I've been enjoying reading your articles for a while now. I am wondering if you can recommend some good resources to someone who wants more information on drug or alcohol use.

Curious

Dear Curious:

Since you obviously have access to the Internet, there are several Internet sites I can recommend. First, if you are interested in learning more about what resources are available in Pine River-Backus or what programming you could bring to your area, let me put in a shameless plug for our Web site at prbatod.org.

If you're curious about learning more regarding the surgeon general's call to action on alcohol, www.stopalcoholabuse.gov is a good site.

We have used the Youth Leadership Institute to do many of our trainings. Their site is www.yli.org.

Probably my best recommendation for parents to learn about alcohol and drugs, their effects, etc. is www.theantidrug.com. It is an excellent Web site. You should find just about everything you need right there.

The SAMHSA site at www.samhsa.gov is also a good one, but it's geared more for professionals.

Your local school, county and law enforcement center most likely have Web sites, and probably your local church or family center.

Besides the Internet, I would recommend speaking to those professionals whose opinions you respect, such as a school counselor, clergy, therapist, or even your friendly ATOD guy (hint, hint).

Just like looking for resources to fix your car, there are many places to look and people to talk to; just be careful about the information you get. It's usually best to check a few sources to be sure the information is accurate.

Now, do you know anything about a clunk, clunk sound coming from the back of a Honda Civic? No, really, I'm serious.

Please e-mail your question or comment to prbatod@hotmail.com or call me at 587-4292.

Collin Frazier is Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs (ATOD) coordinator for Pine River-Backus. View Web site prbatod.org.