Sold.

One hundred-forty-eight properties were sold at the tax auction last week of the 360 offered. According to Jasper County Collector Stephen Holt, the total amount collected for the property was $122,856.17. That compares to last year where 144 properties were sold for a total of $82,641.

Over 300 of the properties originally listed were removed after taxes were paid.

Musicians Invited.

The fall season will come in with a plink, boom and sizzle when the Ozark Wilderness Dulcimer Club holds its annual cookout and jam session on Tuesday, September 2, at 6:00 PM at the Park Plaza Christian Church, 3200 Indiana at 32nd Street, Joplin.

All acoustic musicians — and would-be acoustic musicians — are invited to join in the fun. Current members include players of mountain and hammered dulcimers, autoharp, penny whistle, harmonica, accordion, washboard, fiddle, guitar, and more.

Bring lawn chairs or blankets, a covered dish, and, of course, your instrument. Hamburgers will be sizzling on the grill. For information, call Christina at 417-358-9679.

Looks like the lawn mowers will be back in action for a few more weeks. The long dry spell was keepin’ growth down to a minimum, but ever’one was wonderin’ if the yellow patches would survive. Yesterday it looked like the soaker over the last few days has sparked new life into the local vegetation.

I think my tomato plants are way past any rescue, but most ever’thing else seems to have perked up some. It always amazes me how plants seem to react better to rain than processed water. I’ve wondered ‘bout puttin’ rain barrels under the downspouts and then runnin’ a test usin’ on two locations between rain water and tap water. Puttin’ the exact same amount on both growths and seein’ if there is any difference. ‘Course I’ve frequently considered jumpin’ out of a plane with a parachute, but that one hasn’t got off the ground either.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

McCune- Brooks Hospital

TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH

By Paul G. Donohue, M.D.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: For two days my son complained about a bad headache. I thought nothing of it and told him to take Tylenol. On the third day, he couldn’t get out of bed, and his temperature was quite high. We rushed him to the hospital. After doing a spinal tap, they said he had encephalitis. Does this cause permanent brain damage? — H.D.

ANSWER: Encephalitis (IN-sef-uh-LITE-us) is an infection of the brain, and quite often it is a viral infection. The roster of possible viruses is large. It numbers more than 100. Quite often, it is impossible to identify which of the 100 viruses is responsible for a particular case.

Mosquitoes can carry some encephalitis viruses. Contaminated food and water are two other sources of infection and spread. The peak season for viral encephalitis is late summer and early fall. The mosquito population is at its height, and family picnics are often the setting for food and drink to become contaminated with encephalitis viruses.

Headache is a universal symptom of encephalitis. So is a fever. Sometimes patients become stuporous.

There are specific medicines for only a handful of the viral-caused encephalitis infections. For the others, intensive nursing, pain relief and intravenous feeding can generally permit a patient to weather the storm.