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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1985-02-20, Page 5PAGE 4 G9P1IU( ObSTAR,VVEDNESDAY, FF4BRITAIVUO 4985 DAVE YK • That t. ur ender. hY I even wen so ar as ,to suggeilt that as n,, pa. nd tnrnlflg I pot op 0 broE4 alba fajza, fillet long town font probably didn't eVert own BROW nil, driVeway into a ingaloreatttthttrattirio-ii.' enough. . 7 shovelSi tee hee. They, wouldn't MAW tach , Cozier ,lunga have eitikgInt (int , winter: I'm stuck with it now. It can% beat it knees in obvious Might, flag. anymore and have woefully raised my white But, while we contemplated winter iti The °pooh% is now, virttkigy itcteii Now, 1 will succumb to the ev enthallity og end to holot , we'd lea while dn',0190 97t The approach to the owl' Ir. ilif'ay,L''' ' Is ,,,,, ,.• . town with much mirth and, ' _ lin t I from the road and Moat ; e 8111 If I have dutifully informed superiors and have to admit that therealitY of theoituat pol . Straight on at 90 ml ttn119 , , , colleagues that liLwill report to work has tended to take t jocularity right Ou . If, one night, I am unable to stop e gala 'iiiiiieliffie, in ill spring,, ofeTuWiablr hr—wlateP----- ----- -4 r-------1-------,-;,--tune4t-wilit6be-porked-in-the-bedroom.,.Por4I, ......_. Easter, when the ravages of winter Show I have never seen o Many iplows in my good. 46,13jpoimpAjogiAiga,_Apa.liorolt . , life.. Regardless of the henr.„410,Or401/1 Silt, considering that the family -Ate 16 step outdoors, -lel alone -911501-the—Veaklat''Or--*Wkait;----akittakan 7'44 il!:'''''''46tattid4V41:0114ger*inAtriAilltICIWkieWin..Ma.i4.1 aging family vehicle through the quickly heavy snow removal artillery ;blasts Its way may not have to worry about getting the car A' shrinking tunnel referred to as a driveway. through seemingly impenetrable mounds of out of the driveway , in the morning. The Unless there is some noticable and snow near my house. driveway is a mere tunnel and oncoming ., I, \ propitious change in the weather patterns, I . I wouldn't feel so bad if the town limited traffic is not visible until its in the back seat. fear the aging and sickly beast will be its scope of snow removal responsibihty to My new shovel broke under the stress of \ I J consumed 'by the driveway. It will at least the roadways of the prettiest town. I am constant work. I am unable to throw snow 7, N \ save the car the final humiliation of expiring resigned to the task of clearing the end of the any higher than it is now piled. In short, my . while on duty. driveway. But four times a , day, some spirit haabeen tamed. Broken, in tact. zealous driver in a miniaturized version of When the Sykes family moved within the 1 almost had a change of heart Saturday town limits this fall, there much glee and excitement at the prospect of not having to snowplow races past on the sidewalk evening. There is a certain ethereal quality creating more mountains of snow in my about a tranquil snowfall and as my son and - ' car's path. battle the elements on a daily basis over a I listened to the quiet, we revelled in the v------- 10-anle stretch of roadway. Now, its rather adventurous just trymg to serenity of ,the winter evening. We even dug \ ••,-,:-.M.',-„ • Winter in town; us heartycountry folk get the car in the driveway. In fact, you can out a snow fort and as we excitedly climbed suspected,, was probably nothing close to the get more thrills just parking a car at my in he turned to me, and with a straight foe winter we weathered without wincing in the place than any roller coaster ride in tht- asked, "So what do we do now." wild. country offers. I am consideohig charging I don't know kid. I just don't know. THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 'MS Founded in 1848 and published every Weddeaday et Goderich, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OCNA. Subscriptions payable in advance '20.95, (Senior Citizens 97.95 privilege card number required) in Canada, '55. to U.S.A., '85. to all other countries, Single copies 50. Display, National and Classified advertising rates available on request..Please ask for Date Card No. 15 effective October 1, 1984. Advertising le accepted on the condition that in the event of a typographical error,, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for but dist balance of the edvertisement will be paid for et the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error advertising geode or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to mak and may be withdrawn et any time. The Signal -Star Is not responsible for the ions or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproducing purposes. PUBLISHED BY: SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED. ROBERT G. SHRIER - President and Publisher DON-HUBICK-,Adv-erasingivrarrager.. . "" • • GO P. DAVE SYKES - Editor P.O. BOX 220 HUCKINS Si-. INDUSTRIAL PARK BODERICH, ONT. N7A 496 S\G Member: CORM No. Second class mail registration number 0716 1•111•IIIII/•••• FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES...please phone (5191524-0614 Leaders eserve cr. .0. The scouting and guiding tradition in Canada • one of the few associations and movements to survive the test of time and to prospe Involving thousands of boys, girls and young men and women and their leaders, the program is a fitting tribute to the work of Lord Baden Powell and his wife. The Powells left a rich legacy built on involvement, participation and learning. Many men and women enjoy much more fulfilling lives