We have been meaning to blog....

But have been stuck at the traffic light at Tollgate/Rte. 24 for the past two months. Please forgive us. Since we got out of there we have been avoiding the intersection. Although, true story, while we were sitting there, before they destroyed the previous road, we saw MORE THAN ONE CAR attempting to drive around the "Road Closed" sign to get to 24. And no, it wasn't a construction worker.
In our absence, we missed quite a few happenings. One of the most disturbing is the Aegis account of what happened on Halloween night at The Stars and Stripes Grill at the Putt Putt Center across from Regal Cinemas. Gambling, gangs and an absent owner. Just what this area needs. Why was this just a slap on the hand offense? Until the liquor board gets serious, what's the motivation NOT to do this again? The money certainly seemed to flow.

September 25-24/Tollgate Nightmare Begins

Maybe one of our smarter readers can explain another way to get into Constant Friendship. Our advice: don't go to Walmart/Target/BJs.
Here's the link that "explains" why this is going to help everyone!
Read it and weep here

Where is the Civility?

We've been following the latest comments over at The Dagger and quite frankly our heads are about to explode. While we enjoy the articles, the comment section has denigrated into name-calling and overall nastiness. At one point the comments were insightful, but now they're just inciteful. One we just read comparing our current president to Hitler, saying he brainwashed the children with his speech yesterday, makes us feel sick.
And it's not just the anonymous commenters that seemed to be filled with bile, it's the anonymous drivers running redlights, cutting us off, and sometimes flipping us off on their way to Wal-Mart, Walgreen's or WaWa.
There was an article yesterday about how in the country of Samoa they went from driving on the left side of the road to the right, because they were importing more cars with the steering wheel on the left so they had to change. At the appointed time, traffic stopped, they all moved to the other side of the road while singing and clapping.
Can you ever imagine that happening here? People would say, "It's my constitutional right to drive on that side of the road! What are you, a communist for making me change? What will it do to the future and to our children making us switch sides? You're anti-American! Hitler made people do things like that!"
But of course, they wouldn't actually say that, they'd fill up message boards around the country with it. Because it's so much easier to practice hate speech on the Internet where there is no accountability, just anonymity.

Crime Wave-Update

Thanks to the anonymous commenter who passed on some info about a suspicious person. But we here at TAA had enough journalism law classes to know that we can't print someone's name and accuse him of being a drug dealer. We can however, report suspicious activity. So if you happen to see a white male in his 20s walking back and forth from Stone Mill Court to the pool on Crisfield Drive and back again pay attention. This is during the day and he seems to be a known entity to those looking for drugs.
To the anonymous commenter who seems positive he's a dealer, just wondering if you called the sheriff's department? Wondering what they said. We here at TAA have been know to spend some time at the pool and we will be on the lookout.

UPDATE: Thanks to the anonymous commenter for this additional information. This suspect has been reported to the police, even videotaped which was turned into the sheriff's department, but so far nothing has been done. Thanks to the vigilance of the commenter for doing the right thing and we hope that readers will also now be on the lookout.
We personally are wondering why the sheriff's department has not done anything about this yet, after multiple complaints.

Crime Wave

If we were you, we'd tuck our vehicles away in the nearest garage to keep the car thieves away. If you see five or six teens walking around with backpacks, watch them closely. The sheriff's department says they're filling said backpacks with GPS, iPods, or whatever they can grab by smashing a window.
They've hit Crisfield Drive, Constant Friendship, etc. A house was even broken into. This happened during the day with people around.
The sheriff's department promised increased patrols, but we've blissfully been sunning ourselves at the shore so haven't noticed any more drive-bys since our return.
Anything happening in your neighborhood? Feel free to comment here.

Sorry We Missed the Parade...

