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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2004-07-21, Page 51 OPP Opinion Columnist reminisces. about summer camp From Pogo 4 Highlight of each night was campfire and all the hilarious songs and skits we would perform and VLatch. The sound of a folk guitar still makes me think of those times. I can still remember the words to all those songs (and yet these days I forget what I go down to the basement for!!) Tie-dye shirts and pillowcases, macrame belts and headbands, clay pots and ashtrays, and all those bracelets we would make out of that flat plastic lace. Our counselors were magical, wonderfully cool people who we wanted to emulate in every way possible. Mm and as the _rears go by Mm 1'!1 think of you and sigh Mir this is good night and not goodbye I also went to a Girl Guide camp for a few years in the early seventies. It was called Doe Lake, and it was north of Huntsville. Now that was a totally different camping experience, let me tell you. We were there for two weeks, and we stayed in canvas tents, with no floors, and plenty of leaks if it Johnston is to be there The restaurant we eat at is an Ottoman building and it is fabulous. The walls are two feet thick, the ceilings are 20 feet high, the stairs are absolutely treacherous and the air circulation is spectacular. The food's not bad either. It's an old house and it is huge, provided you go in from the front. At the hack door, the one we use, there's a hole in the wall. I walked right past it the first time, but now I have no trouble finding it from either end. Some people still have problems, and I love giving directions. I mean, how often in my life am I going to use the sentence "Turn right after you hit your head on all the purses."? The evenings are pretty quiet. Mostly because by the time we've got up at 4 a.m., dug from 5:30 until noon, had lunch at 1 p.m., napped until 4, washed pottery until 6, had dinner at 7, had a lecture at 8, and done homework until 9 or 10, we're all dead tired. You'll note that things like showering, cleaning your room and doing laundry cut into nap time and are thus done only when absolutely necessary. We did make an exception for Canada Day, which we celebrated by not doing our homework and partying on the roof until, wait for it....10:30. We also stood up and sang at dinner, which really amused the wait staff. On Saturday, or "day off', we went to 'Amman for the first of our tours. We slept in until 6:30. which as fabulous, and were on the bus by 7:30. Driving here is not as rained (which of course it Menesetung as a counselor My son went to always did). myself. Menesetung when he was There were no counselors, A lot of the kids that I went younger (I couldn't believe just leaders, and they stayed to camp with are there how small the camp looked in a cabin. The tents had counselling as well, so it is a the first time I took him there sides that we had to roll up lot like camp all over for camp!) and now he is each day, and down each again—except for one counseling at another camp, night. Each day we difference ---WE HAVE THE but much the same format. had to totally pack everything POWER NOW! It wasn't He shared many of the we owned and pile actually like that, but it was same fond memories of camp everything from our tent onto pretty neat, being responsible that I had as a youngster, and an elevated platform (inside for these kids, trying to get was quite eager to try his the tent) that we had to build them to come together as a hand at counseling/senior out of branches, and then unit, and begin to think staff. cover the whole thing with a beyond themselves. He has already met several tarp. Camp in my era was a new friends, and at this stage We received a box of food pretty lateral experience for of his life, I'm sure they will each morning and had to everybody. remain friends. prepare and cook all our own There were no walkmans, In their world of MSN and meals ourselves each day- MP3 players, laptops, cell cellphones, everyone seems over a campfire. phones or pagers. tq stay in touch daily. Our sleeping tent and our Everyone was on a pretty But remember all those kitchen/eating tent was level playing field, so it was friends we met each summer, inspected each day. We did really just up to the person and we swore we would be have outhouses -which we you were inside whether you friends forever, and wrote had to line with ferns from would get along with maybe two or three letters to the woods each day. everyone or not. each other before we just We hiked and swam and And