Village Green/Town²

It’s Saturday morning and you’re just in time for another edition of “Other People’s Tweets”! It’s always a treat to find local references. They can startle or amaze, make you laugh, or just plain scratch your head. For instance: We may think we’re diverse and multicultural but this person just isn’t buying it, eh? The next one made me smile because it looks like a tribute to my own neck of the woods: Versatile. I like that. Last, but definitely not least, is this plaintive request from a Catonsville High School student in response to the news that chef Gordon Ramsey was visiting nearby Ellicott City: In the realm of high school tweets, this is remarkably polite. And the desire for cafeteria food upgrade is certainly relatable. There’s a new account called @AwesomeColumbia . You might want to give them a follow, if you’re into Columbia sorts of things.

Almost as soon as I posted yesterday’s piece on the Columbia Flier Building, a kind reader sent me this: Community Notice from the County Executive's Office:  Columbia Flier Building Community Meetings A Request for Proposals (RFP) will be developed by the County for the disposition of the site and all interested community members are encouraged to attend to provide input at either meeting. Both meetings will cover the same material. DPZ will run the meeting. a) Wednesday, March 18, 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm  b) Saturday March 21, 10:00 am - 11:30 am  Where: Wilde Lake Middle School Cafeteria  10481 Cross Fox Ln, Columbia, MD 21044 I felt like the used car salesman in a situation comedy who has confidently patted a car in front of a customer only to see the back fender fall off.  What are the chances that both things would happen on the same day? Everything I wrote yesterday is true. The County owns the property and has found creative ways to use the s...

This is what I was waiting to see. The focal point of the Flier building is a juxtaposition of stairways bathed in light. I’ve seen photographs taken back in the building’s heyday. I admit I stood at the midpoint of this iconic space and just took it in for a while. Then it was time to take a look around. There were many more additional spaces to explore than I imagined. It definitely gives one that “bigger on the inside” feel.  If the 1980’s were calling us, what would they have to say? Outside of what looked like a staff kitchen was a little picnic area. If you enlarge this photo you will see what appears to be a groundhog enjoying the sunny weather. The reason I got to fulfill my wish was through the kindness of Board of Education member Vicky Cutroneo.  She has been working on an initiative for quite some time to provide a space for Howard County teachers to be able to pick up supplies, which will be provided by donation. Our teachers sp...

Recently I was offered a chance to fulfill one of my long-held Columbia dreams. Readers of the blog know that I have a sentimental attachmen t to the Columbia Flier/Patuxent Publishing building. I’ve often said that if I won the lottery, I’d buy it and transform it into one of those HGTV Extreme Homes. Something about this particular building, designed by local architect Bob Moon whose wife Jean was the managing editor of the paper, epitomizes for me an entire world of Columbia history. I wish I had been there. Last week I met a friend at the site to get a long awaited glimpse of the building’s interior. Here are some pictures I took while I was waiting. We all have things on our individual Bucket Lists, be they real or imaginary. You may wish you could have explored an Egyptian pyramid or even prowled the corridors of Hogwarts. Me? I just wanted to see what lay behind this door. I’ll take you in tomorrow.

During the administration of Allan Kittleman I’m sure there were times that residents who questioned  or didn’t agree with his policies took to social media to express their displeasure. I don’t have any specific examples on hand, but, it stands to reason that this is so. None of this can compare to the relentless trolling that current County Executive Calvin Ball has endured since taking office. His posts are criticized, mocked, and his plans are lambasted as useless and/or outright harmful. One particular troll comes to mind. I won’t name them because, well, it might even be a fake account created specifically for this purpose. But, if you read the County Executive’s page with any regularity, you know to whom I am referring. This person seems to have made it their personal goal to foul and besmirch almost every day of Dr. Ball’s term in office. Questioning and disagreeing with elected leaders is an integral part of our democracy. Name-calling, gaslighting, and false accusa...

