Postcards Magazine Lake Conroe May 2021

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FEATURES

May 2021 | Volume 10, Issue 5

10 Community Builders

24

Journey Home

Business Focus Driveway Dumpster Rental

16 A Day in the Life Bella Becho Book & Print Bindery

FAVORITES 6 8 9 15 20 21

From the Publisher From Our Readers Dear Gabby Glorious Grandkids The Garden Post What’s Cooking

22 23 30 31 32 34

Vet Connect Pet Pals Health Matters Sudoku Marketplace Community Calendar Mustard Seed Moments

Cover Photo by Shirley Roberts

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May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 5

Publisher’s Post Karen Altom publisher@postcardslive.com

Your Local Community Magazine!

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If you would like to receive our magazine and are not currently on our mailing list, subscriptions are available.

Last May, I was swinging between two emotional extremes...and it was all because of one little boy.

There were tears and frustration because the little man was due to arrive at any minute and, thanks to the pandemic--nothing I had dreamed of, or planned for, could be reality. My imagined hours spent with Wes and I hanging out in the waiting room with the other set of grandparents was not to be. Instead, we would meet our grandson via a video chat rather than by walking into the room and actually holding him. The arrival of our first grandchild was not going according to my “grand” plan.

The other extreme I felt was that of unbridled joy. Because, it turned out that, whether we were in the room with that baby or seeing him on video chat, Wes and I were just as smitten and ecstatic as we would have been had we been there with them. Of course, we missed the actual physical hugs with our children, but those came...just a few days later... as did the never-ending minutes spent staring at that precious new face.

As we prepare to celebrate our Walker’s first birthday this month, we are reminded there’s nothing like having children in your world to help you realize how fast a year can fly by. And what a year it’s been! We’ve watched our children experience those special firsts--smiles, words, steps. We’ve watched their joy and excitement as they’ve called (and yes, video chatted) with us to share. We are reminded of when THEY were the ones taking those steps, and we were the ones calling our parents.

But now, we’ve been grandparents...for a whole year.

MAILED to select postal routes in Conroe, Willis and Montgomery.

FREE rack copies at advertisers and businesses in towns listed above.

Published Monthly by Altom Consulting & Marketing, Inc.

Publisher Karen Altom Editor Wes Altom Advertising Team Janet T. Jones Nancy Jolly Marshall Altom Design Team Mary Partida April Key Social Media Management Abby Altom Boyd Printed in Texas by Shweiki Media ADVERTISE IN POSTCARDS Call our Office: 936.293.1188 Online: www.PostcardsLive.com Address: PO Box 690 • Huntsville, TX 77342

What a wonderful world. Pandemic or not.

Until next time,

~

Karen

Phone: 936.293.1188 We reserve the right to edit or reject any material submitted.

The publisher assumes no responsibility for the return of any unsolicited material. No material from Postcards Magazine™ can be copied, faxed, electronically, or otherwise used without express written permission. Publication of articles, advertisements or product information does not constitute endorsement or approval

by Postcards Magazine™ and/or its publisher. Business Focus stories printed in Postcards Magazine™ are drawn at random from contract advertisers. © 2021 by Altom Consulting & Marketing, Inc., All rights reserved.

6 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

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May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 7

From Our Readers First, let me tell you how much I enjoy your magazine. I read it cover to cover (including advertisements) the day it reaches me. Then I share portions of it with my two young grandchildren who come here daily.

It’s just so refreshing to receive something in the mail where we can learn more about those we know and a lot about those we don’t! So hometown, and just downright enjoyable!

Keep up the good work in making us aware of local news, those cute grands, and the “Vet Connect” by Dr. Steve Van Wagner.

Renee Spencer

Sara Hardy Bartee

The recipe for the roasted chicken with the cranberry chutney looked good but you reference GINGER in the chutney instructions; however, no ginger is listed among the ingredients.

Love your magazine! Thanks so much for sharing our beloved Shiloh’s birthday picture! He is a rescue that had a really rough life-until he moved in with us 13 years ago.

Vicki

I love reading Postcards Magazine. Such a hometown/ community-centered vibe!

AA Henderson From the Editor: Our apologies! Ginger was not on the ingredient list in the copy submitted; however, we were able to backtrack to the source. The ingredient list should contain: 1/2 piece fresh ginger, peeled, cut into matchstick-size strips

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Dear Gabby Welcome back to the Dear Gabby advice column. My, how times have changed! I got stopped by the police the other day for driving with my trunk open. They found a mask, rubber gloves, duct tape, plastic sheeting, and rope in my trunk. They simply closed it. Apparently, that’s normal nowadays! May is the month that holds Mother’s Day and Memorial Day. We can never repay them, but we can honor them. Drop me a line at Dear Gabby at PostcardsLive.com. I’ll laugh at your jokes when they’re not so good and sympathize with your problems when they’re not so bad. But I won’t mince words.