for the most part- drifted apart? did sports and learned all everyone did. It happened to almost about nature. If you came to camp to everybody. And what about One year we spent a lot of prove something or to try to those fledgling romances -we time learning to canoe, and impress people with your all swore we had found our even went on a five day greatness -you were apt to get .true love -only to find the portage trip from our lake to shot down in a hurry. reality of our own lives and Algonquin Park. There is something about .routines was the quickest That was pretty cool. being secluded away from way to kill a summer Min 1►vant to linger your real life that makes just romance. But what sweet Mm a little longer the basics in life important. memories. Mm a little longer here Mm and come September Mm 1 want to linger with you Mm 1 will remember Mm a little longer Skip ahead to the mid Mm those camping days Mm a little longer here seventies, now I'm back at and friendships true with you in a fabulous country. glad . d but misses peanut butter on toast Kate Johnston Diggin' the Middle East crazy as in Cairo, but we were in a bus, so it was still rather extreme. 'Amman is a ridiculously hilly town, and the Citadel is on the highest point. Under King Hussein, houses had to be white, so the effect with the sun is quite striking. The buildings are all square and stacked like Lego. There arc no high rises and, like Cairo, the 2.5 million people who live there are very quiet. Since King Abdullah came to the throne, houses can be any colour, so there were a few alarming shades of pink in the view. One of the senior staff on our dig is an Iraqi archaeologist who has been "redistributed," along with the rest of his colleagues, throughout the Middle East. His hiring was one of the conditions of Dr. Daviau getting her permit, but it seems the least we can do. Anyway, before he joined us, he was digging on the Citadel, and his team uncovered a massive mosaic floor. He took us to see it, and it was stunning. They were excavating it so that it can be preserved, because if they leave it where it is, the sun will bleach out the colour. The 'Amman Citadel is fabulously restored. There's a Byzantine church, a Greek temple, an Islamic palace and you can see a Roman theatre from the top. It was awesome, because it's exactly what we've been learning about. We also went to the National Museum, which was about the size of my basement, but had a wonderful collection. We were complete geeks at the museum, practically skipping between displays of the artifacts we have been studying for the last two years. The theatre was a lot of fun. I have a thing about heights, but I was determined to take a picture from the top. So I climbed up to the first story and took a picture of Susi who had already reached the shrine at the very top. Then I climbed to the second level. I started to get a bit nervous, but I kept going to the third level. Melodee was standing in the orchestra (singing) and we could hear her perfectly. By this point, we were about 75 metres straight up and the stairs were so steep, you couldn't see them if you were more that a metre away I climbed down facing the stairs, complotely latched on to them. It was actually kind of fun, but my legs shook for an hour afterwards. Saturday held one more experience. Back home in Madaba, Amanda (who has been here before) took us to a shop she found last season. The owner's name is Yusef, and he is a retired banker. He sells hand embroidered shawls and dresses and hand woven rugs all made by various relations. He had us in for tea and between catching up with Amanda and our compliments about his tea (which is by far the best I have ever tasted), he told us that he would arrange for us to go to a carpet factory and that the mosaic shop down the street was, in fact, owned by a cousin, so we should drop in there too. It took us almost an hour to get away, and he never once tried to sell us something. It was so refreshing. The wind is always blowing here. On the Tell, this is really all that saves us, though it does contribute to the vast amount of dust we've been eating. In town, our window is always open, even during the hot part of the day, to catch the breeze. On the way home from dinner, it is always lovely and cool, and we count kites. On Thursday, I lost track at 20. When the children launch the kites (which are round and about a metre in diameter), they don't have to run, they just toss it up in the air. There must be incredible updrafts. Everyday we sec something new. The dig turns up some incredible find, or