Relying solely on your Facebook feed for local news about things happening where you live? Don’t be so sure it’s the only place to find what you’re looking for.

A new report from Ignite Social Media says continued to adjustments to Facebook’s news feed algorithm have lead to branded pages, like our Facebook page for Potomac Local News, to be seen by fewer users.

According to the site, some brand pages on Facebook have declines of 44% on average to as much as 88%. This means that fewer organic, or non paid content, from brand pages are showing up less frequently in users’ news feeds.

In 2011, Facebook introduced the option for organizations to pay to have their posts reach more users of the social media service. Nearly all of what we post to our Facebook page is local news, and these posts are all non-sponsored, organic posts to Facebook.

All of this is not to say Facebook is wrong for offering up the option for sponsored content. Potomac Local News also works with small businesses to create sponsored content to be consumed by our readers, on multiple platforms, to help showcase their business or organization.

But an over reliance on Facebook to get all of the great local news and information we post to PotomacLocal.com on a daily basis could mean you’re missing out on knowing what’s happening around your corner.

PotomacLocal.com is designed with you in mind, so we’ve made it easy to log on to our homepage and get the latest local headlines by area in which you live – Prince William, Stafford, or Greater Manassas. Our events calendar is promptly posted at the top right of each page. Slide show galleries and columnists appear on the home page. And, there’s great information from the local advertisers who provide financial support so we can continue covering the news that affects you.

Opinion 

I won’t cover the Black Friday mad dash this year. That means I won’t be standing in line with several impatient people all waiting to score a “good deal” on a cheap TV.

Sure, I’ve spent many Black Fridays going out at midnight, standing at the front door of Potomac Mills mall as the bargain seekers fly in. I also witnessed a fight there one Black Friday morning as hordes tried to get into a shoe store that had not yet opened its retractable metal store gate.

What once started as an idea to generate buzz and get an early jump on Christmas sales has become routine, and frankly, that means it’s no longer news. We know people will camp in tents outside of big box electronics stores, and that long lines will form at shopping malls before the sun comes up. And, expanding on a trend started by Kmart in the late 1990s, many stores for a second and third year in a row will be open on Thanksgiving Day.

Some say it’s a great way to grab a bargain. Others wonder if anyone actually plans to spend any time with friends and family and do what you are supposed to do on this holiday – eat and give thanks. A friend of mine wondered if anyone standing in those lines will eat anything. “If they ate like I do, none of them would be able to walk around,” he quipped.

Let’s also not forget that opening retail stores early on Fridays, or on Thanksgiving for that matter, gives workers less time, if any, to spend with their loved ones. Sure, you can argue that those workers signed up for the requirements of the job, but it’s clear that our greed created those requirements.

So, enjoy your time on Thanksgiving doing whatever it is you plan to do. I’m writing this from a market inside a grocery store where I’ll pick up the remaining items we’ll need for our Thanksgiving feast. You won’t find me in a store tomorrow, and probably not on Friday either.

If there is one thing I’ve learned in recent days it’s that our Potomac Local News is slightly above average.

A proud member of LION Publishers (It stands for Local, Independent, Online, News), I attended our 1st annual conference last weekend in Chicago. The organization formed after the Block-By-Block conferences ended its three-year pioneering mission to help local indie news publishers find financial sustainability.

While at LION I was once again was able to network with my fellow publishers, swap ideas, see how journalists are finding better ways to report on under-served communities, and plan for the long term financial sustainability of Potomac Local News, which, at least for now, is solely supported by local ad dollars.

More than three years into this project andwe are considered by some as veterans in the indie local news scene. However, I tend not to think of myself as being ready for retirement.

But as we indies compared notes on the number of viewers we have on our sites, how long they stay on our site to read and interact with the news, and which publishers are making a profit and which ones are making just enough to get by, Potomac Local News ranks in about the middle.

In my book, starting from nothing, in a community as challenging as this one is (lets face it, life’s tough around here if your financial livelihood is not directly tied in some way to the federal government, and mine is not), then building it into something, then scoring above average is more than a passing grade.

We reached nearly 70,000 unique visits last month — our highest yet — an impressive number for website with such a local focus as ours. The only way to go from here is up.

Opinion 

I’ve never written about a Hyperloop.

I have spent years writing about transportation. Highways, buses, trains, carpools, even sidewalks, I’ve written about them all.

As long as there is traffic congestion in our region, I will undoubtedly always have something to write about.

While I appreciate job security I also live here, and have often wondered why we can’t get from Point A to Point B more efficiently. Why are we so dependent upon the automobile? On most days, especially during summertime, it takes hours to go less than 2o miles.

So, when I read about the Hyperloop, I was hooked. The brainchild of the co-founder of PayPal and investor in Tesla Motors, Elon Musk, says that could shoot passengers from Los Angeles to San Francisco — 400 miles — in about 30 minutes.