DEAR L & G I avoid things that make me fat--like scales, mirrors and photographs.

You have to keep a sense of humor for your entire well-being, not just to deal with your weight. I just imagine that my winter fat is now spring rolls! That makes me grin.

GABBY

CONFIDENTIAL TO “I’LL NEVER LIVE IT DOWN”: Sometimes people with the worst pasts end up creating the best futures

DEAR GABBY Help! Summer is almost here, and my pandemic body is not ready!

There’s not enough time for a physical overhaul, so can you help me deal with it mentally?

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Community Builders

By Ruth Fields Photos by Gina Turner

Billie Beasley

By the time she was 16, Billie Beasley was on her own, having left behind a large, dysfunctional family. She found work at a nursing home, but when she was 17, she became pregnant and lost her job. “I was so naïve,” she says. “I thought that I got fired because I couldn’t lift anymore, but it was because I was unmarried and I was pregnant.” Billie had no way to support herself, but didn’t want to return home to an abusive father. A friend of a friend needed someone to care for her terminally-ill mother, so Billie accepted the live-in position for $40 a week.

“She was so mean to me,” Billie says. “I remember crying myself to sleep most nights.” Determined to provide for her baby, Billie saved her earnings in a corner of a drawer, and was proud when she had saved over $300.

10 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

Billie met her future husband Bob when she was six months pregnant.

Although they recently celebrated their 39th anniversary, Billie acknowledges the first few years of their marriage were unhappy. By the time she was 21, Billie had three children and had become a heavy

“I was coming from a desperate situation” drinker. “I was coming from a desperate situation,” she says. “I had a lot of things I was trying to push down emotionally.” One night, crippled by guilt, Billie reached out to God. “On my knees on my bathroom floor, I received God’s grace and mercy,” she says.

“Just like me” Billie has always empathized with young women who believe pregnancy is an insurmountable problem. “There are so many girls out there just like me,” she says. She volunteered at Pregnancy Assistance Center North (PACN) for three years, and was a paid staff member for 15 years.

In addition, she and Bob became foster parents, even fostering pregnant teenagers. During this time, she often wondered how her life could have been different. “Had I found a maternity home that was Christ-centered, I could have gone through some healing and missed some of those hard times, and my kids would have missed those hard times,” she says.

Billie knows that many young, single women lack support when they become pregnant. With insecure finances and inadequate education, they sometimes lose hope. “They don’t have the building blocks it takes to be a parent and to run a household or the knowledge it takes to be financially stable,” Billie says—a situation that sometimes leads to homelessness. Many women have been abandoned by their babies’ fathers; some have toxic family situations. Some do not have families at all. “Some have aged out of foster care. They don’t have moms. They don’t have family support,” she says. She has observed many single pregnant women try to find quick solutions to their problems by jumping into disastrous relationships. Although her own marriage survived a troubled start, Billie knows most are not so fortunate. And for many women,

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abortion seems like the only option. “We are telling them to choose life,” she says, “but we are not helping them choose life.”

Over the years, Billie learned maternity homes are a rarity, and often thought about starting one. When Hurricane Harvey’s inundating rains flooded the only maternity home in Montgomery County and caused its closure, Billie took action. In 2019, as her plan took shape, she began to tell friends and acquaintances. “People said, ‘You have been saying that for years,’” she says. “I didn’t realize I had told that many people.”

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“We want to help women become good, confident, godly mothers” Billie wanted to help young, pregnant women through a 501(c)(3) organization funded by churches, grants and donations. She wanted to give women a homey place to stay during their pregnancies and their first few months of motherhood, envisioning an organization that could equip them through parenting classes, Bible study, and counseling to help them find educational resources and jobs. “We want to help women become good, confident, godly mothers,” Billie says. “Our strongest desire for them is that they would know they are valuable and God loves them.”

Journey Home As Billie began putting her plan in motion, she put a lot of thought into naming the new maternity home. Her daughter, who has experience writing grants, warned Billie a name should clearly identify the organization. She suggested “Montgomery County Maternity Home,” but Billie thought that sounded like a government institution. Instead, she was inspired to name her organization Journey Home. “These girls are on a journey,” she says. “They are journeying to find their home.” Journey Home’s mission is “to be a nurturing home for both mother and child, offering love, accountability, and support along their journey.”

