No Word on Court Fund Insurance Claim.

There has been no word from the bonding company concerning the funds found missing from the Municipal Court bond fund. City Clerk Lynn Campbell reported to the Finance/Personnel Committee that a claim had been filed with Allied Insurance on the theft of $64,681.27 from the Municipal Court. There was no indication if the claim would be paid. Mrs. Campbell noted the loss was probably more but the claim was filed using the documented amount from the Highway Patrol investigation.

Amy L. (Young) Harrison, 46, of Carthage, Missouri, was arrested by troopers with the Missouri State Highway Patrol on January 25, 2010. Harrison was arrested for one count of felony stealing and transported to the Jasper County Jail in Carthage, pending formal charges. Investigation into the theft was initiated on August 26, 2009, by the Patrol at the request of the Carthage Police Department. The amount of money involved initially was reported to exceed $25,000.

NASCAR THIS WEEK

By Monte Dutton

Sponsored by Curry Automotive

Kasey Kahne to Detour on Way to Hendrick

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Kasey Kahne is headed to Hendrick Motorsports, but it’s kind of complicated.

Kahne, 30, has already driven for three teams in the Sprint Cup Series -- without ever moving. He began with Evernham Motorsports, which became Gillett Evernham, which became Richard Petty Motorsports. All along, Kahne drove No. 9, but he started in a Dodge and this year changed to a Ford.

Considered one of the sport’s more talented drivers, it’s no surprise that Kahne is moving to Hendrick Motorsports once his contract at RPM expires at the end of the season, but he’s not moving there directly, or at least, that’s the current spin.

Next year Kahne will drive for a team not yet announced -- Stewart Haas Racing, a Hendrick satellite of sorts, is most often mentioned -- while Mark Martin completes his contractual commitment at Hendrick. Kahne will not actually join Hendrick proper until 2012. Or so it is currently assumed.

Kahne is willing to wait a year, apparently, in order to join the team that produced the top three finishers -- Jimmie Johnson, Martin and Jeff Gordon -- in last year’s Chase.

"To be in the position I’m in now and know where I’m going to be in 2012, to have the opportunity with Rick Hendrick and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, to me, it’s an unbelievable opportunity. I can’t wait to get that started."

Beyond the announcement of Kahne joining Hendrick in 2012, little is known. Martin has declared he isn’t retiring. Tony Stewart has said he has made no arrangements to have Kahne join him and Ryan Newman, and other scenarios (JR Motorsports, also Hendrick aligned, moving up from Nationwide to Cup being one) are similarly denied or, at least, played down. No one knows whether or not Kahne will take his crew chief, Kenny Francis, along with him -- wherever that is.

"I’ll work through it with Mr. Hendrick and figure out exactly what we need to do that makes the most sense," said Kahne.

I’ve gotten into a couple a conversations ‘bout the trials of bein’ a kid in the last week or two. Not the stuff ya hear about taday, the important trials like fallin’ off a bike or gettin’ hit with a baseball.

I suppose as a kid we didn’t think much of a broken arm or a sprained ankle as bein’ anything that devastatin’. That’s why takin’ some risks while at play was so common. I was shown scars ta prove it.

I suppose I was fortunate that durin’ these conversations there were plenty of stories bein’ told and I didn’t get the chance to relay any of my own. I always thought of my childhood as bein’ filled with some adventure or another, but it seems it was pretty typical of the times. But even today skinned knees are pretty good teachers.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

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CLICK and CLACK

TALK CARS

Dear Tom and Ray:

My company has a ‘93 Ford Club Wagon equipped for wheelchairs, as our company provides services for people with developmental disabilities. Some jerk punctured a hole in our fuel tank and took the fuel. We tried to repair it with a screw and some epoxy. It lasted for a couple of days, until the epoxy was eaten away. Is there another way to fix this, or do we need a new fuel tank? Thank you! - Linda

Tom: You can fix this , Linda. In fact, you can fix it pretty easily and cheaply.

Ray: This van is old enough to have a metal tank. So, go to your nearest auto parts store and buy yourself a fiberglass gas-tank repair kit.

Tom: The kit you want consists of a piece of fiberglass mesh, along with a little paintbrush and a special epoxy that won’t get eaten away by gasoline.

Ray: The first thing you have to do is drain the tank. That may already been done for you, thanks to the jerk. But if not, you need to siphon the remainder into a suitable container (i.e., not a co-worker’s travel mug( and give yourself a dry surface to wotk with.

Tom: Then you need to sand the area around the hole. Get as close as you can to the bare metal, because if you leave any rust, the rust eventually will fall off and take the patch with it.

Ray: Tehn get a pair of rubber gloves, and follow the instructions on how to mix the epoxy. Be aware that it gets very hot to the touch once it’s mixed.

Tom: You smear a layer of the epoxy around the hole with the paintbrush, than you embed a piece of the fiberglass mesh and "paint" the mesh with a layer of epoxy. When it dries, voila! No more leak.