As two Montgomery County residents who commute to Baltimore daily, we’ve attacked this week’s power outages in different ways.

Don’t get us wrong, we’re both steaming about Pepco’s slow return to service, but knowing their business a bit — and seeing all of the damage from the storm’s downed trees — has helped take off the edge.

So has working with A/C in Baltimore.

Here’s this week from each of our points of view.

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The more I learn about online marketing, the more I want free stuff. I’m even happy when I have to pay, so long as I perceive that I’m getting a deal – an extra service at no extra charge, a discount or a trial offer. As a savvy consumer, I feel that I’m entitled to something more.

So today is a great day in my world: It’s my birthday, and I’m celebrating with some free stuff, courtesy of my favorite retailers. Happy Birthday to me!

So far I’ve acquired:

• A free pilates or yoga class at balance studio in Bethesda
• 15% off at the ING Direct shop
• 10% off at Progressions Salon Spa in Rockville (my hair salon of choice)

The ING Direct offer is lame, admittedly. I’m happy with my savings account, but I don’t want their merchandise, no matter how practical or useful some of it is. How about an offer for something good from a partner/sponsor, ING?

But that yoga class is worth at least $15, maybe $20, and it accomplishes something for balance, too: I haven’t visited the studio in at least six months, since my last class ended. By getting me back on their turf, there’s a much better chance I’ll sign up for another set of classes — a $150 “get” for them.

Bring ‘em on!

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As someone who co-habitates with an aerospace engineer, I’m embarrassed to admit that I’d never heard of the L2 point, or Lagrange point, before Monday night. After listening to three astronauts discuss a potential mission to one, and reading the subject’s Wikipedia entry, I’m still not 100% certain I’ve got it — but I’m pretty darn impressed.

My engineer and I attended a screening of “For All Mankind” at the AFI Silver Theatre on Monday. Afterwards we stayed for a discussion with astronauts T. Ken Mattingly (Gary Sinise in “Apollo 13″!), Tom Jones and Frank Culbertson. It was moderated by Joel Achenbach of the Washington Post (way more up my alley), whose blog appears on our sidebar.

All three astronauts spoke longingly of their time in orbit, and all three hammered the importance of funding the space program, even in depressing economic times. I can’t remember the comparison exactly, but one of them juxtaposed NASA funding with the economic stimulus package – which, of course, makes a trip to the moon seem like a basement bargain.

As breathtaking as the film was, I still struggle to personally support funding of such an expensive, seemingly impractical pursuit. I’m proud of our country’s past accomplishments, but I’m a pragmatist at heart: what does it get us here on Earth?

Then I went home last night and cozied myself on the couch to watch Monday’s episode of “The Closer” on my DVR. On the show, Sergeant Gabriel swore that a fleeing robber shot at him before he returned fire, but the injured man was unarmed and no weapon was found. There was no explanation – until the unit discovered the “three-body problem.”

It’s that darn L2 again, rearing its head.

As it turns out, the gunman was standing directly behind the unarmed man – creating an alignment of the three men that prohibited the first from a direct view of the third. Once the basics of the scientific theory were explained, Brenda Leigh Johnson and her team could move on to solve the case.

So, does this mean that all space travel pays off in the end, due to the knowledge we gain as a society? I doubt it. But it was a timely — and pointed — reminder to me that some does.

And, let’s face it – I’m always searching the universe for a good blog post.

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As an online journalist and puppy enthusiast, if something’s at the intersection of furry animals and technology — it’s where I want to be.

Bethesda-based Iridium Satellite is at that point right now. Their technology is tracking the progress of more than 60 people (and about 1,000 dogs) traveling through 1,200 miles of life-threatening terrain pursuing a lifelong ambition: the Iditarod sled dog race.

This year, each dog sled is required to be fitted with an Iridium-based tracking device, consisting of a small modem, GPS receiver and a battery. Every 15 minutes, the device transmits the sled’s location, speed, heading and temperature to a central server so its progress can be tracked.

It’s a service that could save lives, in an isolated environment where each musher is traveling alone with his or her dogs.

It also provides an opportunity for fans to follow the 10-to-17 day race online, via a “live” map. (That link’s just a free preview, of course – the subscription-service “Iditarod Insider” GPS Tracker is $19.95.)

I like dogs as much as the next person – maybe more – but for $19.95… I’ll wait to catch a free pic of the winner on a news site.

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College campuses have forgone serving simple dishes like tacos in favor of crab cake sliders, mini samosas and tilapia, according to Sodexo, a food service provider to 600 campuses in the United States and Canada.

Gaithersburg, Md.-based Sodexo released a food trends menu for 2009, as compared to tastes two decades ago.

2009

1. Locally-grown fruits and vegetables
2. Crispy garlic-ginger chicken wings
3. Mac ‘n five cheeses
4. Vietnamese Pho
5. Green tea and pomegranate smoothies

1989

1. Fruit and cottage cheese plate
2. Chicken nuggets
3. Turkey Tetrazini
4. Chicken Chop Suey
5. Egg, bacon and cheese on an English muffin

It’s clear that culturally inspired food is one of the biggest shifts in contemporary palates.

“The biggest change we’ve seen is in the demand for locally-grown produce and authentic international cuisine that is made to order,” said Chef Rob Morasco of Sodexo. “Super spices, comfort food with a twist, and the new age of Asian cuisine are some of the trends we’re delivering.”

Global traveling, visiting ethnic restaurants, living abroad and cooking diverse dishes at home have contributed to the new preferences.