Because it sounds as if there were more fireworks from the parade than the show later. It reminds me of Monty Python and Michael Palin yelling, "Help, help I'm being repressed!"
The Dagger has Del. McDonough's sign saga, but we just received an e-blast from Rick Impallaria about his own signage issues. Here is part of the blast:

"At the Bel Air Parade, however, my supporters and I were attacked by Mr. Michael Blum, the parade marshall, for carrying signs which clearly expressed the theme of the parade -- Patriotism Then and Now.

If there truly had been objectionable material in anyone's signs, the proper place for removal would have been the staging area, before appearing in public. But Mr. Blum stopped us on the parade route, ripping the "Support the Tea Parties" sign off our lead motorcycle, then stripping signs away from children as young as eight years old. Fortunately, my one niece, who is a true patriot, hid her sign, and for the remaining route we were left with "Stop the Taxing."

As Mr. Blum and his cohort attacked the members of my group, the spectators were outraged at what they saw, and started booing Mr. Blum, calling him a "sign Nazi" and "a Communist", and yelling "This day is all about patariotism and free speech." It was obvious that the spectators were not offended by the signs, but were offended by Mr. Blum's censoring of them.

Then, like true Nazis or Communists, they not only prevented my free speech, they attempted to confiscate my private property by refusing to return the signs. I was not about to stand for this. I repeatedly demanded they place the signs in my vehicle, and they repeatedly refused. All this was taking place in public, which was an embarassment to me, my family, and my supporters. When the van driver, my brother, got out and joined me, they realized that, in the famous words of Martin Luther King, Jr., "We shall not be moved," and the parade would be held up even further, they finally returned the signs.

As one blogger put it, "he is sick and tired of *&%^ politicians walking in the parades." I 100% agree with him, and that is exactly why we carried those signs. I believe it is the right of the people to know exactly what their elected officials stand for. If they do not support what I stand for, it is their option to boo or ridicule me. If they do, they have the right to support me for my representation of them.

Mr. Michael Blum's actions are a total disgrace. He owes a public apology to every true American who believes in freedom of speech. He should also attend classes on the Constitution given by the Institute on the Constitution which are held at Boyle Buick. Or, he should just openly admit to his fascist/community beliefs which he so clearly demonstrated at the Bel Air Parade.

As for my family, my supporters and myself, we stand 100% behind the positions we have taken, and we proudly say that we will continue to support the patriots of the past by doing all we can to be patriots of the present."

Historic Church--Abingdon Cold Case

Cokesbury Memorial United Methodist Church is getting a lot of attention this week as its Heritage Day approaches. A St. Mary's College student believes she has uncovered the arsonist responsible for destroying the Methodist college that once stood on the site more than 200 years ago.
Bonnie McCubbin will discuss her findings at 10:30 a.m. Sunday with a light luncheon afterward. The church is located near the intersection of Abingdon Road/Rte. 7.
We at TAA have gotten a firsthand look at the artifacts that were languishing in boxes for decades. Fascinating if you love history.
To see The Sun article click here
To see the story that ran on WBAL-TV, click here

Free Movies at Regal

The Regal in Constant Friendship will start its free summer movie festival soon. The movies start at 10 a.m. each Tuesday and Wednesday during the festival. First-come, first-served seating is limited to theatre capacity. Get there early for the popular ones, as day care centers arrive by the busloads.

Here is the summer schedule.

06/16/2009-06/17/2009 The Tale Of Despereaux (G)
Igor (PG)
06/23/2009-06/24/2009 Mr. Bean's Holiday (G)
Inkheart (PG)
06/30/2009-07/01/2009 Kit Kittredge: American Girl (G)
Spiderwick Chronicles (PG)
07/07/2009-07/08/2009 Horton Hears A Who (G)
Madagascar 2: Escape To Africa (PG)
07/14/2009-07/15/2009 Space Chimps (G)
Alvin And The Chipmunks (PG)
07/21/2009-07/22/2009 Everyone's Hero (G)
Kung Fu Panda (PG)
07/28/2009-07/29/2009 Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (G)
Star Wars: Clone Wars (PG)
08/04/2009-08/05/2009 Charlotte's Web (G)
Barnyard (PG)
08/11/2009-08/12/2009 Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: Veggie Tale Movie (G)
Monster House (PG)

