• An upcoming supermoon — set for Nov. 14 — is not only the closest full moon of 2016 but also the closest full moon to date this century. The full moon won’t come this close to Earth again until November 25, 2034.
• University Extension in Texas County has received the 2017 Red Books for purchase. They are $6.75 and available on a first-come, first-serve basis, at the Lone Star Annex, 114 W. Main St., Suite 2. For more information, call 417-967-4545.
The Red Book was developed in the 1980s as a tool for beef cattle integrated resource management record keeping. Since that time, numerous organizations have modified the book to suit the needs of today’s cattlemen.
• This year’s telephone directory, which arrived last week, reflects a nationwide trend — persons dropping their landlines. The number of pages of regional telephone numbers dropped from 136 to 124 over the last year.
• Around town: The city’s wood chipper is back in service after a mechanical issue. The city says it is trying to get caught up and it is used nearly daily….By most reports, MoDOT’s expansion of U.S. 63 through Houston has been pretty smooth. Work, done by a Hannibal firm, is moving along to add two lanes in most location: Ripping out shoulders, preparing new lanes and then pouring concrete.
• U.S. Cellular, the nation’s fifth largest wireless carrier, has opened a store in Houston at 1215 S. Sam Houston Blvd., Suite B, next to Taco Bell. Atlantic Wireless is the authoritized agent, which has stores in Missouri in Kirksville, Columbia and Marshfield.
• How did the county vote in recent presidential elections? In 2012, Mitt Romney captured 73 percent of the vote. Four years earlier, Sen. John McCain 68 percent of the vote.
As weather continues to be unseasonably mild, green beans were sold at Friday’s farmers market at the Lone Star Plaza.