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4 y 4-B—THE CHRONICLE, Clinton, S. C., Jan. 29, 1970 Minding Your Business'^ Medical Expenses BY JOHN J. SUTHERLAND Certified Public Accountant Generally, medical expenses are limited to 3% of adjusted gross income. This is the income found on line 15c of the tax return and for most taxpayers would be the total salaries plus interest and other income. This limi tation, however, does not apply to taxpayers 65 or older. The following discussion is very involved and highly techni cal. It is the author’s opinion that it will be easier to under stand and more meaningful if you follow Schedule A of the income tax form as you read. One^half of medical care in surance premiums may be de ducted without the 3% limitation. However, this may not exceed $150. The other half, or the ex cess over $150, may be included as medical expense discussed below. The premium must be for a policy which reimburses only for medical care whether paid to you or directly to the hospital. If it is a combination policy such as one providing life insurance or payments for partial or total disability, thepremium for medi cal care must be stated separate ly by the insurance company in order to be deductible. The cost of medicine and drugs may be deducted insofar as they exceed 1% of adjusted gross income. The excess is added to other medical expense. In addi tion to medicine and insurance premiums, other medical ex pense may include these items: doctors’ fees for treatment and examination. This cannot, how ever, include veterinarians’ fees for pets. Hospital bills including room and board if you are an in-patient. Out-patients may in clude only the actual hospitaliza tion costs. You are allowed 5£ per mile for travel to and from the doctor or hospital, whether local or in a distant city. If, however, you can prove that your transportation costs are more than this, you can deduct the actual amount paid. You may also deduct travel expenses incurred while accompanying a sick child or handicapped person to the doc tor or hospital. In addition, if the doctor advises you that it would medically benefit the sick child or handicapped person for you to visit them during treatment, you may deduct transportation costs for doing so. The doctor may prescribe spe cial equipment as* part of the treatment or to alleviate pain and suffering. This special equipment may take various forms such as wheelchairs, special beds and mattresses, reclining chairs, in clined walkways, air-condition ing units, special equipment in automobiles, etc. This special equipment may be deducted as a medical expense insofar as it does not increase the value of your home or auto. As an ex ample, an air-conditioning unit prescribed by a doctor would add some value to the home but it may not add as much value as the unit cost. The excess cost over the added value may be de ducted as a medical expense. All of the above must be re duced by any insurance reim bursements collected during the taxable year. Medical insurance reimbursed must be added toad- justed gross income in the year it is collected to the extent that it produced a tax benefit in a previous year. Likewise, the pro ceeds from the sale of special equipment in subsequent years must be added to adjusted gross income in the year of sale in sofar as its deduction produced a tax benefit. The author regrets that there are other facets of this highly complicated and technical section which have not been dealt with in this article. I have, however, at tempted to highlight the pro visions which would most com monly be encountered. Miss Plaxico On Dean's List Sharan Plaxico of Clinton has been named to the first semester Dean’s List at Columbia College. A Sophomore, she is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Tom Plaxico of 109 E. Walnut St., Clinton. I" Dear Sally LEONARD-MARLER INSURANCE AGENCY Pbone 833-1121 200 N. Broad St. CONSULT US FOR ALL YOUR INSURANCE NEEDS • Life • Accident • Health • Hospital Homeowner Auto Business Bonds THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Christ, who changes not, gives us certainty in the midst of change BY SALLY SHAW DEAR SALLY: I’mengagedtoa young man of 28 who has already postponed our wedding three times. . .because of his mother. Despite the fact that she is a wealthy widow, it still seems she cannot get along without her little boy. He says he cannot bear to leave her when she goes into one of her