Constant Friendship -- What's Old is New Again

With even more traffic nightmares coming and renewed interest in what the county has previously said about Constant Friendship, I thought it would be helpful to review an earlier post.
Here is the original letter our friend Hilda received from the county:

"Thank you for your email regarding land use and traffic concerns along Constant Friendship Boulevard. Constant Friendship received approval for full build out prior to the establishment of Harford County’s Adequate Public Facilities (APF). However, a traffic study for the project was prepared by The RBA Group in June of 1987. All road improvements required in that traffic study are in place.
In addition, the Maryland Transportation Authority (MdTA) is planning improvements to the traffic patterns in that area by reconstructing the I-95/MD 24 interchange and reconstructing the intersection of MD 24/MD 924/Tollgate Road with a grade separated intersection. The improvements to the MD24/MD924 intersection should begin this year, hopefully as early as June. This project is proposed to alleviate the traffic issues at Constant Friendship Boulevard and Tollgate Road. The site, however, is physically constrained from providing an additional access into the development.
All of the lots along Constant Friendship Boulevard were approved as part of the original plan for the area. Under Harford County’s Subdivision Approval Procedure, all large-scale developments proposed for that area must be reviewed by the Development Advisory Committee (DAC). According to Section 5.03 (c) of the Harford County Subdivision Regulation, a notice is posted on the property at least 2 weeks prior to a DAC meeting with the date, time and location of the meeting and telephone number of the Department of Planning and Zoning. The regulations require that the notice be conspicuously placed on the property along the frontage near the right of way with a sign measuring 22-inches by 28-inches and with red lettering. I realize that it can be difficult to read the specifics of the sign as you drive by, so please do not hesitate to contact our Development Review Section to get more information about the project being proposed."


Here are our original comments on this post, which we stand by.
This would be funny if it wasn't so sad/discouraging. Think back to 1987. For those of us who didn't live here then, someone filled us in on what the neighborhood was like:
No Wal-Mart
No Constant Friendship townhomes, Dominion apartments
No Abingdon Elementary School (or neighboring townhouses)
Tollgate Road did not go through, stopped at Singer Road (no Monmouth Meadows)--in fact when this person bought her house, they said Tollgate would NEVER be a through-road.
Only development: Constant Branch


Also, were those signs for the new stores posted in 1987? I remember the sign for Lowe's, but never saw a sign for the pet store. (update: there also were NO signs for what's going in across from Wal-Mart)

Feel free to add your comments below. And I guess the message from the county is this: there's nothing you can do, because it was all mapped out 21 years ago.

Governor Signs School Board Bill

It's official. We here at TAA did not believe that the current school board would let this happen, but Gov. O'Malley signed this into law this a.m.:

HB0639
Harford County Delegation
HARFORD COUNTY – BOARD OF EDUCATION – SELECTION OF
MEMBERS
Requiring that specified members of the Harford County Board of
Education be elected; requiring that specified members of the county board
be appointed within a specified period of time; establishing the composition
of the county board; providing for the qualifications, terms of office, and
the filling of a vacancy of members of the county board; establishing a
procedure for the election and appointment of members of the county
board; etc.
EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2009

What's Going in Across from Wal-Mart

An informed source tells us that the building going on in the incredibly dangerous/inconvenient spot across from Wal-Mart is going to be a men's only hair cut shop. We'll see how many people will risk the entering/egress to try it.
There were no signs before building. It just went up. At first we thought it had something to do with the road construction until the driveway went in.
This will make traffic all the more interesting. And we mean that in a Chinese curse kind of way.

Abingdon Giant: Gas Pumps Coming?

