Invitations and Good Cheer

After yesterday’s warnings, here are some invitations.

This Saturday at Abiding Saviour Lutheran Church, a concert by Kommuna Lux to raise money for Ukraine. They’re back again after last year’s successful visit and you’re invited.
 

Image from Kommuna Lux publicity materials 

From the event page :

Kommuna Lux brings you the heritage music of their beloved hometown. Klezmer, Balkan, and Urban Chanson, with a dash of Ukrainian Folk and powered by rocket fuel, Kommuna Lux impacts the crowd with a nostalgic, high-energy Big Band sound from the bygone days of speakeasies and rum runners.

Returning again after last year's successful fundraiser for Ukraine, tickets will be available online for $20 and a more limited number at the door as space allows.

To get a feel for their lively musical style, check them out at their website.

Purchase tickets at this link: Communa Lux Tickets

*****

Tonight, at the Common Kitchen in Clarksville, host Kathy Barton is kicking off a Howard County Foodies Meetup group.

From the event page:

Connect with other local foodies while trying delicious international cuisines from local restaurants. Small plates and drinks will be available for purchase from all of our food hall restaurant vendors. This is a great opportunity to sample new dishes from multiple restaurants at an affordable price!

We welcome other local restaurant business owners and managers to attend this event to promote their Howard County Local Restaurant!

If you follow any of the HoCoLocal restaurant pages on Facebook you know we’ve got plenty of “foodies” of all sorts. This could be the beginning of a fun and even educational experience. 

I recently read a social media post from someone new to the area trying to figure out how to meet people and make friends. It strikes me that this is the sort of event that could foster new friendships. At any rate, it certainly sounds tasty.

*****

One more. It’s this Saturday at the East Columbia Branch of the Howard County Library. 

Hi Tech STEAM Carnival, 10 am to 2 pm

From the Howard County Library Website:

Come one, Come All! 

For families. Play games and interactives, like Pinball and Skeeball, built by HiTech students. Participate in Paint-and-Sip or Build-and-Sip, ride a miniature train, and watch the car race, robotics challenges, and win prizes.

Stop by booths from local businesses and vendors, and don't miss the petting zoo! Food and beverages are available to purchase from local food trucks. 

*****

I said I’d be back today with cheerier news and I am. It turns out my day was made as soon as I woke up by a dear friend and reader of the blog who informed me that the new Louise Penny novel had been put up on the Howard County Library website. Because of her kindness I am number eight on the waiting list. 

Some folks get excited to score concert tickets or a reservation at a fancy restaurant. I’m entirely jazzed up by a new book at the library. 

Have a wonderful day. Oh, just for fun - - what kind of thing makes your day? 

Village Green/Town² Comments

And Now for This Important Message

 

So far no one is beating down my door to respond to yesterday’s request. Missed it? Take a look. 

*****

I’m torn about promoting indoor events right now because we are in a legitimately significant COVID wave. This is not just some gut feeling I have. Maryland wastewater monitoring indicates a “Very High” level of COVID-19 infection (per CDC). Anecdotally, I keep seeing folks who managed to stay COVID-free until now report that they are infected.

It’s not just a cold.

My personal recommendation is that you mask in indoor spaces while levels are so high. That makes indoor dining an extremely difficult choice. It’s the same old problem from earlier in the pandemic: does the restaurant have high ceilings and good ventilation/added air purification systems? Can you go at a less crowded time of day? Perhaps outdoor dining is a better choice.

I can’t tell you what to do. I can be blunt and voice the unpopular opinion that COVID is not over and that repeat infections pose long-term health consequences that you would not wish on anyone. Pretending that everything is fine with the understandably human desire to “get back to normal” has encouraged continued transmission and mutation.

That’s not progress.

I suspect we’ll be seeing more announcements of restaurants needing to close for a day or an evening as infections runs through food service staff. Our insistence on getting back to normal comes at enormous cost to them. Food service workers have experienced some of the highest rates of infection and reinfection and they are the least likely to have health insurance and/or disability benefits.

It ain’t over, folks.

I’ll be back tomorrow with something cheerier. I’m open to suggestions.

Village Green/Town² Comments

Help Wanted

 

Hey there! There are two blog posts I’d like to run but they’re not entirely in my wheelhouse. I’d love for you - - yes, you - - to step up and write one. 