As part of this journey, young women participate in a program designed to help them become independent, with secure jobs, childcare, housing and transportation. Each participant is required to take parenting classes and to pursue education, employment, volunteer work, or a combination of activities. Furthermore, women are expected to save 70 percent of their earnings to help provide a secure future for themselves and their babies. Each woman is assigned a mentor to help her design a plan for education and suitable employment, and Journey Home has five senior mentors with specialties in education, finances, housing, employment and state benefits. The organization also facilitates medical care through a local obstetrician who has agreed to take on every guest as a new Medicaid patient.

In addition to providing no-cost housing to young women who are pregnant with their first child, Journey Home welcomes pregnant women who already have one toddler. Because children are guests, the organization can’t house women who are dependent on drugs, who are mentally ill, or who have committed violent crimes. Journey Home, however, can point such women to drug rehabilitation programs or other suitable homes. “We have resources,” Billie says. “I never just tell

12 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

someone ‘no.’ We generally take the mom from 18 to 26 who really has a desire in her heart to stand on her own two feet, to be self-supporting and independent—the mom who wants to learn how to parent and wants to have a secure place for her children to live. They recognize what they are doing isn’t working and they need help.”

arrange temporary housing for the women currently in Journey Home’s program, but the organization needs a permanent home. Billie hopes funds can be raised to purchase a house that will allow growth. “Our vision is to be the maternity home the community trusts to recommend when the need arises,” she says.

Although Billie does not judge women who have chosen abortion, she is always pleased when Journey Home is able to help a pregnant woman choose life, whether to parent or to allow another family to adopt. “We love to welcome women who choose adoption,” Billie says. “When a woman goes through nine months of pregnancy to place that child in someone else’s arms, she’s a hero.”

Meanwhile, Journey Home has housed 11 women since January 2020, as well as some newborns and toddlers. (Billie says nearly half of those women have spent time in foster care.) Once they are on their own, graduates often come back to visit. “They call it a sisterhood,” Billie says. As the founder, director and former house mother of Journey Home, Billie’s phone buzzes often with calls and messages from donors, prospective guests, and partner organizations. She also hears from former guests. “They stay in touch,” Billie says. One recent text message thanked her and said, “You love hard.”

Setbacks As the Postcards team was preparing this story for publication, Journey Home was experiencing a major setback. The historic winter storm of 2021 caused frozen pipes and extensive water damage in the organization’s rental house. “It was not deemed safe for us to move back in,” Billie says. She is grateful West Conroe Baptist Church was able to

For more information, visit journeyhometx.org or follow Journey Home Tx. on Facebook.

P

May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 13

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May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 15

Day in the Life

By Linda W Perkins Photos by Gina Turner

c B

Step into the small building on Hurfus Drive in Houston which houses Bella Becho Book and Print Bindery, and it feels almost as if you’ve been transported to another world. The cozy foyer, a semicircular room that surrounds you with floor-to-ceiling shelves of specialty books and albums, is warm and inviting. Leather-bound Bibles and memory books lay open for browsing. This is clearly not an inexpensive, run-of-the-mill book binding factory. This is the kind of place that caters to people who are looking for something special.

Bella Becho is the brainchild of owner Deborah Karchmer, a petite brunette with a wide smile whose friendliness welcomes customers of all types, but who privately admits that she would be just as happy staying behind the scenes. Fourteen years ago, her creativity and passion for helping people preserve their memories led her to start a small custom photo album business run from her kitchen table. Today, Bella Becho is one of the top book bindery companies in the United States.

Looking around the client area and in the back rooms where they make and repair the books, one might think this business is all about paper and ink, or perhaps the beautiful suedes and cowhide that so many customers opt for as book covers. After five minutes with Deborah, though, it’s clear that to her, Bella Becho is all about people.

“It’s so rewarding,” she says. “You know, the people that come in, sometimes they’re really troubled. Sometimes they’re very happy. We celebrate all the moments [of their lives].”

Deborah continues, “These days, you know, everyone thinks that everything is digital. That’s why the book has become so special. It’s not just a commodity anymore, right? It’s treasured.”

She immediately takes us back to the vestibule to show us some examples of books that were made to honor people at various milestones of their lives, such as birthdays or retirement.

“See, now this is the guy who started Express, Michael Weiss. There he is, wearing his famous glasses. So what we did was do a blind deboss of his glasses on the cover,” she explained.

She pulls out another book. “Look at this man, he’s almost 100 years old and he’s skydiving! This is a story of his life and the people who love him. His name is Jackson Grayson, one of the founders of The Houstonian and a big philanthropist. People in his organization wanted the story of his life, and they had a party to celebrate it. In the back, you’ll notice there’s a little box for notes and cards.”

