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Wednesday, January 4, 2012 – Daily News 5A FEATURES Rathskeller regular raises reservations Dear Annie: I have been married to ''Horace'' for less than a year. This is his second marriage. His prior marriage was to his high school girlfriend, and they have two children together. I met Horace in my ''partying'' stage. He, too, enjoyed going to the bars. He actually did it quite a bit when he was married. His ex-wife didn't enjoy going out, so he went with his friends. When I married Horace, I became a stepmother and quickly learned life wasn't about what I wanted anymore. I put Horace and his children first. We have the kids every other Annie's Mailbox by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar dren with him, as it means I'll be sitting at home with a baby while he's off to the bars with his friends. — Iowa Dear Iowa: Having chil- dren did change Horace's behavior because he doesn't go to the bars while the kids are visiting. That means there is hope he will be more circumspect when you have a child at home all the time. Not every spouse objects to an occasional night out with weekend. Horace is a great father who loves to do things with the chil- dren when they are with us. But on weekends when we don't have the kids, Horace still likes to go to the bars. He would love it if I went along, but I'm past that stage in my life. I enjoy going out to movies, dinner and such, but the bars don't interest me anymore. I realize this is only twice a month, but those are the only week- ends we have together without the children. I want Horace to be with me, but I don't want to force myself on him. When he asks whether it's OK if he goes to the bars without me, I always say it's fine. Annie, am I overreacting, or does Horace need to grow up and start being a better husband? If this continues, I don't want to have chil- (MCT) — A new study says that people who commit blunders while under the influ- ence of alcohol know they're doing it; they just don't care. This means buzzed or drunken people who engage in embarrassing or harmful behavior can't blame it on not having control, said researcher Bruce Bartholow, associate professor of psychology at the University of Mis- souri-Columbia. While this isn't the first study that shows alcohol alters the behav- ior of those who con- sume it, "it's the first to show they don't care that they're making mis- takes," said Bartholow, chief researcher on the study. Brain tests during the study of 67 people in Columbia, Mo., showed that alcohol dulls a mechanism in the brain that tells an individual to put on the brakes when they realize they're making mis- takes. When the mechanism is working, "They slow down and try not to make the mistake again, or they take corrective action," Bartholow said. Introduce alcohol and someone is more likely to disregard the moral stop sign, he said, even though they know what they're doing. The study involved people between the ages of 21 and 35, students and nonstudents. • Researchers gave a third of the participants drinks with enough alcohol to raise their blood levels to just under the legal driving limit of .08 percent, Bartholow said. They all got the same amount so researchers didn't mea- sure if the effect was gradual. • Researchers gave a third of the participants placebo drinks; they didn't know if the drinks contained alcohol. FINDERS KEEPERS Thrift & Antiques 10% OFF All Clothing (excluding consignment) expires 1/15/12 In the Frontier Village Shopping Center Tue-Sat: 10am-5pm 645 Antelope Blvd. 530 527-7798 • A third consumed drinks they knew con- tained no alcohol. Then, the groups were given tasks designed to elicit mis- takes. Researchers mea- sured changes in partici- pants' mood, their accu- racy in computer tasks and how they perceived their accuracy in the tasks. Bartholow said the researchers used devices on the participants to measure brain activity as the subjects took the tests. Medical technolo- gy exists to measure brain activity for impulse control, emo- tion, mood and other functions. Nondrinkers had nor- mal activity in the part of the brain that regulat- ed recognizing mis- takes. Drinkers had less activity, he said. The North State's premier supplier of stoves STOVE JUNCTION The Over 25 years of experience EPA approved stoves are EXEMPT from no burn days! Did you know... Tues-Sat 9am-5pm Closed Sunday & Monday 22825 Antelope Blvd., Red Bluff www.thestovejunction.com 530-528-2221 Fax 530-528-2229 Nondrinkers who made mistakes slowed down and tried to cor- rect the errors, he said. Drinkers made less of an effort or simply moved past their errors, the researcher said, even though they knew they'd made errors. Researchers also