Today's Feature

Preparing for Drake Renovation.

The $5.2 million renovation of the Drake Hotel building into a senior housing unit is approaching commencement. Electrical contractors have occupied the building recently preparing for the construction workers by providing adequate electricity and water for the work to be done.

According to Public Works Director Chad Wampler, a schedule will soon be available outlining the time-frame for the construction work. Wampler says that one of the first jobs will be the repair of the back parking lot. Wampler met with contractors over a week ago to discuss the status of the project. The firm in charge of the restoration is SWD Architects.

Economic Security Corporation CEO John Joines before the project was approved said that he hoped to begin construction by this summer and be finished with the project by July of 2006.

The Public Works Committee will meet this afternoon at 5:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall. Items on the agenda include a discussion of voluntary annexation for the Fairview interchange.

However, I typically break more than a few gettin’ the package open.

There was a time when I would crumple up a handful of crackers in my chili. As I matured, I find I now enjoy the ritual of spreadin’ a little butter on the wafers and leavin’ the chili in its original state.

A buddy a mine insists that the reason he crumpled crackers on his salad was from eatin’ at roadside greasy spoons. He said the tidbits bring a crunch back to the wilted lettuce that’s set for a couple a hours.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Treatments Abound for Varicose Veins

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am a 36-year-old woman whose legs have ugly varicose veins. Is surgery the only treatment? What happens if I leave them alone? What causes them? They must run in families, because my mother and my two sisters have them. — R.R.

ANSWER: Up to a third of adult women and a fifth of adult men are afflicted with varicose veins. For some, they are more than a cosmetic nuisance. Often they cause a heavy sensation in the legs, can bring on leg fatigue, and can produce leg swelling. If none of these applies to you, you can safely leave them alone.

Family history is one factor in their appearance. The major problem is defective vein valves. As blood flows back to the heart through leg veins, vein valves close to keep the blood from dropping down. If the valves aren’t functioning, blood does fall down the vein, expands it and eventually leads to a distorted, engorged vein.

The number of treatments for varicose veins increases yearly. I can’t describe all of them but I can give you a sample from the large menu available. Sclerotherapy consists of injections of slightly irritating substances, like very dense salt water, into the vein. The irritation causes the vein to collapse, and its walls stick together. With a similar result, laser or radio waves heat the inside of the vein and seal it.

Of course, standard surgical removal is still used, and there have been many major refinements to that technique.