because of their involvement in scouts and guides as young people or their work as leaders through their adult life. The scout and guide organizations in Goderich also have a rich and colourful history, one that has in -Volved thousands of young people in positive and beneficial projects. But the movement has also encountered its share of difficulty, not unlike any other organiza- tion based bi volunteer assistance. . Scouting and guide programs are only as good as the men. and women leading the packs and troops. Therehave beeritirnes when the threat of disbanding loomed large as leaderscould not be found or enticed to get involved. Andyet, there are stories of the men and women, who once they.. got involved in beavers, brownies, scouts, guides or even venturers, found itdifficult, or even impossi- ble, to let go. They found they enjoyed it. Leadership is important to young people and the direction and influence they receive has a profound effect on their lives. Those involved in any of the programs probably never forget their leaders. During Scout -Guide Week, the local packs and troops will be involved in a variety of ac- tivities and special events in recognition of "their week." Tt is also the 75th anniversary of guiding in Canada, and local guides haveheld speCial events to suitably mark the occasion. But more than just a celebration and commemoration of the founding of scouts or guides, the specially designated week should recognize the efforts of the men and women who take the time to lead our young people in usefull and positive activity. We have such people in Goderich, helping our young people= a weekly basis. This week we salute the leaders and thank you for caring. D.S. Watch winter hazards Everyone likes to fondly recall the wintei when snow piled up around houses and when snowbanks on the roadside reached the tops of telephone poles. Well it would be safe to assume that the substantial snowfall of 1985 ranks with some of the best winters here in recent memory. - - gut- with- that- substantiaLsnowfall_cornes, endless hours of shovelling and plowing, causin snowbanks to reach dangerous proportions.• Motorists should exercise extra caution when driving around town this time of year. R's difficult to see cars reversing from driveways and often at intersections, cars must pull out slowly before -being able to view oncoming -traffic. Children take delight in playing on those ample snowbanks without knowing they are precariously close to falling or sliding onto the road. Take care driving and instruct c hilikErn on -the dangers of sno w bank antics. DS_ Winter scene By Todd Mowatt POSTSCRIPT: JOANNE BUCHANAN' Well, it's been short and sweet. Seems like Just a few months ago'that I started writing this column (that's probably because it was just a few months ago) and now thetime has con* to say goodbye. As I explained in a previous column, my duties at Signal -Star Publishing have chang- ed. I am now the editor of Focus newsmagazine and its sister publication Topic, in Bruce County. I agreed to keep writing this colurrin for the Goderich paper however, until someone was hired to take it over along with my other forrner duties. Well, that person has now been hired and - she has -agreed to start writing Postscript as of next week. Her name is Susan Hundert= mark. I always appreciated how welcome I was made to feel when covering community events in Goderich and the co-operation I received when seeking information for stories. I hope Susanavill.receivetbat.same kind of welcome feeling and co-operation in her reporting duties here. It seems odd to be saying goodbye when Pin not really going anywhere. My office will still be located in the same building and 111 still be living in Goderich. This is my hometown and I must admit to a sentimen- tal attachment to it. • When I lived in Toronto, I remember hay- __ _ conv.ers#0 oh i.v6thSPMeeo,ple ..who had been raised there. `What in the world do you do in a town as small as Goderich," they asked in amazement after I told them what the population size was. I was just as amazed that they would ask such a dumb question. "There are a million things to do there," I told them. Since corning back to Goderich to work on the ,paper, my defensive statement to those city people has been proven true over and over again. I -have-discovered though, that there are two types of people in the world: the do-ers and the complainers. In Goderich, the complainers are the ones who are always whining that "there's nothing to do in this town". The do-ers are the ones who are involved in so many activities here, that there aren't enough hours in the day for them. For people who are sports -minded, there are all kinds of organized leagues to join, hockey, ringette,' soccer, bowling, curling, slow -pitch and fastball to name just a few. If you're not into team sports or competition, there are individual sports you can take up. There are two golf courses, several tennis courts, a pool, and beautiful cross country ski trails. If you're not -into any type' of sports -at all, there are lots of other things to do. There are clubs for almost every interest imaginable. There are church and civic groups to join. The recreation department has an organiz- ed program of events. There are exercise classes and classes which teach various crafts and. skills. There is a well -stocked library, a movie theatre, a senior citi.iens' centre, annual craft shoat, bake sales, -cia-nces; garage sales; ete: ete. One glance at last week's Goderich Signal -Star' makes liars