The foyer’s books are full of stories, some of famous people and some of just ordinary folk. Deborah pulls one that was used as a wedding proposal, and another that served as an invitation for Jennifer Lopez to come perform at the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo. Some are made while the people are alive, whereas others are made to commemorate the lives of loved ones after they have passed away.

And while making books is a staple of the business, many

16 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

“ t w e D

D v r

“ w s

“We celebrate all the moments of their lives” “Once they arrive, back here they get opened and they get quarantined.

We then call the customer (or meet with them, if they are local and came into the shop) and have a consult to review their options and confirm their order.”

Owner Deborah Karchmer

customers utilize Bella Becho for repairing existing books like family Bibles, yearbooks, cookbooks, and children’s books.

“If you can make a book, you can fix a book. So people come in and they have a special book. Maybe their mom or dad or grandfather wrote something on the inside of the book, but they’re going to do everything they can to save that signature. And we can do that,” Deborah said.

Deborah walks to the back of the shop, over to a rack filled with a variety of books with order slips attached, and explains the typical repair process.

“Most people will find us on the Internet. So people will come in, they will bring their book if they’re local, which is great. Otherwise, they ship them in.”

Deborah’s husband Jeff, a business attorney who also handles the website for Bella Becho, explained that people’s first choice in book restoration is whether to have a new cover made or to save the existing cover.

“A lot of people are trying to salvage the [original] cover because it has sentimental value. We use different techniques based on the circumstances. With some books, we can use the ‘splice’ method, in which we create a new spine and then splice the cover and the new spine together,” Jeff explained. “If the cover is too thin to splice, we seat the original cover and spine into a ‘well’ frame. This is a newer, state-of-the-art technique we got into awhile back, and people love it.”

While keeping the original cover is certainly an option, Deborah says she often recommends creating a new cover. It is less expensive for the customer, and with a large selection of cover materials to choose from and a graphic design department that can recreate printed covers, the results are often similar to the original, only better.

“Like here is a Bible that is old and needs to be redone. We are going to make a replica of this. So we’re going to go for a grainy black

»

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“If you can make a book, y customer] doesn’t want that. He wants this page just the way it is, because grandpa put this here with his hand.”

leather, just like on the original, and then we’re going to mimic exactly the gold Holy Bible stamp here. The only thing we’re adding new is the name of [the customer’s] grandfather.”

The next step in the process is to examine the pages to see if any of them need to be repaired using an archival tissue paper that is laid over the original page and binds it together. If a page can’t be repaired by tissuing it, then Bella Becho can replicate it digitally and replace that page in the rebound book. Once again, however, this is a customer decision.

“See the tape here on this page. Sometimes if it’s old enough, it will just pop off. If not, we can just tissue over it. We don’t want to take anything away. If we wanted to, we could recreate and replace this page, but [the

From tissuing to trimming to stitching, there are a number of steps that go into or repairing each book, which can be unique to each project.

“Everything is segmented. Because there are so many steps, I tried to count once, and it was ridiculous. So rather than have a station for each step, I created an assembly line of little buckets of duties,” Deborah said.

While some of the books Bella Becho repairs are just old, others are in need of repair due to storm damage or because of the specific materials used in the original books. One example is Art Leather, which was a popular brand of wedding album in the second half of the 20th century.

The covers are made of a synthetic imitation leather that can break down and get sticky as it ages, so Bella Becho now does a lot of business replacing those covers. Bella Becho also rebinds custom memory books designed and purchased online, which look beautiful but often separate from the binding because the pages are glued in rather than stitched.

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“The glue dissolves, or they used animal glue and little bugs eat that because it’s sweet,” Deborah explained. “Our books are going to last because we stitch them. Nobody’s going to eat that thread.”

As we prepare to leave, I contemplate the amount of emotion going into creating and repairing these special books and ask Deborah if there is one story that stands out from all of her years in this business. She shares a story of Dr. Bob, a small-town emergency room doctor.

“He was telling me about a lady who told him she was dying. He said to her, ‘You have the dwindles. You’re not dying. I would tell you if you were dying.’ He’s very straight up with her.

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Deborah continued, “So anyway, she started reading the Bible. It was in pieces, and since we had done work for him several times before, he sent it to me. He was like, ‘Can you fix it, and can you fix it fast?’ I told him yes, and so we did. He gave it to her, and he said she was very emotional. So he gets emotional. Then I’m emotional. So we’re crying on the phone. And you know, he said that it was just a few hours later that she died. But he said she died with a smile on her face.”

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May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 19

The Garden Post

By Kim Bius

Spring Update on the State of the Industry Happy spring!

