and was asked to take the SATs that year by the JHU CTY program.

Then I moved away. I enjoyed the new location better. Being in MoCo for 1.25 school years left a mark. I came back after college for a job for 8 years but left to raise my kids elsewhere.

But I still like this site. And I about fell over when an actual educated in Russia immigrant brought Beast Academy materials to a parent meeting at my school district. I was the only one who knew what she had there.

+1.


The DMV is not normal. It is a bubble.

And “normal” is…?

Here's a start

https://www.bls.gov/regions/mid-atlantic/news-release/OccupationalEmploymentandWages_WashingtonDC.htm

[Anonymous]

A DC native would never self- identify as a Washingtonian. They can spot other natives, and they say what hospital to each other? They eat crabs, chilli dogs and Ethiopian food very neatly and never make a mess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A DC native would never self- identify as a Washingtonian. They can spot other natives, and they say what hospital to each other? They eat crabs, chilli dogs and Ethiopian food very neatly and never make a mess.

They boil crabs with beer and Old Bay. Eats crabs strewn over old newspaper.

[Anonymous]

Signs you’re a local:
“So what do you do?” asked early when meeting someone
Knows difference between inner and outer loops
Probably pronounce L’Enfant

Signs you’re not:
“Silver Springs”
“John Hopkins”
“Subway” instead of “metro”
“The” before a numeric highway - “Take the 495”

[Anonymous]

You remember Landmark Mall

[Anonymous]

It's pronounced Whee - Lee

[Anonymous]

What's the point of feeling special because you are native? What did you do to achieve it?

[Anonymous]

Most people who say they are from DC, are usually from suburbs. When you ask where in DC then you find out they really are from Fairfax or Del Ray etc.

Interestingly ones who live on Capitol Hill, they downplay it and say Washington DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"I work in research"

??? DH and I are scientists from Europe. We work in research. Most researchers are foreign-born, did you know that? The US, until now, needed more brains than it grew domestically. It used to be called the brain drain: talented scientists from all over the world coming to work in the US.

Now, who knows what's going to happen, but to your point: it doesn't make sense.

Interesting response. I took “I work in research” in the same way that I would take “I work in government “. When I was growing up, adults—presumably because of security issues involving classified information— described their jobs tersely, in very broad terms. So : “I work in research” rather than “I’m working in biological warfare. Let me tell you about how to infect people on a plane with a very contagious, deadly disease “. PP, the issue described here is one of communication styles. It’s about subtle cultural practices— not about “foreign born brains”. Your response to the comment definitely marks you as being someone not from here.

Give them a pass, immigrants are sensitive right now, but if you're from DC area you know what "work in research" means. Some don't ask further. Others will continue: "so what kind of research do you do." Then if the person wants to answer it's something like "health sciences" not "biological warfare research" etc..or "well, it's not that exciting (lol)."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"I work in research"

??? DH and I are scientists from Europe. We work in research. Most researchers are foreign-born, did you know that? The US, until now, needed more brains than it grew domestically. It used to be called the brain drain: talented scientists from all over the world coming to work in the US.

Now, who knows what's going to happen, but to your point: it doesn't make sense.

I think that PP's point was that people don't disclose their secret squirrel jobs, especially in defense research. People just generically say they work for the government or work in research.

I used to tell people I was a defense contractor. No one is that curious about what we did.

Or some are and will ask "what exactly do you do?" Umm...