Sobriety Checkpoints on Water.

Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Water Patrol Division announces efforts to reduce the incidents of intoxicated vessel operators by the establishment of sobriety checkpoints on Missouri’s lakes and rivers. Vessel sobriety checkpoints will be conducted on many of the state’s bodies of water throughout the 2011 boating season. Sobriety checkpoints are conducted to increase the boating public’s awareness of the potential hazards of operating a boat while intoxicated, maximize enforcement efforts in deterring impaired boating, remove intoxicated boaters from Missouri waterways, and reduce fatalities and injuries through vigorous enforcement of Missouri boating laws.

Last year, just over half of the boating fatalities in Missouri involved alcohol. Missouri boat operators found to have a blood alcohol content of .08% will be arrested for boating while intoxicated. Studies have shown that it can take less alcohol to affect a person’s reaction time when out on the water due the additional environmental stressors boaters are exposed to such as noise, wind, vibration, and sun.

Jasper County Jail Count

194 May 19, 2011

Total Including Placed out of County

In this era of mass media and the homogenized fast paced life-style of the larger metropolitan areas, there seems to be some value in not just ridin’ the tide.

Some of the most successful business ventures seem to be those which go against the grain a little.

Some Wall Street types preach this line a thinkin’ all the time. Watch for the trend, then go the other way. The thinkin’ is that by the time it’s a trend, ever’one is already on board.

Those who settled in this part of the country were experts at findin’ opportunities where no one else was lookin’.

The recent exersise in the Downtown Visioning Committee looked "outside the box". Hopefully the investment brings a legitimate return.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

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Weekly Column

artCentral

ART NOTES from Hyde House

by Sally Armstrong, Director of artCentral

I am continuing to prepare our new exhibition opening at Hyde House on May 20th with a group from the Missouri Colored Pencil Artist Society. Most of the work is here, and the pieces are colorful and beautiful. A unifying factor would be realism, but the subject matter and styles are varied and unique. Continuing with a discussion of the artists not mentioned last week, I will present Lora Waring, a Carthage artist and member of artCentral as well as the Colored Pencil Society of America. Lora is presenting mostly floral themed work, very soft colorations, in both watercolor pencil as well as regular colored pencil. She was born and raised in Florida, and nature has always been a part of her life. She is self taught and presented her work in the Member gallery in 2009. A new artist for artCenral is Reeds Spring artist Karen Deeds. She was recently accepted into the CPSA’s International juried competition, and four years ago had a piece juried into the CPSA "Explore This #4" exhibition. Both of these works will be in our show here at artCentral. Karen has worked in colored pencil & watercolor, has taught art in high school and at all levels, including adult workshops. She is a multi-award winner and displays her work in galleries in Kimberling City and Springfield. Additionally, we will be displaying a group colored pencil works by some local junior/student artists in the Member Gallery. These are the remaining artists that will be bringing their work to us at our next opening this week, so please plan to be with us Friday, May 20th at 6:00 for this great exhibition, which will then remain on our galleries weekends noon to 5:00 through June 5th.