Skip to main content

Schrodinger's Blog Post

There are certain topics that I have been wanting to write about that require more than the usual amount of thinking. When I wake up in the morning, I say, "Blah! I am not awake enough to do this first thing in the morning. I'll do it tonight." And, when I get home from work, I say, "Blah! I am brain dead from a day of work! I will write it when I am fresh in the morning."

And so it goes. I am able to imagine those blog posts fully fleshed out the night before, or created in the still of the morning,  But alas, they exist only in my imagination. Perhaps this is not the most accurate use of the Schrodinger meme. Perhaps it is more like Lewis Carroll's:

"You couldn't have it if you did want it," the Queen said. "The rule is, jam to-morrow and jam yesterday – but never jam to-day."

So it is with the topic of de facto segregation in the Howard County Schools and the importance of a Diversity Coordinator. I feel that whatever I write on this topic must be perfect. And so it continues to dog me day and night: I just can't do this today. I'll do it tomorrow.

One image that is stuck in my mind is that of the dog sitting surrounded by flames saying, "This is fine." I feel that there is a divide between those who want to work on this issue but are concerned about doing it "in the right way" and those whose children are in the flames and want them out NOW. It's an issue that can't just be intellectual. It's visceral.

My children are in that burning building!

If we don't feel that immediacy it is because we have the privilege to be safe from the flames.

I'm not going to write the perfect post on this. Not in the morning. Not in the evening. At the moment all I can do is say, "It's not fine."

It's embarrassingly imperfect. But it's a start.

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


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else.  Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not  chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...