First of all, I’d love to be able to share a post along the lines of “Why I love the Howard County Fair.” I know it’s a significant event in the life of the county. Me? I wilt in the heat and I’m allergic to everything, so my visits to the Fair have been rare over the years. Every year when it rolls around I know there are local stories there that I’m just plain missing out on.

Maybe this is your time to shine. Reach out to me and let me know. 

Second, with the recent forward movement on an Inspector General in Howard County, I am looking for someone who can explain the entire process to people who have no background knowledge. You know, as in the request, “Explain it to me like I’m in kindergarten.” I don’t mean to suggest that my readers are dummies. Far from it. But I think that people who are intensely “in the know” sometimes forget that not everyone is. 

I’d love to be able to share a write up that doesn’t assume a whole lot of prior knowledge and that would make this whole process engaging and accessible to more people. Do I think there’s someone out there who can do this? Yes. Will they be willing to do it in a community blog with no hope of monetary reward?

Gosh, I hope so. 

***

One more thing before you go. Donations to Columbia Community Care drop off significantly in the summertime and they could really use a boost right now. Here’s how you can help:

Donate money

Order from their Amazon Wishlist 

Buy needed items and drop off at the Pantry or one of their drop-off locations

Have a great Monday! 

Village Green/Town² Comments

Just for the Clicks

 

I didn’t have this on my writing agenda this morning but it feels ridiculous to ignore it. 

One dead after shooting inside Columbia mall, police say, Rafael Escalera Montoto, Baltimore Banner

There was a shooting at the Mall yesterday. If you are reading this and you or someone you know was there your response is a personal one. Even those who are not physically harmed in these situations come away with a more invisible sort of trauma. My heart goes out to you. 

But even if you were not there you probably already know. Shootings dominate news coverage and drive social media posts. They are more than frightening and upsetting: they generate more clicks. Clicks mean money. I’ve been watching the story wash through social media like a tidal wave. 

Click, click, click.

In addition, shootings seem to open the door for people who wish to launch conspiracy theories, place blame, create spurious causal connections, or make predictions of doom. I find these to be unhelpful at best, outright destructive at worst. There’s so often a thread of “These bad things happen because of people that I don’t like” that runs throughout.

This means…

This means…

This means…

Everyone’s an armchair analyst. 

I find myself feeling such gratitude for those who respond purely with sadness at the violence and goodwill towards those harmed or in danger. 

Having an emotional response to a shooting is normal. Expressing feelings of fear, or sadness, or confusion is human and understandable. But using an act of violence in our community to forward personal animus is just a continuation of the violence. 

What we know: there was a shooting at the mall. Someone died. There was a gun, a shooter, and a killing. We also know that shootings happen in every U.S. community. Most of them experience far more than we do. Those are facts. 

Do we want to make that better? How? That would be a helpful conversation to have. Apparently that’s not the conversation some folks want to be a part of. Others are just making money off the clicks.

Village Green/Town² Comments

The End is Near?

Looking for local fun? Try here:

• Events on Facebook (Choose Local and This Week) 
• Visit Howard County
• HoCo Calendar 
• Baltimore Banner

A shoutout to the Banner’s Jess Nocera for including the Sunday Farmer’s Market in Oakland Mills in this week’s run-down.

I’m somewhat distressed to read the words “as the end of summer draws closer” in her piece. It’s either because I think that summer should go on a whole lot longer or because I’m trying to ignore all those adverts for school supplies that herald the inexorable march towards another school year. I haven’t been a student in K-12 in many a day but that old resistance to back to school displays has stuck with me.

Of course some stores are already putting out Halloween and Thanksgiving merchandise, so why am I complaining?

All that being said, Prepare for Success is in full swing collecting school supplies to support area students for the upcoming school year. They’re an excellent HoCoLocal organization and they make it easy to participate, either by monetary donation, contributing new school supplies and dropping them off, or purchasing items from their Amazon Wish List.

In a different but equally important way to prepare for success, right now would be an excellent time to make sure you are registered to vote in the State of Maryland. 

Voter Services Maryland.gov

I may be putting off thoughts of summer’s end but November is ever present in my mind. 

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Crowdsourcing

 

Over the past few weeks I have found myself going online to ask for advice more than once. 

