your moment of zen

You all know how rad I think the Patterson Park Boat Lake is as a place to reflect and take a moment to get back in touch with nature. So what better way to unwind after THE busiest weekend of work and festival-ing than taking a loaf of (somewhat moldy) bread to the lake with N yesterday? The sun was slowly receding toward the horizon, but still emanating plenty of warmth on a beautiful fall afternoon.

Snagged my camera as I headed out the door so that I could capture a few shots as well as a video to help all you lovely people out on this dreary day - surely you'll find yourself smiling after a few seconds of duck-frenzy-feeding and looking at a gorgeous gorgeous sky over our lovely lake:

And if the photos are not enough...

love k

people on parade!

Right as BARCStobefest was wrapping up, The Great Halloween Lantern Parade was kicking off! Also rescheduled due to rain, the Parade expanded to an afternoon-long affair this year, with a Magic Hat beer garden, lots of venders, street performers and food to get the crowd fired up for the post-sundown Parade. And what a sundown it was:

As the stilt-walkers and other crazy parade performers lined up, I snapped a few shots with that crazy sky behind:

There was Patterson Park pride with the neighborhood crew - check out these lanterns!

Finally, with a roll of drums and matches flaring, the parade was under way! We staked out a spot about half way around the Parade route and watched as the caterpillar of paraders headed toward us:

Hundreds and hundreds of paraders marched by, accompanied by drum bands and cheers. With fantastic lanterns showcasing amateur and professional artistic abilities all around, it was a true celebration of local creativity. Here's another video, just for good measure (and because I just figured out how to add them!)

What a great Parade, and so befitting for the Great Halloween Lantern Parade's TENTH anniversary! Congrats to the Creative Alliance for another successful year. And, once again, thank you to all those who came to my benefit to help make this event possible.

love k

dogs on parade

BARCS annual fund raising festival, BARCStoberfest,  was rescheduled for Sunday after being rained out two weeks ago, and boy did they luck out this time! Abundant sunshine, changing leaves, and warm weather made this a really fantastic day to "Strut Your Mutt." With vendors galore, doggy contests, and pets ready for adoption, it was a day all about dogs (and some cats!).


A coworker and I had a booth for our company and had the fortune of being right in the middle of things with a great vantage point for watching the contests and all the passing pooches. Here are a few photos from the day:

Our table had a bounty of furry-friend goodies!

Ravens' Cheer-dog - gotta love it :)

Remember that dog I found in the Park and returned? We had a reunion at the fest'!

The Mayor gave a great speech!

I'd like to take this opportunity to encourage people to consider adopting from BARCS or a similar local organization - our city is overwhelmed by homeless dogs brought to the shelter by those who find them or those who can no longer keep them. With today's housing crisis still a bleak reality for many, animals are being forfeited to shelters at alarming rates as owners lose their homes or are no longer able to care for their pets. Please take a moment to see if your heart and home have room for one more. Adopting an animal is rewarding and heart warming... just look at this face - how could I say no??

love k

benefit bonanza

OH what a party it was! Friday night saw the culmination of two months of hard work for me, with my Masquerade Benefit taking place and raising about $1000 for the Creative Alliance! With cocktails, nibbles and masks galore, neighbors and friends celebrated until three in the morning.

Rather than prattle on, I think you'd all prefer a few pictures instead?

A HUGE thank you to everyone who came and donated so generously! 

love k

trains, planes and automobiles

Last week, seven of us patterson parkers headed to Milwaukee for the annual NeighborWorks Community Leadership Institute conference, paid for by Banner Neighborhoods (thanks Eric!). Four of us took the train to Chicago - a 17 hour trip in and of itself - to take in the countryside and remind ourselves just how darn HUGE and varied our country is.

