HoCo Rising

My Announcement

2013-06-18T07:26:00.002-04:00

That has been the title of over a half dozen e-mails I have sent to the members of various nonprofit Boards and groups that I belong to and want to make aware of my intention to run for office. I'm excited that after today the vague references fall away and I can begin running the campaign that we have been working on for the past six weeks.

There is so much that goes into starting a campaign. I should have assumed (or known) as much by now, but the experience has nevertheless been eye-opening. As I said when I started out, I want to share this process with you in the same way I have shared so many things in the past. So many campaigns exploit and promote the distance between candidate and electorate and I have no doubt that there are good reasons for doing so. This will not be that kind of campaign. More on that tonight.

As for starting up - first, you need to decide you want to run. That is such a basic decision, but you can't be "kinda sorta running"; you need to be all in. I don't think I will ever look at an "exploratory committee" the same way again. The moment I decided to run, I immediately became determined to that goal. "Do or do not. There is no try."

Second, you need to find people to help you. Not just because it is easier to take on large tasks as a team, but also because you explicitly need a second person to be your Treasurer. I've been blessed with good friends and family who hold the same aspirations I do and are not only competent, but excel in skills necessary for putting on a campaign. We will need more help, but having partners early in the campaign has been absolutely critical to getting this off the ground. Just as critical is having mentors to show you the way.

Third, you need "sit downs" with community leaders to let them know you're running and hear their concerns, advice, and, hopefully, earn their support. This is a matter of respect. No one asks "permission" to run for office, but you need to know where you stand, what coalitions will be ignited against you, and where you may find a base of support. I also made sure to meet with at least one of the individuals considering a run for the same position, to let them know who I am and why I am running.

Fourth, paperwork. Admittedly, it has not been overly burdensome in the first month, but it is necessary to dot all the i's and cross all the t's lest you stumble out of the box, incur fines, and otherwise besmirch your nascent campaign in the eyes of the political community. I am happy to report that "Friends of Tom Coale" was established with all of the appropriate State bodies and with Howard Bank.

Fifth, brand, design, and produce. As much as I make fun of people running to "get their name on a bumper sticker", it was fun seeing the first round of campaign signs. Same is true for the website that will be released tomorrow. "How things look" is important, particularly for a first time candidate. You want people to be able to take pride in supporting you, not only for the ideals you represent, but also the ability to identify with the branding of the campaign. I think we've done so and can't wait to share those designs with you tonight.

Generally, there has also been the exceedingly difficult transition of "being a Candidate" and, as far as most of you are concerned, that hasn't even happened yet.

Above all of this is "Why I'm Running". It wakes me up in the morning and keeps me up at night. I would not be putting myself through any of this if I didn't have passion driving the train. I am starting out with no smaller goal than changing government as we know it and bringing community engagement to the next level. I'll have the chance to tell you more about that tonight.

Have a great Tuesday doing what you love. I know I will.

Rock on.

Pollution and Payroll (Monday Links)

2013-06-17T06:53:00.001-04:00

Timothy B. Wheeler with The Baltimore Sun wrote over the weekend that Governor O'Malley is lobbying the EPA to grant Carnival Cruise Lines a waiver related to shoreline air-quality regulations that force "large, ocean-going ships" to use cleaner fuel in coastal waters. As noted in the piece, since cruise ships spend most of their time within 200 miles of the shore (the application of the regulation) this regulation hits them harder than it may hit an international shipping company or transatlantic ships. Carnival has threatened to leave Baltimore if a waiver is not granted, prompting rightful skepticism from environmental groups, who note that this regulation will apply across the Country and not just Maryland. Port officials respond that with the Baltimore port being up the Chesapeake bay, that adds "hundreds of nautical miles" to every trip, heightening the burden for the more expensive, cleaner fuels.

Bottom Line: Baltimore's location is relevant to a requirement for cleaner fuels since ships leaving from this port spend more time a sea, burning fuel, than those in Florida or Alaska.

I found this issue remarkable mostly because it cuts right to the core of our policies relating to pollution and the Country's slow address of climate change - Are we interested in decreasing our carbon load so long as it is not hard?

I think the Governor's position is slightly more nuanced (i.e., grant the waiver and make the conversion to clear fuels gradual, with benchmarks over the next 10 years), but for a pol that has made the environment, and environmental advocacy groups, a core constituency, it is odd to see him take this position. Wheeler also notes a (somewhat increduluous) explanation from the Governor's office about pending technology...that he should probably ask Carnival about:

Asked how O'Malley's appeal on behalf of Carnival squared with his oft-stated advocacy for clean air and water, Winfield said the governor had been told that there was alternate technology for reducing air pollution from cruise ships, obviating the need for the EPA requirement to burn more costly ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel. She said she believed that information came from Carnival.

Here are some scary numbers - in 2013, global carbon emissions increased 1.4%, despite this issue having the greatest acceptance and interest in any of our lifetimes. In 2009, the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere was 387 parts per million (ppm). In May 2013, carbon concentration was measured over 400 ppm. Many climate scientists have suggested that there is a tipping point of 600 ppm, at which time sea levels are expected to rise 3 feet, and climate change may become irreversible.

Why do I say all of this? Well Carnival, Governor O'Malley, and the State of Maryland are staring down here-and-now decisions of 220 people losing their job and $90 million pumped into our local economy. Our entire policy framework (and political system) is framed to honor the immediate over the future. Think of our unfunded pensions, our deteriorating roads, our crumbling (and overcrowded) schools, etc., etc. This small dispute between Carnival and the EPA encapsulates everything having to do with our efforts to address a problem for which some say we are already too late.

One can imagine that if we woke up every morning and the Bay was six inches higher, lapping over the brick walkway in front of the Cheesecake Factory, 200 jobs at Carnival would be dismissed without second thought. We would be thinking of the hundreds of thousands of jobs throughout Downtown Baltimore that would be lost or relocated further inland if we didn't address the rising waters. The only problem is, in that circumstance, it would already be too late, and all that would be left to do is watch.

LINKS

I smiled when I saw this article by Sara Toth about Tony Foreman and Cindy Wolf setting up shop along the Lakefront. This was one of WB's last scoops, but, Dennis being Dennis, he couldn't keep it to himself. He had to make sure you knew he knew (and that it was a secret). I had told some of folks that I would be sad when Dennis's last secret was no longer a secret, but I'm really not. It was a friendly reminder of how much fun he had with things like this and the pride he took in "knowing".

Last Thursday, Delegate Guy Guzzone announced he will be running for State Senate in D13. As noted in the piece by Blair Ames, all indications were that Guy was actively lobbied by Senate President Mike Miller to take on the Senate job, which would mean good things for our new Senator once he gets to Annapolis. But there's still a race to run and we will see who fills the ballot on the right (which has been awfully quiet recently). Although not covered, with Guy's announcement for Senate, Board of Education member Janet Siddiqui held an event over the weekend announcing that she will be running for the vacancy in Delegate D13, which (if successful) would make one of the first tasks of our newly minted County Executive to appoint someone to the Board of Education.

Featured Blog Post of the Day: Claire attends the Baltimore Pride Festival and "couldn't have been prouder to be a part of it." With all those pictures and commentary about an event the rest of us may have taken for granted, she sure reminds me of someone...

That's all for today. Have a great Monday doing what you love. Rock on.

CA Board Recap: June 13, 2013 Board of Directors Meeting

2013-06-14T07:09:00.003-04:00

Start Time: 7:30 p.m.
End Time: 9:58 p.m.

This was a well run meeting with interesting topics to fill our time. I felt as if, for the most part, our time was well used.

Strategic Goals
Although most in our community may not have seen them, the Columbia Association operates under six strategic goals:

1. Ensure value to Columbia Association (CA) Residents
2. Foster growth of the individuals
3. Support Columbia's Economic Environment
4. Commit to Environmental Sustainability
5. Ensure Organizational Sustainability
6. Build an Informed and Connected Community

These strategic goals are the foundation for the President's Goals, but have very little role in guiding the business of the CA Board. As I noted last night, after my Board orientation two years ago, I never saw these goals again.

Last night we revisited those goals to see if they were in need of edit/updating. The actual objective of our deliberation was a little unclear to me, since it was repeatedly stated that "we're not looking to vote on anything" and there was not a motion under consideration. An open discussion is welcome and appreciated, but would seem to me to need just enough structure to allow the group to work towards an objective.

In the absence of that structure, you will have 5-6 Board members trading leadership quotes and talking (a lot) about horses (download the audio file). The interest in being visionary forward-thinking leaders (or at least sounding like one) seemed to muddy the waters. Don't get me wrong, it was encouraging to hear certain Board members agree that leadership involves some measure of courage and "seeing what everyone else cannot see", but the posturing became a bit much at times.

One of the best ideas I heard was narrowing and "slimming down" these goals into something useful on Board Meeting by Board Meeting basis. I believe CA is in desperate need of Board self-governance (i.e., limitations of power) and the selection of defined strategic goals that will guide and filter future action is critical.

Review of CA's Business Model

CA President Phil Nelson had an opportunity to show why he is tasked with leading our organization last night, and he came through with flying colors. He offered a well-thought out, comprehensive digest of where CA is and where it may need to be in the future. This document touched on everything CA currently does and everything CA may need to consider doing into the future. In short, it was a road-map for the next 10 years. (You may find it in the attachments of this PDF.)

We ended up spending most of our time talking about Tot Lots, but that's ok. Anne Brinker, one of the most dynamic new hires by Phil at CA, put together a breathtaking clip outlining the idea of making our Tot Lots into flexible "Meeting Places" that can be changed and diversified amongst communities to become multi-generational space; moving the discussion from what may be lost to what can be gained. When a neighborhood's median age is 45, slides and swing-sets have diminished utility, but if that same space can be transformed into an exercise plot or a bocce pit (!!!) or an art space, the "meeting space" used when the neighborhood was full of toddlers and young professionals can now find use once again. Most importantly, the chosen use will be flexible and non-permanent, opening opportunity after opportunity as the neighborhood changes.