I have pain in the back of my thigh but it’s not sciatic. What could it be? What should I do?

Where’s a trustworthy local place to sell gold jewelry?

My car’s check engine light just came on. Where should I take it? 

Any book recommendations for children’s novels which will help me keep the stress of current events at bay?

There’s a word for this kind of social media interaction. It’s called crowdsourcing. 

Crowdsourcing: the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community rather than from traditional employees or suppliers. - - Merriam Webster 

Now, obviously, when an individual like me goes online to find a trustworthy mechanic or the best place to find a root beer snowball it is a far cry from the process described above. It is more like asking one’s neighbor over the fence, but in an expanded sort of way. We’re not going to use our friends and acquaintances as sources to be mined in order to create a product we can sell.

We just need help.

In a similar way, Buy Nothing Groups create a community where folks can connect to share physical items and/or requests for assistance within a specific geographic location. Again, members aren’t looking to market a product or sell goods or services. They just need help, either to part with things they no longer need or want or to find the thing they do need or want. 

As odd as it may seem, people look to be every bit as happy to be able to fulfill someone else’s need as they are to find the thing that they want. Sometimes moreso. And there’s a special kind of joy involved in finding just the right person to take something that you have really cared about but that you realize you must now part with.

It’s almost like matchmaking.

So, we all need help sometimes. But we also feel good about being asked for help, or at least for our good advice. This is why those questions about “why is my car making this noise?” get so many responses. They appeal to our desire to be helpful, not to mention that innate yearning to share our own personal experiences. 

Now, a question like “Who will help tow my car out of a ditch?” is not at all the same thing. That’s the sort of heavy-duty request that you’d ask your immediate family or close friends. “Who should I call to tow my car out of a ditch?” Will get you a list of local recommendations plus the pros and cons of each one.

It may also get you a private message from a friend offering to come pull you out. But this is not to be expected. It’s a bonus.

I suppose there is a sort of unspoken etiquette to these things. At least, I know there are certain topics I wouldn’t pose to my Facebook or Twitter feed: too personal, too sad, too enormous, too controversial. Your own assessments might be different. It depends on your boundaries and your own circle of online friends. It’s safe to say that a question like “Who will rid me of this meddlesome priest?” is just as bad an idea on social media as it was in 1170. 

What about you? Have you ever used social media to gather information or advice in order to get help or make a decision? Did you learn anything useful? Or would you rather ask personal friends directly rather than putting it out there for the world to see?

Let me know. 

Village Green/Town² Comments

De-escalate

Today’s topic of discussion comes from Howard Community College.

Howard Community College Professor, Howard County Police partner to reduce use-of-force interactions

Howard Community College Criminal Justice Assistant Professor Eric L. Clark, a retired United States Marshals Service employee who developed the E.A.S.E program during his service in the agency, encourages using effective communication to decompress tensions, minimize physical force, and achieve productive detention, investigatory, and custodial outcomes with the public.

Did you know that HCC was on Substack? Now you do. I just subscribed.

howardcommunitycollege.substack.com

Criminal Justice Assistant Professor Eric L. Clark, image from HCC social media 

You can hear Clark talk about the E.A.S.E. protocol in two short videos.

1. HCC Pathways

2. HCC Facebook page

The second video goes into the specifics of what E.A.S.E. teaches, step by step.

Image from lecture PowerPoint, HCC social media

Clark is partnering with the Howard County Police to teach these de-escalation techniques. Furthermore, he sees broader applications for the program.

We want a Police Institute at HCC where we can train the rest of the state on these de-escalation techniques.

I honestly didn’t know until now that one could study Criminal Justice at HCC so this is all new to me. I have a few thoughts.

1. How does this work when the person in question is in a mental health crisis? Or if they are autistic or developmentally disabled? Is that a part of this training? Because the process Clark lays out is going to be profoundly altered by those possibilities.

2. How does this work when it is the law enforcement officer who needs de-escalating?

3. Does this (and can this) address the ongoing pattern of racist violence against Black Americans at the hands of law enforcement officers? 

DOJ will investigate Sonya Massey shooting, Sean Crawford, NPR Illinois

Sonya Massey called police because she feared for her own safety and one of the responding offices shot her to death in her own home. A preliminary investigation into that officer’s service record shows a pattern of violence from job to job.

