HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1976-03-31, Page 7Sugar and Spice
by Bill Smiley
Winter's End
Dog End of winter, March usually has a
tail in it like a tiger, and then we're into the
mud and chill winds and rain of April.
Probably the worst time of the year for
Canadians.
Curling season is over and golf season
hasn't begun. It's too early for gardening
and too late for skiing. There's nothing
much for,the sport fan to do but the weeks
of blah that constitute thy- professional
hockey playoffs.
I think it's a particularly bad time for the
elderly. The 'clays are longer but the
weather is too deadly to enjoy the outdoors
yet.They've come through another long
dark winter of survival , arthritis, the flu,
being indoors most of the time.
In a few weeks they'll be grinning
triumphantly as the sun, egins to warm,
and they know they'Ne licked life or death
for one more winter, but right now they':re
a little low in spirits. •
One of the most obnoxious features of
this time of year is the return from the
south of those lazy, rich, rotten, selfish
people who have enough money to spend
the winter there. -Is there anything more
boring than their excessive chatter about
playing golf every day, and swimming in
January?
Don't think' I'm envious. I wouldn't go
down south in the winter if you offered me
a thousand dollars. But don't make it
$1,200.
Nor am I the slightest bit jealous of those
young, swinging teachers, back from their
March break in Spain or the Caribbean, as
smug as they are tanned. Talk to them and
you'll find all they did was sit around at a
beach, drinking rum, or taking in some
historical sites.
Any idiot can do better than that,' being
herded like so many Canadian cattle on to a
jet plane, into a posh hotel.
My wife and I almost invariably go south
in the March break. But we don't sit
around on any silly beach, getting a painful
burn. We go to the city, and get a slow
burn from the prices in the hotel. Neither
of us drinks rum. But if we want to ,take in
some historical sights, we just take a look
at each other.
About the only people who aren't a bit
down in the mouth as winter drags to its`
weary end are little kids. There is mud to
play in; deep puddles to test your boots in;
dirty remnants of snow to push each other
down into. What more could a kid want?
Their mothers are not quite so joyous
about now. The occasional sun reveals
dirty windows, shabby wallpaper, faded'
drapes.
When they go out,their winter clothes
are too heavy for shopping in the hot
stores, but the weather is too foul to try on
the new spring outfit. Result? Winter-end
snarl.
Man of the house isn't exactly bubbling
over, either. He's just added up the fuel
bill, which is roughly twice what it was six
years ago.He has received this year's tax
notice, which is just about twice what it
was 10 years ago. And he's heading right
into income tax time, which is just about
twice as complicated as it was any years
ago. No joy there at all.
University students are scarecely
rapturous' at this time of year. The year
that looked so long last September
suddenly has a week -or two to go. There
are essays due. There are final exams
ahead. There is anguish in the highsight of
days and weks of near-idleness during the
past two terms. There is panic at the
realization of the minuscule amount of
learning actually acquired. The mind
skitters like a frightened mouse, but there
is no hole in the wainscoting to dodge into.
It's tinie for the hot coffee, the benzedrine,
and prayer, none of which will help much.
For students graduating this spring, it's
not exactly Christmas either. After three or
four years in the cocoon, they must come
out and discover whether they are
caterpillers or butterflies. There are no
lines of employers eager to sign them up.
There'll be no more cheques from Dad.
There's nothing there but a vast,
indifferent system into which they must
kick and squirm and claw to make a niche
for themselves.
Does all this sound depressing? Heck,
no. It's just the way of life in this country of
ours, this time of year.
There are lots of happy people, living a
day at a time. -And there are lots of joyous
people looking forward. Girls who are
going to be married in June. Young
pregnants looking forward to their first
baby. Ancient gardeners already out
kicking aside the lumps of mud and ice,
looking for crocuses, scarcely able to wait
to get their hands into the soil. Golfers who
have mentally ' ironed out their swings
during the winter. Sailors who watch
eagerly for the breaking up of the ice.
And there are lots of ordinary guys like
me , full of arthritis, not many teeth left in
the head, but happy as simpletons,
fundamentally incapable of being
depressed, just glad to be alive. Join us.
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Food preparation can cause poisoning
Westinghouse
OLDRELDS
PRO .HARDWARE
Brussels '887.6851
( ((
#A10-7
, 4
61W 107-7W- 04:1
tr
. SPECIAL PRICES
ON 'GOLDTONE
Ranges
Refrigerators
Washers.
Color
Dodo'
Dishirashers
Pieeie
old
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Days
HAYWARD'S
Discount - Variety
Patent Medicines Cosmetics
Tobacco Groceries and Stationary
Weekdays 9-9
Holidays and Sundays 12-6
THE 'BRUSSELS :POST MARCH 31-1916
Birds may help
warn of pollution
_ ,For Al! Your -
Window,Req-u irem en i s
etititaa. me
BRIAN SANDERSON
887,920.0
Representing 'SANDERgON SASH,, GPRRIE,
Spottaiiiitig 'intiltiediiiiient 'windows. for older houses:
Stomach cramps, indigestion
and diarrhea often attributed to
:the flu, nerves or even eating too
quickly, are often symptoms of
food-borne illness. Too m any
.consumers fail to recognize that
their own food preparation habits
,could be the direct cause of these
problems, say specialists at the
Ontario food Council, Ministry of
Agriculture and Food.
