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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1999-07-21, Page 5THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 1999. PAGE 5. i Arthur Black Recycling the scooter When I was a little kid, my Uncle Roy built me a scooter. Fancy, it wasn't. A four-foot length of 2x6 with a couple of discarded wagon wheels fore and aft. He made a steering column out of a broken hockey stick, nailed a cross-piece to it for handle bars and I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. My first set of wheels - not counting the baby carriage. Wheeling soon became more complicated. When I figured out how to balance myself without a foot on the ground, I graduated to a CCM one-speed with coaster brakes - when you wanted to stop you just pedaled backwards, which seized the rear wheel and brought you to a skidding halt. Then one summer, Donny Rutherford showed up riding a shiny new Schwinn with - get this - hand brakes right on the handlebar and THREE forward gears: Low, Medium and High. Every kid on the block succumbed to International Scene Utter stupidity If any groups of people are acquainted with the works of the German dramatist Friedrich Schiller, it should be either people connected with the theatre or the Swiss. After all, it was Schiller who wrote what people consider to be the definitive work on William Tell and it is the one that is usually used when the Swiss get around to staging a drama on their mythical hero. I must admit that it had a profound influence on me the first time that I saw it in Altdorf, located in the original part of Switzerland formed in 1291 and where the statue of Tell is located. He also, by the way, wrote a play called Maria Stuart (Mary, Queen of Scots), a translation of which was once played at Stratford, if my memory serves me right. But I wonder how many people are acquainted with another of Schiller’s lines which caught my eye the other day when I was reading some of my notes on the German author. “With stupidity,” said Schiller, “even the gods struggle in vain.” I was thinking specifically of Yugoslavia which the post-war leader Josef Broz Tito held together by the sheer force of his personality and which has been devastated by the stupidity of some leaders who want to dredge up ancient unbridled Cycle Lust. Little did any of us know: this was merely the beginning of the Golden Age of bicycles. Three-speeds begat five-speeds begat 10-, 13-, even 17-speed bikes. Festooned with toe clips, rear derailleurs, automatic shifters and suspension systems sporting unpronounce­ able Italian names, the machines began to look like extras from a Star Wars set. Oh yes, and the quick release bicycle saddle. Who in hell wants a quick release bicycle seat? Weld the damn thing to the seat post so I don’t • They’re called autopeds. have to carry it under my arm every time I stop at Tim Horton’s. Everything changed. My old CCM one- speed was made of crummy old steel and lasted for 20 years. Not good enough for the New Age machines. They’re made of molybdenum and titanium and ultra-hi-impact polymers. Not that that means they’ll last 20 years or anything. These state of the art babies are not supposed to last 20 years. They’re projected to turn into hopeless, out­ dated dinosaurs after two or three seasons at most. That way we’ll all keep buying more, trying to get a leg up on the next two-wheeled trend. By Raymond Canon hatreds to justify cruel actions bordering on genocide. It is not that we did not have any warning of this. It is said that, during World War II when Yugoslavia was occupied by the Germans, the Croatians and the Serbs fought each other more savagely than they did the Nazis. Now it is the Serbs and the Kosovars who are venting their hatred on each other. But there are other examples of stupidity in the world which do not make the front page with the monotonous regularity as do the activities in the Balkans. The same can be said for the politicians in any number of countries who have failed to tell their electorate of the increasing cost of both health care and pensions, increases which cannot be matched by any similar climb in general tax revenues. The idea is fast becoming prevalent that aH» the health care system needs is additional revenue. What it really needs is a thorough overhaul which can weed out inefficiencies and treatments that we can no longer afford to be given as a sacred right to all and sundry. The Europeans have another problem on their hands, the handling of which is sheer stupidity. Agricultural subsidies in the European Union are not far off $100 billion a year and the biggest effect seems to be huge surpluses and the cost of storing them. What is going to happen when the farm community of Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic join the club and start looking for similar handouts? Yet at the recent conference on the matter, only cosmetic changes were So. Care to guess what the next two-wheeled trend is? Scooters. Yup - two-wheeled, no-geared, no seat, push scooters. Just like the one my Uncle Roy made me. Well, not exactly like that one. The new scooters are hi-tech, with knobbly bicycle tires, chro-moly frames, V-brakes, fenders, a kickstand, a bell and a spotlight for night, uhh, scooting. Plus, they’re not called scooters any more. They needed a more upscale name I guess, because the price tag is more upscale. It’ll cost you three hundred bucks for the cheapest autoped on the market. The top of the line model will set you back a grand. But hey, it’s healthy, it’s simple and it’s faster and easier than either skateboarding or in-line skating, so why don’t you give it a try? Hurry down to your local bi/tri/uni/recumbent/mountain/racing/touring cycle shop and ask if you can test drive one of those cutting edge autopeds. But don’t forget to bring along the most important piece of cycling equipment. Your wallet. made. For example, it was agreed not to increase the subsidies for the time being. Other stupidities which have gone on far too long are the animosities of Turkey and Greece over such places as Cyprus and that of India and Pakistan over Kashmir. In the Middle Ages, such attitudes would perhaps be understandable. That is precisely where many of them came from but this is supposed to be an enlightened age! How much longer must the United Nations go on trying to keep the Turks and Greeks apart in Cyprus and the Indians and Pakistani separated in Kashmir? There are adults today who were not born yet when the two disputes broke out. Schiller lived in the 18th century and he, who was, in essence, a very thoughtful man, would be highly distraught to learn that the same stupidities to which he referred in his century, are still going on today. It reminds me of the oft quoted statement that those who fail to heed the lessons of history are doomed to repeat its failures. r------- i A Final Thought You can do what you think you can do and you cannot do what you think you cannot do. - Ben Stein The Short of it By Bonnie Gropp Memories chime Summertime and summer holidays, Looking back, childhood memories of family vacations are some of the most special. They were idyllic times, slow soothing days, long leisurely nights away from the crush and rush of society. Our holidays were typically spent at the beach. Mom and Dad rented a cottage and together we sojourned, seeking respite amidst the silent sounds heard only at a lakeside resort. They were particularly carefree times for me as a youngster. Being at a rather disparate age from my two siblings I was granted permission to be accompanied on these trips by a friend. A more innocent time, we were allowed to roam fairly much on our own and thus enjoyed adventures which separated us in our secrecy from the grownups. But there was also family, seemingly endless moments together as summer's clock ticked past with a lethargy that equalled ours on a hot humid day. Memories of each vacation were so special that the existing one never seemed to compare with the one that went before. It was that type of nostalgia that I had hoped to recreate for my own children. Unfortunately, the nature of my husband's work has made the ability to plan a detailed summer vacation an impossibility, and the likelihood that he cannot join us even more so. It has been a regret for me. Then last week I had a revelation. It began while sitting on my patio, one of those rare opportunities when the world had stopped banging at my door and I was allowed to retreat for a time. As I sat enjoying the pleasure of sunlight and blooms, something began to infilltrate my uncluttered, untroubled mind. It was gentle, soft music that rode atop the patterns of the breeze, moving lightly, then building, then fading away before dancing playfully back. "Tuned to the key of F", my windchimes were a new addition last year. Something I've always desired, it was at the culmination of a day trip with my daughter that I finally bought them. The two of us had pursued our common interests of browsing quaint shops, dining out, and the most important, spending money. But even more so it had been perfect, for that day no boundaries of discipline gapped us; neutral territory made us equals. We talked conversationally and explored more emotionally involved topics. The best, however, was enjoying the company of my child. As a mother of four, there is pleasure in having my children gathered together. But each minute of one-on- one is indescribable delight. And so, as I became aware of the lilting music the other day, the first clear thought raised in my consciousness was of that trip. I remembered, and recognized that I would never forget, the who, what and where. And I have also realized that while my childhood summers were special they were so similar in their routine as to be indistinct. Conversely, this day, never to be duplicated, is one I hope will stand out for my daughter as it does for me. The chimes are my memories of a special time with a special person.