WTF: Marylanders Cuss How Much?

The Marchex Institute says Maryland may have raised cursing to an art form. What the #@%*?

What's so great about being nice?  Nice never got anybody anywhere, right? According to a finding from the Marchex Institute, those are some questions Marylanders might ask themselves considering the institute's recent findings: We curse and act impolitely on consumer telephone calls. Whether that says anything about Marylanders as a people is between you and your robocaller, but it's statistically true, according to the institute - only Ohio had more cursing measured on more than 600,000 phone calls from the past 12 months.  Virginia, our neighbor to the south, on the other hand, was fifth for most courteous. Marchex released the findings just in time for National Etiquette Week, monitoring calls placed by consumers to businesses across …

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Stakes Have Been Raised in Race to Pack Thousands of Meals for Hungry

Hair shaving, leg waxing, eating spiders and walking down Main Street wearing... what?

You might remember last month we brought you the story about the MD VS Hunger event, which pits Glen Burnie against Annapolis in the packaging of meals for the hungry - over 200,000 meals.  Donations and volunteers are still needed for the packing sessions this Sunday, so organizers are upping the ante by offering some incentives, but this only if certain milestones are met. What kind of incentives? Well, there's the walking down Main Street one, which in and of itself isn't so bad, but take into account this is a pastor from a local church who will wear a Speedo swimsuit and—wait for it—a tutu, then proceed to jump into Ego Alley. He'll also eat live spiders, shave his head and wax his legs. It's all in a day's work said Josh Burnett, a …

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Recent Obituaries from Annapolis

Patch collects a listing of those recently deceased with local connections.

Arlene D. Deck, 94, a four-year resident of Ginger Cove in Annapolis and formerly a 22-year resident of Heritage Harbor, died May 13 at Anne Arundel Medical Center. She was a member of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Annapolis. (Legacy.com) Doris Stant Justice, 70, of Annapolis and formerly of Crisfield, died May 13 at Anne Arundel Medical Center. Justice served as the clerk for property tax and assessment division for Anne Arundel County for 30 years. (Legacy.com) Gertrude “Trudy” Speck Whittaker, 95, died May 13 surrounded by family and friends. Whittaker was married to Lyman “Whit” Whittaker, former administrator of the facility now known as Anne Arundel Medical Center. Trudy Whittaker was among the founders of the Eucharistic and hospital …

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This Inspiring Story Brought to You by Grape-Nuts

Teen Grabs National Speedskating Title

Sixteen-year-old Shaner LeBauer of Potomac captured his first U.S. National Championship speedskating title in March. Sponsored by Post Grape-Nuts.

About this sponsorship: In honor of the 60th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary’s historic ascent of Mount Everest, Patch and Grape-Nuts are teaming up to highlight those who inspire people around them to climb their own mountains. Facing the Challenge Sixteen-year-old Shaner LeBauer of Potomac captured his first U.S. National Championship speedskating title in the 2013 U.S. Short Track Age Graded Championships in March. But he says the biggest challenge about winning the title wasn't from that weekend, but the season as a whole. "Coming to a new school and balancing the obligations of junior year with my training routine compromised my sleep schedule as well as my social life," LeBauer says. "In the end, however, it was worth it and I can …

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Annapolis Crime: 1,200 Feet of Copper Wire, Chainsaws Stolen from Construction Sites

Police say the copper wire was taken from a construction site on Cedar Park Road.

The Annapolis Police Department reported three burglaries this month where burglars let themselves in without forced entry. May 15—An undisclosed amount of money was taken from a homeowner's purse left downstairs while she was upstairs in the home, according to police. The side door to the home was left unlocked. May 14—Two rolls of copper wire were reported stolen from a construction site in the 1400 block of Cedar Park Road. Approximately 1,200 feet of wire was taken from a room inside the building  under construction, but there was no sign of forced entry to the site, according to a police report. May 1-May 12—Four chainsaws were reported stolen from a garage under construction in the 1000 block of Forest Hills Avenue. Police said the …

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Retiring at 50: Could You Follow This Woman's Extreme Savings Plan?

Here's the story of Marlene Konkoly, who found creative ways to spend less and save more so she can retire at 50. This story is the first in our series about Extreme Savers.

Americans may be living longer but our retirement plans aren’t keeping up, which means people are living longer with smaller bank accounts. Marlene Konkoly will retire at age 50. How did she do it? She contributes a whopping 45 percent of the gross annual income she earns as a procurement officer for an automotive finance company to her retirement—all while owning a home and remaining debt-free. Konkoly is actually well ahead of the retirement savings curve compared to many of her fellow Americans. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, fewer than half of Americans even know how much money they would need to retire. And nearly a third of employees who had access to a defined contribution plan such as a 401(k) did not participate in it…

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Pedal to the Job for Bike to Work Day on Friday

A celebration of the event will take place at City Dock in downtown Annapolis Friday morning.

May is National Bike Month, and on Friday cities across the country will celebrate Bike to Work Day. In Annapolis, a celebration of the event will take place at 7 a.m. downtown at City Dock. Hosted by the Annapolis Regional Transportation Management Association, Annapolis Department of Transportation and the Baltimore Metropolitan Council, the downtown Bike to Work Day event promotes riding bicycles to alleviate traffic congestion, encourage better health and protect the environment. "What this is, is a mode of transportation," said David Humphreys, executive director of the Annapolis Regional Transportation Management Association. "This is a 17th century city—biking here makes sense." At the Friday morning event, there will be …

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Powerball Jackpot Upped to $550 Million

The prize is the third largest in American history, according to lottery officials.

The Powerball jackpot for Saturday's drawing has been raised to become what would be the third-largest jackpot prize in American history. Due to strong sales, the jackpot for Saturday was raised from $475 million to $550 million, with a $350.1 million cash option. It is the second largest prize in Powerball's history. No ticket has had the winning numbers for the past 13 drawings—since early April, according to a Maryland Lottery press release. Maryland has had two winning Powerball tickets since the Maryland Lottery joined the game in 2010. One was a Pennsylvania couple who purchased a ticket in Elkton on Christmas Eve in 2011 that won them $128.8 million. That September, an Abingdon couple won $108.8 million, according to the release. …

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