Showtime

First posted on this day in 2015:

The Traveling Show

It doesn't matter where you live, the traveling show will soon be coming to your town. If not now, then sooner rather than later. The traveling show has money to burn and the tickets are bought by people like us who think they'll never have to pay the price.
It doesn't happen here, they say.

Come one come all to gawk and stare as the ringmaster makes media statements and the ambulances pull away from the scene. Action in all three rings! You can have a front row seat. And there's always audience participation. Come early to get good seats.

New venues are always being booked. Don't worry if you missed it the last time around. It'll be back.

*****

With love, condolences, and profound respect to the community of Roseburg, Oregon

*****

What more can I say? I woke up to this.

One more time: With love, condolences, and profound respect to the people of Las Vegas.

Bring the Light

When I came downstairs this morning it was still a bit dark outside. There was a hint of a chill in the house. Fall may finally be making an appearance and the weather will change, the light will change. The days will grow shorter.

As I look out at the half-darkness this morning I'm thinking about a family in Howard County who have recently lost their child to suicide. This is so heartbreaking. I can't imagine what this kind of a loss is like. I, too, am the parent of a high school student. I know the love I have for her, and the worries, as well. I know the arc of her life so far: precious memories and ambitious hopes for the future.

Suicide destroys all this. The thoughts that whisper, beckon, or demand crowd out both love and reason. It could be a veteran, a member of the LGBTQ community, or a teenager on the brink of adulthood. It could be a sister, a brother, a friend. If we had any way of helping, we would--wouldn't we?

One week from today is the Howard County Out of the Darkness Community Walk at Lake Elkhorn. Registration begins at eleven am; opening ceremony is at one. To learn more about the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in Maryland, click here.

What happens to the funds raised from about of the Darkness Walks? 84 per cent go towards programming and research, 16 per cent to fundraising and administration. Some of the programs that AFSP supports locally are the Talk Saves Lives training (they have a Maryland-based trainer) and Survivors of Suicide Loss Day from the AFSP Maryland web site:

The grassroots work we do focuses on eliminating the loss of life from suicide by: delivering innovative prevention programs, educating the public about risk factors and warning signs, raising funds for suicide research and programs, and reaching out to those individuals who have lost someone to suicide.

The days may be getting shorter, and soon we will be feeling the absence of light that comes with the change of season. Maybe we can take some time to push back against the darkness by walking with members of our community and bring a little light back into the world. 

Pipedreams

As I watch the progress of the Elevate Maryland podcast I've been thinking a lot about who I would want to interview if I had a local "Talk Show".

Now this is where my brain gives to "If I had a talk show" to the tone of "If I had a hammer", and then to the tune of "If I were a rich man." Doesn't everybody?

So, without further ado, my top ten list of HoCo locals that I think would make fabulous interview subjects. This is in no particular order of value, by the way.

1. Jean Moon. She's well known for publicizing other peoples' events but I think her own personal story would be fascinating.

2. Jonathan Edelson, chair of the Oakland Mills Village Board. What makes an under-50 with kids in elementary school get involved in what has traditionally been a haven for Pioneers?

3. Bonnie Bricker, educator, writer, and community activist. I'd like to hear more about her present venture to work with parents and infants to support early language development.

4. Bryan Sears, reporter for the Maryland Daily Record. Now there's someone with a million stories to tell, especially about shenanigans in Annapolis!

5. Mindy Levene Spak, teacher of ESOL students at MHHS and mom of a special needs student in the Howard County Schools. She has a wealth of first-hand knowledge on our most vulnerable students.

6. Calvin Ball. But I'd want to talk to him about something totally non-political, like parenting teenaged girls or his favorite music and authors.

7. Nina Basu, the President of Inner Arbor Trust. I'd love to hear her stories of growing up in Columbia and her experiences as a student of color at McDonough.

8. Michael Oberman, photographer and former music critic. It would be difficult to stick to local topics because I know I would want to ask him about the time he met David Bowie and other stories from his past.

9. Candace Dodson Reed, blogger, community activist. Founder of African American Community Roundtable. I'd love to turn the tables on this Elevate Maryland cohost and talk local politics, work/life balance, and what goals we should be setting in HCPSS now that we have a Diveristy director.

10. Alan Romack. You may not have heard of him, but you should. Woodworking, 3D design/ printing, PTA and community volunteer. Sometimes it's the quiet folks who have the best ideas.

So there you have it. Of course, I don't have a talk show, but I can dream, can't I?

Who's on your list?

Spinning Plates

You may or may not be old enough to remember the man in the Ed Sullivan show who would come out and manage to keep an entire row of plates spinning atop long sticks. For some reason I found this hilarious as a child. Now it seems more like life. Keep everything going without anything falling. Steady one while another slows and wobbles. It almost seems to be the precise activity for which the phrase "teetering precariously" was invented.

The image of the spinning plates came to mind this morning as I was reading the news that Howard County intends to make a pitch for the new Amazon facility. Clearly having an Amazon facility is the new community fidget spinner. Everybody seems to want one. No matter that we're already spinning school redistricting, de facto segregation in our schools, a Downtown Plan, recovery from a flood, and APFO legislation. Let's add Amazon to the mix!

