Missouri

Jerry Nelson: Missouri Meanderings

Published

2 years ago

April 24, 2024

Jerry Nelson
| Special to the Farm Forum

Missouri is the Show Me State, so when my wife and I recently visited Kansas City we decided to see what Missouri had to show us.

We pointed our car at Springfield, the third most populous city in Missouri. Upon arriving at our hotel, we were told that our room wouldn’t be ready for several hours. All I can say about this is that my wife is the type of person who believes that if you aren’t early, you’re late.

We asked the clerk if there was anything that one could do in Springfield for a few hours, and she immediately recommended a visit to the Bass Pro Shops.

This sounded as good as anything, so we decided to give it a whirl. The Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World Ultimate Fishing Boat Outlet And Super-duper Hunting Gear Emporium occupies about 80 acres. Some of that is parking lot, but a good share of it is a ginormous building.

Walking into the store, my nose was instantly drawn to a particular aroma. They had a coffee shop! It had been at least ten minutes since my last jolt of java, so my wife and I purchased some hot liquid refreshments, sat on a bench and people watched.

We spotted several Exhausted Toddler Parent roadrunners and some prime examples of Fanatic Angler kingfishers. There was also a good number of Please Honey, I Really Need This Boat warblers.

The establishment proved to be as much of a museum as a retail outlet. I viewed numerous epically large game animals that had been stuffed and mounted and placed in epic poses. This included the mythical 30-point buck that was romanticized in the classic hunting tune “Da Turdy Point Buck” by the talented ensemble Bananas At Large.

We walked past a concrete enclosure that contained a small pond and what was, allegedly, a live alligator. I say “allegedly” because the creature didn’t move at all during the several minutes that we observed it. Perhaps dealing with all those allegations had worn out the alligator.

An escalator lofted visitors up to the entrance of an aquarium that boasted penguins as its main attraction. Admission was $42 per head which, with taxes and penguin perusing surcharges, would put a big hole in a Benjamin Franklin. We decided that penguins are cute, but not $100 worth of cute.

The next day we motored southeastward toward Poplar Bluff. The Ozarks rolled past our windows, wooded hills punctuated by small towns and an occasional farmstead. The landscape would sometimes open up to reveal an idyllic emerald valley where cows grazed peacefully in their leisurely, cow-like manner. It looked like heaven on toast.

I’m a farm boy from the prairie, so I couldn’t help but wonder why the flatlands weren’t being farmed. The answer could be seen in the roadcuts, which revealed limestone bedrock covered with a thin veneer of grayish topsoil. A guy would bust his plow if he tried to plow it.

Speaking of mythical creatures, we saw several bumper stickers that featured a bigfoot silhouette. I wasn’t sure what the message might be. Was the car’s owner proud of his family’s sasquatch? Or was he an Uber driver who was open to giving rides to bigfoots?

There is certainly plenty of forest where bigfoot could hide. I personally don’t believe in sasquatches, but then again, I have never been subjected to the eerie hoots and yawps that allegedly arise from midnight Missouri woodlands.

I notched a personal “first” during our drive when I espied a deceased armadillo at the roadside. Sadly, my wife wouldn’t let me stop and claim this trophy.

After viewing the solar eclipse at Poplar Bluff – one of the most memorable parts was seeing hundreds of miniature crescent suns projected onto the ground beneath the trees – we decided to head back to Kansas City. We didn’t realize until too late that approximately a million other motorists had the same idea.

We live in a low-population area. Our version of a traffic jam is when there are two cars ahead of us at a stop sign.

After weaving our way out of town, we hit the open road. Things went swimmingly for a few miles, but then traffic ground to a halt. Probably just some minor snag up ahead. Wrong!

The view out our windshield revealed a river of vehicles that stretched as far as the eye could see. This was a “first” that I would rather have missed.

As we crept along – sometimes attaining a heady 15 MPH – I closely watched the roadside for my armadillo.

Alas, he was nowhere to be seen. Maybe a bigfoot beat me to it.

If you’d like to contact Jerry Nelson to do some public speaking, or just to register your comments, you can email him at jjpcnels@itctel.com. His book, “Dear County Agent Guy,” is available at Workman.com and at booksellers everywhere.

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Missouri

Kehoe signs eight bills into Missouri law, including downtown development legislation

Published

2 hours ago

July 13, 2026

Press Room

Kehoe signs eight bills into Missouri law, including downtown development legislation

St. Louis could see major downtown renovation in the coming years helped by legislation signed into Missouri law by Gov. Mike Kehoe on Monday.

Kehoe signed a large economic development bill that includes incentivizing the conversion of vacant or underused properties into new housing.

