Firecracker

Jogger, 41, is shot on Fort Smallwood RoadA 41-year-old Pasadena man was shot in the hip with a pellet gun as he jogged Sunday on Fort Smallwood Road, county police reported.Ralph Edward Robertson of the 3600 block of Robin Air Court said he was jogging along side of the road about 9:58 p.m. when a car passed him. He said he heard what he thought was the sound of a firecracker, then realized that he had been shot in the hip.He flagged down a motorist, who took him to the Rivera Beach fire station, police said.

* Tomorrow: Arbutus Firecracker 10-K, Arbutus, 8 a.m., 242-0809; Firecracker 5-K, Kingsville, 8 a.m., 592-6616; Dundalk Heritage 6-K, Dundalk, 7:30 a.m., 494-8649; Frederick's Fourth 5-K, 7 p.m., 371-9562; Choptank River Run, Cambridge, 7:30 p.m., 228-4211.* Friday: MCRRC cross country grand prix, Potomac, 7 p.m., 353-0200.* Saturday: Independence 4-miler, Havre de Grace, 8 a.m., 931-0096; A Place for Your Pace, Loch Raven, 8 a.m.; Chinmoy 2-miler, Patterson Park, 8 a.m., 467-3223.* July 10: BRRC Track Series, Johns Hopkins, 6:30 p.m.* July 11: WRRC Twilight Series, Piney Run 10-K, Eldersburg, 7 p.m., 549-1861.

The Baltimore Road Runners Club kicked off a week of Fourth of July celebratory running with the Yankee Doodle Dash 4-Miler Sunday at Lake Montebello.The running festivities continue this week with the Dundalk Heritage 6K Independence Day Dash, the Kingsville Firecracker 5K and the Arbutus Firecracker 10K, all on Saturday, and the Independence 4-Mile Run Sunday at Havre de Grace.Neville Anderson kicked off what could be a busy week of running for him with a 21-minute, 14-second, first-place finish in the Yankee Doodle Dash.

The Women's Distance Festival Grand Prix Series, which got under way two weeks ago in Montgomery County, continues Friday with the Howard County Striders' Women's Distance Festival 5K at Columbia Mall.The Howard County race, which began in 1980 as a run through Phelps Luck in Columbia, has grown into an event that annually attracts 500 participants. And as it has since 1981, the race will begin at midnight."This year, for the first time, we were not the first race in the series, but we kept it at midnight because it keeps the raceunique and people love it," says race director Nancy Burns.

WHEN PEOPLE don't believe their government, it is in trouble. In classic tyrannies, the government monopolizes communication and this is not a problem. People might privately doubt, but lack a basis to contradict. Now the Communist government of China is failing to cope with changes in the game, even though it made the changes. On March 6, the village school in Fanglin, Jiangxi Province, blew up, with 42 children dead. Regional newspapers talked to parents, who complained that the school turned the classrooms into dangerous firecracker factories.

Annapolis is set to hire a Washington-based construction company to rebuild historic Main Street, putting into action a controversial project that divided the city last fall, a city official said yesterday.Fort Myer Construction Corp. secured the job after bidding $3.9 million, the lowest offer submitted by five companies competing for the contract, said Emory Harrison, who will oversee work on the project.Fort Myer, which has never done business with the city, won the contract over Allied Construction.

When the young oak treeI thought was dead put out its newgreen butterfly leaves,I went out to worship it,embraced its trunk and knelt downbefore it singing.Neighbors rushed insideand banged their doors.Mailmen stayed their rounds.Yellow firecracker dandelionspopped out in the grass and in sidewalkcrevicesin celebration of the season.I could hardly hold my happiness,but I put on a sober face and a black cap,sat down to weed the irises.Their sword leaves sliced the air.On their stalks the first hard buds foretoldwhite and purple satinfalls and folds of beauty.

Anybody have a title for John Sayles?The film maker responsible for works including "City of Hope," "Eight Men Out," "Matewan" and "The Return of the Secaucus Seven" is in the editing room these days, working on something he calls "the Louisiana project."But that's not the film's title. "I just never came up with one that I like," he said. "We have had contests among cast and crew and among local people down in Acadiana," he said, referring to the area of Louisiana where he shot the film.

The Carroll County Arts Council will hold its annual "Art in the Park" outdoor arts festival from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at Westminster City Hall Park. More than 60 local and regional artists will display and sell their works, which include paintings, drawings, collages, photos, prints and stained glass. Artists were selected for the event from applications and examples of their work. Lisa Carnes, winner of the Maryland Wine Festival Poster Design Contest, will attend. The winning poster and runners-up will be displayed.

Delicious romance in country innsIf you're the sort who loves country inns, check out Gail Greco's new "Sweet Romance" series, with favorite desserts from 26 country inns across the United States. Here's a luscious example: In one show, cookbook author and TV chef Marcia Adams joins Ms. Greco at the Checkerberry Inn, Goshen, Ind., where chef Gregory Lutes offers chocolate ravioli with raspberry sauce (above). The show airs on Maryland Public Television at 6 p.m. Sunday and repeats at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.