Today's Feature

Possible NAO Officer.

The City Council Public Works Committee will meet this afternoon at 4:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall. Items on the agenda include the possible addition of a Nuisance Abatement Officer (NAO) position within the Public Works Department. This officer would attend to situations involving excessive weeds, overgrown grass and trash in yards.

Other items of discussion include the continuation of a discussion concerning trash exemption letters. The committee during a meeting in December of last year heard from a citizen wishing to discontinue trash service. Public Works Director Chad Wampler advised against the waiving of fees citing a section of City Code. Committee Chair Tom Flanigan requested more time to allow the committee to study the code as it pertains to trash collection.

The committee will also continue its discussion concerning the Peachtree Development agreement. Development owner Dr. Michael Woody at a previous meeting presented the committee with updated construction figures to assist with the finalization of figures for a Community Improvement District agreement.

Stench Report:

Monday,
2/5/07

No Stench Detected Near the Carthage Square

In pitch, the joker is simply an additional card in the deck. It has a set value between the jack and the ten.

‘Course in games where the joker is wild and it ends up in my hand, I take ever’ advantage of the situation. That’s the rule of that particular game and if I’m playin’, I make the best of it.

The main consideration is that all players agree on the rules, no matter how unorthodox they may be, and the rules apply to all participants.

‘Course there are always those who want to modify the rules to fit their particular situation. Rules should be changed at the beginnin’ of the game, not in the middle.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Inflammation of Nerve Triggers Dizziness

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: One morning this past week, I woke up with such dizziness that I can’t describe it adequately. It made me sick to my stomach, and I threw up. I went back to bed and lay there for an hour before I could get up and navigate at all. I have never been seasick, but I think this is the closest I’ll ever come to it. What causes this, and what can I do for it? -- M.M.

ANSWER: The causes of dizziness are dizzyingly numerous, but if you insist I take a stab at the diagnosis, I would choose vestibular neuritis. The vestibular nerve is the nerve that takes balance signals to the brain from the inner ear. Inflammation of that nerve makes people feel like they’re aboard a ship that’s rocking and rolling in gigantic waves.

The inflammation is often due to a viral infection. It comes on quickly, the way you describe what happened to you. Nausea and vomiting are almost always part of the picture.

I’d like to tell you that things will be well in short order, but the nerve inflammation can last a long time. Symptoms lessen, but lingering dizziness can remain. Cortisone drugs quicken recovery. At least, studies have shown that people who take those drugs regain their equilibrium faster than those who don’t. Motion-sickness drugs like Antivert can also be tried.

What you must do is see the family doctor. I have briefly outlined one common cause of dizziness, but vestibular neuritis is only one of many causes. Treatment of those conditions is quite different from treatment of vestibular disturbance.