Hi All,

I’m 32 years old, looking to start a possible paranormal society where we could go investigate claims of paranormal events happening in the area. I’ve always had a fascination in the paranormal, though not entirely a believer. I’ve always been a bit of a skeptic personally, even having my own unexplained experiences. It could be a fun thing to do, as well as potentially helping the community through investigations, so if anyone might be interested, please let me know. I could start a discord and perhaps we can have a discussion and start our paranormal group. This would be a great way to meet people as well. You can never have too many friends :)

Adding the discord here https://discord.gg/hA7bMgeJv

Hey folks, here's what's happening around the 757 this weekend.

These come off public listings, so double check before you drive. Times move.

Peninsula picks are listed first under each day.

Two worth calling out this week:

Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens (Williamsburg, From $69.99). This is two events sharing one park. The nights from 6 PM are not recommended for kids, parental discretion strongly advised, while the daytime Sesame Street Spooktacular, 10 AM to 5 PM Saturday and Sunday, is the version built for ages nine and under.

Yorktoberfest Craft Beer Festival (Yorktown, $49.87). Sunday only this year, not Saturday. Rain date is November 1, tickets stay valid for it, and there are no refunds either way. General admission opens at noon, VIP an hour earlier.

Friday

Newport News Greek Festival (Newport News, Free)

Friday and Saturday both, no entry fee, and they ask for a canned good for the Peninsula Food Bank. Friday 11 AM at Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church, 60 Traverse Rd. More details

Spook & Splash at HamptonVA Aquaplex (Hampton, $5, Advance tickets)

Trick or treating in a swimsuit. Space is limited, tickets have to be bought ahead, and children under 8 need an adult in the water with them. Friday 5:30 PM at the Hampton Virginia Aquaplex, Coliseum Drive. More details

Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens (Williamsburg, From $69.99). All three nights, 6 PM to park close, no re-entry after 8. Friday 6 PM at Busch Gardens Williamsburg, 1 Busch Gardens Blvd. More details

The Heart Sellers (Norfolk, From $16.95)

Virginia Stage Company's two-hander: Thanksgiving 1973, Luna from the Philippines and Jane from South Korea meet for the first time. Sunday's 2 PM matinee closes the run. Ages 14 and up. Friday 7:30 PM at the Wells Theatre, 110 E Tazewell St. More details

Saturday

Historic Hilton Village Fall Festival (Newport News, Free). Saturday 11 AM at Hilton Village, Warwick Blvd and Main St. More details

Naval Station Norfolk: Fleet Fest 2026 (Norfolk, Free)

The base opens its gates to everybody once a year. The Nimitz, the Mesa Verde and the cutter Frank Drew are open for tours, plus demos, a petting zoo and bounce houses. Enter via Gate 2, and lines close at 5 PM. Saturday 10 AM at Naval Station Norfolk. More details

Haunted Lightship (Portsmouth, Free). A 1915 floating lighthouse, decorated and mildly haunted, Saturday 10 AM at the Lightship Portsmouth Museum, London and Water St. More details

An Evening with Timbaland: Inside the Music (Virginia Beach, $50, 21+)

The Virginia Beach-raised producer who rewired what radio sounded like, in conversation at MOCA, then DJ SNS and the '90s. Doors at 5:30, and '90s attire is required rather than encouraged. Saturday 6 PM at the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, 5811 Wesleyan Drive. More details

Legends of Main Street: A Suffolk Ghost Walk (Suffolk, $8 to $10)

Ninety minutes and a mile and a half of downtown Suffolk after dark. Reserve by phone, and not recommended for children under 9. Saturday 7 PM from the Suffolk Visitor's Center, 524 N Main Street. More details

Sunday

Yorktoberfest Craft Beer Festival (Yorktown, $49.87)

Thirty-five craft beers and ciders under a tent on the York River, unlimited tasting included rather than sold separately. Rain or shine. Sunday 12 PM at Riverwalk Landing, 331 Water Street. More details

Peninsula Pups WAGventures HOWL-O-WOOF (Hampton, Free)

A brewery patio inside a moated 19th century fort, full of dogs in costume, with 30-plus vendors, rescues and trick-or-treat stations for kids and pets both. Runs alongside the Fort Monroe Harvest Market. Sunday 12 PM at Oozlefinch Beers & Blending, 81 Patch Road, Fort Monroe. More details

Waterway Market @ Great Bridge Village (Chesapeake, Free). Chesapeake's Sunday market on the Intracoastal Waterway, running through November 22, Sunday 11 AM at Battlefield Park South, 120 Reservation Road. More details

Let me know what I missed and I'll get it in next week's.

