gaithersblog.net

City Staff forwarded the following to me, and I figured it was worth posting. I know nothing about this other than what it says below:

Subject: HGTV is looking for homes!
From: “Christiansen, Mindy” <MChristiansen@HighnoonEntertainment.com>
Date: Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:13:58 -0600
To: <neighborhoods@gaithersburgmd.gov>

Hi,

I’m a casting producer for the HGTV show, ‘If Walls Could Talk.’ We are bringing our show to Gaithersburg this fall/winter to feature enthusiastic homeowners who have historical homes with incredible stories, and artifacts to prove it!

I was wondering if you would be able to help us spread the word to neighborhood associations in your area? Below is our casting call (beneath signature). We are eagerly seeking homeowners who have found things on their property (in walls, in secret rooms, in the backyard, etc.) that connect directly to the house’s history.

Please call me with any questions: 303-712-3148, or email me: MChristiansen@highnoonentertainment.com. We are hoping to secure homeowners as soon as possible, and we would love to speak with anyone interested.

Thank you! :)

Kind regards,

Mindy Christiansen
IF WALLS COULD TALK
HGTV
High Noon Entertainment
4100 East Dry Creek Road
Centennial, CO 80122
P: 303.712.3148 / F: 303.486.3881
E: MChristiansen@highnoonentertainment.com
I: www.highnoonentertainment.com

If Walls Could Talk

A New Season on HGTV
DOES YOUR HISTORIC HOME HAVE A STORY TO TELL?

HGTV’s “If Walls Could Talk” is coming to the Tri-State area to film enthusiastic homeowners who have made surprising discoveries while they were moving in and fixing up their homes. We are looking for historic homes with fascinating stories and artifacts found inside the home. The homes need to be single-family and privately owned.

If your house has a story to tell, or you know about one that does, please contact Mindy Christiansen at (303) 712-3148 or e-mail MChristiansen@highnoonentertainment.com to be considered for the program. Please include a photo of yourself, your home, and a brief history of your house. Entries needed ASAP!

Congratulations are in order to Gaithersburg High School Graduate Richard Thompson, whose comic strip, “Cul de Sac” enters syndication today. Quoting his editor, Tom Shroder,

Getting a strip syndicated is a big deal, and this one might be a bigger deal than most. The re-launch of “Cul de Sac” has drawn an unsolicited endorsement from none other than Bill Watterson, the creator of the now-retired mega-strip “Calvin and Hobbes,” a man so famously reclusive that he’s listed by name in the Wikipedia entry on “recluses.” Watterson never comments on anything. But about “Cul de Sac” he wrote: “I have high hopes that Thompson will bring a much-needed jolt of energy to the daily newspaper. We have a real talent here.”

And quoting Alan Gardner in the Daily Cartoonist,

Richard Thompson’s new feature Cul De Sac just might be the break away comic strip release this year and not because it has some big name endorsements from Bill Watterson and Pat Oliphant, but because it is a really polished feature that has some depth to it that is rare for a new comic release. Perhaps having run in the Washington Post Magazine for the last three years has given it a chance to mature and find its center.

Reading this strip over the past few years, and Mr. Thompson’s “Richard’s Poor Almanac” for years before that, has been a real pleasure, and I wish him the best of luck and continued success in the future. I do wonder though: Is the Washington Post not going to run the dailies?

Happened across this on TV and it just seemed too relevant not to share.

I doubt that anyone would be surprised to learn that I use news-filtering agents to find stories about Gaithersburg and other topics I cover here. Most often, these come up with references that aren’t really the sorts of things I’d blog here. Beyond the obvious stuff, one finds, for example, lots of government publications (e.g. reports and procurement specs from NIST and the CPSC), and corporate press releases, often from the biotech industry.

However, some of what comes from furthest out in left field are the items that merely quote someone who lives, works or otherwise was physically present in Gaithersburg at the time that they spoke to the reporter. For example, this AP story by David N. Goodman, headlined Manure not just for compost anymore. Quoting:

Home-buyers of tomorrow could find themselves walking across floors made from manure.

That’s no cow pie-in-the-sky dream, according to researchers at Michigan State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture

The concept has its skeptics.

“Is this something you’re going to bring into the house?” asked Steve Fowler, an economist with the Composite Panel Association, a fiberboard-makers trade group based in Gaithersburg, Md.

Well, that certainly was the first I knew that the Composite Panel Association was located in Gaithersburg. It turns out (according to their website) that they’re over in the Airpark, on a cul-de-sac off Beechcraft Ave, so they’re properly in the county, but in the USPS conception of Gaithersburg. I guess that they’re something of a neigh-sayer when it comes to this alternative source of fiber.

In any event, the rest of the article is actually pretty interesting.

