AC/Heater, Fridge, Microwave, Oven/Stove, Coffee Machine, TV, Sofas.
- It is a 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath townhouse
- Spacious rooms, basement, Full-furnished.
- Well equipped kitchen
- Living room is furnished with recliner sofas, TV and chromecast.
- Close to UMBC (1 miles); 15 mins to Downtown (5.5 miles)
- UMBC transit bus stop close to the townhouse
- Weis and Giants supermarkets at 2 mins walking distance.
- Quiet and safe

Humans suffer from a tribalistic compulsion to divide others into groups. The idea of “us versus them” is incredibly pervasive across multiple cultures, and the divides that sports can bring often intensifies this. While it is a good thing that sports offer a greater sense of community, the benefit is sometimes outweighed by intensifying the sense of tribalism, which leads to vitriolic actions like racism.

This environment came to a flashbang during the Orioles game against the Boston Red Sox on Monday, May 5. Boston fans allegedly hurled racial epithets and threw peanuts at Orioles center fielder Adam Jones. These attacks came from a minority of fans, the majority of whom were ejected during the game. Most Red Sox fans gave Adam Johnson a standing ovation during the next game at historic Fenway Park, showing that the problem is clearly not a universal one.

On the other hand, this is not enigmatic. As far back as half a decade ago, Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell described Boston as “a flea market of racism” and described a culture where he suffered for his background and not simply for sports reasons. Unfortunately, these problems transcend Boston. Jackie Robinson was not the first example of the ubiquity of racism in American sports, and he certainly would not be the last.

In fact, racism in sports exceeds United States boundaries. Soccer, despite how much positivity it represents around the globe, has had numerous racial incidents occur around the globe. French star Thierry Henry faced so much racial abuse during his time playing in Spain that he became a major figurehead for the Kick It Out organization, established in 1993 to remove racism from soccer.

However, despite decade long efforts, racism is still alive and well in the soccer world. On April 30, during a match in the Italian Serie A, Ghanaian player Sulley Muntari walked off the field after receiving racial epithets from a family in the crowd. The referee did nothing and the Italian soccer federation has yet to do anything to react to the incident.

The situation is even worse in Eastern Europe, where soccer is intrinsically linked with politics, both of which are very corrupt. The Serbian league has a multitude of racially charged incidents every year, and there is no conclusive solution for any of it.

All of this begs the question of what can be done? First off, there is a huge issue of accountability that needs to be discussed. Are the Red Sox as an organization responsible for the actions of a few fans? It is hard to condemn the organization for standing out against it, but it is also a franchise with a history of incidents like this. Is it up to players to recognize that it is happening, and like Muntari, walk off as a show of protest? Should players who are not the target of these incidents walk off as a show of solidarity?

The answer is difficult, but it is up to the whole community. Russell’s negative experiences in Boston were not only on the court. Within the greater Boston area he was disenfranchised by shop owners, realtors and more. The simple fact is that racism happens in our communities, and we must all stand up against it.

Simply speaking out against it is not enough, it is the responsibility of the community to create an environment where racism cannot thrive. We all have to support organizations like Kick It Out, we all have to seek consequences for those who would shout racial epithets and we all have to make our voices heard.

Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” When we allow racism and “otherism” to exist by not speaking out against it, we all lose. When we allow it to bleed out into our sports and other activities, we are taking great community building activities and we are defiling them and that is a travesty.

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The UMBC softball team lost consecutive games against the Maine Black Bears 4-1 and 7-1 in the weekend of April 21’s shortened two game series (with Saturday’s doubleheader being cut to a single game due to rain). Despite the Retrievers making 13 hits over the course of both games, and junior Carly Lesko hitting the first home run of the series, Maine still proved to be too much for UMBC.

Maine possessed the superior record over UMBC over the years (25-15) and it showed in this series. The Retrievers, 19-22 overall record before the weekend, begun to show their offensive prowess, particularly in the recent 15-0 and 11-7 routs of Rider University. Going into these games on the back of a 1-2 series record against the Great Danes of the University at Albany; they had positive signs of life but issues to work on.

Before the game, head coach Heather Gelbard spoke about the areas that the team could build on, and how important it was to start the game well.

“I thought we’ve made some strides in the past week, showing an aggressiveness up to bat. We saw a couple of people who had been struggling break out and have some really good performances. [The key for us is] getting some runs early, not letting the other team score on us early [so as not to let them] change some of our offensive game plan.”