President Nelson's document refers to the need to address "Generational Diversity." Rather than have one target, CA needs to diversify to meet the generational diversity of our community. With as many Tot Lots as we have throughout Columbia, there is room for diversification and flexibility without ever making it so that a child is without a place to play.

Again, this is just one component of an exciting Plan, but I hope Columbia Residents will get involved and make themselves heard. I also hope the discussion focuses more on what may be gained than the fear of what will be lost.

Lionel Fultz Lounge

This issue seems to sum up all of my frustrations with CA operations and the interface between the Board and our Leadership Team. We had two residents speak last night about their request to have a plaque installed in the "sitting area inside the Columbia Athletic Club" naming this area the "Lionel Fultz Lounge" with a plaque that states as much and includes the quote "Communication occurs when an utterance is understood." According to the speakers, Mr. Fultz was a fixture at the gym and a community icon.

Tom O'Connor spoke as a representative from the Health and Fitness Advisory Committee, which had considered the request and thought it would be appropriate to place the plaque. When the Advisory Committee determined as much, CA Staff told them that they should take the request to the Board of Directors.

Digest that.

The placement of a plaque...in the sitting area...of one of CA's buildings...at zero cost (gym members were willing to raise the money for the plaque) was referred to the Board of Directors of a $63 million organization for deliberation and decision. I cannot understand why CA leadership could not make this determination on their own.

The response was that "we get these requests all the time" and the Board does not have a policy on such matters. Ok. If Staff is uncomfortable making these decisions, based on recommendations from the Advisory Committee and the opportunity to discuss the propriety of such action with the staff at the Athletic Club, propose a policy. But to refer this specific action for Board debate is silly and undermines all attempts to limit micromanagement into the "operations" of CA. CA Leadership can, and should, expect any future protest of Board creep into "operational" matters to be met with the question "Like a plaque at the Athletic Club?"

Even more frustrating was that rather than vote it through last night, the Board put off a vote until the next Board meeting on June 27. There is no doubt in anyone's mind that this plaque will be approved. Maybe I'm a little sensitive to the contemporary value of memorializing a lost friend, but we've most likely created some resentment when none needed to exist. If CA wants to create a policy for future remembrances, I'm all for it, but to punt this (even for two weeks) with no meaningful purpose in extension (i.e., there will be no need for future debate) is ridiculous.

Stepping Down from the Board

Effective July 1, I will be resigning from the Columbia Association Board of Directors. I cannot serve on the Board while running for political office, nor would I want to cast any suspicion on future Board action due to my campaign. This was a very difficult decision for me and one that, quite frankly, hurts deeply to have to accept. These two years have been some of the most fulfilling of my life and have provided the inspiration to go on and do other things.

The good news is that Tom O'Connor has agreed to fill my position and has been appointed by the Dorsey's Search Village Board. He is a great leader and a great man. I have no doubt that those things I care most about will be protected while he serves in my stead.

I also hope that one of my colleagues on the Board figures out a way to keep the conversation going. I'm not saying anyone needs to sit down at 6 a.m. to write Board Recaps, but the community wants to know "What happened Thursday night?" I'm disappointed that I will no longer be the person to tell them.

As I said yesterday, there will be sacrifices. The key is making those sacrifices worthwhile.

Have a great Friday doing what you love. Rock on.

Howard County Food for Tomorrow x 3

2013-06-13T15:38:00.001-04:00

Howard County Food for Tomorrow just posted on Facebook that a "generous donor" has agreed to TRIPLE every dollar donated between now and July 4. This is an amazing (newer) non-profit that collects food for the Howard County Food Bank. They deserve your help (times 3).

Please consider contributing here (scroll down).

Fear and Blogging On the Campaign Trail

2013-06-13T06:43:00.002-04:00

This is an exciting medium, the depths of which have not yet been fully explored. Direct contact. Self publication. That's radical. In earlier days, and for anyone who has not invested in the conversation, those who had something to say had to hope a larger medium was interested enough in the subject (and their view) to pick it up. Facebook and Twitter supplant this somewhat, but 21st Century readers still want some measure of curation. My humble opinion is that the standard of curation breaks two ways - Ideology or Credibility. You either read to feed your ideology or you select content providers based on credibility. I would like to think that I have earned your time and readership on the basis of the latter (although my critics [who more often than not are also readers] would posit the former).

I am very careful with my credibility. As you may expect, there are a great number of people who say "write about this" both online and offline. I respect their suggestions, but if it isn't "from me", I can't write credibly about it. There are also those who say "You shouldn't write that" or (more recently) "You shouldn't have written that". The governor on those matters is a little more flexible, but at the same time, the criticism is comparable to interrupting a conversation, turning to one of the two people speaking and saying "don't answer that". It leaves both sides feeling a little weird. The one speaking is frustrated and the one listening feels as if things are being hidden from them. This is often represented in the comment "I'm surprised you didn't write about _____."

But on June 18th, I will be declaring my candidacy for public office. I've spoken with at least two dozen people about this and in about 70% of those conversations, they ask "So what happens to the blog?" It's like I'm moving to an apartment and own a dog.

I'm not shutting it down. In light of recent circumstances, I just can't. More importantly, I see the blog as an "exciting medium, the depths of which have not yet been fully explored." The blog is coming on the campaign trail and, should I be fortunate enough to win, going to be a part of that future service as well. CA Board Recaps opened my eyes to the opportunity presented in breaking down filters between the deliberation of decision makers and the communities they serve. There are tremendous risks involved, and I have made mistakes, but overall the response has been very positive. Admittedly, these are some of my least read posts (comparatively), but I also find them to be my most impactful. They are a source of pride and part of my service to the community. I don't like getting up at 5:45 a.m., after getting home at 11:30 p.m., from the previous meeting, but those posts make it worth it.

Nevertheless, things will have to change. Harry Schwartz posted a question about the future of this blog yesterday that merits a full response:

[W]hat happens to Tom Coale's voice when he becomes a "partisan"? Obviously, you are "nonpartisan" now, although not without clear political affiliation. Do you lose some of your street cred once you announce for public office as a party standard-bearer?

As I responded, I hope to keep my "street cred", but believe this will rest entirely on how conscientious I am about what I write and, more importantly, what I do not write. It goes back to credibility. If you all need to spend even a minute thinking about whether a certain post was motivated by my interest in pleasing one person or earning political points, that is a minute tearing down my credibility as a writer, community member, and friend. I don't want to put you through that, and have no interest in inviting those kinds of accusations.

Sadly, this means I'm going to have to give up parts of this hobby that I love. No more comments on individual races, the strategy of candidates, or the quirky things people do when trying to make themselves into something "bigger". I just can't. Yesterday's post was tough. Thankfully, I received barbs from both the right and the left (my personal metric for whether it was a fair post), but I can expect that a good number of you took that "minute" described above thinking about whether I was put up to this by someone else...and whether there was "something in it for Tom." We can't have that.

In preparing for this journey, I have had to give up many things that I care about, but these sacrifices are in pursuit of something greater. The key is making those sacrifices worthwhile and I have every intention of doing so. I can't wait to talk to you about it next Tuesday.

Have a great Thursday doing what you love! (Stay safe.) Rock on.

Kittleman Draws the Path

2013-06-12T06:57:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, State Senator Allan Kittleman made it officially official that he will be running for County Executive. By all appearances and metrics, his announcement at the Columbia Lakefront was a success, with coverage from two different Baltimore Sun Reporters and a gaggle of approximately 200 supporters (according to the article by Arthur Hirsch).

The big splash of the day was the introduction, and endorsement, by Baltimore County State Senator (and Dem-o-crat) Bobby Zirkin. This is a fun nugget to digest. You can view it two ways - one, why is a Baltimore County Dem, who was probably cursing his GPS in trying to find the Lakefront, sticking his hand in Howard County politics; OR two, this is a huge boost to those that define "independence" by having support from both the left and the right (more on that below) and it does not matter what name is attached to that D. If you're a real cynic, you don't take either view and simply ask "How much money is in the campaign account?"

Allan set the tone for his campaign with two themes, one more customary and the other part of a long term strategy. The first theme, according to what I've gleaned from Arthur Hirsch's piece, is "Being No. 1 is not good enough." This is what I would term the Howard County Political Commandment. From Lindsey McPherson's coverage of Ken Ulman's 2012 State of the County address:

In delivering his annual state of the county address, Howard County Executive Ken Ulman touted the usual accomplishments — Howard's AAA bond rating, good schools, safe neighborhoods, etc. But this year, he said, it's not enough to say that Howard County is strong.

"I'm not satisfied," Ulman said. "Too many strong communities have fallen prey to complacency and watched as the times passed by. I will not allow that to happen here in Howard County.

"We must seize this moment and remake our region as the model for the 21st century's innovation economy," he added.

(Emphasis added). It is just what we say when we talk about Howard County public policy. Things are good, but could be better. WB always used to say that the best political motto for any candidate for County Executive would be "I promise not to screw anything up." Unfortunately, politics does not allow for such modesty, so "better than number 1" is what we get.

The next theme is written right on Allan's campaign signs "Proven Independent Leader". Now Allan did not run as an unaffiliated (i.e., independent) candidate. He will be the first to tell anyone who asks that he is a "proud Republican". Allan often said that he voted for marriage equality because it was in accordance with "Republican values". But this merits a review at the difference between "centrist" and "independent".

Under most circumstances, ideas do not come with political labels. Mobilizing ideas into law normally (and unfortunately) requires the utilization of partisan leverage, but when those ideas hatch out of their idea shells and open their baby idea eyes, they are politically blank. After study, scrutiny, and debate, we separate good ideas from bad ideas. In this context, the "independent" votes their conscience and comprehension, with political philosophy back-filling the rest. I think it is fair to call Allan Kittleman an independent thinker, with the understanding that this independence has more often than not put him on the right (sometimes the way right, i.e., union-busting) of the voting block. We can leave for another day whether those positions line up with Howard County voters, but I don't think Senator Kittleman will be running away from those votes in his pursuit of County Executive.