How do you de-escalate that?

I am not discounting Clark or the work that he is doing. I don’t know anywhere near enough to pass any judgement whatsoever. But I despair of a criminal justice system that continues to produce outcomes that leave a trail of death in the Black community. That’s never going to be acceptable.

Who de-escalates the de-escalators? 

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Searching for Serendipity

The other day I bumped into a social media post that got me wondering.

If someone is missing a large rooster, he is near serendipity. He ran off into the bushes when he saw me get out off my car to take a picture. 

“Near serendipity?”

Is that a state of being? Like almost ecstatic? Approaching nirvana?

According to Merriam Webster, serendipity is defined as:

1. the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for

2. also : an instance of this

Hmm…somehow I doubted that was the case for this particular rooster. I started searching “serendipity” as a place name instead. Perhaps the name of a street or a subdivision? It turned out to be neither. 

This is Serendipity. Oh, wait. I think I’ve passed that building.

Images from Serendipity social media 

Serendipity describes itself as a “quaint, independent boutique offering women's clothes, jewelry, gifts & home decor items.” They are located at 12798 MD-216 in Highland. As I recall they are at the corner of 108 and 216. 

I had a hazy recollection of reading they were going to be closing soon? Wait, here it is. Twin sisters, Pam Ehrenfried and Penny Schmit, have operated Serendipity for fifteen years and were looking for a new owner for the business. A recent update:

We have a buyer for our store (yay) but she will not be taking over until January.  Penny and I will keep Serendipity running until then.  What this means…. We are in Atlanta right now buying for the store.  Christmas will be just like we’ve always done and we are buying new merchandise and restocking existing merchandise.  Please bear with us during this process, we have a lot of work to do.  Our 30% off sale is now over.  For now our hours will remain the same and we will keep you updated when they change.  

Perhaps our rooster friend was hoping to take advantage of that 30 per cent off sale. 

So I solved the mystery of Serendipity but I still have one question. Where did the rooster come from? According to a quick internet search, roosters are not permitted in Howard County.

Residents living in a detached, single-family house may keep up to 8 chickens.  No roosters are allowed.  The yard must be 10,000 square feet or larger.  The coop must be at least 15 feet from all lot lines and 50 feet from all neighbors’ houses.  Additional rules apply.

But those are residential rules and Highland is more rural. Maryland certainly has plenty of information on raising poultry on their agricultural website so I’m assuming that this falls under regulations I’m just not familiar with. 

On the other hand, perhaps he’s an illegal rooster looking for a disguise so he can travel around the county incognito. Howard County already has a Roving Radish. Why not a Roaming Rooster?

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Save It For a Rainy Day

 

We haven’t had much rain lately. Well, yesterday’s downpour notwithstanding. But here come this week's weather predictions.

Everyone loves to make lists these days - - best place for live music, best location to see the fireworks, best local cheesesteak - - but what we don’t have is a list of the best HoCoLocal things to do when it rains. 

Let’s make one.

Best things to do with kids when it rains. Best places to watch the rain. Best places to dance in the rain.

You get the idea. 

What are your favorite Howard County hangouts when your outdoor plans get washed out? I once attended a summer concert (Beatlegras, Columbia Festival of the Arts) under a tent at Belmont as a storm moved in and it was a memorable experience. The tent was fine, we didn’t get wet, and the musicians just kept right on playing. 

Send me your rainy day (and night) recommendations. They may very well come in handy for the rest of us this week. 

Village Green/Town² Comments 

The Face of Howard County

I don’t have much to offer you this morning except a glimpse of our community that I would rather not have encountered.

Here you see a social media post from the Howard County Heath department promoting mental health.

Mental Health Tip: Celebrate your successes! Even if you've accomplished something small, acknowledging the process you've made on a goal can boost your mood. For mental health support and tips, visit: https://www.howardcountymd.gov/health/behavioral-health .

The accompanying photo, probably a stock photo, is of a young Muslim woman wearing hijab. 

The response to the post?

This is not the face of Howard County!

“Why?” I wonder. Because it is a young woman, or because she is asking for help to support her mental health? Is that why this is not the face of Howard County? 

I doubt that.

