Food Drive This Saturday.

The National Association of Letter Carriers, in conjunction with the United States Postal Service will be collecting non-perishable food items like canned soup, juice, pasta, vegetables, cereal and rice on Saturday, May 8 to help families in need in this community. Food donations should be placed by the mailbox on May 8 before the letter carrier arrives. The carrier will take it to the Post Office and it will then be delivered to Carthage Crosslines, a Carthage Area United Way agency, that assists in meeting emergency needs of persons and families in our community by providing assistance with food and clothing.

"With the slow economy and increase in food costs, our requests for food have increased to help people stretch their budget," said Belle Lown, Carthage Crosslines, Director. "New people who have never asked for assistance are now requesting help."

This is the 18th Annual NALC food drive, which is the nation’s largest one-day food drive held each year on the second Saturday in May.

Donations are accepted anytime at the Crossline’s office, 600 E. 6th St.

With all the advances in communication devices that have been made in the last several years, I am amazed that it is still nearly impossible to understand the person takin’ an order at a fast food drive-up. Sometimes I think they put in some sort of voice scramblin’ device so as to make ya accept what ever they have on hand at the time.

I also have a particular pet peeve with drive-up speaker orderin’. Ya turn in your order, but when ya get to the window, after you’ve paid of course, you’re notified that they just ran out of that one thing ya stopped there for in the first place. It just ruins that high quality dinin’ experience that we’ve all come to expect from fast food restaurants.

And no, I don’t want whatever the special of the minute is, thank you. I couldn’t understand what it was anyway.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

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HERE’S A TIP

By JoAnn Derson

• "When I travel, I find that the air in the hotel room makes my allergies act up. I have started packing a coffee mug and several tea bags. There sometimes is a microwave in my hotel room, and there almost always is a hospitality area where I can use the microwave to make a nice cup of hot tea. It saves me from having to make runs to expensive coffee shops." -- R.G. in Louisiana

• "Our baby does not enjoy tummy time on the floor at all, but he really loves laying face down on Daddy’s chest. He feels secure, and he still exercises his head and neck muscles." -- A.M. in Minnesota

• "I purchased two small colanders at a discount store. I use them to store grapes and berries in my refrigerator. The cold air can circulate around them, and it seems to keep them fresher longer." -- B.A. in Georgia

• Used fabric-softener sheets can be cut to fit the bottoms of small knickknacks. Attach with water-based glue. If it’s ever necessary, they can be soaked to remove.

• "For thank-you notes from a recent birthday party, I took a photo of each gift-giver with my child during present time. Then I printed each picture on a plain white sheet of paper in color. My child easily could see who gave her what, and she wrote a short note of thanks. The whole thing fit into a regular envelope, which she decorated with stickers." -- A.A. in Florida

• Backyard picnic tip: Use a muffin tray as a condiment tray. You can even line the cups with aluminum muffin liners for quick cleanup. Stock with mustard, ketchup, chopped onion, relish, etc.