Friday night I was on my own for dinner and I headed straight from work to The Second Chance Saloon in Oakland Mills. It was nearing six when I arrived and there was a nice after-work, beginning-to-be-dinner crowd on hand. I haven’t been hanging out at the Second Chance of late because I have gradually realized that I just can’t metabolize those delightful beers as well as I used to. Gone are the days when I could sidle into a seat at a table on the bar side and enjoy one or two “Dogfish 60 minute” and still be functional the next day. I’ve been a little sad about that. But you just can’t stay away from your home place forever, and dinner was calling. I bypassed my usual - - the chicken cheesesteak with marinara on the side - - and went for a pizza burger. I felt a craving for beef. It was delicious. I have long since gotten over my trepidation at being a woman alone in a restaurant, especially since the advent of tablets and smart phones give anyone a built in dining com...

About that Inspector General for Education. I told you we’d get back to that. My first piece on this might be summed up as follows: it all depends on who is giving the gift. After more research and contemplation, I’d have to say my assessment stands. Mr. Hogan has shown himself on multiple occasions to have a distrust and dislike of teachers and education priorities. He’s never going to live down that “Union thugs” remark. It seems to be a hallmark of a certain political party. Remember John Kasich and his anxiety about what happens in the teachers lounge? Former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker was determined to strip state teachers of their bargaining rights. And then there’s the president’s own son calling teachers “ losers ”. Here in Maryland our Governor doesn’t even think that individual jurisdictions have the competence to set their own school calendars. In short, he doesn’t look at Education in a way that invests and empowers. He thinks it needs managing. Investigating....

Is this the big story in Old Ellicott City this weekend? From the Ellicott City Partnership: Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!     In other words, LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL!  Join us Saturday, February 22 where good times will be happening from one end of town to the other.  Come for brunch or lunch, enjoy shopping specials and bead giveaways, then land at Boogaloo at The Bin for live music and libations.  Stick around for dinner or after concert fun at one of our many late night spots. If you can’t be on Bourbon Street, Main Street is the place to be! NOTE  Approximately 600 parking spots are available in lots A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and the Circuit Courthouse Lot. Parking is also available on Ellicott Mills Drive. This weekend, another special event will be taking place in town causing a portion of Lot D to be closed and limited parking on Main Street. Please take advantage of the FREE SHUTTLE running 11am until 9:30pm. Shuttle Stops are: 3...

The Melting Pot in Wilde Lake Village Center has announced their closure. In the Baltimore Sun article by Ana Faguy, the reason was listed as a problem with their franchise agreement.  The Melting Pot made it through years of the Wilde Lake Village Center being in limbo, and then, under construction. I’ve been surprised by their ability to hang in there as the local restaurant scene changed around them. I chose The Melting Pot as the site of my older daughter’s twenty first birthday. I knew it was going to be a splurge and we may have even taken advantage of some promotional deal to make it happen. My husband, not a fan of fancy restaurants, was a bit dubious. The tone of the evening was set when the waitress came by and asked if we were celebrating a special occasion. “We’re here to celebrate my daughter’s twenty-first birthday,” I told her, as she started to take our drink orders. Little sister, then six, piped up, “ But it isn’t her real birthday, that’s not until th...

A bit of a detour this morning, I promise it will be worth it. This post is by  Howard County resident, Amy Hairston: It’s time to freak out about the state of teaching as a career , Ubuntu Mom blog Please take the time to read the whole thing. And, now this: Keep all this in mind as we think about what needs inspecting and protecting about schools in Maryland.

Governor Larry Hogan has announced the appointment of Maryland’s first State Inspector General for Education. I’m going to write more about this tomorrow, but first, here’s a look at where I was on this the last time it came up. Misgivings ( January 23, 2018) I’m going to blather here for a bit. You can be sure I’ll be writing a more complete post about this in the near future, but this will have to do for now. I’ve been pondering Governor Larry Hogan’s proposal for an Inspector General of Education in Maryland. We have recently gone through some very hard times with our school system where having such an office would have made it much easier to get to the bottom of some long standing problems. And I know some very good people locally who support Governor Hogan’s proposal. And yet. I can’t look at this proposal in a vacuum. It comes from the same Governor who has given credence to school vouchers and school privatization, both of which weaken public education. And this is ...

