Knots

Q: How can we keep knots from showing through the paint on our wood window frames?A: Coat the knots with a special stain-killing primer, such as Parks Undercover or Zinsser's B-I-N. Stain killers are sold at most home centers, paint stores and hardware stores. The primer will seal the knots and prevent sap from bleeding through.Stain-killing primers also can prevent bleed-through of water stains on walls and ceilings, crayon and grease marks, and similar stains that can otherwise ruin a paint job.Some painters use ordinary shellac for sealing knots and stains, but the special primers have a white pigment that, in my opinion, has better hiding power.

The Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen's Association will host the first event of its youth fishing seminar series on Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Alltackle retail showroom in Annapolis. The event, one of eight that MSSA will host this year for young fishermen and their parents, will feature lessons on knots and fish handling from Captain Randy Dean and his son, Ryan. Pizza and beverages will be served. In recent years, MSSA has hosted a handful of events that have allowed children and parents to learn about fishing together.

ABOARD ASSA ABLOY - Wet, wild and fast! That's exactly how my last report started. The past three days have been incredible sailing. It may not be comfortable, but we are sailing, for sure, the fastest 24-hour monohull runs recorded. We have logged more than 440 miles each day - an average speed of 18-19 knots. In addition, our top speed is 33.2 knots (38.2 mph). Blasting down waves and surfing in the mid-20s is old hat now. No one hardly notices. If we are not blasting over waves, we are plowing through them.

The bride looked radiant in her pink and white dress. The groom was dapper in his business suit. The ceremony backdrop consisted of books on shelves, books on tables and a backroom cafe with patrons who seemed oblivious to the whole thing. Welcome to the Annapolis Bookstore wedding of Mark Hutson and Melanie Frances, a couple who on Wednesday proved neither rain, snow nor a government shutdown could prevent them from uniting in holy matrimony. While Wednesday's winter storm proved to be a nuisance for many, it provided a matrimonial wrinkle for Hutson, from Severna Park and Frances, from Montreal.

SAN DIEGO -- Chris Dickson and his Win New Zealand team won the start against Sydney '95 yesterday in the America's Cup challenger trials and walked away to its second victory in three starts."

On a day on which only 47 of 377 registered boats ventured out in rough seas, angler Brett Jamison maintained his lead in the quest for a prize of more than $1.3 million in the 31st White Marlin Open, based in Ocean City. Jamison, of Virginia Beach, Va., caught an 84-pounder on Monday, the opening day of the five-day tournament, marking the sixth-largest white in the event's history and the biggest one hooked since 1981. Hurricane Alex, steadily making its way up the Atlantic Coast, challenged yesterday's anglers with winds of 60 to 70 knots and 18-foot seas.

We know it when we see it, and we miss it when it's gone. But Joe Bollinger of Glen Burnie wonders what "fair" weather really means when he hears it in the daily report. The American Meteorological Society's glossary calls it a "purely subjective" description of "generally pleasant" conditions. But the National Weather Service specifies: no precipitation; less than 40 percent low cloud cover; winds less than 10 knots (11.5 mph) and unrestricted visibility.

Two days after it left Annapolis on Leg 7 of the Volvo Ocean Race, illbruck Challenge set 24-hour world speed records for a monohull boat - twice. The German entry, the overall points leader in the global race, covered 473 miles in the North Atlantic, averaging 19.7 knots (22.7 mph). The Gulf Stream provided a 5-knot boost in speed. Then, in the 24-hour period that ended four hours later, illbruck logged 484 miles, averaging 20.2 knots (23.2 mph). The distances, logged by satellite, must be ratified by the International Sailing Federation.

Maryland boating officials are considering speed limits on the upper Potomac River, measures that even proponents say don't go far enough in curbing reckless boating on the popular waterway.Under proposed regulations, speed limits of 35 knots (41 mph) would be imposed on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays -- the days of heaviest use -- and 20 knots (23 mph) would be in effect from sunset to 10 a.m.The speed limits are among several regulations state boating officials have proposed to ensure public safety along a heavily used stretch of the Potomac River from Harpers Ferry, W.Va.

SYDNEY, Australia - It sounds like Chessie Racing skipper George Collins is having the time of his life on Leg 4 of the Whitbread Round the World race, with "a wild and scary" run under spinnaker in 32 knots of wind, blasting across the Tasman Sea from Sydney to Auckland, New Zealand.Although Chessie was lying in fourth position, about 33 miles astern of leader Swedish Match, Collins' report yesterday to race headquarters indicates he is having a ball."The wind just reached 26 knots," he said, "and the big sea monster [Chessie]

Lisa Graff, an author who teaches children's literature at McDaniel College, can't read a map to save her life. She's terrible at crossword puzzles, has trouble telling her left hand from her right and uses far too many exclamation points. While she was growing up in California in the 1980s in the shadow of a brilliant older brother, young Lisa became convinced that she had no special talent. She thought of herself as utterly, unspectacularly average. But Graff must have been good at something, because she grew up to become a respected author of children's books: six for younger students and a seventh for teens under the pseudonym Isla Neal.