The Retrievers started the first game positively, with the team keeping Maine without a run in the first inning. UMBC junior pitcher Kim Puccio put in a good performance in this game, making no errors and striking out one. Then Lesko homered to left field at the bottom of the first, recording a hit and a run, and giving UMBC the lead as a reward for being in the ascendancy. Maine remained scoreless until the start of the fourth inning.

From the top of the fourth, Maine began to dominate the game, hitting four homeruns in that inning alone. They did not need any more as they held UMBC and managed to shut UMBC out for the duration of the game.

The second game did not go according to Gelbard’s plan either. The Retriever’s defense was unable to hold out the Black Bears, as they scored five runs in the first three innings. UMBC’s offense did not get any homeruns until the last inning when second baseman senior Jaclyn Buckley got on with a fielder’s choice. Maine scored two homers in the seventh inning, closing the game out and wining the series finale 7-1.

The Retrievers’ offense and defense may not have been strong enough to defeat the number one team in America East, but they showed resilience to keep going and trying to get on the board despite the heavy defeat. The resilience is a positive for the team as they look forward to a trio of games against UMass Lowell next week.

The post UMBC goes down to top team Maine Black Bears in back-to-back weekend games appeared first on The Retriever.

Coming into this season, the Retrievers baseball team had the University of Massachusetts Lowell River Hawks’ number. The Retrievers swept the season series last year, decidedly outscoring the River Hawks 31-18 in the six meetings. When the two teams squared off again last weekend, the Retrievers produced similar results, taking two out of three from their conference foes.

The opener, the first game of a day/night doubleheader, did not foreshadow what would be a fruitful weekend for the Retrievers (13-17, 7-5 in America East Conference), with the River Hawks (20-16, 8-6in AEC) outhitting them en route to a 6-2 victory. After a clean first inning, UMass Lowell struck first when junior left fielder Colby Maiola stroked a solo homer over the centerfield wall.

Freshman designated hitter Cam Climo doubled two batters later and scored on a misplayed fly ball off the bat of freshman infielder John Polichetti to extend the lead to two. A half inning later, the Retrievers answered back when sophomore left fielder Raven Beeman sliced an 0-1 pitch past the outstretched glove of sophomore right fielder Russ Olive to tie the game.

UMass Lowell found their home run swing again in the top of the fourth inning. This time, Climo delivered the two-run blow, giving the River Hawks a 4-2 lead. A Maiola opposite field double and a Steve Passatempo solo homer in the top of the seventh put the game out of reach.

The Retrievers looked a lot better on the mound and at the plate in the next two games, winning both contests 5-2. The Retrievers offense played more like the group that scored at least four runs in 11 of their last 16 games.

“We’ve just been preaching ‘get a good pitch, put a good swing on it, try to get through the baseball and create some line drives and when we do that we can be a pretty good offensive ballclub’,” Retrievers head coach Bob Mumma said. “One through nine have a good chance to have a big day any given day.”

The Retrievers also received strong efforts from their starters, junior Matt Chanin and freshman Michell Wilson. Chanin hurled a complete game in Friday night’s shortened seven inning game, allowing two earned runs on three hits, walking one and striking out four. The junior came into Friday’s game with a 5.23 ERA.

“I was getting a lot of weak contact, throwing a lot of strikes and the defense played great,” Chanin said. “Staying downhill mixing speeds, [the strategy] was really successful.”

Wilson followed up on Sunday with an equally stellar performance, surrendering two runs (one earned) on five hits while fanning four in five innings of work. He entered play Sunday with a 6.94 ERA.

In the nightcap of Friday’s doubleheader, the Retrievers sprinted out to a 2-1 lead thanks to a River Hawks error on a dropped fly ball by UMass Lowell sophomore center fielder Michael Young and an RBI double by UMBC freshman third baseman Christian Torres. Maiola’s second long ball of the series tied the game in the top of the fourth. Later, the boys in gold broke the tie in the bottom of the sixth without a ton of hard contact.

Junior catcher Zack Bright blooped a pinch hit single to right field, moving Beeman, who led off with a single, to third. The next batter, senior center fielder Andrew Casali, dribbled a swinging bunt that River Hawks junior reliever Luke Tomczyk misplayed, driving in Beeman and giving UMBC the lead for good.

On Sunday, the Retrievers overcame an early two run deficit with four consecutive hits leading to three runs and the only lead change of the afternoon. Casali led the mini-hit parade with a bloop single to center field. Junior first baseman Jamie Switalski capped off the run by tripling off of the left centerfield fence which brought home sophomore second baseman AJ Wright and senior catcher Hunter Dolshun, giving the Retrievers the lead for good.