“It appears that the fibers interlock with each other better than wood,” said Charles Gould at Michigan State’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Gould and Laurent Matuana, a forestry professor at Michigan State, recently finished a pilot study of manure-based fiberboard, funded by a $5,000 grant from the Michigan Biomass Energy Program.

A draft of the report concluded that fiberboard panels made with processed manure “performed very well in mechanical tests, in many cases meeting or exceeding the standard requirements for particleboard.”

I expect that anything that gives farmers another way to get rid of manure that doesn’t involve it passing into streams and waterways is potentially a good thing.

In a story about public sentiment on the Iraq War, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reporter Heather Maher visited Gaithersburg. Only first names are given, and place descriptions are generic (”a bus stop”, “a bookstore”) and even the pictures are of other places. But if you or someone you know was interviewed for the story, maybe you will recognize yourselves:

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland; January 10, 2007 (RFE/RL) — Technology, computer, and telecommunications companies line the highways of this city of 50,000 some 32 kilometers north of Washington, D.C.

Gaithersburg is also home to a Maryland National Guard recruiting and training center. So many military families with relatives in Iraq live nearby.

On the eve of U.S. President George W. Bush’s prime-time speech to the nation, in which he is expected to set out his plan to temporarily add 20,000 U.S. troops to the force of 132,000 already serving in Iraq, locals in Gaithersburg are thinking a lot about the war.

And there are stark divisions of opinion. Some locals disapprove of the war altogether, while others say a troop increase wouldn’t make any difference. A third group said they are willing to support the so-called surge in troops — as long as it helped Iraq and sped the return home of U.S. service personnel.

• Chris Robinson writes, Historic Hair Bar building will stand, city rules
  

  The ruling is the latest in a protracted struggle to determine the city’s first case where an owner has sought permission to remove a historical home.

  Halici, who has attempted to raze the place for over a decade, said he plans to appeal the ruling in court. His lawyer, Stephen Orens, was unavailable for comment.

  Upkeep on the property is expensive, and to sell the property the house must go, according to Halici, who applied for and received historic designation for the building soon after he bought the property in 1989.

  In 2003, the city granted a permit to demolish the house, but it expired before work was performed. Now the commission is unwilling to grant approval again.

  Alster noted prior to last week’s vote that the qualifications of ‘‘economic hardship” are too low, and have allowed Halici to take advantage of the city.

  ‘‘This has opened my eyes that we need to be clearer on the criteria and information that we require,” Alster said Thursday.

  Though it’s unclear when a worksession or public discussion will be to review standards for economic hardship, the process already is underway, said Planning and Code Director Greg Ossont.

• Chris Robinson writes, Gaithersburg approves growth restrictions
  

  The requirements will take effect Jan. 24, prompting a moratorium on residential areas around Rachel Carson Elementary School, Assistant City Manager Fred Felton said.

  Residential development also could be stopped around Summit Hall and Thurgood Marshall elementary schools, city managers have said. That might impact the GE Technology property in west Gaithersburg, the city’s largest undeveloped parcel.

  Two versions of the APFO were considered last week. One gave capacity credit for school projects within Montgomery County Public Schools’ six year facilities master plan, while the other only credits school projects budgeted within a two-year timeframe.

  Residents have widely praised the APFO, with the exception being mixed opinions on the length of school projects. Many written public comments supported the two-year limitation.

  The more restrictive version was approved, with council members Geri Eden, Michael A. Sesma and Stanley J. Alster in favor of the ordinance. Councilmen Henry F. Marraffa Jr. and John B. Schlichting voted against it.

• Chris Robison writes, Summit Crossing residents to get financial help
  

  Gaithersburg is set to provide up to $337,500 in assistance for homeowners of the upcoming Summit Crossing development in Olde Towne.

  The economic incentive program, unanimously approved by city leaders last month, is part of an ongoing effort to revitalize Olde Towne, said Assistant City Manager Tony Tomasello.

  ‘‘Clearly the Council has prioritized affordable housing and homeownership, but they also have parallel goals they want to meet to revitalize Olde Towne,” he said.

• Chris Robison (whose wrists were getting a workout this week) writes There’s no business for snow business
  

  The phenomenon, caused by an abnormal warming of waters in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, generally brings milder winters to the East Coast and also results in a muted hurricane season, Hoekzema said.

  It cycles every five to 11 years, with the last strong El Niño in the winter of 1997 and 1998, he said.

  ‘‘It’s hard to pin a record on recent global warming talk and things like that,” Hoekzema said. ‘‘We often see our highest temperatures in years where there was no mention of global warming. … We could set a record low this year, it’s not totally out of the question, and then still have an above-normal winter. That’s just kind of the way weather works.”

  For Gaithersburg, a city that prides itself on arboreal aesthetics, the extended warmer winter certainly is a consideration, said Wally DeBord, public works operations director.

