A Final Talk

Flier sports columnist Stan Ber turned us on to this: Former Oakland Mills grad, Howard High English teacher and now Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch gave a moving talk at the university recently about what he might say if he knew he was going to die soon.

According to a WSJ story (subscription required), such talks by big name professors are common on college campuses, a chance to muse hypothetically about what matters most to them. This one was a bit different, Pausch has pancreatic cancer and really doesn't have much time.

Here's a little excerpt from the Journal piece:

"He began by showing his CT scans, revealing 10 tumors on his liver. But after that, he talked about living. If anyone expected him to be morose, he said, 'I'm sorry to disappoint you.' He then dropped to the floor and did one-handed pushups.

"Clicking through photos of himself as a boy, he talked about his childhood dreams: to win giant stuffed animals at carnivals, to walk in zero gravity, to design Disney rides, to write a World Book entry. By adulthood, he had achieved each goal. As proof, he had students carry out all the huge stuffed animals he'd won in his life, which he gave to audience members. After all, he doesn't need them anymore.

"He paid tribute to his techie background. 'I've experienced a deathbed conversion,' he said, smiling. 'I just bought a Macintosh.' Flashing his rejection letters on the screen, he talked about setbacks in his career, repeating: 'Brick walls are there for a reason. They let us prove how badly we want things.' He encouraged us to be patient with others. 'Wait long enough, and people will surprise and impress you.' "

The WSJ has a link to a video of his talk, but it's behind the paid subscription wall. You also can see his talk on YouTube.

Stuck In The Mud

Has anyone had a look at Triadelphia Reservoir lately? Water levels are low, the result of the ongoing drought.

Not that we particularly want to complain about the weather lately.

The folks who manage the Triadelphia recreation area have closed the boat ramps and grounds because some boaters were getting stuck in the mud, according to this release. Car and truck access to other boat ramps in the area have already been closed, but not just because of the drought.

Officials announced in August that they were draining some of Rocky Gorge to perform maintenance on the reservoir. That was a relief to us, because we were getting worried about the growing brown rim as we trekked across the Route 29 bridge in recent days.

The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, which manages the reservoirs, notes that kayaks and other hand-carried boats may still be used at Rocky Gorge, Scott’s Cover and Supplee Lane, and the ramp at Greenbridge is open.

Boating is permitted only from March 1 through December 15.

Back to eSchooling

It's back to school season, a time when we at Columbia Talk get to meet the folks who spend so much time with our not-so-little ones. We're always curious here at Talk Central to see what progress, if any, teachers are making with integrating technology into their daily activities.

Our experience is that it depends greatly on the teacher. Some have robust Web sites, with homework assignments posted daily, links to extra help, e-mail addresses, even grade books. We can't emphasize enough how grateful we are for such teachers, especially when the not-so-little ones announce late on a weekday night that they have this little project that's due in the morning.

Most teachers kind of do it halfway. They post homework assignments, but not grades. Some links work and others don't. They have an e-mail address, but may not check it all that often. (Sounds like certain bloggers we know).

And then there are the ones who either promise to have a Web site at back to school night, only to never be heard from again. Or they just don't believe in the Internet thing. Or they won't do it until they are given the planning time (or more pay) to do it.

We hear that some schools have adopted software packages to bring consistency to all this, but not every school has seen the wisdom.

At the back to school night we attended, many of the questions from parents (aside from how the not-so-little ones are doing) dealt with what was available online. Perhaps that's because for so many parents in a county like ours, the Internet is a key conduit of communication.

The schools seem to be coming to this realization, albeit slowly.

Mean Green?

The Sun's environmental blog says tonight's town hall meeting on global warming and one energy company's response to it, brought to you by ConocoPhillips, is likely to be met by environmental activists from the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. They are "urging people to turn out in large numbers -- with protest signs, and pointed questions to prevent any 'greenwashing' of the company's record."

