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TIDBITS® EXPLORES SOME OF LIFE’S CROSSINGS

by Patricia L. Cook

Tidbits crosses many paths in researching information for your reading pleasure. This issue will look at some familiar crosses and crossings that we all encounter. •The first type of crossing that comes to mind for most is a railroad crossing. Many drivers encounter railroad crossings every time they drive. Rail lines are prevalent in North America, which highlights the fact that rail-roads play a huge part in transporting goods and people across this continent. •Where railroads exist, crossings also exist. Railroad crossings are intersections where a roadway crosses a railroad at-grade. In the United States, they are referred to as grade crossings. In Canada and many other places, they are called level crossings. • As of 2005, there were 147,681 public grade crossings and 94,583 private crossings in the United States. Public crossings are maintained by a public authority, but pri-vate crossings, not intended for public use, are not. They are for the use of the owners of the property and usually on farms or industrial complexes. • Grade crossings in all countries have always been acci-dent-prone areas. When vehicles or pedestrians cross the paths of trains, trains win. The good news is that in re-cent years, accident rates have gone down. • The U.S. Department of Transportation has reported that crossing accidents between vehicles and trains decreased 84 percent between 1972 and 2009. In 2009, there were 1,900 collisions, compared to 12,000 in 1972. • Much of the improved safety at railroad crossings has been attributed to the Operation Lifesaver program that was started in Idaho in 1972. The Idaho governor’s office, Idaho Peace Officers and Union Pacific Railroad started the program with a six-week public awareness campaign. Fatalities fell 43 percent in the inaugural year, and within a decade, the program spread all around the country. Canada added Operation Lifesaver in 1981. A national office was created in 1986 for the non-profit organization to support the efforts of the states. The United Kingdom, Estonia, Mexico and Argentina also have Operation Lifesaver programs. • The warning signs at railroad crossings are similar worldwide. The “crossbuck” or X sign usually contains the words “railroad crossing” in the United States and

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“railway crossing” in Canada. The “crossbuck” is also called a “saltire” or Saint Andrew’s cross. Saint Andrew was a disciple of Jesus Christ who was martyred on an X-shaped cross as opposed to a traditional cross. The saltire is used in many flags, including Scotland’s, where Saint Andrew is the patron Saint. Nova Scotia, Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. states of Florida and Alabama are others with the saltire on their flags. • The Scottish flag, a white saltire on a blue back-ground, is believed to be the oldest flag in Europe. The village of Athelstaneford, birthplace of the Scottish flag, has a Flag Heritage Centre and Saltire Memorial. • The idea for the Red Cross was born in 1859 when a young Swiss man, Henry Dunant, saw soldiers in Italy on a battlefield wounded and dying and not receiving assistance. He organized local people to come to their aid. •In 1863, five men from Geneva, Switzerland, including Dunant, set up the International Committee for Relief to the Wounded, which later became the International Committee of the Red Cross. This led to the creation of the Geneva Convention, in which 12 governments agreed to offer care for the wounded, and paved the way for medical services to be “neutral” on the battlefield. • The emblem for the Red Cross was set as a red cross on a white background, the inverse of the Swiss flag. While that emblem has changed a little through the years, the symbol of the Red Cross is recognizable worldwide.• Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross, was working in Washington, D.C., in 1861 when wounded Civil War soldiers needed help. She gathered supplies and distributed them for the soldiers. She also read to them, wrote letters for them and prayed with them. Bar-ton was known as the “Angel of the Battlefield.” •Barton’s organizational efforts and commitment to helping soldiers along with observations of the Interna-tional Red Cross at work in Europe led to the creation of the American Red Cross in 1881. Barton was 60 years old and led the new American organization for 23 years. • Today, the American Red Cross is a part of the In-ternational Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, which was founded in 1919. These organi-

