Unemployment in Frederick County, 2009

A screen shot of an interactive map from the Washington Post site showing unemployment rates across the country by county. In case you can’t read the text in the image above it shows an unemployment rate of 6.1% in Frederick County for November 2009. Washington County has a 10% rate for November 2009 and Montgomery County has a 5.3% rate. The national average is 9.4%.

Take pleasure in Maryland wine with tastings from the wineries, live music, foods from local restaurants, arts and crafts and wine education seminars. Don’t miss the presentation of the Governor’s Cup Awards announcements on stage each day of the festival.

Ticket information is as follows:

The gate admission price of $25.00 for adults 21 and older with I.D. entitles ticket holders to a logo-engraved wine glass, samples of Maryland wines, attendance at the Wine Education Seminars, continuous on-stage entertainment, guided tours of the Museum’s 19th Century Farmhouse, and self-guided tours of period artisan exhibits and demonstrations.Those aged 7-20 are admitted for $5.00, and children 6 and under are admitted free if accompanied by a paying adult.  Designated driver tickets may be purchased for $20; no wine glass and no samples are included.

For festival information, click on the wine festival logo in the left sidebar of the museum website.  Local wineries participating include Linganore Winecellars, Black Ankle Vineyards, Elk Run Vineyards and Frederick Cellars.  For a complete list of participants, after clicking on the festival logo, go to the “At the Festival” tab and scroll down to the “Wineries link”.  I can’t link there directly because every page on the website just takes you to the main farm museum page.

Apparently the land it’s on is owned by a church or something.  There are signs that tell you to slide at your own risk and there are burlap sacks available to slide on down the slick wooden surface.

Imagine a bumpy bowling alley tilted on end. You are the human bowling pin! No fear! A pile of sawdust awaits you at the bottom. Grab one of the scraps of fabric at the base (burlap sack is the fastest), climb the ramp and slide away!

Locally known as a “Sliding Board”(35 ft High x 100 ft Long). Close to Thurmont, MD, home of Camp David.

How did I not know about this?  Has anyone been there?

It’s located on Motter’s Station Rd  (MD 76) , 1/4 mile north of Rocky Ridge.  Admission is free!

The Entire Show Is Under Cover- so Rain or Shine-  you are totally wunderbar!  As you enter the show, you’ll receive a souvenir tasting mug and 6 beer tokens. For those who like to drink more, you are welcome to purchase more tokens, just drink responsibly. There is nothing worse than a professional person (dressed in a German outfit) slurring their words as they sing drinking songs!
There will be lots of the best Maryland brews and lots of Oompah bands to enjoy your favorite German drinking songs. You can also enjoy the sausages, potato cakes, sour beef, schnitzel and other great German classics!  Is that a snitzengruben I smell?!?!?!?!?
Other great Festival foods will be there, as well.  If the food and the drinks aren’t enough then go to the Main Stage and enjoy the great music.  Also check out a seminar or two about your favorite beer in the tasting theater.

So why is this tidbit of info on Frederick Maryland Online you may ask?  Because we will be very well represented at this festival with three local breweries participating.  Brewer’s Alley, Barley and Hops and Flying Dog will all be there to represent our lovely county.

Speaking of local blogs, if you live in Frederick and have a blog please let me know. It doesn’t have to be about Frederick, just by a Frederick resident. I love supporting the local blogosphere as much as I can. Don’t be shy just shoot me an email or leave a comment and I will add you to FMO’s blogroll.

~Guy~

Where did you watch it? I watched from my pooter.

My other blog actually made it on the official inauguration blog. Kinda cool!

Any other inauguration fun to share?

~Guy~

An Hour From Baltimore

Echoes of Yesteryear Not Far From Baltimore

Susana Raab for The New York Times

Church Street, off Market Street, in Frederick, Md., shows the array of architecture the city is known for.

By JOSHUA KURLANTZICK

Published: November 23, 2008

DRIVING out of Baltimore, my home, I felt like the urban sprawl of shopping centers and rows of blighted homes would never end. But less than an hour west of the city, outside Frederick, Md., strip malls gave way to strips of giant trees turning autumn crimson, and the vista opened into broad plains, rolling hills and the occasional barn. By the time I crossed Frederick’s outskirts, where I saw brick colonial-looking homes and signs for local farms, I felt I’d arrived in a place far from the megacities of the Eastern Seaboard — like the frontier, but just off Interstate 70.

For many years, in fact, Frederick was the frontier. The town grew up as a trading post along America’s first trade arteries, and in the early days of the roads Frederick was as far west as you could go without worrying about highwaymen and battles between colonials and Native Americans.

