Village Green/Town²

Places you expect to see an extremely tall bird: Sesame Street. Places you do not expect to see an extremely tall bird: the doctor’s office. I kid you not: this sculpture/statue is in the office of my ob/gyn group. I had stopped by with a question about the patient portal. Yes, I’m the crazy lady who asked for permission to photograph this. “Do you mind if I take a picture of your bird?” If you must know, my first thought upon encountering this unexpected creature was something like this. By now I’m convinced that I was put on this earth to see oddball connections.  But what I didn’t know what what kind of bird it was. Considering its location it seemed likely that it was a stork. After scrutinizing a number of photographs of storks I was not convinced.  So I asked a friend who I know to be knowledgeable about birds. The response I got did not solve my problem. Her answer? "Greater Skullpiercer" Wow. What a name. I went off to do some research. After quite some time I texted ...

  A high quality N95 mask can discourage the spread of airborne illnesses and filter particulates such as dust and environmental mold. Of course, universal vaccination against COVID, for instance, and eradication of mold from structures - - such as homes, schools, and workplaces - - are better.  A high quality N95 mask cannot protect you from breathing in CO2. It doesn’t work that way. You can’t even reduce the risk in any way. I think it goes without saying that there’s no vaccination to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning, either. You pretty much have two choices: eradicate the carbon monoxide or avoid the place where it is. Period. I was alarmed and upset when I learned that employees at the Savage library branch had been sickened seriously enough at work that they had to go to the emergency room for treatment. Carbon monoxide poisoning is no joke. People should not have to fear coming to their place of employment. And we want to think of libraries as safe spaces, right?...

  After several hours of struggling with mental tasks yesterday I made myself leave the house purely to recapture some sanity. I needed to pick up some cash from the bank machine and then I thought I’d buy a few lottery tickets.  I succumb to visions of big lottery wins about three or four times a year, largely when I have an intense desire to give to important causes. I don’t spend much. I don’t win. And, after a couple of weeks, the impulse abates.  This is the result of enormous privilege. My first lottery ticket purchases came when I was divorced with a young child, working two jobs, and over my head in credit card debt. My dreams were the desperate dreams of struggle. My fantasies were simply of releasing the fear of going under.  Today, though not wealthy, I have enough. Sure, we can all think of fun things to do with extra money. But  the fact that my biggest lottery dream these days is to become a philanthropist reflects a big change in my life circumsta...

Tidings  We want them to be good. Especially at this time of year. They aren’t always. Bad news never feels good but at this time of year it feels to me like an extra injustice.  Comfort  A place to stay when it’s cold. Food when you are hungry. Faithful carers when you are sick. Someone to listen if you are troubled.  Joy Experiences that lift your spirits. People who know and understand you. Beauty that fills you with a sense of wonder. An unexpected or lifechanging gift. Today’s blog brought to you by a simple announcement* from the United States Postal Service: 250 years of delivering joy It made me think about people and organizations in our community who deliver joy. How do I deliver joy? How could I do more of that? Maybe that’s why we’re all here, after all: to give, receive, and share comfort and joy.  What do we do when the tidings aren’t good? How do we - - bear with me - - turn the tide? Village Green/Town² Comments *It’s a free service called Info...

I just realized that I often use the term “HoCoLocal” but I don’t think I’ve ever credited it to the source. I’m pretty sure it came into common usage through the efforts of HoCoBlogs cofounder Jessie Newburn. Truth be told, “common usage” would be generous - - I don’t see it around much but I wish I did. I like it. ***** Today, gleaned from this morning’s search for all things HoCoLocal, are three small stories. 1. Crocheting to benefit those in need in Howard County , Megan Knight, WMAR-2 News (1 minute, 58 seconds) Maryland Crochet for Smiles, students at Atholton High School, image from WMAR-2 News They’ve have a website *, they’ve been in the Baltimore Sun , and now they’re on television! These high school students from Howard County are members of the group Maryland Crochet for Smiles. Members make things like blankets, sweaters, scarves and hats and give them to local charities, homeless shelters, foster homes and hospitals. The video is just long enough for you to take a deep b...

  These words come from Laura McInerney, an education advocate and writer in the UK: My dad abhors any negative comments about immigrants. Asked him recently why he's so strong on it: 'Because we're always happy to take the rich and clever ones. Which means it's not about disliking immigrants. It's about disliking the poor and vulnerable. And that's a bad human instinct.' A bad human instinct. Those words struck me and gave a voice to the feelings of revulsion and despair I’ve been struggling with over the past several days. On December 4th the Howard County Police Department posted an announcement of a critical missing person. Members of our community showed up and turned the thread into a cesspit of the worst kind of racism and hate. It blows my mind that one of our county families was in crisis, searching for a vulnerable family member, and the first thing some people thought to do was to argue about his race. He doesn’t look white to me .  And that, my f...