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zations bring aid to victims of disasters throughout the world.• The building housing the headquarters of the American Red Cross, located in Washington, D.C., was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965. The building has many historical artifacts, writings and more from the or-ganization’s past. An original set of paneled, stained-glass Tiffany Windows, commissioned in 1917 and designed and constructed by Louis Comfort Tiffany, are on display in their original state. The beautiful windows illustrate the most significant values of the Red Cross: hope, faith, charity and love.• One of the most loved poets of Victorian-era Britain, Poet Laureate Alfred Lord Tennyson wrote the poem “Crossing the Bar:” It reads: “For tho’ from out our bourne of Time and Place, The flood may bear me far, I hope to see my Pilot face to face, When I have crossed the bar.” • Being a Poet Laureate meant being appointed as a member of the royal household for life. Tennyson was expected to write wonderful poems celebrating national and royal events in Britain. • Written in 1889, three years before his death, “Crossing the Bar” was not his final work, but Tennyson requested that it appear as the final poem in all of his collections. The poem described his attitude about death, using a sand bar to describe the barrier between life and death. Another image that many thought he intended to convey with the poem was that of “crossing” oneself as Catho-lics do in a religious gesture of devotion.

Incentive Bonuses Sometimes Go AwryThe Department of Veterans Affairs uses bonuses to retain employees, and they spend a lot of money doing that. Specifically, last year they spent $111 million to retain 16,487 employees.However, the VA’s Office of Inspector General found that of the incentives it studied, 80 percent were either questionable or weren’t justified, bringing the unsub-stantiated amount to $1.06 million of the total spent.To be fair, the VA does use financial incentives to keep people in positions that are hard to fill or that require employees who have special qualifications. According to the criteria for awarding incentives, there must be a scarcity of candidates who can fill the position, efforts to recruit new employees must have been unsuccessful and the job must require special abilities.The problem with this $1 million in incentives is that there wasn’t adequate documentation, information was

Weekly Horoscope

ARIES (March 21 to April 19) Make your holiday preparations one step at a time in order to avoid being overwhelmed and leaving things undone. That confusing family situation continues to work itself out.

TAURUS (April 20 to May 20) Ease this year’s holiday money pressures by letting your thrifty side guide you as you look for those perfect gifts that typically reflect your good taste and love of beauty.

GEMINI (May 21 to June 20) You’ll have a good handle on potential holiday problems if you delegate tasks to fam-ily members, friends or co-workers -- most of whom will be more than happy to help out.

CANCER (June 21 to July 22) Right now you are especial-ly vulnerable to holiday scams that seek to take advantage of your generosity. Best advice: Check them out before you send out your checks.

LEO (July 23 to August 22) The upcoming holiday season gives the Big Cat much to purr about. Relationships grow stronger, and new opportunities loom on the horizon, just waiting to be pounced on.

VIRGO (August 23 to September 22) A changing situation brings conflicting advice about how to go forward with your holiday plans. Your best bet: Make the decision you feel most comfortable with.

LIBRA (September 23 to October 22) Holiday plans get back on track after some confusion about the direction you expected to take. A potentially troublesome money matter needs your immediate attention.

SCORPIO (October 23 to November 21) Your holiday preparations are on track. But you need to confront a per-sonal situation while you can still keep it from overwhelm-ing everything else.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 to December 21) Tight financial matters ease a bit during this holiday season. But the sagacious Sagittarian is well-advised to keep a tight hold on the reins while shopping for gifts.

CAPRICORN (December 22 to January 19) Don’t put off making decisions about this year’s holiday celebrations, despite the negative comments you’ve been getting from several quarters. Do it NOW!

AQUARIUS (January 20 to February 18) The holidays will bring new friends and new opportunities. Meanwhile, be careful to use your energy wisely as you go about mak-ing holiday preparations.

PISCES (February 19 to March 20) There’s good news coming from a most unlikely source. And it could turn out to be one of the best holiday gifts you have had in years. Remember to stay positive.

BORN THIS WEEK: You are respected for your honesty and loyalty. You make friends slowly -- but with rare exceptions, they’re in your life forever.

