Village Green/Town²

  Just about a year ago I wrote about a fellow named Bill Ackman and my concerns as he and his investment company, Pershing Square, ramped up purchases of Howard Hughes stock with the intent of gaining control of it operations. My thoughts: When you are a company that makes something, or does something, you are keenly aware of where your focus should be. What constitutes excellence? Making the best somethings, or doing the best job at the something you do. If you are Bill Ackman, you are so far removed from that concept that your goals are wholly disconnected from what created those companies in the first place.   - -  Food Chain , Village Green/Town², 1/15/2025 The Baltimore Banner has been following Ackman’s progress. From their article in May: The hedge fund will pay $100 per share to snap up nine million newly issued shares in Howard Hughes while giving the company access to Pershing Square’s resources and expertise. The agreement limits the hedge fund‘s voting p...

  Yesterday was rainy. For goodness sake, it’s January. It should have been snow. I didn’t want to go out at all but we were out of milk. And I needed milk for coffee and I really needed coffee. Dunkin would have to be my first stop. It was so crowded that I could barely make my way across the parking lot to get to the Dunkin drive-through to get my iced coffee. The clerk had so much trouble taking my order that I didn’t even order any food for myself. What a mess. After all that, it took more than one pass to find a parking place for the LA Mart. And there were so many people in the grocery! Strange looking people. Funny looking food with labels I couldn’t read. I hurried to the dairy case to pick up the lactose free whole milk and went to the checkout and there was a long line in every one. So I had to wait.  I just knew my husband’s bagel was getting cold in the car.  On the way home I could see Canada geese mucking around in the school field. Do they even have a permi...

  Lesson learned: more folks than usual will read a Friday post if it has a reference to bad language. I suspect that’s because it’s a rare occurrence. I won’t wear it out, never fear. I would like to extend my full congratulations to the Baltimore Sun for spelling the word doughnut correctly. Today is a good day for planning ahead if you want a summer job with HoCo Rec & Parks or a role in Fiddler on the Roof  with Howard County Summer Theater. When I am low on inspiration and ideas I continue to find my way to the blog of HoCo local Mike Hartley.  Mission , Threw Mikes Eyez, Mike Hartley, January 9, 2026 Many of us are simultaneously despairing of current events while also trying to envision our personal paths for 2026. Hartley’s post brought me a sense of peace and a reminder of how much good there is around us. My mission is to smile. To make other people smile. To be a good father and grandfather, to love. To be a good friend, to be truthful and ethical. To hav...

  The man asks a question. I’m curious, when do you think everything went to shit in the U.S.? I think it was 1976, when Reagan made his first run for the presidency and the tide began to turn in favor of deregulation of everything. The woman answers. Sadly: from the beginning. From colonizers slaughtering native peoples to the institution of chattel slavery. In those things are the seeds of destruction. To the extent that we haven’t reckoned with that, we perpetually weaken the democracy we wanted to have. The man asks another question. What would that reckoning look like, in your view? The woman answers. Owning up to the truth. Reparations. Laws that address systemic racism. Saying “When did it go bad?”seems to me like saying “When did it go bad for white people?” because it was always bad for nonwhites. Ten years ago I wouldn’t have been considering any of this, by the way. The man counters. I don't fully agree. I think there was a very brief period, basically between 1965 and 1...

  Good morning to everyone except the woman on Facebook who told me I am living in the armpit of Howard County.  ***** It’s another morning where events playing out on the national stage are devastating. Two thoughts are fighting for dominance. 1. I want to acknowledging the evil. I know that how we - - as individuals and as a nation - - reckon with the times we are living in is more important than anything I could write about.  2. Just keep swimming. ***** On Tuesday I was treated to what I might describe as a grown-up field trip.  Image from Montgomery County Library website  This is the Wheaton Library in Montgomery County. It’s also known as the Wheaton Library and Recreation Center. This brightly colored building houses the library, and the Friends of the Library bookstore. (Hint: we came for the bookstore.) It also houses a gymnasium, a game room, a full service cafe with seating area, a walking track, a fitness center, and multiple study rooms.* My frien...

In late October of 2024 I received this message from a dear friend of our family:  If you want to support a local small business in Columbia, this is a restaurant owned by niece of one of my Mount de Sales former students.  Grand Opening is tomorrow! I am here this morning to say that, on the evening on January 6th, 2026 I finally succeeded in honoring her request. The restaurant: Old Line Kitchen & Wine Bar.  Image property of Old Line Kitchen Wine Bar We went for an early dinner, to avoid the “peopley” aspect. The bulk of patrons were grouped companionably at the bar area. I snapped a view pics of the dining room. It was both elegant and cozy. As I awaited the arrival of my lovely companion I splurged on a rare gin and tonic. Dry January? Well, it’s complicated. The last cocktail I had was probably more than a year ago so I’m going to cut myself some slack. I probably should have memorialized this occasion before I drank most of it.  What can I say? It was a t...