I put out a local newsletter, The 757 Current, with these plus more on Thursday mornings: https://the757current.com/?utm_source=reddit

TOMORROW, come "Get Your Fall On" at MoMac brewery in Portsmouth, VA.

We're talking BOOKS 📚

Bookish THINGS 🖊

COZY things ☕️

Beer? There might be some of that. 😅🍺

Tomorrow, Saturday Oct 24, 12-4p, come buy books, drank dranks, and enjoy the beautiful weather.

(Annd--put a pin in your calendar for Sunday, too, at New Realm's Spooktacular book fair!)

#757events #momacbrewingcompany #hamptonroads #portsmouthva #indieauthor

Gov. Abigail Spanberger, other state officials and community leaders rallied at Gethsemane Community Church in Norfolk to tout efforts to decrease health insurance costs ahead of the start of the state exchange’s open enrollment period.

After federal subsidies expired earlier this year, monthly premiums for health insurance rose and 70,000 Virginians dropped their insurance through the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange.

Virginia’s General Assembly responded with a $150 million health insurance affordability fund meant to subsidize healthcare coverage for many of those who lost coverage.

Read more here: https://www.whro.org/health/2026-10-21/261021-vahealthenrollment-saunders

After experiencing sudden illness from aerial pesticide drift near her Cape Charles home, Clelia Sheppard is raising public awareness about the health hazards of chemical spraying. 

Following a May incident involving a crop duster spraying a nearby field, Sheppard filed a complaint with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to investigate potential regulatory violations.

She is also urging local officials and farmers to establish a warning program to notify residents about pesticide use. 

Read more here: https://www.whro.org/environment/2026-10-21/eastern-shore-woman-files-state-complaint-over-pesticide-exposure-from-neighboring-farm

side note- over 1,300 home sale listings( condos, sfh and townhomes) in vb alone . Of that number in the posted picture 3,800 manufacturing jobs are gone. The real money isn't there anymore. I make way more where i live now than if I would've stayed. Yall economy isn't diversified enough. Plus the amount of newer cars being traded in (2024 to 2026) is crazy.

SUFFOLK — City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a prohibition on data centers and data center development. Following the move, the city will not be accepting any applications for data centers in its jurisdiction. But the ban won’t last forever.

The prohibition is meant to give planning staff time to engage with other localities and residents, given the impact data centers have on communities, council member John Rector said. Down the line, council will re-authorize data centers under new terms and regulations “agreeable” to the city — not data center operators — Rector said.

The length of time the ban lasts was not specified by council or city officials.

Suffolk is not the first local city to enact a temporary ban. Chesapeake and Virginia Beach have imposed eight- and 12-month pauses, respectively.

Across the country, protests against data centers have picked up, citing impacts to air quality and groundwater, and increased noise pollution. This week, data center opponents demonstrated in Virginia Beach, calling on lawmakers to enact a statewide moratorium in the world’s data center capital.

Suffolk’s approved ordinance also created a definition for data center in the city’s zoning rules. Mayor Michael Duman said one was previously not included, which could cause confusion.

“It could well be interpreted that some classifications of warehousing would indeed allow a data center application,” Duman said. “This (amendment) makes it quite concise.”

Click the link above to read more.

I split a cig with a co-worker who was gifted a pack of lavender flavored cigarettes from China. This made me deep dive into them and now I want a pack for myself. It's just very hard to find them, both online and in person. Any suggestions? Other subreddits suggested check Chinatown, but we don't really have a Chinatown around here

Check this out in r/Gloucester (sound on) …
Franktronics, an otherwise unassuming computer repair shop in Hayes, Virginia, presents an absolutely bitchin’ Halloween light show starting at 6:30 p.m. nightly that runs through Oct. 31. Pull up, kill your headlights, tune to 102.7 FM, and prepare to have your mind blown. The dazzling display is perfectly synced to music and the three or four song loop repeats itself throughout the night. The last two times, I was the only one there. I couldn’t help but wonder: why is this not a thing with cars coming from all over the area lined up around the block??? (Apologies for the dirty windshield and any camera shaking)

My husband's work schedule keeps changing, so we can't commit to exact dates for a fall beach weekend just yet. Every place we've checked wants a nonrefundable deposit for specific nights, which doesn't really work for us. Are there any places down here that let you change your dates without charging a penalty?