Classified

missing from case files (annual reviews, for example, to determine if a bonus was deserved), incorrect sal-ary surveys were used to determine amounts of incen-tives, documents were signed off without question, financial limits were exceeded and there was a lack of training and oversight.According to the OIG’s report, the VA was often lax about it: Extra salary increased didn’t always stop when they were supposed to, with extra payments continuing until it was brought to someone’s atten-tion. In one case, a senior executive received a hefty retention bonus and shortly after received a second one. There was no documented justification.Based on the OIG’s sample of selected facilities that uncovered the 80 percent problem rate, it’s recom-mended that in the next 12 months, 100 percent of incentive payments be reviewed and unnecessary payments stopped.If you want to report wrongdoing in VA Programs and Operations, call 1-800-488-8244, or send email to [email protected].

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1. The past two times the Cincinnati Reds made the playoffs (1995, 2010), they did so despite having only two pitchers win 10-plus games each time. Name two of the four pitchers. 2. When was the last time a pitcher captured the A.L. Cy Young Award with 16 or fewer wins in a season before Zack Greinke in 2009?3. In 2010, Baltimore’s Anquan Boldin became the fastest NFL receiver to 600 career receptions (98 games). Who had been the fastest?4. When was the last time the Atlantic 10 Conference had five teams make the NCAA

Tournament in men’s basketball? 5. Name the person who was the first general manager of both the Philadelphia Flyers (1967) and the Vancouver Canucks (1970). 6. In 2011, Uruguay won the men’s soccer COPA America for a record 15th time. What country had been tied with Uruguay at 14?7. In 1988, two boxers, within three days of one another, became the first two to win five world titles in five different weight divisions. Name them.

Scouts say you can pick them out when they’re little kids. “The rest of the good playing kids in little league are hitting a respectable .300, and then there’s that one kid hitting .700 with a dinger each game,” one such scout told me. “We can see the kid’s already gonna be a pro, and he’s not even in high school yet.”Maybe he’s got a hitch in his swing. Perhaps he’s unsuited for the position he’s currently playing. Doesn’t matter. “Everybody is coachable,” a coach once told me. “But the player has to respond to the coach, or you can forget it.”Larry Bird couldn’t stand Bobby Knight so he bailed on Indiana. Former Atlanta Falcons head coach Jerry Glanville once proclaimed that Brett Favre would never play a down in the NFL. Martina Navratilova was too chubby to ever become a real contender on the women’s tennis circuit. Heck, Reggie Jackson couldn’t get a guaranteed spot in the Yankee lineup underneath Billy Martin.There was a theory making the rounds a few years ago that posited anybody can attain expert level in just about



I’LL TAKE A DOZENThere are some units of measurment that are just odd. For instance, the words knot, carat, cubit, ream, bale and dozen. Let’s spend about 40 dozen words looking at the ins and outs of dozen.

• A dozen equals 12 things. Eggs, doughnuts, flowers and more are often measured in dozens. •The word dozen is a contraction of the Latin word duo-decim, which means two plus 10. The root “duo” also appears in duodenum, the first part of the intestines, which happens to be about 12 inches (30.48 cm) long. Some language and math historians believe that a dozen is one of the earliest groupings, hence there are a dozen cycles of the moon in a cycle of the sun. There are a dozen months in the year, and watches and clocks are based on 12 hours of A.M. and 12 hours of P.M. • In the Bible, there are 12 tribes of Israel in the Old Testament, and Jesus chose 12 men to be his disciples in the New Testament. But these groups were never referred to as a dozen! • Do you know the significance of giving a dozen roses? Even though many don’t think of this, it is said to con-vey that the gift giver is thinking of the recipient all 12 months of the year. True love!• The original movie “Cheaper By the Dozen” was based on the 1948 autobiographical book written by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, two of the children of efficiency experts Frank Bunker Gil-breth, Sr. and Lillian Moller Gilbreth. The couple had a dozen children, and the book is based on a comment that the father was often heard saying when people asked him why he had so many children. He’d say, “Well, they come cheaper by the dozen, you know.• Two more “Cheaper By the Dozen” movies were made in 2003 and 2005, but they were not based on the real family or book. The only similarities were that the family had a dozen children and a lot of chaos! Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt starred in those movies. • A baker’s dozen is a collection of 13 items, instead of a normal dozen of 12. The tradition, usually just used in the baking industry, started in the 13th century, and con-tinues today at many bake shops around the world.• Also called a long dozen, devil’s dozen, rough rider’s dozen or long measure, giving a baker’s dozen most likely started because of severe punishments that existed in England when bakers shorted their custom-ers. Bakers feared not giving their customers the proper weight of goods, so instead of not giving enough, they would give extra, just to be sure! An extra roll, pastry or loaf of bread would surely satisfy their customers and fulfill the law as well.• Bake shops were regulated by the Worshipful Com-pany of Bakers, a trade guild to which most bakers belonged in medieval England. The guild regulated bread prices, what types were available for sale and where new shops could be established. The motto for the company was and still is, “Praise God for All.”• The next time you visit a doughnut shop or bakery, ask what their policy is concerning a baker’s dozen. Chances are, they’ll throw in an extra for you!

