The INDEPENDENT, April 21, 2011
April is Alcohol Awareness Month
In recognition of Alcohol
Awareness Month, in April, the
Oregon Liquor Control Com-
mission (OLCC) is encouraging
families and community lead-
ers to focus on the serious im-
pacts of underage drinking in
their neighborhoods. Alcohol
Awareness Month is intended
to educate people and commu-
nities about the consequences
of alcohol-related problems.
According to ECONorthwest
and Oregon Health Authority,
each year alcohol consumption
in Oregon leads to:
• 1,400 alcohol-related
deaths
• 243,000 persons with alco-
hol abuse or dependence dis-
orders
• 5,100 violent crimes due to
alcohol use by the perpetrator
or victim, and
• 41,000 offenses related to
driving under the influence.
“April is the perfect time for
Alcohol Awareness Month be-
cause it is right before Prom
and Graduation season. During
Alcohol Awareness Month we
want to connect with our youth
so we can provide resources
that can prevent an alcohol-re-
lated tragedy,” said Rudy
Williams, Deputy Director of the
Public Safety Services Pro-
gram. “It’s important for par-
ents, friends, teachers and
community leaders to have
conversations with teens about
the very real dangers related to
alcohol abuse and underage
drinking. The OLCC video,
“Wasted” can help initiate those
conversations.”
According to the Pacific In-
stitute for Research and Evalu-
ation, underage drinking cost
Oregonians $841.3 Million in
2007:
• Youth Violence $464.7
• Youth Alcohol Treatment
$127.3
• Youth Traffic Crashes
$84.9
• High-Risk Sex $57.9
• Youth Injury $44.0
• Youth Property Crime
$43.6
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
$13.3
• Poisonings and Psychoses
$5.6
For more information about
underage drinking, visit our
website http://www.oregon.gov/
OLCC/alcohol_and_minors.sht
ml or visit The Century Council
Web site at www.centurycoun-
cil.org.
Tips for safe Easter egg preparation
If you’re planning on dyeing
and hunting Easter eggs this
year, it’s important to follow
food safety rules to prevent ill-
ness.
Keep fresh eggs refrigerated
in the original carton until it’s
time to cook them. Eggs are a
high protein food and are prone
to rapid growth of the disease-
causing bacteria, salmonella.
Hard-cooked eggs can spoil
faster than fresh ones – eggs
are porous and bacteria can
penetrate the shell. A protective
coating that is added when
eggs are washed at the plant
washes away during boiling,
which makes it easier for bacte-
ria to enter the shell. Therefore,
it is important to refrigerate
hard-cooked eggs within two
hours of cooking.
Do not handle eggs exces-
sively. Wash your hands thor-
oughly when you do handle
them.
Don’t hide the same eggs
you plan to eat. Plan to hide
plastic eggs and decorate hard-
boiled eggs for eating only.
Don’t eat cracked eggs or
eggs that have been out of the
refrigerator longer than two
hours.
A green ring around an egg
yolk may look unappetizing, but
don’t worry – the egg is still
safe and will taste fine. The
green ring is a result of sulfur
and iron compounds reacting
on the surface of the yolk. This
can occur when eggs are over-
cooked or when there is a high
amount of iron in the cooking
Bits & Bites
By Jacqueline Ramsay
Well, I saw a sign in a church yard that
said, “Spring has sprung.” Now my ques-
tion is – Which way did it spring? Backward
or forward?
We have had more rain, more wind,
more hail, more snow flurries and less sun
since mid-March than we had all winter.
Agree or disagree?
To top it all off, I’ve been more tired than
when I had pneumonia. So, should I go into
hibernation or continue to think of swimming in the hot tub all sum-
mer? Such weighty problems to solve.
I sit inside and look at the green goo growing on my patio and
wonder when am I going to be able to rescue it so I can sun my
bare feet, if Summer comes.
In going back to Vernonia lately, I have been made aware of
the changes along the streets into town – vacant lots are disap-
pearing for a new main business district but vacant lots are ap-
pearing in strange places. The Country Kitchen is now a ghost.
Anyhow I can still see it there in my mind’s eye. Little squatty
houses are now becoming too tall to reach. I’m almost happy I
don’t live there anymore – I can’t climb stairs anymore, not even
for exercise. So, If I had friends in high houses we’d both have to
meet in the middle somewhere.
They do look strange.
My main question is – Are there going to be any children left in
the Vernonia area to use all of the new schools??
I pray so.
If you are trying to learn a new word once in a while – here is
one for you. Jejune.
water.
The American Egg Board
has a recommendation for
cooking tender eggs with no
green ring:
• In a saucepan, place the
eggs in a single layer. Add
enough water to cover the eggs
by 1 inch. Cover and quickly
bring to a boil.
24 Years Ago This Month
The April 30, 1987, issue of
The Independent included the
following news story on page 5:
The Vernonia City Council
agreed unanimously to hold in-
formal “Town Hall” meetings
each month following their sec-
ond monthly meeting, in order
to provide more opportunity for
citizen input in city government.
“We really do want to know
what the citizens of Vernonia
think,” said Mayor Wally
Vaughn, “and it’s not always
possible for them to speak dur-
ing the formal meetings.” The
council meets in the city library
at 7:00 p.m on the first and third
Mondays of each month.
A workshop will be held after
the council meeting on May 18
to discuss the city’s parking
regulations. The public is invit-
ed to participate in the discus-
sion.
The council adopted, unani-
mously, a regulation requiring
that all city purchase orders be
signed by both the city recorder
and one council member. Dur-
ing discussion of the regulation,
Mayor Vaughn told Coun-
cilmember Tom Buffington, who
presented the motion, that he
appeared to distrust city de-
partment heads. Buffington in-
sisted that his only purpose is
to put the city on a more busi-
nesslike basis, and he remind-
ed Vaughn that “We are ac-
countable for spending the
city’s money.”
A resolution adopted last
year that bans council mem-
bers from being volunteers on
either the fire or police depart-
ments was rescinded. Re-
sponding to a question from
Councilmember Jan Miyasaki,
Fire Chief Lanny McDonald
said there are only three or four
volunteer firefighters available
on weekdays, and they couldn’t
afford to lose Councilmember
Mario Leonetti, who had to drop
off the volunteer work.
In other business, the coun-
cil approved a letter of support
to Rep. Tom Hanlon regarding
the Banks-Vernonia Linear
Park proposal; approved a bin-
$1
00
Page 9
• Remove from heat and
leave the pan covered. Let sit
for 15 minutes for large eggs,
13 minutes for medium eggs
and 10 minutes for small eggs.
Immediately run cold water
over eggs until they are com-
pletely cooled. Boiled eggs
should be refrigerated and eat-
en within a week.
If you don’t want to worry
about the safety of the egg,
empty eggshells can be dyed
See Practice on page 22
go game operation at the
Cedar Side Inn that will benefit
the Chamber of Commerce and
the Jamboree Committee,
pending all legal approvals;
hired two life guards for the
1987 swimming pool season.
A work session will be held
concerning the Sword ease-
ment through Anderson Park,
following the May 4 meeting.
OFF Lunch
(non-members only)
Vernonia Senior Center
446 Bridge Street
503-429-3912
Coupon expires May 4, 2011
G OOD F OOD
G OOD F RIENDS
G OOD T IMES
831 Bridge St.
Vernonia, OR
503-429-0214