"It is also obvious that our entire community has great needs facing it. As we go through difficult times as a community, our community members will need to turn more to our United Way Agencies," said Coltharp.

Local businesses are receiving campaign literature that show the various agencies and the services provided by those agencies. Agencies receiving funds include the American Red Cross, Ozark Trails Council Boy Scouts, Carthage Development Center, Carthage Crisis Center, Carthage Crosslines Ministry, Children’s Mercy Hospital, Kansas City, Citizens Advisory Board, Community Clinic of Carthage, Family Literacy Council, Girl Scout Council of the Ozark Area, Jasper County 4-H, Lafayette House, Ozark Camp Quality, The Salvation Army, Special Olympics, and Sunshine Homes, Inc.

They say the trick to rabbit huntin’ is to have a dog that never quite catches up to the rabbit. The furry little critters have a habit of runnin’ in a big circle and comin’ back to cross their tracks. The idea is to confuse any varmit that is chasin’ ‘em. The hunter is supposed to stay put and wait as the dog works his way through the hedge rows. Eventually, the theory is, the rabbit will come back by for an easy shot.

Havin’ a dog, as a kid, and always thinkin’ that rabbit huntin’ would be great sport, I went in search of the wascally wabbit. Unfortunately, the dog had not read the sportin’ magazine that I had. He’d take out after the rabbit all right, but eventually I would have to go find the mut out sniffin’ in a rat nest or barkin’ at some squirrel up a tree.

‘Course there is a chance that the rabbit wrote the real story.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Carthage Printing

HERE’S A TIP

By JoAnn Derson

• Here’s a wonderful tip from a reader. Marge A. of Cherokee, Okla., a senior on a fixed income, combined thriftiness, recycling and a sense of style when she chose her pet fish’s new home. At her local thrift store, she purchased a 10-cup glass coffee carafe, decorated it with plants and shells, and used it as a fishbowl. Inexpensive and easy to clean, as well as easy to handle, she says it is a "conversation piece." I’ll bet it is. Thanks, Marge.

• To travel with pleated skirts, use this packing trick: Turn the skirt inside out, and straighten all the pleats. Then tape the bottom so that all the pleats are held together. Next, feed the skirt into a leg of pantyhose with the foot cut off. You end up with a nice tube, which you can tuck into the sides of your luggage.

• "When traveling for more than a few days, stick your plants into the bathtub with a little bit of water. They soak it up, and you don’t have to have someone come over and water your plants. This won’t work for more than a week, though." — John McF. of Baton Rouge, La.

• Jenee L. of Memphis, Tenn., writes: "If you love to burn candles as much as I do, consider storing them in the fridge for a day or so before you burn them. I swear, it makes them burn evenly. Someone told me this once, and I tried it and have been doing it ever since. No more crooked candles."

• Rick M. writes via e-mail: "Nobody loves a good fire more than I do. Since the weather is just starting to change, I have been thinking about getting my firewood stacked and ready, and my wife told me to share this tip. I start saving orange, lemon and grapefruit peels early in the fall, and I dry them out and store them in a little bowl by the fireplace. To make the fire smell extra nice (and sometimes to help get it started), I toss in a handful of the peels."