Business Cards

Years ago, one of my television heroes was Jim Rockford, the private eye played to world-weary perfection by James Garner.Rockford had a couple of things I admired. One was the best answering-machine message I've ever heard: "This is Jim Rockford. Leave your name and number, and I'll get back to you."In an answering-machine world of music, poetry, singing kids and phony marshmallow folksiness, Rockford's message was beautifully direct and to the point.That has nothing to do with computers, but I had to mention it. The other thing Rockford had was an amazing ability to switch identities, a feat he accomplished with a little printing press he kept in his car.If he wanted to be president of the Acme Widget Corp.

Alexis brings salads to Vicki and Briana for lunch and is the first housewife to visit Briana's son, Troy. Alexis gives a gift to the baby and casually mentions Brooks. Briana and Alexis are confused about what exactly is going on with Vicki and her relationship with Brooks (as is she). At least Vicki can admit she is confused as well. Bri makes it extremely clear that as long as she is in the house and is paying rent that she doesn't want Brooks coming to the house. Heather visits Terry at his office.

DisneyWar By James B. Stewart Simon & Schuster / 608 pages / $16 Stewart, a dogged reporter, presents a deep and unflattering look inside Mickey Mouse's kingdom. Last year, Jay Hancock wrote, "DisneyWar shatters any remaining suspicions that corporate chieftains know what the heck they're doing or care about anything but the person identified on their business cards."

When Maryland merchants talk about the recent legalization of same-sex marriage, they sometimes talk of broad, lofty themes: Equality. Justice. Civil rights. But there's another practical concept at work: Dollar signs. The financial motivation was on display Sunday at the second annual Gay and Lesbian Wedding Expo at the Tremont Suites Hotel & Grand Historic Venue in downtown Baltimore, where dozens of vendors competed for the attention of dozens of couples whose weddings now carry the official blessing of the state of Maryland.

John W. McGrain Jr., 75, former secretary of the Baltimore County Landmarks Preservation Commission -- who was named official county historian in 1998 -- recently retired. "I retired a month or two short of 30 years when I was 74 3/4 years old. I thought I better do it while I was at the top of my game," said McGrain, who has a reputation as a walking database of county history. "When I began my career in 1976 with the preservation commission that's housed in Department of Planning, I was the sole worker.

Alexis brings salads to Vicki and Briana for lunch and is the first housewife to visit Briana's son, Troy. Alexis gives a gift to the baby and casually mentions Brooks. Briana and Alexis are confused about what exactly is going on with Vicki and her relationship with Brooks (as is she). At least Vicki can admit she is confused as well. Bri makes it extremely clear that as long as she is in the house and is paying rent that she doesn't want Brooks coming to the house. Heather visits Terry at his office.

When Maryland merchants talk about the recent legalization of same-sex marriage, they sometimes talk of broad, lofty themes: Equality. Justice. Civil rights. But there's another practical concept at work: Dollar signs. The financial motivation was on display Sunday at the second annual Gay and Lesbian Wedding Expo at the Tremont Suites Hotel & Grand Historic Venue in downtown Baltimore, where dozens of vendors competed for the attention of dozens of couples whose weddings now carry the official blessing of the state of Maryland.

Her story: Liz Ehrlich, 31, grew up in Glen Rock, N.J. She is a care manager for CIGNA. Her mother, Jackie Ehrlich, is an executive assistant at a law firm in downtown Baltimore. Her stepfather, Alan Davis, is the owner of Princeton Sports in Columbia. Her father is deceased. His story: Matt Wyman, 31, grew up in Towson. He is a lawyer. His father, Steve Wyman, is a District Court judge in Baltimore County. His mother, Jacqui Dawson, is a Circuit Court master in Baltimore County.

The Laurel chapter of Business Network International, a word-of-mouth referral organization, will hosts a Visitor's Day Thursday, Oct. 27 from 7:30-9 a.m., at Famous Dave's Restaurant, 14140 Baltimore Ave. Visitors are encouraged to bring at least 50 business cards to pass out. For more information on BNI or to reserve a place for Visitor's Day, contact Bob Mignon at 301-937-1904.

Business Women's Network of Howard County - Third Wednesdays, luncheon meetings. Promotes and supports a network of professional women in their careers as executives, business owners and leaders. Homewood Suites, 8320 Benson Drive, Columbia. $45 per guest. 410-740-0126, http://www.bwn-hoco.org or admin@bwn-hoco.org . Job Club - First Tuesdays, 10 a.m. Open to all adults. $10 donation. Pinnacle Empowerment Center. Cindy, 410-799-1097 to register and learn about upcoming workshops/programs offered.

