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The Huron Expositor, 1995-10-04, Page 5HappyBirthday Marg - Now uncuff me There's nothing like a family get-together to remind you that, were it not for thesg people with whom you are bound by blood, you might have been abandoned as a child and carted off to an orphanage, where you would have been perfectly happy being raised by a pack of strangers. My mother turned 89 on Sept. 24 and my sister Gail hosted a birthday party for her. My mother was born in the year 1906, the same year (i looked it up) the Montreal Wanderers beat the Ottawa Silver Seven for the Stanley Cup. Also, wood was discovered ' that year in a remote area north of Winnipeg. The party got off to a rousing start when an old family friend showed up with his Schnauzer and Tiger, the family cat, took this opportunity to beat the crap out of the dog. To herald a landmark anniversary, a lot of people would opt for bagpipes, but I don't think you can do any better than hissing, howling, a little blood and a lot of skidding on linoleum. Once the dog was bandaged and dispatched to the car, the son of the old family friend had an attack of asthma in the kitchen. This emergency served to showcase the true talents of the. Thomas clan as my nephew David helped the young man out of the apartment and down • to the parking lot. To the wild cheering of every member of our family, David was the recent recipient of something he had been denied in the five years since graduating from university — a Creation of boards supposed to save money Continued from page 4 * The creation of county boards in 1969. was supposed to save money. We all know what happened. The creation of 'super boards' will lead to the same kind of increases, * We spend only 3.5 cents of every dollar on head -office administration. In some large boards, it is claimed that less that half of the dollars are spent in the classroom. * Amalgamation may reduce spending in some high-cost boards, but those of us already at the lower -end will no doubt see costs escalate. * We know that 'made -for - Toronto' solutions should not be applied across the province. A better solution for Huron is to keep working at building partnerships. That is where the real tax savings will be made. Trustees in Huron have already shown leadership in cutting costs. Taxpayers with concerns about education spending would be well advised to investigate the real costs of amalgamation. The time to act is now. If you want to keep costs in Huron under control, call 1-800-562-6954 to express your concern. For more information, contact your local trustee. Sincerely, Roxanne Brown Chair -Huron County Board of Education real job. Apparently I stood alone in thinking that five years as a bartender was a wonderful way to serve his fellow man. As luck would have it, David is now gainfully employed by a pharmaceutical company and he happened to have a brand new puffer in the trunk of his company car. For those of us who used to believe David was just too nice a kid to snake it in today's tough world of business, it was a sight to behold. The guy having the asthma attack was on his knees with both hands wrapped around his own neck while my nephew negotiated the $39.95 for the puffer - and a free spacer if he chose to pay in cash. My family spent the rest of the afternoon trying unsuccessfully to avoid Amanda, my four-year-old niece who was selling magazine subscriptions to work her way through kindergarten. Honest. This kid, who only learned to talk last Tuesday, is the Grand Champion Salesperson at Prince Philip Public School in St. Catharines. This program is supposed to supplement the cost of field trips, but when I asked Amanda where the money went, she quickly touched her chest with her index finger three times. (This silent gesture eliminates any possibility of incriminating audio evidence ever being presented in a court of law.) You wouldn't think a four- year-old would spend an entire Sunday afternoon pestering relatives to buy magazine subscriptions — especially after she spent all week pestering. her neighbours to buy. chocolate bars to support her daycare center. I'm not kidding — in one month this kid has already tripled the gross monthly sales of David, the drug dealer we're all so proud of. I diplomatically avoided an ugly incident by patiently explaining to Amanda her Uncle David's new-found interest lb dermatology after he inquired about the availability of "skin" magazines. Oh, did I mention we were gathered there to celebrate my mother's 89th birthday? Yes, my mother had a grand day admiring all her brood and wondering why 'at least half of them weren't fitted with electronic ankle bracelets. My mother sat on the couch enjoying the company of my Uncle Ralph. We don't know how old Ralph is, only that he scored a goal and two assists for the Wanderers in that 1905 Cup final. At one point Ralph's hearing aid went haywire, causing the Schnauzer in the car to howl so loud he set off the theft alarm. Once again my sister Gail chose the perfect theme for this family party — Calamities 'R' Us. After Margaret opened her presents, Gail gave one of her patented "dog ate my homework" excuses on what happened to her gift