In all likelihood this response is purely an objection to the choice of a Muslim woman in a social media post in Howard County, Maryland. A quick scan of this poster’s account suggests that they would object not only to her religion but would have made an assumption that she doesn’t belong, that she isn’t a “real American.”

It continues to floor me how many people in Howard County get uncomfortable if the people being centered on social media and in the community don’t look like them. 

Oh, but this is just one person, you say. You are making a big deal over one local troll.

Friends, it is not just one person. There is far more of this out there than you might imagine. And attitudes like this make people - - the ones who are targeted as “other” - - less safe. Attitudes that paint all Muslims as terrorists, or all Black people as criminals. No wonder this hypothetical young woman needs mental health supports. She lives in a community where some feel free to label her as someone who doesn’t belong.

So, what is the face of Howard County? Who is the face of Howard County?

Who decides?

Village Green/Town² Comments 

 

It’s National Ice Cream Day!

 

I did not know. 

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed July as National Ice Cream Month and established National Ice Cream Day as the third Sunday in July. - - National Day Calendar

Why do I feel that the National Dairy Council had something to do with this? Just a hunch.

Here in Howard County you have a variety of options if you are interested in observing National Ice Cream Day. 

Of course you have well-known chains such as Baskin-Robbins, Rita’s, and Cold Stone Creamery. The Meadows Frozen Custard, located in the Hickory Ridge Village Center, is technically a part of a chain but this location is one of only two in Maryland. 

And don’t forget, Jason’s Deli provides an option of chocolate or vanilla soft-serve free with your meal if you are dining in. 

For the indie ice cream options you have your choice of:

Cindy’s Soft Serve

Soft Stuff

Park Ridge Creamery

The Charmery 

The Crazy Mason Milkshake Bar*

Unusual Company (gelato)

If you have a hankering for the frozen delights you used to be able to get from Scoop & Paddle at Clarksville Commons, you’ll need to pay a visit to Martha’s Cafe in Halethorpe, where Scoop & Paddle is now in residence.

Visit Howard County has a page devoted to ice cream, believe it or not. And if you want to go farther afield, the state of Maryland has an entire Ice Cream Trail. Holy Cow! 

Sorry.

I asked readers for input on their favorite ice cream in HoCo. I received votes for Park Ridge Creamery in Ellicott City which serves Taharka Brothers ice cream (made nearby in Baltimore.) Other votes were for Cindy’s Soft Serve in Elkridge and Brusters in Glen Burnie. That last one is rather far afield for this post but Brusters is opening a HoCo location on July 23rd. 

Special mention given for The Snowball Stand in Woodbine which apparently serves perennial Disney favorite Dole Whip.  It was described to me as follows: 

It’s a non-dairy soft serve that originally was just pineapple, but now there are a number of other fruit flavors. I’ve seen mango, strawberry, watermelon, lime. The Snowball Stand publishes their in-stock flavors on their Facebook page.

Last but not least, a story I’ve been saving for just the right occasion. This report comes from a long time friend of the blog: 

Something I thought you could appreciate. I was sitting in my truck at the Merriweather District eating my butter pecan from The Charmery while scrolling the radio dial, and I stumbled on 105.5 FM. 

It’s the Symphony of Lights music and announcements channel, playing all year apparently. It came in with a bit of static, but Dr. Ball welcomed me to the show, and I got to hear Bing Crosby and Mariah Carey while I enjoyed my frozen treat.

This was in March. I wonder if you can still catch a bit of Christmas in July with your ice cream? It’s worth a try.

What’s your favorite place to get ice cream in HoCo?

Village Green/Town² Comments 

*Yes, it’s really part of a chain but for some reason it is viewed locally as a mom and pop. Go figure. 

Not So Hot

Looking for events? You know the drill. It’s another summer Saturday and the weather predictions look fairly reasonable.

Markets:

Movie at the Wine Bin:  Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

At the Fairgrounds there’s a Christmas in July event both Saturday and Sunday. Personally I think Santa should get summers off.

As always, check out these resources for info on local events: Events on Facebook (Choose Local and This Week)  or take a look at the activity calendar at Visit Howard County. There’s also a new events calendar in town run by Ricardo Whitaker/Guilford Gazette. Check it out and see what you think. It’s called HoCo Calendar.

