January 9, 2018 • Page 2 shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com A Friendly Cow, Again Dave Says By Daris Howard Mortgage Ratios No Commodities Dear Dave, Do you have a guideline ratio for Dear Dave, mortgage debt to income? Do you recommend having gold and silver as part of your investLevon ment portfolio? Don Dear Levon, When it comes to buying a home, I always tell people to get a 15-year, Dear Don, fixed rate mortgage, with monthly No, I do not. I also don’t recommend oil or corn futures. All of payments that are no more than 25 these are examples of commodities, and the commodities market percent of their take home pay. This is extremely volatile. In addition to the market being wildly volatype of mortgage is the only debt I tile, the prices on commodities isn’t based on actual production. don’t beat up people for having. Still, It’s based largely on a supply and demand curve. If there’s a shortI urge folks to pay off these loans in age on one of them, the price shoots up. For example, when you’re talking about gold and silver, there’s less than 15 years. Dave The average person following my plan more demand than supply when the economy is bad. In this kind pays off this type of loan in about seven or of scenario, people are fearful and lots of them run to buy gold. eight years. That’s a pretty big deal in terms This drives up the price to unrealistically high levels. of your financial security. And paying extra Again, the price on a commodity isn’t based on anything other on your mortgage doesn’t have to be a strain. You can start by than fear or greed, and a supply and demand curve. The prices simply rounding up your payments. If the payment is $770, make aren’t based on an actual production of income, like it is with it $800 instead, and apply the extra to the principal balance. If you stocks or real estate. I don’t buy commodities at all, especially want to get more intense, you could make an extra house payment gold and silver. I don’t recommend you buy them, either. — Dave each quarter, or go the route of bi-weekly payments. To do this, simply make half a monthly payment every two weeks. By the end of the year you’ll have made 13 payments instead of 12. This will * Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business, and CEO of Ramsey Solutions. He has authored seven bestknock years off the length of your loan. Remember, your income is your largest wealth building tool. It’s selling books, including The Total Money Makeover. The Dave so much easier to save, invest, and give when all your money isn’t Ramsey Show is heard by more than 12 million listeners each week on 575 radio stations and multiple digital platforms. Follow flying out the door to make payments! Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveram— Dave RAMSEY sey.com. Middle School Math Teacher In Harrisburg Receives $25,000 Milken Educator Award Carla Diede, a National Board Certified math teacher at Harrisburg South Middle School, is South Dakota’s newest recipient of a $25,000 award that Teacher magazine calls the “Oscar of Teaching.” State Education Secretary Don Kirkegaard and Greg Gallagher, senior program administrator for the Milken Educator Awards, surprised Diede with a Milken Educator Award during a school assembly this morning. “The Harrisburg School District has been a leader in the personalized learning approach, and it takes great teachers like Carla Diede to make that happen,” said Secretary of Education Don Kirkegaard. “Carla epitomizes what it means to personalize instruction for, and make strong connections with, students.” Diede helps lead Harrisburg South Middle School’s personalized learning initiative, which is now in its second year and includes 6th and 7th grade students. She also teaches 8th grade math. Colleagues speak highly of Diede’s ability to balance a wide variety of duties. She spends mornings as a personalized learning coach to students and teachers and teaches math classes in the afternoon. She also serves as a liaison to parents of incoming middle school students, helping them understand the options available to their children. “Carla just does whatever it takes,” said Harrisburg South Middle School Principal Darren Ellwein. “I’ve worked with her for a number of years, and she has always gone above and beyond for students. She’s passionate about her subject matter and finding the most effective ways to use technology to enhance instruction. She is integral in our personalized learning track for our school and district. She leads professional development and supports all our teachers. I’m thrilled to see her recognized with this award.” Diede has a Bachelor of Science in mathematics with an education specialization from South Dakota State University and a master’s from Southwest Minnesota State University. The Milken Educator Awards program was created by the Milken Family Foundation. The prestigious honor will be presented at up to 44 schools during the 2017-18 school year. More than $138 million in funding, including $68 million in individual $25,000 awards, has been devoted to the program, which includes professional development opportunities throughout recipients’ careers. Since South South Dakota State Treasurer Mailing Potential Property Letters MOODY MOTOR NIOBRARA, NE Patrick Hawk 251 Spruce Ave • Box 260 Niobrara, NE 68760 Dakota joined the Milken Educator Awards program in 2002, a total of $500,000 has been awarded to 20 South Dakota recipients. Candidates for the Milken Educator Awards are selected based on the following criteria: • Exceptional educational talent, as evidenced by effective instructional practices and student learning results in the classroom and school • Exemplary educational accomplishments beyond the classroom that provide models of excellence for the profession • Individuals whose contributions to education are largely unheralded yet worthy of the spotlight • Early- to mid-career educators who offer strong, long-range potential for professional and policy leadership • Engaging and inspiring presence that motivates and impacts students, colleagues and the community To learn more about the Milken Educator Award, visit www.milkeneducatorawards.org. Looking PIERRE, SD – State for the Treasurer, Rich Sattgast, anbest deal in nounced that the Unclaimed town? Property Division will be Check sending letters to the potential owners of monies and the securities recently received by the office. The letters are inINTERESTED IN THIS SPOT? the Callofficial envelopesplace your ad here. 665-5884 to