sobbing tantrums at the mention of our marriage. He claims that tiir° will cure her and that “after all, it’s been only two years since Dad died, and Mom still misses him terribly, and it would be cruel for me to leave her now.”He also says he loves me very much and hopes I’ll be patient until things work out for us. How “patient” must I be? This so-called engagement of ours is already more than two years old! SHELVED. DEAR SHELVED: I think you have been more tham “patient” enough with this 28-year-old “little boy,” who apparently finds it impossible to loosen himself from his mother’s apron strings. Have this out with him now, once and for all. Tell him he MUST make his choice now -- between you and his mother. Confi dentially, I think you should let Mom have him! DEAR SALLY: Do you see any thing wrong with a 30-year-old man falling in love with an marry ing a girl who is three years older than he is? Even though this love ly and wonderful girl looks ten years younger than she is, my parents claim it’s all wrong for any man to marry “an older wo man.” HANK. DEAR HANK: If you and this girl love each other, that’s all that counts. This is YOUR ro mance, not your parents’. The three-year age difference means nothing. DEAR SALLY: I’m engaged to a fine young man who also is one of the best-looking men I’ve ever known. . .until he opens his mouth. His teeth are horrible. . .dis colored, crooked, decayed-look ing. I love him so much and want to be proud of him -- but I’m embarrassed about his teeth when we’re in company with others. Do you think I should take the chance of hurting his feelings by men tioning this to him. . .or is this none of my business? OKLA HOMA. DEAR OKLAHOMA: Indeed it IS your business. After all, you are the promised wife of this “fine young man,” and it’s only nat ural that you be concerned about his appearance. Tell him what you’ve told me -- that you want to be proud of him, but that his teeth are spoiling his otherwise good looks. Implore him to visit a dentist where modern techni ques today are working wonders for just such cases as his. DEAR SALLY: Is it proper and in good taste to give a bridal shower for a girl who is already married? One of our sorority sisters eloped during the Christ mas Holidays and completely dis rupted our plans to give her a pre-marital shower. ALPHA. DEAR ALPHA: Certainly you may give her a shower. These parties are just as much fun, and the gifts are just as welcome, to a girl after she is married as before. DEAR SALLY: I am planning to continue teaching school after I’m married, because I do love the work, and my fiance is in perfect accord so far as this is concerned. However, he has rais ed a big storm because of my suggestion that my income after our marriage should be mine to to do with as I wish, and that as the nominal head of our house hold it should be his entire re sponsibility to defray all ourliv- ing expenses. He’s perfectly capable of doing this, but claims that the “principle” of my sug gestion is all wrong. What do you think about this? SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT. DEAR SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT: I’m with your fiance. W’hen a man and woman decide to share their lives together, this should include their sharing all their worldly possessions. . . including their incomes. MILK is a versatile food. You can eat it as well as drink it -- in milk puddings and soups, creamed dishes, as ice cream, and as cheese. Dairy foods are an economical source of good nutrition for your family. HOW CAN I? IN REVIVAL — Rev. Mameese Hampton, pas tor of East Side Baptist Church i n Blacksburg, will be guest speaker in revival services at Friend ship Baptist Church Feb. 1-8. Services will begin at 7:30 each week night and at 7:00 p.m. on Sun day. Special music will be presented at each ser vice. Area Students Complete Lander Requirements Evelyn Reddeck of Clinton and Mary S. Workman of Cross Hill completed degree requirements at Lander College last week. The fall semester at Lander ended Jan. 21, and the spring semester began Monday, Jan. 26. Students who complete their degree requirements by the end of the first semester will re ceive diplomas at regular graduation exercises May 24. Revis Named To Dean's List Covert Roland Revis ofChnton was named to the dean’s list at a special Scholarship Day pro gram last Wednesday at North Greenville Junior College. The son of Mrs. Lena Mathis, he was among 27 