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Honoring Our Mothers
The card companies have been reminding us for weeks that "May 14th is Mother's Day!" But most people don't need to be reminded that the second Sunday in May is dedicated to the women who give life, time, and so much more to their children. It is a day for buying cards, cooking dinner, giving flowers, and showing appreciation. But how did the holiday start?
There are several theories as to the origin of Mother's Day, according to the National Women's History Project. One possibility is that Mother's Day originated in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War in 1872. Julia Ward Howe, an activist for peace and women's rights, formed the day to recognize the contributions of mothers and to rally for peace.
Another possible origin of Mother's Day dates to 1858. Anna Jarvis, an activist and homemaker, started "Mother's Work Days" to clean up the environment and prevent illnesses from polluted water. When Jarvis died, her daughter continued her mother's crusade. She lobbied William Taft, Theodore Roosevelt, and other influential people. By 1907, Jarvis had organized a memorial at the church where her mother taught as a tribute to the contributions of women everywhere.
The tradition expanded and services were held around the country. One Mother's Day observance in Philadelphia attracted a congregation of 15,000 people. In 1912, the governor of West Virginia was the first to declare Mother's Day a holiday. The governor of Pennsylvania followed in 1913, and in 1914, Congress passed a Mother's Day resolution.
There is a popular saying that "A man's work is from sun to sun, but a mother's work is never done." Mother's Day serves to recognize the dedication mothers show everyday.
Powerboat to the Rescue
Move over, Law & Order. Take a hike, CSI. Sonny and Rico are here to kick some rear. At least their boat is. Annapolis' newest maritime resident is none other than the Wellcraft Scarab powerboat from the hit 80s crime action-drama Miami Vice. Current owner and Annapolis resident Sean Banfill procured the 300 HP watercraft from a collector in Hollywood. Once the stunt double for the detectives' less-maneuverable 38' Wellcraft Scarab KVs, the cigarette can now be spotted in downtown's Ego Alley and at various car and boat shows in the area - just in time for the July release of a film version of the show starring Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx. Let's just hope pastels don't come back into fashion!
Hear ye! Hear ye!
The mayor wants to start some buzz in the community-but not from her, from you. Since February, the mayor has generated "Let's Talk," a "6-month community conversation" that invites anyone and everyone to discuss the future of Annapolis. "We were quite pleased with the more than 90 people who attended the kick-off event on February 24th," said Daria Hardin, Chief of Comprehensive Planning of the City of Annapolis. "Any group of people who would like their voices heard and their thoughts known can form a group. The only requirement is that members care about the quality of life, the community, and the future of the city of Annapolis." The discussion assists in updating the Annapolis Comprehensive Plan that dictates city policy in mandating land use, zoning, transportation, housing, environmental stewardship, and other aspects of life. The meetings are held each month at various locations throughout Annapolis. The following is May's schedule:
May 1 at City Council Chambers, 160 Duke of Gloucester St., Annapolis. 6:30-7:30 p.m. May 11 at City Council Chambers, 160 Duke of Gloucester St., Annapolis. 5:30 p.m. Discussion for both sessions will focus on the Housing and Community Development Committee. Go to www.ci.annapolis.md.us and click on the Let's Talk link for a full schedule. Call 410-263-7961 for details.
Learning with the Racers
A virtual website aimed at 6th-9th graders www.oceanraceadventure.net enables youths to follow the Volvo race while learning about topics such as ocean currents, underwater topography, and the land-ocean interface, as well as how to the boats work and what it takes to put together a racing team. The lesson plans meet Maryland & Virginia's learning outcomes requirements for the 8th grade. Over 2500 teachers across the country are using the site's lesson plans.
And it's the brainchild of Annapolitans Betsy Kulle and Carrie Capuco. In 2002, right after the boats of the previous Volvo Race left town, they sat down to put these ideas together. "We stuck with it," said Kulle, "and luckily, others agreed that the race is a good way to teach kids."
"We both feel strongly that using the Ocean Race as an educational tool is a great way to get kids excited about science and math and history and literature too," added Capuco, whose consulting team wrote the curriculum. "We also had a lot of fun putting it together."
The USS Constellation is also part of the Educational partnership. See its website for more information: www.constellation.org/oceanrace.html.
Both sites makes great reading…and not just for kids.
A Stroke of Beginner's Luck
When Eastern Shorewoman Joy Lemmer isn't selling homes, she's gracing the screen opposite fine actors like Christopher Cooper and the cast of The Wedding Crashers. Her most recent project was acting as Cooper's wife in Oscar nominated Syriana. "I am not sure how I was selected to play this role, but I think it was 'beginner's luck,'" she said. "I spent ten hours with Chris and he was a very kind person that I found easy to talk to." Lemmer describes an average day on the set of a feature film as an all day-or night-event. "Once they start shooting, they can do the same shot over and over-my record is 25 takes for one shot," she says. "The same scene is then shot at several other angles. The day does not end until all the scenes have been shot. It can be a late night." Lemmer's resume of acting spots include Annapolis, Flags of our Fathers, The Wedding Crashers, Last Ride of the Raven, Invincible, Rocket Science, The Wire, The Visiting, and Breach.
A Car That Runs on Vegetable Oil?
Have you ever been outside on a walk and instead of catching fumes of residual car exhaust passing you by, you're instead overwhelmed by the smell of something cooking . . . French fries perhaps? Maybe hamburgers? No fast food restaurants are in sight, so where did that odor come from? Most likely you smell a car running on vegetable oil, or biodiesel, a nontoxic, biodegradable fuel created from natural, renewable sources like vegetable and animal oils, fats, and grease.
