Village Green/Town²

  From “ Sleepovers ” in March of 2019: “The Sheraton at the Lakefront is going to have a new life as a Marriott. Not just any Marriott, mind you, but the four-star Marriott Autograph brand. In an article for the Baltimore Business Journal, Carley Milligan writes: Owner and developer Costello Construction will add 70 rooms, bringing the total to 290, and update the entire interior and exterior of the hotel that sits on Lake Kittamaqundi at 10207 Wincopin Cir. The focus will be on creating a "high quality" and "luxury" product, Costello Construction President David Costello said.” (Words in bold by Carley Milligan, Baltimore Business Journal. ) You may have read that the Sheraton has now reopened as Merriweather Lakehouse. They’ve been posting some lovely photographs online. What you may not know is the story of how they laid off all their staff and have refused to rehire them. Workers protest reopening of Merriweather Lakehouse Hotel that hasn’t rehired laid-off emp...

  Usually by the time there’s this much light in the sky the blog has long since been posted and I am on to other things.  This is the view from my desk. I’ve always loved this view since the summer I moved here. At some point over the last year I decided to put my work table here so I could soak up as much of it as possible. It was a good decision. Regardless of the season, this view never ceases to make me happy. I enjoy the changes in nature, watch birds and squirrels, follow the rhythm of my neighbors comings and goings each day. I’m still trying to decide if it would be polite to smile and wave, or whether that would make them feel “watched.” I’m working on several larger pieces at the moment. I imagine them simmering away on back burners, not ready yet but approaching completion.  Some fun dribs and drabs this morning: If you’re thinking of making Valentine’s Day plans, this might prove to be a memorable celebration. Celebrate 2022 Valentine's Day with your sweethea...

  This was the image on Instagram that caught my eye: For some reason it put me in mind of a certain lovable character from Disney/Pixar. I stopped my scrolling to see what it was all about.  I have to admit I was surprised to see it was on the Howard Community College account.  What’s it like being a engineering student at HCC? Well, last semester, engineering students participated in a semester-long project with projects ranging from campus game-room screen protectors, accessible drone piloting systems, to open-source COVID-19 pulmonary respirators. It all came together  in December for Engineering Project Night. Take a look! Here’s the link to the short video of the event:  https://www.instagram.com/reel/CZKTrbUFBwL/?utm_medium=copy_link It’s pretty darned cool. There’s nothing in my background that’s even remotely engineering-related, but, after watching this video, I wished I could take that class. The projects are fascinating, the students knowledgable, an...

  One of the coolest things about Facebook is that it keeps me in regular contact with a friend (American) from high school  who lives and teaches in Singapore. Also cool: that friend introduced me to his friend who is from Singapore. I follow her life through her engaging photos and posts. Visiting her elderly aunts. Teaching during the pandemic. Adopting a stray cat. Yesterday she posted about just not being excited about an upcoming holiday. Holiday? I wondered. Just for fun I googled her hashtag, thinking, this must be some esoteric holiday specific to Singapore. When I arrived at the answer I felt very small indeed. #cny2022 = Chinese New Year. Oh. Well, of course. I knew that. But I just wasn’t thinking.  Chinese New Year is on the calendar, of course, but it isn’t on my calendar. I had that same feeling yesterday when I saw the many posts about Holocaust Remembrance Day. I took the time to read them, and think, and respond, but it was clear that my Jewish friends...

  A word about yesterday. I wrote a post objecting to the use of a photo containing Howard County students to accompany an opinion piece in the Baltimore Sun. I still stand by that opinion. However, the piece was perceived by some to be a personal attack on the teacher involved. That was absolutely not my intent. After some thought I decided to take the post down. I’m not here to be hurting people.  So, that’s that. ***** In other news, I saw a post on Twitter this morning that indicates that there will be a protest this evening at the Board of Education. The post is a screenshot from a private Facebook group called “Fully Educate All HoCo Kids”. As I don’t know whether this was posted with the group’s permission, I’ll refrain from sharing the screenshot. Here’s the gist of it: they’re protesting against wearing masks at school. Friends, I am tired. And depressed. We are dealing right now with a variant that is highly contagious. We are only beginning to understand the long te...