Grumbles and sighs of exasperation were heard coming from the group of third-grade boys huddled around the square piece of pirate-printed fleece. Comments such as "I can't do this" and "This is hard" punctuated the boys' struggles to tie knots in the fabric's fringes. "I'm getting an awful lot of 'can'ts' from you boys," said Kerry Wolf, a parent volunteer at the table. "I think you can. It's like tying a balloon. We're having a water balloon battle and don't even know it. " The boys, along with their fellow students at Runnymede Elementary School, were taking part in the school's fourth annual Project Linus project Dec. 19. A nonprofit organization founded in 1998, Project Linus provides blankets for security, warmth and comfort to children who are ill, traumatized or in need, according to Connie Richman, coordinator for Project Linus in Carroll County.

Kevin Marshall and Buddy Evans, like many cousins, are close. They keep in touch regularly and enjoy talking over a cup of coffee when they can get together. The two, who have spent much of their lives on the Chesapeake Bay as watermen, even took their cordial relationship to land to play in a softball league together. But when the 41st annual Crisfield Boat Docking Classic takes place Sept. 2, none of that will matter. Asked whether they were on the same team, Evans laughed at the thought.

Gusty northerly winds are meeting the tall ships as they move up the Chesapeake Bay today, and they are also making travels rougher for smaller boats joining the flotilla to the Inner Harbor. A small craft advisory is in effect for the Chesapeake Bay through Thursday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Gusts of up to 25 knots -- about 29 mph -- are expected Wednesday afternoon. Steady winds of 15 knots are in the forecast. Waves are about 1 foot high, but can be expected to be higher when winds blow against the tidal direction.

Among the teased and towering hair, the fluttering boas and the crowd sticky with snowballs Saturday at Hampden's Honfest wound a joyful party who were celebrating more than the neighborhood's quirky character. "Make way, make way, here come the bride and groom," called Dot Tucker-Houk, leading a procession of several dozens revelers cheering and rattling noisemakers. Behind her, niece Angie Gentile twirled a parasol, beaming at her newly-wed husband, Andy Snair, and paused for a photo with a crowd of women wearing towering pink wigs.

Courtney Winn Faudree and Tyler Marion Hurd Mr. and Mrs. Eric M. Faudree, of Urbanna, Va. announce the engagement of their daughter, Courtney Winn Faudree, to Tyler Marion Hurd, son of Dr. and Mrs. Edwin M. Hurd Jr., of West Friendship. Faudree, a 2009 graduate of Roanoke College, is a project coordinator at The Martin Agency, in Richmond, Va. Hurd, a 2008 graduate of Roanoke College, is employed at The Faison School for Autism, also in Richmond. A May 2012 wedding in Urbanna is planned.

Status: Day 15, Leg 1Standings:Boat ..................... Nautical miles to finish1. Innovation Kvaerner ... 4,090.42. Merit Cup ............. 4,111.13. EF Language ........... 4,129.54. Chessie Racing ........ 4,179.85. Silk Cut .............. 4,189.96. Toshiba ............... 4,288.77. America's Challenge ... 4,295.78. Swedish Match ......... 4,299.99. BrunelSunergy ......... 4,585.510. EF Education ......... 4,657.9(as of 6 p.m. EDT)Boat beat: The Dutch yacht BrunelSunergy, while traveling about 10 knots, hit a whale about 980 miles from Fernando de Noronha yesterday morning.

Swedish Match continues to hold the lead in the Whitbread Round the World Race, and race headquarters has predicted a Monday arrival in Fremantle, Australia."

With three days of pool play down and two to go at the Cal Ripken World Series, the five-team National Division was being led by the undefeated Southeast representatives from West Raleigh, N.C, who were 2-0 through Monday. Trailing the leaders by a half game is the Ohio Valley squad from Lexington, Ky., and tied with 1-1 records are the Midwest Plains team from Waite Park, Minn, and the Mid-Atlantic squad of Clifton Park, N.Y. Down at the bottom of the division are the host-team Bel Air Braves, who have been shut out three times.

Will the rubber duckie be the best man? The are-they-or-aren't-they gay jokes about Ernie and Bert have a long history. I think an image of them holding hands was carved by early man in the caves at Lascaux. But could the two actually get married? Huffington Post reports today that more than 900 people have signed a petition urging the makers of "Sesame Street" get married. Lair Scott started the petition  which reads, in part, "In this horrific age of LGBT kids taking their own lives, they need to know that they ARE Beautiful and their lives are worth living.