anything if they spend 10,000 hours or more practic-ing that particular craft. If you spent every waking hour practicing, every day, that would come to about two to three years. For a more reasonable timeframe, let’s just say it’s five to six years. One of the examples they used was The Beatles. They went off to Hamburg before they became famous, honed their craft by playing jet-fueled all-night sets and returned to Liverpool as stars. Sounds easy, right? Of course, the notion is pretty much absurd. If that were the case, every minor league base-ball player would be in the show and everyone down at the country club would be competing in the Ryder Cup.With the exception of tennis players, quarterbacks, switch-hitting baseball players and, for whatever reason, Chinese violinists -- players who had parents who really take the time to drill them (which is why the coach’s kid is usually one of the best players on the team) -- most people practice what it is they’re truly talented at.There can be late bloomers, sure ... for instance, I recently had an epiphany that led me to begin playing the guitar. A friend of mine said something that clicked, taught me the A chord, and I was off and running. Now, I can confidently say that I am at the expert level at guitar, so long as you only want to hear “Wild Thing,” by The Troggs. My kid is 2. He wants to be a drummer. So I bought him some maracas and told him the ottoman was a drum, have at it. I’ll let you know in another 9,000 hours how that’s working out.

Sept. 3 Louisiana Tech W, 19-17Sept. 10 at Marshall* L, 26-20Sept. 17 Southeastern Louisiana W, 52-6Sept. 24 at Virginia W, 30-24Oct. 1 Rice* W, 48-24Oct. 8 at Navy W,63-35 Oct. 22 SMU* W, 27-3 Oct. 29 at UTEP* W, 31-13 Nov. 5 at East Carolina* W,48-28 Nov. 12 UCF* W, 30-29Nov. 19 at UAB* L, 34-31Nov. 26 Memphis* W, 44-7Dec.3 at Houston * W, 49-28

Sept. 03 BYU L, 14-13Sept. 10 Southern Illinois W, 42-24Sept. 17 at Vanderbilt* L, 30-7Sept. 24 Georgia* L, 27-13Oct. 1 at Fresno State W, 38-28Oct. 15 Alabama* L, 52-7Oct. 22 Arkansas* L, 29-24Oct. 29 at Auburn* L, 41-23 Nov. 5 at Kentucky* L, 30-13Nov. 12 Louisiana Tech L, 27-0Nov. 19 LSU* L, 52-3Nov. 26 at Mississippi State* L, 31-3

Sept. 1 at Memphis W, 59-14 Sept. 10 at Auburn* L, 41-34 Sept. 15 LSU* L, 19-6 Sept. 24 Louisiana Tech W, 26-20 Oct. 1 at Georgia* L, 24-10 Oct. 8 at UAB W, 21-3 Oct. 15 South Carolina* L, 14-12 Oct. 29 at Kentucky* W, 28-16 Nov. 5 Tennessee Martin W, 55-17 Nov. 12 Alabama* L, 7 - 24 Nov. 19 at Arkansas* L, 17 - 44 Nov. 26 Ole Miss* W, 31 - 3

Nature or Nuture?