interviewed participants after the tests, which helped affirm the find- ings in the computer tests, he said. The dulling of the brain's mistake alarm only occurred among people who had alco- holic beverages, he said. "Normally, someone who makes mistakes is aware and makes an effort not to make that mistake again," Bartholow said. The people in the alcohol group were less likely, however, to slow down CUSTOM WE HAVE MOVED TO 333 S. Main St. Suite H Refurbished HP Dual Core Laptop $ 3600n Color Laser Printer $ 225 200 We carry Copy & Printer Supplies 20% off with this ad Labor, Parts & Accessories 530-690-3331 friends. You need to decide how many such nights you can tolerate and whether Horace has a drinking problem or is prone to cheat. If the two of you cannot reach an agree- ment, please discuss it with a coun- selor. Dear Annie: I just returned from my sister's destination wedding. She didn't invite my teenage chil- dren. She arranged for the rest of the family to have free accommoda- tions, but not me, her only sister. This wedding was a huge financial burden, and I also felt insulted. I recently learned that both of her grown children will be getting mar- ried next year — also destination weddings. They again will not be inviting my children, which means finding places for them to stay while I'm out of town. What is appropriate here? It's obvious the people who can go will be the ones who can afford it. This just doesn't seem fair to me. How should I respond? — Destination Unknown Dear Destination: You behaved well by attending your sister's inconvenient wedding, but you do not have to impoverish yourself in order to attend the weddings of her children. A bridal couple gets to choose their wed- ding location. Guests get to RSVP ''yes'' or ''no.'' We recommend sending your sincere regrets and a nice gift. Dear Annie: ''Worried Hubby'' said that he regularly frequents a neighborhood coffee shop, and one particular friend, ''Harry,'' likes to flirt with his wife. You gave him several suggestions for handling this. I have one more: The next time Harry sits with Hubby's wife, kisses her and puts his arm around her, Hubby should take a photo with his cellphone. Then, when Harry's wife stops by, he should show her the photo, say- ing how much the two of them enjoy Harry's frequent company. She would be glad to know how friendly her husband is, especially when she is nowhere in sight. Prob- lem solved. — Practical in Wiscon- sin Annie's Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. Please e-mail your questions to anniesmailboxcomcast.net, or write to: Annie's Mailbox, c/o Creators Syndicate, 5777 W. Century Blvd., Ste. 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045. Study: Drunken people aware of poor decisions and be more careful, but they realized they had made errors. "Using alcohol does- n't allow someone to escape culpability," he said. Dr. Douglas Schuer- er, a trauma surgeon with Barnes-Jewish Hospital, said the find- ings aren't a surprise. "This says that people should think before they drink," he said. That advice goes beyond New Year's Eve and its tradition of drinking: "It's some- thing that needs to be considered 365," he said. Many of Schuerer's patients are people from the hospital's emergency room who need surgery. "About 50 percent of patients we see from traffic accidents, alco- hol was involved," he said. "That doesn't always mean they were drinking; sometimes they were hit by a drunk driver." In addition, he said he sees more personal injury accidents involv- ing people impaired by alcohol. The findings have a flip side, Bartholow said. A small amount of alcohol may help people with anxiety disorders or those who are hyper- sensitive to making errors, Bartholow said. But he warns that "consistently drinking as a way to reduce anxi- ety can lead to serious problems, including alcoholism." Bartholow's study, "Alcohol Effects on Per- formance Monitoring and Adjustment: Affect Modulation and Impair- ment of Evaluative Cog- nitive Control," has been accepted for publi- cation in an upcoming edition of the Journal of Abnormal Psychology. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the University of Missouri Research Board paid for the study. J. E. C. JIM ENGLAND CONCRETE & CONSTRUCTION Residential & Commercial 530-529-4495 945-8295 LIC. #682190 COMPLETE AUTO REPAIR All makes and models. We perform dealer recommened 30K, 60K, 90K SERVICES AT LOWER PRICES Smog Check starting at $ (most cars and pick-ups) 2595 + cert. Pass or FREE retest 527-9841 • 195 S. Main St. Questions about the shingles vaccine Readers have sent me many fol- low-up questions after my recent shingles vaccine column. It's great to see your inter- est, and I wanted to answer the most common follow- up questions I received. To recap, shin- Dr. K by Anthony L. Komaroff, M.D. gles is caused by the reac- tivation of the virus that also causes chickenpox, varicella-zoster. Most people are infected with this virus in childhood and remain infected for the rest of their lives. In most of us, the virus lives "asleep" inside some of our nerve cells, causing no symptoms. However, it can "awaken," or reacti- vate, and start making copies of itself. When it does this, it can cause shingles — a severe, painful rash on your body or face. The shingles vaccine contains a greatly weak- ened version of the virus. The vaccine causes the immune system to attack the virus when it reacti- vates, to quiet it down and prevent it from causing symptoms. — Does the shingles vaccine help if you've already had shingles? A past episode of shin- gles boosts your immunity to the virus. So people who have had shingles are less likely to have a sec- ond case. But some people do get recurrent attacks. No study has been done that shows the shingles vaccine prevents second episodes. It's a reason- able assumption that it would, but the research hasn't been done. Most experts recommend the vaccine for people over 50, whether they've had shingles or not. — Who should not get the vaccine? The shingles vaccine is not recommended for people with weakened immune systems. That includes people who are having cancer treatments such as radiation and chemotherapy, or people with diseases that can weaken the immune sys- tem (such as leukemia, lymphoma or HIV). Finally, the same goes for anyone being treated with drugs that affect the immune system, like steroids. And people who have had a life-threat- ening allergic reaction to gelatin should not get the vaccine. — Should peo- ple with rheuma- toid arthritis avoid the shingles vac- cine? Many drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis suppress the immune sys- tem. They include steroids, drugs called disease-modi- fying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and medica- tions called anti-TNF drugs. Anyone with rheumatoid arthritis who is taking these drugs should not be vaccinated for shin- gles. — Should pregnant women get the vaccine? Definitely not. A preg- nant woman's immune system does not fight viruses as effectively. This is rarely an issue, since the vaccine is rec- ommended for people over 50 years of age. — Can a person who's received the vaccine infect others with weak- ened immune systems? According to the CDC, it's safe for a per- son who has been vacci- nated for shingles to be around people with weakened immune sys- tems, as well as infants, children and pregnant women. There are no documented cases of a person getting chicken- pox from someone who had been vaccinated. — How often should I get the shingles vaccine? According to current research, the shingles vaccine is effective for at least six years. It's also possible that it protects for much longer than that. Researchers are working to determine exactly how long the vac- cine provides protection. Maybe we'll get lucky and need to have it only once. Dr. Komaroff is a physician and professor at Harvard Medical School. Go to his website to send questions and get additional information: www.AskDoctorK.com. Man who escaped Calif. prison in fire truck caught SAN DIEGO (AP) — Authorities say a man who escaped a state prison in San Diego in a fire truck on New Year's Day has been captured. The Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility said 51- year-old Thomas Kelley was taken into custody Tuesday morning at a trolley station in suburban Lemon Grove. Authorities say Kelley was assigned to the prison fire crew. They say he fled in the prison fire truck and aban- doned the vehicle in suburban Spring Valley. Kelley was assigned to a minimum-security part of the prison. He had violated parole for vehicle theft. Prison spokesman Lt. Patrick Logan says the San Diego County district attorney's office may decide to charge Kel- ley with the escape. Idaho spud truck rolls on side, mashing potatoes IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (AP) — A spud-hauling truck has rolled onto its side in Idaho, dropping its cargo like a hot potato. The Idaho State Police says the truck driven by 23-year- old Newman Giles of Rigby crashed Tuesday in Idaho Falls, spilling the potatoes across two Interstate 15 exit ramps. It was hauling a 48-foot farm-bed trailer with the spuds at the time. A spokesman at Eagle Farms says the potatoes were being brought to a plant when the trailer's tires caught the edge of the road, causing the truck to tip on its side in slow motion. The state police say Giles and a passenger were wearing seat belts and were not injured.