Village Green/Town²

With a combined total of twenty-seven years in Girl Scouting, the young women I met on Tuesday night came prepared to share a message. Anthea Pecot, Riya Gupta, and K.C. Lay were at The Other Barn in Oakland Mills to make a presentation to the Village Board on their most recent service project. Along with two of their leaders, Jeanne Lay and Puja Gupta, we sat down in the lobby to discuss "Got Milkweed? Monarch Butterfly Awareness."   When I asked how the girls decided on this particular project, they gave me a glimpse into their brainstorming process. The scouts choose their own service projects, which makes their work all the more meaningful as they craft and enact a plan. Inspired by a neighbor in Oakland Mills, Mrs. Bird-Walker, who had created a certified Monarch Butterfly Way Station in her yard, they chose to spread awareness of Monarch butterflies in the community.   The project has a two-pronged approach. In addition to educating the public on Monarch Butterflies, t...

To: Calvin Ball, Howard County Council Subject: CB-17 Nutritional Standards   I'd like to thank you and your colleagues on the council who worked hard to craft this bill and show leadership in public health for Howard County Citizens. Obesity and all its related diseases are a serious concern today. I strongly believe that this is one of the biggest public health concerns of this generation. Sugary drinks and unhealthy snacks have an entire industry to support and advocate for them. It is difficult to make one's voice heard over the din of advertisement and false claims of "part of a healthy diet". All one need do is look around and see the changes in eating habits and unhealthy diet-related illnesses to see that something is dreadfully wrong. This bill supports the citizens of Howard County Maryland by taking a stand for public health. It offers more choice, not less. It has a limited scope--Howard County buildings and facilities--and does not prevent citizens from e...

If you have ever tried to get a job with Howard County Schools, or know someone who has, you know that it is not simple or straightforward. It takes forever. I believe they have worked in recent years to streamline the process, but it still takes forever. I always assumed this was because their human resource department was doing thorough, perhaps multiple, background checks, transcript evaluation, calling references, and so on. Perhaps not. This article describes the case of a former Howard County substitute teacher who is now in prison on child pornography charges. The parents of one of the victims are bringing a civil suit against the school system, to the tune of $600,000. Their point? That the school system bears the responsibility of adequately vetting employees and protecting students. Aside from the violation of student privacy, which is the worst thing going on here, I imagine the school system looks upon this as a public relations nightmare. Expensive, too. In a time wh...

"The more affluent children had been taught to submit," he said, describing a job working in a pediatrician's office. "Their mothers would coach them to behave, and apologize to the doctor if they acted out or objected during the exam." "But the less affluent kids were different. They reacted. They had righteous indignation--'ow! Don't do that! Why are you doing that?' I think you lose something when you lose that righteous indignation." This conversation happened probably twenty years ago, with someone I knew only briefly, but it has stuck with me. I always thought it was so important to be well-behaved. Here was someone who said we lose something if we no longer have the language of righteous indignation. We lose the ability to stand up for our rights, to protect ourselves. We lose understanding and empathy for others who are making noise for a just cause. Why don't they just submit? I would submit , a little voice whispers. Righteous...

Between the years of my divorce and my eventual remarriage I experienced a number of--shall we say-- educational relationships. No matter how much attraction there was or how much we had in common, there came a point where the missing ingredient became starkly apparent. Without this one thing all the rest was for nought. That ingredient? Willingness. In this case, willingness to believe in, work on, and commit to a long-term relationship. The door has to be open, and you have to be willing to go through it. I read with some sadness last week Tom Coale's post about Bridge Columbia, "The Orphan Bridge". Readers of this blog know that I am a long -time advocate for the Bridge project and have even spoken publicly in its support. And yet it would be foolish to ignore the fact that not everyone is "in love" with the Bridge the way I am. Both former County Executive Ken Ulman and current County Executive Alan Kittleman have said encouraging things about Bridge Colum...

