HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1987-03-04, Page 4Page 4— CLINTON NEWS -RECORD, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 1987
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Ready for an election?
What language is this?
Do the terms artsies, burnouts, bush pig,
cid, cone heads, heavy metal, loo, mods,
narc, preps, punk, rockers, tardy and trash
metal mean anything to you?
To me, burnout means a person who has
abused their mind with drugs; cone heads is
a term used for people with an oddly shaped
head; heavy metal is a type of music and
preps is short for preppies. Right?
Well, I'm showing my age.
The terms in the first paragraph do refer
to people, but each is in a class of their own
and high school students actually place their
fellow students in one of'these categories,
labelling them for the rest of their secon-
dary education lifeu
In my day, we had our labels for people,
but somehow they didn't sound quite so
mean. We called people burnouts, as they do
today, but our other terms included
"Turkey" or "Nerd" or even "Jerk!"
Compared to terms like cone head, tard
and pooch, the labels we used seem nice.
While reading Monday's London Free
Press about the students of today, the above
mentioned terms grabbed my eyes and I
couldn't resist increasing my vocabulary.
According to the article, this generation
has a whole new lingo.
Did you know that the people who Fonzie
once classified as nerds are now referred to
as loos or dorks? However, this is not the
first generation to change the terms for
these people.
In 1940 they were pinheads, in 1950 they
There were some signs present indicating the voters of Ontario would
be going to the polls before summer. There was talk around Queen's Park
that Ontario Premier David Peterson was thinking of calling the election
before summer after his two-year deal with the New Democrats ends in
June.
Recently the Chief Electoral Officer of Ontario ran newspaper ads
reminding Ontarians they must be Canadian citizens to vote in a general
election. The ads, the officer claimed, were not an indication that an elec-
tion was to be called.
It is difficult to speculate on whether Peterson will take the chance,
although the Liberal party would seem to enjoy a reasonably good chance
of being re-elected.
However, minority government has enjoyed relative success in the pro-
vince over the years and Peterson's timing on the matter will be critical.
The Liberals have been working with the New Democrats since the elec-
tion two years ago, but Peterson may convince the public his party could
be more effective with a clear mandate.
The Peterson government has come under public scrutiny and
criticism over charges of conflict of interest but the Liberals appear to be
in the best shape of any party.
With two years under his belt, Peterson may test the waters this spring.
A fall election, at the latest, may be a good bet. (Goderich Signal -Star)
Performance was great,
but where were you?
Dear Editor:
May I take the f orum offered through your
editorial page to publicly extend congratula-
tions to the many parents and staff
members who m<,de possible the music
workshop held at CHSS last Friday. For the
fifth year in a row, the devotion and vision of
Rob Parr and Louise McGregor have
created an outstanding music experience
for our young people. There are no words to
adequately describe the sensitivity with
which the massed choir of 300 young voices
presented Haydn's Missa Brevis at the
public performance Friday evening.
Yes - public performance.
LQttQrs
The regretable part of the whole ex-
perience was the noticeable absence of
public support for the event. We have
wonderful, gifted, enthusiastic young people
in our area - lets give them all the en-
couragement and applause that they
deserve.
Group helps stutterers
Dear Editor:
Stuttering is a speech handicap that af-
fects about one per cent of the population,
with males three times more likely to he a
stutterer than females.
Despite extensive research, no definitive
cause and therefore no cure has been found,
but several hospitals and speech clinics do
offer speech therapy which helps to
alleviate this frustration impediment.
There is now a charitable non-profit ('ana-
Lynda Lentz.
dian organization for stutterers and anyone
else interested in the problem. This group,
'SPEAKEASY', was formed so that stut-
terers would have a nation-wide network for
mutual assistance, information and
friendship.
For more information about this self-help
group please write to: Speakeasy, 95
Evergreen, Saint John, 11.8. E2N 1114.
Yours Truly,
Gordon Moore
An event not easily forgotten
The Huron County Board of Education
financially contributed to the Choral Music
night at Clinton's Central Huron Secondary
School last Friday night and when I left I
was more than impressed.
For some who have never attended this
event let me explain. Central Huron annual-
ly hosts an event where they invite approx-
imately five high schools to attend. Each
high school takes a portion of the program
and performs some of their favored
numbers. That in inself is impressive but
the real feature for the students is a profes-
sional conductor is brought in for the full
P.A. day and works with all the students to
present a Mass Choir. It was spectacular'
I'm sure it was a day none of the over 300
students will forget. It is a major event
which requires much planning on the part of
the vice-principal, Rob Parr, the parent -
volunteer group, the secretarial staff, custo-
dians, bus -drivers, numerous dedicated
teachers even there on a Friday night) and
the students themselves.
