Upbeat

Washington - Seconds before he won the title of national Republican chairman, Michael S. Steele turned to his sister, Monica, who was standing at his side in the crowded Capital Hilton ballroom, and grinned. "We're going to have some fun," he told her. A sunny, magnetic personality helped Steele capture the job, and that upbeat image may be his most potent weapon in motivating a beleaguered party organization. Steele brings badly needed diversity to a national party that, according to Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, just had its worst showing among minority voters in 150 years.

Watching Steve Irwin's last excellent adventure is, to be honest, more than a little creepy. And no, that doesn't mean this well-produced special on dangerous ocean critters contains any ominous footage. It doesn't even mention the fact that Irwin was killed in September by a relatively benign fish, a stingray. On the contrary, the show goes out of its way to stress how skilled the "Crocodile Hunter" was at his chosen work, and how responsibly he approached it. Phillippe Cousteau, narrator of Ocean's Deadliest, watches Irwin swim up to a sea snake and marvels, "I've never seen such rapport between a sea creature and a human."

I'm glad this isn't one of those columns where they have a mug shot of the writer up by the headline. It seems as though the picture rarely matches what the columnist writes about. Sure, there's Dave Barry, whose goofy-looking mug is fairly consistent with his topics. One look at that face and you're not surprised to read about boogers and spontaneous livestock explosions. In fact, over time, you come to expect it.But then there's a newspaper columnist known as "Dr. Laura," whose picture sports a grin that beams from ear to ear. Seeing that domineering smile, you'd expect to read nothing but cheerful, upbeat advice.

Larry Young, the Maryland senator expelled for ethics transgressions, said on his weekly radio show yesterday that he will meet with community and church groups this week before making a decision about his political future.His district's Democratic Central Committee has scheduled a meeting Feb. 10 to interview candidates for the Senate seat that Young held for a decade.Two weeks ago, when Young's colleagues removed him for using his public office for private gain, he said he hoped to reclaim the seat.

GIVEN THE increasing specialization of magazines and the inability of people to keep anything private these days, I guess it's no surprise there's now a magazine called Divorce.You would think -- at least I would think -- that someone going through a painful divorce would not want to read articles such as "She Threw a Plate at My Head!" or "All He Ever Did Was Lie on the Couch, the Big, Fat Pig."Me, I don't see how a divorcing person derives comfort from that.I don't see why a person reeling from his or her own damaged relationship would want to read columns like "Her Shyster Lawyer Took Me For All I Had" or "Golf, Golf, Golf -- That's All He Ever Did."

A couple of workers from Alex. Brown were smoking cigarettes on the sidewalk outside the firm's South Street headquarters when a woman in a dark suit walked by."Do you have any idea how much money that man just made selling this firm?" she said to the smokers, stretching her arms out wide. "Thi-i-i-s much!""I have no idea who that was," one worker said as the woman disappeared into the lunch-hour crowd.Friends or strangers, many who hit the sunny streets of downtown Baltimore yesterday were chattering about the pending merger of Baltimore's historic Alex.

Steven M. Pickett has just minted Maryland's economic motto for the year."Conservatively upbeat," the Chubb Group vice president said, is the outlook not only for his own insurance business but for his customers and perhaps the entire Maryland economy."

A bitter last-minute loss to arch-rival Army last December robbed Navy of a chance to finish with its first winning football season in 12 years and "left a scar on my heart," said head coach Charlie Weatherbie, who has regained his unbridled optimism while preparing to greet 40 lettermen for the opening of spring practice tomorrow.Weatherbie, who finished 5-6 in his first season, took a last look back on last year's frustrating ending, when Army marched 99 yards against the clock for the winning touchdown in a 14-13 victory.

NEGATIVITY must be in the eyes of the beholder.When the boys who used to run the city kicked off the Baltimore News three months ago, the honorary chairman and investor, William Donald Schaefer, pledged to be positive."

Charlie Weatherbie, the Naval Academy's new football boss, says he was born to coach."It's just in my blood," said Weatherbie, who will begin spring practice in Annapolis tomorrow. He is faced with the task of rebuilding a football program that went 14-41 in five seasons under George Chaump, who was fired last December after a third straight loss to Army.The Midshipmen will spend the next month getting acquainted with Weatherbie, who will combine the triple-option philosophy he employed at Utah State with the freewheeling ideas of new offensive coordinator Paul Johnson, from Hawaii.

