OVER OVER 4 MILLION 4 MILLION Readers Weekly
FREE
Readers Weekly Nationwide! Nationwide!
ALL ©2007 ALLRIGHTS RIGHTS RESERVED RESERVED ©2007
TheThe Neatest Little Paper Ever Neatest Little Paper EverRead Read
March 23, 2016
Published by: Velocity Ventures Trust
For Advertising: (541) 203-0233 TIDBITS® GOBBLES
SUGAR
by Kathy Wolfe
Sugar is everywhere. It forms the building blocks of carbohydrates, the most abundant type of organic molecules in living things. Come along with Tidbits as we swallow a spoonful of sugar! SUGAR FACTS
www.TanksPlumbing.net/review
Your comfort and health are our primary concerns.
Michelle Johnson DDS University of Texas, 1999
1002 Ramsey Ave, Grants Pass • Near Hospital Visit us online at www.allencreekdental.com
• Researchers note that sugar is not necessarily a health problem, but the amount of sugar we consume is. Americans consume about 160 lbs (72 kg) of various sweeteners annually. That’s around 50 teaspoons of sugar per day, including sugar from sugar cane, sugar beets, and high fructose corn syrup, with a little bit of honey and maple syrup on the side. It’s recommended by the American Heart Association that adults do not take in more than 5 to 9 teaspoons of sugar per day. • Sugar provides what are called ‘empty calories’ because it has no vitamins, no minerals, no enzymes, no fat, and no fiber. It’s a source of instant energy, which is not necessarily a healthy thing. • About two thirds of the sugar consumed in a typical American diet comes from processed foods. One half a cup of prepackaged spaghetti sauce can contain as much sugar as two Oreo cookies (and also has one third of the daily recommended amount of salt.) Heinz ketchup contains up to one teaspoon of sugar in each one tablespoon serving. (cont’d)
Volume 2 Issue 12
info@tidbitsoftheroguevalley.com
Page 2 SUGAR (continued)
• Sugar cane is a member of the grass family and there are six different species, all of which look very similar to bamboo. None of the species can tolerate freezing temperatures. Sugar cane is usually grown in large plantations. It can yield up to 44 pounds (20 kg) of sugar for every 11 square feet (1 square m) of land. • It takes between 12 and 18 months for a cane stalk to mature to the point where it can be harvested. It is a perennial plant meaning it can regrow from the roots over and over, but each time it yields less sugary sap than before until it becomes more economical to plant a fresh new crop. The stalk of the plant is boiled and refined into molasses and sugar. The sugar cane must be refined within days of being harvested.
• It takes one ton of water to grow enough cane to yield one pound (.45 kg) of sugar.
• Sugar cane was first domesticated in New Guinea and areas of Indonesia, and people in India were the first to refine it. One of the first recorded references to sugar dates back to the year 325 BC.
• Christopher Columbus brought sugar cane with him on his second voyage to the New World in 1493 and planted it in Santo Domingo. By the year 1516, sugar was being shipped to Europe from there.
• The first sugar cane in the United States was planted in Louisiana in the mid-1700s. • At first, sugar was rare and expensive. Slavery on sugar plantations caused social upheaval. Jungles were torn down to make room for more sugar cane.
• As sugar became more widely available, the price dropped so that more people could afford it. • Brazil is currently the world’s largest producer of sugar.
Litter-Box Problems DEAR PAW’S CORNER: Lately, two of my three cats seem to be “missing” the litter-box on their visits to it. I mean, they’ll use the box, but they spray the wall it backs up to or go on the edge. My third cat has no problem. How can I stop the other two? -- Amy, via email DEAR AMY: In my experience, many litter box problems occur in homes with more than one cat. These problems include spraying or defecating outside the box, even when the cat are standing inside of it. Some cats also eliminate away from the litter box. Your third cat may have no problem because in the kitty pecking order, it is “top cat.” The others may be intimidated -- especially if it hangs around the litter box, giving them “the look.” Your cats also might be too large for the box or suffer health problems, including disease or obesity. Try these methods first, and see if the spraying problem is curtailed. * Buy four litter boxes: one for each cat, plus one extra. Keep one where the original box stood, and place the others in quiet, easily accessible areas, on every floor of your home.
