Purple

The stylists say purple is the it winter color. But Baltimore already knows that, doesn't it? As the Ravens inch closer to a spot in the Super Bowl, the city has gone seriously, deliriously plum — and, sorry Milan, this is no fashion statement: It's a pride thing. With the light bulbs, the jerseys, the sweaters and the dog collars, the banners, the flags, the hats and the panty hose, the face paint, the ties and even, Lord help us, the wigs, Purple Friday, a season-long staple for die hards, has gone large.

Gov. Martin O'Malley has long promised that Baltimore and the Washington suburbs would each get a new light-rail line and that the Red Line and its Purple counterpart outside D.C. could be built at the same time. But state financial documents recently submitted to the Federal Transit Administration show that O'Malley's promise, to the state's most populous regions, will be difficult — if not impossible — to keep. The General Assembly's recent rejection of the governor's proposed gas tax hike makes it increasingly likely that the state will have to choose to build one line before the other, state and local transportation officials say. With no new tax revenue dedicated to transportation, finding the money for even one of the light-rail lines will be difficult, the officials say. The state hoped to begin construction on both lines in 2015, with the 14-mile Red Line — which would ultimately run from Woodlawn to the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center — opening in early 2021 and the 16-mile Purple Line opening between Bethesda and New Carrollton by late 2020.

Editor's note: A little boy yearns to know the purple coyote's secret but later wishes he hadn't been so curious.In the middle of a flat and arid desert stood a hill of sand and rock.Near this hill was a small house.Jim played alone in the garden with his old truck, which was missing one wheel.One day, a coyote appeared on the hill.A coyote unlike any other.A purple coyote.Jim watched him.The coyote did a little dance. Then he balanced himself on his right front paw and let out a strange howl:"WULULI WULA WULILA WUWU WA!"

COLLEGE PARK - Proposed construction on the Purple Line will not begin for at least another three years, but some local school leaders are concerned as state and county planners work to finalize a route. Under the current plan, the 16-mile light rail line will impact four middle and elementary schools in Prince George's and Montgomery County. While the Purple Line is welcome news to many drivers who commute along the heavily congested east-west corridor daily, parents and principals worry about student safety and school property space.

That purple glow illuminating two of Howard County's most prominent public buildings at night is nothing to be alarmed about -- unless perhaps you're a Washington Redskins fan. In honor of the Baltimore Ravens' bid to play in a second Super Bowl, County Executive Ken Ulman had the county rent purple spotlights that were installed outside the county-owned Gateway building, which is easily visible from Route 175, near Interstate 95, and the George Howard...

Football season has started and Ravens fans are putting on their purple hats and pulling out their pennants. This year, you can extend the purple passion to your table as well. We've pulled together a panoply of trendy purple vegetables, suitable for your next tailgating party or simply a family dinner. You can pick up purple broccoli, purple cauliflower, purple Peruvian potatoes, purple carrots, purple (maroon) cabbage and even purple asparagus. Ponder the possibilities. Steak and potatoes can take on a new hue. Carrots and hummus can be coordinated with team colors.

For months, the red-brick restaurant building stood forlornly vacant on the corner of Boston and Montford streets. Then, a few weeks ago, it flushed purple. "The paint is called Midnight Mansion. It's supposed to be a gray-blue," says Michael Strati. But, as he discovered, you paint gray-blue on top of red brick, and it becomes ... purple. So how come Strati named his new restaurant Red Fish? "I liked the name," he says. And, somehow the name Purple Fish doesn't have quite the right ring to it. Whether it was the name or the color, business boomed as soon as the eatery opened its doors July 14. "We got busy right off the bat," says Strati.

The Rev. Frank Reid III has a problem: how to dress for tomorrow's service at Bethel AME Church in Baltimore. Should he deliver the sermon wearing his Ravens sweat shirt or the Ray Lewis jersey? "We've encouraged the congregation to wear purple," Reid said. "And at some point [during the service] I will mention that we want to pray for the team." Purple passion has reached the pulpit. All around town, the clergy are throwing their ecumenical weight behind the Ravens, who play Pittsburgh tomorrow night for a spot in the Super Bowl.

Anybody notice the purple lights on the Washington Monument lately? Too late now if you haven't. They switch back to white tonight, now that it's March. But all last month, the monument glowed purple. Why? Well, it was actually a bit of a mistake, says Jennifer Morgan, director of community outreach for the city's Recreation and Parks Department. Rec and Parks agreed, at the request of the Maryland branch of the American Heart Association, to shine red lights on the monument during February, for national heart month.

Baltimore fashionistas probably aren't going to replace the little black dress with the little purple dress, but purple in all its glory is definitely the color of the moment. Not aubergine. Not plum. Not magenta or lavender. Purple. Jimi Hendrix immortalized the shade in "Purple Haze." Alice Walker raised it to the stature of literature. But it took the Ravens heading for the Super Bowl to make purple a fashion basic. For the past couple of weeks, people have been digging out any piece of clothing they own that has even a touch of purple.