Washington - Seconds before he won the title of national Republican chairman, Michael S. Steele turned to his sister, Monica, who was standing at his side in the crowded Capital Hilton ballroom, and grinned. "We're going to have some fun," he told her. A sunny, magnetic personality helped Steele capture the job, and that upbeat image may be his most potent weapon in motivating a beleaguered party organization. Steele brings badly needed diversity to a national party that, according to Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, just had its worst showing among minority voters in 150 years.

Despite losing three straight games, the Ravens remain upbeat. But that might change if the Ravens don't win one of the next three games against Miami, Oakland and Cleveland. It's one thing to lose to Pittsburgh, Tennessee and Indianapolis, but it's another story to lose to three struggling teams, even if two of the three games are on the road. (For more, go to baltimoresun.com/ravensinsider)

FORT JACKSON, S.C. -- Seizing on the decline in civilian and U.S. military deaths in Iraq, President Bush delivered an upbeat assessment of the war's progress yesterday, citing both the drop in violence and greater Iraqi control of restive provinces. But he conceded that corruption remains a problem, unemployment is high and economic improvement is spotty at best. "Slowly but surely, the people of Iraq are reclaiming a normal society," he told a cheering crowd of 1,300 soldiers who had just completed the Army's nine-week basic combat training course.

It's a wonder anybody wants a thankless job like Baltimore police chief, but lots of people want a hand in picking the poor schmo. Mayor Sheila Dixon's chief of staff invited Pat Jessamy to be involved in the search, and the state's attorney was so thrilled that she issued a news release thanking Dixon, Jessamy's spokeswoman said. But Jessamy didn't hear a peep from the mayor's office until this week, when Dixon announced that she was close to picking a new commish, Jessamy spokeswoman Margaret Burns told The Sun's Julie Bykowicz.

Kevin Millar, Orioles first baseman How do you stay upbeat during a losing streak? Just keep battling. It makes you tougher. Tough times make you tougher. We just need to keep battling as a group. We can't feel sorry for ourselves.

Watching Steve Irwin's last excellent adventure is, to be honest, more than a little creepy. And no, that doesn't mean this well-produced special on dangerous ocean critters contains any ominous footage. It doesn't even mention the fact that Irwin was killed in September by a relatively benign fish, a stingray. On the contrary, the show goes out of its way to stress how skilled the "Crocodile Hunter" was at his chosen work, and how responsibly he approached it. Phillippe Cousteau, narrator of Ocean's Deadliest, watches Irwin swim up to a sea snake and marvels, "I've never seen such rapport between a sea creature and a human."

Miguel Tejada's happiness was one of the Orioles' biggest concerns heading into spring training last year, but judging by comments the star shortstop made yesterday, it is no longer an issue. He is "extremely content with the Orioles," Tejada told the Associated Press in his native Dominican Republic, where he is playing winter ball to get some at-bats before reporting to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for spring training next month. "I don't think anymore about those things that they have to do to sign players," Tejada said.

For its 40th anniversary, the Shriver Hall Concert Series programmed a typically classy roster of soloists and chamber ensembles and a high-profile piano festival for extra celebration. Then, shortly before the 2005-2006 season started in October, the organization faced an unexpected hurdle - the departure of its popular and successful executive director, Sel Kardan. The resolution of that last little matter was likewise unexpected. "We had a fairly large search and some good applicants for the job," says Jephta Drachman, president of the Shriver board of directors, "but no one had unanimous support.

When the players of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra took the stage of the Music Center at Strathmore Thursday night for a summer festival concert, they gave every appearance of normality, after what was probably the most abnormal week of their professional lives. Then again, the opening piece on the program just happened to be called Facade, so you never know. The orchestra's heavily publicized objection to naming a new music director, and the decision by the BSO board of directors to proceed with the historic appointment of Marin Alsop to that post, must have taken a severe toll on morale in the ensemble.

LOCALLY Tessco Technologies Inc.Shares of the Hunt Valley-based company, which provides products and services to the wireless communications industry, soared 27 percent yesterday, gaining $2.76 to $12.98. Late Tuesday, Tessco reported earnings of 36 cents a share for its fiscal second quarter and gave upbeat expectations for this fiscal year and the next as well. NATIONALLY Cardinal Health Inc. The drug wholesaler's shares surged $8.02, or 20 percent, to $47.35, the largest jump in the S&P 500. Cardinal said in a delayed earnings report that its fiscal fourth-quarter profit rose after a restatement.