An update on the status of the nursery/ landscape industry seems to be in order. The catastrophic freeze in February left landscapes in Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, and upper Florida in a state of devastation. It just so happens 70% or more of all shrubs, plants, trees that do well in our area are grown in the same locations as the freeze…and the farmers/growers/farms lost from 20%-90% of their crop for resale for the spring season; thus, there are severe shortages and soaring prices on plants due to an 1000% increase in demand.

Will this change? Yes, as growers can bring on additional crops ready for the market--they will; they are growing as fast as Mother Nature allows. Will the plant prices come down? Yes,

when the supply far exceeds the demand and inventory is restored in the coming 18-24 months, there is a higher probability pricing will decrease.

Plants such as plumbago, esperanza, philodendrum, plumeria, and other semitropicals/tropicals are in extremely high demand. If found, buy at that time. This season, unlike any other, inventory changes drastically from one minute to the next with everyone “fishing in the same hole.”

Folks often ask, “Why don’t you just carry plants that will withstand single-digit temperatures?” That would be easy, but the plants that will withstand single-digit temperatures will not survive our Texas heat and the soil temperatures in summer. This is why plants such as peonies, lilacs, and rhododendrons will not grow in Texas for

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20 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

more than a few months.

On the flip side, many plants that were assumed to be fatalities are returning. Keep in mind that we are 30 days behind the calendar date, and the soil temperature is still cool. I would personally use mid-May as a litmus test for visible new growth before discarding.

Plants such as azaleas and camellias, that were burned beyond recognition, are now returning. Many area plants that suffered severe foliage burn need to be trimmed back to 24”-36” in height. New growth will begin to appear within 3-6 weeks, and pruning will ensure the new growth begins at the soil level and not at the tip of the plant (resulting in spindly trunks and stems with no growth in the bottom third of the plant). This is the result of “poor pruning” techniques.

In seasons past, many of us bypassed hardy plants with a fertilization schedule. This season, fertilizing everything is highly recommended. Plants received a “whammy” and need all the extra help they can get.

There is a fertilizer for everyone and every plant known to man on the market. Some fertilizers are a general ratio, and other are for specific needs, such as hibiscus or palms. Visit your favorite independent garden center for accurate information on what to use, when, and on what……it is amazing how much time and money you save with the correct information.

As many of you have noticed, this spring is extremely dry, and sprinkler systems need to be running three times a week at 15-20 minutes per station, depending on location.

Irrigators are overwhelmed with service calls, so be patient and polite; these guys are doing their best to accommodate existing and new customers.

It is a very busy spring season in the garden industry. Many folks are just beginning to get out and about, and the season of blooms has begun.

Enjoy, have fun, love and laugh…Happy Gardening.

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What’s Cookin’ Authentic Tacos al Pastor Ingredients 1 tomato 3 dried guajillo chile peppers, seeded 2 dried ancho chile peppers, seeded 1 pineapple, sliced 3/4-inch thick ½ cup orange juice 1 onion, quartered ¼ cup white vinegar

Step 4: Arrange pork slices in a glass or ceramic baking dish.

Pour blended mixture over pork, ensuring all sides are evenly coated. Cover baking dish with plastic wrap.

2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce 1 Tbs salt, or to taste 2 cloves garlic, crushed 3 cloves 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp dried oregano 2 lbs boneless pork loin, thinly sliced

To Serve: ½ cup chopped onion

Step 5: Cook remaining pineapple slices on a ridged grill pan over medium-high heat until slightly blackened and soft, about 5 minutes per side. Chop into small pieces.

Step 6: Wipe out grill pan and preheat over medium-high heat. Cook marinated pork in the hot pan, turning once, until browned, 4 to 5 minutes.

Step 7: Chop pork coarsely into small pieces against the grain. Serve with pineapple, chopped onion, and cilantro.

½ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions Step 1: Cook tomato on a ridged grill pan over medium-high heat until slightly blackened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool until easily handled. Peel off skin and remove seeds.

Step 2: Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add guajillo and ancho chile peppers; cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Drain.

Step 3: Combine tomato flesh, softened chile peppers, 2 slices pineapple, orange juice, quartered onion, vinegar, chipotle peppers, salt, garlic, cloves, cumin seeds, and oregano in a blender; blend until smooth.

May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 21

Vet Connect:

By Kim VanWagner, D.V.M.

Differences between Costs of Veterinary Care The cost of veterinary care has been a frequent topic of discussion for some time now. Why do some things seem so expensive? Why do clinics charge different prices for the same services? Why do prices continue to increase? Do animals really need all of this? These days, it is no surprise most services provided by modern well-equipped vets (from routine care to an unanticipated crisis) are costly.