Today, more and more people are converting their diesel engines to run on vegetable oil, biodiesel, or an alternative fuel source, which requires a diesel engine and fuel system with few modifications.
Eastern Shoreman Marc Dykeman has used filtered vegetable oil to fuel his diesel car for more than a year. His first exposure to the concept was the book From the Fryer to the Fuel Tank, by Joshua Tickell. Dykeman found an affordable diesel car and installed a two-fuel conversion kit, which adds a tank specifically for the alternative fuel to the original diesel tank-resulting in two fuel tanks: one for diesel, and one for the other fuel which is in this case, vegetable oil. (A switch in the car allows you to choose which fuel to use.) After the installation, he approached local restaurants about collecting their disposed vegetable oil. On average, he makes two trips a month to gather the oil. He lets it sit for a couple of weeks and then filters it through a pair of blue jeans. "I've been running it for a year and I haven't encountered any performance problems," he says of his car, which gets 28 miles to the gallon. "I do this for environmental reasons. It's a hassle to collect the oil and filter it. It's a mess and pain, but it makes me feel good."
Pioneering in popularity is the purchase or homemade creation of biodiesel, which is provided in all 50 states with all the how-to formulas for the conversions available on the Internet. It's strongly recommended that the fuel go through the proper refining process with the suggested standard equipment. This process is called transesterification, which carefully separates elements harmful to the engine (glycerin) from the oil, removes them, and replaces them with alcohol. Blended biodiesel must meet the standards provided by the American Society for Testing and Materials, which is at least 20 percent biodiesel combined with petroleum diesel.
Environmentally and economically, the alternative fuel is more forgiving on engines, reduces carbon monoxide emissions by 75%, degrades four times as fast as diesel fuel, can be used in conventional diesel engines, and is safer to transport and store than diesel. 25 million gallons of biodiesel were consumed in 2004; this tripled to 75 million gallons in 2005, according to National Biodiesel Board (Biodiesel.org) spokesperson Amber Thurlo Pearson. She projects continued significant growth in 2006. "27 percent of people knew about biodiesel in 2004 and now 41 percent know about it," she says.
The Congressional Budget Office and the U.S. Department of Agriculture both agree that biodiesel is the least-cost alternative fuel option for meeting the federal government's EPA compliance requirements. However, there remains general concern over the fuel's nitrogen oxide emissions (forms of smog and ozone), which the industry is diminishing through the inclusion of additives. Another general concern is temperature. Biodiesel gels in colder temperatures, which requires a longer warm-up period for the oil to heat up.
Whether it's vegetable oil or biodiesel, people are reacting to the affects petroleum has on their everyday lives. For Dykeman, he plans to buy a four-cylinder diesel, which he projects will get 40 miles to the gallon using vegetable oil. "It's made me a lot more conscious paying for gas; it's made my gas bills go down," Dykeman admits. "But it's nice to do this. There is a real motive behind it that isn't just cheap gas. It's been great."
Sources:
www.biodiesel.org
www.edmunds.com
www.cecarf.org
www.rendermagazine.com
www.biodiesel.com
www.noendpress.com
Annapolis Flooded With Coffee
Annapolis may soon have to relinquish its claim to being America's Sailing Capital and compete with Seattle for title of America's Coffee Capital. Well, maybe not, but the coffee chain Starbucks will likely call the Annapolis area home for the sixth time before year's end. A tentative agreement between the owners of the building that houses the King of France Tavern at the top of Main Street and Starbucks is in place to reinvent the basement tavern into the name-brand coffeehouse. Starbucks aims to preserve the exposed brick and stone walls, as well as the wooden rafters and low-slung wooden archway; it also must conform to city code, zoning rules, and the architectural guidelines of the Historic Preservation Commission. The King of France Tavern first opened in 1784 and has been in continuous operation since 1780. Starbucks first opened at Pike's Place, Seattle, in 1971. While there's only one, unique King of France Tavern, there are more than 7500 Starbucks in the United States alone, including one located less than a half-mile from the proposed site. The newest establishment will join downtown coffee shops City Dock Coffee (two locations), Hard Bean Coffee & Booksellers, Chick 'n' Ruth's Deli, Café Pronto, and coffee being served at the reopened Market House. Now that's eye opening.
Are You Up For the Challenge?
Challenge yourself to becoming healthier by entering the Anne Arundel County Health Department's Family Fitness Challenge. Visit www.aahealth.org or call 410-222-7979. Win a prize by adding fruits, vegetables, and exercise to your day. Submission deadline is July 14th.
Remembering Our Fallen Heroes
May 29 marks our nation's 138th observance of Memorial Day, which was officially proclaimed on May 5, 1868, by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11. It was first observed on May 30, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The holiday is now celebrated in almost every state on the last Monday in May (since Congress passed the National Holiday Act of 1971) to ensure a 3-day weekend. Midmorning on that day, the City of Annapolis commemorates the day with a parade through the city, featuring marching bands and veterans. (Time details to be furnished closer to publication). This being an election year, there will most likely be plenty of politicians walking and marching down Main Street, shaking hands and offering buttons.
In Annapolis, one way you can memorialize those who gave their lives while serving the United States is by visiting the Maryland World War II Memorial, located on Route 450 at the foot of the Naval Academy bridge. The memorial, usually closed on federal holidays, remains open during Memorial Day.
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