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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1981-03-25, Page 4D PAGE.4—GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 1981 dove 010 BLUE RIBBON AWARD Second'class moiLr-egisfr-ation number -0716• D ..r. avis, e s tr- • This- business of being a new parent is adding a few curves to an otherwise crooked and abnormal lifestyle. But I can't say that I mind all that much, yet. Becoming a dad for the first time is a real learning experience but unfortuneateay exper°ien,ce can also be painful. The thrigs you learn. • The job of bein' a dad didn't appear to be that difficult at first glance, but first im pressions are often misleading. I mean the little suckers don't do much except eat, sleep and let go with the odd chorus of waa waas to let you know they're around. I figured there was no problem to thisl child rearin' game. Keep them fed, slap on the occasional diaper and then chuck him into bed for a few more hours of sleep. Life is so easy when reduced to simple terms. Well, sad to report, it didn't quite work out that way. The youngster does everything required et a three-weelt vita, namely eat, sleep, cry and deposit surprises in the Pampers, but not- in that order and in varying time lengths. No definite time schedule has been established so the little guy isn't quite sure whether he's supposed to sleep for four hours or cry for four hours. Hopefully, he'll get that . end of his life straightened out quickly for father's sake. And for his own sake, if he wants to see his first birthday. Everyone tends to make a big deal out of neophyte fathers changing their first diaper, exaggerating the incompetence factor. I have come to the conclusion that diapers simply aren't made to fit kids. It's an idiot test and Ifailed miserably. ' These disposable diapers are a cinch, I was told. Just fit them snugly around the youngster and fasten .the sticky tab to the diaper's exterior. Quick and easy, no mess. Not so, disposable- dads. It's a sure bet that as soon as the messy diaper is removed. the little guy nails the front of my shirt with a quick release. The time lapse between changes must be in the neighbourhood of .05 seconds other- wise the changer gets bombarded. And I'm convinced the little kid knows exactly what he's doing and his aim and range are getting better by the day. And these new diapers are heralded as the greatest thing since pantyhose but fast and easy is just. a_ euphemism for impossible. They're big enough to wrap around the little guy a couple of times and I'll be darned if I could find the holes to put hisllegs through. They just don't make diapers like they used to. One of the basic rules of changing wee ones, I have been told, is to make sure the diaper fits snugly around the legs, to prevent emissions from sliding out and soiling everything in sight. The instructions wreak of simplicity but first, flailing arms and legs must be sub- dued, which doesn't leave a free hand to secure the diaper.. By the time I got the diaper around the wee one, it somehow managed to cover his chest as well for added protection. And my snug fit had his Little legs turning blue and hanging limply at precarious angles. After relieving the tension and getting everything in just the right place, the sticky tabs don't stick. Imagine that. Now I don't want to apply .too much. 'pressure but frustration setsin and I begin pounding -the tabs with closed fists in hopes of ending this marathon session. The little guy responds with loud wails that brings mother to a frantic rescue and with a few nifty moves the clean diaper is in place. Now,I am totally convinced the wee one will toilet train himself by six months rather than face agonizing change sessions with the old man. SINCE 1848 TN! NEWS PORT FOR ODDER!. .& DISTRICT younde in 1I1011Snd puf ithod livery Iffedneaday at Ooderich, Ontario. Member of the CCNA and OWNA. Adver- tising rotas an request. Subscriptions payable In advwce'17.30in Canada, 13.11 to U.S.A.. 13.11 to all other coun- tries, iingle`copies 30'. Display adveribrng rates available on request. please ask for Rate Card No. 10 effective Oc- • tabor 1. 1030. Second claw mall Registration Number 0710. Advertising Is accepted on the condition that In the event of typographical error, the advertising span occupied by the erroneous Item, together with reasonable allowance§ for signature. will not be charged for but that balance of the advertisement will be sold for at the ap- pllgble rote. In the event of a typographical error advertising goods or services at a wrong price. goods or services may not be sold. Advertising Is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn at any time. The Signol-Star Is not responalbie for the lots or damage of unsolicited manuscripts. photos or other materials used for reproducing.pur- 1• PUBLISHED BY:SIGNAL-STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED. ROBERT G. SHRIER-President and Publisher DONALD M. HUBICK-Advertising Manager DAVID SYKES-Editor ' P.O. BOX 220, HUCKINS ST. INDUSTRIAL K PA GODERICH N7A 4R6 SCR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES Tease pho (519)524-8331 clear mandate The voters of Ontario give Premier William Davis and his Conservative Party .a clear mandate in the 32nd , general election in the province ah -day. • Davis and the Tories rallied to a majority government at the expense of the'New Democratic Party while the __Liberalssheld onto what they and made littlegains. In the final count the Tories Will send 70 members to the Ontario-Legislature,_I2_more;members than.sat with the minority governor ,electedi 1977- „ , . All of those suits Caine at the expense of the NDP who' dropped 12 mea bl fs• te. 21. "from, 33. The Liberals and • leader Stuart Smith Will go back to°the Legislature