With apologies to Peter Sagal and NPR, this is: "Spit it Out!!" the VG/T² Columbia/Howard County current events quiz . Questions are taken from the week's hyperlocal happenings. Winners of today's quiz will receive a selfie with Colonel Gateway, a postcard from the Schlossini Voyage, and Tom Coale's voice on their home answering machine.* 1. Nature and history lovers were united in sadness this week at the news that: a) the new staircase in Ellicott City paved over an ancient nesting site. b) the old elm at Belmont must be removed due to Dutch Elm disease. c) The Howard County Conservancy announced plans for a modern, high-rise parking structure. 2. A showdown between the County Executive and the County Council continues over: a) the Nutritional Standards bill. b) noise levels at Merriweather c) where to locate new, state-of-the-art water fountains. 3. A party in Columbia came to abrupt end this week when: a) neighbors reported the party noise to ...

Have you been following the ongoing story of mold issues at Glenwood Middle School? It appears to be a textbook case of what happens if the powers that be are not forthcoming with stakeholders. Take a look at this statement from a parent, quoted in the HoCoTimes article: "As a community, we need to demand confirmation of mold remediation and INDEPENDENT indoor air quality testing of all rooms and inspection of walls and ceilings for presence of mold--This should occur FOLLOWING the completion of the HVAC upgrades, BEFORE the start of the school year," read a post about the email July 22. "We cannot allow our teachers and students into a building without knowing that it is a safe environment." When you see someone asking for independent confirmation of the facts it tells you one thing: trust has been breached. You just wouldn't ask for a third party to get involved if you believed you were being told the truth. This should be a huge wake-up call for the Howard C...

I've been reading an article by Paul Ford: The Web is a Customer Service Medium. It's a fascinating look at what makes the web different from movies, television, radio, and newspapers. It comes down to how we interact with it. Ford describes this with the term WWIC. Why Wasn't I Consulted? Users feel a sense of ownership of anything and everything. "Why wasn't I consulted," which I abbreviate as WWIC, is the fundamental question of the web. It is the rule from which other rules are derived. Humans have a fundamental need to be consulted, engaged, to exercise their knowledge (and thus power), and no other medium that came before has been able to tap into that as effectively. My first response to this was not to think of the web, but to think of the responses of some in our community to the forward movement of Columbia's Downtown Plan. This "fundamental need to be consulted" has spilled forth in community meetings, letters to the editor, and on so...

Every so often I hit the wall. I wake up, face the page, and no matter what topic I think of, a little voice in my head says, "who cares?" Who cares if you write about that? What difference will it make? It generally extinguishes my ability to write. I don't know where it comes from. Who cares if I write about the lack of leadership and willingness to commit to Bridge Columbia? What difference will it make if I highlight the silliness of HoCo Times devoting the ink to write an editorial of how cool free wifi is in Ellicott City, when they couldn't be bothered to say anything intelligent about the Nutritional Standards veto? What's the point? The topics haven't become less important. It's my sudden glimpse at myself--isn't it a ridiculous conceit to get up, day after day, and think that I must write and that it matters what I say? If I think about it, I can't do it. It becomes an obsession with self instead of just getting the work done. This is i...

Yesterday we had a contractor come over to the house to look at doing something with our back patio area, which is a mess. For years I suffered the indignity of living with damp, muddy "indoor/outdoor" carpeting until I just lost my mind and ripped it all out. Underneath the cement was cracked and ugly from years of moisture. It was not the improvement I had hoped for. As the contractor left I joked with him that over the years we have done so many repairs that eventually none of the original house will be left. We've replaced appliances, the furnace/ac system, the hot water heater, repainted most of the interior, put in all new floors downstairs, all new windows, a new kitchen, replaced almost everything plumbing-related, put on a new roof... Is it Preservation? Restoration? Transformation? We're trying to keep up with an aging house that wasn't remarkably well-constructed in the first place. These houses went up in a hurry. The Rouse Company made agreements with...