A development proposal in the classified section of The Aegis says that the Abingdon Giant has applied to construct a five pump fuel facility with canopy and kiosk on 6.03 acres.
The plans are set for review at the Development Advisory Committee meeting at 9 a.m. June 3, 220 South Main Street, Bel Air, in the second floor conference room.
Comments are requested by June 2.
This is just what that area needs -- another gas station. Because the WaWa, Exxon & gas station the corner (by the liquor store) don't offer enough gasoline for that mile of road.

A Tasty Mother's Day--or Support a Local Restaurant

Here at TAA on Mother's Day we passed by the ubiquitous chain restaurants and opted instead for a local independent favorite, Clarence's Taste of New Orleans in Edgewood. If you like Cajun food -- and some local fare as well -- try this restaurant and pub at the Edgewood Train Station.
The pub and restaurant were spotlighted recently during President Obama's inaugural train trip. It's open for lunch, dinner and has a pub where they serve Hurricanes and appetizers. Clarence's also has a children's menu for the less-adventurous little ones.
While the chains seem to multiply overnight here, it seems the independent restaurants struggle. We here at TAA try to patronize these establishments as much as possible -- although admittedly (& unfortunately) we don't get out much.
For a look at Clarence's menu and other info, click here.

Road Work=Don't Go Out

If you're worried about the swine flu and not going out today -- you've made the correct choice. We had a doctor's appointment and then had to get our recently repaired American vehicle back to the shop and encountered construction at almost every turn.
If you're heading out be aware road crews are working at:
Mountain Road by Mountain Christian is one lane for resurfacing. Back ups in all directions. (but hey Excursion driver, did you really need to pass us illegally, slam on your brakes and then make a U-turn to avoid the delay?)
152/Belair Road Intersection utility work, right lane blocked.
Route 1 further north, one lane (not sure why)
Route 24 by 95 interchange is a mess for that exit construction. There were various hazards here, including an accident when we drove by.
Little further up the road, utlity work on Rte. 7

What's the Agenda?

We are proud supporters of Abingdon Elementary PTA here at TAA. The PTA sponsors lots of activities for students and supports teachers and classes throughout the year. Fundraising is more difficult than it has been in previous years because of the struggling economy. But the PTA has our full support because it all goes back to our children's school.
Imagine our surprise yesterday when we received a fundraising packet for a Laps for Learning program from the Greater Edgewood Education Foundation. This had my student's name on it, grade, and looked "official." In fact, it caused quite a bit of confusion from parents who thought it was a PTA fundraiser, as the PTA is going to have its own Laps for Learning in the fall.
There are two problems with this in our opinion. One is that this rather vague organization is asking for money through the school, even though it is not directly affiliated through the school but rather "Edgewood feeder schools."
The bigger issue is that the president of the organization is an on-the-record opponent of the elected school board. Everyone is allowed to have political views, obviously. The problem that we have is that she spoke against this issue identifying herself as the president of the GEEF, not as a mother of an HCPS student, concerned citizen, etc. She used her title in the organization, which, follow us, makes it a lobbying organization. Not to mention that the chairman of the group is Mark Wolkow, who has been working overtime against an elected school board.
So why are our children asked to raise money for a lobbying organization?
I know at some schools PTAs are lobbying organizations, and that the PTA on a national level definitely is. But Abingdon's PTA focuses on the needs of the children/teachers, not a political agenda. Which is why it irks us here at TAA that some of the tight fundraising dollars will be siphoned to this organization.

Longtime Councilwoman Dies

Abingdon's county council representative Roni Chenowith has died.
Read The Sun article here.