with the same numbers, having elected 34 members. The vote would indicate that Ontarians are asking Davis and his Conservatives to boost the'faltering economy of the province and speak on their behalf in the hassles over oil pricing and the constitution. The election win was the fourth for Davis and ended six years of minority government in Ontario. The 44 -day election campaign almost slipped byl, the voters and in many ridings it was difficult to discern that the province was hi the midst of an election. That apathetic attitude was evident in the voter turnout that slipped dramatically . from 1977 figures. Even in the ridings of, Huron -Bruce and Huron -Middlesex, where turnout is traditionally high, the final numbers indicated a definite apathy towards the whole affair. While the public turned a deaf ear on the proceedings the media and party leaders turned the election into a selection. of leadership. Davis projected an image of a strong leader and was confident that his BILD program could restore a sound Ontario economy to its former prosperity. The tory campaign portrayed Davis as the man who ALT i1rw •, yrs -r u In Goderich last year the number of alcohol-related accidents increased. An increase in willful damage and vandalism can also be attributed to alcohol. Police Chief Pat King would like to do something about 'that and has instructed the force to use an ALERT machine on a random basis in town this week. Police will be stopping drivers and checking for excessive amounts of alcohol to curb the rise in accidents and drinking drivers. The ALERT machine (alcohol level evaluation roadside tester) has been used by several detachments of the Ontario Provincial Police and the program proved suc- cessful in diminishing the nutnber of drinking drivers. The roadside screening device does not give exact readings but works this way: when a motorist blows into i My feet are cold. 1 am wearing half a dozen pairs of socks, but my two things that are attached to,the ends of my ankles still feel like blocks of ice. Pourquois? Well, the arena is atad colder than the nice spring weather outside. That's right, gang, your bleary-eyed columnist is being held prisoner by several hundred noisy pee wee °hockey players at Young Canada Week. I've considered pitching a pup tent at centre ice for the week. When one spends so much time in a minor hockey atmosphere, one can categorize the people that also spend much time in a minor hockey atmosphere. You can't find easier stereotypes anywhere else. Firstly, you have your basic average pee wee hockey player. The pee wee hockey player is 11 or 12 years old. He is primarily characterized by a large mouth. "Hey, lady! Take my picture beating the crap out of my best friend! Hey, lady! You better put a picture of me in the, paper • could heal with the. provinces and the federal government for the good of Ontario. The voters went along with that age projection. Liberal Leader Smith began the campaign by negatively attacking the Conservative track record and economic policy with the slogan We're Number10. Smith was directly attributing Ontario's poor economic per- formance to Tory policy and claimed the_province had the poorest showing in the country. - Oder in the camaign "Smith was probably more ef- fective in resorting to passionate pleas, asking voters to just give the Liberals a chance and insisting they were the viable alternative. For NDP leader Michael Cassidy, his first election as party leader was a big disappointment. Although he vowed to stay on as party leader through another election, he watched his party dwindle from 33 representatives to 21. Cassidy basically plodded through the campaign at- tacking issues on economy, rent control, medicare, day care and equal pay for women in the labor force. His message may have been too basic and uninspired and the party was relying more on the candidates to retain the party popular vote. But Cassidy is not in the mold of Stephen Lewis and although he has held the leadership reins for only two years, his performance may now be suspect and subject to review. The Liberals and NDP were battling the organization of the Conservative Party and couldn't pull it off in a 44 -day campaign Historically a low voter turnout means the return of the governing party and Davis now has his mandate. D.S. • the machine,it gives a pass, warn or fail readout. A fail reading would warrant a trip to the station for a breathalyser test. Refusal to blow into the ALERT machine is a serious offence. Use of the machine is resulting in a substantial increase in the number of drivers charged. Subsequently, use of the machine may decrease the number of persons willing to drive under the influence of alcohol. The machine will be used in Goderich for spot checks oil a random basis and Chief King hopes the department will have a machine of its own next year. But at least Godeerich drivers have been warned that the testing procedure is in effect. Now drivers will have to be on the ALERT or take up walk' D.S. scoring that winning goal! Hey, lady! Can I use your camera? Hey, lady! You shouldn't smoke so many cigarettes!" Etc. etc. etc. All pee wees dress the same. They wear their team jackets and a wool tam, giving the impression that what you are seeing is a cloning process. They also play hockey with little sticks and pop cans on the cement floor. This will give you a headache in 45 seconds. And then you have your basic average hockey mother. There are two kinds of basic average hockey mothers: the type who 'gets right into it' and the kind that are there because they had to drive. The mothers who get extremely involved . in the game make me giggle. They sit behind the scorekeepers' bench with blankets over their knees. "Norman, that was a stupid penalty!" they shout. "Nor- man, you are not