The conference was fantastic, with workshops, fieldtrips, lectures and action planning. All in all, it taught us all new skills for community organizing and development as well as presented us with different viewpoints and challenges that communities across the nation are facing. It was so inspiring to hear about all the fantastic efforts by volunteers and individuals in hundreds of neighborhoods in America. Take Enderis Park, a neighborhood of 1200 households, that raised over $50,000 in a few years to help revitalize their park, with home tours and other simple endeavors.

Having completed the CLI's conference, our team is now able to earn a grant of $2,000 to help our neighborhood's ongoing efforts to continue growing in a positive direction. As of now, we will be applying for the funds to help us positively market our neighborhood, build a snazzy website, and enhance our home tour (the Enderis Park home tour brought in over $15,000 in three years! Wow!).

Of course we had some fun, too, with a train ride, a day in chicago, 4 days in Milwaukee:

 

 

Aaand I had to include the Victoria's Secret Runway wings portraits..

Funny how I'm making the same face in all three of these...I was just that excited!

 

The most important thing I took away from the conference was that we each do make a differece, that it is the accumulation of minor acts that bring us together in relationships of respect, reciprocity and trust. We can never see any act of kindness as too small, or any gesture of empathy as insignificant.

It all adds up to make our community, our neighborhood, our nation and our world a better place to live.

love k

the doggy bloggy (aka puppy meets his twin)

Oooooh what a day! As many of you probably saw on facebook and the yahoo group, I found a dog while stopping by home to take my dog (and yes, Puppy is his name) out for a quick walk, as I wouldn't be home from work til closer to 7. Long story short, I found a dog running wildly across the street and in to Patterson Park. But not just any dog - it was Puppy's TWIN in every way except being white instead of black...and painted teal toenails. They were instant friends, but I refused to even entertain the thought of keeping him - Puppy came to me in exactly the same way, so the odds were against me on that one.

So after checking with local vets, having him scanned for a chip, and following up a few local leads, I began the good ol' fashioned task of fliering the neighborhood and asking everyone I passed whether or not the dog was familiar. All to no avail. Somewhere along the way I passed a police officer waiting at a traffic light and gave him one as well, despite my friend's scoffing that it was a waste of a flier - what does a Baltimore City patrol officer care about an 11 pound lost poodle?

Within an hour I had a phone call from another officer inquiring about the dog and confirming that it was the same dog lost by the individual with whom he was currently meeting! Within half an hour the dog and I were in a cruiser heading 12 blocks NE to the owner (side note: by this time I'd named the dog Falcor after the flying dog-beast in The Never Ending Story - clearly my attachment level was reaching dangerous levels already!).

Nothing warms your heart like dog and owner literally writhing with happiness as they reunite - truly. After hugs and cheers all around, the owner and I agreed to reunite our pooches at this weekend's BARCStoberfest (blog to follow about this one soon).

A HUGE shout out to Officer Gabriel at the South East Police District - many would have thrown away the flier and forgotten it forever, but this officer took the time to call it in and have the information posted to the district. It is only because of his diligence that this had a happy ending.

Here are a couple of photos (taken by my laptop so not too great) of lil' Falcor and Puppy.

love k

a picture postcard for a post

Today I am having a hard time concentrating because:

a. It's beautiful outside. But I am inside...lame

b. I am leaving for Chicago/Milwaukee tomorrow for the NeighborWorks conference with 8 other Patterson Park residents. I have not packed, or even thought about packing. Or done the laundry that needs to be done so I can think about packing.

c. We switched email platforms so life is in chaos at work. Ugh.

Luckily, I can share all the information I need to with two pictures of fliers from last night's PPNA monthly meeting:

I haven't gone a week without mentioning this coming up, but in case you need a visual to comprehend why I'm so obsessed, now you'll have one. As well as a schedule of events and lantern workshops! Hurrah!

Next up, there's going to be a Blessing Of The Animals in the park coming up! Also, take note of the weekly pick-up basketball that has been having a nice turn out:

Sooo, there's my lazy post for the day :) If I can scoot out of work early, do my laundry and organize my life I'm going to go take some fall foliage photos in the park so stay tuned!

love k

a stunning sunset and a carrot cake

Did you see the sunset last night?