As for any small business, the basic operating cost of doing business (overhead) is high for vet practices and continues to rise. High quality vet practices have a relatively large inventory, specialized staffing, high rates of liability insurance, utility expenses, fuel and maintenance costs of mobile units, just to name a few. Veterinary medicine has reached new levels of sophistication in private practice with new levels of costs.

While these advances mean more high-quality options for animal care, they also account for greatly increased costs.

Similar services and products can vary in cost between vet clinics for different reasons. For example, a specific vaccination may cost more at one clinic versus another depending on which manufacturer the vaccine is purchased from. Different companies can manufacture the same vaccine, but use different technology in creating that vaccine.

A more costly vaccine may be a recombitect-type technology created

to help minimize the side effects and tumors that can be a result of vaccination (for example in cats). Another example would be routine dental cleanings. One clinic may include full mouth radiographs in the “dental cleaning price” to be performed prior to the cleaning to evaluate for any underlying issues or problems that may be hidden and not seen without radiographs, whereas another clinic may not have the capability to provide that service. Similarly, other surgery prices may differ pending what services/products are included in the overall price.

For example, are IV catheterization, pre-anesth labwork, post op pain meds, and monitoring with advanced technology equipment included?

Some clinics are considered “wellness” clinics and provide only routine services and procedures and can charge less for the overall visit since they usually don’t have as large overhead expenses such as specialized staff or as large of variety of inventory as other full-service hospitals.

A responsible vet constantly tries to maintain a delicate balance by anticipating clients’ needs, keeping certain drugs available for immediate use, yet trying to keep the overhead cost of unused inventory at a manageable level. Products purchased directly from your vet are typically more expensive than those purchased through other sources due to cost of inventory, labor, administrative costs, and quality control being much higher for smaller clinics versus large supply companies.

Some clinics may be able to sell products at a lower cost versus others if they get discounts for ordering larger quantities.

Pet ownership is expensive, and proper veterinary care accounts for a significant percentage of that expense. Ultimately, the relationship you have with your vet will guide you and your pet down a balanced path.

Use them as a sounding board to help you determine the level of care you are comfortable with, and discuss costs frankly and openly.

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Business Focus

By Linda W. Perkins Photos by Gina Turner

Driveway Dumpster Rental In with the new, out with the old. It’s a phrase we’ve all heard time and time again. But when it comes to dealing with things around your home and garden, it’s not always that easy to implement.

Remodeling? Before you can install those new kitchen cabinets, you have to tear out the old ones first. But where do you put them, and then how can you get them hauled away?

Here’s a thought: How about getting your neighbors to help?

While it may seem strange to call a dumpster company “your neighbors,” that is exactly how Driveway Dumpster Rental, LLC owners Blake and Donna Cox see the relationship between them and their clients. It drives everything they do, from the personal level of customer service they provide to the care with which they keep their dumpsters.

“We realize we are renting these dumpsters to our neighbors, and we really care about them. We treat them the way we wish we would be treated when we hire someone,” Donna explained, adding that because they are a small family-owned company, the couple is able to be flexible on the way they work with customers to ensure their needs are met.

Driveway Dumpster Rental has been serving communities north of Houston since March of last year, but the company was purchased by the Coxes in November 2020. Their 15-yard dumpsters, which are easily identifiable by their bright red and black paint, are used by people who are cleaning out their houses and garages, as well as by remodeling contractors needing a dumpster on a short-term basis.

24 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

“We are all about making sure the trash gets to the right place” A standard rental is for one to seven days and includes delivery and pickup. Other than a short list of items that includes refrigerators, motor oil, and other hazardous materials, they can pick up just about anything and deliver it to a local trash collection and recycling center.

“We are all about making sure the trash gets to the right place,” Blake reiterated. Getting it right is one of the reasons Driveway Dumpster Rental is so successful. “We have integrity. We do what we say we are going to do. And if we make a mistake – Blake doesn’t make mistakes, but I have occasionally – I’ll be the first one to call the customer and say, ‘I’m sorry, I goofed.’”

Donna explained. “So far, we have nothing but five-star ratings and lovely comments.”

“If we say we will be there at a given time, we will be there!”

The couple emphasizes their promptness as a reason people like to do business with them. “We answer the phone and call people back. If you have to leave a message, we will call you back within two hours, if at all possible. And if we say we will be there at a given time, we will be there!”

Another reason for the five-star reviews may be because of the way the couple takes the time to understand the customer’s needs, beyond just delivering a dumpster. Donna tells the story of one customer who had rented a dumpster for a week after the recent freeze, but when Blake went to pick it up, it was still empty.