Advice for what to do in extremely hot weather: drink plenty of fluids, don't over-exert yourself, wear light, breathable clothing, and PARTY!!! Well, after all, I'm a blogger, not a doctor. And there's a party Thursday night and you're invited. If you're a blogger or a blog reader, this is the summer soirée you've been waiting for. Join us for a #HoCoTogether summer celebration! Hosted by HoCo bloggers the UK Desperate Housewife USA (Claire McGill), Howard County Moms (Kris Schneider), Life & How to Live It (Mickey Gomez) and Is This Thing On? (Candace Dodson Reed).Four fierce, fun and feisty women who love Howard County have come together to host a summer celebration of HoCo at Portalli’s.All witty, smart and totally HoCo bloggers and their friends are invited (that’s you then!). Laughter, merriment and blog-worthy stories guaranteed. You can find all the info at Totally HoCo , including the link to sign up for the party. (It's free.) All fo...

So, Google Columbia, Maryland . You'll come up with something like this: See the entry labeled "Points of Interest"? Do you see what's listed first? Now take a look at this comment from the HoCo Times' most recent article about our local outdoor concert venue: The taxpayers of HC should determine the matter. The venue's managed by the nine thirty promoters out of DC. Let them move it to College Park. Oh my word . "Let them move it." I know, I know. Don't read the comments. You're just asking for trouble of you read the comments. This reminded me so much of the angry gentleman who accused me during the Oakland Mills CA Board election of "being against putting a bubble/dome on Merriweather" when that wasn't even an issue in the election. Cover it up. Turn it down. Close it up. Move it out of town. No. Just no. While no one individual "Point of Interest" defines who we are as a community, Merriweather is an in...

Spotted at Sunshine Octopus in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. It made me smile. It was worth the time to stop and take a picture because of its playfulness and gentle humor. I love language. I love playing around with language. This was a picture perfect example. I am a big fan of the phrase e pluribus unum, originally selected to be a part of the Great Seal of the United States. The meaning of these words-- out of many, one-- is described here with the claim that: This shows that America was originally likened to a bouquet of different flowers, where unity and individuality coexisted – as opposed to a "melting pot" that blended everyone together. Yes, when I saw this light-hearted sign in the hippie/tie-dye shop while I was on vacation I went from "singular, yet plural" to "out of many, one". That's just how my brain works. And it's a great concept . Here in Columbia and Howard County we represent many different ways of life, show allegiance to spec...

I awoke at five am to write this piece. And at six, and at seven, and at eight. But rem sleep was not done with me yet. And here I am at 8:32 feeling dopey and no more awake than I was at five. I have been time- traveling through teaching dreams, vacation dreams, and dreams that are almost on the tip of my tongue but I can't quite remember. But they're in there, in my brain, and I'm not at all certain that they are done with me yet. Do you ever have days like that? Where you just can't get started because the heaviness of interrupted sleep cycles sedates you like a powerful potion or a magical curse? Nothing seems entirely real. Or rather, the dreams from which you have only just awakened seem every bit as real as your present reality. Wake up! I tell myself. Wake up! And doze off again, jet-lagged from time travel in my own armchair. News of the day is that I did not win Colonel Gateway's first ever poetry contest, although I suspect that is due to the fact that I...

Poor guy. Shapiro described Muehlhauser as someone "who basically doesn't color outside the lines" and is always clean-shaven and impeccably dressed. Muehlhauser lost his brother in a childhood accident, leaving him as his parents' only child. When Muehlhauser took over his family's business, Shapiro said, he was determined to be a success. You'd think we were talking about the victim of a crime, not a perpetrator. The sentence he received seems indicative of a similar attitude: just 90 days. Ninety days for: Kyle C. Muehlhauser in Howard County District Court. Muehlhauser, 37, admitted that he secretly videotaped women using the toilet at the family owned chain's restaurant in Savage. If I were one of the women whose rights were violated by this man, I'd think that the court doesn't think very much of me. Ninety days? Another example where the white guy gets described as nice and misguided. Another example where the violation of women is mi...