There is also the somewhat different construct of "centrist". A centrist tries to find the middle ground. If two sides are debating an issue, one saying "absolutely not" and the other saying "everything needs to pass", the centrist may try to broker a deal or find common ground. A centrist will rarely win endorsements or certificates from interest groups ("triple A plus circled with a smiley face from the Woodpecker Protection Agency"), but they may win a good number of votes. Allan Kittleman is not a centrist. We've never seen him endorse a Democrat for office and I don't think we ever will (sorry Bobby Z).

If sending e-mails to hobbyist bloggers for perceived slights is any indication, Allan Kittleman's supporters are fired up and ready to go. I mentioned to someone yesterday that although there may be a significant registration and money gap, I think the "enthusiasm gap" may break in Allan's favor, at least for the early goings of the 2014 race (in two weeks we will be one year away from the primary).

That's all for today. Have a great Wednesday doing what you love! Rock on.

Edward Snowden

2013-06-11T07:19:00.001-04:00

The debate surrounding Edward Snowden and his release of protected information from the NSA is one worth having. Pundits on both right and left think he's a hero. Pundits on both right and left think he is something far less.

But the fundamental question is -- Who decides what we get to see?

Is it Edward Snowden? Bradley Manning perhaps? Some other rogue government contractor turned media darling? Or the shadowy halls of the NSA and CIA?

That decision is made somewhere, oftentimes for arbitrary reasons. As you may presume, the preference is to err on the side of redaction/classification. Once something is "out", it cannot be pulled back in (although there is an unbelievably archaic [almost ceremonial] procedure for recalling unintentionally released protected material).

What happens when our basic understanding of that fuzzy boundary between the "gubment" and "us" is in the balance? We go about our day-to-day, presuming the government is "there" and we are "here", operating with some comfort in that distance. If the government crosses that line, through some discrete provision in law or regulation passed under the distress of attack, should we be alerted? Who decides?

And how about the Constitution? If Congress and the Executive have legislated themselves out of the jurisdiction of the Courts (happens more often than you may want to know - particularly when it comes to "national security", which is exactly the kind of circumstance that is exploited in times of tyranny), what then? Isn't knowledge the last line of defense for individual liberty? If my rights to due process and the protection against unreasonable search and seizure are being breached, and there is nothing anyone can do about it, aren't I at least entitled to the knowledge that it is happening? And if so, who decides?

The most intriguing thing about this debate is that it is seemingly one of absolutes. Either Snowden is a law-breaking self-righteous prig making ungoverned decisions about what is right and wrong, to be punished to the full extent of the law OR he is a liberator of sorts, standing up against the size, force, and reach of the United States Government, and this behavior should be encouraged, thereby making vulnerable all national secrets at all times. Any middle ground is a philosophical minefield.

But, Tom, transparency! Doesn't this invoke transparency in a way? Similar to how gun control debates always devolve to the possession of a bazooka or a Sherman Tank, don't we need to allow the province of "national secrets" in our discussions of transparency. Surely, the most fervent advocates for transparency (that vague and fickle god) would agree that national secrets, involving in some respect about 20% of all federal expenditures, should be protected from disclosure. So, from there, we agree that transparency is a flexible term that should only be invoked with some purpose. "Transparency is necessary in this circumstance because..." Sure, it is many more words than just "Transparency!", but the effect is a more persuasive sentence.

What do I think about Mr. Snowden? I think he is someone that did not have this discussion with himself, but similarly one who thought he was doing the right thing; someone who could not stop himself from releasing what he released. That is the personal dynamic of an abstract discussion. For that, I'm not willing or interested in attacking him as a person. Nor am I all that interested in defending him. This is a dangerous area of policy, law, and security that does not allow much room for error. The sad thing is that all we can say for certain is that Mr. Snowden can never come home again.

That's all for today. Have a great Tuesday doing what you love! Rock on.

One Week Gone - What did I miss?

2013-06-10T06:57:00.002-04:00

Never underestimate how much you can miss in Howard County over one week of vacation. Thankfully (regrettably?), I still had e-mail/Facebook access, but Jane kindly suggested that I leave my laptop at home. So, while I still had "access", it was inconvenient enough to encourage disconnect. (And I know that everyone will say "leave the screens at home", but my much more practical side says "I did not have to come home to 1,000 e-mails in need of response.")

But what did I miss?

1. I heard there was some kind of event down at the Lakefront with Anthony Brown? Boy, won't Ken be ticked that another Gubernatorial candidate is stepping on his turf... Kidding aside, it was neat to see the community come out and support "Howard County's own" last Monday. I think a lot of people, including myself, underestimated just how energized this County would get in support of the Brown/Ulman ticket. As alluded to by TJ (great post), there is an energetic vibe and collegial dynamic that this ticket drove home in its opening week, further solidifying "front-runner" status for the 2014 election. "It's too early" and "I don't think people want perpetual election cycles" are good lines...for the front-runner. I think Doug Gansler should be expected to announce soon.

2. As you may assume, I was disappointed not to be able to attend "Kind of a Big Deal" on June 4, but was happy to see so many of you did. Someone had mentioned to me last week that Merriweather is a "big space" and that it is hard to make it look full. Everything I saw showed a good crowd, with a lot of red, solemnly celebrating a great man.

3. How is Timbuktu coming along? I finished it in two days over my vacation, which makes me think that leaving an entire month before getting together to discuss is too long. June scheduling may require as much anyway, but get out and read the book if you haven't already. I found a number of places "very Dennis", although felt the book, on the whole, was a bit dark. This was no "Racing in the Rain".

4. Sara Toth writes that Dave Grabowski has officially entered the Dem Primary for Council District 1. I do not know Dave, nor have I had the opportunity to meet him, but when reading this announcement I came to terms with the fact that my commentary on the 2014 election cycle may be significantly curtailed. I have too many friends running for office. Personally, that is inspiring, fun, and exciting to watch, but in terms of offering you anything of value, I am sure I would come up short. Have no doubt that I will continue to try to get into the issues discussed and fully hash out what they mean in the context of the 2014 race, but as for any commentary about Dave in District 1 -- "He's running against my friend Jon."

5. Similarly, we received word last week that Allan Kittleman will be kicking off his race for County Executive on Tuesday at Clyde's of Columbia. Allan is the first candidate to officially announce his candidacy in a race that many of us have been watching for two years (sad, innit?). I will be interested to see how Allan defines his campaign, but presume we will hear a lot about property rights and taxes. There is little doubt that Allan will be running against Courtney Watson in the general election, but I hope (at least for the first day of the campaign) that the personal attacks can be held at bay. Tell the community why you are running and what has gone wrong in Howard County that you want to fix.

6. Personally, I have been so appreciative of the tremendous support all of you have shown regarding my event on June 18th. We have 52 attendees signed up as of this morning. It is very important that we have a good estimate on the head count, so if you plan on attending, please RSVP or send me an e-mail to let me know you will be there. Thank you, also, to all of my friends who have sent contributions by mail. I can't put into words how much this support means to me, but I have certainly tried in the thank you notes that are flying out of my house every day.

That's all for today. Have a great Monday doing what you love! Rock on.

Loo-tenant Ken!

2013-05-30T06:55:00.001-04:00

The big political news yesterday related to the announcement that Howard County Executive Ken Ulman will join the Anthony Brown ticket as Lieutenant Governor. (Small aside: Baltimore Sun - Ken Ulman is 39, not 42.) Maryland Juice had some great follow-up analysis/speculation about how the Democratic stars of Maryland would be lining up behind Brown/Ulman, starting the day the ticket is officially announced on June 3.

It is easy to overstate the importance of something like this and forget that we have not seen much of Anthony Brown for the past eight years. Nevertheless, Ken is a bird of a different feather and may offer some things to watch:

1. Campaign Money - As soon as it became clear that Ken would have a difficult road to Governor, it became equally apparent that he would be somebody's Lieutenant Governor. 39 year old County Executives don't carry around $2 million in the bank and worry about their political future. Things work themselves out. We don't know where the money race stands since January, but at the very least the combination of Ulman's funds with Anthony Brown's helps close the $3 million gap with Doug Gansler.

2. Executive Bona Fides - I'm hesitant to say a Lt. Governor "adds" anything of substance to another candidate's Gubernatorial bid, but Ken does add a number of significant accomplishments to the ticket. He would have been (and may still be) a very good Governor. You may not like his politics. You may not like his political style. But Ken Ulman got things done. Not just in the sense of "Wow. He got something passed through a 4-1 Democratic majority", but more the less partisan issues of advocating for our municipality, lobbying for grants, and taking meaningful steps on issues like the environment and homelessness. That is a tremendous asset to the Brown campaign, but it is unclear how they will be able to use it.

3. "Attack Dog"? - I was surprised to see a number of commentators note yesterday that Ken would provide Anthony Brown "cover" and work as his "attack dog" against Gansler and (potentially) Ruppersberger. I suppose a little of that is to be expected, and Ken is known for being a tough candidate to campaign against, but I just don't see it. Ken will obviously be a strong advocate, and the local media love him, so we'll see how this plays out. Don't expect to see Ken turn polemic overnight.

4. The Baltimorean Candidate - Everyone who wants to sound analytical about the 2014 Gubernatorial Race will note that "the Baltimore constituency is wide open." "Who's going to carry Baltimore?" "Whomever carries Baltimore and the Baltimore suburbs wins the day." Ken is thought to be an answer to the Baltimore question. Remember the Ravens/Redskin bet? (And having to live through that embarrassing loss for an extra two weeks because of it?) Don't discount Ken as a "white suburbanite from a rich County." He may not play in a rock 'n roll band, but Ken is the type of pol that can win over Charm City.

