Brief: Name Own Adoption Fee This Month
Through Jan. 31, the Montgomery County Humane Society, located at the Montgomery County Animal Shelter, 14645 Rothgeb Drive, is allowing adopters to name their own adoption fee for the shelter’s cats, dogs and other animals.
Brief: Advice on Weathering Freezing Temperatures
With below-freezing temperatures in the forecast this week, the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue offers a few simple steps to keep your family safe and your home’s pipes from freezing.
Brief: Libraries Launch New Online Services
Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) has kicked off the New Year by launching three new online services — Zinio for Libraries, 3M Cloud Library e-book lending system and Learn4Life.
Brief: Board Seeks Nominees for Service Awards
The Montgomery County Board of Education is seeking nominations from the public for its 17th Annual Awards for Distinguished Service to Public Education.
Classified Advertising January 22, 2014
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Rescued Owl Released
Great Horned Owl takes flight back into her territory after rescue.
A group of curious well-wishers looked on as a Great Horned Owl spread her formidable wings and lifted off from the arms of her rescuer back into the Potomac forest. It was a happy ending to a brief saga that could have ended much differently.
Don’t Take Safe Drinking Water for Granted
In the wake of the chemical spill in West Virginia, weighing the threats to local drinking water.
Most of the 5 million residents in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area have no idea that their drinking water comes from the Potomac River, said Hedrick Belin, president of the Potomac Conservancy. “Until last week, the same could have probably been said for 300,000 residents in Charleston, W. Va.,” Belin added.
Into the Budget Fray
Bulova highlights accomplishments, challenges in annual address.
Despite the lingering impact of an anemic economy, and the regional ripple effects of federal sequestration, Fairfax County residents will see some concrete signs of progress this year.
Editorial: Extend Health Coverage in Virginia
Standing on what is essentially scorched earth, Republicans in the Virginia General Assembly have condemned hundreds of thousands of poor Virginians to living without health coverage even though it would be fully funded by Federal money for the next three years, and with Virginia paying 10 percent after five years.
Friends Forever
Since it had been more than a few months, today I summoned up the courage to Google my long-time friend and fellow stage IV lung cancer survivor, Suzanne. Suzanne and I had been years out of touch (for no real reason other than initiative and the geographic consideration that she lived in Barnstable, Ma. and I live in Burtonsville, Md.) and recently back in touch – due to our identical cancer diagnoses. I learned that she had succumbed to her disease back in October, 2013. We last had contact electronically back in the summer. She was extremely weak then, she said, too weak to talk, so e-mailing was best. In that e-mail, ultimately her last, she wrote that the most recent chemotherapy drug with which she was infused was no longer effective and that her oncologist had no other drugs left to recommend. Not that she said it in so many words, but at that point her prognosis was grim. She offered that her two boys were with her and from them she would gain great comfort. The news was very unsettling to me and I was afraid that this e-mail might be our last – and so it was.
Potomac Home Sales: December, 2013
In December 2013, 48 Potomac homes sold between $2,198,000-$453,500.
Potomac Home Sales: December, 2013
Classified Advertising January 15, 2014
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By the Numbers
The Montgomery County Council will hold full-day worksessions on Jan. 14, 15, 16 and 21, starting at 9:30 a.m. on the first proposed major changes in the County Zoning Ordinance since 1978
‘The Wizard of Oz’ at Congregation Har Shalom
A cast of 51 performs classic on Jan. 25-26 in Potomac.
Coinciding with the 75th anniversary of the movie, The Har Shalom Players of Potomac is skipping down the yellow brick road with its theater-in-the-round production of L. Frank Baum’s classic “The Wizard of Oz” on Jan. 25-26.
From Late Night Comedy to Your Bedroom
Why the General Assembly matters more in Virginia than most states.
The Virginia General Assembly began its annual session last week on Jan. 8. The actions of the Virginia General Assembly matter more to localities than it would in many other states. In Virginia, localities have only the power specifically granted by the General Assembly, the Dillon rule. So, for example, Montgomery County and Prince Georges County in Maryland recently voted to increase the minimum wage in those localities. They didn’t need permission from Maryland General Assembly to do so. Arlington and Alexandria might be inclined to follow suit (the District government also voted to increase the minimum wage) but do not have that power.
In Case Someone Is Wondering
I don’t mind being alive, really I don’t. Occasionally though, I receive well-intended inquiries – electronic and otherwise, from people (who know my cancer story) who are sort of wondering if perhaps I’m not. When people haven’t heard from me in a while – and this is a category of people with whom I don’t have regular/recurring interactions, but rather a group of people who reach out and attempt to touch me (figuratively speaking) every three or four months or so – there is a presumption on their part that my silence (so far as they know) is not in fact golden, but rather ominous, as in the cancer might have won and yours truly didn’t. And when I respond, their pleasure/relief at my not having succumbed to the disease is quite positive, generally speaking. Their honesty and joy in learning that I’m still alive is both rewarding and gratifying. Rewarding in that they care and gratifying in that I must be doing something right which enables me to sustain myself through a very difficult set of medical circumstances: stage IV, non-small cell lung cancer, the terminal kind (is there any other kind?).
Let Sun Shine on Virginia’s Financial Disclosure Laws
State legislators turn attention to ethics in wake of McDonnell gift scandal.
As members of the Virginia General Assembly convene for the first time since last February, legislators are stampeding to introduce ethics legislation in response to the gift scandal which engulfed then Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R). The revelations last spring about numerous undisclosed gifts and purported loans from businessman Jonnie Williams to McDonnell — including a $6,500 Rolex watch engraved to the "71st Governor of Virginia" and $35,000 in gifts and catering for his daughters’ weddings — shined a spotlight on Virginia’s porous financial disclosure laws.
Summer Camp: Start Planning Now
Applications for many camps open in January.
The frigid January temperatures can make summer feel like a distant fantasy of sunscreen and popsicles, but it’s actually not that far away. If you have children who want to attend camp after the current school year ends, now is the time to start planning, said experts. In fact, registration for many camps begins this month.
Potomac Library To Host ‘Love Crazy’ Author
Parents’ letters inspire memoir.
Looking for some indoor activities during the winter blast? This Thursday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m., Selby Fleming McPhee will speak about her new book “Love Crazy” at the Potomac Library located on 10101 Glenolden Drive.