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Tuesday, April 9, 2013

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

   Running in Spring is the "good" and has its pleasures with the wooded areas greening up and the yellow May Flowers now out.
When you combine the Daffodils with the May Flowers in this area near Lake Elkhorn you know Spring has finally arrived.
    Watching an episode of Nature on PBS yesterday gave me a new awareness of how plants really are living organisms with many traits that we only associate with animals.  Check out the online episode. 

  As the pictures below show the "bad" with our burgeoning deer population. As anyone who has tried to grow a garden in Columbia can understand these deer can be an enemy of your plantings.  Nice to look at but not for the gardeners. 



   Below is really the "ugly" with graffiti artist work on the Dobbin Road path.  As you can see below some mixed up youth had to leave their ugly markings in this area.  To bad they need to do this for attention.

 
      Even more disturbing was the graffiti that destroyed the young artist work on the tunnel under Oakland Mills Road.  This is the second time this art work has been damaged.




P.S.
From the Howard County Library:
One of the most exciting components of A+ Partners in Education, Battle of the Books gets fifth grade students excited about reading. A lively academic competition, Battle of the Books improves reading comprehension, builds vocabulary, and teaches teamwork and good sportsmanship. 

Teams of five students and one adult coach each read the same 16 pre-determined books. Selected by HCLS instructors and HCPSS media specialists, titles include a wide range of reading levels and subjects. Thanks to generous sponsors, all teams receive a set of books. In addition, copies of each year's titles are available for borrowing at Howard County Library System.

In addition to reading the books, teams choose a team name then dress accordingly.

During the "battle" (a 50-question exam), a moderator asks questions that relate to one of the following: a direct quote from one of the book characters; a statement about something that happens in the book; a passage taken directly from the book; details about an illustration or picture.

Prizes:
  • Each member of the first, second, and third place winning teams receives a gift card from a local bookstore as well as a copy of the team READ poster. In addition, each team's school receives a trophy.
  • First, second, and third place prizes are also awarded for Best Team Name, Best Team Costume, Best Team Spirit, and Best Team Civility.
  • All participants receive a small prize and Certificate of Participation.

2013 Battle of the Books
Date: Friday, April 19, 2013
Time: 7 pm


P.S.1
   Speaking of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly is good to listen to the theme song again.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Please report the graffiti to the HoCo Police Department at 410-313-7450 so that it can be recorded and removed.