Sept. 3 Oregon W40-27 Sept. 10 NW State W49-3 Sept. 15 at Mississippi St.* W19-6 Sept. 24 at West Virginia W47-21 Oct. 1 Kentucky* W35-7 Oct. 8 Florida* W41-11 Oct. 15 at Tennessee* W38-7 Oct. 22 Auburn* W, 45-10 Nov. 5 at Alabama* W, 9-6(OT)Nov. 12 Western Kentucky W, 42-9Nov. 19 at Ole Miss* W, 52-3 Nov. 25 Arkansas* W, 41-17Dec. 3 at Georgia W, 42-10Jan. 9 Alabama National Championship


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Safety Rules 1. Obtain specific permission before hunting on private property. Use current maps and pay careful attention to boundaries so as not to intrude on populated areas. 2. To be extra safe, unload guns while t raveling to and from the hunting site. 3. Always wear distinctive hunter’s orange clothing. 4. When storing a gun, always unload it first.

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Treat your friends and family to a global culinary adventure this holiday season by hosting a casual cheese-tasting party in place of a sit-down meal. MyGourmetConnection’s suggested pairings of cold meats, cheeses, condiments and beverages will set the scene for a memorable get-together that’s easy on the host and hostess.

The Menu:Norway’s famous Jarlsberg is a mild cow’s milk cheese with a slightly sweet, nutty flavor and smooth texture. It pairs well with cubed or thin-sliced turkey, crisp seedless grapes and buttered pumpernickel rounds.Woolwich Dairy’s Triple Creme Goat Brie is a soft-ripened goat’s milk cheese from Canada. It has a fresh grassy flavor and a rich, creamy texture. It’s delicious served with the subtle spice of Black Forest ham and a condiment with tangy fruit flavors like a homemade chutney.The Gran Maestre Manchego Semicurado (also avail-able under the Villacenteno label) is a sheep’s milk cheese from Spain that has been aged for 3 months to produce a nutty, buttery flavor. Serve with dry-cured ham, preferably a Spanish Serrano or Italian Prosciut-to, and accompany the pairing with fresh or dried figs and spice-toasted almonds.

The Planning:Determining how much to buy can be a bit tricky, but when cheese and meats (charcuterie) make up the whole menu, plan on about 1 ounce of each cheese per

person and about the same for the meats. Using these guidelines, 1/2 pound of each of the cheeses and meats we’ve suggested here should serve 8 people. If you don’t mind leftovers, you may want to allow a little extra of each to be safe.

The Presentation:Plan on taking your cheese out of the refrigerator at least 1 hour before serving for the best flavor and texture. Group the proper pairings together on decorative plates, wooden boards or marble slabs and have small plates, picks and napkins available so your guests can munch and mingle easily throughout the evening.Generally speaking, white wines pair best with this cheese assortment. Suggestions include Chablis or White Burgundy, Semi-dry Riesling, unoaked Chardonnay and a sparkling Spanish Cava.

Quick Tip:To make buttered pumpernickel rounds: Get a loaf of fresh, thin-sliced pumpernickel bread. Using a round biscuit cutter, cut 2 or 3 rounds from each slice. Spread each round with a very thin layer of softened butter and sprinkle them with a pinch of salt. Bake in a 400 F oven for 5 to 7 minutes, until toasted and crisp.

To find the recipe for our easy-to-make Apple-Cranberry Chutney, more info on choosing the right wine and beer for your party and additional tips for creating the perfect cheese board, visit: www.MyGourmetConnection.com/cheeseplate/

Perfect Pairings for Easy Entertaining

Pecan Cookie BallsThese buttery melt-in-your mouth cookies, also known as Mexican Wedding Cakes, make a great holiday gift or cookie exchange addition.

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, divided2 teaspoons McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract1/2 teaspoon McCormick Nutmeg, Ground1/8 teaspoon salt2 cups flour2 cups finely chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add 1/2 cup of the sugar and vanilla, nutmeg and salt; beat until well-blended. Stir in flour and pecans.2. Shape into 1-inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.3. Bake 15 minutes. Remove from baking sheets. Im-mediately roll hot cookies in remaining 2 cups sugar. Place sugared cookies on wire racks to cool. When cool, roll again in sugar. Makes 4 dozen, or 24 (2 cookie) servings.

