Myers Park Street Bids.

Bids for the construction of the traffic roundabout in the Myers Park Development and the extension of George Phelps Boulevard to Hazel Avenue were opened Monday afternoon in City Hall. All bids were under the engineer’s estimate of $744,595 for the complete project. A base bid was also requested that could have been used if bids were high. The engineer’s estimate of that base bid was $682,615.

Sprouls Construction submitted the apparent low bid of $528,526.70 for the base bid and $565,996.70 for the complete project.

Alumbaugh Construction bids were $578,363 and $629,324.

APAC was the high bidder at $684,435.26 and $735,257.06.

City Engineering Department Director Joe Butler told the representatives present that the bids would checked for math and submitted to the Public Works Committee Wednesday afternoon for consideration.

The project would complete the construction of George Phelps Boulevard from River Street through to Hazel. Plans are to eventually also extend Garrison Avenue from Airport Drive through to HH highway.

I see the wheat harvest has begun down south a ways. Suppose it will begin in earnest in these parts soon.

Wheat harvestin’ was the financial indicator of the rural town where I was raised. If it was a poor crop, the entire community suffered for the upcomin’ year.

‘Course for those of us that worked the summers on the local farms, a good crop meant we could count on more of those buck-fifty hours to be calculated on our pay check. Gettin’ an extra fifteen or twenty dollars made for a good week back then.

I’m still amazed with all the increases in the cost of bringin’ in a crop that the price for a bushel a wheat isn’t that much different than when I was a kid. Maybe there really was "the good old days."

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Carthage Printing Services

PRIME TIME WITH KIDS

by Donna Erickson

My mother sent my daughter a surprise envelope the other day filled with interesting beads in assorted shapes and colors for her jewelry-making projects. But these weren’t the typical beads we find at our local bead shop; they were made out of potatoes! Eager to make similar "cheap" beads ourselves, we experimented and came up with these steps for making a necklace. We think it’s a project your preteen or teen will enjoy too.

Peel and cut one large white raw potato into 1/2- to 3/4-inch chunks (with adult assistance). Poke each chunk through its center onto a bamboo skewer, making sure the chunks aren’t touching. (One potato will fill about four skewers.) Poke skewers into florist’s foam blocks for support, or set them on a wire cooling rack. Let them air-dry in a dry room, turning the chunks every two to three days. Within two weeks, the potato chunks should be rock hard.

Paint the beads with acrylic paint. If you wish your beads to resemble stones such as turquoise, paint the chunk turquoise color. Let dry. Dab black paint on the chunk. Wipe off the black paint with a paper napkin and notice that some of the paint will be stuck in the crevices of the chunk for a realistic, natural look. To string the necklace, thread a needle with fishing line, elastic or cording. String the potato beads, mixing them with other beads or charms you may already have.