5. What happens in HoCo? - Like most people in Howard County, I spent a little part of yesterday wondering "What does this mean for our County?" One of the reporters for The Sun yesterday noted that Howard had not had a viable (sorry Chuck) Gubernatorial Candidate since before WWI and asked whether Ken upgrades the locality from a political backwater to a new level of prominence. I responded that Ken is a unique case and to extend his selection to any greater meaning for the County would detract from that uniqueness. I project that as Columbia's successes mount and our County grows, that may very well change, but for now this is remarkable more for the person than the place.

Not many people were surprised by this pick. It was an obvious choice creating a formidable ticket. Doug Gansler has the money. Heather Mizeur has the grassroots. Brown/Ulman have the looks of a winner. We'll see how it all plays out, but so far so good.

And I won a bet.

Have a great Thursday doing what you love. Rock on.

Narrative Bias

2013-05-29T06:44:00.003-04:00

Google the words "happiness" and "everything happens for a reason". You will see a list of results from the scientific (i.e., your outlook on life depends on your certainty in order) to the spiritual (i.e., there is a higher being governing things). Chaos is stressful to the point of debilitation. Order implies safety - "If I did everything the same way today as I did it yesterday, I will end my day the same way - with a book, a warm bed, and my family around me."

The sad truth is that things are not so certain. We treat the unexpected like the exception, while these things inconspicuously litter our day. The green light that you just missed. The traffic jam on the way to work. The computer/phone/copier not working. Arguments. The moments of chaos fill a general structure to our day (wake up, take care of house/family, drive to work, work, drive home from work, take care of house/family, sleep), but are nevertheless prevalent.

Yesterday, there was a horrible train accident in Rosedale in which a freight train hit a garbage truck and came off the tracks. Thankfully, there was only one reported injury and he appears likely to survive. Barely an hour had gone by before I began reading "how this happened" and "how we can make sure it never happens again."

Trains go fast.
Roads go over train tracks.
Cars go over roads.
Sometimes trains hit cars.

We can all agree that one train derailment is one too many, but does that prompt the necessity to find some root cause that may be snuffed out?

Instead of spending so much time worrying about political bias in the media (with an easy work-around called "the world wide web"), what about narrative bias? What about the media's compulsion, driven by the market, to explain away shocking tragedies to make us all feel a little safer? "A ha, see the mistake that they made there? I would never make that mistake. I am safe."

Narrative bias drives everything. Why are deaths in Syria "less important" than deaths in Boston? Why are deaths of young black men in Baltimore less "newsworthy" than deaths of young white men in suburbia? Why is the expected buried underneath the unexpected?

All of our lives are an unfortunate accident away from narrative bias, even outside of the media gaze. Stub your toe? You should have paid more attention to where you were walking. Car side-swiped in the middle of the night? You should have taken more care in where you chose to park your car. Identity stolen? Article after article says your password should be at least 10 characters.

Sometimes bad stuff happens. Sometimes horrible stuff happens. It's ok that we don't have an explanation all the time. It is also ok if there is nothing we can do to stop it from happening again. That is why our caveman (and cavewoman) brains prompt us to yell unintelligibly at the stars every once in a while. The alternative is a very cruel, and unfair, compulsion to blame the unexpected on the victim. The media does so in a very facile attempt to restore order where none exists. We don't need to buy it.

Sometimes bad stuff happens. Sometimes horrible stuff happens. It's ok that we don't have an explanation.

Have a great Wednesday doing what you love. Rock on.

Less Bad v. More Good (Tuesday LINKS)

2013-05-28T06:56:00.004-04:00

Over the weekend, I finished The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability - Designing Abundance, by William McDonough and Michael Braungart. These are the same authors behind the Cradle-to-Cradle movement for reusable and "human-safe" materials. The premise of this book is that our sustainability discussion needs to stop focusing on being "less bad" and instead turn to ways we can be "more good". As with many books of its kind, there were some life-perception-changing ideas intermixed with idealistic, and unrealistic, proposals. Overall, a good read, but one that spends far too much time talking about small wins like making window shades out of small plants.

What I enjoyed most of all was the idea of changing our premise for environmental stewardship. "More good". One of the tenets of this argument was that carbon is valuable. It is the fundamental building block of life, yet only makes up approximately 2% of the earth's crust. Despite its rarity and preciousness, we are burning it up, showing very little concern for future generations and/or presuming they will "figure something out." The authors repeatedly reference the idea of "loving all people for all time" instead of just the here and now.

The authors also recognize that so long as the sustainability discussion hold "shame" as a pillar of communication, we are not going to make any progress. Instead of shame, innovators should focus on presenting better alternatives that are economically feasible. My favorite example was horizontal smokestacks, which converts CO2 emissions to food for algae (along the smokestack), which then feeds sturgeon, which then can be converted into human energy (food).

Another central component was "planned obsolescence" and our "throw away" culture. The authors start with a very simple idea -- constructed goods should be made so that they may be deconstructed and broken down to re-useable materials. Elemental paper may be easily recycled or composted, but we put so many chemicals into our paper and/or combine it with compromising plastics that it degrades the underlying fibers and makes them a single cycle product. If we just paid more attention to how we use the materials available to us for their first use, we can "Upcycle" those materials for future uses into the future, with today's packaging materials being tomorrow's compost to grow the next day's food.

But at the end, I come back to the central focus of the book. We should stop talking in the negative about creating solutions for tomorrow's problems and start talking in the affirmative. Stop saying "less bad" and start saying "more good". Positive values inspire and move people to action. Negative prohibitions build resentment and inertia. That idea extends outside of the sustainability context to everything we do. Be More Good.

LINKS

O's had a very nice win against the "rival" Nationals behind Jason Hammel's eight innings and some pop in the Oriole bats. It is clear that Peter Angelos is still not over his frustration at having a baseball team in D.C. The announcers he has given them on MASN are just brutal.

In the Memorial Day shuffle, you may have missed this article by Arthur Hirsch reporting that the Howard County Council passed the Budget 4-1, approximately $2.7 million more than what was requested by County Executive Ken Ulman. Ulman was quoted as saying that "the $17.7 million increase in school spending is about double the amount needed to satisfy the Maryland law that requires a jurisdiction to keep per-pupil spending constant from one year to the next, even as enrollment rises." I think this puts the recent kerfuffle regarding Board of Education funding in perspective, regardless of what priorities were being promoted.

Marylanders are right to be skeptical about the "task force" method of solution that seems to be prescribed for all of our State's problems. The Governor has appointed a similar task force to address jail corruption, which, by all appearances, may be too narrow to cover the systemic issues facing Maryland corrections, particularly the high rate of recidivism.

Good news for more than 16,000 Anne Arundel homeowners - your waste-water bills will be going down approximately $160 per year. Bad news - you've been overpaying for quite some time.

Featured Blog Post of the Day: Bill Woodcock reminds all of you to mark your calendars for "Kind of a Big Deal: The Life and Legacy of Dennis Lane" on June 4. It will be more than kind of a big deal. It will be a huge deal and you won't want to miss it.

Have a great Tuesday doing what you love! You've already finished one fifth of the week and hardly had to do anything (I hope). Don't forget to order/borrow your copy of Timbuktu so that you can join the Wordbones Memorial Book Club starting June 1.

Rock on.

CA Board Recap: May 23, 2013 Board of Directors Meeting

2013-05-24T08:30:00.002-04:00

Start Time: 7:35 pm
End Time: 10:37 pm

This was a good meeting. Functionally, we sped through some items at the end of the Agenda after taking up too much time early on, but otherwise I feel as if we made good decisions and treated each other respectfully. The beginning of the Board year should be, and normally is, a time of building bridges. We'll see where we go from here.

Committees

Notwithstanding the paragraph above, there was a little "kookiness" at the beginning of the meeting regarding the assignment of committees. As you (hopefully) read from the recap two weeks ago, Board committees were formed and chairs elected. We need to do this at the first meeting so that the Board Operations Committee (made up of all the chairs) can meet. In the interim between meetings, I had learned that the External Relations Committee had decided to have Russ Swatek and Suzanne Waller split the ERC Chair position, 6 months a piece. Some time after that, two of the ERC members (Russ Swatek and Nancy McCord) met off line and decided that Russ would be chair for the entire year. Odd.

And it doesn't end there. At the beginning of last night's meeting, despite nary a peep being said at the meeting on May 9, two Board members complained that Board policies required the chair of each committee to switch committees the following year. This concern was targeted at yours truly, looking to move me from the Strategic Implementation Committee to...anywhere else. This is particularly odd considering that some of the people complaining of "process" had no problem, and specifically endorsed, switching Gregg Schwind from another assignment back onto the SIC in 2012, despite being chair in 2011. Odd.

It was apparent that this was much larger than where I sit at the Board table and was an attempt to undo the election of Brian Dunn as chair of the SIC. In fact, the larger effort was directed at the Board Operations Committee. It didn't work. The Board Chairs will be PSC - Michael Cornell, SIC - Brian Dunn, ERC - Russ Swatek.

President's Goals

As is the habit of this Board, we are back-tracking. The President's Goals must be passed by the second week of June for contractual reasons. Time is getting tight. One Board member made a very interesting recommendation that we include a "social component" to the President's objectives, prompting the focus on "building community" and "fostering relationships". I love the idea, but would be terrified if I were the one with money on the line in trying to meet it. "Excuse me, could you please make friends at this workshop? If you don't, my evaluation will suffer." Nevertheless, if there are concrete suggestions available for fulfillment in quantifiable ways, I will support the addition. I may be one of the few Board members that has a boss, an evaluation, and bonus objectives. These decisions are viewed in that context.

Data Points

I was pleased and surprised to see that one of my proposals as SIC chair last year was carried over into this year - Data Points. I fully acknowledge that it may have been a poorly considered idea in the first place that really only took structure due to the diligence and critical thinking of CFO Susan Krabbe, but I take some small pride in the fact that it was not placed in the heap of "horrible things we shall never do again."

Board members made some valuable suggestions as to how to better define "Data Points" and limit them to "background information" on Agenda items the Board will be addressing in the forthcoming Board year. Typing this now, I can feel your eyes glazing over. This is not a topic for public discussion. Moving right along...

