The Fifth Annual Pasta Dinner, which is being hosted by the Mineola Junior Fire Department, will be held on Sunday, Feb. 4, from noon to 5 p.m. at the Village Community Center, 155 Washington Avenue.

All are invited to come and enjoy a meal of pasta, meatballs, salad, beverages and dessert. There will also be raffles and prizes. The donation is $8 for adults and $5 for seniors and children under the age of 10.

Tickets are available at the door, or please call Gary Mazur or Rob Connolly at the Chief's Office at 747-5860 for advance tickets.

Adolescence is a transitional time not only for teens, but also for families. That's why it's important for parents and sons to learn to navigate the turbulent teens together. In a unique program sponsored by Winthrop-University Hospital's Parenting Today educational series, parents and sons are invited to attend a free lecture, "Surviving Adolescence Together...Parents & Sons: Keeping the Mind and Body Healthy." On Thursday, Feb. 8. It will be held at the Winthrop Community Outreach Center, located at 101 Mineola Boulevard in Mineola, at the corner of Second Street. The program will begin with registration at 6:30 p.m., followed by the lecture at 7 p.m.

Ronald Marino, DO, associate chairman, Department of Pediatrics, and director of General Pediatrics at Winthrop, will discuss the normal and abnormal aspects of adolescence and family development. The parent's role during this transitional time will be discussed, as well as the choices young men face, and the impact on their health and well-being.

The Parenting Today program is coordinated by Children's Health Services and the Department of Pediatrics at Winthrop, part of the Institute for Family Care. Admission is free, but seating is limited. Pre-registration is required. Please call 1-877-559-KIDS to reserve your place.

Tax Breaks for Energy Conservation, Price Relief, Heat Aid for Poor

Senator Michael Balboni recently unveiled a plan to slash energy taxes statewide by nearly a half-billion dollars in an effort to lower energy costs for homeowners and businesses.

Balboni's plan is designed to provide relief from rising fuel bills and provide energy conservation incentives, including a first-ever exemption from state and local sales taxes on energy-saving products like new furnaces, boilers, insulation and windows. The plan also encourages the use of alternative-energy systems that use the sun or new technology such as fuel cells to reduce heating bills long term.

Additionally, the plan would eliminate the energy Gross Receipts Tax for homeowners, thus lower heating costs, and provide $100 million in new tax credits to help low-income New Yorkers pay for heat this winter.

"As the temperature dips, more and more New Yorkers are feeling the sting of rising energy costs," said Balboni. "This plan will help lower fuel bills in the short term, and help make New York more energy efficient in the future."

To address the state's critical need for additional energy supply brought on by increasing consumer and business energy demand, Balboni said that the Senate soon plans to unveil new initiatives which would accelerate the state's power plant sitting rules and offer additional incentives to increase energy supply.

Senator Balboni's energy savings tax cut plan includes:

* Sales tax exemption for energy efficiency ($125 million): exempts from state and local sales tax all products designed to improve the energy efficiency of existing homes, apartments and commercial and manufacturing businesses, including furnaces, boilers, insulation, weather-stripping, new thermostats and alternative energy systems like solar heat and fuel cells. This tax break typically will reduce the cost of these improvements by 8 percent, and includes a state reimbursement to local governments for their lost revenue;

* Repeal of residential Gross Receipts Tax ($250 million): Senator Balboni fought last year for repeal of the GRT energy tax for businesses and a partial reduction for homeowners. This proposal would include residential customers in the complete phase-out by 2005 saving taxpayers $250 million statewide;

* Home Energy Assistance Tax (HEAT) Credit ($100 million): Balboni proposes to use surplus government assistance funds available through TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) to help low-income New Yorkers pay their heating bills. The credit would be available through low-income New Yorkers income tax returns and equal 25 percent of a family's state Earned Income Tax Credit, or $220 for an eligible family of four;

* Eliminate the Petroleum Business Tax on commercial heating fuels ($10 million): the state budget began in 1995 to lower the PBT on commercial heating fuel, used in apartment buildings and commercial properties and usually passed on to consumers in the form of higher business costs. Balboni proposes to eliminate the tax, currently 5 cents per gallon, completely.

To address the state's critical need for additional energy supply brought on by increasing consumer and business energy demand, Balboni said that the Senate soon plans to unveil new initiatives which would accelerate the state's power plant sitting rules and offer additional incentives to increase energy supply.

"Soaring fuel prices threaten to raise the cost of home heating by 30 to 50 percent making it tougher for New York families to stay warm," said Balboni. "This plan is a sensible way to help all New Yorkers make ends meet."

Your children or grandchildren can have fun at ChildFun.com (www.childfun.com). This week the website has the following for the younger folks to enjoy:

Featured Activities: Snow, Transportation, Homemade Craft Recipes, Medieval, Numbers, Ocean, Planets and Space, Groundhog Day, Valentine's Day, President's Day, Boxes.

Visit Our Valentine Center: Coloring pages, tons of craft ideas, recipes, songs, party fun and more!

New Coloring Pages: We've added more New Year's Day, Winter, Little Bear, Looney Toons, the Little Mermaid, Scooby Doo and DIGIMON!

Valentine Coloring Pages: Printables to have fun with on a cold day!

Free Valentine's E-cards: Tell someone right now how much you love them!

Yoga, the ancient art of healing meditation and gentle stretching, will be presented during a free Women's Health Forum at Winthrop-University Hospital on Wednesday, Feb. 7. The program will be held in two separate sessions. "Yoga" will be presented at 7 p.m., with registration at 6:30 p.m. A special session of "Modified Yoga," for individuals who have limited flexibility, will be presented at 5:30 p.m., with registration at 5:15. Both sessions will be held at Winthrop's Community Outreach Center, located at 101 Mineola Boulevard in Mineola, at the corner of Second Street.

Edith Jason, certified Yoga instructor, will teach participants how to manage stress through guided healing meditation and gentle stretching. She will demonstrate ways to improve flexibility, strength, energy and general well-being, while achieving a state of complete relaxation. Participants with average flexibility would benefit from the 7 p.m. session; those who are pregnant or who have a chronic illness would benefit from the 5:30 p.m. session. Comfortable clothing and a mat or towel are recommended for participation.

The Women's Health Forum is coordinated by Women's Health Services, part of Winthrop's Institute for Family Care. Admission is free, but seating is limited. Pre-registration is required. Please call 1-888-53-WOMEN to reserve your place.

For those that will be taking "The College Boards" or the PSAT, there is a website, www.collegeboard.org, which will assist in preparing for these exams.

You will be able to "... link to real test questions and real answers." This section allows you to pick a practice question for verbal, math and writing skills sections of this test.

Another area that will be helpful is that of "Skill Builders." "Improve your skills, get extra practice with questions - types, and become more comfortable with how to answer questions correctly." Check out these interactive tutorials:

Analogies Step-by-Step: Get the key to understanding the relationship between sets of words.

Fill in the Blanks about Grid-Ins: Learn how to avoid common gridding mistakes that could cost you points.

Master Quantitative Comparisons: Build your confidence with this often-intimidating type of question.