* Make sure the litter boxes are big enough for your cats to sit or crouch in them comfortably. If you buy covered boxes, make sure the cats fit through the opening. * Use unscented litters, and forgo plastic liners; many cats don’t like them. * Scoop the boxes daily, and wash them with soap and water monthly. If these steps don’t stop the spraying problem, take all three cats to the vet to rule out possible medical conditions.
Petbits brought to you by: Celebrity Pets Holistic Care Happy, Healthy Pets Inside & Out
Self-Service Pet Wash Professional Groomers Health & Hygiene Products Artisan Pet Treats
ARIES (March 21 to April 19) With change dominant this week, don’t be surprised to find new facts emerging that could put another slant on a situation and offer you another choice. Think it through before you decide. TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) There could be some lingering problems from a previous matter that involved a decision you felt you had to make. Resolve the situation with your strong Taurean nononsense approach. GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) The Gemini’s carefully made plans could be undone by someone’s unexpected decision. Getting the full story behind that surprise move can help you decide how to deal with the matter. CANCER ( June 21 to July 22) Recently uncovered information might put a new light on a situation you thought had been resolved. Keep an open mind about possible changes that you might have to consider. LEO ( July 23 to August 22) With a potential revision of an old agreement, you can’t beat the Big Cat for knowing how to sharpen a “clause” to the best advantage. Someone close could have the news you’ve been waiting for. VIRGO (August 23 to September 22) Certain issues in the workplace could put you in the middle of a dispute you’d rather not deal with. Express your honest feelings before the pressure to take sides builds up. LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) You might feel uneasy disagreeing with someone you’ve been close to. But your relationship should be able to withstand and even thrive when confronted with your true feelings. SCORPIO (October 23 to November 21) A romantic situation seems to be creating more confusion than you can handle. If so, own up to your feelings. The sooner you do, the better your chances are for working things out. SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) With change directing the Archer’s aim, consider a second look at your plans and see where they might benefit from a revision. A workplace matter is close to a resolution. CAPRICORN (December 22 to January 19) New contacts help you learn some important information about upcoming developments. The week calls for the Sea Goat to be more flexible than usual in a number of matters. AQUARIUS ( January 20 to February 18) With both change and uncertainty in your aspect, you might feel less confident in a previous decision. That’s OK. Check it out and see where it could be modified, if necessary. PISCES (February 19 to March 20) Old relationships that seemed to be sinking are buoyant again, and new relationships are benefiting from Cupid’s loving care. This could be a good time to make a major move. BORN THIS WEEK: While you prefer to tread your own path, you’ll go out of your way to help someone in need.
Page 3
1. U.S. PRESIDENTS: Who was the first president to be born after the United States declared independence? 2. SCIENCE: What is the lowest level of Earth’s atmosphere called? 3. LITERATURE: In which of Shakespeare’s plays was the line “To be or not to be” spoken? 4. HISTORY: Who was the last president of the Soviet Union? 5. MATH: What is the only prime number that is also even? 6. U.S. STATES: How many U.S. states are not adjacent to another state? 7. ANATOMY: How many bones are in an infant’s body? 8. ANIMAL KINGDOM: What would a group of bears be called? 9. ASTRONOMY: How long is a Martian year? 10. MUSIC: What group had a hit in 1979 with the song “Jukebox Hero”?
1. In 2015, Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera set a record for most home runs by a Venezuelan-born player. Who had held the mark? 2. Alex Rodriguez, in 2015, set a record for most career RBIs by an A.L. player. Who had been at the top of the list? 3. In 2014, Houston’s Arian Foster broke a tie for most NFL career 100-yard rushing games by an undrafted player. Who was he tied with? 4. When was the last time before 2015 that Notre Dame’s men’s basketball team reached the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16? 5. When was the last time before 2014 (Los Angeles Kings) that an NHL team clinched the Stanley Cup on their home ice in overtime. 6. Who was the last NASCAR Cup driver before Kyle Busch in 2015 to win three consecutive races? 7. How old was tennis star Martina Navratilova when she appeared in her last Grand Slam singles final?