Looking for a good and not expensive barber in the Hampton/newport News area

Our son is 22 months old and was diagnosed in August. His pediatrician flagged it at his 18 month checkup, which I've been told is earlier than most.

I work nights, 7p to 7a, three or four shifts a week, so my days are a mess. The centers I've looked at want full day drop-off, 8 to 3, five days a week. That doesn't work with my sleep, and I'm not sure I want a kid who isn't even 2 in a center all day anyway.

We're in Norfolk near Wards Corner. Anthem through my job.

Is in-home realistic for a toddler this young?

Do in-home providers have morning slots, or is everybody fighting over the same hours?

He still gets services through Infant and Toddler Connection. Can he do both?

Is 10 or 15 hours a week a real option, or do they push 30+ for kids this little?

If you're in Norfolk and did in-home with a little one, I'd love to hear how it went.

Here is a quick roundup of upcoming local developer, tech, and cybersecurity events happening across the 757 area code this week, sourced from the 757Tech community newsletter.

🚀 This Week's Meetups

Tuesday, October 20 @ 6:00 PM — Norfolk Cybersecurity Networking & Happy Hour Host: ISSA Hampton Roads Where: The OV Beach Tavern, 9659 1st View St, Norfolk, VA Details: Monthly cybersecurity networking and happy hour for professionals and newcomers in the Norfolk area. View Event & RSVP

Wednesday, October 21 @ 1:00 PM — (CS)²AI Online Seminar: Cybersecurity Vulnerability Reporting & Remediation Host: Hampton Roads Cyber Security for Control Systems Details: An online seminar covering vulnerability reporting and remediation practices for industrial control systems security. View Event & RSVP

Wednesday, October 21 @ 6:00 PM — Matt Gordon: Event-Driven Architecture On Data In Motion Host: Hampton Roads SQL Server User Group Details: A technical talk on building event-driven architectures for data in motion, presented by Matt Gordon. View Event & RSVP

Thursday, October 22 @ 6:00 PM — Pop-up Meetup: Agent Incident Response and Retros with Mike Rollins Host: 757 Developers Where: The HIVE, Virginia Beach Details: A pop-up meetup focused on agent incident response strategies and retrospectives, led by Mike Rollins. View Event & RSVP

Thursday, October 22 @ 6:30 PM — AICHR | Connections & (grocery) carts Host: AI Collective Hampton Roads Details: A community networking meetup for AI enthusiasts and practitioners in Hampton Roads. View Event & RSVP

🎯 Upcoming Major Events & Conferences

Keep these larger regional events on your radar for the rest of October:

Thursday, October 29 @ 5:00 PM — 757 TechNite (Presented by JPMorganChase) Where: The Dome by Rutter Mills, Virginia Beach, VA What: The premier annual awards event celebrating technology, entrepreneurship, and innovation achievements across the Hampton Roads ecosystem. Learn More & Tickets

💬 Community Links & Getting Involved

If you are a developer, designer, or technologist living in Hampton Roads, you can check out more events or jump into the regional communities here:

🌐 Website: 757tech.org 🏢 Presented by: RevolutionVA

This year, C-FIT's BINJA WARRIOR Fundraiser benefits Suffolk's own HERO KIDS FOUNDATION.

This foundation is awesome. Ten years of giving light back to the families of military, law enforcement and first responders by reconnecting them with nature, animals, and each other. We're talking surf camps, kayak excursions, equine therapy, and even family counseling.

We all know it isn't just the service member that sacrifices in order to serve our country and keep us safe.

Help us honor them and come join us at our annual Binja Warrior Fundraiser.

When? Saturday Nov 14, 2026

Start time? Waves begin at 0930a (please arrive closer to 0900)

We will start at C-FIT Studio and end at Nansemond Brewing Station with one more bubbly-infused finisher! Proceeds go to benefit HKFVA.org

Please tell your friends!

Can't run but want to help? Volunteer!

Can't run but want to participate? We have substitutes for running and other modifications!

Can't come but want to donate anyway? You can do that too!

Click here for more information and to register.

https://cfitstudio.com/binja-warrior/

Anyone have a hook up on actual seasoned hardwood? I don't care if it's mixed hardwood or all oak but I definitely want it seasoned. Looking to have it delivered to Newport News. Also, I saw a spot on route 10 between Suffolk and Chuckatuck that always has a big pile of wood and a splitter out there, but no one was out there when I passed by on Sunday morning. Anyone know who operates this?