The client explained that she couldn’t take the damaged items out of her house because the insurance adjuster still had not come out. Blake and Donna needed the dumpster for another customer, so they still picked it up. However, rather than charge the customer for the week she was unable to use, they just held the customer’s deposit for another rental time after the insurance issue was resolved.

Owners Blake and Donna Cox

In another story, Blake described how he noticed how somber some customers seemed when he went to deliver the dumpster to them. He asked them about their situation, and discovered they were cleaning out a family member’s trailer because he had passed away. Moved by the grief-stricken family’s loss, Blake helped them load some of the belongings into the dumpster so the family didn’t have to extend their rental beyond the initial period and could make their deadline for clearing things out of the trailer.

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“We live in a gated subdivision, and once you start doing business in gated communities, you find the neighbors can be pretty picky. We find people would rather have a nice-looking dumpster in their front yard than something that is rusty or smelly.”

Even though the company is relatively new, Donna and Blake already have a plan for growth. “We would like to acquire some more dumpsters, including perhaps some that can be used for construction sites,” said Donna. “Right now, everything we have is for residential.”

On a lighter note, Donna says some people use their company because Blake’s many years of experience in the oil field means he is an expert driver and can back in anywhere with their dumpsters. “I have seen him put them in some really precarious places,” she exclaimed. For others, Donna says, aesthetics matter. “Our dumpsters are pretty. You’re not ashamed to have them in your driveway.”

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from page 31

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A lifetime ago, back when Donna and Blake were high school sweethearts in west Texas, they probably couldn’t have imagined their life beyond his oil field service businesses and her teaching career would involve taking out other people’s trash. They certainly didn’t know they would be teased about their business “being rubbish” or that they would jokingly be called “trashy people.” Yet here they are, the proud owners of Driveway Dumpster Rental, and they couldn’t be happier.

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If you’re looking to unplug and recharge without having to travel far, the resort has everything you need to create the perfect escape. Go ahead. Pack those flip-flops and kick off your summer with your own license to chill.

“Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake Conroe | Houston provides the ideal combination of fun and relaxation for all ages. We look forward to welcoming you and invite you to experience the laid-back lake life close to home.”

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Adults and kids alike will have a blast cooling off at Jolly Mon, the three-acre water park, including a lazy river, splash zone, waterslides, an infinity pool, and hot tubs. Or you can get out on Lake Conroe with a boat or other watercraft rental from Einstein’s Surf and Boat Shop.

No one goes hungry at Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake Conroe | Houston. With five Margaritaville-inspired restaurants onsite, there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Watch the sunset over Lake Conroe as you savor coastal cuisine at LandShark Bar & Grill or indulge in Sunday brunch at License to Chill Bar & Café located on the second floor of the guest tower. If you’re in a hurry between adventures, grab a sandwich and some caffeine at Joe Merchant’s Coffee & Provisions.

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28 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

If it’s rest and relaxation you’re after, you don’t have to go far. Steps away from either your lakeview suite or lakeside cottage, you’ll find St. Somewhere Spa, an 18,000-square-foot wellness retreat offering a wide variety of spa and salon services. Unwind in the relaxation lounge, soak in a whirlpool tub, or decompress in one of the steam rooms.

Is a game of golf calling your name? Schedule a tee time to play on our 18-hole golf course and take in the sights and sounds of nature as you go. Offering one of the most enjoyable golf experiences in Montgomery County, the Golf Club at Margaritaville Lake Resort is a great place to spend some of those carefree days of summer.

Want to enjoy more of the lake life? You can by becoming a member. The resort has a variety of membership levels available that cater to retired couples, families, and young professionals.

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· Unlimited rounds of golf at The Golf Club at Margaritaville Lake Resort’s 18-hole golf course and complimentary use of the driving range · Access to Fins Up Fitness Center, which includes state-of-the-art fitness equipment, three studios, Pilates machines, and racquetball courts · Complimentary use of the relaxation areas in St. Somewhere Spa · In season access to the resort’s three-acre Jolly Mon Water Park (Sunday through Thursday) · Pickleball / Tennis Court / Sport Court and Parrot Island Mini Golf access · Special membership pricing to numerous resort-wide offerings and invitations to exclusive member-only events

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· Ability to play a round of golf any day of the week for an $18 cart fee · Unlimited monthly cart plans available starting at $119/month · Special membership discounts at various resort amenities, including St. Somewhere Spa and Live Life Like a Song Margaritaville Store. Members also receive discounts at select restaurants and bars.