Apparently tomorrow is National Ice Cream Day.  Where will you be celebrating? I’m planning on making tomorrow’s post the All-HoCo Ice Cream Edition. Send me your recommendations!

Village Green/Town² Comments

F ³: The Face of God and the Presidential Election

 

The outpouring of appreciation yesterday from folks responding to the passing of comedian and actor Bob Newhart brought reminiscences of his most famous roles. For me it brought to mind the time that Newhart played God.

The Rebirth of Packy Rowe, Insight, Paulist Fathers, 1979

This is not meant to be an endorsement of the Paulist Fathers or the Roman Catholic Church but rather an appreciation for the acting of the two main characters, played by Newhart and Jack Klugman. 

Theatrical agent Packy Rowe has a low opinion of himself and what he's done with his life. He's in for a few surprises when he dies and meets God who thinks otherwise. (From the YouTube description)

I haven’t watched this in years and I’m sure I’d find things about it now that are less than optimal that I wouldn’t have noticed back then. For one thing, it’s very white-centric and that would’ve been invisible to me in 1979 or whenever it showed up in my television viewing. 

With all that being said…

What has stayed with me most is a moment when Jack Klugman’s character expresses his profound disbelief that the Newhart character could be God because he looks so “ordinary.” There’s nothing impressive about him. 

Here you see them: the recently deceased Packy Rowe and…God.

Newhart’s God is unfazed by this reception. You get the feeling he’s seen it all before. Then he explains, and I’m paraphrasing here:

“The Bible says God created mankind in His own image. Why do you think I made so many ordinary-looking people?” 

Ohhh…

No matter how you feel about issues of spirituality or organized religion I think you can appreciate the interplay between the two characters and the brilliant acting that these two gentlemen brought to this piece. 

I’m going to take a leap here and reveal that this television drama is weighing heavily on my mind for more than the obvious reasons. 

This morning I’m thinking about people who demand that political candidates look impressive and take up space like Hollywood-produced superstars rather than assessing and appreciating true leadership and job performance. I’m appalled by a political system which is giving people with a lot of money a platform to overturn a season of Democratic primaries.

I’m disgusted by media operations that thrive on driving a story and forgo their responsibility to report and analyze the actual news and consequences of current events. Some perspective on past events wouldn’t hurt either. Maybe even some context?

Most of all I truly wish that these people who think they know everything would take a minute to ponder the possibility that they have completely missed the point. Does that ever happen?

Dear God in Heaven, I can only pray that it does. 

 

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Better Late Than Never: A Few Things

Sorry I’m late. It took forever for me to get to sleep last night and my best sleep turned out to be from around 3:45 to 6:30. For me, that’s oversleeping.

A few things:

Have you taken this survey yet? The deadline is July 31st. I completed it yesterday. My unprofessional assessment is that is was a bit too long for me, but still doable. I absolutely hate long surveys. 

Racial Equity Perception Survey for Howard County Community Members is part of the work of the Howard County Office of Human Rights & Equity. If you are not following them already you can check them out on Facebook and Instagram.

There’s an article about new CA President Shawn MacInnes in the Baltimore Banner. 

One more thing: I read something recently that suggests to me that the Columbia Assocation Board will be considering some pretty major changes in CA’s relationship with the Villages. Has anyone out there been following this? Any opinions? 

Let me know.

Village Green/Town² Comments 

The Key Word is Public

The State of Maryland maintains a website specifically to inform the public about prominent garden locations throughout the state. It falls under their promotion of tourism. 

Gardens of Maryland 

In HoCo, the Howard County Conservancy is on the list. Their focus is, of course, primarily environmental. Other locations lean more historical, while some fit a more ‘traditional’ description of a public garden - - Brookside Gardens in Montgomery County, for instance. According to the American Public Gardens Association:

A public garden is an institution that maintains plants for the purposes of public education and enjoyment, in addition to research, conservation, and higher learning. It must be open to the public and the garden’s resources and accommodations must be made to all visitors.

That’s a broad enough definition to encompass a wider variety of places than I would have expected, which explains the variety in the State of Maryland’s list. I am realizing now that I assumed that public gardens were mostly synonymous with formal gardens.  Not so. From the definition above, the highest priority looks to be that the gardens be 1. open to the public and 2. truly accessible to everyone. 