According to a ConocoPhillips Web site, the company is "hosting town hall meetings and community events in 35 cities throughout America, bringing together energy experts and concerned citizens to discuss ways to secure our energy future."

The meeting starts at 7p at the Sheraton Columbia Hotel, according to this notice. The "conversation on energy" is being hosted by ConocoPhillips and the University of Maryland Energy Research Center.

Mojitos and Salsa

Holy Cow! Diversity in Howard!

WaPo discovers a little Latin flair in Howard when it stops by a pachanga Cubana over the weekend.

"The sounds of Cuban salsa soar amid the tall oak trees, the minty mojitos are flowing like water. Among the 100 or so politicos, entrepreneurs, bankers and social service managers gathered yesterday afternoon and evening around the swimming pool, there are more guayaberas than sports coats. They're feasting on Cuban classics like ropa vieja (beef) and lechon (pork), followed by flan and tres leches, then strong coffee and long cigars -- not from Cuba, alas, the puffing men complain in mock dismay, but from Honduras.

"Pachanga Howard? Latino middle-class professionals have long since spread beyond the typical Latino neighborhoods in and around Washington. In common with professionals the world over, they like to party and to network. This pachanga -- a word that Cubans in particular use to mean 'big party' -- is supposed to combine both passions of the multi-tasking careerist. Leave your stuffy work inhibitions at home.

"The hosts are Enrique Carrillo, director of Hispanic banking for Chevy Chase Bank, and his wife, Maria, a doctor who specializes in pulmonary critical care. Enrique Carrillo likes to say he's 'American with Cuban parts' -- his parents fled Castro and he was born in the United States -- while Maria Carrillo was born in Cuba. But Cubans are actually in the minority here in the Carrillo back yard, their big brick home thrown open to natives from at least a dozen Latin American countries, along with several appreciative gringos."

Carrillo recently moved to the county from Detroit, where his parties were a big deal.

"He wrote a memo for his bosses at Chevy Chase, who had never heard of such a thing. But then, Carrillo has been hired to institute change. Thanks to him, when you call the bank's main number, the second sentence you hear is "Gracias por llamar a Chevy Chase Bank" -- "Thank you for calling Chevy Chase Bank." The phrase "Hablamos su idioma" -- "We speak your language" -- is now part of the bank's marketing. Some other banks are ahead of Chevy Chase in reaching out to Latinos, but Carrillo says he wants to set a new standard.

"Bringing people together, what a wonderful thing to do, and that's what I like to do," Carrillo says.

Beer On Wheels

Some of the folks who live by the Fairway Hills golf course are not so enchanted with the idea of CA selling beer from the snack carts rolling around the links.

They've assembled a pretty good list of reasons, according to this article in the Flier:

* The beverages could impair golfer's coordination.

* Intoxicated golfers might be more likely to relieve themselves on residential property when nature calls.

* More balls could come flying into nearby yards and houses.

* Unsportsmanlike conduct might become more common.

* Golfers should stick to wine.

OK, we made that last one up. CA says it is already selling beer from carts at Hobbits Glen and one manager that the homeowner's organization does not intend to just let people "slosh down" the cold stuff.

We don't know how this one will turn out but we wouldn't mind if one of those carts swings by our little cul-de-sac late one afternoon this weekend.

Columbia's Destiny

Say what you like about the prospects for a mammoth, huge, gigantic, towering 275-foot skyscraper in downtown Columbia, but the debate over this single building --- like the conversation going on over the proposed Wegman's --- has stirred real discussion about the future of this fair town.

According to WaPo's account of this week's council meeting on the highrise condo, both sides invoked the name of Rouse in saying he would or would not have approved of where we are headed. Suddenly, everyone wants to talk about the Next America again.

One wonders if the nature of the debates would be any different if they played out not before county planning commissions and councils but a panel of Columbia elders.

What if we controlled our own destiny?

Isn't that what Father Rouse really wanted?