Bonus Exception

In passing the Inner Arbor Plan and Trust on February 14, 2013, the Board (clumsily) changed the $1.6 million capital allocation for Symphony Woods to a $1.6 million operating expense as a transfer to the Inner Arbor entity. Learning something new every day, I was educated that you can't transfer money from a capital budget to an operating budget without creating an accounting wormhole. "No, no, you just can't do that. We don't do that. You just can't do that." (It was a strong admonition.)

By apparating $1.6 million out of the Operating Budget, the Board essentially undercut operating budget benchmarks that allow our leadership to award bonuses. There are approximately 100 CA employees across the organization that are eligible for performance bonuses so long as CA meets certain financial benchmarks. In light of the fact that this was a Board created crisis, the Board was asked to pass an exception, allowing the award of bonuses despite the operating budget goals not being met.

I'm sure you have a pretty good idea how this went. Those that disagreed with the 8-2 vote to pass the Inner Arbor Plan and Trust shamed those who voted for the Plan. The Management Team pleaded for reason, noting that the 100 employees subject to this vote had nothing to do with that vote. Those of us who supported the Plan sat in the middle.

I was truly impressed and appreciative of Russ Swatek's comments in making the motion to pass the exception. He noted that this was a clerical bookkeeping matter and, although he disagreed with the Inner Arbor vote, he did not see a reason to withhold bonuses because of it. The exception passed 6-2, with one Board member abstaining.

Despite almost being kicked off a committee, it was a good night!

Have a great Friday doing what you love! Please be safe this Memorial Day weekend. Explore the bus and cab systems our fine County has to offer. Don't drink and drive. I have strong reason to believe there will be sobriety check-points in and around Columbia. I don't want to see your name on that list. Rock on.

A Reception for Ellicott City - June 18th

2013-05-23T06:53:00.000-04:00

Please mark your calendars for June 18, 2013 to attend a "Reception for Ellicott City" at The Rumor Mill off Main Street, beginning at 5:30 pm. You can find the event page here.

I know that this raises more questions than it answers, but I promise that all will be answered at the event. I'm always honest with all of you, and I really don't like holding anything back, but I want to be able to make my announcement with my friends and family around me and all at once. I also have a number of house-keeping matters I need to attend to before any formal "announcement" can be made, so for those of you who hate secrets - there is a reason.

I've had one rule for considering a run for office - I would only do so if I saw the need for change. I have seen far too many people run for the name-plate or the seat at the dais with the obligations of office and the responsibilities held therein secondary to self-glorification. In making this choice, I am all too sensitive to the perceived, and necessary, arrogance of anyone who thinks that they should be the one selected amongst many. I also know that from June 18th (or possibly today) forward, the perception of me in the community will transform from that of friendly well-meaning blogger to some over-ambitious know-it-all, and that may be the best case scenario. I know that my life will change.

But it is time to take things to the next level. I am not running to fill a seat or plod along on some path mapped out before me. I am running because I want to change the way our government does business and am confident in my abilities to do so. Not by myself. I don't do things by myself. With all of you.

Every big thing I've done, it has been because of you. The money we've raised, the conversations we've started, and the projects we've moved forward - all because of you. That changes a person's philosophy. We do big things. It has been hard work, but imagine what it would be like to bring that same powerful energy on to a larger stage. The doors come flying open.

I am very sensitive to the timing of all of this. After today, the focus will be back on Dennis and his event on June 4th. With the holiday and my vacation following shortly thereafter, I had to tell you now. But I don't think there will be anything I do, now or into the future, that doesn't involve Dennis in some way. The 18th is no different.

You know me. Whether we have met in person or not, you know me because I've put myself out here in every way imaginable. You know things about my life that even some of my relatives don't know. You know things about how I think that most of my coworkers don't know. You know my base philosophy and core values that everything else circles around. I think that puts us in an excellent position to start a campaign together, don't you?

Have a great Thursday doing what you love. Rock on.

Kind of a Big Deal - June 4, 2013

2013-05-22T17:08:00.003-04:00

Merriweather! How cool is that, right?!?

You're a pretty big deal after all, buddy. We miss you.

Dyer Impeachment Stands

2013-05-22T07:03:00.001-04:00

Sara Toth with the Flier writes that the Maryland State Board of Education has upheld the impeachment of Allen Dyer from the Howard County Board of Education as ruled by Administrative Law Judge Douglas Koteen. It has been over five months since Dyer stepped down from his post and over a year since he lost his re-election bid at the primary level in April 2012, but this decision still matters.

First, impeachment is a very big deal. Regardless of whatever voter's remorse Mr. Dyer may have inspired amongst some, he was a duly elected official to the Board of Education. That is a powerful endorsement. In most cases, the voters' embrace holds firm regardless of whatever malfeasance the elected perform. That's just how democracy works. We insulate the (small d) democratic from the political. An impeachment is the narrow area of confluence where the judicial oversees the executive/legislative, and is otherwise a very dangerous place to be. It is not the preferred place for office-holders to be decided.

In Mr. Dyer's case, there were a number of distinct points in time where the quasi-judicial processes available for impeachment could have abdicated their decision-making power. If this were simply a difference of opinion or a witch-hunt, you could quite fairly presume that the case would have been dismissed at an early level or over-turned with the comfort of a long since passed election.

Within this context, noting the weight of impeachment, the uncomfortable imposition of judicial powers, and the availability of dismissal at any stage - Allen Dyer was impeached.

Second, this is much bigger than a man. Allen Dyer is a perfectly fine individual who meant well and is the protagonist of his own story. Impeachment does not take away from that one iota. Impeachment serves as regulation most severe. There is a process. You may do whatever you choose, and vote however you choose, within that process, but if you try to put yourself above the process, you will be removed.

What was Allen Dyer's offense? Boiled away from everything else, he sought to lionize himself by redefining transparency. He approached transparency as an ideal that existed outside of whatever definition may be applicable under the law; followed at all costs in whatever manner he saw fit. Mr. Dyer released attorney-client privileged materials, secretly recorded Board members without their knowledge (criminal offense), and released material that was sealed for the benefit of a minor. Essentially, Mr. Dyer sought to obliterate any and all restrictions that were placed on him as a member of a deliberative body.

In affirming the impeachment, the State Board of Education reclaims the supremacy of the collective over the individual in matters of deliberative government.

Finally, the impeachment restores authority and legitimacy to the Howard County Board of Education. I really liked this quote that Sara Toth included from Board Member Frank Aquino:

"From the start, this case has been about following the law, and a local board's right and ability to govern itself," Aquino said. "The state board decision today confirmed that right and I am pleased with the result. It has been a long journey."

I see it as a little bit more than that. When a Board, Council, or Legislature determines what it can release to the public and what it cannot, that is a weighty, difficult decision that oftentimes will be used as campaign fodder for those who wish to fill their seats. It is hard. No matter what accusations may be made about arrogance or corruption, there is a line where matters of public concern require private deliberation. Those matters should eventually be released, and oversight should be imposed wherever possible, but so long as that body is expected to negotiate contracts, address personnel matters, or oversee the conduct of their attorneys, there is a permissive sliver of closed doors.

Those doors will constantly be a point of resentment and tension. That tension is beneficial to democracy and must be kept tight, but never breached. When a member determines that they do not want to abide by the decisions of their colleagues on matters of transparency, the public is turned against the institution. Public trust is upended. Instead of addressing the substance, everything becomes a matter of process. That is exactly what happened here and there are still elements of this community who continue to resent the Board of Education for matters of process that were invoked by Mr. Dyer.

I can't say this enough - this is not about Allen Dyer. Mr. Dyer took an easy road to notoriety simply by breaking the rules. What we really should be talking about is that "permissive sliver" we allow those we elect to office in which they know more than we do and must make decisions independent of our ken. There is so much balance involved that you almost require an episode like the one we just experienced with Allen Dyer to appreciate the boundaries. The argument will never be over, but for now the process of debate is restored.

That's all for today. Have a great Wednesday doing what you love! Rock on.

Wordbones Memorial Book Club

2013-05-21T06:50:00.000-04:00

Dennis loved to read, but maybe not as much as he liked to talk about the books that he had read. We would trade book recommendations, normally around this time of year, as he returned from whatever vacation he went on and I prepared to go on mine. Dennis had the "one book" philosophy, while I normally maintain one fiction and one non-fiction book at all times.

I had the opportunity to chat with Dennis's sister Pat yesterday (of Twinkie fame), who was the source of many of Dennis's best book recommendations. I talked with her about "The Art of Racing in the Rain", which was the first book Dennis had mentioned to me. I read it and when I came back from vacation, mentioned to him that I liked it. "Oh that book's funny," he said. The book is funny. We talked about some of the philosophy expressed in the book, particularly the bit about how "it's not good to have enemies." If I can paraphrase my friend, he responded saying something to the effect of "I don't have enemies. They have me!" (Big laugh).

Our back and forth book trading continued. Anyone who has this type of relationship knows that it can be stressful, particularly with a "calls-em-how-he-sees-em" guy like Dennis. On more than one occasion, he would come up to me and say, "You know that book ____? Can't get in to it." But then, on the good days, "Hey I really liked ____. Thanks for the recommendation."

Dennis was a guy with dozens of books on the "to do" list at any given time. That was one of the reasons he bought the Nook (also encouraged by a very heavy paper book that compelled him to give up the medium). It seems right to honor him with books. But maybe a little more than that...

What makes losing Dennis so hard is that we've lost a collective experience. He permeated so much of what we are as a community that without him, we're like Our Town without the Stage Manager. Things feel "less". Less "what", I can't exactly say, but "less".

At their heart, blogs are about sharing and creating a collective experience. Most of you who have read blogs for a while know what it is like to read multiple blog posts covering a single event. It makes that moment in time a little different than it would have been without those posts. It makes things "more".

