HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1972-11-29, Page 2E 1114014
Vag
russeb Post
Sugar and Spice
" by Bill Smiley
Squirrels in the attic and a cat at the
door. Winter is on its way.
Yep, the squirrels, after about five
years of exile,, have managed to chew
their way back into the attic, and are
happily holding their regular family
quarrels, wakes, weddings, bowling games
and foot-races right overhead.
There probably aren't more than three
or four hundred of them, to judge from
the commotion.
And I'm helpless. Once they get in,
you might as well wait until spring, when
they emerge and you can whack up some
tin patches over their entries.
I like to have black squirrels around
the place, but not in the place. They're
cute and picturesque hopping about on the
lawn, picking up acorns in their dainty
mitts and swivelling their little bright,
beady eyes about as they chew.
But when you can't see them, and all
you can do is hear, they're not so cute.
The only picture of them I have in winter
is of a couple of young buck squirrels
gnawing away on the insulation covering
my wiring, and chatting:
"Hey, Jack, this is better than that
hole in the oak we lived in last winter.
Right?"
"Right, George. It was kinds crowded
with the eighty-four of us. And no central
heating except our own. And down to an
acorn a day by February. This is great.
Lot's of room for jugging to keep in shape.
Lots of heat. And - mmmmmm- I love
that electrician's tape."
They remind me of a rat who took
over nocturnally in our room in prison
camp barracks in the winter of '44-45.
One single, lousy rat had eighteen
grown men in a state of nightly alarms
and excursions.
At first, he'd wake somebody up with
his gnawing. It was a cross between
the sound of a chain saw and that of a
snowmobile.
It was a welcome diversion, in the
beginning. Sort of company, as though
somebody cared. We named him packy
and talked about him rather fondly. For
a while.
But then the nerves started to wear
thin. There's something nerve-wracking
about a huge rat chomping away right in
Your ear as it seemed.
It got' to the point where nobody could
go to sleep. We'd lie there, nerves
Strumming, waiting for Packy's evening
performance' to begln, each of us clut-
Ching a weapon, a boot or a bed-board.
The little devil seemed to know thathe
had us right where he wanted us. One
night he'd start right after lights-mit, and
suddenly stop, just When we thought we'd
located him.
Next night, he'd lie there chuckling -
and we'd have sworn we could hear the
chuckle - keeping us in suspense until
it was almost unbearable. Then he'd
give a couple of zrooms. And stop.
In a few minutes he'd start again,
gnawing steadily an d contemptuously. At
last, somebody's nerves would break,
there'd be the flare of a match and eighteen
of us would leap out of our bunks, flail-
ing at the spot we were sure he was in.
He never was and it's a wonder
somebody wasn't killed in the confusion.
Because we all had a different spot.
Well, that's enough about squirrels and
rats. But I know exactly why people use
the term "squirrelly" as a synonym for
being a bit mental.
The other manifestation of winter hor-
rors I mentioned was our cat. In summer,
she's lean and tawny, a tigress prowling
her domain, stalking bumblebees and
butterflies and birds. And she's outside,
day and night. A lovely cat.
As soon as the first wind comes out
of the north, she turns into Mr. Hyde. She
hangs on the screen door, howling pitiably.
She has ruined three screen doors.
Does she want love, affection, admir-
ation? No. She wants in. And once in,
she wants grub. I have never kicked
an animal, but when that pig of a cat
lurches in like a hyena scenting a fresh
kill and starts rubbing against my legs
when I'm trying to rattle up some break-
fast for myself, there's a grave temptation
to turf her right into the kitchen sink.
She's an unlovely cat. Fat and demanding,
like some wives. And she thillks I'm
her husband.
Apparently my un-love affair with
cats has been mentioned before, because
I have here a letter to the Listowel
Banner from Rita Dodkin, 11. I'll quote
parts.
“Cats are very useful in many dif-
ferent ways than 'putting them on a
calendar'. They provide lots of company
for old and lonely people who' cannot have
dogs because they can't give. them the
right' exercise. They pamper and pet
their cats because they enjoy it."
think this is far from turning
them into 'bloated, contemptuous para-
sites' as Mr. Smiley said. They look
so sweet when they sleep on your best
chair. When they rub your legs I think
they are trying to show love. Our cats
always tried to show love. I used to
have one but now I'm getting one next
spring."
Rita, you might get one long before
next spring.
101WW41-1;
°IMMO
WE6NEEDAY, NOVEMBER 29c 1972
Serving Brussels and the surrounding community
published each Wednesday afternoon at Brussels, Ontarie
by McLean Bros., Publishers,, Limited.
'Evelyn, Kennedy - Editor Tom Haley - Advertising ,;
Member Canadian Coeirnunity Newspaper Association and
Ontario Weekly Newspaper AssocAnon.
Subscriptions (in advance) Canada $4.00 a year, Others
$5.00 a year, Single CopieS 10 cents each.
Second class mail Registration No, 0562.
Telephone 887-6641.
If milk why not pork 1)
The writer's medical knowledge
of the beneficial health possibili-
ties incurred through consumption of
milk is limited to the fact that
numerous acquaintances resort to
frequent use of the milk jug when
an 'ulcer uproar" takes control in
their stomach. The lactic coating,
these people claim, calms the
savagery in the belt region of their
anatomy.
The "great milk debate" now raging
with regard to either free or subsi-
dized milk for Perth County elemen-
tary school children, and the num-
erous claims and counter-claims re-
gard4ng,the beneficial use of milk
are completely beyond our medical
terms of reference. It does appear,
however, that benefits obtained
through consumption of milk should
not necessarily be at the expense
of the tax-payers.
The' great advantage to the milk
producers, other than the obvious
upsurge of milk intake, is the fact
that milk drinking can best be ,in-
grained in personal habits by a
regular diet of the liquid. If the
child is not required to drink milk
at home (and thus become accustomed
to it as a regular beverage) he or
she could well acquire the habit, at
school. The advertising benefits
of such a scheme must be very ap-
parent to all.
With this in mind, it would appeEr
that any subsidization of milk in
the school should be carried out at'
the expense of those who stand to
gain, namely the milk-producers.
Otherwise, in all fairness, why
should the students not get free
pork sandwiches to aid the pork
producers, free eggs to aid the egg
producer, and so on ad infinitum?
The past federal election proved
rather conclusively that a great
majority of the tax-payers have "had
it" insofar as "free" is concerned.
(St. Marys Journal-Argus)
To the editor:
Authority budgets for park
Sir:
In 19'71 the Village acquired
an option on the properties con-
sisting of the Mill, Mill
pond, Dam, and all the flooding
properties from Mr. Alvin Logan.
After numerous negotiations
between Village Officials and our
representative en the Authority,
the Maitland Conservation agreed
to accept the option and purchase
the properties at absolutely no
cost to the Village.
Normally these properties
are donated by the Municipality
to' the Conservation Authority
for the maintenance and recon-
struction thereafter. Costs in
excess of $14,000.00 ha.ve been
spent to date including pUrchase
price, appraising and extensive
:surveying for all the flooded
rights up stream.
When the government was
approached to subsidize the ptir ,
Chase of this area the agree-
...ent made was that no major
renovations would be carried Out
for at, least 5 yeart.
Regular maintenance will be
performed 'as needed to keep
building and dam intact Until
reconstruction commences.
Moneys have been allocated
in the Maitland Authority budget
fOt 1973 for developing the
Riverside area for park and
picnic sites
This it a big start to beautify
and preterVe our waterways
Within Bitstelt,
J. McCutcheon