Today's Feature

Public Hearing for Annexation.

Carthage City Council will meet at 7:30 p.m. this evening in the Council Chambers of City Hall. A public hearing regarding the municipally initiated annexation of Southwind Acres is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. prior to the meeting.

The second reading of a related ordinance, providing for the extension of the City Limits is also included on the Council agenda. According to the Plan of Intent for the annexation, the steps following the public hearing include the adoption of the annexation ordinance, obtaining a declaratory judgment and an election. In the election, under Missouri law, the annexation must be approved by a majority of voters in separate elections held in the area in order for the property to be annexed.

Council is also scheduled to hear the second reading of an ordinance changing Public Works and Public Health fees in the City of Carthage. These changes include increases of rates for construction debris at the Carthage Recycling Center and Landfill and increases to the fees for various curb and gutter repair by the Street Department.

Items in their first reading include an ordinance that would allow for the proposed 1/2 cent economic development sales tax on the ballot for the November 4, 2008 municipal election. This item is brought to Council with a recommendation to approve from the Budget committee.

Nothin’ like a big goose egg from bangin’ your head on the bottom of a table you’ve been under. Whack!

I hear that the thing to do is to apply all the pressure you can to the knot before it really starts swellin’. It may work, but what I really hear is the screamin’ from the victim bein’ helped in this way.

I grew up with a gentler remedy. Put some ice on it. I don’t figure anything makes a lot a difference. After a day or two the size gets smaller and starts feelin’ better ‘till ya happen to bump it again.

"Feels better when it stops hurtin’," my old baseball coach used ta say. Really funny guy.

At least if ya get a shiner you can make up a good story ‘bout the other guy.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

To Your Good Health

By Paul G. Donohue, M.D.

Asthma Can Strike at Any Age.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Isn’t it odd to come down with asthma at age 66? They tell me I have it. I had a cough that started this past winter, and it wouldn’t go away. It comes in spurts and is always worse at night. My family doctor sent me to a lung doctor, who did all sorts of tests on me; his verdict was asthma. No one believes me when I say I have asthma. They don’t say so, but I know they’re thinking I’m too old. -- P.G.

ANSWER: You can get asthma at any age. About 12 percent of adults suffer from it, and 15 percent of children have it. The number of adult asthmatic men equals the number of adult asthmatic women. In childhood, more boys than girls have it.

What happens in an asthma attack is a sudden narrowing of airways. Asthmatic airways are super-sensitive and asthmatics react to things that the rest of us don’t. In addition, the airways’ mucus glands pour out thick, sticky mucus, and the lining of the airways becomes swollen and inflamed. All of these mechanisms make it hard for air to pass into and out of the lungs.

Coughing is a characteristic asthma symptom. Wheezing during an attack is another telltale sign, but a cough might be the only thing indicating asthma.

Your doctor must have looked for a trigger for your attacks. If one is found, eliminating it assures successful treatment.