Today, the town maintains a yesteryear atmosphere. In its 50-block downtown, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it has preserved hundreds of Federal, Greek Revival, Georgian and Romanesque buildings and homes. Carroll Creek, a narrow waterway bisecting downtown and lined with open-air cafes and a pedestrian park, adds a European flair: as the night air grows chilly, young couples snuggle along the creek over cups of coffee.

When I was there in late October, I strolled the downtown, passing red-brick cottages flying American flags out front and angular white churches with stark, narrow steeples. In the center of Frederick, homes gave way to ornate, larger, multi-story structures whose towering pillars and high ceilings reminded me of the Supreme Court Building.

Inside some of the old storefronts, artists have opened galleries like the Potters’ Guild of Frederick, and local chefs have opened swank new bistros, many featuring Maryland produce and recipes. Right in the center of the historic downtown, the local boy Bryan Voltaggio, who has cooked at landmarks like Charlie Palmer Steak in Washington, opened Volt this year. The restaurant, already drawing critical acclaim, captures Frederick’s small-town charm, offering down-home dishes with flourishes, like pulled pork with fennel — though its boast that it serves “unlimited” filtered water to diners for a small fee hardly seems hospitable.

In recent years, Maryland’s farms have undergone a rebirth, refocusing on organic produce to supply local restaurants and farmers’ markets, and drawing many local fans. At Frederick’s crowded Firestone Market on Market, I sampled artisanal cheeses and Maryland-made salsa, flavored with — what else? — crab. The previous weekend, my wife and I had taken our son apple picking at Larriland Farm near Frederick, thinking the chilly weather would leave us virtually alone. Instead, we found Larriland crowded with apple hunters, though we still carried home a bag of just-ripened Mutsu apples, their creamy, sweet white flesh like natural candy.

Off Market, the main street, I turned down Patrick Street, a side alley so eclectic it wouldn’t have been out of place in New York, or San Francisco. Next to an Ethiopian restaurant promising authentic coffee ceremonies, antiques hunters with serious bargaining faces had descended on Patrick’s shops. I watched one woman trying to bargain for an antique table, and getting nowhere; the owner seemed to be in no hurry. An hour later, when I walked back up Patrick, she appeared to be still haggling.

Along Patrick Street, I stopped by Café Nola, an über-hip coffee shop that seems slightly out of place in old-fashioned Frederick. In front of its gleaming backlit bar showing off rows of liquor bottles, young couples in long black coats sipped thimble-sized cups of espresso and compared clothes. “I spent my whole paycheck on my Marc Jacobs,” one woman next to me squawked into her cellphone. “But it was worth it.”

Besides its architecture, Frederick also takes pride in its Civil War history, with markers and signs of major events dotting the town and outskirts. The Confederacy invaded the area repeatedly, and the town’s hospitals cared for wounded from the bloody stalemate at Antietam and other battles.

Just a short drive outside town, I discovered one of the least-known important battle sites of the Civil War. At Monocacy Junction near Frederick, a tiny band of Union soldiers held off a Confederate force long enough to prevent them from quickly marching to — and possibly taking — Washington.

Though Frederick clearly takes its war history seriously, the main Civil War museum in town, the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, proves a blend of the serious and the macabre. In the Civil War, medicine remained an art, not a science, and while doctors certainly did not mean to cause pain, a sizable percentage of the war dead perished from illness after the battle. Through displays that leave no entrails unturned, much of the museum reveals how much pain the wartime doctors, hacking and cutting before modern anesthesia, caused their patients. (If the normal exhibits aren’t enough for you, the museum has been running a special exhibition on embalming.)

Beyond the medicine museum, away from the center of the historic area, Frederick turns funkier, more eclectic. I passed tattoo parlors, vintage clothing and jewelry stores, and Cinegraphic Studios, a modern-day novelty shop specializing in bizarre items like Zombie Gelatin Mold (don’t ask), with its storefront advertising “Silly Things for Silly People.”

After dinner, walking off a roasted seafood orgy from the Tasting Room, another of Frederick’s upscale bistros and wine bars, I found myself near the end of the downtown shopping district. Sitting down on the stoop of yet another brick storefront, I peered across the street. Then, I saw it — the perfect symbol of Frederick’s charm: an old-fashioned general store, advertising fresh milk.

But again, Frederick doesn’t just stay stuck in the past. The general store was right next to Bradley’s Books, Adult Video and Gift Outlet.

