High Stakes? Low Turn Out.

A turn-out of just 6.95 percent of registered voters decided the fate of several key issues in Jasper County yesterday.

In Carthage, the little publicized run for 1st Ward write in candidates, Jim Swatsenbarg won the race with 14 votes. Melissa Daugherty ran second with 7 votes, and 9 other votes were spread among six other write-ins.

Wayne Walter filed for the 2nd Ward post but passed away before the election. Mayor Mike Harris will nominate a temporary replacement that will need Council approval.

In Ward 3, unopposed Steve Leibbrand garnered 94 votes to take the seat, with 4 write in votes opposed.

Ward 4 incumbent Bill Welch was defeated 250 to 83 by former 5th Ward Council member Dan Rife.

Ward 5 candidate Ed Hardesty narrowly defeated former Council member Lujene Clark by 85 to 76 votes.

Three R-9 School Board members were elected: Elizabeth Stretch, 688; Tony Diggs, 583; Jeffrey L. Jones 570. Alan Snow ran a close 4th with 556.

I guess if folks understand what you’re talkin’ about, it doesn’t really matter that what your sayin’ doesn’t actually make any sense.

I’ve always thought the term cat fishin’ was a little misleadin’. ‘Course the same is true for ice fishin’, and pond fishin’ I suppose.

Then there are those expressions like sky high and low down. I guess just one word isn’t sufficient to express the extreme of high or low.

It’s prob’ly not reasonable to assume that we humans would always say exactly what we are thinkin’ or really mean, ‘specially considerin’ how much most of us talk. We all take short cuts like "cat fishin’" when we know they’ll be understood. ‘Sides, if ya have to explain it, you’re prob’ly in the wrong conversation.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

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Weekly Column

HERE’S A TIP

By JoAnn Derson

• "I purchase rotisserie chickens and use the meat for different things -- soup, casseroles, etc. I have a trick for getting the skin off. My hand strength isn’t what it used to be, and those birds are slippery. I use a paper towel to grip the skin, and pull the meat and bone right out. It works well on a raw bird, too." -- L.A. in Florida

• To rewhiten socks or wash cloths, try boiling a pot of water and adding a sliced, juiced lemon. Soak the items for at least an hour, and then pick out the lemon and add the pot -- water and all -- to a load of wash.

• "If there are crushed cookies in a pack I purchase, I set them aside in a plastic baggie in the freezer to use on ice cream. Yummy!" -- R.L. in Alberta, Canada

• "If you’ve been cooking in the oven and have a pan that’s got cooked-on food, you can get it clean without all the scrubbing. Immediately after cooking, while the oven is still hot, add enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, and a little dish soap. Put it in the oven until the oven is cool. The residual heat will work on the stuck-on food while you are dining, and it’ll wipe right out." -- W.O. in Minnesota

• When washing out stockings, add a tablespoon of vinegar to the rinse water, and they will retain their elasticity better.

• "Wintergreen oil makes a lovely room freshener. Put two drops on a cotton ball and tuck it into the cushions of your couch, or hide it under a lamp pedestal ... anywhere out of the way. The scent drifts for a week or so." -- G.T. in Delaware