According to the Natural Resources Defense Council Virginia has the fourth cleanest beaches in the country. That is pretty impressive. The only beaches rated cleaner are Alaska, New Hampshire and Delaware. Virginia always ranks high and Virginia Beach is no exception. Keep in mind that last y...

07/30/2008

Real Fires Or Mock Fires

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Which would you rather fight? A real fire or a mock fire at Norfolk Station's Farrier Firefighting School? Most sailors would opt for the mock fire and are glad they have the opportunity. Fighting a mock fire for the first time in a controlled area is bad enough, fighting a real one for your l...

07/29/2008

Missing Text Books Cost Big Money

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Suffolk school officials are trying to crack down on students who don't turn in text books. So far the missing text books are worth over $180k and the cost may go higher as more inventory is counted as missing. Officials are looking at using collection agencies, barring student parking and othe...

07/25/2008

Who Doesn't Store My Words?

2 Comments

I did a blog a few days ago on the Wayback Machine http://activerain.com/blogsview/601607/The-Wayback-Machine-or I thought that was pretty nifty but now I found out almost everyone stores my words. That is good isf someone is looking for Virginia Beach real estate but bad if they are looking fo...

07/22/2008

The Wayback Machine or Be Careful What You Write

9 Comments

I always thought that my words I wrote and the stuff I put on the web were just haphazardly stored by whoever the Internet gurus are. Well it turns out that not only are they haphazardly stored they are systematically stored on the Wayback Machine. I know you think I am milking you but it is fo...

07/20/2008

Green The Camry Way

8 Comments

I took my wifes Toyota Camry Hybrid on the highway for the first time. It has been getting around 35 mpg in the city. I filled it up and made a round trip from Virginia Beach to Newport News for a walkthru. Out of 100 miles there were probably 8 miles in the city. I drove the speed limit and...

07/19/2008

Profits Rise For Monarch

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Monarch bank which is based in Chesapeake saw its second quarter earnings rise 18 percent, mostly from its mortgage-banking unit. This is another local bank like Townebank in Portsmouth that we wish would keep being profitable in this down market. http://www.geneallen.com/ Come and see ALL the H...

07/19/2008

Townebank Income Rises

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Townebank which is headquarted in Portsmouth saw its net income rise a very modest 2.3 percent for the second quarter. The increase came partly from its employee-benefit and property-management services. Lets up this locally owned bank keeps up the good work. http://www.geneallen.com/ Come and ...

07/19/2008

17 Year Low For New Single Family Homes

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Here is an interesting fact. Construction of single family homes fell to a 17 year low but construction overall rose by 9.1 percent. That is because apartment building, mostly in New York city surged because of a change in buiding codes. For our area of Hampton Roads, new construction starts w...

07/19/2008

Good Cropping Or!!!

4 Comments

This is my latest real estate listing in the Brandon section of Virginia Beach. The houses are mixed with homes that are attached and homes that are detached. Most of the homes are attached only at the garage so no living space is shared. I think it actually works out pretty good if you have t...

07/18/2008