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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1993-04-14, Page 4Let tw to Editor Page 4 Times -Advocate, April 14,1993 Publisher: Jim Beckett News Editor: Adrian Harte Business Mower: Don Smith Composition Manager: Deb Lord Publications MaH Registration Number 0986 stffiSCRIPTION RATES. WIt sM 40 miles (65 km.) addressed to mon lotto, earrlor addresses *30.00 pieta *2.10 0.6.T. Outside 40 miles (65 km.) or any tatter oania •dolma 530.00 pias 530.00 (total 60.00) + 4.200.5.T. Outside Canada ,66.00 Prophets and old buildings favourite joke at conferences :and seminars is that an expert is de- fined as someone Who comes from at .least 100 bialometres away. Followingb, that train of thought, - it would seem historically significant buildings only exist in other people's towns. The people of Exeter can gavel to other towns and cities, marvel at their -magnificently restoredbuildings, 'and -maybe wonder why .they .tden't have anteing quite so nice back home. blow we:leam Exeter's old-rail:station is better appreciated in Grand -Bend than.itis in its own town. if all goes as planned, the :station will be on its way to the iakeshore community in early May. The purchasers aren't converting -it into a quaint mstauramt; it won't be- come a museum or curio shop; or any- thing directly aimed :at commercially exploiting its :appearance. - The station will become, of all things, an optome- trist's office. The only reason is she Grand .Bend purchasers would 'rather risk .a lot of money to save the building than to see it demolished. One wonders why that kind of spirit isn't pr+es010444er... ,Batt, molt' Exeter'retfida is *vet !gtwn. ttded to the idea the oldstation was no more than a moldy. storage shed on the west edge of town. The station's main curse was its loca- tion. Since 'the min :mks never ran through the oven's core, 'Mere was no opportunity to 'convert -building into a store, art gallery,musetun or restaurant where it stood. Any worthwhile project to-restore-itawould:mesnsnoving:it. Un- foren Lely, it will have to go to 'Grand Bendwhere there are people left who still stand buildings . are worth more than justsquare foot*ge. Is.thisthe ,shirt of anew:irend ftor:Exet- er? What other landmarks can be sold off to appreciate people elsewhere? Given =the prices being paid ler 'large Victorian -homes elsewhere in this -prov- ince, -perhaps 'Tomer can sell Doff .a few and open.:up somemore„space .for- k- ing- Local congregations might get .good prices for their highmainteaaneechtuch towers and slate -roofs - enough to build a new brick and tinted glass gymnasium for their services. Obviously town offi- cials -missed the mark a few years ago when Peirolia'stowwhall burned down. Exeter could have sold'them theirs. :It mustn't cometo this. Furore genera- tions should not -have • to travel -to other osi*ununities to get a .glimpse of what kind of townExeter's first families creat- ed. - ,A:DJ1. A vicious, unprovoked attack I dedicate this column - an ex- cerpt from my book "Fathering, Mothering and Kidding" - to Wes and Betty Garvin, who sup- plied me with 2 litres of deli- cious Reid's Dairy buuermilk. When Alex and I picked up the buttermilk gift, Betty seemed a little distracted. She confessed: < ,8ht;iad just spilled the plum -sauce fbr their chicken diluter r all over her clean kitch- en floor. It reminded me of the following story, which I may as well share with all my readers. The yogurt attack I opened the 2.50 ml yogurt container and set it on the kitch- en counter, at a safe distance from the edge. I opened the fridge to get a jar of strawberry jam to mix with some yogurt. Yes, I do sometimes treat my- self to a little snack when Eliza- beth is at an evening meeting. One of my very few vices. Suddenly, without provocation or warning, the yogurt jumped forward and dropped on the kitchen floor, bottom up. The contents splashed upwards and horizontally in all directions, di- viding into molecules. It was a vicious attack. 1 hadn't come anywhere near that container. I'm wearing trifocal glasses. But I'm not that uncoor- dinated. No, this was a mali- cious, spiteful, treacherous act by the forces of evil. It happens to me all the time. Thc kitchen floor - which had just been cleaned - now jd eight hundred thousand patches • of white. And there were three 1. hundred thousand on each cup- board door.' Another five hun- dred thousand on the out side of the fridge. And I was covered in yogurt from my spectacles to my slippers. Peter's Point • Peter Hessel Now for the inside story. Thc stuff had splattered right into the open fridge and fridge door, covering every jar and package, every bar on every grill in that machine. The fridge walls were oozing yogurt; the stuff was run- ning down in rivulets. I know when I'm beaten. I looked up at the ceiling, which I always do when addressing fate: "I give up. You've destroyed my kitchen. What else do you want? My living room? Go ahead, take it from me!" But I'm an incurable optimist. I searched for a grain of fortune in a quagmire of misery. It could have been worse. The house could have been struck by a cargo plane carrying swine flu vaccine. I don't really panic. I analyzed the situation and planned my course of action. I stripped down to my underwear and tip- toed to the laundry room, leav- ing white footprints behind mc. I dumped my clothes into the laundry tub. I tiptoed back to the kitchen to review the scene. For a minute I considered run- ning away. Leaving everything the way it was and joining the Foreign Legion. But I am too old. How about hiring a profes- sional cleaning crew? Or taking legal action? Could I sue some- body for damages? Had my civil righLs been violated? Shouldn't the Charter of Rights and Free- doms protect Canadians against yogurt $hacks? I decided to sob silently for several minutes. Still in my un- derwear, I realized that my situa- tion was only grotesque, not life- threatening. I had a fit of hysteri- cal laughter. Then I rubbed and scrubbed, washed and wiped, rinsed and dried. Three hours later, the kitchen was clean again. I was amazed to find that the yogurt container was still half full. From an optimist's point of view at any rate. Quickly I ate it all, before it could jump again. Then I mopped up my foot- steps in the hall and laundry room. I threw my pants, shin, socks and slippers into the wash- ing machine. Then I rested. God knows, I deserved to rest. When Elizabeth came home from her meeting, her first ques- tion was: "Why are you sitting around in your underwear?" Her second remark was : "What is wrong with the kitchen floor? The place is a mess. The floor is sticky, and there is white stuff all over the window above the sink. What have you done?" What is it they put into yogurt anyway? "Men'are never so likely. to.settle a question rightly as when they discuss it freely." ... Thomas Macauley PubNshed Each Wednesday Morning at 424 Matn St., Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1186 by LW. Eedy Pubneattetts Ltd. Telephone 1-61S-235-1331 O.s.T. VR106210815 Letter to Editor Things like this neer happen in Exeter? Dear Editor: Last Tuesday, :it was nice to have -my spirits lifted with -she on- set of the spring weather. It was a perfect day.for a.walk in the park, .