The Wordbones Memorial Book Club is about creating that collective experience. We're going to start with Timbuktu by Paul Aster, one of Dennis's favorite books, with a main character by the name of "Mr. Bones." This book is new to me, but one that Dennis repeatedly recommended I read (everyone needs an emotional time out from "dog books" every once in a while; mine has been about two years).

The book is 192 pages and our book club starts reading on June 1. If you're reading something else, try to hurry up or take a break. We'll target finishing the book by July 1 and, doing what book clubs do, get together for some wine to discuss.

I would love for this to be big. There is so much space to fill in all of our lives with Dennis gone. A book won't do that, but it is the next closest thing; to be able to go up to people you barely know and discuss something you both know intimately.

And who knows where this goes. Ideally, the Wordbones Memorial Book Club would be passed from blog to blog, with each blogger picking a book to honor Dennis and keep that collective experience going. We'll decide that in July.

But for now, it's Timbuktu. And Mr. Bones.

Have a great Tuesday doing what you love. Rock on.

Work From Home (Guest Post)

2013-05-20T07:26:00.001-04:00

Here is a guest post on an important subject before the County Council that relates to your ability to work from home. I admit unfamiliarity with the subject, but thought I would share for your review and comment:

Every ten years or so, Howard County undergoes a process called “comprehensive rezoning”. For most in the county, it is a process that garners few headlines or outrage. Occasionally, there is the odd proposal that brings out activists but that is the exception rather than rule. Yet comprehensive rezoning is hugely important. The current plan is called Howard 2030 and it is a blueprint for how our community is going to grow and adjust to a rapidly changing world over the next generation. Do we allow a large religious educational facility in the rural west? With growing demand for apartments do we cluster them in Columbia or spread them throughout the county? How do we ensure aging in place while maintaining opportunities for young families? These are just some of the questions our Planning Board and County Council will be wrestling with.

Rezoning is essentially divided into two parts- what to do with different chunks of land and what to do with our current zoning code. While we can argue about what happens to Woodmont Academy or apartments in Fulton until we’re blue in the face, I wanted to bring up something that really concerns in the proposed changes to the zoning code.

In Sections 128 and 131 the County has proposed a rash of new regulations on in-home businesses that are seem both overly onerous and willfully blind to how the economy has rapidly changed over the last few years. To say that our economy is “rapidly changing” undersells just how transformative the previous five years has been and what the next decade will bring. The financial crash untethered millions of workers from traditional 9-5 office jobs and advancements in technology has allowed everyone from lawyers to shop keepers to work from home. Rather than building stable workforces, many businesses cycle through temporary and freelance employees. While that might seem patently unfair to older workers, it is a liberating adventure to recent college grads- enabling lifestyle choices and entrepreneurial innovation that was unimaginable to their parents. Becoming a powerseller on Ebay offers the same financial benefits with greater security than opening a storefront in a village center; setting up shop in your kitchen is a great way to start a business at a time when the credit markets are closed to all but the best capitalized of the rich.

So what has our county proposed in response to these changes? Well you can read it right here (Amendment Tab). To begin with, who knew that current law mandates you get a permit from the County in order to work from home? Rather than question the premise, the County has decided to create more regulations on top of that. To whit, consider that you:

1) File a floor plan with the county making sure that your work space not exceed 33% of floor area or 800 sf.

2) If you can hire an employee, they can’t be in your house after 6pm, and if you have two people helping you that’s illegal- unless your home is on more than an acre.

3) Make sure that whatever you do, no one outside the home can see it, hear it, smell it, read about it, or see anyone park a car to get to it

4) Don’t sell anything from your property (I’m looking at you Ebay powerseller)

5) If you are like most Howard Countians and have an HOA, make sure you get their approval before you work from home.

Rather than unshackling creative enterprise the County is proposing to clap on the super kryptonite Legion of Doom ball and chain. Rather than recognizing that being gridlocked between two of the worst commuting cities in America means we should encourage telecommuting and in-home businesses, some have decided that you’re better off contributing to traffic, smog, and putting your kids in before and after-school care.

I understand that there are in-home businesses that the County must regulate. One of the horror stories, I’ve been told, is that there was a “holistic cleansing center” at a home that had well-and-septic. But for every instance like that I can point to hundreds of business consultants, architects, day traders, lawyers, tutors, music teachers, accountants, and (yes) bloggers who add vibrancy to our community and money to our economy. Rather than create more regulations on top of the existing one, the County should really think if ANY existing zoning regulation is appropriate. If something violates the health, safety, or labor codes use those methods to reign it in, not the zoning law. We should make Howard County a leader in unleashing the innovative spirit of citizens rather than the latest version of the scold.

I’ve been told that the Planning Board has sent a recommendation to the Council that much of these regulations be removed or revised. I applaud them on that. Now it is up to the Council, please make them hear you.

No Post Monday

2013-05-20T07:08:00.000-04:00

Sorry folks. Just don't have it in me today.

Have a great Monday doing what you love! Rock on.

Getting the Ball Rolling

2013-05-17T07:30:00.005-04:00


(Not a good start to taking more pictures, but I'll improve)

Last night was Council-member (Dr.!) Calvin Ball's Fundraiser at Stanford Grill. It was very well attended, with overflow parking filling the neighboring lot. I think Calvin's role as bridge-builder showed through last night with four of the five Council members in attendance as well as two member of the School Board. If I were to guess, I would say there were well over 100 people there.

Political events around this time of year are funny. If you see someone in a suit, you think "That's a little dressy for an event like this, are they running for something?!?" Then, you see someone in a polo shirt, and you think "That's a little casual for an event like this, are they running for something?!?"

But you can't ask. Guessing candidacy is a game. You don't say anything to the person until you know and then they tell you whether you won.

"So, I heard you are running for _____."
"Yes, you win. Here are your tokens. Go pick out a squirt gun."

Just blurting out "Are you running for something?" is sort of an insult. I don't know why. It just is. In fact, the question, in the right context, can be used as an insult. Going above and beyond the call of duty? "Are you running for something?" Overly friendly to strangers? "Are you running for something?" Take a vocal position on an issue of public concern? "Are you running for something?" On further reflection, it is a rather under-utilized insult that I think has a lot of potential.

Back to Calvin - there was no announcement last night. I found myself standing in a group of political wonks when he made his remarks and as Calvin noted that there is a question a lot of people are hoping to have answered that night, but...he did not know the winning Power Ball numbers, one of the aforementioned wonks said "well played" (don't you love these guys? They're like cynics who have been brought to question their own cynicism, creating just the slightest bit of gravitational pull).

But for our electeds, they have all the time in the world. Name recognition? Check. Money in the bank? Check. Ability to hold a fundraiser without people asking "Are you running for something"? Check. Why announce and have every move from now until November 2014 viewed through the prism of whatever seat you are targeting? In Calvin's case, why foreclose the option of staying put?

There are dominoes yet to fall. I would expect that by 4th of July, we will at the least know the full slate of newcomer candidates and possibly fill a few of the holes on the Republican side of the ballot. Trent Kittleman has already filed for Delegate 9A to fill what we can presume to be an open spot when Gail Bates runs for State Senate. In 2010, the GOP took the approach that no seat would go uncontested, and I imagine they will do the same for 2014. The question is whether they can find folks that are willing to put themselves and their families through a campaign in districts with near impossible odds (and the same holds true for whether the Dems will post candidates in Council 5 or Delegate 9A). But then again, that's why you don't put the year on the campaign sign.

Dennis went to many more of these fundraisers than I did, but whenever we would find each other, we would normally link up and spend the evening jointly speaking with whomever came our way. After one of Courtney Watson's fundraisers last year, Dennis noted that he had spoken with over 20 people "and didn't move once." He took pride in that. People came to him.

That's all for today. Have a great Friday doing what you love! Rock on.

Thursday LINKS

2013-05-16T06:59:00.003-04:00

It has been a little harder for me to get my flow back than I had originally thought. I have a good guest post that I may save for Monday, but in the interim, here are some links about what's been going on around town.

LINKS

I hate to say it, but I think it is very possible that someone could have attended Tuesday's Spring Party without noticing the central message of the event - we changed our name. The Columbia Foundation is now the "Community Foundation of Howard County" or CFHoCo (most likely to be referred to into the future as "the Foundation"). As noted repeatedly throughout the opening announcement, the Foundation really isn't "changing" much of anything in terms of its focus, spectrum of interest, or donor base. The new name is a recognition that the Foundation has always been Howard County's community Foundation and should wear a title recognizing as much. As you may expect, there was some controversy surrounding the name change, but the overwhelming majority of feedback has been positive, including the transfer of at least one fund from outside Howard County to the Foundation. Check out the website here and remember that 10 Funds in 10 months is still ongoing, with $500 available to anyone who sets up their fund through this blog. If these funds are not established, the matching dollars go unlocked.

It's a new day for Wilde Lake. Watching the pictures from the ground-breaking ceremony yesterday, I thought to myself that this would definitely be something Dennis would have wanted to attend. Wilde Lake was his home Village. He followed the redevelopment discussions step by step, pushing back on those whom he felt were standing in the way of progress. For everyone with a golden shovel, I'm quite sure that Dennis loved being your teammate. Congratulations.

With Frank Aquino in attendance, and a slightly different make-up this year, the Annual Capacity Chart passed the Board of Education without much trouble - 6 to 2. As you may recall, this Chart takes five votes to pass and in 2012, with the absence of Mr. Aquino and Allen Dyer voting against it, the chart sat in limbo for a week, failing to pass on the first try with a 3-4 vote. As with many other things the Board of Education handles, the avoidance of one problem creates a legion of others. Without passing a new configuration for where to put students, they continue to flood into "open" schools despite new-found capacity in previously "closed" schools. In 2012, this would have worked to over-crowd Wilde Lake Middle School. So all in all, this was the right vote.