Camp & Education Fair

Here's some summer planning help from the valuable resource Harford County Kids Magazine:
Camp & Education Fair - March 7
Whatever your child's age or interest, a well-chosen~summer or academic program can provide your child with great fun, good friends and learning too. Come to Harford County Kids Magazine Camp & Education Fair on March 7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at John Carroll to talk one-on-one with 55+ camp and school representatives. Gain personal insights, register your child for a program or take home information and applications. Conveniently explore camps and educational options all in one place. Families can also enjoy a Fun Zone entertainment area, which includes performances, demonstrations and activities.
Families can enter to win our Hourly Raffle of giveaways and the first 200 kids to enter receive a free camp sack. There is no charge for admission. A light lunch will be available for purchase on-site. For more information visit: http://www.harfordcountykids.com/campfair

Two Oscar Winners at Regal

Not only is "Slumdog Millionaire" still playing at Regal Cinemas in Constant Friendship in Abingdon, "Milk" began what we believe will be a much more limitied run there today. We here at TAA hope that theatergoers support these movies on the off-chance that someday we'll be offered more independent fare at one of the 14 available theaters there. Maybe while the kids are seeing the Jonas Brothers in 3D for the third time, you can pop over and see one. Just a thought.

New School Food "Reward" Policy

Although this hasn't gotten a lot of ink, here in this corner of Abingdon the Board of Education's new policy on not giving students rewards with food receives a resounding thumbs down.
Currently students can receive pizza parties, ice cream socials for achieving class goals. Sometimes these are given for outstanding academic outcomes/good behavior. The new policy disallows these parties citing them as rewards. The new policy also prohibits taking away recess as punishment because students need the entire 15 minutes to exercise.
We know that children are more overweight than ever, but is it really caused by a pizza party once every marking period? The gift of a candy cane to a child who's gotten a good report card is leading to a life of obesity?
This is one of those cosmetic fixes so that it appears the school board is addressing a serious problem without doing anything.
Here at TAA we rarely allow our students to purchase school lunches, or what's commonly known as the choice of pizza, mozarella sticks, nachos, chicken poppers, pizzatas, and other assortments of fried, artery-clogging stupefying foods. Oprah's guru Dr. Oz did an informal study at a school where he discussed with teachers what happens after students eat school lunches: nothing. The students are dazed and lethargic. Isn't this a greater problem?
The New York Times has an op/ed piece about this outlining the problems of the current system. You can read it here. With all the local farms closeby, wouldn't it be a win/win to try something like this? A help to the local farmers as well as healthy food for students.

Dress for Success

Just got this in from one of our favorite stores. It's for a good cause so help if you can -- and get a discount:

Dress Barn is once again partnering with Dress For Success to collect interview appropriate clothing during Dress for Success’s S.O.S.- Send One Suit - Weekend, Feb. 19 through Feb. 22.
Dress Barn is seeking donations of gently used suits and other interview appropriate clothing items that will be donated to underprivileged women in the local community seeking career development support.
There is more need than ever before to help women towards self-sufficiency. To show our appreciation and thank customers for supporting this event, Dress Barn will provide an additional 15 percent off total purchase savings to every customer who brings in a donation. A donation receipt will also be provided. Locally, clothing items can be donated at both Dress Barn locations at the Festival in Bel Air.

Headline of the Future....

"Weis in Constant Friendship to Close"
Our friend at Bel Air News & Views has the entire story, but Wegman's is indeed coming to Abingdon. As far as we can tell, it will be directly across from Weis on one side and WaWa on the other side.
While we here are very happy it is coming, it's hard to wrap our brains about what the intersection will look like with the new exit from 95/24 configuration.
One thing we would bet on: Weis is toast. After years of neglect will it surprise anyone? After some initial doubts about the Giant renovation, we are enjoying the self scan and the upgraded natural food selection. Someone obviously knew Wegman's was in the works.
If you have a moment look at the comments on the BAN&V site. The discussion about driving all the way to Abingdon is hysterical. It reminds us of a story a friend told us about a woman she knew who lived in Bel Air and asked her, an Abingdon resident, what it was like to be able to shop at Walmart.

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper

There will be a Shrove Tuesday Pancake Dinner at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 24 at Cokesbury United Methodist Church Hall on Abingdon Road.
On the menu are pancakes, sausage, fruit cups, coffee, iced tea and hot tea. There is no charge for the dinner but there is an opportunity to contribute a free-will offering. Although it's free, they're asking if you could make a reservation to attend so they can get an estimate of how many pancakes to make. Please call 410-676-6295 for your reservation.

