I've read your recent column, and I feel bad for you. I've been to the Baltimore Aquarium, and too, know how it is to have such a wonderful day destroied by a bunch of non-manered "curtain crawlers" (as you so well put it). During all of my fieldtrips, growing up, my father was ALWAYS there as a volunteer parental chaperone and I knew that if I did one thing wrong, I was in deep poop. He also knew how to control children, not his own, and did so, rather well. Now-a-days, parents are affraid to even remotly discaplin anothers child for fear of being sued over "emotinal distress" or other outlandish charges. I would give Baltimore another chance. Go to an O's game, maybe another trip to the big fish tank, just take a stun gun and the Rail Line :)

Fuzzyng,

Thanks for the sympathy and encouragement, but Baltimore is a no-go for me. This wasn't my first trip to the city, just the first to the aquarium. The last good experience I had in Baltimore was in 1969 when I went to see T-Rex and Three Dog Night (talk about a kick-ass concert). Everything since then has been a bad deal for me in one way or another. I'll just look at it as my little black cloud and avoid it. Also, if I did go, and was packing, it wouldn't be a stun gun. Something in the .45 caliber range is more like it.

Ken:

I am so sorry you had such a bad experience in Baltimore. I feel especially bad because we just went in February and had this fantastic experience. But, of course, we knew a few tricks.

First of all, we parked in the parking structure of the Renaissance Hotel, which was pretty secure (and very convenient). Then we went to the aquarium on a Friday evening, and it was almost completely empty. We had the whole place to ourselves!

We came away thinking that Baltimore was a pretty nice place and that we couldn't wait to get back.

Sorry you had such a bad experience.

--pilot

Ken, I know what you mean-BTDT- same place last summer. Seems like this generation of parents have gone and done a 180 degree turn from what I remember. Parents should realize kids ARE kids, and we ARE there to have fun(and maybe a little education), but don't spoil that same enjoyment for others! Rein in and Reel in the little curtain climbers.

penncam