Bake Jewish Hamantaschen Cookie Treats
TWO KINDS OF SUGAR
• Sugar is a combination of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Mankind is unable to produce sugar using chemical processes. Only plants can manufacture sugar. Our table sugar comes from two different plants: sugar cane, and sugar beets. They are chemically identical.
• It used to be thought that sugar could only be made from sugar cane. One scientist named Achard was viewed as a crackpot because he kept trying to get sugar from beets, which were easy to grow in cold climates. In 1806 Napoleon ordered all French ports closed to English products because a war had broken out between the two countries. This cut off the supply of sugar, which England got from its Caribbean colonies. When Napoleon heard of a man that could turn beets into sugar, he visited him and was so impressed that he took the Legion of Honor medal from his own chest and pinned it on him. Two years later there were 40 sugar beet factories in France. When the war ended, the price of sugar bottomed out and the beet factories closed. Today, two-thirds of the world’s sugar comes from sugar cane, and one-third from beets.
IT’S A FACT
• Sugar was rationed in World War II because it was needed to make the ethyl alcohol which is a component of smokeless gunpowder. It took an entire acre of sugar cane to make enough gunpowder for five shots from a 16-inch gun.
PRESENT FROM BIRTH
• Children develop a taste for salty things by the time they are four or five years old, but the appreciation of sweet things is present from the moment of birth. In an experiment, babies had one of their hands placed in a bowl of uncomfortably cold water. Researchers found that babies would leave their hand in that cold water longer if they were distracted by being given something sweet.
When 9-year old Claire Diamond arrives at her grandmother’s home for their one-on-one baking day, she knows the drill. After a warm greeting, she finds her cheery apron on the peg by the window, washes her hands and says, “What are we making today?” Propped on the counter: a handwritten recipe card for traditional Jewish hamantaschen. Hamantaschen are tri-cornered cookies shaped like hats that hold sweet fillings such as chopped prunes, apricot preserves and even chocolate. While Claire found the chilled dough in the refrigerator, 89-year-old Barbara Diamond tossed the flour on the rolling pin and shared the different ways her family has made this tasty sweet through the generations for the festive holiday of Purim, celebrated this year March 23-24. Prepare this recipe or use commercially prepared sugar cookie dough from the dairy section of your market and skip to the rolling-out step. Either way, your family will enjoy making and eating this delicious treat. Don’t worry if they don’t all bake up in perfect triangles. That’s part of the creative fun! JEWISH HAMANTASCHEN 1/2 cup butter, room temperature and cut into pieces 3/4 cup sugar 1 egg 3 tablespoons orange juice 2 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt Favorite fillings, such as apricot and fig preserves, chopped dried fruit, semi-sweet chocolate pieces Powdered sugar 1. Thoroughly mix butter, sugar, egg and juice. 2. Blend in flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until dough holds together in a ball. Cover and chill at least one hour. 3. Heat the oven to 400 F. 4. Roll half of the dough 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured board. With a 3-inch round cookie cutter, a tin can or a drinking glass, cut out round shapes. Scoop a teaspoonful of your favorite fillings onto the center of each circle. 5. Fold the edge of the circle toward the center to form a triangle. Lightly pinch together three edges of the three joined sections of dough until they are closed, leaving a small opening in the center for the filling to peek through. 6. Repeat with remaining half of dough, and bake on parchment-lined cookie sheets for about 10 minutes. Cool on a rack. 7. Dust lightly with powdered sugar before serving. Makes 24 large cookies. Extra idea: Brush each cookie with a mixture of 1 egg and 1 teaspoon of water before baking for a shiny, pastry-like finish. Resources with the Purim story with activities for families: www.chabad.org/holidays/purim.
