Almost Full Circle

My very first post was from weave found at 38th street and Greenmount avenue. That area is a crossroads between the gated neighborhood of Guilford and the less gated area of The Waverlies. Guilford has a security team in clean white 'securitas' cars (part of the independent Securitas company), and labyrinthine streets. Waverly does not have a security team, but also boasts a good number of confusing one way streets.
Looking back at that post from two years ago, it's weak. That area deserves greater attention. Here is my opportunity to make up for it in a small way. Recently a friend in Baltimore sent me a picture from not too far away from that original spot: Cold Spring lane and York road.
Here it is:

This may be the biggest piece any one has sent me a picture of so far. I once saw a full wig, but that may have just been a rat. The confusion is common in Baltimore. Not to get graphic, but when the weather gets warm and drowned rats start decorating gutters and street corners it can be visually confusing.
To set the stage of this area, here you can find a barber shop called 'Nappee by Nature', a hectic transfer site for MTA buses, and a supremely bustling intersection. Other notable locations: York road Animal Hospital, Lianah Dominican Hair Salon, and a fried chicken/ lake trout spot called Chicken Run. A weird assortment for all your hair and chicken needs.
I used to bike through that intersection to get to Roland Park from Waverly. There were always residents out in lawn chairs talking and gossiping and children playing on porches. Another common sight is men with suspiciously slouched, stumbling, feet-dragging swaggers. Are you following me here?
When this was my daily route, these men gave me nicknames like 'Snow Flake' and 'Snow White'- just to include me. One of these men, in addition to being a vocal advocate of 'Nappee by Nature', had a penchant for carrying and brandishing machetes. It may have just been one machete. Owning one machete is rare, multiple blades would be outrageous.
Another anecdote that I can't keep in: on the 8 bus a few days, while I listened to two men bicker about the appropriate way to treat women (a good sign for the future of young adults), I watched a couple of people sell Coronas out of a battered box to drivers stopped at that light for 3 bucks a piece. You never see the same thing twice at that intersection.
If you haven't seen the aforementioned corner, it's positioned between the neighborhoods of Waverly, Govans, Guilford, and Pen Lucy. Can we please give a shout out to Pen Lucy? That neighborhood is dwarfed by some giants. An even smaller neighborhood? Richnor Springs

See? Small
According to www.livebaltimore.com, Richnor Springs is "one of those great little secrets of Baltimore City life". The page describes it as a tight community with quiet, tree-lined streets. Most residents have lived there their entire lives. They know the area and they've watched it grow and change, wax and wane. There is a change based on the average home sales from 2008 to 2010. In 2008, the average price was $128, 402 and 7 homes were sold; in 2009 the average price was $39,750 and 2 houses were sold; in 2010 the average price was $38,786 and 7 were sold.
If you do a search for news at that specified intersection, as of July 29th, the most recent article is about an attempted carjacking from last month(1). The second hit is from 2010. On the page for Richnor Springs from the Live Baltimore website, you can follow a link to see the crime map provided by the Baltimore police force. After entering the address for Nappee by Nature, this is the map provided:

As the dates on the map show, this is just for the past two weeks.
This website has a good breakdown of the demographics. It states at the bottom of the page that all information is "reliable but not guaranteed", and has been updated in the current year. Good disclaimer. I was directed there by the website www.redfin.com, which is a real estate company that is different from other companies because, according to their about section, they're "really on your side". Their breakdown of demographics reflects a community primarily of homeowners who are, again primarily, between the ages of 5-14, 25-29, and 50-54. A majority of the residents have attained a high school diploma or some college, and a white collar job. The crime FAQs indicates 7 times the risk for robbery and 6 times the risk for murder. It doesn't say, but I'm assuming that is a national average. The chart above from the crime map is showing stolen cars as the greatest risk for the past two weeks.

What these stats don't show is the eagerness of the community association to involve residents, plan events, and address community concerns. Richnor Springs is a good example of a small neighborhood getting swallowed up by larger city concerns and the sometimes harsh stigma surrounding the residents.




Thanks to Mo for the picture
Thanks to Baltimore

Sources
(1)http://northbaltimore.patch.com/groups/police-and-fire/p/police-attempted-carjacking-on-cold-spring-lane
(2)http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/Richnor_Springs/info
http://www.livebaltimore.com/neighborhoods/list/richnorsprings/
http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/Richnor-Springs-Baltimore-MD.html
http://www.redfin.com/neighborhood/2270/MD/Baltimore/Richnor-Springs

In Baltimore, You'll Find What You've Been Waiting For

The summer time is finally here. The brutal heat and humidity, characteristics not unknown to those who live anywhere between New York City and Florida, leaves the air heavy with moisture you cannot avoid; your armpits wet like a woolen sweater caught in a rainstorm. In Baltimore, it means running from your crumbling house that was built well before air conditioning or closets large enough to fit a hanger. Out in the streets, people of all races, ages, genders, and the like search for reprieve in shaded parks, free museums, and out door markets- which is exactly where our newest treasure was found.

Found on Baltimore Avenue by Hollins Market, this extension is clear and fresh as the early morning haze on the pavement in the summer. Before we begin, Baltimore has 6 public markets that were established between the 18th and 19th centuries. Baltimore may be famous for more than lots of crime, dilapidated row homes, and the inner harbor,but these markets should be at the forefront of every local and tourists mind when grasping for what makes Baltimore a worthwhile city. Lexington Market is by far the oldest and the largest and reasonably stationed under a bridge- like all great things in the greatest city in America, it is a little weird and oddly located.
But Hollins Market, a block-long, 30,000-square foot facility, has a two-story front built in 1877. Located in Baltimore's old Lithuanian section, Hollins Market is the only one to still retain its second floor. Up until the late 1950s, vendors along three blocks of Hollins Street sold goods outside the market. This market was the last to close its outside street stalls. [For those are interested, it is open from 7 am to 6pm on South Arlington Avenue.
The Hollins Market neighborhood itself is about 14,764 people per square mile; the average household income is a little below the city average ($38,772) at $35,014. The majority of people who live in Hollins Market Neighborhood have a high school diploma at around 38% of residents, with second highest coming in with a bachelor degree at around 10% of residents. Racially, it is primarily black, followed by white, then hispanic,and then asain, and then- according to the internet- "other". Whatever other means.
And there, among the diversity and the butchers and bakers and candlestick makers peddling their wares, was this woven treat.

If you're caught in the summer heat of Baltimore, a hidden treasure or adventure is never from your front door- or bus stop.

Thanks to Mo-mo for this picture and location.

Thanks to The Extra Glenns for "Baltimore".