That evening in the auditorium at Central
Huron were many proud people; students,
parents, teachers ( and some teachers -to -be
from Althouse College )...and yes, in all
humility, 1 was more than impressed, I too
was proud.
Sincerely
( Mrs. ) Sally Rathwell
Save a cat - bang
your car hood
Dear Editor:
As soon as the cold weather arrives, cats
become more susceptible to a painful death
or injury; being Iitterally "ripped to
shreds" in the fan or fanbelt of a vehicle.
During cold weather, cats tend to huddle
around the engines of vehicles in a
desperate attempt to keep warm. This un-
fortunate, albeit understandable, habit
leads to the deaths or injuries for numerous
cats annually in Ontario.
Cats tend to crawl up under the hood of
parked vehicles. Once the owner returns to
the vehicle and starts the engine the cat is
unaware of the imminent danger until it is
too late. These unfortunate accidents could
be eliminated, or drastically reduced, if the'
person driving the vehicle banged on the
hood of the vehicle or honked the horn Orior
to starting the engine. It the horn is used to
edam r U19 Lam, eia u1 a Shat enough time is
given to allow a cat to escape before turning
on the engine. Do not make the mistake of
beeping the horn and _then immediately tur-
ning on the engine. Vehicles equipped with
space heaters are more likely to attract cats
seeking warmth.
Alerting any cats Jerking under the hood
of your vehicle should be done each time you
start the engine. This way you will develop a
habit of alerting cats and will be less likely
to forget. While cats are less likely to crawl
up under the hood of a vehicle in the warmer
weather, being curious creatures they have
beeit'known to do so. So, before starting your
vehicle's engine, alert those felines wl eh
might be seeking shelter under the• hood of
your vehicle.
Sincerely,
N. Glenn Perrett,
Humane Education Co-ordinator
were eggheads and in the '60s they were
squares.
If you happen to have the misfortune of
being called a loo or a dork, you are: a per-
son who doesn't fit in with the main social
group - short for loser.
Artsies is a pretty good term, at least in
my books. Secondary students say this is a
class of people "usually enrolled in theatre
or fine -arts courses."
I wasn't too far out when I took a guess at
what a burnout is. According to the 1987 ver-
sion, burnouts are "students who regularly
abuse alcohol or narcotics and show the
lingering effects. Also known as burnies or
brain dead."
A bush pig is anything but a polite label. It
is used to describe a "really fat" person.
The term cid is used to describe LSD.
Now the meaning of cone head makes no
sense at all to me. When we called someone
a cone head, they either had a strange
shaped head or their hair style was a bit
pointed. Not this year, a cone head is a per-
son who enjoys working with computers.
Mods are students who "adopt a style of
dress and music popularized in England and
during the '60s by rock groups...Mods are
usually young men with short hair who wear
raincoats with a Union Jack painted or sewn
on the back and skinny ties."
The term narc is an easy one. It means
what it has always meant - an undercover
officer looking for drugs and drug dealers.
If I had to take a guess at what pooch
meant, I would say an ugly person, and I'd
be very, very wrong. In 1987, a pooch is a
person who covers up for students who skip
classes. (Don't ask me how they came up
with that one! )
I'm sure we all know what a Prep is. This
has to be one of the more common terms in
this "language" and means a clean-cut stu-
dent who tends to dress in expensive and
trendy clothes.
The word "punk" conjures up a few im-
ages. First, I see a little kid bothering an
older brother or sister and the older person
says, "Get away from me, punk." Next I see
a "Punk Rocker."
Well, my second image would be closest to
the real thing. A punk is a person with a
Mohawk haircut that is dyed some strange
color, wearing black.
A rocker is a person who likes heavy
metal music and this person could have long
hair and wear a leather jacket. Those who
don't fall into the "Rocker" group refer to
these people as bangers or headbangers.
A student interviewed by the London Free
Press about the group called "tards" said,
"The people you call tards now, you'll call
boss in the future."
Tards is an abbreviation for retarded and
refers to people who are "keener on
academic than social status."
Thrash metal is also a term for music and
is an offshoot of the heavy-metal variety.