out of those people who complain that there is nothing to do hereTlia-OWs that there was a ski-a-thon, a special bowling event, and a Snow Blitz Winter Weekend all to be enjoyed. This • AA" week, Goderich Little Theatre is staging the musical, 'Anything Goes'. Other coming events advertised in last week's paper in- litt .cluded bingos, a ham supper, a fashion show, bus trips, a hockey tournament, a con-" cert, a film series, a World Day of Prayer, .,first aid courses -the list goes on and on. . On top of all this, during the summer mon- ths, residents can enjoy some of the best professional theatre around bitaking short jaunts to Blyth, Grand Bend and Stratford. And the scenery is gorgeous here, with many people taking advantage of the beach area for sun bathing, sailing and fishing.. I'm starting to sound like a- travel brochure. But the point I'm trying to make is that there is plenty to do here. You just have to get out and do it. You can't sit back and expect to be entertained and then Com- plain because that entertainment doesn't fall into your lap. There is as much to do here as anywhere else> Besides all this, the quality of life in a small town is infinitely better than city life (at least in my experience) -less crime, less congestion, less pollution. So, I'm glad I'm only saying goodbye to my old job and not to my old hometown. There is a full life to be lived here with friendly faces all around. And I want to thank those of you who took the -time -to -pass -on' nice comments aboutmy, column. I was always surprised that anybody was even reading it! Hope you will give Susan the game atten- r tion arid -that her expel i Goderich and working for the Goderich' paper will be as pleasant as mine has been. When the first ministers' conference ( some would call it an intemperate publicity stunt) took place in Regina last week, I stayed with the two-day televised perfor% mance for its duration. As the on/off button was within my reach and power, I cannot complain, but 1 .should like to mention that the whole thing left me nauseated to a degree one would feel after eating nothing but chocolates and whipped cream for two clays. An outside commentator in attendance . compared ,the conference with an Amway representatives' sales promotion meeting and that is 'another valid impression. I hid meetings and talks on any govern- ment level fascinating. One always learns a great deal from them, sometimes in matters of substance, on other occasions about the power holders in public office, their rnethods and mentality and on what level of intelligence they see t4e public. The conference in question left me with an impression that the senior levels of govern- ment regard the public as an instrument for grasping power, but once in Office, they do not think much of the ability•of the public to observe, think, conclude and remember. Thus the gentlemen around the table paid no attetttion to the possibility that a prolong- ed and concentrated excess of self- cungratulatiou and mutual admiration could come across as public relations - overkill, exposing even more ,pathetically the brevity of any real discussion of matters of meaning and substance. It is indeed very pleasant to know that there is greater harmony and co-operation between the federal prime minister and the provincial premiers when they sit down together. It is also not surprising, with most provincial premier i sharing the political colours of the prime minister. Furthermore, the topics at this conference got a motherhood kind of treatment. In a deluge of Conservative rhetoric the conference participants spent close to an hour congratulating ' themselves on the training program giving roughly 700 minion dollars federal money to: the provinces. Without knocking the program it could be remembered that it is in line with the pre - Tory programs of similar nature. However, Mr. Mulroney called a special "media break" (his expression) so that in- terviews and announcements concerning the program could accommodate the media deadlines for news. When a couple of potentially divisive issues surfaced, they were quickly and carefully sidestepped. One was Premier Imugheed'S strongly held philosophy fa -milt- ing completely free trade with the United States. These views have been historically opposed by Ontatilt and Quebec and are so now. The other item concerned the provincial demands for lower interest rates via a new monetary policy freeing the Canadian dollar from its relationship to American currency. This approach is opposed by Mr. Mulroney. These issues were quickly -.dropped from sight, but they are not going away. The conference took repeated and nasty shots at the poor federal -provincial rela- tions during the past years. As Mr. Leves- que sat smilingly in his smoke cloud, having abandoned his sovereignty schemes, nobody wanted to remember that much of the past tension had been caused by precisely these schemes. The patriation of the Constitution is a fact and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is in place. Nobody was inclined to remember how the past confrontations really happened My problem is that I cannot stand phoney things. Harmony and perceived superiority had become separate and central issues at the recent conference where they should have been the natural and clearly visible sheen on the outcome of dealing successful- ly and fairly with substantial matters of con- cern to the people. What can one do to con- vince politicans that the most elaborately designed illusions are transparent? ELSA HAYDON