· Access to Fins Up Fitness Center · Complimentary use of the relaxation areas in St. Somewhere Spa · In season access to the resort’s three-acre Jolly Mon Water Park (Sunday through Thursday ) · Pickleball / Tennis Court / Sport Court and Parrot Island Mini Golf access · Special membership pricing to numerous resort-wide offerings and invitations to exclusive member-only events

If you are ready to set your coordinates to the perfect blend of “lake latitude and island attitude,” visit www.margaritavilleresorts.com/margaritaville-lake-resort-lake-conroe.

Fins Up! May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 29

Promotion of Emotion has the Ability to Enhance Stability

Health Matters

There is considerable scientific information that maintaining a positive approach to life has many health benefits. POSITIVE IS GOOD. Positive people live longer and have healthier lives. Individuals with positive outlooks are troubled by fewer chronic diseases, less depression or anxiety than those with a negative outlook.

Approach to life and attitude about it is tinted or even established by our emotions. And guess what--we can manage what emotions we are feeling. Our bodies react to an amazing extent to our emotional stance.

Stress and the long-term detriment it brings from stress hormones is lessened with our emotions.

There is little meaning discoverable in life without emotions, but few have made efforts to define them (let alone how to improve them) and how to keep emotions rational. There are almost boundless numbers of emotions because there are virtually limitless ways we may feel about what we encounter or contemplate. However, Paul Ekman, a noted psychologist, identified six basic emotions: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness and surprise. In my opinion, the emotion that gives the most positive uplift to mood is GRATITUDE. What characterizes the different emotions? William James stated anger represents slights, fear represents dangers, shame represents failures to live up to an ego ideal, sadness represents losses, happiness represents progress toward goal achievement, pride represents enhancement of one’s ego identity. INDEED! Naturally, emotions are part of one’s humanity and are necessary, but they must be controlled. Remember, we have a conscious and an

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unconscious self to control. The James-Lange psychological theory proposes the conscious self is informed about what to feel emotionally by physical actions; we frown or cry and begin to feel sad, or we smile or laugh and feel happy. Our conscious brain can take charge to smile and laugh more often. Also, start to frown less and to resolve not to get angry, without thinking whether anger is worth the cost to your wellbeing. THERE! A great deal of damage can be the result of extremes of emotion, and it is best to decide to control the two chief emotions: anger and happiness.

Surplus happiness can spiral into euphoria which can result in behaviors that humiliate. Even worse, anger can spiral out of control into frenzied rage and (even if one is alone) non-reconcilable behaviors can emerge.

MODERATION! Maintain a happy countenance, and you will look better and younger.

In a study, subjects were asked to estimate the age and emotional state of pictures in groups of the same people either smiling or frowning. Subjects considered smilers more likable and younger to a significant extent. OMG. When you feel an emotion erupting, make it a practice to hesitate and consider what it means and what your reaction should be. Anger hurts the angry person, because stress hormones are released. I have simply developed a “so what the heck” attitude in all cases unless my health or a loved one’s health is threatened, and that is extremely rare.

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May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 33

Mustard Seed Moments

by Wes Altom

Dinner with Judas Two seemingly unrelated thoughts bounce around in my brain as I work to form them into something on paper for you to understand.

Let me address the thoughts, then make the connection.

First, there is a closeness, a special bond, in putting your feet under the same dining table as someone else. We schedule dinner events, and almost always do so with those we care about and share special relationship with.

Second, I remember parenting conversations with my kids when they would get mad (read that l-i-v-i-d) at someone who hadn’t met their expectations in their young life. Usually, the closer the relationship with the party, the stronger the reaction. You always hurt the one you love, right? With wisdom from years and the luxury of being removed from the direct situation, I would remind them that the person couldn’t make them angry—it was how they were choosing to react.

The connection is these thoughts both stem from contemplating our Lord at the table with his disciples…all of them…even Judas.

There is some evidence (from knowledge of customs of the day and hints in scripture) that suggests Jesus had Judas at the seat of honor at what we know as the Last Supper. We know Christ knew the betrayal was coming…but he chose his reaction. Think about the words from the hymn: “All things are ready, Come to the feast!

Come, for the door is open wide; A place of honor is reserved For you at the Master’s side” We have the same invitation…the same place of honor…the same sinful heart…and the same reaction from our Lord. He knows our weakness and how we fail him, but he chooses his reaction and offers that place of honor anyway. Judas made his choice. What remains to be seen is our reaction. That’s the story still being written.

Anyone who meets a testing challenge head-on and manages to stick it out is mighty fortunate. For such persons loyally in love with God, the reward is life and more life. --James 1:12 (MSG)

34 Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition | May 2021

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SCHEDULE YOUR APPOINTMENTS ONLINE AT: WWW.CAMERONOPTICAL.COM May 2021 | Postcards Magazine: Lake Conroe Edition 35