full time stu dents who achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or better, of a pos sible 4.0 f>>r the semester. Twen ty-three of the group have at tained the average for their en tire college careers and three have a perfect 4.0 score. BY ANNE ASHLEY Q. How can I remove paint stains from clothing? A. Turpentine, mineral spirits, kerosene, and ordinary cleaning fluid are all good solvents for these stains. None of these, how ever, is reliable if you have al lowed the stains to become stale. For old paint stains, try com bining equal parts of turpentine or mineral spirits and finger nail polish remover, and use this as you would cleaning fluid. Q. What is a good formula for furniture polish? A. One excellent one consists of two parts of vinegar to one part of olive oil. Put a small amount of this on a soft cloth and rub it into the wood. Brings up a nice, fresh-looking gloss. Q. How can I extricate a cork that has dropped inside an empty bottle? A. Pour enough ammonia into the bottle to float the cork and leave it there for a few days. Enough of the cork will then have been eaten away to permit its removal. Q. Do you have any sugges tions for making draperies or curtains hang in any position or fold desired? A. Solid solder, in the form of wire, can be cut to the proper length and inserted into the bot tom hems of your draperies or curtains. Since this soft solder wire bends and can be easily molded, it will hold your drap eries or curtains in whatever fold or position suits your fancy. Q. What is a good stiffening ingredient, mstead of starch, to use in delicate fabrics? A. Some delicate fabrics won’t take to the ususal starching me thods. For these, use granulated sugar dissolved in water, instead of starch. Q. How do I go about baking a strawberry-rhubarb pie? A. This is really just like ap ple pie, except that you use three cups of frozen rhubarb just thawed, and three cups of sliced fresh strawberries. Also 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/8-teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, four tablespoons of flour, one tables- p<x>n of butter. Q. How can I deal with per fume stains on my dressing table? A. Apply cold cream as soon as the perfume is spilled, then wipe clean with facial tissues. My new paperback household manual deals with all kinds of stains like these. Q. How can I avoid any un pleasant odors in my kitchen drain? A. If you’ll drop a handful of baking soda into the sink over night, it will purify and clean that unfragrant drain. Q. How can I improvise a padding under my carpets? A. With newspapers, several layers of them, laid flat under your rugs. These will do a good job of saving wear on your car peting, makes the carpets look and feel better underfoot. Phone Directory Deadline Nears The telephone directory clos ing date for Clinton and Joanna customers is almost here ac cording to Bob Simmons, local Telephone Comapny manager. It’s time to take a second look at your listing in the directory to make sure it is correct and as you want it to appear in the new directory. Simmons advises that if you want to make a change in your listing or add a new listing to please call the Business office by Feburary 12th which is the closing date. Changes cannot be made af ter this date since the book will be in the process of beingprinted. The new directory is scheduled to come out on March 17th. ♦ ♦ * Greenwood Mills Featured In DuPont Magazine The January-February issue of the duPont features the Green wood Mills finishing plant, Fab ric Services, Inc. ofOrangeburg, is one of its articles. The article, entitled “Enhanc ing the Character of Quality," explains a new type of bleach ing chemistry produced by du Pont and used at the new Fabric Services plant. d&m'ceforYoi rfb<xflk Kleenex Facial Van Camp’s PORE and BEANS 16-Oz. Cans 2 for 29c Trellis Cream Style GOLDEN CORN No. 303 Cans 2 for 35c Duncan Hines CAKE MIXES 19-Oz. Box 39c jDel Monte (Crushed or Sliced) [PINEAPPLE No. 1 Can 2 for 37c Nabisco MACAROON COOKIES 1-Lb. Pkg. 55c Trinho POTATOES 5-Lb. Bag 49c * * * * * * ♦ * ¥ Taste-O-Sea Frozen l-Lb. Pkg. PERCH 49c Fresh Ground Lb. BEEF 59c Dreher’s 12-Oz. Cup SAUSAGE 63c Kraft’s (American, Pimento, Swiss) 8-Oz. Pkg. CHEESE 39c Castleberry’s lOVfe-Oz. Can HOT DOG CRIU 19c Castleberry’s 24-Oz. Can BEEF STEW ... 59c PRICES EFFECTIVE JANUARY 29-30-31 vt ,1. PHONE 8334)710 ON MILLS STORE - LYDIA MILLS STORE FREE DELIVERY SERVICE PHONE 83 S"i :v