Many of us throw our healthy-eating out the door at football game-watch parties. I mean who wants to eat veggies when there are chicken wings, spinach dip, sausage dogs and nachos on the menu? Maryland's First Lady Katie O'Malley wants people to at least try to eat healthy when the Ravens play the New England Patriots on Sunday. She launched the ChopChop Maryland ! initiative last year to promote healthy eating. This week the initiative has a recipe for a healthy cole slaw to eat on Game Day called Purple Slaw.

Go purple, or go to the library. That was the warning some teachers issued to parents at Roland Park Elementary/Middle School regarding student participation at Friday's Ravens-sponsored pep rally in advance of the team's conference championship game Sunday against the New England Patriots. "Students must wear purple or Ravens attire to attend, as there will be many TV cameras there," one teacher wrote to parents in an email obtained by The Baltimore Sun. "Not wearing purple or Ravens attire means making a choice not to attend.

Now through Sunday, everyone who orders the special Ravens-inspired blueberry shake at BGR will be entered into a raffle for the chance to win the BGR nine-pound burger before Sunday's AFC conference final title game against the Patriots. Why, because it's purple. The shake, not the BGR nine-pound burger, which looks to be the approximate size of the old Lamar Hunt Trophy. There are three BGR locations in Md.  

As the Baltimore Ravens get ready for this weekend's game, folks are geared up for a special playoff edition of Purple Friday, with colorful sweatshirts, caps, shirts, sweaters, etc. For the bookish, here are some favorite purple titles, to get in the m ood for the game. -- " Harold and the Purple Crayon. " Crockett Johnson's marvelous children's book describes the adventures of a boy who draws his own adventures with a magical crayon. -- "The Purple Decades-A Reader.

Do you sport a Fu Manchu because Joe Flacco does? Are you not only proudly wearing purple but following strict pregame rituals such as avoiding all things that smack of Texas (sorry, chili, cowboy boots, Lone Star Beer and excessive bragging)? Have you named your first-born Haloti? Then you, my friend, are a Ravens fanatic, and your time is at hand. This Sunday marks the ultimate experience of professional football fandom for any city, the home playoff game. The Super Bowl may be bigger, but it rarely takes place anywhere close to a team's field.

UPDATED - The Baltimore Ravens may have decided not to hold training camp in Westminster, but the team was in town this week to leave its mark on the Carroll County nevertheless. On Tuesday, Jan. 10, members of the Ravens' grounds crew visited the Best Western Hotel near McDaniel College to paint the team's logo on a hillside along Route 140. The crew was joined by Ravens front office staff, team mascot “Poe” and fans who came by to see the large logo take shape. The event to paint the town purple - literally - was in anticipation of the AFC divisional playoff game against the Houston Texans today, Sunday, Jan. 15, at M&T Bank Stadium.

What are we going to eat and drink Sunday night as we watch the Ravens play the Pittsburgh Steelers? This is the question that is consuming Baltimore eaters this week. There are several game-day possibilities: bowing to superstition, choosing local flavors or going purple. The superstition route is one Gary Scher travels. His eating habits bring the Ravens good luck, he thinks. When, for example, he watches the Ravens on television in his Ellicott City home, Scher always pops open a can of Coors in sync with the kickoff.

If the Ravens continue their winning ways, winter in Baltimore may resemble a huge, grape-flavored snowball. That's because city officials are considering using purple-colored road salt should the playoff-bound Ravens advance to the Super Bowl - and should it snow. "It's just an idea, but right now we have the blue salt and we're considering purple salt," said David Brown, spokesman for the city Department of Transportation. "We have to check with the manufacturer to see if it's possible."

Baltimore County government this week unveiled a little hometown pride - and its sports preference - when it turned Towson's Historic Courthouse signature dome purple on Friday, Jan. 6. County officials said the gesture is meant to support the Baltimore Ravens march to this year's Super Bowl, and also make it clear that the county considers the Ravens its team because of the franchise's headquarters in the county. "We are very proud that the Ravens corporate headquarters are located in Owings Mills," said Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz in a press release about the courthouse tribute.  "While we are delighted to share 'our' team with the entire region, we take special pride in knowing that the Ravens call Baltimore County home.

If Ravens fans want to make a trip to Indianapolis at the end of this season, they might want to stop in Cincinnati on the way. The road to the Super Bowl goes through the Queen City this weekend, and it wouldn't hurt if an extra-large purple-and-black entourage went along to make sure the Ravens feel more at home at Paul Brown Stadium. Tickets shouldn't be hard to find. I think they're giving them away in cereal boxes these days. The Bengals have had so much trouble filling their house that six of their seven home games this season had to be blacked out on local TV. The game Saturday against the Arizona Cardinals drew just an announced 41,373 to a stadium that holds 65,535.