For St. Louis, that could mean changes to the AT&T tower and Railway Exchange building.

Through the legislation, cities could apply for an area to become a Missouri innovation zone and be able to use incentives distributed by the state Department of Economic Development.

Cities must include proposed district boundaries, identify vacant and underutilized properties as well as provide projections of anticipated housing and employment growth in their application. Cities may only establish one of those districts.

Additionally, the legislation allows for up to $50 million annually in tax credits toward the conversion of buildings into residential spaces.

Sen. Steve Roberts, D-St. Louis, said the legislation will ultimately lead to more people living in downtown St. Louis.

“The passage of House Bill 3231 was critical in our efforts to continue revitalizing Missouri’s main streets, central business districts, and downtowns,” Kehoe said in a statement.

The governor signed seven other bills into law Monday, including a wide-reaching health care bill that contains several policies related to reproductive health.

The nearly 200-page bill allows for Missourians on private insurance to obtain 12 months’ worth of birth control pills at once.

It also expands Medicaid coverage to doula services. It would apply to more care before, during and after a pregnancy. The state health department must also create and operate a registry of available doula services.

Additionally, the bill requires insurance companies to cover blood pressure monitors for pregnant and postpartum mothers.

The bill also requires Missouri to track and report cases of Lyme disease and alpha-gal syndrome. Alpha-gal is a tick-borne disease that creates an allergy to mammalian products like meat.

Any identifiable information on the blood test could only be shared between patient and physician.

The legislation also:

Allows patients to begin their care through telemedicine, as opposed to a physical examination whenever possible.
Permits the sale of ivermectin, a drug that’s grown in popularity since the COVID-19 pandemic, over the counter. It also expands the types of vaccines pharmacists can administer.
Prevents insurance companies from capping payment for anesthesia by imposing time limits.
Permits schools and daycares to provide epinephrine either via injection or orally to treat allergic reactions.

Additionally, Kehoe signed a bill that provides rights to “a child born alive during or after an abortion or attempted abortion.”

The legislation is called the Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. Anyone who would kill or attempt to kill a fetus born alive after an abortion attempt could be prosecuted for first-degree murder under the bill.

Those against the bill say the focus on abortion causes consequences regarding maternal care in Missouri.

Fetal viability, or the point when a fetus would be able to survive outside the womb, is generally around 24 weeks of pregnancy.

According to KFF health research, abortions at or after 21 weeks of pregnancy are uncommon, representing 1% of all abortions in the country.

Kehoe said in a statement that he was proud to sign bills that will improve health care services across the state.

“I would like to thank the members of the House and Senate for their work to protect our most vulnerable, hold insurance companies accountable, and change the landscape of healthcare access and outcomes in communities across the state,” Kehoe said.

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Missouri

Missouri Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 winning numbers for July 12, 2026

Published

14 hours ago

July 13, 2026

Press Room

The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at July 12, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Pick 3 numbers from July 12 drawing

Midday: 7-1-3

Midday Wild: 0

Evening: 9-6-1

Evening Wild: 3

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from July 12 drawing

Midday: 0-9-0-9

Midday Wild: 8

Evening: 2-9-7-1

Evening Wild: 4

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from July 12 drawing

Early Bird: 05

Morning: 04

Matinee: 05

Prime Time: 04

Night Owl: 09

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from July 12 drawing

05-16-21-27-39

Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All Missouri Lottery retailers can redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners have the option to submit their claim by mail or in person at one of Missouri Lottery’s regional offices, by appointment only.

To claim by mail, complete a Missouri Lottery winner claim form, sign your winning ticket, and include a copy of your government-issued photo ID along with a completed IRS Form W-9. Ensure your name, address, telephone number and signature are on the back of your ticket. Claims should be mailed to:

Ticket Redemption

Missouri Lottery

P.O. Box 7777

Jefferson City, MO 65102-7777

For in-person claims, visit the Missouri Lottery Headquarters in Jefferson City or one of the regional offices in Kansas City, Springfield or St. Louis. Be sure to call ahead to verify hours and check if an appointment is required.

For additional instructions or to download the claim form, visit the Missouri Lottery prize claim page.

When are the Missouri Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Pick 4: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Cash4Life: 8 p.m. daily.
Cash Pop: 8 a.m. (Early Bird), 11 a.m. (Late Morning), 3 p.m. (Matinee), 7 p.m. (Prime Time) and 11 p.m. (Night Owl) daily.
Show Me Cash: 8:59 p.m. daily.
Lotto: 8:59 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday.
Powerball Double Play: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Missouri editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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