• Each serving: About 214 calories, 15g fat, 20 g carbo-hydrate, 22mg cholesterol, 95mg sodium, 1g fiber, 2g protein.

Holiday Oatmeal Cookies1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour1 teaspoon baking soda1/2 teaspoon salt1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened3/4 cup (packed) brown sugar1/2 cup granulated sugar1 large egg1 teaspoon vanilla extract3 cups old-fashioned oats, uncooked1 cup raisins1 package (6-ounce) semisweet chocolate chips (1 cup)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. On waxed paper, combine flour, baking soda and salt.2. In large bowl, with mixer on medium speed, beat butter and brown and granulated sugars until creamy, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low; gradually beat in flour mixture just until blended, occasionally scraping bowl. With spoon, stir in oats, raisins and chocolate chips.3. Drop dough by heaping measuring tablespoons, 2 inches apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet. Bake cookies 13 to 15 minutes or until tops are golden. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.4. Repeat with remaining dough. Store cookies in tight-ly covered container at room temperature up to 1 week or in freezer up to 3 months. Makes 4 dozen cookies.

Each serving: About 115 calories, 6g total fat (3g satu-rated), 15mg cholesterol, 95mg sodium, 16g carbohy-drate, 1g dietary fiber, 2g protein.



• On Dec. 18, 1620, the Mayflower docks at what today is Plymouth, Mass., and its passengers disembarked to begin their new settlement, Plymouth Colony. The win-ter of 1620-1621 was brutal, and by spring, only 52 of the original 102 Mayflower passengers were still alive.

• On Dec. 16, 1773, in Boston Harbor, a group of Mas-sachusetts colonists disguised as Mohawk Indians board three British tea ships and dump 342 chests of tea into the harbor in protest of the British Parliament’s Tea Act of 1773. The value of the tea was more than $700,000 in today’s currency.

• On Dec. 14, 1909, workers place the last of the 3.2 mil-lion 10-pound bricks that pave the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana. Since then, all but a 1-yard-wide strip at the start-finish line has been buried under asphalt. Kissing those bricks after a successful race remains a tra-dition among Indy drivers.

• On Dec. 13, 1916, a powerful avalanche kills hun-dreds of Austrian soldiers in barracks near Italy’s Mount Marmolada. Over a period of several weeks, avalanches killed an estimated 10,000 Austrian and Italian soldiers.

• On Dec. 17, 1961, a fire at a filled-to-capacity circus in Brazil kills more than 300 people and severely burns 500 more. The cause of the fire was never conclusively deter-mined, but it may have been the result of sparks from a train passing nearby.

• On Dec. 15, 1973, Jean Paul Getty III, the grandson of American billionaire J. Paul Getty, is found alive near Naples, five months after his kidnapping by an Italian gang. Getty had initially refused to pay his 16-year-old grandson’s $17 million ransom, but finally agreed after the boy’s severed right ear was sent to a newspaper in Rome.

• On Dec. 12, 1980, American oil tycoon Armand Ham-mer pays $5,126,000 at auction for a notebook contain-ing writings by the legendary artist Leonardo da Vinci. The manuscript, written around 1508, contained 72 loose pages featuring some 300 notes and detailed drawings, all relating to the common theme of water and how it moved.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I have seborrheic keratoses and have had them for many years. Doctors say nothing can be done. I had them cut off and frozen off, but they come right back. Can you help?

ANSWER: Seborrheic (SEB-uh-REE-ik) keratoses are brown, warty-looking spots on the back, chest, arms, legs and sometimes the face. They are not cancers and don’t become cancers. There may be only a few, but there can be hundreds of them. Their cause is a mystery, but they appear at older ages, so aging is somehow involved. A doctor can scrape them off or freeze them. They might come back, but they can be retreated if they do. The tendency to develop them is inherited.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Years ago, after the birth of my son, the doctor said I had milk leg. It was very painful. What would this be called today? -- A.R.