Don’t Be Left in the Dark
Your View of the World will be Forever Illuminated After you Read The Fr with ee Bo Co o Uncle Eric Books $152 mplete k Se .5 Order by Calling tollfree
1-800-509-5400
0 +S /H
www.earlywarningreport.com/books
t
Uncle Eric Talks About Personal, Career & Financial Security, Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?, Whatever Happened to Justice?, Are you Liberal? Conservative? or Confused?, Ancient Rome, How It Affects You Today, Evaluating Books: What Would Thomas Jefferson Think About This?,The Money Mystery, The Clipper Ship Strategy, The Thousand Year War in the Mideast, World War I- The Rest of the Story, World War II- The Rest of the STory
Page 4 Getting Ready! Do your research. There are a lot of things you’ll have to research in order to be an informed buyer. First, you’ll need to build a team of trusted people to help you with your home purchase. This includes a real estate agent, a mortgage broker or lender, and a home inspector. In addition to researching your team, you’ll want to do a lot of research on the market. Individual home markets differ, and knowing what the trends are in your market can give you the tools to make an advantageous offer. You’ll also want to research neighborhoods. Things like schools, access to public transportation, crime rates and resale value in homes can make a big difference in your quality of life and in your longterm investment. Finally, get pre-approved for a loan. A preapproval—which is different than a prequalification—is a guarantee from a lender that you will be able to acquire a loan in that amount. This is key with sellers, particularly those who are choosing from multiple offers. It provides them with assurance that your deal won’t fall through. A home is the biggest purchase most people make in their life. As such, it deserves extra time, attention and research to make sure that you make the right decision. If you need some extra guidance as you walk through the process, give us a call -- our experience benefits Sponsored by: you, we guarantee it!
Rogue Valley Real Estate Homeownership is back on the rise, and you might be thinking about putting down some roots and taking on a mortgage. It can be a daunting task, but following a few simple steps can help put you in the best position to be successful with your home purchase. First, check into your credit score. Along with your income, your debt and your assets, this is one of the primary factors determining how much money you will be able to get from the bank. This is essentially a rating of how good you are at paying your bills, so you’ll want to shore it up after getting a report. Even a small problem like an old, unpaid traffic ticket can reduce the credit score and can easily be taken care of. It’s best to tackle this problem several months before you start seriously looking to buy a home. Do a home finance audit. A home is a major commitment. Along with the actual mortgage come insurance, property taxes and any home repairs. You can’t just call a landlord in the middle of the night to fix a problem; you’ll be responsible. One easy way to do this is assiduously to track all of your income and expenses for two weeks, including small things like an extra coffee and even your tips. This will let you know if there is any wiggle room in your finances where you can cut back to increase savings or make payments on a house. If you are already at the edge of your spending range, you may need to cut your spending or increase your income in order to afford a home. Buying a home you can’t actually afford will leave you stressed out each month and may lead to things like missing payments or even foreclosure in the long run. If you’re not prepared, it may be best to wait.
To Your Good Health By Keith Roach, M.D.
