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Times-Advocate, 1985-01-02, Page 3Page 4 limes -Advocate, January 2, 1985 imes Times Established 1873 Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924 Serving South Huron, North Middlesex -8te North Lambton Since 1873 Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited LORNI EEI)Y BII I BATTEN Publisher Editor IIM BI (Kt f f Ad%erti.iny; Manager HARRY DEVRIES Composition Manager ROSS HAUGH Assistant Editor DICK JONGKIND Business Manager Published Each Wednesday Morning at Exeter, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration Number 0386. Phone 235-1331 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Canada: $22.00 Per year; U.S.A. $60.00 C.W.N.A., O.C.N.A. CLASS 'A' • ... and a bike, video game, watch, skates, stereo, personal computer, pony, a bigger... Common courtesy There may be times when no news is good news. But that old adage doesn't hold true for members of the special committee named by Exeter council over two years ago to secure nursing care beds for the community. The committee has met with almost total silence from the ministry of health and that can be more frustrating than a negative response. It is quite appropriate, therefore, that Mayor Bruce Shaw and committee chairman Iry Armstrong have fired off a rather terse communication to the minister to get some action on the request. While the deliberations involved in securing nur- sing care beds are not totally open to public scrutiny at this time, there is little doubt that the committee members have been working hard and have a viable proposition now before the ministry. It is certainly not too much to ask that the proposi- tion be considered and a response forwarded. That's nothing more than common courtesy towards volunteers who have been acting to correct a deficiency in their community. Seeking Mr. Bland The Progressive Conservative leadership race in Ontario is perhaps the most uninspired contest we've seen in years. The four candidatesseem to be limping from town to town, pleading for delegate support, yet offering few refreshingly new ideas for better government. Part of the problem may be that it's tough to im- prove upon the current government's status. There are few loose ends in Ontario today. After 41 years of uninterrupted rule, the Progressive Conservative government has shaped a provincial government that appeals to be a broad spectrum of political beliefs and values. It recognizes the work ethic found in private enterprise and personal incentive, yet buys part of an oil company, and indulges in other forms of socialism. Wewere told last week by a prominant local Tory that in terms of satisfaction, 68 percent of Ontarians believe their government is doing a good job. That's the highest such percentage rating in the confedera- tion. Prince Edward Island's PC government came in second with 63 percent voter satisfaction. The Ontario government tries to please the majori- ty in any decision. If the people of Ontario weren't ready to completely finance the education of thousands of Roman Catholic children, you can be sure Premier Bill Davis would not have agreed to such a program. But you never know. The party and its government are as enigmatic as the Progressive Conservative name suggests. Of the four candidates, it seems certain that Attorney -General Roy McMurtry will not become premier. The big guy has a reputation for not mingl- ing well with his cabinet buddies, and his appeal to the average voter is miniscule. The real contest is between the three -Frank Miller, Dennis Timbrell and Larry Grossman. Mr. Timbrell is most similar to Mr. Davis, although Mr. Miller has a kind grandfatherly image. And he's the only can- didate from outside of Toronto. Ontario has never had a premier from Toronto. Mr. Grossman? He's the brightest, the best organized, and probably would make the best premier. But he won't be elected. He has the capacity to rock the boat, to order too many changes. Mr. Grossman doesn't fit into the bland, the uncontroversial image a premier of this province has had for the past four --decades. (From The North Kent Leader) OnIy a resolutions consultant Returning to work after an extended Christmas season is always frought with some surprises, mostly unpleasant. The initial shock is to find the desk pil- ed high with an abundance of mail. I've managed to lick that problem to quite an extent this year. Before departing for the festive season, the annual ritual of clear- ing the desk was avoided. That was a wise move. The expected pile of new material was not there. Most of it had fallen on the floor and can be easily scooped into the wastebasket. Not faced with the usual chore of sor- ting through the mounds of material sent out by public relations firms before they went on holidays, the writer was able to move quickly behind the typewriter to start bashing out this first epistle of the new year. However, that was not without some difficulty. 1 found that my arms had shrunk and wouldn't reach the top row of keys. The initial thought was that so- meone had changed some of the furniture but a closer examination revealed the tell- tale cause. My girth had expanded so much with festive delicacies that it kept pushing the typewriter out of arm's reach. i'll either have to join the local jogging enthusiasts or head out to the cosmetic department and purchase a set of those glue -on fingernails to overcome the bat- tle of the bulge. The hope is that taking off that added weight will be as enjoyable as putting in on. • • • • • Presumably, there will be others who will have to make toning up some stomach muscles part of their new year's resolution list. it's undoubtedly one of the most popular on that list, although there is a suspicion that new year's resolutions are not as popular as they were. Many of us have watched them be so quickly broken in the past that there is little incentive to make any new attempts. .However, the new year does give each person an opportunity to wipe the slate clean in many ways and to strike out with new vigour and