The Retrievers head out on the road for the next three weeks. They will not have to travel far, as they first head to Shirley Povich Field in Rockville to play the Georgetown University Hoyas on the April 25 before facing the University of Albany for a three game set.

The post Retrievers baseball grounds UMass Lowell River Hawks, take weekend series appeared first on The Retriever.

By: Dorianne St. Fleur via The Muse

While it’s true that terrible jobs are often directly related to a horrible bossor boring, tedious work, things that can be hard to problem-solve, many people have found a way to enjoy what they do in spite of a few outstanding negatives. A recent study showed that 49.6% of people enjoy their jobs.

Even though almost half of employees like their jobs, if you’re part of the 50.4% of people who don’t, it can be hard not to see folks who love what they do as unicorns of the workplace. People who’ve been given access to the best jobs and opportunities and who have all the chips falling into place. The lucky ones.

But the truth is, more often than not, people who are satisfied with their jobs simply do a few things differently than everyone else—they don’t necessarily have the best managers or a to-do list full of very important items. Here’s what sets them apart:

1. They Don’t Seek Perfection

Although this may come as a shock—especially while scrolling through your social media feeds and seeing all those people bragging about their dream jobs—fulfillment is in large part about attitude. No one has a “perfect” work situation. If you were to take a peek behind the scenes of someone who likes their job, you’d probably find they still have to deal with the unavoidable challenges we all face (like recovering from a mistake or dealing with a condescending colleague), and that some days really aren’t so great.

Instead of obsessing over the mishaps though (or even the fact that their boss is super moody), they embrace the positive parts. They don’t attempt to love every moment of every day. They know that a certain amount of drudgery and politics is par for the course, and they relish the meaty assignments and opportunity to contribute their talents. Giving up the illusion of perfection separates them and ultimately makes them feel more satisfied.

2. They Set Career Goals

As a HR professional and career coach, I encounter individuals almost daily who are at varying levels of job satisfaction. What I’ve found is if you ask people who are unsatisfied what their professional goals are for the next three, six, or 12 months, most of them will likely tell you they’re not sure. Or if they do have goals, they tend to be non-specific and don’t get to the heart of what will help them appreciate their work more.

Setting career goals for yourself allows you to have a sense of direction, motivation, and accountability. People who love their jobs know this and are always striving toward something. Whether it’s getting a promotion, a title change, or more autonomy, there’s a constant desire to achieve. And because there’s always something else to look forward to (learning a new skill, finding a new mentor, becoming a mentor), there’s little time for things to feel stagnant.

3. They Play to Their Strengths

Although we’ve all been taught (and it may feel like a no-brainer) to focus on strengthening our weaknesses, people who enjoy their work generally spend most of their time on things they’re skilled in.

Continuing to excel at the things you do well—like solving complex problems for your team or presenting your ideas in front of large audiences—is much easier than trying to improve in the areas where you’re struggling (and perhaps have always struggled). Plus, the satisfaction you feel from doing a good job, will go a long way when it comes to overall fulfillment. Emphasizing your unique strengths will make you more confident and increase the likelihood that you’ll want to operate at your highest level, which is basically a prerequisite to enjoying what you do for work.

4. They Have Friends at Work

People who like their job, more often than not, also like their co-workers. When you’re comfortable with the people you work with every day, it’s easier to be your authentic self, there’s more space for your creativity to flow, and there’s also room for you to vent your frustrations (something we all need from time to time). This means you’re more likely to share your goals (no matter how ambitious or lofty) and to express your opinions (even if they’re different from everyone else’s).

You don’t have to force yourself to become BFFs with every single person in the office, but you should make an effort to build genuine relationships with your colleagues since it’s been shown to lead to more engagement and satisfaction at work.

If you’ve resigned yourself to being unhappy at your job, ask yourself if you’ve done everything you can to make your situation better. Have you tried to accept the parts you can’t change (like the open office set up or the shoddy internet)? Do you throw yourself into work you have a chance to make stand out? Do you give yourself a pat on the back when you complete a project or receive praise from your team? Do you approach each day with at least a neutral mindset, hopeful for good things to come as opposed to waiting for everything to crash and burn?

Obviously, there are certain situations that no amount of acceptance or willed positivity can fix, but dire scenarios aside, see if you can’t also be one of the lucky ones by following these ideas.