Words, music, images and more from Jim Barnes
Four eighth-graders from Bull Run Middle School in Gainesville tested their skills and knowledge of computer security last month in the National Cyber Defense Competition, which is sponsored by the Air Force Association. The Bull Run team placed 11th in a field of about 200 middle school teams from across the country.
Washington Post, February 15, 2015
“Falling in Love”
I taped this song off the radio in 1982, and had never known who the singer was — until today. It was a mystery to me, and I believe it was that air of mystery that helped make this one of my favorite country-pop songs of the 1980s.
I had been pretty sure the name of the song must be “Falling in Love” (or perhaps “Fallin’ in Love”), for obvious reasons. But searches under that name never turned up this song.
I thought her voice sounded a little like Donna Fargo, but I couldn’t find it in her discography. Just an obscure song by an obscure singer, I had concluded.
Occasionally I would search on a snippet of lyrics from the song, without success. Until today. I tried again, and this time I got hits for a Juice Newton song called “Falling in Love” — and the lyrics matched. So while it might have been an obscure song, it turns out that the singer is pretty well known.
“Falling in Love” was a track from Juice Newton’s 1982 album “Quiet Lies,” and it was written by two of Nashville’s leading songwriters, Wayland Holyfield and Bob McDill. I shouldn’t have been surprised, since McDill, in particular, wrote some of my favorite songs from that era.
I still think it is a little gem of a song, even if the mystery is gone.
The Virginia General Assembly is considering two bills that, if passed, would make it a felony to recruit or entice others into the commercial sex trade. That would include using force or threats against victims or their families to coerce them into prostitution or the manufacture of child pornography. The proposed legislation would also set penalties for sex trafficking crimes.
Washington Post, February 8, 2015
Prince William County officials last week unveiled plans for a STEM Education Center at the county’s sanitary landfill on Dumfries Road near Independent Hill.
Billed as an interpretative education center for science, technology, engineering and math, the facility would be used to teach students and the public about environmental issues and challenges.
Washington Post, February 1, 2015
Loudoun County officials say a strategic decision that the Board of Supervisors made two years ago has shaped the county’s financing of several major transportation projects and provided a means to help attract businesses to the county.
Washington Post, February 1, 2015
Pacific Boulevard construction
About 80 people packed a small meeting room at the Dulles South Multipurpose Center in South Riding on Jan. 22, as Loudoun County launched a community outreach project intended to help shape development in the rapidly growing area west and south of Dulles Airport.
Washington Post, January 28, 2015
Students from Patriot High School in Nokesville and its four feeder schools prepare to unite their voices in their annual pyramid concert.
Washington Post, January 25, 2015
Jim Robeson and Dennis Gough are on a mission to find windmills. But unlike the fictional hero Don Quixote, who famously tried to joust with the giants, their mission is to preserve and restore the vintage structures.
Washington Post, January 18, 2015
The Haymarket Iceplex is planning a major expansion and renovation this year to help meet the increasing demands for ice time for hockey teams and skating classes.
Washington Post, January 18, 2015
With the 10th anniversary of her mother’s death approaching, Amy Sills Eggers figured she could “sit around and be sad about it,” or she could do something. She came up with a project that would not only honor the memory of her mother, Jane Sills, but also help families of students at Lake Ridge Middle School in Woodbridge, where Sills taught language arts for more than a decade.
Eggers, 41, of Clifton, is working with administrators at Lake Ridge to set up Jane’s Food Closet, which will provide food and other household items to students whose families need assistance.
Washington Post, January 13, 2015