The catch, from what I can tell, is that Amazon is looking for a place with robust public transit. Howard County can boast of many strong points, but transit is hardly one of them. In fact, public transit seems to be at the bottom of the list when people talk about improving Columbia/HoCo. "Let's do all these other things, and then, um, we'll be able to look at transit."

Now, when I think of public transit in Columbia/HoCo, I'm thinking about making it easy, convenient, and appealing to get around town/county. On the other hand, most people I know think of transit as better ways to get to Baltimore and D.C.. What will Amazon be looking for? I don't know, but it's safe to say we don't have the best of either in place, nor are they in the top position for investment/improvement.

We certainly are making many improvements to our community and there has been a huge investment of effort in the Downtown Plan, for instance. And if reliable transit were solved by bicycles alone, the Open Streets people would have this thing clinched in a heartbeat. But we need to be honest that, when it comes to transit, we don't have what Amazon is looking for. And there's a reason they are looking for it.

Let's face it, Amazon understands the benefits of public transit better than we do. Will this be a game changer in how we look at transit? I'd be thrilled if it were, but I'm not counting on it.

Fête Accompli

The Columbia 50th birthday festivities are drawing to a close. This Sunday brings the official farewell event from the Columbia Birthday folks:

They'll be dedicating the Gail Holliday poster trees, located along Lake Kittamaqundi in the Kennedy Gardens. From Barbara Kellner of the Columbia Archives:

On Sunday, Oct 1 starting at 5 pm there will be special celebration of Columbia's 50th.  Starting at the Kennedy Gardens, on the path around Lake Kittamaqundi, with a dedication of the newly-installed restored poster trees that once graced Wincopin Circle. The fete continues at the lakefront with performances by Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, Misako Ballet Company, Columbia Orchestra and Columbia's own Zach Brown.  Please join me as Columbia's celebration of the 50th birthday draws to a close.

Weather for Sunday is likely to be mostly sunny, with a high of 70. Perfect weather for a walk around the Lake and some family fun at the Lakefront. It's all free. 

A tip of the hat to everyone who has worked on the Columbia 50th celebrations! After this weekend you can put your feet up and think about all the happy memories you created for our community.

Showing Their Colors

Seen in Howard County:

First off, I have no use for the term "Alt-right". Let's call it what it is: fascism. And it's flying it's ugly little flag over Route 70 in Howard County. (FYI: it's no longer there.)

And what about that slogan? "They will not replace us." It's easy to do a basic Google search. I found an interesting opinion piece in the New York Tines, entitled, "White 'Power' and the Fear of Replacement".  The words, "You will not replace us" and "Jews will not replace us" were chanted by white nationalists in Charlottesville. From the article:

While on some level the people who marched in Charlottesville were motivated by a perverse, exceptional hate, they were also, on another level, driven by a very ordinary desire for power. But that desire is based in an impoverished understanding of power as the replacement and domination of others.

It appears that these people have friends in Howard County, Maryland. I think that's something that everyone, both Democrat and Republican, should be concerned about. This is not a benign political viewpoint. It is poison that promotes violence. Denying its existence will not make it go away.

What is the appropriate response? Can we afford to shake our heads and say, "This is not us" and just move on? It's far easier for white people, comfortable in our own privilege, to "tut-tut" and then do nothing. It's a far more immediate threat to all those who are considered "other" by white supremacists.

I'm not in the habit of calling things un-American, but this, my friends, is it. Facsim and Democracy cannot co-exist. I doubt very sincerely that these people will come to a #OneHoward or #ChooseCivility event in the hope of "having dialogue" with anyone. If conventional wisdom holds true, they are probably home trolling people on the internet. 

This sign, though. Somebody left their home and risked losing anonymity to give these words of hate a place of prominence in our community. 

What will be next? And what do we do to protect our community and our neighbors?

Comments are welcome here:

https://www.facebook.com/VillageGreenTownSquared/?ref=bookmarks

What's the Point?

Destruction, pure and simple.

From Pam Watkins Long:

Hey friends, I have a very special request. PLEASE SHARE. A lovely friend, a fellow biz owner that recently reopened after last year's devastating flood, walked in to her business, Sweet Cascades Chocolatier, this morning to realize it was badly vandalized last night. Such a shame after an incredible day of celebrating our town with the Main Street Music Fest. Tables, chairs, planters, plants, umbrellas, were thrown over the balcony into the river! The idiots even ripped the lights off the walls and tossed those over as well! Without disclosing what the police already know, I'm asking if you've heard or know anything about this, please contact the non-emergency police number at 410.313.3200 or the store at 410.750.8422 ASAP. Any information is appreciated. Please be part of the solution. Thank you. 

And here is my second request. Sweet Cascades has incredible, delicious choices of pure goodness. This week, please treat your staff, your family, your friends, your neighbors, yourself, to some deliciousness and let's throw Sue's profit over and above so she can buy new patio furniture. 

Who would do this? What is the point? Was it purely destruction for its own sake, or were the vandals striking out against this business specifically? Either way, it's heartbreaking for the owner who has already been through the damages caused by the EC flood.

If you have a chance, please stop by Sweet Cascades and pick up some of their amazing specialty chocolates. You can take a look at what they have here. Any kind of recovery that involves chocolate has got to be a good thing.