for my mother — this involving the Japanese trade embargo, a warehouse closing, a dyslexic courier, and a really stupid back -order policy by L.L. Bean. I remember last year Gail asking me what I wanted for Christmas and i had no hesitation in telling her: my birthday gift! Yes, some people hire jugglers or magicians for their parties but we just make our own fun. Certainly it's a bummer when the party is broken up by tear gas and somebody yelling orders at you through a bullhorn, but if you can't come together, as a family, with wet towels over your faces — what's the point of getting together in the first place? Anyway, Amanda picked up the tab for the bail bond, the guy with asthma lived, the dog healed, the cat wants his name changed to Iron Mike and I'm on page 35 of my first issue of Crochet Digest Monthly. Happy Birthday Marg. Nobody's blaming you. ARTIST AT WORK - Robert Tetu's Beechwood pottery studio six kilDAVID SCOTT ometres east of Seaforth was open to the public on Saturday and Sunday as part of the Huron Society of Artists' Studio Tour. The public was welcome to tour the studio and sample mulled wine. Three test communities to be selected Continued from page 3 The waste will be gathered in large quantities to be shipped to other facilities or to landfill sites." Bluewater is working on a "Dirty Material Recovery" facility for 1996 to handle some of the waste. "We will be sorting, recover- ing rccyclables and separating compostihle material," said Vcilleux. The recycling facility will change slightly. "Presently glass is separated at the curb. With the new sys- tem glass will be separated at the facility." Presently most municipalities have contracts with private col- lectors to pick up curbside waste. Vcilleux says price dis- crepancies between collectors is tremendous. "Some communities are pay- ing a lot more (for waste collec- tion) than they should be." Vcilleux says member municipalities since 1985 like the idea of a co-operative, cost- effective waste collection sys- tem. He says private waste collec- tors may be concerned about Bluewater's new system: But he says the association wants to work with contractors. "1 believe there's enough work for everybody." There will be the option for private companies to either rent, operate or buy the newly designed trucks for collection for the new Bluewater system, says Veilleux. "The options arc wide open. i have talked to some operators. Others i haven't heard from." The association pians to use the three new vehicles in pilot areas in 1996 which represent a good cross-section of member municipalities, said the associa- tion president. "There are eight interested communities (for the pilot pro- ject) but no final commitments have been made." Statistics will be gathered from the first three communi- ties in the project. "Bluewater is going to pick the municipalities (for the pilot project) rather than municipalities picking us. We don't want to test all urban communities, for example. We ' want to have some rural, urban." Municipalities have been informed of the new system coming but not about the costs and options. Veilleux says the new system will be more cost-effective. "We've done time studies on vehicles. There's more time spent driving from one house- hold to another, than picking up garbage. With the new system, you eliminate one truck, you eliminate the time element. You go from two trucks to one and two operators to one." Bluewater plans on replacing their entire fleet of trucks with the newly designed vehicles by the end of 1997. "By that time the service will be available to all members," saki Vcilleux. Bluewater Recycling present- ly service.% 57 communities and has 43 member municipalities. • THE HURON EXPOSITOR, Octobov 4, 1906-5 S.D.H.S. SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL GENERAL MEETING *Do I have any say on how the education of my child is handled?* If you have asked yourself this question, now is the chance to become involved, educated and a part of your child's future! FIND OUT: WHO will be on S.D.H.S. School Advisory Council WHAT will the council's role be WHEN do the meetings occur WHY is the government looking to the com- munity for advice -WHERE- SEAFORTH DISTRICT HIGH SCHOOL OCTOBER 5, 1995 7:30 P.M. -QUESTIONS?- Contact Maureen Agar 527-1857 Have lunch with us at Friday, Oct. 6 Deloitte & 11:00 a.m. - M p.m. Touche after the parade cha.c..o.c,,,r, Hot Dog & Refreshment fora All Proceeds will be donated to CHUMS Central Huron Mobility Service Holland The Hassle Free Grilling Solution Does Not Flare-up! Cooks Great Tasting Food! Economical Operation! Environmentally Friendly! Reduces Carcinogens! SAVE OVER $100 ONLY 565000 reg . 59. * ASSEMBLY REQUIRED 23 Goderich St. E. SEAFORTH 527-1200 Terri-Lynn Dale, General Manager of The Huron Expositor is pleased to announce the appointment of Joan Mellen as typesetter and proofreader. Joan earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English from The University of Western Ontario and was employed part-time by the Canadian Pdetry Press on campus. Joan grew up on a dairy farm south of Seaforth and currently resides in Egmondville with her husband Brian, and their children, Sarah and Joseph.