Barriers to Getting Shingles Vaccine DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 61 years old, and was anxious to get a shingles vaccine shot. I was upset to learn that, because I am allergic to neomycin, an ingredient in the vaccine, I cannot get vaccinated. I have talked to my doctor and a pharmacist about options, but they don’t know of any. Do you know of anything I could use to protect myself against shingles? -- B.G.P. ANSWER: If it’s a severe (the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says “life-threatening”) reaction to neomycin, then you cannot get the vaccine. There is no other way to reliably prevent getting shingles. Keeping your immune system
healthy (good diet, regular exercise, good sleep) may help. However, the most important thing for you and others who haven’t been vaccinated will be to recognize shingles early and get treated immediately. Being treated early, preferably within 24 hours of the rash, can reduce the duration of symptoms. Shingles usually starts with pain, burning or itching on one side of the body in a particular location, called a dermatome. This might be a band around the torso, the top of the arm or part of the face. The classic description of the rash is a clear, fluid-filled blister on reddened skin (“dewdrop on a rose petal”), but it does not always look so classic. See your doctor immediately after any painful rash shows up in a single area of the body. *** DEAR DR. ROACH: I had chickenpox as a child. I am 60 years old and was shocked to find out that the shingles vaccine costs $249 here. My doctor offers it, but I cannot afford the cost, as my insurance does not cover it. Do you know of a place where I can get the vaccine at little or no cost? -- M.B. ANSWER: It is frustrating that a recommended and potentially cost-saving measure like a vaccine costs so much out of pocket. However, the drug company (Merck) does have a rebate program that covers much
CORN SYRUP • In the 1970s sugar’s rising price led to the development of high fructose corn syrup which then became the sweetener of choice used in soft drinks and processed foods. Over the next three decades, consumption of soda pop more than doubled in the U.S., eventually reaching over 50 gallons (189 l) a year per person. Between 1970 and 1990 consumption of high fructose corn syrup in the U.S. increased tenfold. By 1999 every person in America was averaging 215 calories per day from high fructose corn syrup alone. IT’S A FACT • In a study, rats were taught that they would receive an electrical shock if they ate cheesecake. They ate cheesecake anyway and suffered the electrical shocks rather than go without cheesecake. CONSEQUENCES • Medical studies have shown that high intake of sugar has a negative effect on the survival rates of people suffering from colon cancer and breast cancer. • Regular consumption of refined sugar can cause deficiencies of the B vitamins. • Sugar accelerates the aging of cells in the human body and also increases the amount of skin wrinkles because excess blood sugar binds to collagen in the skin and makes it less elastic. • Drinking a single 12-ounce can of soda pop daily adds enough sugar to the diet to boost the chance of getting heart disease by a third. • Americans consume the most sugar through soft drinks (33%), followed by candy (16%); cakes, cookies, and pies (13%); fruit drinks (10%); dairy desserts and milk (9%); and other things (6%). In the American diet, added sugar accounts for nearly 500 calories every day. This is calorically equivalent to eating 10 strips of bacon every day.
of the cost for people with insurance that does not cover the shot. You can find out more at www.rebate4zostavax.com or at 1-888-ZOSTA-INFO. You have to pay for the vaccine, then get your rebate. Shingles questions are among the most frequently asked by readers. The booklet on the shingles virus answers many of them. Readers can obtain a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue -- No. 1201W, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6 Canada with the recipient’s printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery. *** DEAR DR. ROACH: I have had allergies for the past 50 years. Every morning, my nose runs for approximately 15-30 minutes. I can’t take antihistamines due to heart issues. Any suggestions? -- E.A.K. ANSWER: Most people with heart and blood pressure issues who are warned about allergy medicines are warned about decongestants, not antihistamines. It may be safe for you to take an antihistamine, so you should ask your internist or cardiologist. I also have had good results using an antihistamine nasal spray such as levocabastine in people who can’t tolerate antihistamines by mouth.
Page 5
* It was Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and biographer Carl Sandburg who made the following sage observation: “Slang is a language that rolls up its sleeves, spits on its hands, and goes to work.”
Amazing Animals
WASPS
• In the 1980s, a caterpillar epidemic began devastating the cotton crop in the southern United States. Farmers turned to entomologists for help. These bug scientists knew that every female wasp lays an egg on the back of a caterpillar. When the egg hatches, the wasp maggots will eat the caterpillar from the inside out, killing it. So the entomologists began breeding and releasing wasps into the cotton fields. It didn’t do a bit of good. More entomologists were called in to find out why. • First they studied how a wasp finds a caterpillar to begin with. They discovered it was not by sight. When a wasp and a caterpillar were placed in the same box, the wasp paid no attention to the caterpillar. They thought it might be by smell but once again, when a wasp was close to a caterpillar, there was no recognition at all. Next they tried putting a caterpillar on a plant and releasing the wasp, with no change. But when they put a wasp in a box that contained a partially eaten plant that had been munched by the caterpillar, the wasp showed particular interest in the plant, and then zeroed in on the caterpillar. • Researchers concluded that the damaged plant was giving off an odor that attracted the wasp. Given the choice, the wasp would always be more attracted to a half-eaten plant without a caterpillar on it than to an undamaged plant that had a caterpillar on it. • The entomologists began breeding wasps that were being hatched inside caterpillars that had been fed corn, beans, and soy. When these wasps were released into the cotton fields, they completely failed to find the caterpillars that were raiding the cotton crop. So it was back to the drawing board for the entomologists. (continued next page)
* Boon or bane? While DDT was first synthesized in 1874, it wasn’t until 1939 that Swiss chemist Paul Hermann Muller discovered its insecticidal properties. DDT was so effective in curbing the spread of insect-borne diseases such as malaria and yellow fever that in 1948, Muller was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. However, with the 1962 publication of Rachel Carson’s book “Silent Spring,” the devastating environmental effects of widespread DDT use led to an eventual ban in the United States.
