Livery

POLICE LOG* Jessup: 8900 block of Twelve Sons Court: A vacuum was taken and food was tampered with during a burglary at Kidstation Day Care some time between Saturday and Monday.* North Laurel: 9200 block of Livery Lane: Two people were seen cutting a screen window Thursday night, but were scared off when the resident approached, police said.* Scaggsville: 7500 block of Murray Hill Drive: A light blue 1980 Kawasaki KZ1000 motorcycle with Maryland tags 2909D4 was stolen Dec. 14 or Dec. 15.

POLICE LOG* Jessup: 9000 block of Dorsey Run Road: A cassette stereo worth about $300 was stolen from a gray 1988 Jeep between 8:15 a.m. and 5:15 p.m. on Monday. The vehicle was parked at a train station.* Laurel: 9600 block of Barrel House Road: Property valued at $150 was stolen from a red 1991 Chevrolet S10 truck on Monday between 12:01 a.m. and 5:50 a.m..9200 block of Livery Lane: A man who had broken into a parked vehicle was seen trying to pry open the vehicle's glove compartment at 6:45 a.m. on Sunday.

Howard County police are investigating more than a dozen residential burglaries and vehicle thefts recently in the Whiskey Bottom area of North Laurel.Since Dec. 26, there have been 13 completed or attempted break-ins in the Whiskey Bottom area, including five on Livery Lane, police said.The burglaries occur at various times, and the burglars gain entry by kicking in or forcing open the front door, police said. Once inside, the intruders steal televisions, VCRs and jewelry. Several firearms were taken during two of the break-ins, police said.

A hundred years ago, the meals served in the buildings now housing the Mill Towne Tavern were rather bland - mainly hay and oats. The horses that dined at what was then a livery stable might have been satisfied, but patrons today have choices ranging from quesadillas to rockfish. The Mill Towne Tavern offers what owner Keith Curtisslikes to call "upscale casual" dining. There are tablecloths and linen napkins, but the rough granite walls and folk-art paintings impart a more informal atmosphere.

* Jessup: 8300 block of Ari Court: Someone destroyed a wooden property sign and a spotlight Oct. 11.* 7600 block of Oldfield Lane: Between Wednesday and Thursday, someone kicked in a sliding door, removed it from its track and took a range, refrigerator, washer and dryer, and a security control box. Some of the suspects may have fled in a late 1960s to early 1970s faded red Ford pickup truck with the word "Ford" written in white letters on the tailgate....

Sam's offers free Thanksgiving dinnerSam's Restaurant, 9994 Washington Blvd. in North Laurel, will be serving a free Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday.The dinner, with turkey, sauerkraut, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, dessert, sodas, coffee and juice, will be served beginning at noon on Thanksgiving Day.Rides will be provided to those who need them. The bar will be closed. Any food that is left over will be distributed to food kitchens and half-way houses. For more information, call Faye at 953-3836.

NEW WINDSOR resident Meg Smith got tired of cancellations from people providing wagons for a corporate picnic she was organizing. She decided to buy one instead. That's how her business, J-Mar B Livery Service at Smith Hill Farm, began. Today, the business hires out its three carriages and four hayride wagons at about 60 functions a year. "I wanted to do a hayride for a corporate picnic," Smith said. "But the people renting the wagons would never show up." That was in 1985, and the business began as a hobby.

Julie Oulton had always wanted to live in a stone house. Always. Nearly three years ago, she and her husband, Carl, asked their real estate agent to give them a list of stone houses for sale in Carroll County that were priced from $100,000 to $150,000. "We couldn't find any in our price range," she recalled. "So, we decided to look at other houses." On the way back from looking at a house, Carl Oulton spotted a for-sale sign in the window of a stone house at 5 Frederick St. in Taneytown.

After winning a conference championship, does an NFL owner spend a lot of time pondering whether to go to the Super Bowl? Does the manager of a pennant winning baseball team say, "I'll think about the World Series thing and get back to you in a few days?" Alas, when it rains it pours on Maryland horse racing. An industry that has endured ruinous competition from other forms of legalized gambling over the past two decades, declining attendance, a gradual loss of racing dates, the slots brouhaha, and most recently, bankruptcy and the possibility of state takeover through eminent domain, found itself all wet again over the weekend.