So for those of you following along at home, we now have two editorials about the veto of the Nutritional Standards Bill for you to choose from. Behind door number one, the HoCo Times version. Behind Door Number Two, the Baltimore Sun response. 1) Kittleman: Nutrition guideline bill "an unnecessary intrusion on personal responsibility and freedom." 2) Kittleman unwise to veto vending machine rules. Oh, wait. That first one isn't an editorial at all. It's just HoCo Times giving the County Executive free space to write his own editorial. My mistake. That really was thoughtful of them. But, you know, it really looks so much like an editorial. I wonder how many folks who read it thought that it was? I'm still no closer to understanding the relationship between these two papers, neither of which has brick and mortar HoCo presence, who both share a building in Baltimore City, but somehow maintain two separate editorial boards. Anyway, yay! An editorial I agree with, ...

Let's just begin by saying that I have, in the past, gotten mightily steamed over the type of coverage (and lack of coverage) of local issues by Balt Sun/HoCo Times. And over the years, as I have come to know our local reporters as human beings and learned how overworked they are and how little freedom they have in choosing stories, I have repented of my sins. Don't kill the messenger. They're working as hard as they can. But--editorials. We need to talk about editorials. Most of the time we cheer if our cause is endorsed by them and shake our fists and gnash our teeth if it isn't. Rather like all those pseudo-valid surveys that tell us Howard County is the Most Valued Community, or whatever. We're happy to take validation without examining the source. I think it's time to start questioning exactly "who is the man behind the curtain." This is particularly necessary after several editorials which almost appear to have been written by P.R. people from th...

In announcing a veto of the Council's Nutritional Standards Bill, the County Executive had just come off a week of using his bully pulpit to promote fitness. If his preferred method of encouraging health and wellness is to visit various Rec. and Parks Camps and participat e in physical activities, then he has, of course, succeeded. (Although someone should tell him he is violating the Howard County Schools dress code.) The problem is that spending one week of your life being photographed at camp does about as much positive good for the community as the Superintendent of Schools jumping out of an airplane . Which is to say, none at all. A photo opp is a photo opp. A stunt is a stunt. It does nothing to win hearts and minds. Now here's a picture that others have labeled as nothing but a massive stunt. The 9.6 tons of sand which served as a visual reminder to Burleigh Manor Middle School students of what that much sugar looks like. Why? To kick off a public health initiative to ...

Last night I witnessed a group of teens who came out voluntarily on a summer evening to hang out with their high school teachers. I'll bet that doesn't happen much. They came with guitars, both acoustic and electric. They came with mandolins and banjos. Some came with amps. One brought a cajon. My husband teaches multiple levels of guitar to high schoolers and this party was put on by the parents of one of his students who is going off to college in the Fall. It was open to current students and graduates--yes, even students who graduated last year showed up. There was swimming, and snacking, and a cookout. But then--the jam session. They played. And they played. There were improvised solos, and singing, and harmonizing. There was good natured kidding and laughter. The students were listening to eachother, paying attention, taking turns as the melody got passed around and the chords went around one more time. It was beautiful. It made me think about passion. What are the t...

I always thought I should eat when I was hungry and that my body was my body--okay the way it was. But then I got to middle school and the P.E. Teachers kept saying, "You have to eat healthy and be active or you'll get Type 2 Diabetes." In other words, up until middle school my daughter accepted food as something one eats to respond to hunger, and accepted her body as completely fine just the way it was. And then, adolescence. Then, at the very same time millions of dollars have been targeted at making her think her body and appearance need fixing, her school chimes in, too. To her it becomes all mixed up into one message: You thought you were okay--you're not. Our schools have begun to address the epidemic of obesity in children but this is no quick fix. Little by little, over a long period of time, our culture and our schools have chipped away at things that promote health. Walking to school. Walking up and down stairs at school. Recess several times a day. Real...

I am going to resist the urge to get down and dirty with recent political happenings. It would be easy, but--no. After all, it's Saturday and everyone deserves a chance to kick back, read the funnies, eat their Pop Tarts and watch cartoons. Instead, I ask: what if? What if Columbia/Howard County had news? Yes, we have Amanda Yeager and the revolving door of young talent. We have a newspaper once a week and strategic online updating. No, I mean new coverage with a capital N--television news, radio news, a daily newspaper. Imagine it. What would that be like? Would we have "live local late breaking" coverage of Village Board meetings? Would there be ongoing scrutiny of the hijinks out at the Board of Ed.? Imagine how much time there'd be to fill. We might have coverage of summer swim meets and community theater productions. Restaurant reviews, cooking segments with local chefs, recommendations for healthy lifestyle changes from Haven on the Lake. Some people think we ar...

