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