Her story: Liz Ehrlich, 31, grew up in Glen Rock, N.J. She is a care manager for CIGNA. Her mother, Jackie Ehrlich, is an executive assistant at a law firm in downtown Baltimore. Her stepfather, Alan Davis, is the owner of Princeton Sports in Columbia. Her father is deceased. His story: Matt Wyman, 31, grew up in Towson. He is a lawyer. His father, Steve Wyman, is a District Court judge in Baltimore County. His mother, Jacqui Dawson, is a Circuit Court master in Baltimore County.

The Laurel chapter of Business Network International will hold a Visitor's Day on Thursday, Dec. 6 from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at Famous Dave's Restaurant, 14140 Baltimore Ave. BNI is a word-of-mouth referral organization with 95 chapters in Maryland and thousands of chapters worldwide. At weekly meetings, BNI chapters offer members a structured, supportive environment for developing business relationships and referrals. Visitors are encouraged to bring at least 50 business cards to Visitor's Day. For more information on BNI or to reserve a place for Visitor's Day, contact Don Thomas at 301-604-8700.

Flea market and sales Christ Episcopal Church's annual flea market, bake and book sale will be held, rain or shine, beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 22, at 6800 Oakland Mills Road. Grilled hamburgers, hot dogs, sodas, water and coffee will be available for purchase. Proceeds will be used to support the church's outreach, youth services and other goals. Information: 410-381-9365. AAUW networking The American Association of University Women hosts a networking and socializing event at 5 p.m. Monday, Sept.

A 27-year-old Takoma Park man, who drove women to locations in the Annapolis area for the purposes of prostitution, has been charged with numerous counts of human trafficking and prostitution. Freddy Leguisamon was arrested last month by Annapolis police, after an investigation that combined the efforts of several law enforcement and government agencies. He faces 54 counts of general prostitution, eight counts of receiving compensation from human trafficking, five counts of taking another person to a place for the purpose of human trafficking, and four counts of operating a prostitution business.

Varsity Hoops games to aid former coach Pompey Two basketball games featuring Dunbar and Edmondson alumni, along with an after-party, will take place July 14 to raise money to help cover medical costs for legendary high school basketball and football coach Pete Pompey , who has Alzheimer's disease. Ads in the event's program can be purchased; costs are as follows: one-eighth page is $15 (best for business cards); a quarter-page is $20; half-page is $50; full page is $60; back page is $100; patron ads are $1. All ads will be in black and white.

Two benefit basketball games featuring Dunbar and Edmondson alumni will take place Saturday, July 14 along with an after-party to raise money to help cover medical costs for legendary high school basketball and football coach Pete Pompey, who has Alzheimer's Disease. You can help by purchasing an ad in the event's program to promote your business or simply show your support. Costs for the ads are as follows based on size: 1/8 page is $15 (best for business cards); 1/4 page is $20; 1/2 page is $50; full page is $60; back page is $100; patron ads are $1.  All ads will be in black and white.

Kensington offers easy-to-use keyboard for handheld Visors The Kensington PocketType for Handspring Visor models is an easy-to-use keyboard that's easy to set up, too. After loading the software from CD to either a Macintosh or Windows PC, just HotSync your Visor and you're ready to go. Of the different Palm software programs I used with this $49 keyboard, all six performed as expected. Moving between fields was easy using the scroll wheel. The layout is similar to the standard keyboard configuration, so there is no learning curve.

It happens after every natural catastrophe. Once the winds die down, the water recedes or the fire is doused, shady contractors appear on the scene to make affected homeowners victims twice over. "You see a rash of this after a natural disaster," says Bill Gruhn, chief of Maryland's consumer protection division. "Sometimes they take the money and don't do the work; sometimes they take the money and terribly overcharge people. And sometimes they take the money and do very poor work.

Business Women's Network of Howard County - Holds monthly luncheon meetings to promote and support a network of professional women in their careers as executives, business owners and leaders. Third Wednesdays of the month, Historic Oakland, 5430 Vantage Point Road, Columbia. $45 per guest. 410-780-1801. Girl's Night Out - Presented by the Pinnacle Empowerment Center, Girls Night Out is a series of workshops aimed at helping women achieve their goals in life and business.