from the State Treasurer. Treasurer Sattgast encourages everyone who receives a letter to view the full information by searching the Unclaimed Property database. A claim can be filed 319 Walnut St. using the search and claim feature at www.sdtreasurer. Yankton, SD 57078 gov . The public can contact 605-665-5884 the Unclaimed Property Division by email at unclaimed@ sdtreasurer.gov or by phone at 605-773-3379. For More Information Contact: SD State Treasurer’s Unclaimed Property Division at (605) 773-3379 www.moodymotor.com pjhawk@hotmail.com (402) 857-3711 (800) 745-5650 Fax (402) 857-3713 Thank you Interested in from Bob Koletzky and family CLASSIFIEDS! this spot? It was so wonderful to see all the family and friends at the VFW for my 80th birthday celebration. Thank you to everyone who was able to attend. The well wishes, gifts, cards, and hugs mean more than you665-5884 to Call can imagine. Never underestimate the impact your presence makes in someone’s life. I know there are placeyou that were not many of your ad here. able to attend and I appreciate your kind thoughts and well wishes. Many thanks to the staff at the VFW for all the help organizing. Amanda did a spectacular job and always had a smile for everyone there. The Hy-Vee floral and catering department added their expert touch and went out of their way to help us get everything ready in time. Thank you to the Gullikson Band for sharing their talent and entertaining us. www.missourivalleyshopper.com MV Shopper www.missourivalleyshopper.com MV Shopper M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y Interested in this spot? M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y Justin, a young man who was a friend with our daughter, learned that we had a pond stocked with fish. In the fall, the water is cut out of the canal that feeds the pond, so we have to catch all the fish out of it. Justin asked if he could come help with that task. I told my daughter it would be fine, but he needed to call before he came. Justin had grown up in a city and knew nothing about farm animals. He had recently moved to our area. He’d never been fishing until he moved here, but the first time he did, he was hooked. He spent every minute he could at it, often heading out right after school each evening. One evening, when I arrived home, my wife informed me that Justin was coming. “When?” I asked. She shrugged. “This evening. For all I know, he could already be here.” “Oh, no,” I said. “I better get out there. I let Leah graze by the pond today.” When we bought our cow, Leah, the owner took me out to pick from three cows he was selling. One was mean, one only had three teats, and the third seemed perfect. He said her only problem was she was too friendly. I couldn’t understand how a cow could be too friendly, so I bought her. But I learned what he meant the first time she shoved me up against the barn wall because I forgot to pet her. Leah was a friendly cow, alright. But she didn’t just ask for attention, she demanded it. She especially liked her ears scratched. I considered changing my clothes before heading out to the pond, but decided that just in case Justin was already there, I’d better not. I rushed outside and looked toward the pond. Sure enough, I could see Justin’s car. As I neared the pond, I could hear screaming, so I quickened my pace. As I grew nearer, I could see Justin at a full run with Leah right behind him. Our pond is about forty yards in circumference, and they were running around it. They were coming at a fast clip and passed as I was approaching. I yelled for Justin to stop and scratch her ears. He either didn’t hear me, or in his panicked state, he didn’t trust what I was saying. They did another lap and passed me again before I could get through the fence. I ran after them, yelling for Justin to stop, but he didn’t. However, either my yelling distracted him or he was growing tired, but either way, he slowed, and Leah cut him off and cornered him against the fence. I ran toward them as Leah stepped closer and closer. Justin had his head turned from her and was trembling with fear, his eyes closed. Just before I reached them, Leah reached out her tongue and licked the side of Justin’s face. If you haven’t been licked by a cow and would like to know what it feels like, consider running as fast as you can toward a gravel road and jumping face first into it. That would be a similar sensation. A cow’s tongue is about as coarse as forty grit sandpaper, the roughest kind. When Leah licked Justin’s face, he screamed like he was being killed. It was about this time that I reached them. I started to scratch behind Leah’s ears, and she turned her attention to me. She leaned her head toward me so I could scratch the other ear. Justin still had his eyes closed, but finally, he opened them a little. When he saw me, he let out a big exhale of air as if he had been holding his breath. He gasped, “Your bull . . . Your bull was trying to kill me.” “First off,” I said, “she’s a cow, not a bull. And secondly, she only wanted her ears scratched.” I had him scratch Leah’s ears, and he did so with a trembling hand. Then I locked her in her pasture, because it’s hard to scratch a cow’s ears and fish at the same time. There’s nothing like New Year’s Resolution to make a guy feel completely inadequate, thought Doc as he sat and sipped coffee at the philosophy counter of the Mule Barn truck stop’s coffee shop. In other words, thinking central. He happened to mention this to Steve, sitting on his left. Steve shoved his hat back and looked at his dear friend. “Now Doc,” he said, “I don’t think you should talk that way. You see, the guys and I think you’re about the most adequate fella we know. Why, some of us are still here because of your adequacy. I know I am.” Nods down the counter. “Me, too,” said Herb. “Thanks, guys,” said Doc, “but that’s not the kind of adequacy I meant. For example, you boys know about my grapevines and how I make a couple of bottles of wine out of the grapes each year, right?” They nodded, and Herb almost choked on his coffee. “And you know the wine is never quite … adequate. I believe Steve here told me it could take the chrome off his trailer hitch.” More nods. “That’s the kind of thing I’d like to be more adequate at in the coming year.” Herb said, “Know what you mean, Doc. Thought I’d like to resolve to improve my golf game this year.” “I didn’t know you played golf, Herb.” “I don’t. That’s why I’d like to be more … adequate at it. 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