Skip to main content

Staying Local



Yesterday’s feeling of foreboding upon awakening did not get one bit better as the day progressed.

I’m putting in my two weeks commuting daily to Bethesda so my daughter can go to camp. To all of you who regulary do such commutes: I’m sorry. You have my condolences. It is truly a soul-sucking experience.

The drive down yesterday afternoon was made somewhat less dreary by listening to the most recent episode of the Elevate Maryland podcast, with guest Roger Caplan. They continued with the analysis of the primary election begun on the previous episode with Dylan Goldberg. I found what they didn’t discuss almost as fascinating as what they did. More on that later this week, perhaps tomorrow.

A recently-eleminated BOE Candidate popped up on social media last evening making gloom and doom predictions and spreading incendiary rumours. It almost seemed as though her account had been hacked by a previous (ousted) board member. Hmm...One can only wonder how such tactics would have played out had this candidate been elected.

A hair-raising story is making the rounds on social media about how a woman of color was treated in the Wilde Lake CVS. Blogger Jason Booms has more to say on that.

 CVS, Columbia, Race, and Justice

I’d love to know who came up with a special tax for people who live in mobile homes. My guess is that it wasn’t anyone who has ever lived in one. I do hope the County can find a way to live without that revenue. Sheesh.

I was thinking a lot yesterday of one particular Howard County candidate who was unabashedly enthusiastic about being “on the Trump train.” I wondered how he was feeling about that yesterday. And I wonder if that will make a difference in local electability in November.

The bad news on the national and international front has been relentless in the last twenty four hours. I’m doing my darndest to stay local.








Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...
1 comment
Read more

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else.  Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not  chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...
1 comment
Read more

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...
1 comment
Read more