Plants, Pancakes and More

Geneva’s annual Gardenology Festival will be open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
May 14, along Third Street in downtown Geneva. The event will include presentations, vendors and attractions for all ages.

Tips for Growing Terrific Tomatoes
The Geneva Public Library will host Growing Terrific Tomatoes at 1 p.m. May 15. The free program will feature Mark Lyons, an expert gardener, who will offer tips for raising and harvesting a healthy crop of tomatoes. The library is located at 127 James St. in downtown Geneva. For more information, call the library at 630-232-0780.

Youth baseball group plans fundraiser
The Batavia Youth Baseball organization will host a pancake breakfast from a 8 a.m. to noon May 14 at Rotolo Middle School, 1501 S. Raddant Road. The meal will include pancakes, sausage and coffee, juice or milk. Tickets are $7 for general admission and $5 for ages 60 and older and children ages 6. Tickets can be purchased at www.bataviabaseball.com.

Library to host antique appraisal fair

The Town and Country Public Library, 320 E. North St., Elburn, will host an antique appraisal fair May 14. The fair will feature Terri Applegate, a certified appraiser from LeClair Antiques in LeClaire, Iowa. Applegate will appraise up to three item for each participants. The fee is $20 per item or three items for $50. Registration and prepayment is required. For more information, call Amy at 630-365-2244.

Comments, observations and ruminations
The Batavia Fire Department recently its released annual report for 2015. The report provides readers an interesting look at the department’s operations and activities. Here is one detail from the report: The department responded to a 3,808 calls during 2015, including 2,286 calls for emergency medical services. In other words, EMS calls made up 60 percent of the fire department’s total call log for the year. Some people might find annual reports like this one dry compilations of statistics, but I think they offer valuable details and interesting insights, and are well worth reading.

• Richard A Friedman, director of the psychopharmacology clinic at the Weill Cornell Medical College, recently contributed an interesting item to the opinion page in the New York Times, in which he discussed the many important details drug ads do not tell us. Two key details frequently missing from the promotional material concern the total number of clinical trials involving each drug product and the number of people needing treatment in the clinical trials. Friedman also argues the ads rarely include information about the monthly cost of the drugs. Friedman argues these details are important because older versions of a particular drug often times are as effective as newer versions, but far less expensive. I appreciate Friedman and others who strive to inform consumers, particularly seniors, about these matters.

• The Kane County Farm Bureau Foundation recently announced it will award more than $16,000 in scholarships this year to 16 students. To learn about this year’s scholarship recipients, click here.

• Mrs. B. and I thoroughly enjoyed the April 30 staging of Batavia High School’s production of “Lucky Stiff” at the Batavia Fine Arts Centre. Kudos to the wonderful cast and musicians, and congratulations to Dominic Cattero, the show’s director. The production was an impressive showcase of local talent.

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