Skip to main content

Word on the Street

 


Hell hath no fury like a local blogger who thinks she’s clicking on a local story on Columbia Patch only to discover it is sourced “from all over America.” Sheesh.

Uncut Grass, Junked Car Graveyards, Blight: Block Talk Hears Your Pain, Beth Dalbey, Patch Staff

Well, phooey. I was so hoping for some juicy local complaints about other people’s yards. You may recall that four years ago I got sucked into what I called The Great Columbia Grass-Cutting War.

This. Means. War.

As the weather warms and when - - and if - - Spring decides it’s here to stay, we’ll all be spending more time outside. Perhaps we’ll be casting our eyes over at our neighbors’ yards. The Patch article suggests that there’s a lot of that going on. 

Respect My Lawn!

Americans spend about $115 billion annually on landscaping, according to an industry estimate. Does that give them veto power over what people do in their own yards?

Some readers think so.

I’d like to turn this concept on its head and ask what you have appreciated about your neighbors’ yards. Not everything needs to be a complaint. When was the last time someone asked you to hold forth on what you like?

It couldn’t hurt.

Our next door neighbors just redid their front garden bed with lovely white stones and a row of flowering potted plants along the border. They added little lights along the edge which not only highlight the garden but make walking up the pathway a bit easier at night.

On the other side of the house our bird neighbors are building a nest in our downspout. They have put a lot of effort into it. I’ve decided I’m going to be happy about it because it’s not in the dryer vent. We’ve been down that road before and there’s nothing to be happy about there.

Saving the best for last, we love our other neighbor’s pink tree. We wait for it every year.



Send your outdoor accolades here: Village Green/Town² Comments. You won’t appear in Columbia Patch but, if we get enough responses, I’ll make a blogpost out of them. 

If you are in the mood to complain, well, there are plenty of places to do that..



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

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...

What Kids Are Thinking

  It’s a Monday in February, and if you guessed that a lot of Howard County students have the new cell phone policy on their minds, you’d be right. It will mean big changes and it will be stressful, no matter how much good we hope it will do in the long run. But on this particular Monday cell phones might not be top of mind, as amazing as that seems. Some kids will go to school wondering if they or family members will be seized by ICE. Some will fear that their parents’ employment will be purged by the ongoing rampage of Elon Musk and his cronies through Federal Government. Some fear heightened and renewed racism as programs that supprted Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are vilified and destroyed.  Some worry that it soon won’t be safe for them to use the bathroom in school anymore. It goes without saying that some kids fear going to school every day because of the prevalence of school shootings.  And look! Here’s something new to fear. That old hate group, Libs of TikTo...