skating, fast enough! I'll buy you a pizza if you score a goal, Nor- man!" The mother who has to pack seven team Reflections By Dave Sykes EAR READERS BY SHIRLEY J. KELLER Were you one of the hundreds of eligible voters in Goderich and area who didn't get out to vote last Thursday? Were you sick ori that day? Were you stranded at home.? Were you without transportation? Were you too late for the polls? , Or did you just not bother? If you fall in the latter category, read on. For I have an untested, non=scientific theory about folks like you. I've been observing you for a long, long time. Contrary to popular belief, you aren't the citizens who are too apathetic to get involved in at, . _ ins.:-F..a.r.f at: tori many cases, you "indifferent" voters are the real disturbers in the community - the vocal minority some people call you. You are the more militant types - the potential placard bearers and -picketers, the marchers and the demonstrators. Given the right set of circumstances, you "can't -be -bothered -to -vote" types can stir up more dissatisfaction in one afternoon than the rest of us in a month of Sundays. But you need a cause to get you motivated. And just about any "anti somethings" cause is the right cause. You are impatient. You simply can't stand the time it takes to get things done through normal channels. You are often the thinkers in the community. members in the station wagon and drive 56 miles t to the game usually sits in the arena lobby and drinks hot chocolate. She often glances at her watch. She is late for her bridge game. The next basic average stereotype is the hockey father. As a rule, hockey fathers embarrass me. I don't know why, but they do. Many hockey fathers wear thejr team jackets from when they themselves played hockey. Men in team jackets bother me. I don't know why, but they do. Some hockey fathers feel it necessary to give the referees a hand officiating the game. "Aw, come on! Dontchaknow a body check when you see one, ref? Who's paying ya, ref? Come on, Norman! Skate skate skate! Get up Norman! You're offside Norman!" Poor Norman. Sometimes, a hockey father will become slightly overzealous and jump up on the side of the boards. This embarrasses his son and his wife and me. i don't know why, but it You are the ones who delve into dozens of situations with verve - but not to find the truth. You're looking for vindication.You want proof that all your negative vibes are correct and that the routine solutions and the usual systems are useless. You have answers. But they are of the ruthless variety. Ramrodding is your style. It's your way or no way. There's no grey. Only black and white. There's nothing tactful about you. And you» make no apologies to anyone for the way you see and do things. I've surmised' you stay home from voting because it seems hire such a pitful protest to the anger- andflSJ ation yJtlreallyfeel, I believe you don't mark your X on election, day because you really can't be supportive of anyone who aspires to join the government's "club" of elected men and women who you suspect "sell out" for popularity and plurality. I've come to see you as insightful individuals who have a real grasp of what's wrong with the system. But I've also come to understand that you will never make any meaningful im- provements in that system until you undergo a change of attitude. You probably would have- more success if you bothered a little more about elections. If you • bothered a whole lot more, in fact. You should be bothered enough to face up to what's good 'about the system - for there are does. Basic average pee wee coaches are a tolerant bunch. They can be seen carrying a clipboard and asperin. I like coaches, especially the ones that give their players a pat on the shoulder after every shift. And this brings us to your basic average Young Canada Week Daily News staffer. As the week goes by, you will notice increasing bags under their eyes and increasing numbers of socks on their feet. They spend copious amounts of money on coffee, hotdogs (hold the onions), donuts, and can be seen throwing pee wee hockey players down flights of stairs. "Get off the typewriters! If this game goes into over- time, rm gonna scream! How many ways can you write that one team beat another team?" By the end,of the week, they are simply a few crumpled messes quivering in the corner like jelloo mumbling -something about not particularly enjoying the game of hockey anymore. some good things about it. You should be bothered enough to meet your responsibilities head on in a mature fashion. You should be bothered enough to accept the fact that someone else isn't going to carry your banner into the battle for you. You're going to have to do more than make the bullets. You're going to have to be ready to fire them too, and stick around for the return volley. And the second and third encounters with the enemy. You should be bothered enough to show some stamina. You should be bothered enough to stick with it until something positive is accomplished through you. You should be .,bothered enough to do more than preach and protest, Yon should bebotbe:'ed enough. to std your chin out - not once or twice but until your good ideas take root. But if you can't get that bothered about things, you should at least be bothered enough to vote. That's the very minimum that you should do when you won't do anything more. Afterall, things never get so bad they couldn't get worse. Think that one over carefully before the next election, whether its federalreprovincial or municipal. Before you deliberately decide to stay home from the polls because you can't be bothered, ask yourself just how bothered you want to get. How bothered do you have to be before you will be bothered enough to Oto something constructive eabout your situation? cath wooden