Regulars (All)

Article - The Dish; by Lisa Knoll - 3/7/13

Change Comes to South County

New owners for Happy Harbor in Deale; La Bella Italia spices up Friendship

Restaurants come and go, reinvent themselves and get make-overs. Change is ongoing, which keeps us on our toes and piques our foodie interest. The end of February saw the changing of the guard at the classic Deale roadhouse The Happy Harbor. Recent owner Shelley Daniels sold the business to Rochester, NY, native Tony Hite. Hite has a resume that includes owning bowling centers and operating several regional restaurants. More the behind-the-scenes owner,...

Article - Sky Watch by J. Alex Knoll; by J. Alex Knoll - 2/28/13

Signs of Spring Abound in the Sky

Across time and cultures, the night skies tell the story of the seasons

The waning gibbous moon rises in the late evening at week’s end, and by the time of last-quarter Tuesday it doesn’t rise until almost 2am. Thursday the 28th, the moon appears within a fraction of a degree from blue-white Spica, the brightest star in the constellation Virgo. Spica’s return to evening skies is a sign that spring isn’t far behind. In Greek lore, Virgo is the goddess of fertility, grieving half the year for her daughter’s return from the underworld....

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 2/28/13

Bringing Spring In the Door

Snatch branches from pussy willows and flowering shrubs

Pussy willows are busting out all over. Forsythia buds are starting to swell as are flowering quince, cherries, almond, weigela and crab apples. Cut those pussy willows ASAP and tie them in small bunches. Then hang them upside down in a darkened shed or garage so they will dry straight. If you dry them standing, the catkins will bend outward and separate from the stems more easily. Do not put the stems of fresh-cut pussy willow in water. Looking for Gita Beans...

Article - Sporting Life by Dennis Doyle; by Dennis Doyle - 2/28/13

Let’s Be Fair with Licensing Fees

We pay our way; commercial fishermen should, too

Recreational fishing license fees have been increased twice in recent years to meet shortfalls in the Department of Natural Resource’s operating budget for the administration of recreational programs. As a result, DNR brings in enough money to fund its sport-fishing management, including police enforcement. In contrast, commercial license fees have stayed steady for almost 20 years. DNR’s increasing costs for managing commercial fishing — administration,...

Article - The Dish; by Lisa Knoll - 2/21/13

Restaurant Week Returns to Annapolis

Taste your way around town Monday, February 25 through Sunday, March 3

It’s time to hit the gym and pull on the Spanx as Annapolis Restaurant Week begins Monday, February 25. Diners have a week to visit 39 restaurants, enjoy a variety of menus and taste a myriad of flavors. It’s an adventure in the local culinary arts. From the 25th through Sunday, March 3, participating restaurants offer special menus — some just one but most offer multiple options — for a set price. Lunch is $15.95, dinner $32.95. Miss Shirley’s...

Article - Sporting Life by Dennis Doyle; by Dennis Doyle - 2/21/13

Of Hares and Hounds

A few Marylanders still follow the hounds that follow the hares

Danny’s 12-gauge pump boomed out twice off to my left as a streaking gray rabbit cut in and out of a long, narrow copse of briars parallel to us. Raising my 20-gauge and trying to track the tricky rabbit as it neared my position, I fired twice as well, also to no effect. Then the cottontail melted into cover. He was gone. Dejected, I opened my over-under to reload when out of the corner of my eye I caught a small motion. The rascal had cut back out of the briars and...

Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 2/21/13

Winter Chores for Spring Fruit

Prune blackberries and raspberries; mulch strawberries

With the weather cool but comfortable to work outside, the time is right to prune both blackberries and raspberries. With regards to blackberries, remove canes that produced fruit last year by pruning them close to the ground. This is quick and easy if the plants are of the thornless varieties but can be painful if the varieties you are growing have thorns. Wear heavy leather or canvas gloves and heavy clothing with long sleeves to avoid being scratched. The most common...

Article - Sky Watch by J. Alex Knoll; by J. Alex Knoll - 2/21/13

The Season’s First Planting Moon

The sap’s flowing, so you can get sowing

The gibbous moon waxes to full phase Monday, February 25. Early evening Thursday the 21st, the moon is between Castor and Pollux of Gemini to the north and yellow-hued Procyon in Canis Minor to the south. The Little Dog Procyon is the eighth-brightest star, with the brightest star Sirius, the Big Dog, trailing 20 degrees to the southwest. Seen from night to night against the backdrop of stars, the moon shifts westward a dozen-plus degrees, toward bright Regulus, the heart of...

Article - Sky Watch by J. Alex Knoll; by J. Alex Knoll - 2/14/13

One for the Record Books

Asteroid 2012 DA14 whizzes by

If you feel a slight breeze around 1:30pm Friday, February 15, it could be the passing of Asteroid 2012 DA14. This 150-foot wide hunk of space rock is small as far as asteroids are concerned, but its closeness to Earth is unusual. Coming within 17,200 miles of Earth, this will be the closest recorded interstellar object to our planet and well within the moon’s orbit around Earth. While there is no chance of this asteroid striking the planet, it could crash into communications satellites...

Article - Sporting Life by Dennis Doyle; by Dennis Doyle - 2/14/13

Lessons to Remember

I wasn’t just fishing last season; I was learning from experience

Cold and rain have had me housebound and dreaming of last fishing season. Along with great memories, I learned a couple of new lessons. My fishing partners and I experimented with different types of fishing lines during an extended chumming and live-lining rockfish bite in the mid-Bay. We fished often, up to four times per week, trying braid, monofilament and fluorocarbon lines. Long ago I discovered that fluorocarbon leaders produced a better bite. Last...