I raced home at about a zillion miles an hour from work to try to fanagle borrowing a camera and a roof deck to take a few photos - mission acccomplished:

Though, sunset photos never quite do the real thing justice, do they?

I was in such a good mood that I made this:

yum.

love k

up and at 'em!

I know I spoke about this at length just the other day, but here's a lil' reminder that tomorrow is the Baltimore Marathon. Even if you aren't going to be running, you can still have a day fit for a champion, like this guy:

1. Park appropriate, unless an entire day trying to locate your car sounds like a FUN activity

2. Get yourself up and out of bed and come to the Marathon Party! Starting at 9 a.m. you'll find all the cool kids on the corner of Linwood and Baltimore with food and drinks and joy in our hearts and oranges in our palms.

3. Give up on driving anywhere in the city until mid afternoon - treat it like mandatory neighborhood bonding time. Oh, you don't know what to do? Well conveniently I made you a list just yesterday!

Hope I see all your smiling cheering faces bright and early, and good luck all you runners! love k

haunting our 'hood

What better way to get in the holiday spirit than partaking in some serious decorations? In Baltimore, certain neighborhoods become known as the place to go for holiday decorations. Hampden has become synonymous with Christmas cheer, with Miracle On 34th Street drawing hundreds of viewers a night, and now spreading to surrounding streets and businesses.

Mount Vernon is the place to go to welcome Spring with its large festival, FlowerMart, being the spot to pick out all the blooms and blossoms one could want for the growing season.

Not only do these holiday-themed neighborhood events bring fun and festivities, but they also bring new faces in to the community, showcasing the neighborhood as well as bringing neighbors together in a shared fun project.

Why not put our neighborhood on the map? What if we all made an effort to go ALL OUT this Halloween to decorate our houses leading up to the Great Halloween Lantern Parade on October 24th and Halloween the following week? Let's make Patterson Park the best Haunted 'Hood in Baltimore!
[Completely unrelated to this pots, I just read this blog entry about falling in love with Baltimore - I highly suggest you go read it RIGHT NOW, as it so perfectly encapsulates why our city is incredible, for natives and newbies alike]

love k

the treats of october

I'll admit that I'm not Autumn's biggest fan - over are the long, carefree days of summer sun, and the twinge of chill in the air seems like a harbinger of winter's arctic frost to come. I am not a cold weather person, despite the lovely fashion opportunities it proffers; my teeth chatter relentlessly if the temperature dips below 65, no joke.

So it may come as some surprise to anyone who knows me that despite my scowls at the early setting sun there are a few things I absolutely adore about this time of year, ESPECIALLY in Patterson Park. I figured by sharing them it will help us all stay positive, along with suggestions for how to make the most of our park, found in italics:

• Leaves! Who doesn't love the changing leaves that paint an almost gaudily bright canvas in our midst? Take an afternoon to gather some especially beautiful ones and use them to make home crafts, such as a season wreath or in a tall vase for a centerpiece - it's the Fall version of taking time to smell the roses

• Birds! With birds starting their journey south, huge swooping flocks are a breath-taking surprise. Join one of Patterson Park Audubon's Bird Walks to learn about our regional and migrating species

• Parade! I've spoken before about The Great Halloween Lantern Parade here, but I consider it our park's BEST event all year. Invite out of town friends and family to visit that weekend to showcase our beautiful park and fantastic community

• Pumpkins! Seeing people's hand-carved pumpkins and other decorations out shows pride in our community. Invite some neighbors over for a BYOP (bring your own pumpkin!) carving party and let your creative side loose, accept your pumpkin might get smashed, and carve away [ I have an idea related to this I'll share in another post to come shortly!]
  

