December 2020

China’s space ambitions: Robot on Mars, a human on the moon

BEIJING (AP) — China’s landing of its third probe on the moon is part of an increasingly ambitious space program that has a robot rover en route to Mars, is developing a reusable space plane and is planning to put humans back on the lunar surface.

The Chang’e 5, the first effort to bring lunar rocks to Earth since the 1970s, collected samples on Wednesday, the Chinese space agency announced. The probe landed Tuesday on the Sea of Storms on the moon’s near side.

Lady Tigers plow through Grand Lake 86-9

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LAKE ARTHUR - The Lake Arthur Lady Tigers (LA) made quick work of the visiting Grand Lake Lady Hornets Tuesday night by pounding their guests by a final of 86-9.

The win upped Lake Arthur’s record to 6-0 overall. LA placed four players in double figures, with senior Deonna Brister leading the way with 34 points. Darrah Broussard, Vivian Sketoe and Katherine Leonards all hit double figuers for LA in the win.

LADY DOGS REMAIN UNBEATEN

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IOTA - The Jennings Lady Bulldogs (JHS) stayed unbeaten Monday night with a 51-44 win over the Iota Bulldogs. The Dogs used a monster outing from Jill Fontenot, who scored a game-high 22 points in the win.

The Lady Dogs (6-0) raced out to an 18-11 lead after one period of play at Iota High School. Fontenot led the Dogs with her eight tallies in the first, while Bri Doucet popped in four. Zy Etienne, Anna Trahan and Kayleigh Shamsie all notched two apiece in the first.

Bulldogs dominate Erath

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Foo Fact of the Game: Despite not playing last week, No. 1 Jennings showed no signs of rust against No. 32 Erath. The Dogs dominated the game start to finish, leading 36-6 at half and going on to beat a feisty Bobcat team 49-20.

Saturday Night Fever: The last time the Dogs played on a Saturday was in 1996 when heavy rains postponed the Jennings at Iowa game to Saturday.

Captain: Marlon Berry.

Coin Toss: Erath won the toss, and took the opening kickoff.

Report: Parish unemployment still affected by COVID-19

Parish unemployment figures released recently revealed job growth in the parish is still being affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

According to preliminary estimates released by the Louisiana Workforce Commission (LWC), the unemployment rate in Jeff Davis Parish for October was 8.4. In October 2019, the unemployment rate was only 4.9 percent.

There were 11,834 employed and 1,092 unemployed according to the report.

In April during the early stages of the pandemic, the figures were even more grim with the unemployment rate coming in at 12.5 percent.

Hello, Magnolia

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1. Jackie Hebert, of Houston, meets Magnolia the alligator at the Gator Chateau, with Ethan Fontenot, handler.

 

City announces Christmas events

The city is planning several events for the holiday season.

The city will celebrate Christmas with a parade, festival and fireworks scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 19.

“We want everybody to come out and enjoy all of the events we have lined up for the season,” City Events Coordinator Lin Fake said. “We just want people to have some sense of normalcy in their lives.”

The festival will be held at Founder’s Park from 1-6:30 p.m. with shopping and food vendors on hand to delight the crowds. Admission is free to the public.

Council on Aging still serving despite setbacks

This year has been difficult for the Jeff Davis Parish Council on Aging (COA). While the community’s need is now greater than ever, the COA must navigate new safety regulations in order to provide relief.

“The need is so fierce right now — people are not working,” said Helen Langley, the COA’s executive director. “The changes for COVID-19 have been unbelievable for our people.”

Langley said that the most difficult issue has been closing the COA’s building to everyone but staff.

On mailboxes and post holes

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Our original mailbox has been on life support for more than a year.

About a decade ago, I painted it to match our house and I wasn’t anxious to repeat that process again. Instead, I periodically added dirt to secure its moorings, always handled it gingerly and repeatedly coaxed the latch into closing securely so the mail inside wouldn’t get wet. To shore up the latch, rubber bands were retrieved from bunches of broccoli; they’re the perfect size and often a good color. Everyone should eat more broccoli so the mailbox kept us healthy.

Filling Family Comfort Foods

Just the thought of comfort foods is often enough to warm the soul, especially as cool winds blow and temperatures drop. When cooler weather calls for hearty meals to give your family a warming boost, you can turn to simple shortcuts for comforting flavor without skipping on quality.