Happy Holidays!

Thanks to departing Treasurer Larry Rodbard

We all owe a big THANK YOU to departing Treasurer/Board member Larry Rodbard. Larry has served on the board for many years, and he has saved us many thousands of dollars by providing accounting services free of charge to the HOA. The community should truly appreciate how much time and effort someone like Larry has donated to us all. If you run into Larry, a Pleasant Hill resident, please shake his hand and tell him, Thank you!"

Christmas garden in the news

Geoff Baker's video of Carl Taylor's Christmas garden made it into the Sunday Baltimore Sun. Click on the link above to read the article.

Source for small-space items

The blogger discovered a store that sells interesting small things designed to use in tight quarters. Most of the items have a modern look, but there are some good organizing items. The tiny fire pit and "grilliput" are especially cool. Oella residents who live in wee homes might find this site useful (also good for kids in dorms or teensy apartments):
www.tinyliving.com

A Holiday Treat: The Garden

Geoff Baker shares the terrific message below. Even those who don't celebrate Christmas will appreciate the beauty of this video (and maybe it will inject some much needed cheer). You may click on the link above or follow the addresses Geoff provides.

Message from Geoff:

In the spirit of the season I offer you an Oella Video Christmas Card.

A longtime Oella resident has a secret holiday treasure that he shared with me recently. With his permission, I can now bring it to you.

Running time is 5:25.

On YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFC67LUyxrw

or

On my OellaWorks site:

http://www.oellaworks.com/pages/video.html

I hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to share it with your friends
and loved ones.

GSB

Election Results are In!

It was a close race, and the new/returning board members are:

Anne Altemus
Joe Greer
Toni Mullin

Thanks to Henry Berger and Pam DeAngelis for counting votes, and thanks to all who ran a competitive race. It was the biggest turnout in years!

Let the politics & bickering begin!

After receiving numerous campaign pitches this weekend, the blogger would like to step in to bring some perspective.

In any election, one is presented with various opinions from various factions. These opinions are peppered with facts and emotions alike. Please remember that there is always a counter opinion or view of the facts. Consider all aspects before voting.

The architectural guidelines have not been enforced consistently from day 1. The finger will not be pointed to any one person. It is all of our responsibility to preserve Oella. If it is not going the way we want, then we may exercise our vote or step up to the plate to try to do something. We as homeowners, board members, or ARC members all find ourselves in difficult places when faced with situations where inconsistent decisions have been made. For instance, let's say a homeowner in a house built in 1900 asks to replace wooden windows and doors with energy efficient metal units. The request is denied (as it should be, in keeping with historic details). The owner points out that the house next door, also built in 1900, has metal windows & doors, and that these units were installed when the house was originally re-furbished and sold. Situations like this arise frequently, and everyone involved ends up being p.o.'d and conflicts arise. We end up with neighbors fighting each other, the ARC, and the board. No resolution arises. Clearly the current system isn't working.

Two HOA attorneys have stated that 1) the 2004 agreement that formed the ARC was poorly constructed, and 2) the best thing to "fix" the problems with architectural guidelines is to obtain an 80% vote in favor of either seriously amending the existing "blue book" or scrapping it and starting with a new HOA. Two out of two attorneys! What is the right thing to do? I don't know. But, I do know that the board is trying to do find out what is right.

Personally, I can't stand all of the negativity that this whole issue brings up. It's one of the reasons I felt so stressed while on the board. Let's try to be civil and fair to one another this evening. This can be an emotionally charged issue, and some in the community are very good at stirring the pot.

Amanda

Reminder: Annual Meeting of Members Mon. Dec 10 7:00pm

The 2007 Annual Meeting of Oella HOA Members will be held on Monday Dec. 10 at 7:00pm in the Westchester Center. This is a great chance to meet neighbors and discuss community issues. You must be a member of the association to attend. Elections for the board of directors will be held at that time. If you can't make it, please turn in your proxy vote. Your vote matters!

P.S. The blogger/webmaster has been very tardy in updating the HOA website with the December calendar (which is pretty blank except for Monday's meeting). She has an important competitive grant proposal due on Monday and has been focusing on that (one likes to collect a salary for one's work, but one who does scientific research must beg the government for a meager stipend every couple of years...or have a rich benefactor. Anyone know any?). Once grant madness season is over, the website will be updated. Apologies.

Baltimore Sun Article on Oella

An article about Oella, featuring Charles Wagandt, was in the Sunday Sun. Click on the link above to read it.