What types of food trends will hit it big in 20 more years? Maybe steak-flavored food capsules a la The Jetson’s? Or will college kids go “retro” with chicken nuggets?

SHERRYN DANIEL, Daily Record Web Intern

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A week ago, officials in Montgomery County were hoping that they would see a gain of 350 jobs due to the relocation of Hilton Hotels’ corporate headquarters from California. But, since Hilton chose to move to Fairfax County, Va., Montgomery County stands to lose employees from Choice and Marriott hotels (headquartered in Montgomery) who may be wooed to work for Hilton. And the county could add to the job loss by firing someone over the whole mess.

According to news reports, county council members are griping about the fact that Virginia beat out Maryland’s incentive package for Hilton by $2.2 million. County Economic Development Director Pradeep Ganguly, whose department has a $19.6 million budget, is now on the hot seat for the failure to snare a third global hotel headquarters for the county.

Ganguly’s defense, according to the article, is that Montgomery and Fairfax counties are not comparable and Montgomery’s jobless rate (4 percent) is the lowest in the nation for counties in a metropolitan region.

But it’s not just council members sounding off — a post on the blog O’Malley Watch this week questioned how many other business opportunities the county could be losing because of its higher cost of living, and postings in response rattled off a number of reasons why Montgomery County failed.

Where do you stand? Was this a huge failure for the county and should someone be punished? Are the county’s taxes driving away other business opportunities?

Or should the council just take a chill pill — they simply got beat by Fairfax, fair and square?

LIZ FARMER, Business Writer

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Looks like people within the finance industry are expecting the light at the end of the tunnel to be a long way off.

The Bethesda-based Association for Financial Professionals released its 2009 outlook survey today, and the view’s pretty bleak.

Here are some highlights (er, ‘lowlights’):

• 5 out of 6 financial professionals do not expect business to improve in 2009
• 49% expect their organizations to decrease the number of workers they employ over the next year
• 63% believe it will not be until at least mid-year 2009 before the credit markets begin to recover
• 79% of organizations expect to take additional “defensive actions” to conserve cash if short-term credit conditions not improve by mid-year

You can download the full survey from AFP here. (PDF)

JACKIE SAUTER, Web Editor

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Back in September I blogged about the effect the lousy economy was having on video game sales. At the time, NPR reported that game sales were up 43 percent over the same period in 2007. The report drew a parallel between increased gaming and Americans flocking to movie theaters during the Great Depression, looking for some enjoyment and escapism during otherwise bleak times.

I have no idea how to judge the current economy — the Dow’s too insane day to day — but at least one Maryland gaming company is doing fine.

Bethesda Softworks LLC, out of Rockville, released the much-anticipated Fallout 3 last week for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. The company has already shipped more than 4.7 million units — or $300 million worth of games. Reviews are calling it a major candidate for Game of the Year. That would be a huge coup for the company, which also had the 2006 Game of the Year in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

Maybe that’s the way we can fix the economy — use tax dollars to develop new video games. And I’m not talking some little program. I mean a Manhattan Project-sized dedication of resources to the creation of the biggest, baddest games imaginable. I’m sure the guys at NASA must have a few good ideas knocking around in their heads.

Then we can sell the games all over the world. Maybe, in time, people will be so busy with their “role playing” lives that they won’t have the time or inclination to blow the heck out of each other. That means in addition to a serious amount of cash, we could bring peace to the world. The more I type, the better this idea sounds. I’m going to clear some space on my bookshelf for the inevitable Nobel Peace Prize.

But until that day, I’ll have to be happy with the creations of companies such as Bethesda Softworks LLC. I have a big stack of untouched games at home, and was on the fence about buying Fallout 3, but my coworker just described watching her boyfriend be attacked by a rabid dog in the game’s wasteland world, and that sounds like way too much fun to miss out on.

JOE BACCHUS, Web Specialist

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I may have gained an hour of sleep this weekend, but I’m set to lose it again tomorrow morning.

My alarm clock’s poised in anticipation of dreadful lines at my polling place (Bethesda Elementary School, in MoCo). I’m planning to arrive at 6:30 a.m., even though it doesn’t technically open till 7:00 a.m. Sure, it’s anal-retentive, but I’m a “better safe than sorry” kind of gal. And I’ve heard from friends in North Carolina and Virginia that early-voting wait times in those states took up to two hours.

Thankfully, I spent a good portion of the weekend binging on West Wing episodes, so my sense of patriotism and love for democracy are at an all-time high.

I’ll have my camera and cell phone and plan to document the experience. Hopefully, the result will be a picture of a grade school with an empty parking lot.

If you’d like to do the same, send in a picture or a description of your voting experience and we’ll collect them for the blog. I’d love to get reports from around the state. Email them to tdrweb[at]gmail.com and we’ll do the rest.

Godspeed to us all.

JACKIE SAUTER, Web Editor 

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Living in Montgomery County continues to have its perks.

Sure, it takes me an hour to get to work everyday, but it’s the best place to live in the country in terms of longevity, according to NPR this morning.

I can expect to keep on… keeping on until I reach 81.31 years, due to the top-notch hospitals and walkable neighborhoods.

Money mag was the source behind the news of Montgomery Co. residents’ longer lifespans.

Here’s NPR’s Pat Brogan with a full (audio) report.

JACKIE SAUTER, Web Editor 

P.S. A nod to HoCo residents; the county came in No. 22 on the list. Two counties in NoVa (Fairfax and Arlington) placed sixth and 15th, respectively.

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