The Goderich Signal-Star, 1987-02-11, Page 4PAGE 4—GODERICH 0,TGNAL-STAR, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11; 1987
Oh, the romance of it all.
In case your spouse, friend, mate, live-
in, better half or significant other •hasn't
raised the issue, this Saturday is Saint
Valentine's Day.
More than a day of tradition, calling
for the indescriminate dispensation of
meaningless mush and semi -mental, er
excuse me, sentimental verse anct prose,
St. Valentine's Day is a day of love and
romance.
And, believe it or not -you hardened
cynics, it's still a big deal for people of
all ages who can still boast of having a
spring in their step and a bit of vvr000m
in their motors.
Valentine's Day is the perfect oppor-
tunity to reaffirm one's undying affection
for one's mate or life partner. Although, I
have been sternly cautioned by feminists
. that the man of the '80s has the corivic- ,
tion and security to display his sen-
trm.ents and affection on any day of the
0
VE SYKES
year.
Sorry, 1 forgot.
1 think it's rather convenient and saucy
to set aside a day in the dreary month of
February
- to liven h ings up. February is
r rui iiury al..,,,•Vh „b., 2r
abaut as exciting as re -arranging your
sock a?ld underwear drawer or cleaning
the lint out of the dryer vent.
In short, people haven't found a whole
lot of use for February.
But Valent4ne's Day injects a good
measure of spark and vivacity into an
otherwise dull and drab time, right?
What could be more fun than indulging
an impulsive'urge to spend money on the
lady of your dreams. Valentine's Day
turns normally sane adults into mushy,
drooling idiots.
We buy roses by the millions as a sym-
bol of our unrequited love, we buy plants
with little cupids, we buy chocolates in
heart -shaped coritainers and we buy sen-
timental cards with seductive verses
beginning with, "Roses are Red," or
"There was a young hermit
named," -sorry wrong limerick.
Flowers, or roses to be exact, have re-
mained the most versatile and honored
expressions of our feelings on Valentine's
Day. This year, across Canada, there will
be over six million roses on sale ranging
anywhere from $30 to $100 a dozen,
depending on where you live.
The long-stemmed red, red rose( for
love) has remained a symbol of Valen-
tine's Day and continues to be a popular
item accounting for 60 per cent of sales
on Cupid's Day, Research, however, in-
dicates women are also fond of pastel col-
ours like yellow, pink, white, beide and
lavender.
For florists, Valentine's Day can be the
biggest single retail day of the year, with
sales often exceeding those for Mother's
Day or other special occasions.
One local florist said the "sentiment of
the day is still alive" and thatrgentlemen
like to have the opportunity to express
their love and affection. The delicate rose
adequately expresses those sentiments. ,
But while many will spend from $40 to
$50 for flowers, the accompanying card
isn't always signed, nor it, doe'S it proper-
ly identify the giver. Some guys like to
live dangerously.
I wonder what new and novel things 1
could conjur up for Valentine's Day this
year.
For lack of something better, on Valen-
tine's Day you could:
Steam up the bathroom and write
saucy notes to each other on the
bathroom mirror.
Eat heart -shaped things in front of a
fire, woodstove or candle.
Forge out a giant heart shape in the
snow on the front lawn and write your in-
itials in the middle.
Wear underwear with hearts on it.
Whisper naughty things to your loved
one.
Try and be romantic one day out of the
year.
p.I.n.Io
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SINCE 1848
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1 \
Some resolution neede
The affairs of the. Huron' County Library Board con'ti'nueto be'steeped'in confusion arid
controversy and it will. be into estinll to see how the bolird sorts through the remaining
Obstacles it fact's.'
Many of the problems are self-inflicted and county council, whichfs'attemptingto make
the biiar(i a committee of council, must Maintain culpability for the•entire affair.
One would have to wonder what kind of advantage it would be to the taxpaying public to
have the affairs of the library network governed entirely by county council. Given what has
already transpired, it would lead the public to suggest there is no definitive advantage.
. With the termination of chief Iibrairian Bill Partridge, the board has at least resolved one
of its major, confusing issues. It was a controversy that plagued the.board's closed sessions
for months and, ,.ted'.ili' iri�esp'f n tiatnin:S hetiVeen 'to%itor-s acting, for the county
<t d Partridge a ,,su _
'her wer'c. rum, �',. i e,sigii,itiirris and negotiations and, at one point, allegations,frorii
library mploy P '%itrcerninp the competenpe of the chic*f lihrairian. The entire affair put
everyone involt " dollar e:ytrt'ii and, unnecessary, duress. It placed people in awkward,
positions and contriI4ted to tht"1.•Illtfusinn.
The county reached an at( In li, if not amicable, it 'was at least reasonable in terms of its
fiscal responsibility Out of deference to Partridge. a long-standing employee with an en-
viable reputation in the business the county agreed to a severance payment in excess of
$26.000. •
• Rut the Partridge issue is not the only one facing the board. Sharon Cox, Partridge's assis-
tant, now assumes the responsibility of the job ,of chief librarian on a temporary basis. Wall
the county hire another librarian or, as a result of the controversy, will it simply expunge
the position, deeming it to be unecessary?