IF YOU GO

Driving is the best way to get to Frederick. From Baltimore, drive about 40 miles west on Interstate 70 and take the Market Street exit. From the Washington Beltway, it’s about 30 miles away on I-270.

WHAT TO DO

Potters’ Guild of Frederick (227 North Market Street; pottersguildoffrederick.com). Hours through December: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Sunday; to 9 Friday and Saturday.

Cinegraphic Studios (43A South Market Street; 301-228-3620; www.cinegraphicstudios.com).

Firestone’s Market on Market (109 North Market Street; 301-696-8586; www.firestonesrestaurant.com/marketonmarket.html).

Frederick Antiques Row on East Patrick Street.

Larriland Farm (2415 Woodbine Road, Woodbine, Md.; 410-442-2605; www.pickyourown.com). Now closed but will reopen in the spring for strawberry season.

Monocacy National Battlefield (Visitor Center at 5201 Urbana Pike; 301-662-3515; www.nps.gov/mono).

National Museum of Civil War Medicine (48 East Patrick Street; 301-695-1864; www.civilwarmed.org). Adults $6.50; open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily except 11 to 5 on Sunday).

WHERE TO EAT AND DRINK

Café Nola (4 East Patrick Street; 301-694-6652; www.cafe-nola.com). Lunch for two is about $20.

The Tasting Room (101 North Market Street; 240-379-7772; www.tastetr.com). Dinner for two, $80.

Volt (228 North Market Street; 301-696-8658; www.voltrestaurant.com). Dinner for two, $100.

TOURIST INFORMATION

www.fredericktourism.org

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Nice little write up, me thinks.  I wonder why they didn’t mention the blog?

~LizFrog~

So much is happening this month –

The 150th YMCA & Frederick Police Department Birthday party, May 17th from 12 – 4pm (rain or shine). This FREE family event will be held at the YMCA, 1000 North Market Street in Frederick. Tots2Tweens will be there – be sure to stop by and say hi! NOTE: If it’s raining, the event will be held indoors!

Also, May 17th & 18th – Mt. Airy Mayfest.

May 19th – we kick off the first of many mornings with the City of Gaithersburg. These Kiddy Concerts are on Monday and Thursday mornings (10:30am) – free concerts held at the City Hall band-shell. Bring a blanket, some chairs and the kids for a morning of fun!

May 24th – Family Fun Disco from 4-7pm at the William Talley Recreation Center in Frederick. It’s a 70’s theme so get those bell-bottoms out and have some fun! Family Fun for All Ages!! Parents vs. Kids Dance Off, A Hula Hoop Contest, Door Prizes, Limbo, Best Dressed Contest- the best Disco outfit wins a PRIZE!! And Lots More. Contact Party Fun @ 301-662-0889 or 1-866-885-5FUN for more information. Ticket Price $10.00 each (3 yrs and under Free).

May 26th – Happy Memorial Day! Have a moment for those who have served this country and allowed us our freedom.

Check our website for all the up-to-date happenings in and around the county: www.tots2tweens.com. Select the Fun As A Family category or check out our Events calendar.

Dani Gurrie is the founder of Tots2Tweens.com an online directory for parents listing everything from Birthday Party Entertainment to Photographers to Summer Camps to Acting Classes. She is the mother of two children and grew up in Frederick.

Thanks Dani! A little editor’s note, Dani actually had found more events and sent them my way, but it got buried in my emails. Sorry Dani and those looking for things to do in the beginning of May.

~Guy~

Anyone interested in buying a home facing foreclosure can save time and gas by boarding the Bargain Bus.

Long & Foster’s Mount Airy office launched bus tours three months ago for visits to foreclosed-on homes.

Sharon Crisafulli, who manages three Long & Foster offices, said the tour has been so far a hit. Mount Airy is in a four-county area, and the company puts on one tour a month. So far Frederick, Carroll and Montgomery have been visited. Howard County is next.

“People may say what a horrible thing we are doing, preying on these people (facing foreclosure),” Crisafulli said. “But the sellers are glad to see us working, trying to sell the home for them. It is in their best interest to get it sold.”

Participants get information beforehand about the properties and then get to visit each one. The company charters a 28-seat bus and visits about 10 homes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tourists get a gift bag with water and fruit.

“On the bus we have an attorney, a home inspector and a mortgage person,” Crisafulli said.

Also, kind of related is this article about the rise of crime in empty foreclosed homes. Sorry for the dose of bad news, I think I like the anti-smoking Playboy bunny at the cigar story post much better.

~Guy~