Computer Use Pays Mental Dividends
Using a computer just once a week can help seniors avoid memory and thinking declines by a whopping 42 percent. So says a recent Mayo clinic study. This wasn’t a small study. Nearly 2,000 seniors participated, and all were age 70 and over. Four years earlier they had filled out a questionnaire that covered playing games, making crafts, socializing, reading magazines and computer use. Researchers then tracked them over time. The results: Playing games dropped the risk of memory decline by 14 percent, making crafts lowered it 16 percent, socializing saw a 23 percent drop and reading cut it by 30 percent. Computer use had the greatest effect at 42 percent. What researchers don’t know, however,
Finally, Some Answers in VA WaitTime Probe Allegations of wait-time manipulation at the Phoenix VA Health Care System surfaced two years ago, and more allegations followed. Since then, the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of the Inspector General has conducted more that 70 investigations. It’s now starting to roll out the results of those inquiries. Here are few highlights: Iowa -- It was alleged that “secret waiting lists” were destroyed before the inspection. One list had been created by a clinical psychologist to track how long it took for his patients to get appointments. He was told to delete it, even though it helped him help his patients. Louisiana -- A list similar to the one in Iowa had been created by staff to keep patients from “falling through the cracks” in the system, and had nothing to do with scheduling. New
* You might be surprised to learn that, aside from his inaugural addresses, Abraham Lincoln gave only one speech during his entire presidency: the Gettysburg Address. * In Venice at one time, every merchant who traveled to the Orient was required by law to bring back a piece of art and donate it to St. Mark’s Cathedral. * It was all the way back in 1837 that modern multinational corporation Proctor and Gamble was founded, by candlemaker William Proctor and soapmaker James Gamble. During the Civil War, the company supplied candles and soap to the Union Army, in the process introducing its products to soldiers from all over the country. * Those who study such things say that there are more possible iterations of a game of chess than there are atoms in the known universe.
is exactly how it works -- whether it’s because of the lifestyle that computers users have or because using a computer actually causes brain changes. Still to be determined: whether increased participation or computer use would yield an even bigger reduction in risk. What does this mean for us? It means we should stay engaged, learn new things, accept challenges, be active and go out and socialize. We could even combine activities: Take a computer class that meets at least once a week, and afterward go out for lunch and coffee with a group of students. Or use the Internet to look up craft and hobby instructions and get ideas for new projects, or meet with a group to create crafts together. Use the Internet to sign up for news feeds and stay up on current events, or join a current events meet-up and socialize at the same time. There are lots of possibilities, and all could have a positive outcome.
staff was to be hired, and veterans couldn’t be assigned appointments with a specific doctor yet ... hence the list to keep track of them. Minnesota -- Two former employees alleged that they’d been instructed to manipulate appointment dates or cancel patient appointments. Both had appeared on television shows making allegations, which were not substantiated in 26 subsequent interviews of employees. Illinois -- One employee admitted to changing desired appointment dates and next available dates to create a zero-wait appearance because she thought that’s what she was supposed to do in order to avoid repercussions by management. Florida -- A former employee alleged that clerks were manipulating scheduling data, but it appears they just didn’t understand the difference between a desired appointment date and an available one. Intentional manipulation isn’t what comes through in an initial reading of these reports. It seems more a matter of confusion. To read the full reports and keep track of new ones as they come in, check www.va.gov/oig.
