Not all of us get our animal protein from the grocery store, wrapped in plastic in a little tray. Meat can also come direct from the countryside, from hunting. And even the best hunters may have a few questions about what to do after the kill; how to prepare meat for consumption. The Southern Oregon Research and Extension Center, SOREC, offers this knowledge among its many offerings. Master Food Preservers give instruction in "From Hunt to Home," with another session coming up later in March.

The polarization of the United States has less to do with color than with money, says University of Texas professor Michael Lind. Bigotry is mixed in, but the larger issue in Lind's analysis is the decreased power of labor to influence pay and working conditions. The decrease has been going on a long time, as Lind demonstrates in his book The New Class War: Saving Democracy from the Managerial Elite .

Even the best parents can use a little help when their kids are babies. And that's why an increasing number of states offer programs in which registered nurses visit with the families of newborns. Oregon is now embarking on such a program, called Family Connects . The program is not limited to low-income families... any family that wants a visit gets a visit, eventually. Family Connects is on a six-year rollout across the state.

It's a good idea not to eat any mushrooms you pick, unless you're an expert or have access to one. Dozens of people die every year because they mistake poisonous mushrooms for the edible kind. Now the Agricultural Research Service of the federal Department of Agriculture (USDA) has developed a test that can identify toxic mushrooms in the field, within minutes.

Rogue Retreat is working to make lightning strike again, this time in Grants Pass. Rogue Retreat had success setting up small houses for homeless people in Medford at Hope Village. The planned Foundry Village in Grants Pass will use the same model for temporary transitional housing.

Your health is at somewhat greater risk if you live in a rural area. Not so much because of rural conditions, but more because of rural health care: hospitals and doctors are few and far between. And the hospitals are getting fewer and farther between: 19 rural hospitals closed across the country last year, a trend that is on the upswing.

Anyone who remembers cars from 50 years ago knows how much they've changed. Modern electronics and computers increased vehicle efficiency and comfort many times over; now most passenger comforts are obtained with the (light) touch of a button. Still, sparkplugs fail and injectors clog and belts wear out. Zach Edwards, Ashland Automotive owner, built a career on fixing what goes wrong with cars. He joins us once a month to take your vehicle questions and stories at 800-838-3760 and [email protected]

The founders of the American republic let slavery stay on the books, but a few of them were looking down the road. Alexander Hamilton and John Jay were among the creators of a free school system for black children in New York. That system produced James McCune Smith and Henry Highland Garnet, who both went onto immense accomplishment and fame. Their story is told in Anna Mae Duane's book Educated for Freedom: The Incredible Story of Two Fugitive Schoolboys Who Grew Up to Change a Nation .

The poetry of women is showcased in a new musical work coming to the stage this weekend (February 29 and March 1). Rogue Valley composer Joby Talbot set the poetry to music in the form of a cantata, an hour-long choral work featuring choir, orchestra, and male and female soloists. The work, "A Sheen of Dew on Flowers," will be performed by the Southern Oregon Repertory Singers , under the direction of Paul French.

One of the major changes in mental health care in our country is the move away from "warehousing" people with mental illness. The gigantic state hospitals that held thousands of people are mostly a memory. But state hospitals still exist, on a smaller scale. And being discharged from one can still lead to problems for a person not used to living among the general public. That's the essence of the story Robert (no last names) tells in this month's Compass Radio, our collaboration with Southern