HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Citizens News, 1971-02-11, Page 5THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1971 ZURICH CITIZENS NEWS
PAGE FIVE
rom my window
BY SHIRLEY J. KELLER
BREAK THAT CHAIN NO MATTER WHAT
Some readers of this column
are very faithful. Others are even
more faithful than that because
they are the readers who not only
enjoy (or say they do) the column
each week, they often send along
suggestions for future columns.
This kind of reader is most apprec•
iated, believe me.
The other clay I was in touch
with one reader who wanted to tell
me about an episode she had had
with a chitin letter. She told me
she hadn't received one of these
cursed things for years and years,
and she had even begun to faintly
hope that chain letters were a
thing of the past.
Not so. She told me she was
the recipient of a rather brutal
kind of chain letter. It promised
good fortune if its contents was
copied 20 tunes and sent on to
20 other persons, and it forcast
dire results if the chain was brok-
en.
Well, this reader doesn't believe
in chain letters... at least, she
doesn't like to think she believes
'in chain letters. She's a bit super-
stitious, mind you, but she made
up her mind there was no chance
that she would copy the letter
20 times and send it on to com-
pound the misery of others.
A few days after the chain let-
ter was ignored, things began to
happen. Unpleasant things they
were. My reader developed a
sore back. She also had a medical
check and discovered she would
have to spend some time in hosp-
ital. That would mean delaying
a trip she had planned to Florida.
And to top it all off, she was
nearly killed (or badly injured)
when she was almost hit by a car.
When she let me know about
her plight, she wasn't just sure
whether she was due for some bad
luck and was simply jinxed for a
few days... or whether that chain
letter, that idiotic note which
prophesied disaster if she ignored
it... was to blame for her problem:
"I don't care if I die, " she said,
indicating just a little bit that she
wondered if there was any truth to
the promise of the chain letter.
"I will not be a partner to passing
chain letters."
Well done, friend, I do not
approve of chain letters and what's
more, there is absolutely no
doubt in my mind that your pres-
ent problems would exist for you
today whether you had received
that letter or not.
I've had similar chain letters...
the kind which fortell hideous
happenings if you don't send them
on in triplicate. And I've had
problems, too... but not because
of that silly sheet of paper with
a few ink scrawls on it. Why, I
have problems the year-round,
every year... and I just don't get
that many chain letters.
And while we're on the subject
of such things, I want to report
to you that I sometimes go out
of my way to invite trouble.
Consider this one, for instance.
One of the businesses of main
street in my town was having a
facelifting. The whole front of
the building was being replaced
and the workmen had ladders
leaning against the building form-
ing forbidden arches over the
sidewalks below.
I surveyed the situation closely.
I watched people for a few min-
utes. Some would walk up the
sidewalk apprehensively and move
out around the ladders, never
even noticing they were there.
I did what no one else did. I
knew the ladders were there, I
knew the theory that anyone who
walked under them would be
plagued with bad luck... and I
deliberately walked under them
and thereby defied Lady Luck to
be angry with me.
Nothing happened. Nothing
any more serious, that is, than
the usual kind of the problems
encountered every day...Like
the cake burning and the news-
paper getting blown away and
one of the Lids coming down
with the sniffles.
So I'm convinced, dear readers,
there is nothing to this business
of superstition. As for chain let-
ters, I'd bannish them from the
face of the earth if I had my way.
.. and their writers with them,
sadistic lot that they are.
New Series For Women Starts This
Week; Runs In Eight Parts
A new, eight -part series of
articles of interest to women in
Ontario will begin in the Citizens
News this week, written by Mrs.
Lilah Lymburner of Port Colborne,
chairman of the Women's Advis-
ory Committee, Ontario Depart-
ment of Trade and Development.
Women's World, as the series
is titled, will deal with topics
ranging from wise shopping habits
and legislation to protect the
consumer, to drug abuse and
advice to women returning to
work.
Mrs. Lymburner is a former
president of the Federated Wom-
en's Institutes of Ontario and a
life member of the Associated
Country Women of the World.
She has travelled widely, both as
a visitor and on speaking engage-
ments. She was appointed chair-
man of the Women's Advisory
Committee in 1964.
The Women's Advisory Com-
mittee was established to involve
women personally in the growth
of the economy and to create an
awareness of their responsibilities
as consumers. These activities
include helping raise the quality
of Ontario products and increasing
domestic and export sales. Conf-
erences held by the committee
throughout the province enable a
three-way exchange of inform-
ation between consumers, man-
ufacturers and government.
Topics most frequently raised
at the conferences form the basis
of Mrs. Lymburner's series of
articles. Nine conferences are
held in various Ontario centres
each year, and an annual conf-
erence takes place in Toronto
in the spring.
Members of the Women's Ad-
visory Committee are drawn from
each of Ontario's nine regional
development areas, and are rec-
ommended by their communities,
These women, usually appointed
for one to three years, serve
primarily as knowledgeable con-
sumers,
Frequently they work on survey
projects, most recently to sample
public opinion and understanding
if consumer protection legislation,
and the need for day care centres
for working mothers.
In private life Mrs. Lymburner,
t former newspaperwoman, is a
licensed judge of dogs and a col-
ector of Canadiana and glass.
Watch for her series of articles,
Women's World, beginning in
his issue of the Citizens News.,
0
HELPFUL ADVICE
Leaking pipe joints can often
be repaired without taking the
pipe apart, by smearing the joint
with any of several prepared pipe
cements, which cost very little at
your local hardware store.
Add
electric heating
to any room in
your home and
end cold spots
forever.
No matter how chilling a winter might become, electric heating can
help keep the cold where it belongs. Outside. By adding electric
heating, you can eliminate cold spots in your home, or bring gentle
warmth to a new room your present heating system can't handle.
Flameless electric heating is safe, clean and economical. It can
be installed easily anywhere in your home without the high cost
of extending or overtaxing your present heating
system. Electric heating is versatile. You can choose
from a wide range of wall insert heaters, wall
mounted heaters or baseboard heating units.
For more information about electric heating's
remarkable ability to end cold spots in your home,
talk to a qualified electrical contractor, or ask
your Hydro.
ZURICH HYDRO -ELECTRIC SYSTEM
W. D. ARMSTRONG, Manager