The board must also concern itself with the Private Member's Bill Pr. 7, which was intend-
ed to dissolve the existing hoard and make it a committee of county council. That bill i$ still
before the Legislature.
While council waited fol clarification on the bill, it took the initiative to replace a vocal
*t4neinber of the library board, Janis Hisback, with another new member, Isabel Elston.
That appointment was subsequently questioned directly by the Minister of Citizenship and
Culture, Lily Munro, who informed Warden Brian McBurney via a letter that appointments,
by law, were to coincide with the three-year municipal terms. Bisback was quickly
reinstated to the board.
At its last regular meeting, council voted 23-8 in favor of a recommendation from the
board, advising' it accept the advice of the solicitor and take no action on the appointments
until the matter of Pr. 7 is clarified.
Much of the business of the hoard has fallen to the solicitor and the board and.council's
hands appear to he tied at the moment.
But even when these issues come to some form of resolution, the business, and the manner
in which it was conducted will undoubtedly have its effect on the members of the board and
the people who were given the trust,to operate within prescribed policies and in the best in-
terest of the public.
The'crecaihility of the sy stern has been shaken and council will have the task of restoring
that credibility and getting on with the l?usiness of fair, equitable and effective government
for all.'D.S.
', Since there's a first time for everything,
;.1 should have known that sooner or later.
',my time would come. However, in this
',case, 1 had been hoping it would be later,
Irrather than sooner. At any rate. there was
.. no putting it off - circumstances dictated
`ithat I must try my hand at babysitting for
;the first time.
Alright, I had babysat before, just. never
or a child young enough to actually be
• considered a baby. My previous ex-
periences had all been with children old
enough to talk, walk and practically take
care of themselves with only minimal
supervison. For some reason, probably a
good one, people just don't entrust their in-
fants to untrained bachelors. This time it
would be different
Lie Most front l e soldiers, i hadn't ac-
tually volunteered 'fit -
had greatness thrust upon me, by my
girlfriend. it was Peggy who had 'agreed to
take care of'Whitney,+,her niece who is
'roughly these-rhonths-old. Uinfotft4unately,
I r she had also booked an appointment with
her hairdresser for the same day. all
never understand why women can't get
their hair done at molt. opportune times -
like Super Bowl,Sunday or during the
Stanley Cup playoffs'.) So, for an, hour at
least, I was on my own.
At first, things went smoothly enough,
even a bit dull. After all, how does one
amuse a three -month-old child? I had a
feeling none of my normal methods of
entertaining guests (usually a few risque
stories told over a cold beer would suffice
in this case. So 1 set Whitney on my knee
and tried to figure it out.
One look at my face, and the poor child
burst into tears r an effect I've had on
women for as long as I can remember). 1
quickly tried all the tricks I could
remember having seen mothers use to
quiet their youngsters. Bouncing my knee
y 'ee rmd ttra state Whitney to- greater -
effort in her attempts to imitate a fire
siren. I tried a few traditional comforting
words in}'baby talk. i even broke down and
said "Goo, goo!" - a phrase I,had promis-
ed myself 1 would nev r utter under any
circuifrrstances. All to rro avail. Nothing
Goderich race horse, frightened . by the
sound of a car,
,.: 2.5 YEARS AGn .,o:
February $, 1962'
f oderich'Tdwn,.Council'wastoldatits,last
meeting that Goderi.eh District Collegiate
Institute is interested in forming its own
band or orchestra. With this in mind it is
wanting to know the whereabouts of the
town's musical instruments last used by the
Blue Water Band. No one, was. sure just ex-
actly where all the instruments are but a
search is to be made for them in case GDCI
"continues to be interested in using them. It
was suggested that town council for a band
committee at its next meeting. Dr. E.
Demeis, of the GDCI staff, would be
organizer of the hand or orchestra, should
one be formed at the collegiate.
All employees of Dominion Road
Machinery Company. Limited, who were
laid off several weeks ago, will be back to
work. on. Monday, February 12. Work will
commence on the building of a 10,000 foot
addition to the DRIVICO plant with a cost of
approximately $150,000. The addition will
be used for fabrication and finishing
assembly on—the well-known Champion
Road Graders.
The Huron County Police School, a joint
effort of the Goderich town.poice and the
OPP, will again be held this year in
Goderich. This second annual event will
open Monday at 2 p.m. and continue every
Monday for seven consecutive weeks.
50 YEARS AGO
February' 11, 1937
Dr..J.B. Whitely lost orie of his best race
horses last week, when Elaine Harvester, a
four-year-old black colt, dropped deadat the •
stables. Claude Murray, driver, was exer-
kip at s.tables
.-... u B
•
'41 aMM !We FIIRIGI". f • rictge�and alsowa i crossed, the str,J.i - ture• " ��".
