The Goderich Signal-Star, 1979-08-30, Page 19sykes
Inside this section:
Have you ever run into a salesperson
you didn't like?
I have nothing against salespeople;
afterall, they are just doing their job's.
In fact, I find them rather amusing:
The most amusing are the sales-.
people who work on commission. They
know where the money is.
If you've ever bought furniture,
appliances, a car or eve a house,
you've had contact with Such a
salesperson. And you can have fun with
them,
As soon as you enter the store or
whatever, they spot you. They could .
have been in the basement at the time,
having a,sleep, but somehow they know
when a customer enters the store.
I think kit's an innate sense that all •
good salespeople have.
Now as soon as you're spotted the
salesperson rushes up and offers his
assistance. Right away counter with
the old alibi that you're just looking or
browsing.
It tends to drive them into hysterics
Participate in talentshow play to small audience Page 3A
Mary Margaret Murphy was sparkley.in Sound of
Music
Jack Riddell writes from Queen's Park
Harbouraires present '2,000 for the George Buchanan
Memorial Award Page 8A
Weddings Page 9A
Champion's president makes awards to several
students Page 11A
Captain Comet w Page 13A
Martha Rathburn Page 14A
Page 4A
Page 6A
but they don't show it. With a wry smile
they will either ask what it is you are
looking for or they will be content to let
you browse.
Invariably, as you browse through
the store, you can see the same sales-
person lurking behind furniture so he
won't be seen but close enough to hear
what you're saying.
Then if you stop over some mer-
chandise for a scant second, they
immediately appear at your side, as if
they appeared from nowhere and offer
their assistance.
Again, you must dash their hopes and
explain that ypu Tally were just
looking. They will continue to stay
about five steps behind you just in case
you spot a likeable item and need a
five-minute briefing on their con-
venient lay -away plan and finance
charges.
In, a survey on salesclerks in
• England it was discovered that
salesladies would much rather deal
with a man.
Apparently men smile and don't fuss
when making a purchase.
The Jerks claimed that women are
rude;Ympatient and demanding, won't
take advice and generally don't know
what they want.
Men, so the clerks say, say thank you
° more often, argue less and have more
p-atience than women shoppers. But
you must give women credit for their
endurance when shopping; they can
shop for days without stopping to
change shoes.
Despite their endurance and enviable.
record in marathon shopping, clerks
claim- they–are the worst customers.
and the older they get the worse they
are.
However, the clerks surveyed were
women so sex definitely had something
to do with the results and the popularity
of men.
Over 10 per cent Of the clerks claimed
men were more difficult to deal with
but the report indicated that those
saiimaisaisimmiesimmaimi
clerks were of the extremes unat-
tractive variety.
Salesclerks must get a laugh out of
men shoppers, though. Have you ever
bought anything for a lady friend in a
clothing store?
It is difficult to convey a sweater size
to the salesgirl just by a show of hands'
or saying: "Oh she's about this big
around," as you make a circle with
your arms that should indicate the size
of your lady friend to the clerk.
Women's sizes are different and I
can't catch on, so when I have bought
the odd clothing article, 1 merely
speculated on the size with the
assurance the item could be returned.
So far every one has been returned.
There's nothing worse than buying a
size 15 when she wears 10. They always
take it as a derogatory statement about
their appearance when you bought the
size out of ignorance.
Salespeople deserve credit, at least
when I shop.
WM
the
derich
SIGNAL
132 YEAR -35
THURSDAY,AUGUST 30, 1979
STAR
SECONDSECTION
Mike Scott likes to feature Goderich scenes on his
art work. He thinks Goderich is fantastic with its
harbor, historic homes and small-town friendliness.
He doesn't like to see ``Made in Japan" souvenirs of
Goderich when there are so many talented people
living here who can produce authentic souvenirs of
the town at reasonable cost. Some of the work he
displays in this photograph will be featured at the
Christmas Country Fair at Saltford Valley Hall on
h •
October 20. (Photo by Joanne Buchanan)
You can
learn to be
an artist
BY JOANNE
BUCHANAN
Mike Scott of Goderich
doesn'tobelieve that the
ability to draw is a
natural talent.. He
believes tliiat it can be
learned. Otherwise he
wouldn't be teaching art
to Grade 7 and 8 students
at Robertson Memorial
Public School.
,And Mike Scott is one
art teacher who practises
what he .teaches.
Although he has had no
formal art training and
admits to not having very
fancy art tools, he has
produced some fine art
work. All it takes, he
says, is the ability to
really observe things and
of course lots of practise.
"If kids put as much
work into drawing as they
do into reading and
writing, they could
become good artists'. I'm
trying to convince people
that if you work at
something, you will , get
returns," he says.
Up until recently, Mr.
Scott's main return from
a -rt work has been
'monetary but now .he
feels his main return is
enjoyment.
"This is the first time
I've been really serious
about the art angle.
Before I always did it for
extra cash or as a favor
for 'somebody. I draw' as
much for my • own
pleasure now as I do to'
sell. My work is also
paying for itself and that
is encouraging," he says.