For example, consider the host
or hostess who is preparing beef
stroganoff for dinner.
Planning to be well organized, this person decides to prepare the
dish in the aft ernoon. The dish,
completed at 2 sits' on the
stove or the kitchen counter untilk 7 or 8 p.m.. when the host "reheats
it for serving. The giteSts enjoy the dinner and return home., later to be bothered with stomach' upset, diarrhea or other such symptoms.
Perhaps the cause can • be
attributed to overeating or °fisuftlitig excess alcoholic
ekreraget. But there is also a
strong probability that during the
six hours of sitting at room
temperature, sufficient bacteria
grew in the stroganoff to cause a
mild case of food poisoning.
To prevent this type of food
spoilage from occurring, dishes
containing meat, fish ) gravy,
poultry, eggs and sauces must be
kept constantly hot (140° F or
higher). If it is impractical to do
this, the food should be refriger-
ated immediately after cooking:
Don't let it cool on the kitchen
counter. Only by keeping the food
above 140°F or below 40°F can
Birds may become an early
warning system of environmental
disasters. And research on herons
has already begun.
In highly industrialized areas,
waste products such as mercury,
lead, and cadmium often escape
into waterways. Pesticides seep
in through drainage. Dredge-and-
fill operations, dikes, and other
activities of coastal development
wreak havoc with life and Jand.
Poisonous chemicals can and do
pollute fish, shrimp, crabs,
oysters, clams, birds, reptiles,
and mammals.
New research by a federal
government agency shows that
fish-eating birds like herons
accumulate a wide variety of
environmental pollutants. In
addition, they are especially
sensitive to changes in their
environmental pollutants. By
studying the habits, habitats, and
reproductive success of these
striking looking birds with their
'Safety for Weekend Gardeners
Yes- Spring is finally here!
And those who possess "green
thumbs" (and even those who
don't) will soon be spending
much of their spare time in the:
garden deciding where to pla.nt
the petunias and making sure
lawn . and hedges look
respectable. Refnember that a
garden - like any other work area -
has the potential for . serious
injury. That's why St. Joh n
Ambulance is suggesting these
guidelines for gardening safety:
* Keep work area clean and
tidy.
* Don't use electrical appliances
in a wet or damp area.
* Store power garden tools in a
high and dry place.
* Never force a tool to work
faster than the speed for
which it was designed or do a
job other than the one it was
intended for.
* Don't carry an appliance by
. the cord, and never yank the
cord when removing it from a
receptacle; graps the plug, not
the wire. Keep the cord away
from sharp edges, oil and heat.
long necks, legs, and bills - which
nest in huge colonies often
numbering in the thousands -
scientists hope to predict and
avoid calamities such as the Lake
Erie disaster.
As part of its heron study, the
agency will observe a breeding
colony of herons in captivity and
monitor nesting behaviour with
time-lapse photography. Empty
shells will be placed in some
nests and mini radio transmitters
will be fitted inside the eggs to
record how often they are turned
by the ,parents and other
incubation patterns. Pollutant
levels inside regular eggs and in
baby herons will be tested, too.
i3irds may send future warning
signals of pollution. But plenty of
signals have been sounded
already. To find out how you can
help fight pollution in your
community, contact your
lung/TB-RD association - The
"Christmas Seal" people - today.
Keep appliances sharp and
clean for best and safest per-
formance. Disconnect • an
appliance before servicing,
changing accessories, or lubri-
cating. Follow the
manufacturer's directions for
servicing the appliance.
* Don't wear loose clothing or
jewelry when operating power
tools. Never operate a lawn
mower in bare feet.
* Keep children a safe distance
away from your work area.
• Rake the lawn before
operating a lawn mower to
remove any objects hidden in
the grass. Such objects could
seriously injure someone if
they should fly out of the
machine.,
*
Use equipment with the
stamp of approval of the
Canadian Standards
Association.
A "green thumb" is rather
nice to have - especially when it
remains connected to a hand.
Take a tip from St. John
Ambulance and play it safe this
Spring when doing weekend
gardening.
you be assured of controlling the
growth of harmful bacteria.
Similarly, any leftovers should
be refrigerated or frozen within
one hour after seving. When
serving leftovers, eat them cold or
reheat thoroughly. Boil broths,
gravies and sauces for several
minutes when reheating.
Above all, think about food
safety. Too often, food
preparation habits are inherited.
Just because "mother did it"
doesn't necessarily make it Safe.
Gardening safety tips
.for "green thumbs 1 ►