  On January 25th, 2014, there was a shooting at the Mall. When it was over three were dead and five others injured. It was a sad and terrifying day for our community.  Today I’m remembering.  I found this article in the Baltimore Sun written on the one year anniversary of the shooting. I don’t recall reading this the first time around.  A child, a cause: the legacy of the Columbia Mall shootings , Jean Marbella, Baltimore Sun, with contributions from Jessica Anderson and Alison Knezevich This piece is so thorough and so carefully crafted. Marbella takes the time to tell the stories with respect, shaping the flow of the words with a tender hand. We don’t get to read a lot of local journalism like this these days. It’s too bad that the best example I can think of is rooted in a community tragedy. Is that the only time journalists are allowed the time and space to do this anymore? Outside Zumiez, two black floor tiles — one engraved "B" and the other "T" — memorializ...

  I’ve been listening to the Elevate Maryland interview with State Delegate Brooke Lierman , candidate for State Comptroller. I highly recommend it. So many times candidates and elected officials feel constrained to pick their words so carefully and restrict themselves to a certain image, which makes the end result feel less human somehow. Not so with Ms. Lierman. I’m struck with how comfortable she is in her own skin, and how gifted she is in presenting her vision for the State Comptroller’s office in a clear and engaging way. Personally, I’m a rather artsy, math-anxious sort of person. When Ms. Lierman talks about budgets and how we can best spend Maryland’s money I’ve been fascinated. I think that having a candidate who makes financial issues more interesting and understandable is an excellent thing.  I attended on online announcement event for her campaign way back on December 17th, 2020. Facebook kindly reminds me that I wrote: I had no idea I could get excited about a b...

Without a doubt, the coolest video I have seen on the internet in a very long time is this one from the Columbia Association posted this past Thursday on its social media accounts. At one minute and thirty four seconds, it’s definitely worth your time this morning. https://fb.watch/aIXNkJq46E/ Kyle Cope was one of many behind the wheel in the wee hours of the morning clearing our pathways to make sure they're safe for everyone. Thanks to Kyle and our entire snow/ice removal team!  Here’s a screenshot of what makes this video so cool. It’s the inside of Bridge Columbia, the pedestrian and bicycle bridge that spans Route 29 between Oakland Mills and Town Center. The short but impressive piece has almost a sci-fi movie feel. I mean: Honestly, this must be the closest thing Columbia has to a thrill ride, even if it is only on one level. All fantastical musings aside, this video got me thinking about all the places around town that the Columbia Association looks after during snowy weath...

What do you know about Neighbor Ride? Here’s what I knew: they help older adults without transportation by providing rides to places like doctors appointments, shopping, church, and social events. I knew they were a nonprofit powered by many volunteers. I have a friend who volunteered with Neighbor Ride and she said it was one of the most rewarding volunteer experiences she’s ever had. I did a little basic research and learned how it all began: In 2001, the Howard County Office on Aging conducted extensive research which projected that the county’s senior population would double by the year 2020.  Seniors surveyed in the study identified health care and a lack of transportation options as their top two concerns. Neighbor Ride was founded in 2004 to address these concerns with a safe, friendly and reliable means of senior transportation designed to strengthen connections and help older community members live the life they love.  Here’s what I didn’t know: requests for rides fro...

  I am tired of people arguing about babysitting.  Yesterday the school system made a decision about the weather and the weather didn’t pan out. It happens. It’s inconvenient. I worry less about affluent parents and more about the hardship for kids who may not eat. Believe me, the folks who make these decisions know.  But it galls me to see the old argument arise yet again when frustrated teachers respond with the angry, “parents just think of us as babysitters.”  Why does it gall me? Let me tell you. Babysitting is when Mom and Dad or other primary caregiver want to go out to the movies or whatever and hire what is essentially a casual employee at an hourly rate, probably in cash.  What parents struggle with on an unexpected day off from school is not a lack of babysitting. It’s childcare. Childcare should not be a dirty word. But we treat it like it is. From even the earliest age levels, I see parents and teachers say, “Oh, I wouldn’t want that,” or, “I wouldn...

