Romance

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,...

More than 200 cars and 1,700 spectators gathered in Jarrettsville on April 13 to celebrate Harford County's car culture at the 2nd Annual Romancing the Chrome Car Show hosted by Harford County Public Library and the Jarrettsville Lions Club. Car enthusiasts and onlookers alike enjoyed a beer garden, live music by The Diamond Heads and concessions by Pond View Farm and Pit Crew, WOLO gourmet food truck and catering and Jarrettsville Creamery and Deli. Attendees explored a variety of exhibits from vendors including the Jarrettsville Volunteer Fire Company, the Harford County Sheriff's Office, Harford County Public Library and several of the event's sponsors: Keene Dodge, Mr. Tire, Harford Sanitation/Waste Industries, WXCY, Race On LLC, Bill Schilling & Chad Shrodes/Long & Foster Realtors, Liberty Mutual, Atlantic Tractor, WAMD and the Jarrettsville Friends of Harford County Public Library.

I f you want to fall hard for a movie, and a movie star, this weekend, check out the ravishing new print of Elia Kazan's romance-cum-social drama, "Wild River" (1960), set in Depression-era Tennessee. Lee Remick had an undercelebrated run in gnarly pictures, from her debut as a drop-dead-gorgeous majorette in Kazan's "A Face in the Crowd" (1957) to her weathered turn as an ex-con's wife in Robert Mulligan's "Baby the Rain Must Fall" (1965). She's an unself-conscious dazzler in "Wild River," which she called her favorite movie.

The story of Monte and Patrice Sanders just might be the classic fitness fairy tale. Girl hires trainer. Sparks fly over sit-ups. Trainer turns boyfriend, then fiance, then husband. Healthy, happily ever after. As Baltimore's newest power couple approach their first anniversary, they're closer than ever, indulging in candid displays of public affection, embarking on projects together, thinking about expanding their family and, after a fairly hushed courtship, talking about how a news anchor fell for a celebrity trainer.

If you're looking for romance, Paris is definitely a winner. Just ask the guy from The Bachelor. But what if you're trying to find a romantic spot here in Maryland? Would you go to St. Michaels? Cumberland? We want you to tell us the best place to go for a romantic getaway in Maryland. Please e-mail your responses to travel@baltsun.com.

Sure, not everyone wants to celebrate Valentine's Day. It's not so hard to sit it out. But imagine if you and your sweetheart worked together in the Valentine's Day industry, catering to romance but, come dinnertime on Feb. 14, never able to experience it yourselves. That's the situation facing couples who work together in restaurants. Picture them: One is firing up a filet mignons, the other is clambering over boxes of sparkling wine in the walk-in. All the while, customers are glowing dreamily in the candlelight, clasping hands under the table and feeding each other succulent bites of lobster Thermidor.

CELEBRATING another wedding anniversary the other day so soon after the death of Arthur Murray, I decided to irritate our children. They are now adult enough to endure a little irritation, and afterward when I've gone off to bed it probably enhances their sense of maturity to sit around the kitchen table complaining that they have a lot to put up with.Romance was on my mind for obvious reasons: wedding anniversary, Arthur Murray, dancing cheek-to-cheek, etc. Also the Washington Post had run a good feature that morning about Murray, ballroom dancing and popular songs of long ago which tirelessly flogged the idea of "romance."

Avon J. Bellamy draws on the healing power of words and aims them like Cupid's arrows at the hearts of black women.With poetry, he tries to soothe the pain in relationships among blacks, ease tension between men and women and, most of all, revive romance. He says his poems are meant to tell black women something they're told too rarely -- that they're special."We've lost respect for ourselves and our women in a way that we wouldn't have allowed to happen when I was a teen-ager," says Mr. Bellamy, 53, a Baltimore native.

"QUICK," I SAY TO A COLLEAGUE, "what's the most romantic thing that ever happened to you?"Her answer comes back with the speed of an arrow shot from Cupid's bow."This may sound really ridiculous," she says, "but I think it was when a guy I was dating kissed me while I was brushing my teeth. He had been away on a trip and rushed over to my house when he returned. He barged into the bathroom, said he was so happy to see me and started kissing me -- even though I had a mouthful of Crest."Hmmmmmm.