ANSWER: I’ve never heard the term “milk leg” used by a doctor, but I have seen it in print. Today the condition is called thrombophlebitis (THROM-boh-flea-BITE-iss) -- a clot (thrombo) in an inflamed vein (phlebitis). In milk leg, the vein is the femoral vein, the large leg vein. It can be a complication of pregnancy even today.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am recuperating from a kidney infection (pyelitis). The doctor did a culture of my urine, which showed a gram negative rod. What kind of infection is that? -- S.B.

ANSWER: The more common urinary tract infection is infection of the bladder -- cystitis. Pyelitis (PIE-uh-LITE-iss), now usually called pyelonephritis, is an infection of the kidney itself. It is a much more serious infection, and one that usually makes people take to their bed.Pyelitis causes high fever often alternating with chills. People have intense flank pain, the side area between the lowest rib and the upper part of the pelvis. The infection also might make people urinate more frequently and with pain. These two signs, however, are more apt to indicate bladder infection.The most frequent cause of pyelitis is the bacterium E. coli. Bacteria are classified into two large groups based on how they react to a stain used to visualize them with a microscope. The stain is the Gram stain, named after the doctor who devised it. Bacteria are either gram positive or gram negative. A gram positive bacterium turns blue with the stain; a gram negative turns red.Bacteria also are classified by their shape. Some are elongated sticks -- rods. Others are oval-shaped. E. coli is a gram negative rod.Pyelitis is a situation that calls for immediate and usually intravenous antibiotic treatment. It responds promptly to such treatment. The temperature often returns to normal within two days.The booklet on urinary tract infections describes both upper urinary tract infections (kidney -- pyelitis) and lower urinary tract infections (bladder -- cystitis). Readers can obtain a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue -- No. 1204W, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. 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.

To Your Good Health By Paul G. Donohue, M.D.

The Tidbits® Paper is a Division of Tidbits Media, Inc. • Montgomery, AL 36106(800) 523-3096 • E-mail: [email protected] • All Rights Reserved ©2008

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Antibiotics Usually End Kidney Infection


1. GEOGRAPHY: What is the third longest river system in the world? 2. ANIMAL KINGDOM: What is another name for totipalmate feet?3. MUSIC: Who is the vocalist for the pop band “Blondie”?4. U.S. STATES: What state’s motto is, “If you seek a pleasant pen-insula, look about you”?5. BUSINESS: What is the currency of South Africa?6. LITERATURE: What was the first land Gulliver encountered in the satirical novel “Gulliver’s Travels”? 7. TELEVISION: How many years was the Western drama “Gun-smoke” on the air?8. U.S. PRESIDENTS: Who was Dwight Eisenhower’s vice presi-dent? 9. SCIENCE: What does beta carotene add to food?10. MOVIES: What animated film featured the theme song “Circle of Life”?

DEAR PAWS’S CORNER: My friend has a Border Collie mix, “Jeffy,” who is about two or three years old. He snorts or coughs at least 10 or 15 times a day, and when he does, a copious amount of mucus comes out of his nose. Can you tell me what causes this and how to remedy it? -- B.P., Prince George, Va.

DEAR B.P.: Coughing in dogs can have a number of causes, ranging from allergy to serious infection. The first thing your friend needs to do is take Jeffy to the veterinarian to rule out a dangerous illness like kennel cough or other infection, or an injury.Your friend should let the vet know how long Jeffy has had this cough, if he was recently boarded or regularly goes to doggy day care, and if his shots are up to date. Jeffy also should be regularly treated with a heartworm preventive; if he isn’t, your friend must let the doctor know. If Jeffy dealt with a recent flea infestation, let the vet know.

