How high is the snob factor/keeping up with the Joneses in NOVA? (Reston: school, living in)

[Denton56]

Originally Posted by Blanca29

On the high side, but nothing compared to NYC. DC area population is highly educated and very sophisticated.

Highly educated? yes indeed. Highly sophisticated? LOL...........ever been to NY or Chicago or SF or any other major city? DC is full of nerds and geeks who don't care about dressing and wouldn't know what to do if they did care!

[TheseGoTo11]

No one here is really going to care if you don't drive the newest car or if you wear understated librarian clothes. But if your kids don't qualify for the Fairfax County Gifted/Talented programs, you'll have a lot of explaining to do.

[AlexandriaVa11]

Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11

No one here is really going to care if you don't drive the newest car or if you wear understated librarian clothes. But if your kids don't qualify for the Fairfax County Gifted/Talented programs, you'll have a lot of explaining to do.

Ha ha, so true! Or... if your kids qualify for the program but you choose to keep them at their base school anyway, you REALLY have some 'splainin' to do!

[Blanca29]

Originally Posted by Denton56

Highly educated? yes indeed. Highly sophisticated? LOL...........ever been to NY or Chicago or SF or any other major city? DC is full of nerds and geeks who don't care about dressing and wouldn't know what to do if they did care!

Oh, I was referring to the level of culture and cultural / leisure opotions, not fashion lol. I think DC was no. 2 on the list with the metro areas with the most unattractive people. I think San Antonio beat us lol.

[Cagirl767]

That's ironic, considering that here in Phoenix, education seems the complete opposite of D.C. I have to take my kids incognito to Sylvan, or to any academic programs, for fear of being spotted by someone we know and then having to explain why on earth I'm doing "this" to them. I was told by my son's preschool teacher last year to "try to find games and activities where the boys don't have to talk such as digging in the sand" since most of them weren't really speaking yet. And to teach him how to play using less imagination and creativity so that he'd get along with the other boys better.

On another note, we're much more into traveling and dining out than anything else. I'm liking the proximity of D.C. to Atlantis and Europe and of course all the east coast culture. Anyone like to chime in on what the suburban restaurants are like toward Ashburn?

I'd much rather live around the ugliest people than the dumbest ones, as Arizona was voted the state with the stupidest people. DH says he'll fit right in with the geek crowd.

[MPC2000]

what's an SAHM? Single Asian Home Makers?

[South Jersey Styx]

Originally Posted by Alicia Bradley

Except for Tysons Galleria (which is part of a big indoor mall complex - I know a lot of city's [say, Houston's] swankiest boutiques are in big indoor malls with food courts full of bad 'Chinese' food, but something about that just ruins it for me - besides, there are very few independent boutiques in Tysons that sell more than one 'line'), none of those places is in NoVA.

When my niece first got out of college, she worked for Ralph Lauren at Tysons Galleria II. Not sure how this figures about selling "one line." Ralph Lauren's collections are based on labels--i.e., purple and black labels being the most expensive and aimed at specific buyers who can afford this merchandise versus green labels. And so these are things that are only available at the Ralph Lauren boutiques and also in limited quantities. Folks who worked there referred to the place as a "boutique" not a store, same as Vera Wang, Ferragamo, etc. These are corporate boutiques; independent private ones are the ones lining Wisconsin Ave in Georgetown.

Also not sure how this figures with the comparison to outdoor malls with cheap Chinese food, but Galleria II doesn't have food courts. All of the shops are considered upscale as compared to,let's say -- Galleria I.

Originally Posted by Alicia Bradley

I've said it once and I'll say it again (and again and again... actually, I'm probably going to give up on it one of these days), for all the wealth in NoVA, there's far less upscale shopping tucked away near residential areas (yes, even in strip malls) than you'd expect.

I agree with this. I would expect more upscale boutiques in certain neighborhoods too. I think places like Middleburg, VA has them though. But I would not consider "The Preppy Pink Pony" as a boutique in line with the ones I've mentioned.

[South Jersey Styx]

Originally Posted by Blanca29

Oh, I was referring to the level of culture and cultural / leisure opotions, not fashion lol. I think DC was no. 2 on the list with the metro areas with the most unattractive people. I think San Antonio beat us lol.

I thought the same thing too when you said "highly sophisticated". I thought it referred alot to the intellectual aspect of people, especially the way they converse.

I didn't know DC was ranked No. 2 as Most Unattractive? Not sure where this poll comes from but I can think of a few other cities that could beat DC in the ugly-factor

[FindingZen]

Originally Posted by MPC2000

what's an SAHM? Single Asian Home Makers?

Besides the ethnic qualifier, you're close: Stay At-Home Mom.

[The Dissenter]

Originally Posted by MPC2000

what's an SAHM? Single Asian Home Makers?

Single Asian Home Makers?

I'm getting in my car and coming back to NoVA to try to scoop one of them up! I love me some Asian women.