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Don't eat meat. Give up gluten, forget about fats, discard dairy. Chow down supplements, fast every Wednesday and purge once a month. South Beach, Atkins, Mediterranean, how about the Neanderthal Diet?

Before you give up and have another Snickers®, hear what Kate Moore has to say in a three-part nutrition series, "Hungry for Change," starting Tuesday, January 13 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Vernetta Smith Chehalis Timberland Library.

The Alvord family, in Winlock received a surprise in time for Christmas on Dec. 23 when they were told the lighting display in their front yard had earned them the 2014 Christmas Spirit Award, the first honor of its kind given in Winlock.

WSU Lewis County Master Gardener and Master Recycler Composter are accepting Christmas trees for recycling for local residents now through Jan. 11.

Undecorated Christmas trees and wreaths will be accepted in the parking lot outside the gate at the Lewis County Central Transfer Station (1411 S. Tower Ave., in Centralia). Volunteers will be on hand from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays to accept the trees for chipping.

Booklovers can once again welcome the New Year with some healthy self-indulgence: reading books, audiobooks and more books - as many as possible - between Jan. 1 and March 14.

The Adult Winter Reading Contest (AWR) has been part of the Timberland Regional Library (TRL) winter programming since 1998. The idea, according to program coordinator Tim Mallory, is to entice busy adults to give themselves a break, relax, get comfortable and read just for the fun of it.

Happy New Year, Ryderwood! All are invited to come to Community Hall for a fun evening of board and card games, snacks, music, whatever. The Social Club will provide beverages, so bring a snack or "finger food" to share. Come out and enjoy a fun evening of friends, food and festivities.

As of this writing, menus for Friday's Dinner at the Cafe and Tuesday's Senior Nutrition Lunch aren't known. They will be printed in the January Ryderwood Reporter. (The goal is to print the newsletter on the last day of the month; home delivery varies by volunteer availability, weather, etc.) Supplies of the newsletter are usually inside Community Hall, in a holder on the north side of Community Hall, and at the Café.

Don says: Historical Society Limited Edition 2015 Calendars are selling fast. Get yours now at Timberland Bank, Hair It Is, Toledo Senior Center or the Community Library. Watch for a 16-month calendar for 2016 featuring sepia-tone pictures rarely seen, available at Cheese Days 2015. Also, more artifacts and memorabilia have been added since just last week to the new History Room at the library, open Wednesdays 10 a.m - 7 p.m., Thursdays 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Historical Society meets fourth Mondays. Contact Don, rennerb@toledotel.com for details.

Have a New Year's resolution in mind, or simply hoping to work off all the holiday pounds? The Vader Assembly of God Church has an exercise room available for free to the public, complete with weight machines, free-weights, treadmills, exercise bikes and other equipment. The room is open to adult users during normal office hours at the church Tuesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon. Just be sure to drop by the office beforehand to sign a liability waiver, and you will be good to go.

As we wind down 2014, New Years resolutions are what we all agree to do. There is the usual to quit smoking, lose weight and eat right. I decided this year I would work on procrastination. I procrastinate on everything as my Editor and husband will agree to. I have been a procrastinator all of my life, I have no idea why but that is just what I have always done so this year I vow to do it as soon as I get around to it!!

The Lewis County Auditor's Office has announced the propositions expected to appear locally for voters during the Feb. 10 Special Election.

The Castle Rock School District is proposing two levies of varying amounts and durations: First is a three-year Maintenance and Operations levy intended to replace a levy expiring at the end of 2015. The proposed levy amount would be $2.05 million and would impose a property tax of roughly $2.93 per $1,000 of assessed value. The second is a six-year Technology and Capital Projects Levy that would generate $200,000 and would impose a property tax of roughly $0.27 per $1,000 of assessed value.

The Winlock City Council has described a plan to form an Economic Development Committee for the purpose of researching and implementing ideas to bring about growth within the city.

Proposed by Council Member Sarah Gifford during the council's Dec. 22 meeting, the idea for such a committee had been prompted by frustrations Gifford said she and fellow residents feel toward the stagnation in Winlock, stating significant changes need to be made if the city is going to correct a trend of closing storefronts and significant utility rates.

The city of Winlock is on the search for roughly $700,000 in matching funds after being awarded a grant earlier this month from the Federal Highways Bridge Program to replace the structurally-unsound Fir St. Bridge.

Announced on Dec. 12, the Washignton State Department of Transportation, the entity facilitating the grant, stated a little more than $3.5 million was being set aside to replace Fir St. Bridge, which has been closed since March due to structural concerns, as well as repairs to the abutments of Walnut St. Bridge, just downriver of Fir St.

The Castle Rock and Toledo boys basketball teams spent the weekend after Christmas at the Wilbur Ellis Shootout in the Yakima Sundome. The event typically features larger schools against the best small school programs in the state.

Castle Rock's first draw was the always tough Cedar Park Christian from Bothell. CR took the Eagles to five overtimes before succumbing 76-69. Ty Johnson led all scores with 25 points while brother Brock Johnson went for 20. Big man, Mason Klingberg accumulated 19 points during the contest.

The holidays are a time for families and friends to get together. But that also means a greater risk for fire. Whether you are getting ready to do some holiday entertaining at home or headed out to a party to ring in the New Year, State Fire Marshal Chuck Duffy suggests following these simple tips to ensure a celebration that is both festive and fire-safe:

A new survey of drivers shows 7 out of 10 have used marijuana and almost half of those have recently driven within a couple of hours after marijuana use. If you or someone you know uses marijuana and drives while high, beware--extra DUI patrols are happening statewide this Holiday season between now and January 1, 2015.

According to preliminary results of a June survey measuring driver impairment on Washington's roads, nearly 90 percent of those same drivers said they did not think marijuana degraded their driving ability, despite research showing that driving while high doubles your chance of killing yourself or others in a crash. In fact, 25 percent of those respondents felt that driving while high made them a better driver.

Authorities are seeking help to identify a suspect believed to be responsible for a violent case of road rage near Centralia Saturday evening, according to the Lewis County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies had responded to Providence Centralia Hospital to reports of an assault and learned from the victim, a 22-year-old Centralia man, he had been traveling in his pickup west on Galvin Rd., west of Centralia, when he attempted to pass a green, compact sedan at around 6:15 p.m. However, the driver of the sedan moved into the eastbound lane, preventing the victim from passing, though the victim stated he was eventually able to drive around the car.