  Every Thursday morning the Columbia Flier appears in my inbox. I’m a digital subscriber.  When I was working I accumulated quite a few subscriptions: New York Times, Washington Post, Maryland Daily Record, Baltimore Sun/HoCoTimes/Columbia Flier. Due to budgetary constraints, I’m down to just the last one. I want to support journalism, especially local journalism. My father was fascinated all his life by printing and publishing. He adored seeking out local newspapers whenever we traveled.  I think I must have caught the bug. If you read our local paper you probably have been noticing that the actual space allowed for local news is getting smaller and smaller, while content purchased from outside sources seems to grow weekly. Something else I’ve been noticing: where are the letters to the editor? Almost every issue of the Flier used to contain an editorial piece from the paper, an actual political cartoon about local happenings, and letters to the editor sent by local re...

Yesterday County Executive Calvin Ball announced that the county, in collaboration with the school system, would be giving teachers an $1,800 bonus in recognition of their work during the pandemic. From Dr. Ball’s Facebook page: For our teachers and support staff, these past two years have been especially grueling, and I believe it is more important than ever to retain those committed educators who make our school system among the best in the nation. I’m thrilled to announce that the Howard County Board of Education matched my commitment of $8 million in bonuses for our educators.  Together, we have secured $16.1 million in bonuses for all our full-time* Howard County Public School System employees. I appreciate that our Superintendent and Board of Education have acted and joined me in demonstrating our gratitude for our educators as a reward for their hard work and dedication to our children. A bonus is a gesture in good faith to recognize exceptional performance, effort, and dedi...

  My eyes don’t usually linger over adverts on social media but this brought my reading to a halt. Wait. Isn’t that…? Photo by Elizabeth Janney, Columbia Patch I’d say there’s a startling resemblance. For just $69.99 (marked down from $129.99) it looks like you can have your own home version of Azlon I,  that impressive kinetic art piece purchased and installed by the Howard Hughes Corporation in the new Merriweather District. Take a look: Decorative Design Home Windmill According to an article , in the Baltimore Business Journal, artist Anthony Howe describes his Azlon sculpture as having almost mystical properties: "It can literally slow your heartbeat and silence your mind, like a meditation,” Howe said in a statement. Howe has created other kinetic sculptures in Dubai, Dallas and Moscow, to name a few locations. Hmm. I wonder if a knockoff version from Grandma’s can do the same? They list the dimensions as 10 X 10 X 10 inches. Hmm. That probably won’t slow your heartbeat a...

  To be Jewish in America. To be Muslim in America. To be a person of color in America. To be a woman in America. To be Native American in America. To be Asian-American in America. Is to live wondering if you are next.  - - Barbara Malmet I went to sleep last night terrified for the worshippers taken hostage at a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas. I awoke to news that they are now safe. I was about to say “they emerged unharmed” but that is almost certainly untrue. They have come away with their lives, yes, but the harm will be lasting, not just to them but to their friends, families, and community.  Like other similar events before this, I’m left feeling angry, fearful, and sad. Jewish people should have the freedom to worship safely. Those who look different, worship differently, are differently abled, love and/or identify differently are every bit as American and deserving of acceptance and respect as those who represent the predominant cultural attributes. This isn’t ju...

One year ago today I was writing about the installation of Dr. Denise Boston as Howard County’s first Equity and Restorative Practices manager.* Today I am wondering how her first year has been. The internet tells me that she moderated a virtual conversation about Cultural Competence and Implicit Bias in July, as a part of a series called Difficult Conversations About Race. She is a member of the Racial Equity Alliance, which, partnered with the Howard County Library to create the Equity Resource Collection at Central Branch. Why don’t I know more? First off, Dr. Boston doesn’t appear to be the sort of person who wants to “see her name in the paper” all the time. Secondly, I’m not involved enough in the work of the Howard County Office of Human Rights and Equity to be adequately informed. And that is entirely on me. Reading Facebook posts and the occasional tweet is just not enough. If I want to know more, I need to be willing to learn more.  Recent news stories I am thinking abou...

