BOCA Scare.

A flyer being distributed by First Ward Council candidate Chuck Tobrock has resulted in several calls to City Hall and Council members concerning the upcoming proposed ordinances to adopt building codes as defined by the International Conference of Building Officials.

The City currently regulates new structure construction and property maintenance under the 1996 version of the BOCA (Building Officials/Code Administrators) Code. Over the last few months, an ongoing discussion of the updated code has revealed little difference between the 2000 version versus the 1996 version. Several property owners have formed a group to oppose the adoption of the updated version, but there is no single voice to represent those associated with the group.

The Tobrock flyer warns people that they are in danger of losing their homes.

"...these new BOCA 2000 codes can very easily ruin a persons (sic) retirement and send them to a state funded group home," says Tobrock.

There is no documentation of that ever happening in Carthage.

I’ve always refrained from the temptation to endorse a candidate. I therefore have never spoke out against any particular candidate, especially one willing to sit on the City Council.

I don’t know Mr. Tobrock and have no knowledge what kind of Council representative he might make. I don’t, however, think that scarin’ the wits out of retired widows is particularly appealin’ to most.

His flyer is littered with speculation about what "could" or "most likely" happen. He also urges..."We must stick together in North Carthage for if we do not, the citizens that feel that they are better than us just because they live in newer homes will run us out of town."

Good attitude for a growin’ community.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

Workman's Loan

The Super Handyman

by Al Carrell & Kelly Carrell

There’s nothing quite like the sound of a shovel handle cracking. If your shovel has a wooden handle, you’re liable to hear that sound eventually. Most shovels handles snap at the ferrule. At least nine times out of 10, it happens because too much pressure has been put on it.

One thing you can do to protect your favorite shovel is to install a short piece of lightweight PVC conduit over the handle near the ferrule. A section about 8 inches long is all you need. It can be held in place with screws if it’s not tight enough by itself, or you can use duct tape. The conduit segment won’t add much weight to the tool.

With the added protection, hopefully you and your trusted friend will be together for many more years to come.

Dear Al & Kelly: I’ve got a little measuring trick I have used for practically all my life, using quarters. The diameter of a quarter is roughly an inch. Now, I wouldn’t want to build a house using quarters fo rhte measuring, but it sure can come in handy when you need to measure something small. I learned that from my father when I was about 6 years old.

SUPER HINT-When replacing candles in the household candelabra try spraying a little cooking spray into the candleholder to make the candles insert a little easier.