-along the riverbsek::However, my mood was quiekl�y changed from light-heartedness' -to oneof im- mense anger and distaste. You see, while I was walking along I found .a three milliliter hypoder- mic needle laying in the grass. This needle was only a few hun- t dred feet from a children's playground. As 1 bent down to pick it tap, one thought ,..11its5 111 .crossed_my.mmd. AIDS. knows.,if°$i -HIV infected person had used this nee- dle? I'm quite sure that a five year old child wouldn't realize the possi- ble consequences of handling this needle without extreme care. In one Letter to Editor moment, that child's life could be shattered due to another one's irre- sponsible and careless actions. Now, so far as I'm concerned, what people do behind closed _ idaors is.their,own.I usic ;L.if you want to cleanly please do it in private, 'don't "relive it on public display at the probable misfoi tune of others. Name withheld by request Exeter In support of local hospital Re: Community support of the hospital Dear Editor: I am appalled at this community and area regarding the treatment of the hospital and its staff. I was a resident of this area and had been for many years until I moved away. Unfortunately I am back in the area to look after an ailing rel- ative. I have been to visit the hos- pital by way of the emergency de- partment on a few occasions. Every time I have been there, the staff, nurses, doctors and everyone else I was in contact with have been most helpful and compas- sionate. I understand that if it is not an emergency, you may have to wait. Try wailing in an emer- gency department in a city such as London, you may sit for up to six hours before being k seen for things such as colds, lacerations, sprained ankles, etc. The present health care system and status is so, that a small hospital cannot have a doctor sit and wait for everyone to come in. They have busy lives as well! I wish this community would gain back the common sense that it used to have. I've seen people run- ning in with colds and injuries that have waited for three days or more and they expect instant service! If you can wart three days or more, you can surely wait for the doctor to see you! Also the verbal abuse that tlic staff has to endure both I hear in the hospital and on the street is ap- palling! You know who you are and when it comes down to it, you're the ones that show up on their doorstep! SHAME ON YOU! We need this hospital very much and may lose it if, the community does not show their support. How would you like to drive to London or Clinton to be seen? So come on, show the hospital your support and let them know that they are need- ed. I'm enjoying the articles that are being wriuen about the hospital very much. A concerned heajth care consumer. P. V irabek Winner enjoys trip to Toronto Dear Editor: I would like to thank Sears, Playtex and Flare for their gifts and generosity last November. I won a trip to Toronto on Sunday, November 22, and Monday, No- vember 23, 1992. I was one of three women in Canada that won this •. "prize." I filled out a contest entry form that came in a Scars catalogue last Sep- tember. and mailed to to Toronto. Then I forgot about it. I began get- ting phone calls the beginning of November, but they couldn't say what or how much I had won. Eventually I received by courier, a return plane ticket from London to Toronto, and itinerary of the two days. The other two women were nicc ladies. Cynthia was from South Slocan, near Nelson, B.C., and Barbara was from Ferment, Que- bec (English speaking), near the Labrador border. I got a ride to London airport that Sunday afternoon by my old- est daughter and her boyfriend. Then I had a twenty minute plane ride to Pearson international Air- port in Toronto. I was met by a Playtex represen- tative, Penny, and taken by limou- sine, as were Cynthia and Barbara, to the Marriott Hotel, where we were staying overnight. It is very fancy. (I felt like Chevy Chase.) We each received a package from Playtex worth about 5100.00. We were taken to our rooms and seuled in, then changed our clothes and were taken out to The Keg restau- rant for supper, again by limousine, our personal driver for the two days. He was111) very pleasant, and sure knew Toron to! We throe winners spent some time together that evening chatting in the hotel. What a coincidence, we all have girls - ringeue players. We exchanged addresses. We were treated to breakfast at the hotel "early" the next morning. We then checked out, and Danny drove us to a Scars store (I forget which mall) where we each were given 5750.00 in gift certificates for clothing. I compromised. I se- lected many nice clothes for my- self, and picked out some clothes for Christmas presents for my fam- ily. Danny then drove us to a Town- to� salon - Civello, sponsored by Flare, where we were given a com- plete hair and face make over. We were also given two Flare maga- zines. We had lunch at the salon. They took before and after pic- tures, and one of the three of us. We sure looked different! We since have received a before, after, and one of we three "winners" pic- tures. However, we were told we wouldn't appear in the Flare maga- zine. We then were chauffered to flit airport where we said our good- byes and were on our way home. I arrived in London airport around 5 pan. I was met by my truce daugh- ters, and my oldest daughter's boy- friend. He was our chauffeur. We went to MacDonald's for supper. "All dressed up . and no- where to go!" Now back to reality. Sue Wilson, Huron Park 1