Village Green/Town²

I’m not sure that I’ve ever sent you over to read something at Business Monthly. Today’s the day.  I have to admit I sometimes forget they are there. Glancing through their website this morning, I realize I need to bookmark it for a more regular look-through. If you’re curious about this local publication, here’s some background information:  The Business Monthly covers the business, government and people of Howard and Anne Arundel counties, the BWI Business Corridor, and Laurel. We report on local companies, economic development, and the people building businesses in our region : monthly in print and more frequently online at bizmonthly.com. They’ve been in business since 1993. Want to know more? Here’s a piece on their founding and history by Len Lazarick. I’m strongly recommending a piece by Howard County’s own Lisa Markovitz, who is asking a question I think more people should be asking:  Why did a Columbia community center become a campaign issue? Here is is. Go rea...

  Three Things I Wish I Could Do Today: Howard County Government is again inviting the community for a flag raising to celebrate the beginning of Pride Month. I was there last year and it was a much-needed reminder to me of what good people are doing in community. This evening at the Main Library branch: Scribble is holding a hangout - - all art styles, all levels - - in the Maxine White Warfield Room from 6-8 pm. One of these days I’m going to be able to make one of their events. Third thing: hanging out with my spouse, a rarity these days. But summer is coming soon, right? If you are a teacher: hang in there! Speaking of which: Have a great Monday.  Village Green/Town² Comments

  Let me bring you up to date. There’s even more disingenuous campaigning going on right now and I want you to think about what it really means. I’m jumping in because I feel uniquely qualified to comment, by virtue of personal experience. I’ve been seeing negative campaigning based on where candidates’ children go to school.  Some years back I had a sudden and ongoing problem with people who claimed I didn’t have the right to express my own opinions on this blog because of where one of my children went to school. Eventually they went after both children. And my spouse. What would you do? What would you think?  Choices you make for your own children are personal, mostly because they concern the privacy of a minor. No one has the right to ask you to betray that child in order to justify family choices.  Here’s the thing: this didn’t really have anything to do with where my kid went to school. It was solely because these folks didn’t like what I was writing and they we...

It’s going to be Spring-like rather than summery today. (I’m cool with that!) The big plus is that it will be sunny throughout, in case you are thinking of enjoying an outdoor event. The big HoCoLocal ‘happening’ today is in Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods.  The Asian American & Pacific Islander Festival will be from 12 - 4 pm.  Learn more about what will be going on in the Park this afternoon at the FB  event link.  I’m seeing two Farmers Markets: Clarkville Commons and Old Ellicott City. Farmers Market Old Ellicott City If you follow the footy you might want to head over to Sonoma’s at noon for the Champions League Final . The outdoor movie showing at The Wine Bin in Old Ellicott City is “Back to the Future.” Of note but not actually in Columbia/HoCo: The Patuxent Jazz Band has a concert at 3 PM but be aware that it’s at UMBC. Tickets appear to be free although you will be encouraged to make a donation.  Puerto Rico in Maryland Festival at the Sandy...

  Nostalgia. That’s what’s on the menu. Retro Restaurant Revival Craze , Today, May 19, 2026 From a Yum! Brands press release: Across 155 Pizza Hut restaurants in the U.S., guests are rediscovering iconic features from the brand’s earlier years, including red cups, checkered tablecloths, cozy vinyl booths, Tiffany-style lamps, classic arcade games and even the unmistakable red roof design. I don’t have a ton of nostalgia for Pizza Hut, but this advert from Wyndham Hotels set off all kinds of emotional bells and whistles in my psyche. Retro Modern Recharge, Howard Johnson by Wyndham The color palette! The memories! Have they brought back the authentic restaurant experience? (probably not.)  Nostalgia has been on my mind since this turned up on the Doodl app. Draw something you feel nostalgic about. Here was my response. Here is my Cecil the Sea Serpent talking plush toy. You had to pull a string the hear him talk. I kept him until very recently, believe it or not. Cecil had los...

  Back to the drawing board. Sticking this here for context: Sally Brown:Let Them Drown , Village Green/Town², 10/27/2025 The story of The Source is this: There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in. - - the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu Let me draw a picture for you. This is why young people in our community are “falling in.” This is the center of the circle. If you don’t address this, nothing is solved. This is why more police at the Mall or more SROs in schools will never be the solution, because they don’t address what’s in the center of the circle. Addressing unmet needs must be proactive as well as reactive. If people are starving, for example, more police and more arrests will not solve the problem that people are stealing bread because they are starving. Look at how this plays out: Unmet needs negatively impact physical, cognitive, and emotional development. That, in turn, impacts...