I’m finally on the other side of two surgeries for cataracts. My distance vision is now excellent. Unfortunately I can’t really see the iPad until I get new reading classes. Since I can’t give you a fully-formed post today, I’d like to use this space to put in a good word for Howard County’s own Elevate Maryland . They’re one of the Best Podcast nominees in the Baltimore Sun’s Best 2020 Readers’ Choice. You can vote for them here . It would be pretty cool to see the podcast with Maryland focus and Howard County roots get some wider recognition.

It is fascinating to me that two articles in the recent Columbia Flier focus on successful local women professionals who are the heads of their households. Atterbeary Juggles Motherhood, Politics, Activism , Ana Faguy* Fire Chief to Retire at End of Month , also by Ana Faguy I am of two minds about this. On the one hand, I do get tired of seeing journalistic takes on how women have to “juggle” their responsibilities if they venture out of the home sphere. It galls me. You seldom, if ever, see this line of thinking applied to men. The underlying concept is that motherhood is a woman’s true responsibility and that anything else is selfish or irresponsible. Ugh. On the other hand, it is worth noting that we see two such stories in the paper this week because women continue to persevere and move forward in their careers, achieving professional milestones that would have been unthinkable in my childhood. We may see more and more of these stories before the old “juggling” trope w...

For those of you keeping track at home, yesterday I managed to write a blog post promoting an event without revealing the date, time, or location of said event. Let’s correct that.  A Swashbuckling Evening in the Stacks: Saturday, February 29  7 to 11 pm  HCLS  East Columbia Branch Moving on. Maryland Matters did another post this year about power couples which got me thinking. I’m not sure how fond I am of the “power couples” concept. I’m going to give it a new twist by looking at some Columbia/HoColocals who are passionate about their work and causes. That kind of love makes the whole community better. 2020 Village Green/Town²  Columbia/HoCo “Power Couples” Nina Basu & Inner Arbor Trust Bonnie Bricker & Talk With Me Mickey Gomez & Friends and Foundation of the Howard County Library Jumel Howard & Howard County Pride Toby Orenstein & Toby’s  Ian Kennedy & DCACC Chiara D’Amore & The Community...

Continuing on in the theme of dual-purpose businesses, I’ve got a place for you that’s a hands-down local favorite. It’s a place where you can: Pick up music and movies Meet up with friends Have a snack Do research Attend community meetings Take a class Read Get on the Internet Find tools for household repair Try out music production Learn a craft Borrow toys Hold a study group Get passport photos taken Find tax forms Dual-purpose? That’s more like multi-purpose, almost omni-purpose. If you haven’t already guessed, it’s your local Howard County Library. Their annual fundraiser , Evening in the Stacks, is coming up. This year it’s “A Swashbuckling Evening in the Stacks” so I expect they'll be going all out with a pirate theme. Tickets are available here. Howard County’s signature winter gala, Evening in the Stacks, sets sail on a daring swashbuckling adventure in 2020 that is sure to treat guests to a “yo, ho, ho” good time. Guests will experience specialty ...

The topic of this episode of the Kojo Nnamdi Show sparked my imagination with local possibilities. How Dual-Purpose Establishments Serve Their Neighborhoods From the transcript: From a brewery that sells kids' toys and kitchen gadgets to a barber shop that hosts art shows, we're exploring how local businesses get creative to serve their neighborhood's unique needs. The Kojo Nnamdi show is rooted in DC, so naturally that’s where they looked for their examples for the show. “But, what about Howard County?” I wondered. Do we have any dual-purpose businesses? Should we have more? Both Matcha Time Café and Syriana Café and Gallery in Old Ellicott City come to mind as places that provide both food service and sell gifts. But I’m drawing a blank on other dual-purpose establishments. Addition from an astute reader:  In downtown Ellicott City, Jaxon Edwards is a coffee shop,  bar, barbershop, and arcade. Does offering cocktails plus axe-throwing count as dual purpose?...