enthusiasm to make life more interesting and enjoyable. The first part of the exercise, of course, BATT'N AROUND with the editor is to take some inventory of personality traits and life styles to define areas in which some improvement is required, whether the latter be for one's own good or those with whom he or she may be most directly invoIv .' N R is not an t'asy task, given the false perception many have that improvements are either unnecessary or impossible. it takes a high degree of honesty as well as some rather shattering soul-searching to find the trouble spots. One of the easiest ways to tackle the situation is to have your family or close friends and associates make a list of new year's resolutions for you. You may have to be thick-skinned to ac- cept some of the suggestions for im- provements outlined, but that's all a very basic part of the challenge. • • • • • Human behaviour experts advise that the next important step after setting goals is to establish what rewards you will get upon attaining those goals. An improved sense of pride will natural- ly follow for those who set weight loss or regular exercise as their resolution for the new year, while an increasing number of smiles may be the simple, but pleasant, reward for those who plan to cut out some aspect that others may find annoying about them. Being materialistic about new year's resolutions can also pay dividends. if there's 'somethingyouwant,thathas been considered a luxury or frivolous, promise yourself that item as a reward of ac- complishiing the goal and you'll find it helps overcome those periods when your tenacity may be a low level and there is a temptation to forego the whole exercise. You'll find that the closer you get to the reward, the easier it is to stay on track. A popular method of accomplishing new year's resolution goals is to make a wager with a friend who has set the same goal. The competitive factor is a strong driving force that spurs most people to ac- complish feats that they never thought possible. • • $ • • $ Now that you've been encouraged to set your standards a little higher for the new year, what about the writer's own resolutions. Well, I've decided that while there are areas needing improvement, I'll be con- tent to serve in the capacity of a consultant. Of all the jobs in our society, there's probably none as enticing. You give your advice, collect the fee and ride off into the sunset after leaving your customers to fend for themselves if your advice turns out to be erroneous. Bet consultants never have to make new year's resolutions! He'll never forget it Once upon a Christmas time, there was a little boy with a skinny freckled face and big solemn blue eyes. He was old enough to know that there was something called The Depression and that he and his family was right in the middle of it. The Depression was somehow connected with the fact that pea soup and homemade bread were very often the staples for supper; that he had to wear his big brother's trousers, cut down; that his Dad came home so often looking very tired; that on rare and terrible occa- sions, he would come in and find his mother, who was afraid of nothing on earth, sit- ting at the sewing machine, with her head down on her arms, crying. But none of this bothered him too much. Small boys are very tough little characters, for the most part. They can adapt to almost anything. The only things that really bother them are the things that go on in their heads. And that was this kid's trou- ble. For two years now, he'd been wanting a pair of skates. Oh, he had skates, but he'd got so sensitive about them he wouldn't even wear them any more. They were an old pair his mother had worn When she was younger. They had long tops, almost up to his knees. He had to wear three pairs of socks to fill them. His ankles wobbled badly in them: And every time he showed up at the pond, somebody would yell: "Where'd ja get the girl's skates?" What he wanted was a pair of real skates, tubes, they called them in those days, hockey skates, they're called now. He had a hockey stick. At the first game of the year. `when the seniors were play- ing, he'd had a real stroke of luck. After climbing in the window of the rink, in the middle of the second period, with some other kids, he'd wiggled his way right down beside the players' box. He was just nicely settled, and trying to peer around a large, violent hockey fan in • front of him, when one of the players dashed up to the bench with both parts of a broken stick, and threw them to the coach. The latter look- ed around, straight into a pair of beseeching eyes, and said: "Here, kid, here's a stick for you." With the help of his Dad, who spliced the stick, and some tape, he had wound up with a dandy stick. But no skates. He'd tried to earn money for a pair, by shovelling snow. The first time out, he asked an old lady if she'd like her snow shovell- Sugar and Spice Dispensed By Smiley ed. She said yes. He shovell- ed like a little demon for an hour. He knocked on her door, red in the face, and told her it was done. She said: "and I have something for you, for your trouble." And handed him a cookie. That soured him on snow shovelling and nice old ladies for some time. All his other sources of in- come: empty beer bottles, scrap iron and old tires, were covered by snow. He spent an hour and a half siphoning the money out of his penny bank, with a knife. There was only 13 cents. His kid brother's hank yielded only another 8 cents. As the days went on, and the other kids played hockey on the pond, while he had to pretend he didn't want to play, the desire for skates became more and more of an obsession . A hundred wild schemes went throught his mind. to raise the money. All sorts of stories, like the one in which he sprang out and stop- ped the runaway horse, and the cowering driver, in gratitude. gave him five dollars, ran through his head. It was Christmas Eve. He'd delivered on his sleigtP a basket of food his mother had sent • to a family that was down and out on the other side of town. He'd done it, sullen- ly, his inner eye