Board Vacancy Filled.

The Carthage R-9 School Board met Monday evening at Fairview Elementary. The Board appointed Danny Lambeth to fulfill the remaining two month unexpired term of Mike Wells.

The Board also named Neel Baucom as the Board Vice President until the Board elects officers after the April election.

Possible Water Shortage.

The City Council held it’s regular meeting Tuesday evening in City Hall. The Council listened to a presentation given by Tri-State Water Coalition Board Vice President Jan Tupper and CW&EP General Manager Bob Williams. The Tri-State Water Coalition studied Carthage, the increase in population, and surrounding areas to find out how much longer the area can depend on wells as a soul source of water.

This is not an isolated issue for Carthage. Rural communities, farms and industry also use wells as their soul source of water. As increase in demand rises, the water level drops.

According to the Tri-State Water Coalition Board, in drought conditions, this area could experience severe water shortages by the year 2015 or possibly sooner.

The Board filed an application to the Corps of Engineers to conduct a study on the best option for a future water supply to be used as a main source.

The Board is seeking cooperation from the City of Carthage and surrounding areas to conduct the study. The study will cost approximately $200,000.

The Tri-State Water Coalition Board is asking the City for 50 cents per resident to help finance the study but no formal action taken to help fund the study.

Tupper reported that the Corps of Engineers will hire a consulting firm to conduct the study. He is hopeful the study will begin in June and take approximately two years to conduct.

In other business, the Council discussed a proposed Ordinance to write-off uncollected account receivables that are 5 years old and older. The debts totaling $30,782.42 are mainly costs incurred by the City for demolition and weed control to unmaintained properties. The proposed Ordinance is scheduled to be voted on at the next City Council meeting.

Council member Ronnie Wells stated that he disagrees with writing the debts off.

"If their out of sight, then their out of mind," said Wells.

City Administrator Tom Short reported that the City still plans to seek payment on the delinquent accounts. Short explained the reason to remove them is so they won’t inflate the budget.

Short stated that he and City Attorney David Mouton are looking at ways to seek payment from the biggest offenders.

Also on the agenda was the appointment of the new Public Works Director Craig Menees. Menees will begin his duties on February 9th.

Menees was selected from the dozen applications received by the City to fill the vacancy. Former director Sam Proffer resigned late last year.

"We felt he was best one for the position," said Tom Short.

Menees has a business degree from Michigan State University, a master degree in business from Golden Gate University and has worked in the oil industry, specializing in fuel and asphalt sales. Menees worked as a sales director for Tampko Roofing in Joplin for 5 years. He is currently concluding his duties at Mid-America Environmental Solutions.

I gave up blowin’ bubble gum bubbles at a young age. Not that I couldn’t compete, I just never mastered gettin’ the bubble back in my mouth before it burst onto my face. Nothin’ worse than diggin’ gum outa your eyebrows for an afternoon. I got to figurin’ it just wasn’t worth whatever glory went with the title of local bubble blowin’ champ.

‘Course Double Bubble was the choice of serious bubble blowers of the time. Don’t know of any other brand that promoted the art of bubble blowin’ back then. If I remember correctly, that stuff ya got in ball cards did a decent job for bubbles, but didn’t keep its texture like Double Bubble. Then ya couldn’t even get a marble sized bubble outa Dentine. Most all gum ended up on the bottom of the soda shop tables anyway. ‘Cept, of course, the globs that stuck to your shoe.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Metcalf Auto Supply

Click & Clack
TALK CARS

By Tom & Ray Magliozzi

Dear Tom and Ray:

I have a 2001 Honda Civic with about 53,000 miles on it. A few days ago, I noticed three oil drops on my garage floor, and then later three more in my driveway after parking it there. I took it to the Honda dealer, and the mechanic said a rear main seal is leaking. He estimated that to have this fixed would cost around $540. I’m disappointed, because I thought Hondas were supposed to be fairly maintenance-free. My dad said I can just let it leak if I don’t mind it messing up the driveway — because it won’t hurt anything — and as long as I keep enough oil in it. What do you think — do I fork over the $540, or listen to my dad? — Trudi

RAY: I’d say neither, Trudi. Your father is right that as long as you keep an eye on the oil level, you can continue to drive it. But this is a 2001 Civic, so it’s a little early to be condemning it to "heapdom."

TOM: For those of you unfamiliar with the term, heapdom is defined as that period of time when your car is inexorably sliding toward the junk heap. Heapdom begins when you can no longer simply toss your keys to someone. Once the toss of the keys must by special instructions (i.e., "don’t forget to check the oil every time you get gas," or "you have to bang twice on the hood and jiggle the shifter before turning the key"), you have entered heapdom.

RAY: By the way, my brother has never owned a car that was not already in heapdom by the time he bought it.

TOM: But getting back to your Civic, Trudi, I also wouldn’t just shell out $540 for a new rear main seal. You shouldn’t have to pay for a main seal on a Honda with only $53,000 miles on it. That’s outrageous.