Waiting

The first speed cameras in Anne Arundel County will be up and running in Annapolis school zones within weeks, officials said. More than a year has passed since the city council first approved the cameras. Three months have gone by while a contractor researched traffic patterns to determine where to put them. Mayor Joshua Cohen said this week that the project is nearing completion. "Anytime you talk about speed cameras, it smacks a little bit of 'Big Brother,' " Cohen said. "I didn't want to rush into this.

Jason Babin can still get after the quarterback. That, more than anything, is why after the veteran defensive end was surprisingly released by the Philadelphia Eagles yesterday, the Ravens were immediately mentioned as a potential fit. It makes sense. The Ravens have been looking to upgrade their pass rush all season. Defensive end Pernell McPhee has battled injuries all year and he's not been a factor in creating pressure. His replacement, Arthur Jones, has come on and had two sacks against the San Diego Chargers on Sunday but those were the first quarterback takedowns of his career.

Baseball's winter meetings begin in earnest Monday, and this was supposed to be the year that a lot of the impact signings were made before the sport's annual powwow. The thought was that changes in compensation for free agents would jumpstart the market and that some of the huge names would come off the board before anyone got on a plane to Nashville. Although more rumors are swirling this week, only seven of Yahoo Sports' Top 50 free agents have signed and only one of the Top 14 (Hiroki Kuroda, who re-upped with the New York Yankees)

Cornerback Chris Johnson - signed by the Ravens on Nov. 13 - didn't take much time making an impact for his new team, stripping Mike Wallace after the wide receiver caught a pass in the first quarter of the Ravens' eventual 13-10 win against the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday night. Johnson, who was signed two days prior to Jimmy Smith undergoing surgery to repair a sports hernia, lined up as the fifth defensive back in the team's nickel package - a role that had previously gone to Chykie Brown in the Ravens' 55-20 rout of the Oakland Raiders on Nov. 11. Brown, the organization's fifth-round pick in last year's draft, tried not to sound disappointed about getting leapfrogged on the depth chart by Johnson.

When it's not quite 9 a.m. on a Sunday and there's a crowd gathering on the sidewalk, there's a good chance something special is happening. When that crowd is gathering outside the funky facade of Blue Moon Cafe in Fells Point, breakfast is that something special. Here's how breakfast at Blue Moon works: Upon arrival, head inside to track down a waiter and add your name to the ever-growing list. During our visit, at a quarter to 9, the wait was 30 minutes; an hour later when we left, it had swelled to a full hour and a half.

The way Dez Wells played in a couple of preseason scrimmages, you got the feeling that the transfer from Xavier was going to immediately become Maryland's go-to guy after regaining his eligibility two days before the season opener against Kentucky. After all, Wells had been one of the best freshmen in the Atlantic 10 last season while playing for the Musketeers. He gives the Terps a slashing guard who can shoot and pass off the dribble, and he's strong in traffic. But Wells has shown only flashes in Maryland's first two games.

Nine Baltimore-area boys basketball players are committed to Division I programs , but at least one won't sign during the fall period, which begins Wednesday. Former Patterson guard Aquille Carr doesn't plan to sign with Seton Hall during the week-long signing period, according to his high school coach. Is the two-time Baltimore Sun All-Metro Player of the Year still committed to the Pirates? "Absolutely," said Van Whitfield , Carr's coach at Princeton Day Academy in Beltsville.

Anyone driving north on Honeygo Boulevard in White Marsh one week ago Friday in midafternoon might have been surprised at the slow crawl of traffic. So many vehicles were turning into Honeygo Run Regional Park that the right lane was set aside for them, and in the parking lot cars filled every no-parking zone and every patch of grass that could be occupied. More patient souls simply circled, waiting for a regular space to open. It wasn't the boy's high school soccer playoff game that caused such a mess (although Perry Hall's overtime victory over Dulaney turned out to be a thriller)

Shirtless, John Wall crouched and dribbled a basketball above his head with his right hand and another low to the ground with his left hand. Unable to keep the routine together as he reached half-court, Wall grunted as he lost control, started over, and tried the exercise once again. With Washington Wizards assistant coach Ryan Saunders looking on, Wall has concluded nearly every practice with ballhandling drills, something he had never done before a stress injury to his left knee produced his longest absence from playing the game he loves dearly.

It has become obvious that early voting has become a hit in Maryland. Over 430,000 residents - 11.7 percent of eligible voters - chose to exercise their right to participate is this very important component of the American election process ("Voting resumes at record pace," Nov. 1). Hopefully, more Marylanders will be encouraged to participate as the kinks in the system are worked out, particularly the need for more early voting centers. I also found it somewhat irksome that The Sun waited until early voting was completed to publish its presidential endorsement.