Iron

At her home in Afghanistan, Wasima Naseer could not have stepped outside after dark without a man by her side. Naseer, who is studying economics and international studies at Wilson College, a women's college in Chambersburg, Pa., said she was "scared" the first time she walked alone after dark nearly a year ago in Oregon. Naseer, 22, said that now, running errands and stepping outside by herself has become "normal. " It has been more than 80 years since women in the United States won the right to vote and it has been about five years since women in Afghanistan broke with some of the country's male-dominated traditions.

gregs@herald-mail.com THURMONT, Md. - Mark Spurrier, a naturalist and storyteller at Cunningham Falls State Park, puckered his face and blew. "Crprhshhhhhhhhhh! That's what it sounded like all the time," Spurrier said Saturday afternoon standing outside the remains of the "Isabella" furnace, a few steps off U.S. 15 north of Frederick, Md. If you were unlucky enough to be one of the hundreds of workers - either slaves or poor immigrants - at the Catoctin Furnace Iron Works, Spurrier said, probably the only thing you would hear with any regularity was the rush of hot air produced from hundreds of pounds of coal melting iron ore. The ore, once refined, was shipped up and down the East Coast from 1774 to 1903.

The Bridge of Life Iron Men's Breakfast will be from 8:15 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, at Bridge Of Life, in downtown Hagerstown. Enter at 6 S. Potomac St. Fellowship begins at 8:15 a.m., followed by a breakfast. A meeting will be held at 10:30 a.m. Donnie Barnhart will testify. For ages 18 and older. The event is free. RSVP by Wednesday, Jan. 18. Send an e-mail to Dan Poyner with "count me in" in the subject line and in the body of the e-mail message at dan.poyner@bridgeoflife.org or call 301-791-1674 and leave a message.

SHARPSBURG -- The Antietam Iron Works Bridge on Harpers Ferry Road, over Antietam Creek south of Sharpsburg, is expected to be closed into December as work has started to rebuild the bridge, a county official said Thursday. Work began June 14, said Rob Slocum, Washington County's deputy director of public works. The project is similar to the work done at the Funkstown bridge in 2008. It includes removing and rebuilding the roadway on the bridge, rebuilding portions of the bridge's walls with the existing stone and new mortar, putting new concrete caps over the walls, and some roadwork near the bridge, Slocum said.

o View Ag Expo photos for purchase! There were no celebrity judges on hand nor river eel on the list of ingredients, but the inaugural Iron Chef competition at the Washington County Ag Expo & Fair drew a crowd, perhaps drawn by the aromas wafting from the grills of the five teams. Chef X, a team composed of two ex-chefs and their wives, scored a perfect 100 points to take home the first-place trophy and the grill upon which they produced their winning appetizer, entree and dessert.

Only two teams showed up for the first Iron Chef Burger competition Sunday at the Washington County Ag Expo & Fair Sunday. But it didn't matter. The two burgers up for judging were so fat, so stuffed with cheese and so mouthwatering that the judges were having a tough time determining a winner. But after some scoring on qualities including taste, texture, aroma and creativity, four judges were able to award the first-place prize to Laurie and Jay Waltz of Chewsville for their pizza burger.

Feeling sleepy, grumpy, have a headache or no energy? It could be you just need time to recover from a busy, hectic schedule. But if your fatigue just won't go away, you might have iron-deficiency anemia. [cont. from lifestyle ] Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen in the bloodstream. Low iron means blood can't deliver as much oxygen to body tissues. When too little oxygen gets to your brain and other parts of your body, you may feel tired or irritable and have difficulty concentrating.

Iron is an important nutrient for athletes Whether pumping iron, training for the Iron Man Marathon or just trying to stay fit, iron is one nutrient that needs to be in balance for peak performance. Iron-deficiency anemia is relatively common among teenage girls and women. It's even more common among female athletes, especially runners and ballet dancers. When women with marginal iron stores stop menstruating as their bodies attempt to conserve iron, they may be setting themselves up for the early onset of osteoporosis.

Scrap iron man collects metal in Waynesboro By RICHARD F. BELISLE / Staff Writer, Waynesboro photo: RICHARD T. MEAGHER / staff photographer WAYNESBORO, Pa. - Charlie Reynolds remembers when scrap iron paid top dollar. Reynolds, 47, of Waynesboro, makes his living driving around Franklin County, Pa., and parts of Washington county collecting scrap iron and other metals in his 32-year-old, beat-up Ford pickup. continued He hauls the material to recyclers in the area.

SAINT JAMES -- New Saint James football coach Chris Milmoe has tabbed "Ironmen" as the theme to the upcoming season as many of the Saints players are being counted on for two-way play. The main ironman on campus this year will be senior Mike Russ, who returns at quarterback and will find himself in a new defensive position that he is relishing. The 6-foot, 210-pound senior will be the focus of the Saints offense as they run the spread attack under Milmoe. Russ will move from linebacker to free safety and he is ready to knock heads with the opposition.