Did you know there is a cancer prevention study in Howard County? Ken Ulman is trying to recruit 1,000 Howard County residents to sign up for CPS-3 to "better understand the genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors that cause or prevent cancer, which will ultimately save lives." I signed up yesterday and will have my preliminary examination in early June at Howard County General Hospital. No, I'm not particularly excited about completing 20-30 years of surveys, but I am very excited about participating in a research study that could end up being a huge stride in our collective fight against cancer. Don't wait until this horrible disease changes your life or the life of someone you love. To quote the Ulman Cancer Fund - "Cancer changes lives...so do WE!"

Baltimore Raven linebacker Rolando McClain has retired from the NFL at 23. That was fun.

The University of Maryland Board of Regents has approved a 2.3% tuition increase, which will amount to the difference of hundreds of dollars per semester, and thousands of dollars over a four year term. I am waiting for someone on the right to relate this to the DREAM Act, but there is no connection. Oh wait, it's in the comments.

The campaign for County Executive seems to be in full swing for Anne Arundel County, with one candidate receiving a $70 fine for sign-waving near a highway. Most jurisdictions are a little more careful about assessing criminal or civil penalties for political activity, particularly those that may have had a recent scandal involving the police department, political signs, and the County Executive's office. I would love to be a fly on the wall for the police supervisor's next chat with this patrol-man.

Featured Blog Post of the Day: This Is Water is one of my favorite commencement addresses of all time (and we are well into the swing of those "life instruction book" speeches right now). Check out TJ's link to the new video clip paired with an analysis of the message. Here's my favorite quote from the speech:

"If you worship money and things - if they are where you tap real meaning in life - then you will never have enough. Never feel you have enough. It's the truth. Worship your own body and beauty and sexual allure and you will always feel ugly, and when time and age start showing, you will die a million deaths before they finally plant you. On one level, we all know this stuff already - it's been codified as myths, proverbs, clichés, bromides, epigrams, parables: the skeleton of every great story. The trick is keeping the truth up front in daily consciousness. Worship power - you will feel weak and afraid, and you will need ever more power over others to keep the fear at bay. Worship your intellect, being seen as smart - you will end up feeling stupid, a fraud, always on the verge of being found out."

That's all for today. Have a great Thursday doing what you love! Rock on.

Lessons Dennis Taught Me

2013-05-15T07:23:00.004-04:00

It would have been hard to attend last night's Spring Party without feeling like some turning point had been made from grief to celebration. I don't think any of my Talking Points were discussed, but that's ok. We had a good time.

I know that some of these posts are hard to read and I apologize for that. One of the things about writing every day is that you have to pluck whatever is fresh and for the past five days, this is the only thing I can think about. For those that were close to Dennis (and there are a lot of you), I hope it is helpful. For everyone else, thanks for sticking around.

The story of a older man teaching a younger man how to live life is trite, played out, and Hallmarky. Nevertheless, in a way, we are all teaching each other something about how to live life every day we live it; young or old. Dennis didn't mind giving tips along the way, always starting his sentence with "You know..." I'm going to trip down that path of triteness to share some of those tips.

1. Ignore the people. Play with the dogs. As I've mentioned before, Dennis was here two weekends ago for drinks by the fire pit. He loved our dogs. We come downstairs to the basement, as I'm explaining the wine I picked out, he bends down, picks up a rawhide from the ground, and puts it in his mouth. In. His. Mouth. Everyone stopped talking and laughed. My dog Brodie, quiet up until this point, begins to bark in protest. Dennis just looks down at him, eyes wide, and offers a mocking growl through the whitened cow-hide gripped in his teeth. My other dog Baxter begins to bark. Dennis returns the rawhide to Brodie and peace is restored.

Drink. In. Hand.

2. Always Dance. I can't really remember if Dennis was a good dancer, but I know that at just about every event in which there was a dance floor, he would spend some part of it dancing...with any woman who could keep up. In a community as small as ours, people normally keep their cards close to their vest. The dance floor is rarely full, but for those who have spent the past decade taking dance classes to show how great of a relationship they have with their significant other. In the background of stiff method and structure, Dennis would explode in celebration. One of my favorite memories of Dennis will be from this year's Evening in the Stacks. A guest of one of our friends, someone Dennis had never met before, asked if Dennis would like to dance. He did not blink. "Yes." Dennis charged out to the floor, not to do some white guy shoulder shimmy, but a full on spin and twirl and clap and groove dance. We should all be so brave.

3. Remember their humanity. No matter how much Dennis may agree or disagree with someone, he never held them up or down past eye level. We're all equal. You can respect someone's successes and be frustrated by their actions, but you always give them a route back to a handshake. I'll never forget the time he had Allen Dyer on his podcast. I expected fireworks. Dennis was going to do justice! He sent me a text message shortly after the podcast was over, saying "Ok podcast. Dyer's a pretty good guy after all." And if you listen to the podcast, you don't hear a polemic looking to embarrass or shame someone (who was kind enough to take time out to be on the podcast), but rather a meeting of humanity around the petty issues of politics. He saw through the fog. That doesn't mean he had super-human power to avoid anger or gossipy disdain. Dennis just knew how to get back to center and treat them like a person when it mattered most.

4. Drink good wine. Eat good meat. Here's one of my favorite quotes from Dennis's Heart Attack Guy Blog: "I still enjoy drinking more than a couple glasses of wine and I have no intention of giving up steak. It is just that now I savor those indulgences a bit more. If I am going to have some wine it is going to be GOOD wine. The same goes for steak. If I am going to have a steak is going to be USDA Prime." This extended so much further than his culinary habits. Whatever it is you're doing, do the best available. Have a day off from work? Find something fun to do. Going out to eat? Don't go somewhere you've been before, unless you know it will be great. I never saw the man drink a Budweiser. He would make the bartender read off the tap list every time.

5. Be Curious. I said this before, but it really was Dennis's defining characteristic. I couldn't help but laugh a little at a picture posted in memory of Dennis by Lisa. It shows an arrangement of ribbons on the pier around Lake Kitt. About a month ago, Dennis sent me a text asking "What's going on Downtown?" I responded that I had no idea, but that CA wasn't doing anything. He said "I think you're wrong" and sent me a picture of the ribbons. That certainly stirred my interest and I promised him I would find out. Two weeks ago I was talking with someone from CA and remembered to ask them about the ribbons. They responded "Looks pretty doesn't it? It's to keep the geese from sh#tting on our pier."

Dennis would have loved that. I never had a chance to answer the riddle, but am sure he would have wanted to post about it. Whenever I see those ribbons, I think of him...and goose sh#t.

Someone last night told me that things are never going to go back to normal. I think that's probably right. But we're going to have to figure out a way to make the new normal as rich, fun, and exciting as it was when Dennis was around. This weekend is Wine in the Woods. Dennis did not care for Wine in the Woods, but he sure as heck would not stay home when everyone else was outside. We met at Clyde's Beer Festival, just down the street.

You live in an amazing place with amazing people. Get out and enjoy it. Make time for your friends. Make time for yourself.

Have a great Wednesday doing what you love! Rock on.

Spring Party Primer

2013-05-14T07:32:00.002-04:00

I think it a fair estimate to project that there will be over 1,000 different conversations on about 300 different topics this evening (we circle back a bit). People will be talking about local politics, their golf game, downtown development, good new restaurants, and tiny objects that their children put up their nose, flushed down a toilet, or are currently missing, causing concern as to whether it was either of the first two.

I thought I would draft up a Primer on some of the more pressing topics of conversation so that everyone (or at least the dozen of you that read here) can be on the same page. And remember, it is not polite or respectful to discuss violent crime at the Spring Party. If you do so, I hope you are wearing a dark suit.

1. Ken Ulman is being discussed as a likely Lieutenant Governor for the Anthony Brown ticket. While this would be disappointing in the short term for those looking to have a Howard-County-Executive-turned-Governor, political insiders are suggesting this would be a smart move for Ken's long term career in politics. I would project further and say that this would be good for Howard County on the whole, as Ken has always viewed this place as a catalyst for great things statewide.

If you have the opportunity to speak with Ken, please thank him for his dedication to ending homelessness in Howard County and the very exciting announcement of transitional housing and a new Day Center at the intersection of Route 1 and Route 32. You may also tell him how excited you are about the money in the Operating Budget to help fund a Downtown Arts Center in Symphony Woods.

2. Ravens Wide Receiver Jacoby Jones scored 30 out of 30 points on Dancing with the Stars last night. I did not see it, but I'm sure that is something people will want to discuss.

3. Remember the Highland Inn? Neither does anybody else.

4. Guy Guzzone has recently announced that he will not be making a bid for County Executive. He will be deciding between continuing in the House of Delegates, where he has built a great deal of seniority and respect, or moving on to the State Senate. This means Courtney Watson may have a free run in the Dem Primary for County Executive. Presumably, some Democratic Challenger will come out of the woodwork, but it seems unlikely that it will be a candidate with high name recognition like Guzzone, Ball, or Sigaty.

If you have the opportunity to speak with Guy, you may want to congratulate him on making the decision to stay in Annapolis. It is good for Howard County to have a powerful representative in either the House or Senate, mostly for defensive reasons. You may want to avoid discussing the rain tax.

If you have the opportunity to speak with Courtney, congratulate her on helping to get Grace's Law passed and ask her about her objectives for the next two years on the County Council. Courtney probably won't be saying too much to you about the Executive race. She hasn't declared yet.

5. Some of Dennis's proudest memories were from the "U-Club" at John Carroll University. Not only was this fraternity known for putting on great concerts, but Tim Russert was a member and prominent alumni. Maybe Dennis never saw it, but he never had the chance to share this article in the Alumni magazine, for which he was interviewed, about how he worked with Russert to bring Bruce Springsteen to John Carroll. It's like all of his favorite things wrapped up in one.

6. State Senator Allan Kittleman will almost assuredly get a free pass through the Republican primary for Howard County Executive. Just about the entire Democratic party is dismissing his candidacy, but those outside of politics are not so sure. He is a well-liked, well-respected, well-known politician with the confidence of someone who is not running for second-place.

If you have the opportunity to speak with Allan, congratulate him on getting Grace's Law passed. You may want to ask him why he thinks he had so much trouble getting any of his "good government" bills passed. Allan is also always good for a discussion about the future of the Republican party. He is not Dem-lite (as some of the far right would paint him). He is a true red Republican and proud of it.