someone hears something on the street, or we see something we have only read about in books. This is a fabulous country, and I am so glad to be here. Still, every once in a while, I remember what peanut butter on toast tastes like. Letters Seaforth Lions Club searches for pieces of their past To The Editor: Do you have any memorabilia (photos, newspaper clippings, programs, items, stories) about the Seaforth Lions Club? If so, we would love to •hear from you. Sunday August 29, 2004 will be the 80th anniversary celebration of the service work done by the Seaforth Lions Club for Seaforth and the surrounding community. We are hosting a party in the Lions Park from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. and plan to put together a display of memorabilia from our club's inception in 1924. Please have a look in your attic, photo album and your memory bank. If you have anything to contribute, please contact Ray Rochon at 527-0407 or Cathy Elliott at 522-1323. The party is for the entire community and will include musical entertainment, a magic show, food, children's activities and free swimming. We look forward to hosting a memorable anniversary party and hope that everyone can join us. Watch for details as the date approaches. Cathy Elliott, Seaforth Lions Club OPP, called to Kelly's Auto aftZ-trfoot tandem trailer stolen Sometime between July 7 and July 9, a black 1999 Miska trailer, valued at $3,000 was stolen. Huron OPP were called to Kelly's Auto on Birch Street on July 9 and were told by the owner that the trailer was stolen within the previous two days. dfficers are asking for help in finding the 17 -foot tandem trailer, which has Ontario Plate No. 94778C and a Beavertail design. If anyone can provide help, they are asked to call the Huron Opp at 524- 8314 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-8477. THE HURON EXPOSITOR, July 21, 2004.5 ':Locatede e� ' !'I'e a Wevuut &mat1y,• EAT STREET RE CLINIC DENT Denture Specialist Dean R. McTaggart D.D. Complete and Partial Dentures Denture Repairs Relines - Additions 482-1195 50. ALBERT STREET CLINTON Church Services St. Thomas Anglican Church A Congregation of the Parish of The Holy Spirit Jarvis St. Seaforth Fr. Michael Atkins Parish Office 527-1522 Sunday, July 25 The Eighth Day after Pentecost Worship at 9:30 am Catholic Church St. James RC Church 14 Victoria Street, Seaforth 527-0142 Wtekend Masses: Sat 5:15 pm Sun. 11:00 am St. Columban RC Church SaturdaX Mass at 7:30 pm Father Lance Magdziak Bethel Bible Church An Associated Gospel Church 126 Main St. Seaforth 527-0982 Sunday Worship Hour 10 am Drop in Centre Fridays 7 -10 pm Jim Wyllie - Pastor Egmondville United Church Sunday July 25 Join us at 10:30 for Worship Guest speaker - Dave Williams Everyone Welcome Steve Hildebrand Lay Pastoral Minister in Training NORTHSIDE - CAVAN UNITED CHURCHES Cavan 9.30 a.m 11 00 a m Northside Winthrop 54 Godench St. W. Minister Rev. John Gould No services at Cavan or Northside for the month of July Regular Services resume August 1. 2004 First Presbyterian Church Goderich St. W., Seaforth Minister Rev. Henry Huberts Sunday, July 25 11:15 am Please note lhat we will be open for services in July and August. Visitors are most welcome! Activities for children will be provided, The Corporation of the Municipality of Huron East NOTICE is hereby given that pursuant to the Municipal Act, S. O. 2001. c.25, as amended, s.34, the Council of the Corporation of the Municipality of Huron East proposes to enact a by-law as described below to stop up and close a road allowance known as VanEgmond Street (formerly Church Street), Hamlet of Egmondville, Tuckersmith Ward. The proposed by-law and description of the lands affected may be viewed at the Huron East Municipal office at the address hereinafter noted. On Tuesday August 3"', 2004 at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, Municipal Building, 72 Main Street South, Seaforth Ontario, the Council of the Corporation of the Municipality of Huron East will consider the by-law as described below for closure of the road allowance. Any person wishing to be heard on this matter who claims that his or her land will be prejudicially affected by the said by-laws may apply to be heard. Dated at the Municipality of Huron East This 14th day of July 2004 John R. McLachlan, Clerk -Administrator Municipality of Huron East 72 Main Street South Seaforth, Ontario NOK 1 WO 519-527-0160 ..:•'71►r :1.��rias.Tti 1 pi'1 r r :011 ill,~ 11111 1011111111. ...Es MIN JO 1t.A. 292 EGMONDV1c L E 11. Road Allowance as proposed by By-law 51-2004