Thank you to our friends at Logan Design for sponsoring this ad.
We’re open during spring break week! Fun-filled days are packed with: • Good Food • Physical Fitness Actvities • Community Service Projects • Exciting Field Trips • Creative Arts • And So Much More! Call your local Club for more information. www.begreat4kids.com Grants Pass Club 541-479-1923
Illinois Valley Club 541-479-5258
Talent Club 541-292-4851
When school’s out, the Clubs are in.
Eight-Track Tapes Q: I bought a player and box of eight-track tapes at a garage sale. Are they worth keeping? I paid $15 for the entire shebang. -- Art, Garden City, Kansas A: Eight-track tapes are an oddity in that the music is interrupted periodically as the tracks switch during the recorded performance. There also is a tendency for the tracks to bleed over each other, so that occasionally you hear two tracks playing at the same time. I suspect you
paid about what the machine and tapes are worth. There seems to be little demand for eight-track tapes, and they are difficult to sell. *** Q: I have a 12-piece setting of Pope-Gosser china in a white pattern with gold trim. All the pieces are in excellent condition and probably at least 100 years old. I have searched the books in my local library, but can’t find out anything about the company. Can you help me? -- Mary Jane, Indiana A: I was able to find out a little about the company in Lehner’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Marks on Pottery, Porcelain & Clay by Lois Lehner (Collector Books). If you love china, this book should be in your personal library. According to Lehner, the PopeGosser Company was founded by Charles F. Gosser and Bentley Pope in Coshocton, Ohio, in 1902. The company was reorganized in 1932 and continued making fine china until 1958. Lehner points out that the earlier pieces are of much higher quality than
what followed. *** Q: My company recently cleaned out a storage area, and I discovered an R.C. Allen six-row keyboard adding machine from the 1930s. Since it was surplus, I managed to buy it for $20. Can you recommend someone who can clean it and maybe give me an idea of its value? -- Ken, Arvada, Colorado A: Anthony Casillo is a collector of older typewriters and adding machines, and he might be able to help you. His business, TTS Business Products, also is a source for hard-to-find ribbons for vintage machines such as those made by Remington, Royal and Underwood. You can contact him at 325 Nassau Blvd., Garden City South, NY 11530; and typebar@aol.com. Check out his website at typewritercollector.com.
A U TO S - B O AT S - RV S
EMPLOYMENT
MISCELLANEOUS
PAYCATION: A Low start up home based business that offers you extra money, time with family, tax benefits and travel to exciting places. Visit lazydaisytravel.paycation.com and see how this company can Change your LIFE....
Train for a New Career. * Underwater Welder. *Commercial Diver. *NDT Weld Inspector *THE OCEAN Corp. 800-321-0298. 10840 Rockley Road Houston, Texas 77099. Job Placement Assistance. Financial Aid available for those who qualify.
P E T S - FA R M
WASPS (cont’d) • Further studies showed that the chemical odor that attracts a wasp to a damaged plant is • Researchers discovered that wasp maggots, the same odor that gives freshly cut grass its when feeding on a caterpillar, will become characteristic smell. Wasps are able to tell the sensitized to whatever that caterpillar had been difference between freshly cut Bermuda grass eating. The wasp will then become attracted to and freshly cut Kentucky bluegrass. Knowing those specific plants. Scientists found that if they this, the researchers were able to save the cotton wanted the wasps to zero in on caterpillars that crop. were eating the cotton plants, they needed to raise wasp maggots on caterpillars that had eaten • Whereas a bee can sting only once before dying, cotton plants. The adult wasp will then be highly a wasp can sting an unlimited number of times sensitive to the odor of a damaged cotton plant. and never dies. The wasp will ignore damaged tobacco plants and • Bees are strictly herbivores, eating only nectar the tobacco budworms, and will likewise ignore and pollen, but wasps eat other insects. Wasps damaged corn plants and the corn earworm. may also eat nectar but they do not collect it like bees do.
Call Cat Bonney for Advertising Information (541) 203-0233
ter on paper since 2002!