There’s a debate in town about the school system budget. Some say it is important for HCPSS to ask for what they truly need. Others say the Board of Education must be responsible in what they request from the county. One thing we know: if they don’t get the funds that are actually needed, they must make cuts. I had another thought. What if we applied the “Improve, Don’t Move” slogan to the school budgeting process? Meet the needs of those schools first. Then use what is left over on the more affluent schools. Perhaps that would be a strong motivator for some to advocate for increased school funding from the county. Of course, I don’t believe that the process of redistricting was ever about throwing wealth at the “poor” schools. You can read my earlier blog posts to see that. But, since we find ourselves in this funding predicament, why don’t we see how far our funds will go if we meet the needs of those schools deemed “unacceptable “ first. You might say the organized opposit...

It was a rough night in the sleeping department. Not feeling my usual perky self. Here are two things I’ve got on my mind this morning: 'A room with a different view’: Maryland unveils statues of Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass in State House   , Emily Opilo, Baltimore Sun And this picture from the African Art Museum of Maryland which is almost a press release in illustrated form: I’m going to drink some more coffee and see if I can make myself human in time to go to work. See you tomorrow.

If you want to get a good overview of the Horizon Foundation’s 2020 Vision for Health in Howard County report, may I recommend: “In Howard County, black infants due at twice the rate as white infants, report shows ” - - Ana Faguy, Baltimore Sun   “ Report: Even in Md.’s Wealthiest County, Health Disparities Persist ” - - Josh Kurtz, Maryland  Matters From the report: While Howard County ranks among the healthiest communities in the state and nation, we still fall   short of our potential.  Unfortunately, even in our county, your zip code, skin color, income and other demographic factors can determine your health in very unfair ways. Educational studies have already shown that test scores are linked more to income than any other factor. And in Howard County we’ve recently had a big lesson on how one’s zip code determines how much expendable income parents can put into their schools’ PTA programs. The Horizon Foundation report has found results that very m...

Yes, I know I said that I would be writing more about the Horizon Foundation’s recently released Howard County health outcomes report today, but I slept through my time window for analytical thought, so here we are. Look for that tomorrow. Instead, I have a little assignment for you. Go to Twitter and search the words “book fair money”. Now, read the results. There are plenty; you’re not obliged to read all of them. Just enough to get the point. It’s pretty stunning how many full grown adults are walking around with memories of how important the book fair was in their school experience. In particular, you will notice how many still feel the sting of being the child who didn’t have “book fair money.” I’ll never forget how sad I was as a kid when my parents didn’t send me to the book fair with money and everybody would leave with some lit ass books and I’d be waiting against the wall with the teacher. A good bit of this conversation on Twitter was generated by someone who post...

Once upon a time, long, long ago, when I was running for a seat on the Columbia Association Board for Oakland Mills. I had the opportunity to meet with some residents at the Forest Ridge Apartments and listen to their concerns. I was very nervous in advance of the event, but I needn’t have been. It was a truly educational experience and the people who turned out that day were very kind to me. Something that has stayed with me since that day is a few of the requests they made. In particular, the ones they made about the Oakland Mills Village Center. When asked what other kind of businesses they’d like to see, the most mentioned were a laundromat and a dollar store. Also mentioned were any decent businesses where young people from their community could get jobs. When I mentioned their requests to other folks I knew from Oakland Mills, many were squeamish. A few visibly winced. To them a laundromat and a dollar store were the equivalent of living in “the wrong part of town.” It wa...

Seen at the newly renovated Round House Theater in Bethesda: As I waited in line to use the restroom at intermission, an older woman gestured to the sign and said to her companion, “It’s all so confusing, isn’t it?” The sign reads:  Please use the restroom that best fits your gender identity or expression. A single-stall family restroom is located upstairs. I didn’t say anything. It wasn’t my conversation. She looked to be in her late seventies and her tone was genuinely puzzled, not judgmental or mean-spirited. She saw it, she noted it, she moved on. I truly believe that we will move to a point where this is completely a non-issue and the right to use a bathroom will become solely an issue for the person who needs to go. Someday. Maybe not tomorrow, but in my lifetime. However, it will take many allies standing up for the rights of others to make that a reality.  During the last election campaign for the Board of Education, one candidate stood...