Abingdon Bank Robbery

The Dagger has a new post herewith photos of the suspect in the Abingdon Bank robbery Monday morning.
TAA just happened to be at the corner of Singer/924 when this was occurring and witnessed more police converge on the site than we thought were located in Harford County. Although we couldn't immediately figure out why the police were going in different directions -- some on 924, some behind the post office -- we now realize that they were searching for a suspect. We can attest to the quick response. Unfortunately, TAA did not make a citizen's arrest and instead headed to Giant.

No Emergency at BAHS

Just got this from Terri Kranefield, HCPS:


In an effort to keep you informed, I am sending you clarification regarding an event that took place today that has caused some rumors to surface throughout the county.



Harford Community College Campus Security, in conjunction with the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, conducted a practice exercise on handling crisis situations. Their simulated exercise utilized Bel Air High School as the location for the fake incident. Live handheld radios were used during their drill. Those radios were connected to live stations and their simulation exercise was overheard by an external party who thought it was a real emergency situation and alerted authorities. This was strictly a training exercise and there was NO emergency.

Wherefore art thou Aegis?

Since we received an automated voice message about Baltimore Sun carriers now being in charge of delivering our Aegis, we've received exactly zero number of newspapers.
The message informed us that it would now be delivered later in the day -- so giving them an opportunity to get to us, we waited to call and ask where the paper was. We gave them a break on Wednesday because of the nasty weather, but today we really wanted a paper.
So we called the Aegis, and a speedy recording informed us that we needed to call the Sun offices, which were now handling the deliveries. So we listened to the speedy message three times and wrote down the number and then called.
We tried using the automated message system, were mysteriously put on hold, and then another recorded voice came on and said we'd have to call back tomorrow.
As a reporter at a medium-sized newspaper, TAA had a phone number that was one number away from the circulation department. TAA fielded many calls to the circulation department and transferred them on. Many times readers just wanted to know where their newspapers were. Many times circulation would transfer these poor callers back to TAA just to be annoying. At the point the callers were beyond irate and some threatened to cancel their subscriptions. But the circulation department consisted of many fine people, some on work release programs, so TAA tried not to incur their wrath.
That was quite a few years ago now, but newspapers still don't get the importance of ACTUALLY RECEIVING the newspaper. We thought about subscribing to the NYTimes again, but the memories of the constant calling, fighting for credits for missed papers, and figuring out the amended bills. It was too much to think about really.
Aegis readers are still upset about the paid obituaries and I'm sure this new "cost-cutting" arrangement will lose more subscribers. And then the costly delivery problem will be solved. There will be no readers left in need of delivery.

Surprising Movie News

Happy movie news for those who like their movies just a little outside the mainstream. "Slumdog Millionaire" will be coming to Regal in Constant Friendship this Friday. We've been checking the listings hoping for this one because it's already won a Golden Globe and has the Oscar buzz. We are also fans of director Danny Boyle. "Millions" is now in rotation on one of the million Encore networks if you haven't seen it.
To check movie times, click here.

Weapons of Mass Destruction Found in Abingdon

Or is it just the construction crew tearing down every last tree it can find? I don't blame them, they're just doing their jobs. But here at TAA in total naivete we believed that they would leave one tree, standing. Oh wait, they did leave one tree standing on the perimeter of Walmart. Or else they haven't gotten to it yet. (You can enlarge the photos if you click on them)
Those trees may not seem important to some readers. But in the summer they blocked the view of the highway, kept the traffic sounds to a minimum and just looked nice. It at least gave the illusion there wasn't a giant shopping center there. And for readers who will say we always complain about progress, blah blah blah, please stop reading, because it's only going to get worse.
Please be aware there are also lane restrictions and lots of construction workers running around in the road. Please be watchful.