• Apples! Oh, how this fruit makes me smile - delicious as is, perfect for pies, and ready to warm your soul and fingers in cider. Pick some up at the farmers market and make some fresh pies for your loved ones and a steaming cup of cider for your morning walk around the park
  

There are many more reasons to love early Fall, but these are my personal favorites. They're all little things, but I think that is what makes them so great and easy to share - going on a stroll with a friend to catch up and admire the gold and auburn leaves in Patterson Park with a hot cup of cider is a truly wonderful way to spend an hour appreciating what you have. We all should make sure to set aside time to do just that.

love k

ogle some opens

Wonder what those big park front houses are like inside? Thinking you may be ready for a larger home with a view of the park? This Sunday you can satisfy your "nosy neighbor" inner voyeur with TWO of my park front listings open from 12-2 p.m.! You have no idea how long it took me to design this flier, so I'll give you a second to admire it appropriately ;-) :
You'll notice it's a touch hard to read the writing on an 8.5x11 page reduced to index card size, so... 2820 E Baltimore ($325,000) and 2802 E Baltimore ($359,000), open 12-2 on Sunday the 11th.

But on a more serious note, the time is right to think of a "move-up" purchase, as prices are low, inventory rocks, and who doesn't love low interest rates (set to stop being artificially suppressed in the next several months)?

Come to see them yourselves, or send that friend you've been nagging to move in to our neighborhood - I have a feeling it'll be love at first ogle.

love k

going the distance

This Saturday, Baltimore is going to be completely overrun (ha!) by runners competing in the Baltimore Running Festival. Despite the city being thrown in to traffic mayhem due to street closures, marathon day is loads of fun, and we in Patterson Park know how to throw a party.

The course goes right through the heart of our neighborhood, heading north on Linwood from O'Donnell up to Madison. The intersection of Linwood and Baltimore is mid-way between mile 16 and 17 - right around the time runners really have to dig in and some start pulling well in to the lead.

For those who attended last year, you know what a great vibe we had going on the corner, with refreshments for runners and cheerers alike! This year, the neighborhood association received a generous grant to help fund our marathon party and make it even more rockin', so it is just not to be missed.

We have quite a few runners in our neighborhood who will be running the full- or half-marathon, so cheering is a must - last year our neighborhood racers said it gave them a big boost to see their friends and neighbors out on the sidewalk cheering and encouraging them as they slogged through their 17th mile. I mean, look what they've already been through when they get to us...and what they still have to face:


While I personally find the idea of RUNNING 26 miles a strange form of voluntary torture, it's a total blast to eat, drink and be merry while others do it. Picture drinking a mimosa and munching on snacks while jumping around with a noisemaker and slinging orange slices to runners...what's not to love about that? Good luck to all the runners out there, and keep your eyes peeled for Patterson Parkers cheering you on from the NW corner of Linwood and Baltimore. All you non-runners make sure you come out for the fun, starting at 9 a.m.

Oh, and make sure you move your car if you're on Linwood... I learned THAT the hard way my first year here, but that is a story for another day!

love k

our patter is getting chatter!

Soooo...I meant to tell you all about this last weekend but I'm horrendous at self promotion, clearly:

I got a lovely email from the Baltimore Sun telling me that Patterson Park Patter got a mobbie nomination! The Baltimore Sun is holding a competition for Maryland's Outstanding Blogs and Patterson Park Patter is nominated so go vote! You can do so once a day so let's show those blogsters out there how rockin' our community is :)

To whomever nominated this here blog, a big THANK YOU - it's great to know people are reading and smiling.

love k

Patterson Park Real Estate Newsletter

Each month I put together a newsletter for Patterson Park with recent listings, sales and contracts, a featured real estate article, as well as neighborhood news and events. A strong, healthy community is an informed community so I do what I can to help make that possible!

To read this month's issue head to the yahoo group, the ning group, the facebook group, or online here. Or make your life easier and email me to join the mailing list.

Anyways, have a look and see what's been happening and what to do this month!

love k