7. Delegate District 12 will be fascinating to watch this election. It is a wide-open three member district with no incumbents crossing Howard and Baltimore County. Columbia Dems don't play well in Baltimore County and Baltimore County Dems don't play well in Columbia. It is not so messy as to allow inroads for a Republican, but certainly messy enough to make any prognostications very difficult. The only two declared candidates are Dr. Terri Hill (favorite of the HoCo Dem leadership) and Dr. Clarence Lam. (Funny Story: I was admonished by the Hill campaign for not including "Dr." before her name in a previous post. "Fine and dandy. That will be Mr. HoCo Rising, Esquire to you, thank you very much.")

If you have the opportunity to speak with any candidates for Delegate District 12, ask them about their favorite Baltimore County restaurant.

8. Dennis loved dogs, local journalism, and nature. I have a feeling we will be starting some sort of memorial fund for him, which may be best directed toward an endowed position at the Flier or some other local paper to preserve and promote local journalism. Nothing saddened him more than the deterioration of the local press. He even made a bet with himself that if Larry Carson ever left The Sun, he would end his subscription. Larry left The Sun and Dennis...switched to online only (come on, a local blogger without a news subscription? Cut the guy a break). It would take a lot of money to make an endowment substantial enough to help fund (or even just subsidize) a position, but when people ask "What would Dennis want?" that is the first thing that comes to mind.

9. Ilana and Dave Bittner have created a very cool new App called "TriSpies" that helps aspiring or experienced triathletes train for their next race. This is an exciting project to follow, particularly considering the growing active community in Howard County.

10. My friend Jon Weinstein recently announced that he will be running for County Council in District 1. Word on the street is that Howard County committeeman at large Dave Grabowski is also considering a run for the Democratic nomination. Jon is my friend and I will not be planning to offer any substantive commentary on this race other than to say that I choose my friends carefully.

If you have the opportunity to speak with Jon Weinstein, you may want to ask him what it was like to be on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me or the substance of his (obligatory) Route 1 campaign plank.

Don't forget - Wear Red.

Have a great Tuesday doing what you love! Rock on.

"It's a Dark Suit"

2013-05-13T15:29:00.004-04:00

My first Spring Party was two years ago - the last year it was at the Spear Center. The year before, in 2010, I sat out the "Party of the Year", prompting the photograph of my Kindle and a glass of wine that serves as a "Profile Pic" of sorts for this blog. I remember Dennis telling me, "I certainly understand wanting to sit one out...but the Spring Party? You're missing a good time."

So in 2011, I went. It was my first year on the CA Board and we had a meeting later that night. It was a perfect send off for everyone who wanted to wish me luck and give me last minute warnings that this was a mistake. Not Dennis. He said (on many different occasions), "I'm glad you're there. I'm glad it's not me, but I'm glad you're there."

As Dennis and I are chatting with Dave Bittner, right next to the bar in the center of the room, Greg Fox walks up. Somehow, in taking my hand out of my pocket to extend it to Greg, I dump a very full glass of red wine all over my shirt, my tie, and my suit. "That's it. Cut this guy off," Dennis says, before breaking into his high-pitched, attention-drawing, laugh. After cleaning up, I remember commenting that this was not the introduction to the community I was hoping for. Dennis, being Dennis, responded "Look at the bright side - it's a dark suit. Can I get you another glass?"

I'm done grieving. I will always miss Dennis. I will continue mourning him in the right places at the right times and probably for a long time after today, but I'm done grieving. I am torturing myself with news articles, old blog posts, and photographs to no meaningful end. I imagine many of you are doing the same.

It's time we pick ourselves back up and rejoin the party. On Tuesday, we will wear red. Not just at the Spring Party, but wherever we go. It is the color of passion. It is a signal to one another that we are moving forward. For me, it will note a turning point, after which we will make sure celebration is the key to our remembrance, not sadness and pain.

We can really do something great to remember a great man, but we need make that shift. This is just part of that great thing, but it is the first part. And if we shed a few tears on Tuesday, that's ok too. Red is just dark enough to cover them up and shine on through.

(Hat tip to Bert for the pic)

Living Like a Visitor

2013-05-13T07:06:00.000-04:00

I spent a good part of the weekend wondering whether I would be sitting here this morning. Wondering if I would ever sit here again. Like a hunting club or a fishing hole, this was a hobby, and a "place" of sorts, that I shared with a friend and now he's gone.

Every post, I would think about Dennis. He read everything I wrote, I read everything he wrote, and we talked about it whenever we would see each other. It's the way a 58 year old and a 31 year old become friends. He had this face he would give whenever he thought my post was too corny; almost a grimace, but paired with a laugh to ease the slight. Dennis would occasionally give the gentle critique of "That's not the way I would have written it, but your way is fine too." We would talk about "post ideas" and "scoops", getting together about once every two months or so, just the two of us, to trade the things that we "knew but couldn't write". It makes me smile to think that there are still some things out there that he knew but couldn't share. He loved being in the know...even if it almost cost Columbia a Whole Foods.

About a year ago, Dennis and I met for coffee (very rare for us). He told me that he was going to start writing less. He wasn't going to stop writing, but maybe only write once a month or once a week, and only if it was something "really good". Dennis was his own worst critic and thought his posts had lacked the substance he expected of himself. The daily obligation was feeling a little weighty, understanding that this obligation was self-imposed. We talked about "funks" (a word I could do without for a while) and how writing is about momentum. We talked about getting back in the groove and the amazing difference between having nothing to say and hours later needing to capture all of the "post ideas" that come flooding out of the ether. We talked about all of the posts that he "didn't really like" that were enjoyed by all of us on the other side of the computer screen. Finally, he did his little Eureka head-lift and said, "Why would I ever give this up?" Then I teased him for 20 minutes about how he was just fishing for compliments and how I made some of them up just to make him feel better.

All that said - I was ready to go cold turkey on Saturday. That morning's post was everything I wanted to say about Dennis and I wanted people to read it. What better way than leave it at the top of this blog...and be done.

And I know the compulsion is to think about what Dennis would have wanted, but that may work in naming a street or installing a plaque, but it doesn't work for something like writing. Sometimes you just lose the juice.

Then I read this:

"When you go to a new city, you tend to notice everything: colors, buildings, people, landscapes. System 1 is on the alert and soaking in the details. The sense of acute vividness that people get when visiting new places comes from the fact that a lot is unfamiliar and thus stands out from the background. When you return home, not so much stands out (even if home is pretty amazing)." - Cass Runstein, Simpler: The Future of Government

I spent yesterday reading between 60 and 70 of Dennis's old posts. The reason we loved reading him, and looking at the pictures he would take, was because he took our familiar and made it remarkable. And, really, THAT is what we all should be aspiring to do. Because our home is amazing, filled with amazing colors, buildings, people, and landscapes.

If you have a beer on Sunday morning after running up 3 miles of hills, take a picture! If you are eating a crazy mixture of barbeque and baked potato, take a picture! Let your friends know! Celebrate it. Because you don't know when that will happen again and by celebrating it you have made your day remarkable. Live the life of a visitor with the knowledge of local. Be curious.

All of these lessons are what he taught me. I always thought I had become a better writer by pounding away morning after morning, but it was really by way of Dennis. I may spend the next week, maybe even the next month, just writing about him, but I'm going to do my best to keep the momentum going. When you stop, you stop looking to the world for things to write about. Your curiosity dulls. Not much stands out...even if it all is pretty amazing.

Have a great Monday doing what you love! Rock on.

My Man Dennis

2013-05-11T08:14:00.001-04:00

"My man!"

Who still says that?

"My man! TC!"

Anytime we would run into each other at one of the dozen "must attend" events of the Howard County non-profit circuit, he would give the same greeting with a huge smile and an outstretched hand. Dennis never made you wait for his conversation with whomever he was speaking with to end. He would interrupt. If the other person was talking, he wouldn't even say excuse me. Just "My man!"

Dennis just bought an iPhone. He was at my house two weekends ago and I joked with him that he could finally stop carrying a Smart Phone and a camera. Dennis responded that he was still going to carry the camera around for a bit, reminding me that he had started a Tumblr page for all of his photographs. I spent a lot of yesterday looking for pictures of him and I together. I gave up. All I have are pictures he took of me, with him on the other side of the lens. That's just how he rolled.

The quick darts of progress in the tech world excited him. These things were “neat”. He looked forward to buying groceries by scanning items with his phone and ringing the total up at the front register. Even the smallest bit of anticipation was a steady source of joy. He took little for granted. I hope he had the chance to test his iPhone-scanner...and learn that things are not quite there yet.

Dennis recognized anticipation as the source of happiness. I think that’s why he enjoyed real estate so much. It is a forward-looking profession of inspiration and aspiration. Although I never talked to him too much about his work, I have to wonder if his missteps and mistakes, to which there were a few, were brought on by optimism. Dennis expected the best without being spoiled with naivety. He knew the leaps he was taking. When he took a hit, no one was the wiser.

Not Dennis Lane

One of the best descriptors I’ve heard of Dennis over the last dozen hours or so has been “storyteller”. He wasn’t a reporter. He wasn’t a blogger. He was a storyteller. If there wasn’t a story, a context, or a take-away, he wasn’t interested.

I don’t think Dennis would have written anything about the reports surrounding his own death. He would note the passing of a great man that everyone loved. He would joke about how The Sun posted the wrong picture of the victim, most likely scaring the family of a very alive Dennis who probably has a busy day on the phone to look forward to. He definitely would have linked to this clip. But he wouldn’t have talked too much about the crime. It’s not the story he would want to tell.

As his friends, we should take solace in the idea that Dennis left this world with very few regrets. He had the rare opportunity to confront his mortality and live on past it. You did not share a room with Dennis J. Lane without knowing he was in it.

My man. My man. You certainly made it hard for the rest of us to let you go.