Bright Spots

I DON'T THINK there's a room in my house I can't associate with Hilda Wilson, the lampshade diva of Towson. Mrs. Wilson, as she was known, was an indomitable businesswoman who sold lampshades and lamp parts from an old-fashioned store on the York Road in the heart of old Towson. Mrs. Wilson, who died last week at 95 and is being buried today, was a character. A staunch and effective proponent of boosting the Baltimore County seat she so admired, she was also a presence in the domain of home lighting.

Who will be the Adam Morrison of this version of March Madness? The Joakim Noah? The Sean May, the Emeka Okafor, the J.J. Redick, the Shane Battier ... You get the point. Some player in the NCAA tournament will either elevate himself into the heavens or ride a wave of adulation that was built pre-tournament - and by the time he lands, he will be not only a college legend, but also the talk of the run-up to the NBA draft. Except the landing will come far short of the same level of pro stardom that he enjoyed in college.

While prices might still seem painfully high in the supermarket aisles, long-suffering consumers are beginning to see a break in their grocery bills - a bit of good news amid the economic gloom. Falling raw-material costs coupled with a feeble economy have curbed soaring food inflation in recent months. Food prices fell on a month-to-month basis in February for the first time since April 2006. Last year, food and beverage prices as calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics rose 5.4 percent, the largest annual jump since 1990, because of a big run-up in commodity and energy costs.

ORANGES HELP ME make it through the winter. Their bright color, their tangy flavor and their powerful aroma stand in marked contrast to days that are often dim, dull and repetitive. Traditionally one bright spot in the gray season has been the arrival of a box of navel oranges from Arizona. They are part of a cross-country exchange of holiday foodstuffs among family members. My sister-in-law ships oranges from Phoenix to Baltimore, and we in turn ship homemade fruitcake from Baltimore to Phoenix.

Food **1/2 (2 1/2 stars) Service **1/2 (2 1/2 stars) Atmosphere *** (3 stars) Some restaurants can charge almost anything for their food and I won't complain. Brightons isn't one of them. Once Brightons was what I thought of as the most beautiful hotel coffee shop in the world. It was the place that served breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea, while Harbor Court's main restaurant, the luxe Hampton's, was where you went for very fine dining.

THANKS TO THE Annie E. Casey Foundation's Kids Count project, states have hard data to point to when they discuss the health, safety and economic well-being of their children. With the latest edition of the Maryland Kids Count Factbook, this state now has four years of data to compare.Taken together, those annual statistical portraits reveal both good news and bad -- and all of it is useful to policy makers in evaluating the effectiveness of programs designed to help children in need. The 1996 Factbook looks at 14 indicators of child well-being in each of the counties and in Baltimore City, listing the number of incidents in each category, such as the number of births to teen mothers, as well as the rate at which these events occur and the ranking of each jurisdiction in the state.

I CATCH UP with Allan Prell at the sumptuous Reisterstown home of Morris the Remodeler, where the two are rehearsing a TV commercial that may set the advertising industry back 200 years. Right now, they're strolling with umbrellas in Morris' driveway and croaking their way through "Singin' in the Rain," thus doing permanent damage to the memory of Gene Kelly and the 1952 classic. "It may be so dreadful, it's good," Prell says of the commercial for his longtime buddy, home-remodeling guru Morris Ellin.

It's no secret that sports television is an analyst-driven medium, and no more so than during the NCAA tournament. Sure, the play-by-play man frames the action, but it's the color guy who sets the tone and benevolently dictates how we, the home viewer, will see what we see. In that regard, there is no more kindly dictator than CBS analyst Bill Raftery, who is working the tournament games from Minneapolis, including tomorrow's second-round action....

WESTMINSTER - Perhaps the most significant result for the Old Mill cross country team at yesterday's Westminster Invitational came in the boys B race.The Patriots' Shaun Black took first in that race to earn a spot on the varsity seven for the upcoming meets. And it wasn't an easy win, either, as he had to hold off Oakland Mills' Jeff Herdson to do it."He'll be up on the A team," Coach Gary Bater said. "We're quite pleased."On the varsity, though, the Patriots finished ninth in both the boys and girls races in a talented field that included several individual and team champions from last year's state championships.

MOOSIC, Pa. -- Only because he had been asked to, Bruce Ruffin gave thought to life after baseball.After a short pause, highlighted by the squinting of his eyes and the rubbing of his chin, Ruffin looked lost. "I haven't even started thinking about it," he said.How about becoming a pitching coach?"Someday, maybe," Ruffin said, with a smile. "Lord knows, I've had enough instruction. I know what needs to be done out there. Whether or not I can do it, I should be able to teach it."Bruce Ruffin, veteran major leaguer, does his pitching these days for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons, the Philadelphia Phillies' Triple A affiliate in northeastern Pennsylvania.