seeing nothing hut those feverishly desired skates. He was walk- ing home, down the main street, looking in the bright store•windows with envy and despair in his heart, and kick- ing viciously at chunks of frozen snow. Suddenly his foot struck something that clinked. He bent and picked it up. It was a change purse. Excitedly he opened it. There were two two -dollar bills and some coins in it. There was also a receipt. It bore the name of a woman he knew welt. She had a useless bum of a husband and a backyard full of kids. "Boy, will she ever be glad to get this back," mused our hero, immediately making himself the central figure in a Christmas Eve drama in which he returned the poor woman's money as she sat keening with her ragged children in their freezing shack. His spirits lifted, he shoved the purse in his pocket and was off like a shot to return it. He was tearing along, his whole body tingling with pleasure. Suddenly he stop- ped in his tracks. There, in his minds eye, was a picture of himself gliding over the ice on a new pair of tube skates, with the rest of the kids try- ing hard, but unable. to catch him. And in the same second came the realization that he had enough money in his pocket to buy them. He walked on, for another block, very slowly now. He was sick with temptation. He came in sight of the woman's house. Satan was whispering. He got to the door. Twice he raised his hand to knock and dropped it Then he tiptoed down the steps and ran like a rabbit back to the hardware store, Nought the skates. white-faced. and ran all the way home, heart thumping, stomach sick He sneaked in the back way, and was hiding the skates in the woodshed. His mother and father were talk- ing in the kitchen. "That was foolish, Dad," she was saying. "You know we owe grocery bills, and there's fuel to buy, and we all need clothing." His Dad answered: "I don't care if were all starving by spring. I know what it's like to want something that badly." The boy went around to the front door, came in quietly and crept off to bed, after murmuring goodnight to his parents. He didn't get to sleep for a long, long time. In the morning, his kid brother excitedly dragged him our of bed, to gedown and look under the tree. He was feeling wretched. He knew there'd be nothing under the tree but some nuts and candy, and an apple, and maybe a new suit of long underwe r, wrapped in gift paper. That was The Depression. When he saw the new skates sitting there, his in- sides gave a lurch. He knelt beside them and saw the card: "To Bill, with love. Mother and Dad." When his parents came down, he was still on his knees, the tears streaming down his face. His Dad tried to joke him out of it, talking about the great hockey star he'd be. it would be nice to end the story by saying he told them the whole story, the skates he'd bought with the found money were returned, the woman got her money, all was forgiven, and he never stole anything again as long as he lived. But that's not the way it was. He took the skates out of the woodshed that night, ran with them to the river, and threw them over the bridge into the black water. He played hockey every day. When summer came, he stole apples, and grapes. as he always had. Ile planned to save all his money and give it 'to the woman whose money he'd stolen. But he never got around to it. Ile planned to do something wonderful for his parents, and never got around to it But he'll never forget that Christmas as long as he lives She's a new mother I've been a housewife for two weeks now. in those short two weeks I've made real pro- gress. I've gone from raking leaves, to scattering salt on' icy sidewalks to shovelling snow. i've also polished every silver spoon, tray, gravy boat and plate, copper tea kettle, brass tea pot, candle holders, bell and vase in the house. Nothing is tarnished around here - not even my view of housekeeping. On that note, i thought perhaps f could turn this col- umn into a "Household Hints" column and share my fin- dings with others who are full time housekeepers for the first time. It's easier to vacuum the dog once than the floor twice. Vacuum the dog thoroughly - with the upholstery attach- ment on the vacuum and firm wire brustrin the other hand. Once that is complete, you can vacuum the dining room carpet, without fear of the mutt following you around leaving more hair than you just picked up. if anyone can explain why a dog who hates having a bath loves to he vacuumed, 1 would he quite interested Brand new towels. if they are blue, will cover your en tire laundry with blue fuzz Husbands may not like wear ing white underwear covered with light blue fuzz. especial ly on the night they play hockey. it is easier to re -wash all the non-hlue items in the laundry. rather than try to remove the blue fuzz with a Miracle Brush. After the wash and dry. remember to Mary's musings By Mary Alderson clean the lint trap on the dryer - it will now be full of blue fuzz Don't have a household hint for lint trapp- ings vet Any suggestions? if your husband has a nosebleed al 1 00 a m when you would rather he sleeping, make sure you hand him a kleenex That is much easier than getting up at 1:10 a.m to rinse the new bed spread in cold water However. if you let the icy cold water run over the bed spread, the stain will wask-rtght out with no perma- nent marks. So there's no need to get upset - much. Once the housework is com- plete, you might like to have some friends drop in. it is a known fact That as long as you are sitting around in a neat, tidy house, no orx• will drop in. 1f you want friends to come for a visit. just try waxing the kitchen floor. First move all the chairs. bird cage, etc in- to the living room and dining room, making a mess in all three areas. four the wax on the floor. That will guarantee the door bell will ring By the way, if you are nine months pregnant, there is no need for the hands and knees approach to floor waxing There is a great new inven- tion out - a long stick with a sponge on the end of it Times -Advocate Note A new baby girl' Congratula- tions Mary and Victor'