Helping businesses look bet
Design & Printing Jobie Grether jobie@ProVisualinc.com
541.772.8045
Full Service Graphic Design Custom 4 Color Printing Convenient Online Proofing Project Consulting / Free Quotes
R E A L E S TAT E
• Bees create their hives from wax they secrete themselves but wasps create their nests from wood pulp that they scrape from trees and chew up. • A typical wasp colony will have about 5,000 individuals, all of which die off over the winter except for a fertilized larval queen. She survives in a warm spot until she can hatch in the spring and begin laying eggs to start a new colony. • Nearly every pest insect on Earth is preyed upon by a wasp species, either for food or as a host for its parasitic larvae.
Page 8
A NEW SNACK CAKE
• In 1932 Charles Lubin and his brother-inlaw purchased a chain of bakeries in Chicago called the Community Bake Shops. The business was successful, but in 1949 Charles and his brother-in-law parted ways and Charles took over the business. • Charles believed that because the business had been so successful in supplying baked goods to the grocery stores of Chicago, he should try supplying baked goods to the mass market of America, so he began to experiment with ways to do that. • He invented a method that allowed desserts to be baked, frozen, shipped, and reheated in a foil pan. His first mass-market product was a frozen cheesecake, which needed a name. • His wife Tillie suggested he name it after their daughter, and he did. The cheesecake became so popular that he renamed the entire corporation after his daughter. He added more products such as pound cake and coffee cake, and by 1955 his products were sold all over the country. • The business was so profitable that Charles sold out to Consolidated Foods in 1956. By then the name of his daughter was so widely recognized that Consolidated Foods adopted it as the new name of their corporation, hiring him to be their CEO. • Charles retired in 1965 and died in 1988 at the age of 84, by which time the company’s products were well on their way to being sold around the world. Shortly after his death, his daughter became a spokesperson for the corporation that was named after her. And her own daughter (Charles’ grandaughter) even interned at the factory. What was the name of Charles’ daughter, now on packages of frozen desserts all over the world? (Answer at bottom of next page)
cream filling. The problem was that strawberries were a seasonal item, available only a few months of the year. The rest of the year, the equipment used to make the cakes sat idle. • While delivering a load of strawberry cakes to a vendor one day, company vice-president James Deware decided what he needed was a product that would use this equipment all year. Finally he hit on banana cream cakes because bananas were available year-round. • He called them Little Shortcake Fingers, and a nickel bought a package of two. A few years later on the way to a marketing meeting, his eye fell on a billboard advertising a brand of shoes, and he adapted that name for the product. • Originally the cakes were made with eggs, milk, and butter, which gave them a shelf life of only a day or two before becoming stale. It was expensive to have salesmen constantly replenishing store shelves, so the recipe was reformulated, giving them a shelf life of three to four weeks, mostly due to the airtight cellophane packaging. • During World War II a banana shortage forced him to re-vamp the recipe once again, and the familiar vanilla-flavored snack cake was born. Today, 500 million are produced every year. They are called Twinkies. • Twinkies can be frozen to expand their lifespan. Answer: Sarah Lee.
A NEW TREAT
• Continental Bakeries made a variety of
items under the Hostess brand in the 1920s and 1930s. One of them was a strawberry shortcake, composed of a single-serving oblong sponge cake injected with strawberry
1. Andres Galarraga, with 399. 2. Lou Gehrig, with 1,995 RBIs. 3. Priest Holmes, who had 31 100-yard games. 4. It was 2003. 5. It was 1980, when the New York Islanders beat Philadelphia in overtime in Game Six. 6. Jimmie Johnson, in 2007. 7. She was 37 when she lost to Conchita Martinez at Wimbledon in 1994.
Answers 1. Martin Van Buren 2. The troposphere 3. “Hamlet” 4. Mikhail Gorbachev 5. 2 6. Two -- Alaska and Hawaii 7. About 300, because some bones haven’t yet fused together. Most adults have 206. 8. A sleuth or sloth 9. 687 Earth days 10. Foreigner