I'm not much for recycling old columns -- I have written more than 6,600 of them since 1979 -- but came across this one while surfing through the archive and thought it might be worth reprinting and reflection here. This was published in The Baltimore Sun on Dec. 30, 2007. That's the year before Obama's … Continue reading When the world seems perfect
The French Butter Bell: Le beurrier
The French butter bell is having a moment in social media. It has been around for several centuries, at least in Europe. The bell allows you to safely leave butter at room temperature so that it's soft when want it to be -- for spreading on baguette or brioche, crepe or pancake, waffle or whatever. … Continue reading The French Butter Bell: Le beurrier
Only .00018 days in prison per tire?
My son and I drove by this place in Westernport, Allegany County, a couple of months ago during a fishing trip and assumed it was a legit (and grotesque) tire dump. We were half right: It was grotesque but not legit. On Dec. 18, a Maryland judge sentenced Michel Osei, 48, to 45 days in … Continue reading Only .00018 days in prison per tire?
A kind county cop in the middle of the night
I included this story in my Christmas column in The Baltimore Sun. I thought I would pull it out and post it here, so that it stands alone. I met Shelley Grant (photo above) on Monday, as she arrived for lunch at Our Daily Bread in Baltimore. She told me a great story about an … Continue reading A kind county cop in the middle of the night
Holiday gift: Framed photos of ancestors
It occurs to me that, when a young person -- son or daughter, niece or nephew -- moves into a new house or apartment, they might not take with them one of those old photographs of long-gone ancestors your parents passed along or left behind. This might not seem like an extraordinary idea. No doubt, … Continue reading Holiday gift: Framed photos of ancestors
Among Maryland’s great citizens: Will Schwarz
I would nominate Will Schwarz for Marylander of the Year, and not because he's a friend of mine -- and producer of my 1990's TV show and director of my play, "Baltimore, You Have No Idea." But because of what he did to enlighten his fellow Marylanders and stir our collective conscience. Will, who had … Continue reading Among Maryland’s great citizens: Will Schwarz
The end of shock
Apologies to my good friends at Tuesday lunch, but there's no "shock" in the arrest of the Gilman graduate accused of killing a CEO. I'll concede there's something unique about it -- the apparent targeting of a corporate executive in what looks like some kind of deranged payback murder -- but none who've been paying … Continue reading The end of shock
A fulfillment of the last bill JFK signed
The last bill President John F. Kennedy signed into law was the Community Mental Health Act of 1963, also known as the Mental Retardation and Community Mental Health Centers Construction Act of 1963. The hope was that people who did not belong in psychiatric hospitals -- asylums, essentially -- could be mainstreamed, returned to their … Continue reading A fulfillment of the last bill JFK signed
A fine, old Baltimore gazebo salvaged from a long-gone Catholic psychiatric hospital
On Saturday, I was shown the way to the Linden Avenue Gazebo, in a charming block of Bolton Hill that had been closed to traffic some 50 years ago. There are few gazebos in Baltimore, so I wondered if it was original to Bolton Hill — there are several parks in this historic community — … Continue reading A fine, old Baltimore gazebo salvaged from a long-gone Catholic psychiatric hospital
Dan Rodricks 