It seems like the stuff of science fiction, and given our current transportation climate in our region — one where we are arguing over what 1950’s-era highway to extend or widen, or where to extend the 1970’s-era heavy rail Metro system, the idea of the Hyperloop is a breath of fresh air.

A service like this from Richmond to Boston would benefit the entire East Coast. It could, if built correctly, help to fulfil the dream someone once had of the seamlessly flowing highway, bus system, railway, and carpool.

After the turkey leftovers are put away for sandwiches and last licks are taken from the dessert bowls, what’s next on this annual day set aside to give thanks? If you’re a retail employee you’re probably headed straight to bed to get a few hours of sleep before your shift begins at midnight.

Stores in the Potomac Communities are opening earlier than ever this Black Friday – the one shopping day each year when retailers slash prices on electronics, home goods and just about everything else — to entice shoppers to rush their stores, open their wallets and take them out of the red and put them back in black.

K-Mart remains open on Thanksgiving, but other big box stores like Walmart and Best Buy that have traditionally waited until 4 or 5 a.m. to open Black Friday have now decided to join the ranks of shopping malls, like Potomac Mills, which has opened at midnight, and has remained open for nearly 24 hours, on Black Friday since 2009.

For years I have covered Black Friday madness, talking with shoppers who have literally made battle plans with friends, family members, and neighbors, who have all worked ahead of time plotting out who will make the mad dash for their most coveted items.

At midnight last Thanksgiving night at Potomac Mills mall, a fight broke out at the gate of Foot Action shoe store for no other reason that the store’s metal gate had not opened soon enough to appease the hordes of shoppers. Is fighting to get into a shoe store really worth the late night rush to the mall?

Employees working the sale counters at midnight, at first, usually tell me how funny it is to see so many customers at such an early hour. Later, into the early morning hours, they begin their own fight with fatigue.

And why shouldn’t they be tired? Sure, they had Thanksgiving Day off of work to be with family, friends, or to catch up on sleep. But, unlike us, they had to cut short their holiday or go without sleep to make to work so shoppers can feed their shopping need. Moreover, many shoppers each year simply venture out from their homes to be a part of the early shopping buzz.

I appreciate all the invites we’ve gotten from stores and malls asking us to come and write stories about the mob of holiday shoppers who rush their doors at midnight. This year, however, we won’t be there.

Thanksgiving is a time to be with family, friends, or the ones you care about no matter what your religion or creed. It’s a national holiday, and should be more than just some day wedged between Halloween and Christmas where we fat out on delicious fixings and then dream of the deals on computer gaming systems, enticing people to leave their homes on Thanksgiving out of curiosity to be apart of Black Friday.

Some argue retail workers must accept, given the state of the current job market, early Black Friday hours as part of the job, and the companies are just responding to shoppers’ demands. They’re right responding to demand, but retailers have also had help over the years creating the Black Friday craze with the help of advertising and media that put so much focus on the event.

Maybe the big box stores are opening earlier will alleviate mob scenes where some people in past years have been trampled to death. Maybe we’re seeing the evolution Black Friday, or maybe we’re just standing by to watch the continued erosion of the Thanksgiving holiday.

One thing is sure: the deals will still be around even if you’re not at the stores at midnight.

Calling it one of the greatest days of my life is certainly an understatement. When asked what my favorite part of the whole thing was, my answer is simple: seeing my bride looking as beautiful as ever while walking down the aisle.

I was married this weekend to the woman whom I’ve shared everything with for the past five years. Married on Saturday in what felt like weather more indicative of November than October, it was a beautiful occasion filled with family and friends – all of whom we could never thank enough for helping to make our special day possible.

As we both look at building our lives together, I appreciate all of the kind words you have sent us over the past few days. Your thoughtful advice has given me pause and made me reflect on what successful relationships are and what they could be.

And, while there never can be too much pause in the news business, I will take a brief time away from managing the daily operations of our growing website. It will continue to be updated daily by our dedicated staff members who have always been an engrained part of the communities we serve.

Looking forward to the next few months and into the holidays, PotomacLocal.com will undergo small changes to improve the user experience, showcase new local advertisers know where to shop to support neighborhood businesses, and we will continue to bring you news and events that affect your lives.

This past week certainly put our resources and skills to the test.

PotomacLocal.com first pulled our resources to cover a Primary Election, then shifted gears on the same day to cover an earthquake, and by the end of the week we were bringing you details about a hurricane brushing the Potomac Communities.

The truth is we couldn’t have made it through this week without the help of some great folks.

Our readers

As an independent community news organization we are only as strong as the readers who support us. This week, we received great tips on stories about the upcoming elections, they told us what they saw during the earthquake, and told us how Hurricane Irene was affecting them where they live. Please keep the comments, emails, and messages on Facebook and Twitter coming.

Our editorial staff

Our writers and photographers work hard to cover their communities and bring you the most current information to our readers, telling the impactful stories that other local news organizations miss. This week, they worked overtime to cover the community and demonstrated what great, independent media is all about.

