Holiday

May. 18, Post Time: 10:45AM Entries and comments provided by the Maryland Jockey Club First - Purse $55,000, AOC $25,000-$20,000, 3 yo's & up, One And One Sixteenth Miles Post, Horse, Jockey, Trainer, Odds 1 Aussi Austin, Rosario, R.Rodriguez, 3-1 2 Bob's Gone Wild, Vargas, J.Lopez, 20-1 3 Jarrod's Commando, Karamanos, C.Garcia, 10-1 4 Warrensburg, Boyce, D.Barr, 20-1 5 Benny Or Local, Cruise, D.Kobiskie,...

Imagine a trail, a trail made of ice cream! Well, that's not what this is. But the Maryland's Best Ice Cream Trail is pretty cool all the same. Launched in 2012 by the department of agriculture to promote Maryland's dairy industry, the ice cream trail leads visitors to eight ice-cream-producing Maryland farms, stretching from Worcester to Washington County. The eighth and newest farm on the trail is Keyes Creamery in Aberdeen, which is currently producing ice cream for the wholesale market and expects to begin retail sales sometime in June.

If you're a big fan, you already knew what was coming in the season finale. But it didn't make it any easier -- or less heartbreaking -- to watch. The majority of the Season 3 "Downton" finale, or the "Christmas special" as its called in the U.K., took place in Scotland, where the whole family (minus Branson) visits the Highlands home of the Dowager's niece, Susan, and her husband, Shrimpy. Most of the trip included bagpipes, hunting, more bagpipes and Scottish reel dancing. But more on that later (and more on O'Brien meeting her Scottish lady's maid doppelganger)

On Memorial Day weekends, Kim Yates and Albert Kullman measure success by speed. Yates steers her bright yellow tow truck toward trouble, with the goal of getting disabled vehicles out of the roadway or back in business before traffic has time to clog. From his toll booth at the Bay Bridge, Kullman can make change for a $10 or $20 in under 12 seconds. "We want you on your way," Yates said. "Safely. " The summer season kicks off this weekend when 718,200 Marylanders are expected to leave town for the beach or mountains, 1.2 percent fewer than a year ago, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.

This schedule will be in effect Friday: Government offices Closed in Anne Arundel, Carroll, Harford, Howard and Frederick counties, and Annapolis Open Friday in Baltimore City and Baltimore County Courts Closed Libraries Closed in Harford County Public schools Closed Trash Harford waste disposal center is closed. Check with contractor in Carroll and Frederick counties. Transit Certification office: Closed State offices: Closed (American Indian Heritage Day)

The South Laurel Recreation Center hosts "The Snow Show," presented by the Bob Brown Puppets, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. today at the Deerfield Run Elementary School and Community Center, 13000 Laurel-Bowie Road. The show will be followed by a visit from Santa and his friends. Admission is free. Call 301-776-2805 for more information.

Editor: On Sunday, a Havre de Grace non-profit Good Cause held its second annual Christmas with a Cause event providing a Community Christmas Party and gifts to more than 200 children from 66 families who might not otherwise have been able to celebrate this holiday so dear to all of us. This was twice as many children as were helped last year. The party was held at the Havre de Grace Community Center on Lewis Lane and the gifts were distributed at Good Cause's Community Headquarters, 616 Ontario St., in Havre de Grace.

The Laurel Museum, 817 Main St., hosts an open house Friday, Saturday and Dec. 6 that features gifts for the young as well as the elderly. Hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 6. Call 301-725-7975 for more information.

Columbus Day passed, and we were forced to celebrate a half-truth. As a 10th grader, I appreciate honoring extraordinary individuals to look up to, and it's undeniable that Christopher Columbus connected the Old World with a new one. However, society accepts this apocryphal narration without learning the frequently omitted facts, namely, the horrifying acts of bigotry and villainy Columbus executed and oversaw. Even before he reached San Salvador, Columbus committed his first offense, pocketing the money he had promised to the first man able to discern land.

The Keramos Society of Anne Arundel Community College will hold its annual student ceramics and sculpture holiday sale from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 30 in the Cade Center for Fine Arts, Room 219, 101 College Parkway in Arnold. There will be mugs, vases, cookware, plates, teapots and more for sale. For further information, call 410-777-2624.

COLLEGE PARK - Before playing at Madison Square Garden in the 1990 ECAC Holiday Festival, Walt Williams was considered an up-and-coming player for a down-and-out program. A junior, Williams had stayed at Maryland rather than transferring to another school without penalty after the Terps were put on a harsh probation by the NCAA. Ineligible to play in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament or the NCAA tournament that season because of the sanctions, the late December tournament at a place often called "The World's Most Famous Arena" became a showcase for the 6-foot-8 guard from Temple Hills known as "The Wizard" and a program under second-year coach Gary Williams.

