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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 19, 1984)
Thursday, April 19, 1984/The Battalion/Page 5B e'Orchid lady ia ’ a nervoini ;s Peopku, e cases, kidney (j )0 tentia|( lver sitv al»i mauon t# atment of. ' or ? e J. Mi J big gamt the Wild! 1 extremely: ; h a conili s often j | •tbet natintl aes.hesaid™ publislitil Physioloj. Local woman's avocation became her vocation Creative financing: Helping customers afford luxury cars By KATHLEEN WEST Reporter What was first a hobby has oomed into a thriving busi es for Kathy Jordan, owner (Jordan’s Orchids. Jordan said she became in- h h ■ resle< ^ ‘ n orchids when she 11 erili i ceived an orchid plant as a U>: Nelson re out aw ion in ng to xy could part of tftc ians can they can t otherot® ne thing h them tm ere and iple ants but only because I had lot of plants anyway. But I iven some of the little ones from Mexico and at’s what got me started,” irdan said Jordan said her business arted as a job in her home. “It was just a little part selling a few plants there out of my them to i raft," Nd reenhouse in our house and id. it grew into this,’’she Photo by P. CHEVRETTE "This” is a nursury of over ,000 plants. Jordan also is the president the Brazos Valley Orchid iety. The society sponsors ttures and workshops that lelp people learn more about pw to grow plants. [in addition, Jordan helps botany department at ■exas A&M study endan- aslwod! :red plant species. Kathy Jordan with a just few of her 10,000 plants ■rent needs! In gymi 7i side to it not falc back if hii! ed look if: Jordan said her interest in orchids and her business cause her to travel to orchid shows around the area. She said among the things judged at orchid shows are displays and the quality of in dividual plants. “It’s usually a good place to learn about and see a lot of kinds of orchids.’’Jordan said. One of the biggest orchid events Jordan has attended is the World Orchid Confer ence, held once every three years, when commercial or chid growers, individual growers and scientists from all over the world meet for about five days of seminars, lectures, shows and sales. The last conference was held in Miami, but the next one will be in Tokyo. Jordan said she plans to attend it, too. Drug halts young girls’ early puberty United Press International Young girls wing signs of puberty before leage of 8 are being treated by tors at a Houston hospital, he hair I the ^ HOUSTON spit d ii 3 of com» ere a drug administered in a nother" s P ra V h; aid Ion d the vy, misshai al spray has halted and re bed the embarrassing physi- ‘changes which occurred. Dr. John Kirkland, a pediat- m sports? ^ endocrinologist and asso- U ron jia'e professor at Baylor Col- 1 handball ^ of Medicine, said the fiont |), (suits since January on seven ici undeib N e g‘d s wHh precocious pu- jy j l)eriy have been remarkable. The girls being tested towed signs of puberty from lies" in«Jy° nn g as a y ear old - Their m looks as I 62515 began developing, some .he sol h gradual ies somel’ your I 5. living,?: notion is« it said, so shape col icck and ;ekbones ponytails^ , the tramp 1 indball m fi: t of the ooker sa ■ngth do ,o he givs ch is lays a more si n styling^ en hejoi 11 ' inkatiofl (gan menstrating before they gan kindergarten and other [owed signs of drastic person- ty changes. Kirkland said the condition :curs less frequently than iher childhood diseases. Most diatricians would not see Sore than a couple of children til their practice with the condi tion. I The research program, spon- : tpred by the National Institutes qf Health and the Texas Chil- en’s Hospital Research Cen- , has been testing nafarelin letate to treat precocious pu tty. The drug became avail- le a few weeks ago for clinical dies of early sexual changes, Ithough it had been used pre- usly for other purposes, such as treating men with prostate nicer. No tests are being done yet in Houston on boys with the con- lition, although Kirkland said Ians are to begin a program Jon. Nafarelin acetate, adminis tered daily in a nasal spray, stops the maturing process. The drug is chemically pro duced in the laboratory to re semble a natural hormone pro duced by the body. The natural hormone stimulates and regu lates the sex glands in normal doses, but in larger amounts — as in the quantities given nasally — it causes the glands to stop producing altogether. Kirkland said other drugs in the past had successfully halted and reversed breast growth, but none of the other compounds stopped the child’s bones from maturing and growing. The result of failing to halt bone development would be a child who is very tall for her age, but whose