HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1976-01-21, Page 4Sugar and Spice
by Bill Smiley
What's a curmudgeon?
Recently, I listed some of the things I
dislike about our society. When I'd
finished, I thought to myself: "Boy, you
are a nasty old piece of work. Do you
realize you've barely scratched the
surface?"
For a week or two, I went around
thinking, in 10 or 20 second spurts, every
three or four days, that I was a
Curmudgeon-.
Some of my younger readers will not
know what a curmudgebn is. Well, it comes •
from the root word "mud."
We all know what mud is. It is dirty. It is
cool under the toes, unless it is in the form
of a mud pack, which is good fo,r the
wrinkles. If you name is Mudd, you are
either in the doghouse, or you are a loser. I
hope that is clear.
To the root word "mud" (unless we want
to root around in the mud a bit longer), we
attach the prefix "cur."
A cur, as everyone knows, is a cad with
teeth, and sometimes a moustache, who
plays the villain in old-fashioned melo-
dramas.
• •In 'a new-fashioned melodrama, he also
' has teeth and a big belly or a bald head,
and he has become the hero. •
Still with me? We now have "curmud",
signifying a mean guy who is cool under
the toes, has wrinkles, or is a loser.
Sometimes all three.
Now we come to the'suffix, "geon, which
is of more obscure vintage. •
It is of Hungarian antecedent, and it
seems to have meant, originally,
something we might call colloquially "a
dummy who makes a lot of silly and
unnecessary noise without - getting,
anywhere", which is rather a contradition
in terms, come to think of it.
There are many perversions of the
original, of course. We find the suffii in
such words as "Injun","engine," and
"john".
But the original meaning is in there
somewhere. An Injun, for example, is one
of the original "In" people, who rides
around . in ever-diminishing circles,
emitting war-whoops, until he is shot off
his horse.
Think of your car. The engine makes a
lot of silly and unnecessary noise — at least
mine does — and gets nowhere.
Occasionally the car gets somewhere, but
the engine remains exactly where it started
... in the car.
And, of course, there is the colloquial
word "john", meaning toilet, Or ,water
closet or backhouse; if toilet offends you.
This item of hardware indulges in a great
deal of unnecessary noise, whether
receiving or transmitting, and is usually -
going nowhere, except on trains, buses or
airplanes, when it is so active it has to put
up a "bUsy" sign most of the time.
On ships, of course, with their innate
sense of superiority, the."john" is called a
"head". •
This came about when one of the head
men in the British Navy, Admiral Sir
Dudley Pound, .affectionately known to his
jolly tars as "dud", once went looking for-
the "john" and discovered a lot •of -
Common Seamen (and, a very common lot
they were) lined up with one of the
symptoms of scurvy known as "dire rear."
In the interests of clarity, this has nothing
to do With the term "rear admiral".
Understandably, Sir Dud flew into a high
rage, the' only type allowed to senior
officers, and uttered a good deal of silly .
and unnecessary noise, or "geon", *when -
he had to wait his turn for the "john".
As naval tradition has it, this led to the
wedding of "dud" and "gebn", meaning a
john that isn't -working, or a senior officer
with a red face, or a towering rage,
whichever you choose.'
That's one of the beauties of the English
language. You can take Our pick. And you -
know what you can do with it.
If you have followed me carefully
through thiS brief but -enlightening
exploration into sematics, I am sure you
have come to the conchision,las I have, that
I am not a Curmudgeon at all.
I am not a mean guy. I, haven't hit a little
kid since mine grew up.
I arn not cool under the toes. My 'feet
heat something terrible in this weather.
I am not a loser. How can you know
you're a loser when you don't know what it
is to be a winner?
I do not go around making Silly' and
unnecessary noises, except when it is
absolutely necessary.
And finally, I that I am definitely
getting somewhere.
1
CATCH
nTHE DATSUN
!?..1
DATSUN e;•I
itIGerald's Datsun Ltclk,
Lzi
SALES SERVICE 0
LEASING
Ii::::: OPEN 8 A.M. - 9 P.M. :
Ph. 527-1010
SEAFORTH
WEEKLY SALE
BRUSSELS. STOCKYARDS. LTD,.
EVERY FRIDAY
At 12- Noon,
Phone-' 881•646.1 Er. ttiiige [tit.
Huron B of E ,donates
$800 to 'trumpet •••band
Brussels Stockyard Report
The market at Brussels Stock-
yards Friday traded steady to the
previous week with steers under
pressure and an active demand on
heifers. Both cows and pigs sold
at strong prices.
Choice Steers - 43.00 to 45.00.
Good Steers' - 40.00 to 43.00.
