Today's Feature

Property Tax Second Reading.

The Carthage City Council will meet this evening at 7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall. Items on the agenda include the second reading of an ordinance levying real estate taxes for 2008.

A special meeting was held last Friday for the public hearing and first reading of this ordinance, and the vote is scheduled for this evening. According to preliminary numbers, the property tax rates are proposed at .7604 per $100 assessed valuation for this year. Last year’s rate was .7525 per $100 assessed valuation.

Council is also scheduled to hear the second reading of an ordinance amending the Memorial Hall rental contract, and an ordinance removing Hazel Avenue from HH highway to Fairview avenue as a truck route.

Items in their first reading include the addition of a penalty fee structure for contractors who work without permits, and three items from the Planning, Zoning and Historic Preservation Commission. Those three include two rezonings and one special use permit for operation of a preschool at 627 S. Orner.

Mornin'

I’ve had the opportunity to see the ruts left by the settlers crossin’ the Santa Fe trail. Curious thing those records of passage. Years after any horse drawn implement has been moved over, they still sit as a monument to the traffic. The comin’ of the railways no doubt changed the patterns of growth and the survival of small communities along the once popular trail.

If you stand in the silence, you can almost hear the braying of some lonesome old mule still searchin’ for the good old days when four legged creatures dictated the path to the future. It is a romantic time to read about in some book, but the current realities of transportation and the fluid changes in economic factors make the horse and buggy days a lot less appealing.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

To Your Good Health
By Paul Donohue, M.D.

Berries, Nuts, Popcorn and Diverticulosis.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I was hospitalized with diverticulosis and had to have intravenous fluids. My brother-in-law says that wasn’t necessary. He has it, and it has never caused him any trouble. He says he’s careful about not eating nuts, seeds, popcorn and berries, and that’s all you have to do for it. I know I was in pain, and can you clear up these issues for me? -- W.F.

ANSWER: Your brother-in-law is right about diverticulosis. It seldom causes severe pain. Diverticulosis is the formation of diverticula -- small protrusions on the outer colon wall. It’s a condition widespread in countries where refining flour is the rage. Refining gets rid of fiber, and a low-fiber diet is believed to be a major factor in the development of diverticulosis. Fiber keeps undigested food soft, moist and easily propelled through and out of the digestive tract. Without it, stool becomes hard and dry. The colon must exert great force to pass it through. That force generates diverticula formation.

You had more than diverticulosis. You had diverticulitis -- inflammation of the diverticula. Each diverticulum connects with the colon through a narrow neck. If that neck becomes obstructed, bacteria in the diverticulum multiply and cause it to swell and become most painful. Swollen diverticula break and form abscesses, which add to the pain. Most often, diverticulitis must be treated in the hospital.

If your personal doctor tells you to avoid those and similar foods, do so. He or she knows far more about your particular condition.