10 Things You’ll Recognize If You Grew Up in NOVA

NOVA has some undeniable and unique traits that you'd only understand if you grew up there. Here are 10 things you'd recognize if you grew up in NOVA.

No matter how much people from Northern Virginia say they can’t wait to get out, they all know that they’re a little bit proud of having grown up here. It’s always slightly gratifying to explain the little nuances that equate the differences between NOVA and the rest of Virginia. These are just a few of the distinctions that make people from NOVA unique.

1) You’re sick of going to D.C.

Every school field trip since third grade consists of a visit to the Smithsonian, and when people arrive from out of town you’re always enlisted to show them around the nation’s capital.

2) When you hear ‘snow days’, you think about Loudoun County.

AKA the part of Northern Virginia that cancels school at the slightest hint of a snowflake.

3) The DMV isn’t just for drivers licenses.

And everybody’s Instagram bio has brackets around the state that they live in.

4) Traffic.

Need I say more?

5) Crappy drivers.

Turns out I am saying more. NOVA is notorious for bumper to bumper traffic and our fellow drivers who periodically forget about speed limits and which side of the road they should drive on.

6) Game day spirit.

Even if you have zero interest in sports, you know you have to rep your team and bash Pittsburgh (the Steelers, the Penguins, etc.)

7) High school rivalries.

School spirit becomes ingrained in people’s minds and bodies the minute they place one foot into their high school on the first day of freshman year.

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8) #closefcps.

This famous hashtag stems from the anger and frustration of students that were forced to go to school on one of the most dangerous days of the year. In 2015, students were able to get this hashtag trending on twitter.

9) Weather.

Weather in your area is notoriously bipolar. It’s impossible to plan outfits with weather that changes so rapidly, with no regard for season.

10) These articles.

The one thing that you will definitely recognize are these articles, written and found in abundance all over the internet. But no matter how many of these you’ve seen, and how much you roll your eyes, you can’t stop yourself from