Now that I've finished my English lesson,
I think I'll roam the streets and see how
many loos, burnouts, cone heads and mods
there are in town. Hopefully I won't get my
terms mixed up and once again show my
age.
"MOVIES ARE BAD ENotJc . b
BUT THE i1oR6T PART LOA:
WJLf,ON TAXING THE PoPCORN ! „
NOW yitV(r
A rose and a rumor
i look forward to Bayfield Council with
great anticipation. It had been two weeks
since I had last spoken, to Reeve Dave
Johnston, two weeks since I had written a
column about his disallusionment with the
press.
"Under The Gun" had proven to be a
popular column. Many readers told me that
they thought the column was good and to the
point. One Bayfield reader even referred to
it as "spunky"
i have yet to hear the reeve's reaction.
I knew that Dave would not let the column
go by without some comment, yet I was
uncertain what his reaction would be. I an-
ticipated that he would take the column in
his stride. Dave had said his peace, I had
said mine — and bygones would be bygones.
The reeve was wearing a smile when I ar-
rived at the Bayfield Council chambers on
Monday night. We exchanged pleasantries
and chatted 4bout the nasty weather. i was
still waiting fbr his comments.
The reeve left the room shortly before the
meeting was to start and returned minutes
later carrying a red rose in a vase. He
strode into the room, as only Dave Johnston
can, and set the rose on the press table. He
was looking rather smug. A round of good
hearted laughter came from the council
members and the audience as Dave
Johnston and I made our peace.
i must say that the reeve caught me off
guard. I was certain that he would have
something to say to me, after all, Dave
Johnston is rarely at a loss for words. It's
the politician ill him I reckon. On this occa-
sion however, he graciously presented me
with a peace offering, then proceeded with
the council business without any further
words of retaliation.
Along with the rose came a note from
Dave. In part it read, "i read your article
and thought you caught the mood and spirit
very well. I have had several calls from
ratepayers telling me how much they sup-
port my speaking out against what they see
as a press that has chosen to decide what the
public should be told, rather than reporting
the facts and letting the public draw their
own conclusions based on all the facts."
He further noted that there wefe no hard
feelings between us, and that while we
would not always' agree on issues, he hoped
we would always be able to reasonably
discuss our differences of opinion.
And so, ends the public exchange of dif-
ference between the reeve and I. He still
stands behind his promise that any private
interviews between himself and the press
will be tape recorded from now on. 1 still
stand behind my claim as a responsible and
accurate reporter. The reeve will have to
supply the tape recorder.
With that issue settled, now it comes time
to clarify a personal item that i became
aware of this week—no, I am not
pregnant.
The rumor floated down Main Street Clin-
ton to the newspaper office this week,
"Me Pregnant?" I responded when the
question was posed.
"How do these rumors get started
anyway?" I pondered'.
My rumored condition has been the joke of
the week around the office with the usual fat
lady and prego wise cracks being aimed in
my direction.
Could it be that my figure bears a great
resemblance to that of a pregnant woman'.
Surely not. After all I am dieting with great
conviction these days. Alright, so I did have
a couple of chocolate chip cookies on the
weekend, but I am truly making a gallant ef-
fort to shed some 20 pounds before the sum-
mer season. I've actually- lost 10 pounds
already. and I'm feeling really good about
that. Another 10 to go and i'll be treating
myself to some new summer clothes.
It seems like I've been battling the bulge
all my life, and I now find that as i grow
older, the weight is easier to put on, and,
harder to take off.
i can't diet like I used to. There was a year
in high school that I lived on melba toast and
celery sticks. In college a girl friend 'and i
went on a diet that consisted of banana pop-
sicles. i It's no wonder that i ended up with
mono ). i've tried low carbohydrate diets,
high fibre diets, Beverely Hills diets,
Scarsdale diets
Then came an extra 10 pounds after the
birth of my baby last year. 1 still use my
pregnancy as an excuse for my additional
weight gain. I only hope that i am net doing
that 15 years from now.
I can envision the scene in my mind. i'11 be
telling a store clerk, "i used to be able to fit
into a size 10, but that was before I had my
baby."
• • And how old is your baby?" the pleasant
woman will ask.
"Uh, she's going on 16 now," I'll shep-
pishly reply.
I figure that if i try in earnest•now, there's
still a chance for me and my figure. 1 want
to be 40 and svelte.
So listen here you rumor spreaders, I am
not pregnant, and I'm trying real hard not tt,
look like 1 am!