Our advertisers

Without the great local businesses that sponsor PotomacLocal.com, we would not be able to bring you the coverage and perspective highlighting the Potomac Communities. Our advertisers understand the local exposure and value we bring to their business and we certainly value them.

Marilyn Duval probably wanted to ask her question to Woodbridge Supervisor Frank Principi herself, but something happened to her phone connection and we never heard her voice during Principi’s telephone town hall conference Wednesday night.

So, Principi asked it for her:

“Why does Route 1 look so run down and bad, it looks like we’re in a ghetto, and what improvements are you trying to make to improve that situation?”

Principi, a Democrat, this fall will try to keep his seat on the Prince William County Board of Supervisors. Following the conference, Principi’s Republican opponent, Chris Royse, slightly distorted Principi’s answer and posted it on his Facebook page.

First, Principi’s answer to Marilyn Duval:

“That is an excellent question and, quite frankly, it is the heart and soul of my four years in office, and clearly I’m not doing a good enough job if Marilyn thinks it still looks rundown.”

Now, what appeared on Royse’s Facebook site:

“During my opponent’s “telephone town hall” meeting last night, when questioned about the deteriorating state of the Rte. 1 Corridor, he stated “I’m not doing a good enough job in the District.” I agree. It is time for new leadership in Woodbridge; it is time to elect Chris Royse as Woodbridge Supervisor.”

It’s no secret U.S. 1 is filled with old strip centers, with many of them lacking anchor stores. There are a lot of places along the corridor, known as brown spots, to redevelop. Perhaps letting some of them go in lieu of new green spaces wouldn’t be such a bad idea either.

Anyone running for the job of supervisor in Woodbridge also knows that corridor is a traffic sore spot with both residents who commute and travelers who are passing through.

Principi during his last four years in office has seen the County Board approve the widening of U.S. 1 between Mary’s Way and the Occoquan River, as well as the designation of an area near the Woodbridge Virginia Railway Express station as a mixed-use, urban redevelopment area.

Royse has long called Principi’s vision for a redeveloped Woodbridge just that, a vision, and says involvement of more business owners is needed to make Woodbridge newer and better, and is trying to lure at least one government entity to the district.

Voters will go to the polls Nov. 8 to decide which candidate they want to represent their neighborhoods.

Have you ever taken a drive down U.S. 1 in the Potomac Communities only to notice signs you may have seen in movies or on your bottle of salad dressing?

At two mobile home parks in North Stafford, the signs that mark the neighborhoods remind me of an eerie place in a horror movie franchise and the other with ranch dressing I’ve seen put on salads.

The two mobile home parks, Crystal Lake and Hidden Valley, are less than a mile away from each other on U.S. 1.

Compare the sign at Hidden Valley to the logo on a bottle of dressing that bears the same name and you’re bound to notice a similarity.

The sign outside Crystal Lake is similar to birthplace of Jason Vorhees, the killer in the Friday the 13th horror movies.

While the sign may be similar, luckily for us in the Potomac Communities, it’s not the same Crystal Lake that spawned so many bad horror movie sequels.

Get more from The Desk and discuss it on our Facebook page.

I, like many others who have followed the story of local restaurant County Fare, watched with anticipation Wednesday night when the eatery was featured on Food Network’s “Restaurant Impossible.”

The show came to Stafford in April and provided restaurant owner Eric Green a much-needed makeover for an eatery has seen hard times.

I had lunch at County Fare on Saturday, which is now being billed as “a great American diner.”

Having spent a few years working in corporate chain restaurants, even managing one of them, I appreciate County Fare’s new local diner feel.

My lunch, the “sort of Philadelphia Cheese steak” was piled high sliced beef, mozzarella cheese, mushrooms (I ordered green peppers on the sandwich, too, but they never showed up) and the all-important fresh cut home fries. The food tasted much better than when I visited County Fare prior to their makeover.

The menu, however, is riddled with times and dates when food is served are served. The great thing about a diner, especially the 24 hour ones (which County Fare is not) is that breakfast, lunch and dinner are served all day, never leaving me wondering if French Toast or a Patty Melt is available after 2 p.m. on a Tuesday.

Breakfast is served until 11 a.m. weekdays, and some items aren’t available until 4 p.m. Making things even more confusing, we were given a “weekend menu” and in the end ordered something that wasn’t even listed on it.

The new, baby blue décor of the restaurant gives the diner a modern feel while displaying items and photos from Green’s proud time in the Marine Corps.

But any diner goer knows music – tunes that are easy to sing along with – are paramount to the diner experience. For most of visit Saturday, music was missing.

All diners need a great jukebox that lets customers select which song they want to hear. Hopefully someone with an old jukebox sitting in their basement will donate it to County Fare. We also hope Green will accept it, as he has many other bright and positive changes to his restaurant.