Wednesday on Twitter, this photograph caught my eye: Photo credit: Colonel Gateway   @ColGateway: There are quite literally geese moving faster than my chariot! #hocotraffic @ColGateway: I hath not witnessed such traffic since the election of John Quincy Adams! #hocomd #traffic Hmm...that sounds like a story, thought I. So the Twitter hunt began. @mduren: Being stuck on Columbia Gateway Dr today is the most defeated one could possibly feel. There's no way out! #columbiamd #hocomd @macsmom: @mduren What caused the back up? @mduren: @macsmom sorry just saw this. I think it was the accident on 95S @ 32. Shut down the highway. Took 60 min to get from CGD to RT108/29 @macsmom: @mduren it made me realize how limited ingress/egress is there. @mduren: @macsmom usually it's not a problem. but when there's a jam, it can get bad real quick. Details of the accident itself can be found here . My concern is whether this event revealed a flaw in the whole Gateway layout: li...

Well, gosh, we need a new scandal so how about this : New McDonalds Happy Meal Toy Has a Dirty Mouth Yes, you heard that right. Parents and grandparents from all over are apparently outraged that the adorably little Minion toy appears to say "What the f*ck?" Oh my goodness. I just don't think I can climb on board this anger train. Whereas that unusual Playdoh toy really did look questionable , this sliver of audio is guilty of nothing but sounding like something else. Let's face it: if the hearer did not already know the expression, "what the f*ck?", then that arrangement of sounds would not leap out. Our brains are playing a trick here--they are wired to create meaning from things around them. When we mistakenly decipher song lyrics on the radio or engage in the age-old game of saying what the clouds look like, we are using our brains to assign meaning, find a pattern, make sense of something. In so doing we can use only the information that we have. Over t...

Yesterday my daughter and I visited the Talbott Springs Pool for the first time this summer. It truly is a little-known gem in the CA Pool system. In recent years we've finally gotten much needed updates like a slide, a water feature in the baby pool, and three new picnic tables with umbrellas. I love this pool and I'd like to see more people using it. Consider yourself invited. As we were swimming a group of young people came in, accompanied by several adults wearing matching t-shirts labeled "role models". As the kids went to the changing rooms, the adults set up shop at one of the aforementioned picnic tables, which was near to where we were sitting. This is where my busybody energies kicked in. I was curious. Where were they from? And as the kids came out, ready to swim, I noticed something else. They were really great kids. And their counsellors spoke to them kindly, and with respect. I have extremely high standards for how adults treat kids in school/camp sett...

On the one hand, ladies and gentleman, you have the County Executive. Newly elected to the post in a switch of power which buoyed Republicans and stunned Democrats. He has points to prove and promises to keep. He feels he has a mandate and momentum. On the other hand you have the County Council. All have been duly elected by the public to represent their various districts and constituents. They are representative of what has been (in recent years) the traditional distribution of the parties in Howard County: four Democrats and one Republican. Now in one sense this situation favors the Council. They have more experience. They have followed the process before and they have worked with each other before. They know the ropes. And yet the Executive has many opportunities to set goals, steer the course, even change it. All this brings us to last night's Council Meeting. Mr. Kittleman wanted a vote on his appointee for the Planning Board, Susan Garber. This article by Amanda Yeager lays ...

The photo gallery is labeled "Columbia 4th of July fireworks." If you have access to the Howard County Times/Baltimore Sun online material, go take a look . Nate Pesce is the photographer. They are beautiful. I've never been to the Lakefront for the fireworks display, but these photographs make me wish I had. Pesce captures the beautiful diversity which is Columbia. In our suburban small town where local arguments often can't get beyond how loud the music is or how many trees are in Symphony Woods, these pictures are a testament to something much, much bigger. Columbia was always intended to be a place where all are welcome. These photographs bear witness to just how true that is when we get together as a community to celebrate. And on the Fourth of July it feels particularly appropriate to look at these pictures which so clearly illustrate the motto: out of many, one.  

