April Fool's 2 years, 8 months, and 12 days later....

There are times when you realize that you want something too much.  It makes you vulnerable and gives others the opportunity to use that against you.  Today, I was duped by a more than two year old April Fool's joke by the BBC.  (This is the problem with the Internet, things don't die here.)

It involved the possibility of recovering lost episodes of Doctor Who from the 60's using bounce back radio waves.  All my Doctor Who fans will know exactly how elated I was at the mere mention of this.  So excited was I that I immediately shared on Facebook and e-mailed to my fellow Whovians.  Then I notice the date and, instead of feeling incredibly stupid, feel an incredible sense of loss.  I really, really wanted this to be true.

Typing it now, I realize how silly the entire concept is  I mean radio waves degrade over time and space.  That's why I have to change from NPR Baltimore to DC when I get to work.  It's the sharing with a somewhat cool guy who will hold this against me that makes me feel stupid.  Always, always check your sources!  Then, check the dates on those sources and finally, do a Google Search.  Odds are, someone else fell for it before you did and may have written about it in hopes of saving you the same fate.  And always remember: If it's too good to be true, it usually is.

Patterson Park

User: Iracaz (From Wikipedia.org)

This past weekend I had a date that went quite well.  It started at one of my favorite Baltimore restaurants, The Paper Moon Diner, and then meandered its way over to Patterson Park.

This is yet another area, where I live, that has gone unexplored even though I've lived here for years.  I'd always heard about the Pagoda (my friend, A, incorporates it into her fantasy wedding planning) but had never actually been there.  I can see now why she would want to include this in her plans.  It incorporates at least two important things in her life thus far: teaching English in China and her love of the city of Baltimore.

The Pagoda was built during the Victorian Era and it's easy to see that influence in the architecture and design.  I do wonder though, how ladies with larger dresses than we currently wear made it up and down those narrow stairs with people moving in the opposite direction.  Though I would guess that's what the landings are for; allowing people to climb one set of stairs without traffic.  But modern culture is less polite.  I was surprised to learn that Hamstead Hill, where the Pagoda stands, was integral in the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812.  This was the same battle that inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The Star-Spangled Banner," our national anthem.

Growing up in Havre de Grace, I know about the War of 1812.  It was the source for the story about our town "hero," John O'Neil.  Aside from the Revolutionary War, which had George Washington sleeping everywhere and the Marquis de Lafayette naming our small town, the War of 1812 was the next most important thing we were taught in school.  So to see cannons, restored and standing, on Hampstead Hill immediately made me think of the cannon behind our Concord Point Lighthouse which John O'Neil used to defend the town against the British.

All in all, it was a very interesting day and I'm sorry that I hadn't visited the area sooner.  Perhaps my next stop should be Ft. McHenry...

Swindon UK

I recently starting reading the new Thursday Next book, written by Jasper Fforde, and I've decided I would like to try and visit the real-life Swindon when we fly to Bristol.  It's about 40 miles East of Bristol, so I'm not sure how plausible this is.  I could, of course, always go by myself and find my way back to Cardiff to meet up with the Dads before our flight back to Dublin.  (This might solve more than one problem, as my sister is quite upset that we're going to Wales together.)

It looks like it's only about 35 minutes from Bristol so it is entirely possible.  The only question is whether or not I would want to go by myself.