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Home My WebLink AboutTimes-Advocate, 1999-04-14, Page 8Exeter Times --Advocate Editorial Opinion Wednesday, :April 1999 n tr. TIMES -ADVOCATE PUBLICATIONS MAIL. REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511 Jim Beckett Publisher and Editor Don Smith Deb Lord General Manager Production Manager Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850 Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6 • (519) 235-1331 EDITORIAL We wait for the one, true sign spring has arrived This is the time of year when everybody is searching for signs of spring. According to the cal- endar, it is here already, but we prefer something more concrete. We have had the crocus sightings and robin reports. The latter should perhaps be discounted, seeing that a small but highly visible band of the cheery and colourful birds spend the winter around here. We have had complaints about little•boys on skateboards - a sure sign of spring but so far no games of skipping on the main streets, or chalk hopscotch games. Road hockey used to be a pretty good indicator, but no longer. The kids play it all year round, sometimes in preference to the more organized ice hockey. There is always baseball, but in this part of the world, games are sometimes organized in the dead of winter, for some unknown reason. The same is true of volleyball. Some people declare spring is not really here until they spot their first golfer, not counting the lunatics who use orange golf balls which stand out nic•elty against the snow drifts. Others go by the ice leaving the river. Of course, that frequently hap- pens in January, which is pushing the season. Some know it is spring when they take the sheets off the clothes line and find one of those hover- craft sized flies, or get stung by a mosquito. Others can tell by the presence of worms on the side- walks. Then there are skunks, which leave their own unique message that they have left their winter dens and are out and about, doing what skunks do in the springtime. But even if the temperature goes up to 10, the birds are singing, and kids are playing baseball, spring does not really arrive until there is one, sure, unmistakable sign - the first warm rain. That is the rain that chases away the last of the . winter chill from the ground, and the salty dust from the side or the road., The oad.- The first warm rain has a softness about it, far different from the driving rainfall of late winter, or a summer thunder storm. This is the rain that brings the rainbows, and makes the flowers bloom, and brings the trees to leaf. It even fresh- ens city streets. One sketches this first warm rain of spring in delicate pastels - no stark whites, brilliant reds or purple -greys, but pale and pretty hints of green, touched in places with yellow and mauve. Instead of forcing one indoors, it beacons even the least poetic soul to don raincoat and wellies and go for a long, leisurely walk - it does not mat- ter where. A path along a lovely stream is perfect, but a suburban sidewalk will do nicely. This rain does not beat against windows and assault umbrellas, but rather caresses the face and clings to eyelashes. It invites children and sparrows to splash merrily in puddles, while. young lovers stroll by, hand in hand, dreams in their eyes. It is not something to hide from but to cele- brate, to enjoy, to revel in. And how to celebrate the first warm rain of the season? There is only one way - take off shoes and socks and feel the newly green grass between your toes. Ditch the umbrella, because this rain does not chill you to the bone. Breathe in the sweet scent of new life - a touch of violets, a bit of fresh grass - pure spring. Reunions are great incentives There's nothing like a high school reunion invitation to encourage a 'woman to getinto shape and lose weight. A few weeks ago I received my invitation to my high school reunion at 5:30 p.m. and was burning up the trails at Morrison Dam by 7 p.m. Within 48 hours, I called Kendra to arrange a fitness program consultation. It's in my court now. I'm sure there are thou- sands of women with the same goal in mind — rolling back the clock. I borrowed some fitness equipment from .my sister on the weekend (she's not going to the reunion because she says she won't know any- one there) and have it set up in the study. Out with the rocking chair and in with the station- ary bike. TAKES I took the bike for a spin the other night. I did- n't fall off but with all the different read-outs, I'm not sure what I did. Did I burn 110 calories or travel 110 kilometres? For the first five minutes, my dog nipped at my heels as I cranked the pedals. When it came time to do the sit-ups, she thought that was an opportune time to bring me her toys. Eventually, she laid down on the floor beside me and watched. By the end of the torture, the room was pretty crowd- ed with all the dog toys, an outstretched dog and me discovering the dust bunnies under my computer desk. A fitness program is quite a routine to get into. I can run for days if I'm chasing a ball but get me on my own and it's a different matter. Kendra assured me it only takes 21 days to create a good. habit. Right now, 21 days seems like a long time. I'm not sure how much people will marvel if I'm as thin as I was when I graduated but I know I won't think any less of them if they've gained weight. A couple years ago, we attended Doug's high school reunion. He didn't .need to lose any weight but he wanted to grow his hair to the same length : it was high school, just to impress the guys. After six months without a hair cut, reunion time arrived. Lo and behold, no one cared that Doug still had lots of hair, especially the guys who were thin on top. I know I'm not the same person I was as a teen. Thank goodness. The curious thing is, though, I think of my fellow alumni as the same people they were when we went our separate ways. In my mind, Julie will still be able to run five miles without tiring. Cheryl will still be able to do major math problems without breaking a sweat (although I'm not sure why she'd still be doing calculus). And Dave will still be able crack up the gang with his jokes but last I heard, he had become a history professor so he may be a little dry. Our class did a good job of scattering across the country. It was the same story then as it is too often today — we left home to attend university or college and there weren't any jobs in our hometown when we graduated. It's the rural brain dram. I was lucky enough to get a job in another small town since 1 had no desire to live in a city. Others longed for the city but having experi- enced it, want to return to their rural routes. But where are the jobs for the Porsche engineer in small- town Ontario? Yes, I'm looking forward to the reunion. The way 1 look at it, this is the perfect time for a high school reunion. We're young enough to remember each other and old enough tohave a life to talk about. P.S. Don't offer me any french fries between now. and June 25! KATE NIXON KATE'S About the Time Advocate Address & Office Hours Times -Advocate, 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850. Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6. Our office is open'Monday to Friday. 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. Contact Us By Phone or Fax Classified ad & subscription sales (519) 235-1331 24-hour automated attendant (519) 235-1336 Fax number for all departments (519) 235-0766 Subscription. Rates One year rate for addresses in Canada: $35+GST Two year rate for addresses in Canada: $03+GST One year rate for addresses outside Canada: 1102 Call 5119) 235-T331 to order a subscription. Cned Rates Word ads: $9.00 for 20 words, 154 for each additional word+ GST. 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