S
COTS RETURN
Scottish energy solutions company Aggreko plc will establish its data center division’s North American headquarters in Leesburg, according to Loudoun County’s economic development department. Headquartered in Glasgow, Scotland, Aggreko provides temporary power generation and temperature control equipment.
Home to the largest and fastest-growing data center hub in the world, “Data Center Alley,” Loudoun has 25 million square feet of operational data center space and another 4 million square feet in development. About 75% of the world’s Internet traffic is routed through Ashburn in Loudoun County.
“The choice to establish a presence in Loudoun was a natural one, as virtually all of our data center customers are present in the Data Center Alley,” said the head of Aggreko’s North American Data Center Division. “The opportunity for us to grow our data center business in Loudoun County is tremendous.”
Loudoun, named after a Scottish lord, renews its overseas relationship.
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YEW NO-PEE ZONE
Relations with neighbors can often be fraught. An Arlington man planted several expensive Japanese Yew bushes surrounding his property, only to see them killed by the urine of neighbor dogs. As a solution, he discovered what are called scat mats—“plastic mats that you put down on the ground, and they have these prickly pieces that are designed to make it uncomfortable for dogs and cats and other animals to walk on.”
The scat mats.
Modern Arlington home.
Things went fine for a while, with animals avoiding the mats. But then social media reared its ugly head: “This homeowner has installed these spikes . . . along his shrubs, that can cause injury to dogs — be careful when walking your dogs in this area.” The post prompted a blizzard of responses. “Somebody called me a sociopath,” said the homeowner. “Two people suggested that people should actually bottle up their urine, and dump it on my property.”
He said further, “I wouldn’t be surprised if the criticism is exacerbated by another factor. I think there’s some background animosity toward me because I chose to build a modern architectural home in an area that’s dominated by more traditional styles. But, it’s a very diverse neighborhood — there are modern office buildings within two blocks.”
What would we do without social media, allowing venom to spew forth with the protection of anonymity?
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ARLINGTON KRAKEN LAWYER GRILLED DOWN UNDER
Sidney Powell, one of the infamous lawyers pushing the big lie of Trump’s 2020 election victory, recently bought an Alexandria townhouse for her law practice. And granted at least part of an interview to a junkyard-dog Australian journalist who was taking no guff.
When journalist Sarah Fergusen asked Powell point-blank: “Do you ever hear yourself and think it sounds ridiculous?”, Powell, shocked, responded, “No, I know myself very well, I’ve been in me a long time. I know my reputation, I know my level of integrity.” [Ed.: “I’ve been in me a long time”? Huh?]
Interviewing Powell for a new Australian Broadcasting Company documentary, “Fox and The Big Lie,” Fergusen summarizes Powell’s dubious assertion as “a massive, countrywide fraud involving the FBI, the DOJ, the Department of Homeland Security, the organizations who certify elections, and on and on, all the way up to the attorney general. And thousand of local elections officials.”
She then asks Powell, “Are you saying that thousands of Americans participated in a fraud?” The answer:
“I’m saying that thousands of Americans had some role in it, knowingly or unknowingly,” Powell says. “It was essentially a bloodless coup where they took over the presidency of the United States without a single shot being fired.”
After challenging Powell on various factual errors, the interview is cut short by its subject. What a surprise.
Who ya gonna believe, me or your lyin’ ears?
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ARLINGTON 17-YEAR-OLD GOING FOR PARALYMPIC GOLD IN TOKYO
Although Sydney Barta lost her left foot in an accident at age 6, she doesn’t need or want your sympathy. She excels at running, along with volleyball, water polo, basketball, discus, javelin, and long jump. She was named U.S. Paralympics Track and Field 2019 Female Field High School Athlete of the Year. And now she has a spot on the 2020 U.S. Paralympics Track & Field National Team, competing in Japan.
The blade she uses to run is a special Ossur sprinting blade made of carbon fiber with a big curve on the end that provides energy redistribution. It tries to mimic a calf, and has spikes on the bottom.
Barta also gets top grades at the National Cathedral School in D.C. She says that competition runs in her family, and her accident has done nothing to limit it. For a career, she looks forward to becoming an orthopedic surgeon.
For some, there are no barriers.
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