Clearly I have more to learn about public gardens.

In April County Executive Calvin Ball announced the formation of a Public Gardens Work Group to begin the work of creating Howard County’s first official public garden at Longwood in Glenwood. The project falls under the leadership of Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks.

Image from Howard County Government 

Do you have ideas? Suggestions? Priorities that you hope they will keep in mind? Good! They want to hear from you. In fact, there’s a hybrid meeting this evening. From Rec and Parks:

Here's a reminder that we are still seeking community input for the design of Howard County’s first public garden. Join us at a focus group meeting on July 17 from 6-8pm at Department of Recreation & Parks’ Headquarters (7120 Oakland Mills Road, Columbia). Sign up to speak or submit your testimony now. Learn more: https://www.howardcountymd.gov/boards-commissions/public-gardens-focus-group

If you can’t can't testify in person you can email testimony to: 

publicgarden@howardcountymd.gov

The Longwood site has the potential to provide public spaces for aesthetic enjoyment as well as environmental education. Embedded within all those possibilities is the heavy burden of the history of the land itself as a “plantation” or forced labor camp for enslaved Africans. My highest priority for this site is that the resulting gardens place as high a value on the history as they do on the planting and maintaining of the natural environment.

What do you think?

Village Green/Town² Comments 

New Biz

 

National news is truly taking a lot of the wind out of my sails these days. Trying to focus on the local takes a lot of effort.

Okay, that’s enough of that. Here are three new local businesses you might be interested in:

New to me is a place called The Village Center. They describe themselves as both a family center and a wellness center. Located at 10203 Tanager Lane, Suite 102 in Columbia, they offer a range of services including massage and facials for adults and drop-in play and language classes for children. To my knowledge there’s no other business in HoCo that combines these elements under one roof.

Opening last weekend in Ellicott City is a place called Twin Thrift Vintage. I don’t mean Main Street Old Ellicott City, though. It’s closer to Glenelg.

I don’t understand this entirely, but it looks like Twin Thrift Vintage is a part of (or operating alongside) a business called Westwood Unique. They’re in a repurposed church building at 13554 Triadelphia Road. Twin Thrift Vintage describes its self as “Twins finding finds (vintage and pre-loved).” You can get a glimpse of their offerings on Etsy.

My last offering is a place that popped up yesterday in my Facebook feed. It’s called Boxcar Coffee. It’s a mobile business and right now it’s located at Twin Knolls Road in Columbia. (Think behind the Walgreens.)

Image from Boxcar Coffee social media 

There are a number of businesses/offices back in that little cul de sac, not to mention the Walgreens, where you can get many things but certainly not a cup of freshly made coffee. So that just might be a great little spot to draw potential customers.

True confession: one of the photos I saw yesterday showed this fellow's set up and I noticed that he had a musical instrument (maybe a guitar?) resting on a chair in the shade. I’m fascinated. Is this a musical coffee service? Or is coffee what a musician does between gigs?

I may need to stop by and find out. 

Any other new business I should know about?

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Are Mall Restrictions “Working”?

Have you been to the Mall lately? I have not, but my post-college kid stopped by after a recent visit and clearly takes a dim view of the curfew/chaperone rule. 

“I mean, it’s summer!”

I get the point. How many air conditioned spaces are there in town where teens can meet and socialize without a substantial financial outlay?

It’s not just a Columbia thing. The establishment and enforcement of these kinds of restrictions is happening in other nearby areas as well. This piece by Leslie Gray Streeter in the Baltimore Banner looks at what “mall life” meant to teens of her generation. 

Local malls are restricting teens. Gen X would never have survived. Leslie Gray Streeter, Baltimore Banner 

It’s more than a pure nostalgia piece, although it does provide a delicious glimpse into what made the mall such a magical place for Streeter and her contemporaries. I spent my teen years in a town without a mall and we certainly bemoaned the fact that there was “nowhere to go!” other than the library, the indoor mini golf, and the movies. 

Streeter also addresses changes in parenting styles and the advent of helicopter parenting. I noted that change myself when we attended college orientation for our youngest a few years back. The school held a special session just for parents. I was flabbergasted to learn that many parents expected that they’d hear from their college kids at least daily once they had gone away to school. 

