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About The Columbia press. (Astoria, Or.) 1949-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 14, 2018)
T he C olumbia P ress December 14, 2018 Senior Moments with Emma Edwards Time, the best gift of all With just a few weeks un- til Christmas, I did a bit of research over what to get us seniors for Christmas. Perhaps the most signifi- cant item pointed out in my research is that “the magic of Christmas has nothing to do with presents … but with presence.” Some suggestions: Take a senior friend on a tour of Christmas lights. Even if you only went to our local Warren House it could alleviate their loneliness. Fill your car up with seniors or just do a one on one! Phone one of our local churches, find out when their Christmas program is and enjoy it with a few senior friends. And, yes, you will find that Jesus is the reason for the season probably at most of our local churches. It’s guaranteed to take away feelings of aloneness or sad- ness for us seniors! Oh, and before I forget, a while back I promised you I would share the meaning of the acronym EVOO. Did you figure it out? Yes, it’s for ex- tra virgin olive oil, defined by Merriam-Webster in the ’80s. Maybe it’s weird, but it made me smile. I wonder if EVOO has ever been used in Jeopardy under the initials category? More than a few people asked me last week about us- ing the delightful word “nig- gle.” I guess it drove them to their dictionary! I will ex- plain. Did you ever have a thought or maybe a song that you just couldn’t get off your mind? Well that is where the word niggled comes in for us. A senior gentleman gave me that word recently and it kind of niggled in the back of my mind for some time. I did not know its meaning and yet it was already exer- cising frustration inside my head. A sentence given as an example for the definition of niggled was “a suspicion nig- gled at the back of her mind.” I find it rather fun the more I say the word or write it. Thanks, Gary, for being a real niggler! Recently, I heard that a person who has large pu- pils in one or both eyes will find nighttime driving diffi- cult. And other tasks as well. Large pupils appear in one or both eyes in an estimated 1 in 5 people. It’s not a serious health problem, but good to be aware of it. Causes often are not easily diagnosed but can be the re- sult of an injury to the brain from physical trauma or a stroke. Other causes can be related to medications, plants and one’s oxytocin levels. Now this is interesting: in a Medical News Today arti- cle I learned that oxytocin is a hormone that supports human connection and re- production. It supports wom- en through labor, promotes bonding with babies and af- fects testosterone levels. The article points out that sensing a romantic connec- tion can affect your pupils al- most immediately. 3 Hazmat team called to Warrenton Grade School A hazardous materials team was called to Warren- ton Grade School Tuesday morning after school officials learned a student had a pos- sible hazardous substance made from cleaning prod- ucts inside a backpack at the school. “We called out hazmat and secured it in a container and it was secured in an officer’s vehicle,” Police Chief Matt Workman said. “Students and staff were never in any danger.” Warrenton Fire Depart- ment just happened to be on campus at the time, picking up donations for the holiday food drive. Fire and police County wins budget award Clatsop County received no- tice recently that it received an award from the Govern- ment Finance Officers Asso- ciation for its budget. The award represents a significant achievement, ac- cording to the association. “It reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting,” according to the group’s press release. To get the award, the coun- ty had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for ef- fective budget presentation, including a policy document, financial plan, operations guide and communications. Senior lunch menu Monday, Dec. 17: Jambalaya with shrimp, ham and chicken, rice, carrots, tomato soup, chocolate cake. Thursday, Dec. 20: Roasted turkey, cornbread dressing with gravy, green bean casserole, coleslaw, pecan pie. The Warrenton senior lunch program is at noon (doors open at 10:30 a.m.) Mondays and Thursdays at Warrenton Community Center, 170 SW Third St. Suggested donation is $5 for ages 55 and older; $7 for those younger. For more information, call 503-861-3502. officials called out the hazmat team, which came to the cam- pus and assisted in the inves- tigation. On Tuesday, police ob- tained a search warrant from the District Attorney’s Office and served it Tuesday eve- ning at the student’s home, Workman said. “No students or staff are in any danger and the school is running normally,” Work- man posted on Facebook Tuesday. The school also sent bulle- tins out to parents by email and phone letting them know of the situation and assur- ing them children were in no danger. An investigation hasn’t been completed, Workman said, so no additional infor- mation would be released until then. It’s been a while since his children attended Warrenton schools, Workman said, “but I still think of all 900 and some kids attending there as my own.” Your Money and the City of Warrenton · · · For the 2018-19 physical budget cycle, we have $34,839,892 in funds that we manage. For the same period, we have budgeted spend- ing of $27,324,003 for the current level of service you receive. Your base property taxes contribute $802,595 toward the services provided to you, 1/5 of what people pay in Astoria. Management of Funds: - Assistance with VFW Statue Grant funds of $72,028. - Assistance to Pacific Coast Seafoods rebuild, handling $3,650,000 in pass-through grants from other agencies. - Negotiated Core Conveyance Loan for sewer system up- grade at 1.45% interest and $500,000 in loan forgiveness. - Received Water Master Plan Grant from Oregon Busi- ness Development Department (OBDD) for $20,000. - Received Industrial User Agreement Planning Grant from OBDD for $36,306. - Received Sewer System Inflow and Infiltration Reduction Study Loan for $35,000 at 1.69% and a Grant for $20,000 from OBDD. - Hammond Waterline Loan for $1,645,000 at 1% with $929,500 loan forgiveness. - Assistance with Library Services & Technology Act Grant for Library Automation Project in cooperation with Seaside Library and Libraries Reader Outreach in Clatsop County (ROCC) program in the amount of $36,566. Paid for by Rick Newton