The two stars reportedly hated each other during the filming, but Richard Gere and Debra Winger sure made convincing romance on screen in "An Officer and a Gentleman" (8: 05 p.m.-10: 50 p.m., TBS).Director Taylor Hackford's 1982 film follows Gere as he maneuvers his way through Naval Officer Candidate School, despite two strikes against him: his attitude (he's quite the operator) and his drill instructor (Louis Gossett Jr.), who's hardly his biggest fan.Gere has never been better; he and Winger generate plenty of heat (some of which will be toned down for commercial TV)

For romance writer Suzie Carr, inspiration comes from everyday life. Through her lesbian romance novels, she tackles topics such as adultery, temptation, bullying and coming of age. She says she hopes those themes resonate with her readers and bring awareness to social issues. “Through my books, I feel like I'm touching lives. There's a positive message behind it,” says Carr, who lives in Elkridge. “It's more than just a love story. This literature could be mainstream because it deals with real-life issues.” Carr's first novel, “The Fiche Room” -- which is currently being adapted into a short film -- was published in 2007 by LavenderDoor.com, a website that sells e-books.

Sure, not everyone wants to celebrate Valentine's Day. It's not so hard to sit it out. But imagine if you and your sweetheart worked together in the Valentine's Day industry, catering to romance but, come dinnertime on Feb. 14, never able to experience it yourselves. That's the situation facing couples who work together in restaurants. Picture them: One is firing up a filet mignons, the other is clambering over boxes of sparkling wine in the walk-in. All the while, customers are glowing dreamily in the candlelight, clasping hands under the table and feeding each other succulent bites of lobster Thermidor.

Baltimore has witnessed love and loss. From the banks of the harbor to Mount Vernon's cobblestones to the grassed-over burial plots of Greenmount Cemetery, embedded in this city are vestiges of some of history's great romances, stories of people coming together and people coming undone. Pamela Regis, a professor of English at McDaniel College and as director of the Nora Roberts Center for American Romance, something of a scholar of the heart, sees romance in the possibility suggested by the harbor, in people coming together and separating at Penn Station, in the centuries old neighborhoods where generations courted, married and grew families.

Ever stay at a wonderful hotel and dream of replicating that style at home? Travelers often covet the fluffy bedding, chic furnishings, deep soaking tubs and fancy showerheads that are standard these days at many hotels. With Valentine's Day fast approaching, there's no better time to evoke a cozy, romantic bed-and-breakfast or a luxe hotel feel right within your own abode. "The home is a sacred place. You share it with those that you care about and love the most," says Amanda Austin, owner of the eponymous Baltimore interior design firm.

Every day, they sit alone in their offices, writing about love, passion, romance. They bring to life muscled heroes, dangerous vixens, strong heroines — lovers all — then put enormous obstacles in the way of the would-be lovers so they must struggle for that happily-ever-after. The members of the Maryland Romance Writers meet once a month at the Arbutus Library to discuss the craft and business of writing the most popular genre of fiction in America. Their books are among the more than $1.3 billion worth of romance novels sold in a year.

Wedding date: October 13, 2012 Her story: Angela Horner, 27, grew up in Severn. She lives in Baltimore's Pigtown and is licensing team manager at Laureate Education. Her father, Robert Horner, is a physicist in the electronics industry. Her mother, Gloria Horner, is a Hospice of the Chesapeake volunteer, and teaches English as a second language through her church, Severn Run Evangelical Presbyterian Church. His story: Chris Montgomery, 34, grew up in Pasadena. He lives in Baltimore's Pigtown and is a network administrator at Anne Arundel Community College.

Slightly more than one-third of surveyed moviegoers reported seeing fewer films this year than in the previous year.

Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, newly single, was lunching with an old friend. She wanted to know if he was dating. Nope, he said, too busy - why, did she know anyone? Karmen Walker, she suggested. The willowy government relations liaison for Comcast was a familiar face around Annapolis. Brown knew her work, that her husband had been killed in a car accident, that she was a single mother. "No way," Brown said. "She's got to be in a relationship. " If his friend could confirm Walker's availability, Brown agreed to call her. Five minutes after lunch, his phone rang: Confirmed.

It's long been known that one surefire way to draw a crowd in Harford County is to hold a vintage car and hot rod rally and show. Saturday was no exception. Under bright blue skies, scores of beautiful cars and hundreds of people converged on Jarrett's Field in Jarrettsville for Romancing the Chrome, a show put together by the Harford County Public Library and the Jarrettsville Lions Club. The show was organized to help promote the exhibit "Cars: A Harford County Love Affair" that opened April 12 at the Jarrettsville library and runs through May 19. The show also provided a perfect prelude to the annual Night Out at the Jarrettsville Library that evening which featured an appearance by Earl Swift, author of "The Big Roads," a history of the interstate highway system.