A steer consigned by Wilbert
Reinhardt of Teeswater weighing
1250 lbs. sold for 45.00.
,Seventeen steers consigned by
Andy McMichael of Wroxeter
averaging 1224 lbs. sold for
44.60.
Fourteen steers consigned by
. John. M. Perrie of Brussels
averaging 1215 lbs. sold for 44.00
with his offering of 129 steers
averaging 1134 lbs. selling for
43.52:
Three steers consigned by Joe
7ettler of R.R.4, Hanover;
averaging 1143 lbs. sold for
43.75.
Two steers consigned by Ron
Kaufman of Clifford averaging
1140 lbs. sold for 44.50.
A Holstein-cross steer
consigned by Dave Dewar of
AtWood weighing 1150 113S, sold
for 43.25.
Four steers consigned by Jim
Ireland of Brussels •avetaging
1085 lbs. sold for 43.85.
Choice Heifers - 40.00 to 42.00 '
with sales to 42.25.
Good Heifers - 38.00 to 40.00.
A heifer consigned by Lloyd
Michie of Brussels weighing 1140
lbs. sold for 42.25. -
A heifer consigned by Wilhelm
Bros. of Walkerton weighing- 980
lbs. sold for 42.00.
Eleven heifers consigned by
Clarence' McCutcheon of Brussels
averaging 834 lbs. sold for 41.90.
A heifer consigned by Doug
Fraser of Blyth weighing 970 lbs.
sold for 41.25.
Twelve heifers consigned by
Carl Fitch of Wroxeter averaging
817 lbs. sold for 40.00.
raised $3,000 and will be provid-
ing another $2,205 themselves.
This left a balance Of• about $800
after an expecated Wintario grant
-of $1,000 is received.
'Chairman Herb Turkheim said,
"We as a Board should be proud
of the Seaforth girls. This is the
first high , school band from
Canada invited to participate in
the annual Edison Pageant of
Lights.
BERG
Sales Seivice
Installation
FREE ESTIMATES
o Barn Cleaners
o Bunk Feeders ,
o Stabling
Donald G. Ives
R.R.#2, Blyth '
Phone:
Brussels 887-9024
1111••••
The Huron. Board oVEducation
will be paying a small portion of
the expenses incurred by the
.Seaforth District High School
girls trumpet band when they
travel to Florida in February.
Out of a total cost' a $7,000 to
send the band" to Fort Meyers,'
Florida the' Board agreed unani-
mously to pay' up to $800 of `any
Principal Bruce Shaw in' a letter
to the Board said the girls had
-4,,,,THE Bt:Issas, post JANUARY '21 i. 1976
Morningstar honours Mrs King
Morningstar Lodge held their social time was held when Mrs.
regular meeting Tuesday Jan. W. King Sr. was honoured with
13: Despite bad weather there the gift of a lovely' plant from the
was a fair attendance. Lodge. The lunch committee had
There were a number of thank a lovely decorated 'birthday cake
in her honour-and served this with youk notes, from. shutins and sick ice cream for lunch. Mrs. King members for Christmas gifts thanked everyone for the gift and, received and 'for donations of remembering her on her birthday f money from several organizations
It wa's reported a generous
amount of money had been
c011ectedat our December meeting
for gifts and treats for patients at
the Ontario Hospital Goderich.
An invitation to visit Goderich
Rebekah Lodge March 2 when the.'
'President of Rebekah Assembly
will visit that Lodge. Our Lodge
.was invited to open and close the
meeting. The -invitation was ac-
.cepted. It was also decided to
hive a Dessert Euchre Monday '
February 9. Several members had
birthdays, Mrs. Florence Webb
was given a vote of thank for her
donations of the, lovely Afgan and
cushion she made and donated to
the Lodge tickets were sold and a
nice sum of money was made to
carry on the Lodge work.
After the meeting closed a I
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GUS'
JEWELLERY STORE
Brussels
Has re-opened-under ,
NEW MANAGEMENT
USED CARS
2 — 1975 Fords. 1 LTD - 1 Custom 500
2 - 1974 Fords - 1 LTD - 1 Galaxie
1 -- 1974 Meteor 2 Dr.
1 — 1974 Maverick Graber
— 1974 Mustang '
1973 Fords 2 Drs. — 4 Drs.
1 = 1973 Chev. Impala 4 Dr.
1 — 1973 Chevelle 4 Dr.
1 -- 1973 Valiant 2 Dr.
1 — 1972 Gran Torino 4 Dr.
1 — 1972 Montego 2 Dr.
SEVERAL OLDER MODELS
10 used Pickups„ front "69 to '74.
1 — 1973 Ford an
1 1964 Dodge 1 Ton Stake