The work Mr. Scott is
referring to are , ink
sketches of area houses;
hasty notes, plaques,
tiles, and hand colored •
prints featuring Goderich
scenes; •doodle art
posters and even T-shirts
and hats. This work will
all be featured at the
Christmas Country Fair
on October 20 at Saltford
Valley Hall.
Mr. Scott says he wants
to offer variety at the fair
instead of just one thing.
He says he is equipped to
do almost any type of
commercial art and if he
can't do it, he will quickly
learn how.
The main reason that
Mr. Scott features
Goderich scenes on much
of his work is because he
loves the town • But up
untilabout three years
ago he did not even know
it existed.
He was horn in
Brighton, Sussex,
England and moved to
Montreal, Quebec when
he was ten years (Std. He
says he didn't care so
-much about learning to'
speak French as he did
about learning to speak
Canadian. He worked
hard at getting rid of his
English accent because'
the other kids made fun of
it. After about a year he
was successfully
speaking "Canadian'.
From Montreal, he
went to New Brunswick,
then back to Montreal. He
joined the navy reserve
and spent a lot of time
with the navy in Nova
"Scot4ia. Then he went
back to Montreal, then
Sherbrooke and
Chateapguay before
finally moving to
Goderich in 1976.
He had received his
Bachelor of Science
degree from Sir George
Turn to page 2,1 •
Mike Scott's sons Ian, 11 and Pete, 5, show off some of their father's art work
with these T-shirts he designed for the Ontario Pork Congress earlier in the
year. The Scotts, who moved to Goderich three years ago, also have another
son, Andrew, 8. Ali three boys enjoy drawing like their father. (Photo by
Joanne Buchanan)
® If the rattle doesn't ,drive me out of
my mind first I may end up a human
torch when that lighter gets too hot.
The lighter, you see, is nestled down
somewhere in the heater of my car. It
. fell down the defroster and is now
somewhere between the windshield
and the floor and it's rattling.
It all happened very innocently. My
cigarettes (if anyone even thinks of
telling me none of this would have
_tappered if F didn't smoke I' lt•arrange
to have' your toilet seat wired up to give
you a shock you'll be a while forget-
ting) and lighter were sitting on the
dash of my car when I turned in my
driveway. Both slid across the dash but
only the cigarettes made it to the other
side.
• The lighter dropped into the
defroster and got lodged in the venting.
It all looked very harmless. The
lighter was sitting just below the dash
and I figured all I had to do was hook it
between my fingers and drop it back in
my pocket.
That's when, the mental torture
began.
Some scheming deviate at General
Motors must have designed the dash-
board and the windshield just for oc-
casions like this. The angle at which the
two meet is perfect. You can clearly
see what it is your trying to get but
there is almost no way you can get it.
I managed to get a finger on either
side of the lighter and pulled it part
way out ofi tFie 'vent: -But just before it -
came away clear it hooked underneath
a plastic lip on the defroster vent.
Every One I moved it to clear the lip it
fell.back down beyond my grasp. •
Still calm I went to the garage and
got a screwdriver to pry it out. Tif'at's
when I discovered the angle of the
windshield had been set to prevent
getting anything into or out of the
defroster. .�
The screwdriver wouldn't reach the
edge of the vent. The only way i could
get the screwdriver to the lighter was
smash the Windshield, which for a
second I seriously considered.
What I needed was a pair of needle
nose pliers. Not on your life. The pliers,
while considerably shorter than the
screw driver, came no where near
fitting into the crevice between glass
and padded dash. The lighter sat there
like a diamond in a museum, clearly in
sight but impossible to.get at.
Not wanting to give up I got a nail. It
almost did the trick. It just barely fit
and I managed- to hook thie vent and
push it out of the way. But I ran out of
hands.
Holding the nail in one hand I tried to
grab the lighter with the other. But
there wasn't room. When I tried to
borrow two fingers from the hand
holding the nail the nail slipped and
vanished in the vent next to the one
holding my lighter.
Now I'm starting to lose my patience'
In a flash of anger I push on the
venting to try to free the lighter and all
of a sudden I'rh looking at an empty
hole. The lighter slides out of sight, I
drops with a thud into the centre of the
dash, rattles around briefly and stops I
know not where.
I crawled under the dash and looked
into the maze of wires and switches
trying to find the heater pipe. I find the
bottom end of the system and try to
work my hand up to see if I can find
anything. 1 came to a sharp bend in the•
pipe and just as I was about to push my
hand through the thought crosses my
min
With my head on the floor and my
feet,- over the seat how am I going to
drive this crate to a garage to get my
hand free. 1 mean by the time my wife
discovers me all the blood will have
rushed to my head and my little brain
will have drowned.
I gave up. That is until I drove to
work the next morning and heard the
rattle. If you're driving down the road
and see a car coming 11 ward you with a
driver throwing radios and
speedometers out th window you'll
know I made my choic
*Fr
Seddon
J