  However, after consulting with an agricultural expert at the University of Maryland, DeBord said the only real impact will be a less colorful spring.

Apropos of nothing, I enjoyed Bill Thompson’s “Editorial Notebook” entry in today’s Baltimore Sun. Mistletoe, a parasitic plant that grows high in trees, is declining in popularity as a holiday decoration:

Here’s what’s wrong with the world today: Not enough people are kissing underneath the mistletoe.

The festive use of the humble mistletoe dates to old European beliefs. Some ancient cultures vested the plant’s dark green leaves and waxy, cream-hued berries with mystical powers of good fortune and fertility, which probably ushered in the custom of couples bussing beneath a small sprig dangling from a doorway. The tradition used to be as much a part of Christmas celebrations in America as socks hung from the fireplace mantle or cookies and milk left out for the arrival of the jolly fat man.

When he was younger, Mr. Molock says, he’d scramble up a tree to fetch mistletoe. He doesn’t climb much anymore and relies on friends or a long pole to knock the boughs loose. It’s not hard to spot mistletoe. After the tree leaves fall in cold weather, it stands out against the background of the sky. Most of the clumps growing in Dorchester are about the size of a softball, but there are many so big that they could easily fill a bushel basket. The one method Mr. Molock never used to harvest mistletoe is by shooting it down with a shotgun. That’s still the preference for most folks around Dorchester. Mistletoe is a parasite and often grows high in trees - easily 30 or 40 feet above the ground - because that’s where birds deposit the seeds. A practical man, Mr. Molock says with authority that blasting away at mistletoe can knock off the berries. And you can’t sell mistletoe if it doesn’t have the berries.

Read the rest of Mr. Thompson’s essay here.

Jon Hurdle reports for Reuters:

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - Santa isn’t welcome in Hazleton because he’s an illegal immigrant just like all the others the Pennsylvania town is trying to get rid of — or so someone would have you believe.

A new Web site, http://www.nosantaforhazleton.com, says the town intends to keep Santa out this Christmas because he represents the illegal immigration the town council believes increases crime and burdens local services.

But the site is a hoax, created by someone in a bid to satirize a local law passed in July that has attracted national attention by imposing penalties on businesses and landlords to deter them from hiring or renting rooms to illegal immigrants.

Of course this is a hoax, because Santa is not an illegal immigrant — he is fully documented and has the proper visa, which he clearly cannot overstay as there are some other nations such as Samoa which are closer to the east side of the International Date Line, and he would thus need to deliver there after finishing with the US. In any event, NORAD keeps a close eye on his movements, and NORAD is known to keep in close contact with the Department of Homeland Security, which I’m certain would take immediate action if Santa tried any such shenanigans.

Although Santa’s elves are (hopefully) mostly unrelated and undoubtedly live in close quarters, my understanding is that Santa has the proper dormitory permits from the North Pole authorities. There is the whole soliciting-from-the-roadside issue that may be a concern, however, but it is unclear that this is related to his legal status. There are also no known flying-reindeer-drawn-sleigh collisions, fatal or otherwise.

OK, this doesn’t have anything to do with Gaithersburg specifically; file it under miscellaneous. I noticed this story when I was looking for follow-ups on the Mamaroneck situation I mentioned a few days ago. Happily, it seems that not everyone in that community is hostile to Hispanics.

As reported by Candice Ferrette in the Westchester Journal-News:

“We are really touched,” said Eva Amaya, 45, a housekeeper from Larchmont. “They are giving more than just gifts to my children.”

Amaya said the gift her daughter gets will go under their tree and won’t be opened until Christmas Eve.

Yesterday, she was among the 250 people who attended a Christmas party hosted by members of the Westchester Jewish Center for the families of the Hispanic Resource Center of Larchmont and Mamaroneck.

The annual event took place last night in the recreation room at St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church on Boston Post Road.

A mariachi band entertained guests as dozens of children played games, sang songs and received presents.

“It’s rewarding. This is the side of our community that doesn’t go to Christmas parties all the time and aren’t able to buy their kids anything they want,” said Mike Miller, 16, a member of the synagogue and a student at Mamaroneck High School.

John Gitlitz, president of the Hispanic Resource Center, agreed.

“The symbolism of a Jewish synagogue throwing a Hispanic Christmas party at an Episcopal Church is what this country is all about,” Gitlitz said. “I love it.”

Readers may or may not be familiar with the Richard Thompson’s comic strip, Richard’s Poor Almanac, which has run weekly in the Washington Post for the past several years. Today, Mr. Thompson takes on electronic voting.

Mr. Thompson is one of my all-time favorite cartoonists, and I’d encourage readers to buy a copy of his book. Sadly, his other weekly masterpiece, the strip “cul-de-sac”, which runs in the Washington Post Magazine, does not appear to be available online, although it is discussed a bit in this online chat.