KILGOROUND
KATHRYN MARTINEZ

Call them old wives' tales or call them home remedies, but I got a whole new (new to me anyway) crop of them this week when Ellen Watson came to visit me at the office.

Our chat reminded me of Gus, from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," who sprayed window cleaner for every ailment.

When I was a kid I got stung by a bee and my uncle Ed spit in his hand and sprinkled in cigarette tobacco to make a nasty paste. My bee sting quit stinging.

Here's what I learned from Mrs. Watson:

- castor oil has anti-inflammatory properties. If applied immediately castor oil can reduce swelling and prevent bruising;

- Got a nose bleed? Drop that ring of cold car keys down your back. I have no Idea why this works, but it does;

- and hang on to this one - if you have hand cramps grab a bar of soap for 10 minutes or so.

Seems that soap not only works for hand cramps,

but may also have healing properties that relieve the symptoms of Restless Leg Syndrome and night-time leg cramps.

Others I have heard include lime juice and cornstarch to diminish bruises and in a pinch cob webs will stop bleeding.

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Next Friday, March 7 the public is invited to the rehearsal of Kilgore-Based historical play and musical, Boom at 7:30 for $5. Tickets for this performance will only be available at the door.

General admission tickets may be purchased through Friday, March 7 at Kilgore National Bank as well as at the door one hour prior to performances. The cost is general admission tickets is $10.

Show times on Saturday, March 8 are 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the Kilgore High School Auditorium.

Boom is brought to Kilgore through the hard work of Lottie Guttrie, author , as well as through the dedication of cast and crew which include Postmaster Chuck Maxwell and City Manager Jeff Howell.

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On this day in: 1504 - Christopher Columbus uses his knowledge of a lunar eclipse that night to convince Native Americans to provide him with supplies; 1932 - TIME magazine features eccentric American politician William "Alfalfa" Murray on its cover after Murray stated his intention to run for President of the United States; and in 1956 - U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces to the nation that he is running for a second term.

+++ Born on this day in: 1468 - Pope Paul III (d. 1549); 1904 - Jimmy Dorsey, American bandleader (d. 1957); and in 1972 - Pedro Zamora, Cuban-born American AIDS activist (d. 1994).

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A person who was born on February 29 may be called a "leapling". In non-leap years they may celebrate their birthday on 28 February or 1 March.

For legal purposes, their legal birthdays depend on how different laws count time intervals. In England and Wales the legal birthday of a leapling is 28 February in common years (see Leap Years, above). In Taiwan the legal birthday of a leapling is also February 28 in common years. In both cases, a person born on February 29 1980 would have legally reached 18 years old on February 28, 1998.

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Celebrating a rare birthday today are Mrs. Jack White, Sherry Love, Yvette Rettig, Selma Vowell, Eldon Leach, Janet Thurmond, David Robertson, Lorene Dodson, Dailon Reagh, Lavender Gross.

Blowing out the candles on Saturday, March 1 are Janie Ramirez, Jan Hendrix, Lori Mc- Taggart, Barbara Lacy, Grant Boyd, Marla Ivy, Joe Watson, Peggy Brown, Don Cantebury, T.A. Andersin, Jr., Mark Collins, Keith Hampton, Mrs. E. A. Avant, Nicholas Ryan Hoskins, Minnie R. Chancellor, Tyler Lee Barnett, Jonathon Tyeskie.

Celebrating another year together on Saturday are Jean and Thomas Blackmon.