body would stop growing within a few years the way it would if she were a teen ager. Therefore, as an adult, she would be much shorter than other women. “These children also suffer psychological problems,” Kirk land said. “They are made fun of by their classmates. It is very hard to explain their problem to them.” Precocious puberty occurs with the premature release of a hormone in the brain, responsi ble for the sex organ changes. The hormonal release could be triggered by several childhood diseases, such as meningitis, en cephalitis or a concussion. But Kirkland said not all cases can be traced to the dis eases. In fact, in more than 90 percent of the cases involving females, the reason for the con dition is never known. “There are known causes in 50 percent of the cases of boys with precocious puberty, such as a disease of the adrenal gland or a tumor in the brain,” he said. Similar studies are being con ducted in Boston and San Fran cisco on children with the prob lem, but only Kirkland is utilizing the drug through a na sal spray administered daily. The other centers inject the drug. To date, no negative side ef fects have been noticed in the study, which is open to children nationwide suffering from the condition. United Press International DALLAS — For every driver who has BMW taste and a Chev rolet budget, there is a way. Mercantile National Bank of Dallas has put together a crea tive financing plan that allows the purchase of luxury cars for payments that are much less than conventional car loans. Under Mercantile’s Asset Master plan, a customer chooses a luxury car and makes a 20 percent down payment. He then makes regular installment payments — about half the amount of a conventional loan — at terms ranging between 24 and 48 months. At the end of the period the customer has three choices: • He can simply return the car to Mercantile. • He can keep the auto by making a large final payment, called a balloon payment. If he wants. Mercantile will refinance the car for the amount of the balloon payment. • He can sell the car himself. If the resale value of the car has held up he may recover enough for the balloon payment and the amount of a down payment for another brand new car pur chased under the Asset Master. Mercantile Vice President Beckie Ray said, “It’s a way for people to buy a car they proba bly would not be able to afford otherwise.” Ms. Ray used as an example the popular BMW 318i which lists for $ 16,430. A 20 percent down payment of $3,286 is made. Under a con ventional loan, the monthly payment for 36 months would be a hefty $453. Under the Asset Master sys tem, the payment would be $244, or about the payment for a mid-size Ford or Chevrolet on a conventional loan. After 35 months, the buyer has the op tions. He can turn the BMW over to Mercantile and the deal is over. He can make a balloon payment of $9,858 and keep the car. Or he can sell the car, pay Mercantile the $9,858 bal loon payment and hope to make enough on the deal for a down payment on another new car under the Asset Master plan. Mercantile National Bank is the lead bank of the Mercantile Texas Corp, with 31 member banks in most of the major cities of Texas. /"A • Tune-Ups • Garb Repairs • Starters • Alternators • Clutches • Brakes • General Auto Repairs v, • Complete Engine Repair • Machine Shop • Corvette Repairs of all Types JEFFS • Hi-Performance Parts & PERFORMANCE Accessories CENTER • All Work Fully Guaranteed 1801 Cavltt Bryan 775-8994 822-4934 imillM TONIGHT THURSDAY NIGHT OPEN BAR for LADIES 50C Bar Drinks for guys till 10:00pm 75£ Beer all night for more info call 693-2818 AUTO INSURANCE FOR AGGIES Call: George Webb Farmers Insurance Group ( 3400 S. College 823 8051 Move Yourself, All Your Stuff, And Save, Too! It’s as easy as renting a Ryder truck, one way. 10% Discount (with coupon) $25 (deposit) will hold the best truck money can rent. Set your reservation now Call: 779-5582 or: 775-5082 We’ll gladly quote you rates and answer your questions. Come see us. EVERY NIGHT IS SPECIAL AT HOFFBRAU Sunday Evening Chicken Fried Steak with French Fries and Dinner Roll Only 2 95 The Double Chicken Fried Steak Is Only 4 25 Tuesday All Day Seafood Day-Ail Day Long! Oystere On-The-Half-Shell Only 250 each Fried Oysters Fried Shrimp 3 95 dozen Boiled Shrimp 4 95 /*/2 lb 2 95 /Vi lb Monday Evening ^ One of Hoffbrau’s Ail-Time Favorites- The 8 oz Filet with Baked Potato and Dinner Roll Only 4 95 Wednesday Evening 1C Beer Night Enjoy up to 3 beers for only a penny each with any great Hoffbrau steak dinner. 2 for 1 On All Bar Drinks! Happy Hour Mon-Sat 11-7 & 9 to dose Enjoy Our New Oyster Bar! 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