Wedding date: Dec. 29, 2012 Her story: Elizabeth "Beth" Passapae Sauer, 28, grew up in Baltimore. She is an associate attorney for Semmes, Bowen & Semmes in Baltimore. Her father, Francis A. Sauer, is an attorney in Towson, and her mother, Janet Passapae Sauer, is a social worker at William Paca Elementary School in Baltimore. His story: Carroll Francis "Frank" Hopkins III, 28, grew up in Bel Air. He works in medical device sales as a video sales associate for Karl Storz.

The mother of a 10-year-old girl killed by celebratory gunfire in Cecil County on New Year's Eve is asking for stricter penalties for shooting guns into the air. Crystal Blackburn, the mother of Aaliyah Boyer, who was killed when Cecil County Sheriff's officials said a bullet fell from the sky and struck her on the top of her head, is calling on the public to sign a petition at aaliyahboyer.com. The "We the People" petition through the White House needs 100,000 signatures before it's forwarded to the president's administration for review.

Customers lined up outside Rheb's Candy early Monday, even before owner Wynn Harger opened the doors of the Southwest Baltimore shop his family has run for three generations. People, mostly men, crammed into the tiny, cottage-like store for much of the morning for one purpose - securing the handmade chocolates for Valentine's Day. "It's what my wife wants," said Dennis Eder, who traveled from Dundalk to Rheb's on Wilkens Avenue to purchase a two-pound box of assorted chocolates for his wife, Isabel.

If you can hold off from buying that energy-efficient refrigerator or furnace for a little more than a week, you could save 6 percent sales tax in Maryland. The state's annual sales tax holiday runs Feb. 16-18 for those buying “Energy Star” products. The state offers answers to frequent questions online.  Consumers can also find online a list of qualified Energy Star products, which runs from washers and dryers to light bulbs.  

Submitting sports notices The deadline for submitting sports copy is 9 a.m. on Monday. We prefer email (howardcountysports@patuxent.com). Questions? Call 410-332-6578. Baseball Use the day off from school Feb. 18 to start preparing for the baseball season, getting some quality instruction and practice in at the President's Day Holiday Baseball Camp at PowerUP Sports and Training in Laurel. The camp goes from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will be run by Reservoir High School varsity baseball coach Adam Leader and his staff.

The Women In Business of the Baltimore Washington Corridor Chamber are hosting a breakfast and holiday celebration Friday, Dec. 9 from 9:15 to 11:30 a.m. at the Homewood Suites by Hilton, 8320 Benson Drive, in Columbia. Cost is $25 for prepaid members; $45 for not prepaid members and non-members. To register, go to http://www.baltwashchamber.org/BWCC_Data/getEventDetails?eventID=900 .

Ruth's Chris Steak House is usually open only for dinner, but now through Christmas Eve, the restaurant is serving a holiday lunch menu on weekdays. It's a bit of a splurge, but what the heck, there's prosperity in the land. The menu includes a $15 steak sandwich, the $14 Ruth's prime burger, a $42.95 filet au poivre entree and, if it's been a really good year for the firm, a $44.95 New York strip. The lunch menu is being served Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at all locations of Ruth's Chris Steak House including the ones on Water Street , Eastern Avenue and Pikesville . There's more information about the holiday lunch on the Ruth's Chris website . Follow Baltimore Diner on Twitter @gorelickingood  

Children used paper plates, yarn, feathers and beads to make dream catchers decorated with words and phrases like "hope" and "I have a dream" to celebrate the memory of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday while their parents watched President Barack Obama's inauguration on a big-screen television. To Terry Taylor, the dual celebration at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum was a full-circle moment. "People seemed pretty excited; they cheered when Barack took the oath. They were clapping and stomping their feet," said Taylor, education programs coordinator at the museum.

This schedule will be in effect Monday-Tuesday: County offices Anne Arundel: open Monday; closed Tuesday. Annapolis open Monday; closed Tuesday. Baltimore: open Monday, closed Tuesday. Carroll: closed Monday-Tuesday. Frederick: closed Monday-Tuesday. Harford: closed Monday-Tuesday. Howard: closed Monday-Tuesday. Baltimore City: open Monday; closed Tuesday. Courts Closed Monday-Tuesday in all jurisdictions. Libraries Anne Arundel: closed Tuesday.