It wasa •
close, cal or the boy ,and,:a otther" '
BACK - harrowing eXpe ,elice for the trzitn r •. •
70 YEARS AGO '
LOOKlN
mak
cising the animal by driving around the
town and as he was going to the stables a car
passed'hiin on Brittania Road. The horse
gave a skittish jump and a toss of the head,
and in somedmysterious manner it twisted,
itself causing a rupture of the bowels. Mr.
Murray, quite unaware 'of anything being
wrong with the animal, proceeded to the
stables where he unhitched it from the cart,
but shortly after unharnessing it, dropped
dead.
A local youngster now knows the taste of
alcohol but next time will not be so anxious
February 8, 1917 '
•An urgent call for assistance from the
Belgian Relief headquarters in. Toronto has
come up this week and Contributions of cash
and goods are asked for. Socks, blankets
and new clothing for children from 12-16 are
especially requested, and in order that they
may 'be in time to be included in the next
shipment, donations must be made at once.
Mr..J.H. Colborne has kindly consented to
let contributions be left at his store, where
they must be packed no later than February,
15 and sent to Toronto. Mr: William Lane
has agreed to act as local treasurer of the
fund and all money donations made to him
to find out. This week his father was testing will be promptly forwarded and
the anti freeze in the car and apparently acknowledged from time to time in the local
during the conversation, the youngster's press.
r. WA, Blair, Wolfe'Street, is the proud
n�i/ner oft a flock of 20 bred Barred Rock
pi fl ts,. (if his own raising which produced
, 2;54 eggs in 12 months of 1916, besides hat -
radiator.
chirfg 'out 115 chicks. Mr. Blair would like to
Being one of those frosty mornings, 'it was,,'.hear the records of some.other flocks for' the
with 'considerable surprise and not a• little
curiosity was aroused as to the taste of the
liquid fluid. Taking advantage df a mo hent:'sf,
when his father was absent, the lad'puthis,j
tongue against a drop of the liquid on the
fright that he found his tongue stuck to the
car. He has no further desire to increase his
knowledge of alcohol and its taste.
'Another tragedy on the CPR bridge near
the mouth of the Maitland River was nar-
rowly averted on Saturday. As Abe noon
train approached the bridge, a small boy
and his dog were seen on it by the engineer,
but he was able to slow down enough to let appear on Monday next before Judge
the boy and his dog reach safety. The whis- Dickson. Bail was granted in the sum of
tle was blown as the train approached the $1',000.
purpose of comparison.
On a c ek ;e of misappropriation of funds
of Huron Wge No. 62 IOOF to the extent of
some $436;1; Oliver C. Whitely, former
treasurer ofre lodge was brought last week
froytietroit where he had beers employed
siticeleaVing Goderich..On Monday'ite was,
'co otj .to trial by Magistrate Kelly and
having elected for trial without jury he will
worked. Doctor Spock, I was not!
Then I tried that old standby, singing.
Since My repertoire of lullabys is rather
limited, 1 hummed the first tune that came
to mind, which for some strange reason
turned out to be "I got the rockin'
pnuemonia and the boogy-woogy blues".
Oddly enough, my offbeat (and off-key)
musical selection seemed to do the trick.
Whitney not only stopped crying,`she burst
out laughing. This was not surprising,
since laughter is the reaction I get from
most people whom 1 choose to subject to
the whims of my ill -trained vocal cords.
Of course the soothing effect of my voice
did not last long. The child soon realized I
wasn't kidding around and this squawking
„noise was really the closest I'could come
to singing, so she began to sing a tune of
.. her :own ,again.
' I was beginning to see how the game
worked, E3abies it seems, not having much
else to do, simply enjoy the spectacle of
watching adults scramble around., Child
cries -: adult Figures out why, corrects it, -
child immediately finds something else to
from
t�115
, angle
Patrick Raftis
wuw...Rwaa.au.1
cry about - and so on.
Since 1 was doing such a good job of
entertaining Whitney, she obviously could
Kat be f 1i%g'bedause Arfe wasTnit , •
Assuming she must be hungry, I fed her
from a bottle of brownish -colored liquid I
had been assured she would drink. 1 must
be old fashioned or something, because I
had always assumed babies drank milk,
and it was white, not .brown.
The feeding seemed to have a pacitying
effect. I was even able to set her down for
,a few minutes while 1, regrouped for the
next manoeuvre., it was not long coming.
This time Whitney began to cry in earnest,
as if her heart was breaking. 1 am sure
there is no mote unsettling sound in the
world than a continuous wailing from a
tiny pair of lungs.
This time, she didn't fall far any of the
old tricks. No amount of bouncing, singing, .
goo gooing, or brownish -colored liquid
could console her, In desperation, I picked
her up and tried pacing the floor. After
about 15 minutes of pacing, she suddenly
stopped crying at almost the exact millise-
cond that Peggy .walked ifi the door.
Thanks to this stroke ofood timing, I was
able iorpand- i'er a .pet of t1y'ififtttlnted--._._. - .-
child - which I did, in quite a hurry.
"Any problems" '
"0£ course not," I scoffed, "Who do you
think you're dealing with? Kids?"