Despite these societal changes, one person quoted in the piece notes that the kids who are now required to be chaperoned don’t behave a whole lot better than when they were on their own, and that the parents don’t seem to be doing much about that. Hmm.

I was glad to see that Ms. Streeter touched on this point:

Because of changes in retail, nobody — including kids — needs to shop in person at a mall to get what they want. But both Lehr and my sister think that if businesses respected the money that the young demographic spent, they might be less restrictive. “You think about whether the malls would be failing as much if they looked at these kids as actual consumers,” Lynne said, who added that she thinks some of these curfews and restrictions have a racial bias (as do I).

I agree, on both points. 1. Teens are undervalued as mall consumers and 2. these kinds of rules have their roots in racial bias.

The Mall Problem, Village Green/Town², February, 2023

Teens love and patronize malls with far more faithfulness than many adults. (Just Google the phrase “teens spend money at malls” if you’re curious.) If we respond to this situation by throwing more police and more restrictions at it, we are essentially developing exclusionary policies that place value on some people and devalue others. 

So we’ve been doing this for over a year now. What are the results? Is the Mall “safer”? Has there been an increase in business overall or has it declined? Are teens taking their dollars elsewhere? 

I’d love to know.

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Making Plans

It’s Saturday and for some reason I have a bad attitude this morning about posting local events, possibly because the weather doesn’t look promising. But that doesn’t mean I should take it out on you. (Don’t say I haven’t warned you, though.)

But who knows? It might clear up.

Clark Elioak Farm is celebrating Fairy Days today and tomorrow. 

Photo from Clark’s Elioak Farm social media 

Sunflowers of Lisbon are having a special Final Weekend Sale: All you can pick flowers with general admission. 

Photo from Sunflowers of Lisbon social media 

There’s a fundraising event at Reckless Shepherd for the All Shepherd Rescue organization.

Image from Reckless Shepherd social media 

Ridgely’s Run Community Center is hosting a Yard Sale from 9 am to noon in Savage.

Out at the Howard County Fairgrounds you can visit the Native American Pow Wow both today and tomorrow. Learn more at Visit Howard County: Whispering Winds Pow Wow.

Image from Visit Howard County

And, of course, the markets:

Maple Lawn Farmers Market, Maple Lawn Boulevard, 9 am - 1 pm

Clarksville Commons Farmers Market, 10 am - 2 pm

Freetown Farm Plant and Produce Sale, 9 am - 1 pm

Please note: the produce is IN at Freetown Farm, so it’s more than just plants. Frankly, there’s so much going on just with the Community Ecology Institute today I could do a post solely on their offerings. Check them out if you haven’t already. 

Have a wonderful Saturday whether you’re out and about or home reading a book. 

Village Green/Town² Comments 

Blocked

 A Tweet:

Dear people racialized as White:

When y'all say it's not a race thing, you've made it a race thing by rendering your racialized experiences invisible, which is indicative of how the race thing works. - - Deadric T. Williams,  @doc_thoughts

Last night I removed someone’s ability to comment on the blog. I do that very rarely. Generally it is for one of two reasons:

1. They verbally attack others who are commenting.

2. They verbally attack my family.

Yesterday’s commenter chose to go down the road of claiming that something wasn’t racism because they, a white person, said it wasn’t. This is just not going to fly with me, and I said as much. Their response was to persist at length and to become more belligerent.

Friends, I am willing to discuss a lot of things in the comments and I try mightily to make it a space where people can express more than one point of view. But I am not obliged to make space for white people attempting to control definitions of racism. I reject that. 

This is not because I think I know everything about racism. Absolutely not. It’s because I am clear that the place to look for wisdom on this topic is the Black people who have experienced it. Period.

I’m going to share this quote again:

The overwhelming majority of racism happens unintentionally, without white people’s knowledge. Racism is so engrained into our society’s infrastructure—indeed, at our nation’s social and economic foundation—white folks’ actions are often racist accidentally, even automatically. - - Johnathan Perkins, Director of Diversity and Inclusion, UCLA

So, in case there was any confusion about this - - I’m clearly articulating it today. Village Green/Town² is not obligated to provide a platform for white people who insist on defining what racism is or who attempt to control conversations about race at the expense of Black people. 

We have plenty of other things to talk about here.

Village Green/Town² Comments