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Valley Grows calendar

Here are upcoming gardening events through the Ohio State University Extension Office. For more information and a complete list, contact: • OSU Mahoning County Extension Office, 490 S. Broad St., Canfield. 330-533-5538. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. • OSU Trumbull County Extension Office, 520 W. Main St. Suite 1, Cortland. 330-638-6783. Office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Mahoning Plant and Pest Clinic You can submit your questions by calling the office at 330-533-5538 or emailing us at mahoningclinic@osu.edu. ...

DEAR ANNIE: Retired husband is rewriting all house rules

DEAR ANNIE: My husband retired eight months ago, and ever since then, our home has felt less like a place to relax and more like a company he has decided to manage. After years of leaving early, coming home late and barely noticing whether the bath towels matched, he is suddenly very interested in how everything is done and has strong opinions about all of it. He has started announcing new “house rules” as though he is issuing office memos. Shoes may no longer be left by the door. The dishwasher must be run only at night. Lunch should not be eaten in the den. Even the dog seems ...

HINTS FROM HELOISE: Warning: Don’t eat any fruit in stores

DEAR HELOISE: I read your column in the Journal Gazette of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Jim R., in Houston, wrote about people who are eating produce that they haven’t purchased. But there is another view on this issue. Purchasing grapes, for example, without tasting them, often leads to sour grapes — literally. It is a conundrum: If I test a grape, I am eating pesticides; if I don’t test a grape, then I am likely buying bad grapes, which will go to waste. Often, when I purchase grapes or cherries without tasting them, I end up with bad fruit! — Bruce J.P., in Fort Wayne, ...

TO YOUR GOOD HEALTH: How best to treat arthritis in knees

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have bad knee arthritis. My doctor is suggesting a genicular nerve block. Is this a good idea? Will it fix the problem? — P.O.V. ANSWER: Chronic knee pain from osteoarthritis is a common problem in middle-aged and older adults. Before a person receives treatment, the diagnosis should be confirmed by an X-ray. First-line treatments are exercise and anti-inflammatory drugs, like naproxen (orally) or diclofenac (topically). When first-line treatments are ineffective, there are other options. Knee injections with steroids have long been used, but recent studies ...

Bridge by Steve Becker

This deal occurred in the very first Bermuda Bowl world championship, way back in 1950, in the match between Great Britain and the United States. Despite the fact that the North-South hands contained only 20 points in high cards, both the English and American pairs arrived at four spades after identical auctions. At the first table, with a U.S. pair North-South, the British West led the ace and another heart. Declarer (Sam Stayman) ruffed the second heart and played the ace and another spade. West rose with the king and led a third round of hearts. Stayman ruffed and led a spade to ...