Sit Down

Let's hack away all the posturing, all the talk about difficult decisions and a replay of Frank Robinson's brilliant playing career. The 1989 baseball season doesn't live here anymore.Purely, simply, the move had to be made. And it was unnecessary for general manager Roland Hemond to keep saying, "Poor Frank, poor Frank," yesterday when Robinson was ordered to vacate the home manager's office at Memorial Stadium.This was not a hard decision. The situation fairly screamed for something to be done.

THE CRITICS WISH us to unwrite what has already been written. Lawrence Bell never had trouble paying his bills, and Carl Stokes never dropped out of college. And so on. As though unwriting it would un-do the acts themselves. As though none of this connects with the business of running the city of Baltimore."You got any secrets you want to get off your chest?" Martin O'Malley was asked the other day."No," he said, laughing. "I pay my bills on time, and I have my college diploma."He sounded like a man delighted to be standing out of the line of fire.

Theirs was a union that began with an introduction in a hospital waiting room and resulted in the exchanging of wedding vows on May 15. As the voices of Roberta Flack and Peabo Bryson flowed through the speakers that day with the ballad "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love For You," Waverly Paige and the former Beverly Singletary lovingly embraced as they danced for the first time as newlyweds."

Debbie Maiste starts most of her days by facing hordes of hungry teen-agers. They fill up the Einstein Brothers Bagel shop she runs near the corner of Falls Road and Cold Spring Lane and grab a few bites of breakfast before heading over to Poly/Western high schools. Sharing a small space with masses of spirited high schoolers doesn't faze Maiste. "They're kids," she said. "If they get too loud, or if they are late for school, I just walk over and give them my Mom-glare." The Mom-glare, Maiste told me, usually brings the kids around.

Rick was one of the few straight men in America who had no problem admitting he liked show tunes. In fact, he loved them. He would sit there in the office all day and sing. He had a good voice, and a rotating repertoire, so he didn't repeat himself. I didn't mind. I like show tunes. It was like sitting next to a radio. Occasionally, though, he would burst forth with lyrics that were completely inappropriate for his gender, and for tender ears. That funny, blue line from A Chorus Line would shock us all into laughter.

Right from the start, I knew we would have problems in our relationship. We were too much alike, he and I. Type A. Achievers. The kind who love lists and checking things off. The kind who love control. And yet, as the new year rolled in with all its resolutions and promises of change, I made a commitment to him. I downloaded the app to my phone and linked myself for the foreseeable future to MyFitnessPal. He made promises, and I did, too. But could we keep them? After all, we both wanted the same thing: We were determined to get rid of the eight pounds that had crept onto my frame in the last year.

Cal Ripken Jr. stopped by The Baltimore Sun this morning as part of the promotional tour for his third children's novel, “Wild Pitch,” which came out today. The book - about a young pitcher who loses his confidence after beaning an opponent - was co-written by Sun columnist Kevin Cowherd. Before leaving on a book signing tour that will include stops in a number of spring training spots (including the Orioles' camp in Sarasota on Thursday), Ripken sat down for a quick Q&A touching on the O's, his color commentary, the late Earl Weaver and his son Ryan.

A Walmart Supercenter is scheduled to open Oct. 17 on Liberty Road in Randallstown, and Baltimore County officials hope it will give a boost to a corridor targeted for revitalization. County officials and community leaders expect that the store at Liberty Plaza will attract attention from other major chains to the area. Consumers in Randallstown have high levels of education and income, they say, but the area has struggled to draw national retailers and restaurants. Residents complain that there are too many fast-food restaurants and low-quality stores.

Hemorrhoids are swollen and inflamed veins in the anal area. Also called piles, this common condition can be quite painful. Often a modification in diet is all that is needed to reduce the discomfort, says Dr. Robert Akbari, colorectal surgeon at St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson. What causes hemorrhoids? They are largely blamed on the low-fiber Western diet, which is constipating. People who strain a lot with a bowel movement are more prone to develop them. Pregnancy, with changes in hormones and bowel movements, can lead to hemorrhoids.

Boston.-- We are entering one of those dangerous moments in our country's history. I am not talking about the mounting deficit or the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. The scariest fact of the hour is that the commander-in-chief of the United States of America is about to boot up and log-on to the computer world.Poppy at the keyboard? A mouse in the House? Mr. Bush as a beginner in BASIC? George and the user-friendly software? Do I see another children's book in the making or a horror story?