Let us talk of lettuce. And salad. And how we expect long rows of assorted greens and bags of premade salad mixes at our fingertips. Even in January. America was not always thus. I grew up in an iceberg nation. There was the wedge of iceberg with Thousand Island dressing, or my mother’s Italian salad: iceberg, tomatoes, cubed mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, Italian dressing. (Perhaps black olives. Can’t remember.) In summer when the kitchen was too hot for cooking, we might have Salmon Salad: tinned salmon augmented by iceberg lettuce, tomato wedges, hard boiled egg halves, and Miracle Whip.  This was a time when all sorts of things were called salads. Of course, potato salad, macaroni salad, cole slaw were (and still are) staples of pot luck events. Three bean salad. Pickled beets counted as a salad at my house. But this was also the tail end of an era that raised the term“jello salad” to heights which, frankly, it did not deserve. I shudder to recall lime jello with cottage cheese a...

  If you live in Wilde Lake, or follow local goings-on via NextDoor or Facebook, you probably know that David’s Natural Market came very close to shutting down its Columbia location recently. It looks as though the community outcry has been helpful to them in deciding to keep the business going, at least for now. It’s also possible that there has been assistance/intervention from the County and or local officials. I don’t know that for a fact; it just seems likely.  My own experience with David’s is pretty limited. I love their curried chicken salad. And, when my daughters were going to and/or working at Slayton House Camp of the Arts, stopping at David’s (pre-renovation) was pretty much a daily thing. It was our go-to place for a muffin, or cookies, a cold drink, or a place to grab a quick lunch. As excited as I was to see David's firmly established in the new Shoppes at Wilde Lake plan, somehow the actual execution has never felt as though it supported what is best about Dav...

  Today is the first day of the Maryland General Assembly’s 2022 legislative session. Did you have that marked on your calendar?  I did, because I’ve been meaning to write about an issue that I hope will get some prompt attention (and major funding) between now and Sine Die. I honestly hadn’t known anything about this until reader of the blog Debbie Nix reached out to me about: …the new MD 988 crisis line and the need for funding the call centers and related crisis services to support such a call center.  Our families and kids deserve better than ending up in the back of a police car handcuffed when having mental health or behavioral health crisis.  Maryland legislators need to hear from individuals and organizations who support the MD 988 Crisis Line about setting aside funding to enable it to function successfully. This will be the number that one can call for all kinds of crisis services,  including mental and behavioral health crises.  My memory was jog...

  I don’t know what to think about Laura Neuman. The most basic of information tells me that, until she decided to run for Governor as a Democrat, she was a Republican. I know that she has a Howard County connection, serving as Chief Executive Officer, Economic Development Authority, from 2011-13. She had a brief stint as Anne Arundel County Executive. Until today, that’s about all I knew. I have made much of my disappointment that there were no women running for Governor from the Democratic Party. Now there is one. I must admit I’m wary of someone who seems to have become a Democrat solely for a political campaign. People do change parties, of course, and it perhaps it shouldn’t be an automatic disqualifier, but, it gives me pause. I decided to go back to what I stated as my first priority in a gubernatorial candidate way back in October of 2020. As I took a moment to consider present State Comptroller Peter Franchot, I wrote: Maryland needs someone who is a champion for racial eq...

  This Wednesday at the Central Branch of the Howard County Library: you’re invited. From author Lawrence Lanahan: Fingers crossed some of you will join me Wednesday evening at the Equity Resource Center at @HoCo_Library Columbia branch. I'll revisit episodes from our region's history in THE LINES BETWEEN US and connect the dots between James Rouse and Port Covington. This in-person event will be held Wednesday, January 12th from 7-8:30 pm in the Equity Resource Center at Central Branch. You can find out more, and register, too, on the Library’s event page . Join author Lawrence Lanahan at the Central Branch of the Howard County Library System as he discusses The Lines Between Us: Two Families and a Quest to Cross Baltimore's Racial Divide.   Mark Lange and Nicole Smith have never met, but if they make the moves they are contemplating—Mark, a white suburbanite, to West Baltimore, and Nicole, a black woman from a poor city neighborhood, to a prosperous suburb—it will defy th...