Reader: Dog’s Cough a WorryBy Samantha Mazzotta


If Jeffy is diagnosed with an illness -- respiratory infections can happen to any dog -- the vet will determine the type of infection and prescribe medicine to treat it. He also may prescribe a cough suppressant to give the dog a little relief from the coughing. If Jeffy gets a clean bill of health, your friend will want to look into other causes of his cough and mucus, such as seasonal allergies, a food allergy or an environmental allergy such as dampness and/or mold in the house. Treatment, along with reduced exposure to the allergen that’s causing the problem, can make a big difference.

ers for your home by making small weekly payments. As with anything that sounds too good to be true, once you add up the fees and interest, along with the payments, you could end up paying five or six times what you would have paid in a store. To break the rent-to-own habit, save your money and buy one item at a time. If you use a credit card, don’t charge more than you can realistically pay off in three months.While NFCC doesn’t mention it, buying a new vehicle every year can be an addictive habit as well. A shiny car or truck, without a scratch, with that new-car smell and brand-new tires -- it’s easy to want one in the driveway. The problem is that vehicles depreci-ate quickly. The longer you keep a vehicle, however, the less it depreciates each year. Invest in a complete vehicle detailing service twice a year, and keep the vehicle at least three years.

Three addicting financial habits can cost you extra money in the long run, according to The National Foundation for Credit Counseling. Here are the culprits:Pawn shops will loan money in exchange for an item you own, such as a television or stereo. It’s considered an easy way to get money, and it can be addicting because of the immediacy. At the end of the agreed upon period, you can buy your item back -- by paying the original amount plus inter-est. If you can’t pay at that time, you can extend the loan period, with additional interest tacked on to the original amount. The interest rates are more than you’d ever pay at a bank. To break the pawn-shop habit, set aside money until you accumulate an emergency fund.Payday loans can be addictive because of the imme-diate payoff (you get the cash right now) and the de-layed payback (you write a post-dated check). At the end of the agreed upon period, the lender will cash your check -- which is for the amount you borrowed plus interest. As with pawn shops, the interest rates can be astronomical. To break the habit of using payday lenders, open a savings account at a credit union. When you need a loan, ask there first.Rent-to-Own is considered an easy way to get furniture, televisions, appliances and even comput-

Financial Crutches Can be Addicting

• It was English biologist Thomas Henry Huxley who made the following sage observation: “Irrationally held truths may be more harmful than reasoned errors.”

• If you put your rubber bands in the refrigerator, they’ll last longer.

• It’s not just the tiger’s fur that has stripes; its skin is striped, too.

• You probably know that the iconic film “Rocky” starred Sylvester Stallone in the leading role, but you might not be aware of the fact that he wrote the script, as well. The sale of the rights to the script came just in time; he had a total of $106 in his bank account and was trying to sell his dog for lack of the means to feed it.

• In the winter of 1932, Niagara Falls froze solid.

• Madame Tussaud started creating her famous wax figures in 1777 and created many models during the French Revolution. She traveled around Europe displaying wax figures (both the ones she created and ones she inherited from her mentor), and she opened her first museum in London in 1831. Today there are branches located in the United Kingdom, Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Vienna, Moscow, Bangkok, Dubai, Berlin and Hamburg, plus five U.S. locations. It’s appropriate that there are more locations in American than in any other country, since so many Hollywood celebrities are recreated in the museums. In fact, in 2006, Shiloh, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s baby, became the first infant to be memorialized in wax for Madame Tussauds.

• Those who study such things say that apples are more effective than caffeine at waking you up in the morning.

• It’s not clear why, but a duck’s quack doesn’t create echoes.***Thought for the Day: “The trouble with being punctual is that nobody’s there to appreciate it.” -- Franklin P. Jones



1. Missouri-Missis-sippi2. Webbed 3. Deborah Harry 4. Michigan5. The rand6. Lilliput7. 20 years8. Richard Nixon9. Color10. “The Lion King”

1. Pete Schourek (18) and John Smiley (12) in 1995; Bronson Arroyo (17) and Johnny Cueto (12) in 2010.2. Kansas City’s David Cone was 16-5 when he won the A.L. Cy Young Award in the shortened 1994 season. 3. The Colts’ Marvin Harrison accomplished it in 102 games.4. It was 1998 (George Washington, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Temple and Xavier).5. Bud Poile.6. Argentina.7. Thomas “Hitman” Hearns and Sugar Ray Leonard.

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