The special election called for by the Carthage R-9 School Board will be held April 8th of this year. The question will be if $11,420,000 in bonds should be issued. The bond will be used for the purpose of constructing, improving, furnishing, and equipping a new school building for the 6th and 7th grades and expanding, renovating, improving, and equipping high school facilities.

According to a bond issue overview the new intermediate school will be approximately 91,000 square feet. It is said to have enough room to expand and add new classrooms as needed for growth through out the years. It’s portion of the bond would be $7,800,000.

The High school improvements will include remodeling and adding on to the cafeteria. The science labs would be remolded and an elevator added. The high school projects would amount to $1,169,000.

There will also be repair and renovation of the athletic facilities. The tennis court will be refurbished and improvements made to the field house, parking lot, and baseball stadium. These repairs amount to $961,435.

Talkin’ to a guy the other day that saw the world champion nail driver on tv. Said he could drive three nails in a second. Don’t know what kinda trainin’ this guy goes through each day, but apparently it works.

I caught a few minutes of a show ‘bout eatin’ contests. Folks train for weeks for the contests. They range from hotdogs to pie eatin’ to hard boiled eggs. Don’t think they can do three in a second though.

‘Course as a kid we had watermelon spitin’ contests and such. I personally have a trophy for cow chip throwin’.

Folks seem ta just like seein’ just what the limits are to ‘bout anything I guess. Always someone tryin’ to out do the other, or more likely just tryin’ to see what each individual’s limits are. I’ll stick to the cow chip.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Carthage Printing

THIS IS A HAMMER

By Samantha Mazzotta

Workshop Prep Weekend

Winter has settled in across the country, bringing do-it-yourselfers inside to handle smaller tasks or just leave all the projects alone until spring. So, what to do during this long, quiet lull between battening down the hatches and opening them up again? Prepare for the next home-improvement season, of course.

This is a great time to head to the garage, basement or attic and look over your workshop area. What needs to be cleaned up? What tools need to be out and ready for the spring thaw? What can you do to get one step closer to your dream workshop? Take out a notepad and pencil, and start writing down ideas.

Take an inventory of everything in the shop, from the largest power tool to the smallest nail. Then, make a list of steps needed to clean and organize the area. Here’s how I get my workshop in shape for the new year.

The first step should be a sort-and-toss session. Gather everything and sort it by general types: fasteners, like nuts and bolts and nails, go in one pile; hand tools are stacked in another; power tools are gathered at one corner of the room; and so on. Once the items are classified, go through each pile and discard old, unused or broken items. If your larger tools are unused but still work — or can be repaired — donate them to a charity that accepts these items.

Now, take a look at your worktable and shop area. Does the current configuration work for you? Is there enough storage for all the items in your inventory? What would you most like to change about it? Shift things around and add storage boxes, shelves or drawers as needed. If you don’t have a good-sized sheet of pegboard above or near your worktable, purchase one — it’s a great storage area for hand tools and small boxes.

As you place each tool in its storage space, clean it thoroughly to remove rust and debris. Coat the metal parts with an all-purpose oil, and rub a small amount of linseed oil onto wooden handles to protect them from damp, cold air and fluctuations in temperature.

Finally, decide what your first project will be this year — whether it’s yard work, outside repairs or new shelves — and prepare the worktable and the necessary tools for it. When the weather finally warms up and the home-improvement bug hits you, you’ll be ready to start hammering away as soon as possible.