I recently attended a social function held at The Gathering Place in River Hill. In case you don't know, The Gathering Place is one of the newer Columbia Interfaith Centers. In addition to housing several religious congregations, they also rent space for events. It's a beautiful facility. While I continue to be perplexed and fascinated by the Interfath Center phenomenon, I really loved the architectural feel of this one and went away with a positive feeling. That's probably because while taking a brief moment of solitude in the lobby, I chanced to meet Rabbi Barry Rubin , who was just going home after a long day at work. We chatted about the social event for a while. He was happy to see a local group using the space. It turns out that he doesn't just work there, he actually helped to design the center. He spoke lovingly of the layout of the building and all of the activities it could accommodate. I got the feeling he'd like the facility to be more well known in the...

Mother and daughter took this 21-question quiz together. Their results will shock you! Here's the quiz : Can you answer the 21 questions that every American should know? My fourteen year-old daughter and I took it together last night and we got all 21 questions right. To be honest, I was amazed at how much of it she knew off the top of her head. "Well, I did just have it in school this year, mom." There were a few questions we went back and forth on. It wasn't entirely a slam-dunk. Maybe it will be for you. I'll admit I was thrilled at how much my daughter knew. Yes, I know. It's a mom thing. But when we raise our glasses later at the family cookout, I'll be offering a toast to her GT American History teacher. ***** Years ago my family was stuck in a traffic jam coming home from watching the Fourth of July fireworks at Edgewater Park in Cleveland. We were not just stuck on the road, we were stuck on a bridge. This particular bridge was in the proces...

I just woke up from a nightmare. I had been called into the office of a school to meet with school staff about my daughter. As it is in most nightmares, I was in a school I had never seen before and the staff members were equally unknown to me. What was important about the scene was that these people were making observations about my child and telling me what they were going to do about what they perceived to be her problems or difficulties. But I couldn't talk. I couldn't get my mouth open, or if I could, I could barely make sound or form words. When I tried communicating through writing I could only produce a scrawl. It was infuriating. These people were making assumptions and choosing a plan of action that was wrong and I couldn't even make myself heard. I kept pounding the table. What else could I do? Now that I am awake I'm thinking about how incredibly dehumanizing it is to be put in the position of having no voice. Tomorrow is Independence Day, which make...

Going to Falls Church last night to hear the Icelandic group Arstidir reminded me of the quote from Thornton Wilder's Our Town , where Mrs. Gibbs says, Only it seems to me that once in your life before you die you ought to see a country where they don't talk in English and don't even want to. Americans get so unbelievably obsessed with ourselves--Columbians too, for that matter--it's good to get away and to challenge ourselves with new perspectives. I have a friend who is about to make a giant leap in that respect. Local blogger Lisa B, Mrs. S is about to embark on a year-long journey around the world with her family. She will not be like Wilder's Mrs. Gibbs who longs all her life to see Paris, France but dies without ever fulfilling her goal. No, she has a dream, she has made a plan, and soon it will be a reality. I will miss her insightful writing in education and other local topics. But for Lisa, living real life has always come before hanging out in the v...

The year is half over. Six months gone. Are you a proponent of the glass half-empty/half-full view of life? Do you see the last six months as having gotten away from you, or have you filled them with joy and meaningful experiences? Do you reach the half-way point in a panic, or do you think, "there's still time to make a difference?" July 1st is my husband's birthday, a time for family celebrations. It's also his beloved brother's birthday, who died much too young, so it's a day tinged with memories and sadness. Like it or not, this day will always hold both joy and sorrow. And what about locally? Where are we, at the half-way point of the calendar year? We lost another local journalist yesterday--the multi-talented Jon Sham. He's leaving us for the Baltimore Sun newsroom. I'm having a glass half empty feeling about this one. We need real, honest-to-goodness journalists to research and cover our local stories. Think of how much amazing stuff our l...