Q, What has happened to the Harrison Jumbo steam engine purchased from the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich., several years ago by the Belleville Labor and Industry Museum? I have heard that this engine was severely damaged when it was dropped off a high trailer and the boiler was cracked.
Q. Since you're so good at coming up with old movies, try this one from my dad: He remembers a John Wayne movie in which three men in the desert wind up adopting a baby. How about it, smart guy?
Q. I have been searching for Post Alpha-Bits and have not been able to find them anywhere. Still, the Post Web site says they are available. What's the deal?
Anyone facing chemotherapy would undoubtedly welcome a treatment advance that would dramatically reduce his dose of these harsh, toxic drugs. Now, using nanotechnology, researchers at Washington University think they have taken a stop closer to that goal.
Q. My dad worked at Illinois Power Co. for more than 40 years and always wore OshKosh work pants. He is now retired but still loves his OshKosh. The problem is they are all wearing out and I have tried to find them for several years now with no luck. It would make my dad extremely happy to put on a new pair of these pants.
Q. When your paper listed the area's worst earthquakes on April 19, you left out one in November 1939. I suppose it was too small to list, but can you tell me what was the size of it? I was a child in East St. Louis and my husband was in church in Prairie du Rocher, but we remember it.
Q. In an answer two years ago (which I saved), you made passing reference to an actress named Rosalind (Culli) Keith from the Belleville-Mascoutah area. One summer when I was small (8 or 10), she and her mother and another lady came to visit our family. I remember my mother saying she was a movie star.
Q. Recently, I was doing a Wonderword puzzle about the Winchester House in San Jose, Calif. The introduction said the house has 52 skylights, 47 fireplaces, 40 staircases, 467 doorways and 13 bathrooms. After finding all the clues, I was left with the phrase "Number of windows." But it doesn't say how many windows there are. Do you know?
Q. I have a musical snow globe, which is very special to me. However, the liquid in the globe has turned murky. What can I do to correct this or am I just stuck with it?
Q. How do the St. Louis Cardinals decide when to let the American bald eagle fly over Busch Stadium and when will it fly again this season?
Q. Please settle a disagreement. For years, the Columbia Pictures emblem has been a woman holding a torch in her upraised right arm. My boyfriend says the most recent model for this woman is actress Annette Bening. I disagree. Your final word would be greatly appreciated.
Q. A friend and I have a little argument going, so please help us. Is rayon a man-made fabric or is it a natural fabric?
Q. I have tickets to fly to San Francisco for vacation this summer, and I'm already worried about this Real ID law that's supposed to go into effect in May. People are telling me that Illinois is protesting the law, which means I can expect major headaches getting through airport security. Is this true? Is there anything I can do to speed the process?
Q. You may not believe this one. On July 1, 1956, my new wife and I were honeymooning at Niagara Falls. It was a Sunday night and we were watching the Alfred Hitchcock show on TV. Unfortunately, the power went out halfway through, and I missed the rest of the show. It has sort of bothered me ever since.
Q. What's the deal with WIL-AM 1430? I just loved the old country music they used to play, but suddenly it has become another moldy oldies rock station with call letters I don't even recognize. What happened, and where can I find my Conway Twitty, Merle Haggard, Bellamy Brothers, et al., again?
Q. During the recent remodeling of the Denny's restaurant in Belleville, the decor was changed to include copies of old Belleville photos. All are marked as being courtesy of the Abraham Lincoln Museum. One features a ballroom with an amazing inlaid floor. I believe it is identified as the Morrison house with "the famous floor." Where was this house and how can I contact the Lincoln Museum to purchase copies of these photos?
Q. Can you tell me what information you have to give in order to get a credit report? Do you have to tell them your Social Security number? Then, if you get a credit report on someone, does it include their Socialy Security number?
Q. Near Germantown someone is building a fort. My husband and I drove by it several weeks back. More work has been done and now there are cannons. Do you know if there is a history behind this? Or is this just someone's hobby?
Q. What does "Creve Coeur" mean? There are communities in both Illinois and Missouri with this name. Is there a story behind either one?
Q. Can you please explain why Catholics can eat fish when they are asked to abstain from meat? Isn't fish "meat," too?
