Well, I finally found something that Weyburn has in common with Halifax, Nova Scotia (besides my son, Nathaniel) and that is the wonderfully painted lines on our roads. In a recent visit out east, in a rented car, driving in rain/fog, I had nothing but time to observe these lines on my daily commute to pick up my son. The big difference is that Halifax has these 'safety' arrows on one- way streets, not at four-way stops. What a brilliant idea. Not only that, they are actually in a STRAIGHT line. I know, what a crazy concept!
Now, this is not my first visit to Halifax, yet this is my first time to actually take note of these white arrows. I have never had trouble manoeuvring from the airport to downtown Halifax (which is about a half hour), then to Bedford (another 20 minutes on the other side of Halifax) to pick up Nathaniel and then to the crazy shopping zones. Yes, me, a complete stranger to this area feeling comfortable driving from highway to downtown to the mall and all over. How ridiculous that someone who has been driving (let's just say a number of years) feels safer driving in a rental vehicle, thousands of miles away from home, than I do in my own city.
We have been told to 'be patient' and 'give it a chance' as 'change is sometimes hard to accept.' Well, we don't have to look any farther than our police reports and recent letters in the newspaper to know that these 'changes' were perhaps implemented hastily. Maybe it should have been introduced on a smaller scale. The public should have been notified of these impending changes with some signage and prior information that changes were coming (remember all the notices we received when the new garbage receptacles were introduced?) Then, start off on a small scale of one or two intersections. This should have been started in June or July, not September when life is returning to normal after summer holidays and the students are driving to and from school. Of course, people are going to be rebellious. Not only have thousands of dollars been spent on something that seems absurd to most of us, but the public has been kept in the dark about it. It has created confusion in the areas where the arrows have been introduced. To me that's a recipe for disaster, and that, my friends, is what you have.
On the lighter side, with Thanksgiving behind us, my friend Penny sent me a great write-up on the history of aprons. Enjoy!
The History of Aprons:
I don't think our kids know what an apron is.
The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few and because it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and aprons required less material. But along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.
It was wonderful for drying children's tears and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.
From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.
When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.
And when the weather was cold, Grandma wrapped it around her arms.
Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.
Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.
From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables.
After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.
In the autumn, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.
When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.
When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron and the men folk knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.
It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.
REMEMBER:
* Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool. Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.
* The Government would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron.
* I don't think I ever caught anything from an apron - but love...
Maxine's saying: Never go to bed angry....stay up and plot your revenge.
Pet peeve of the week: Well, I've shared this with some of my friends (Judy, Sue and Elsie) and my co-workers (Leslie and Carlee) and they have calmed me down enough so that I don't blow my usually mild-mannered top. Simply said, I am sick and tired of going into banks and stores and doing their work for them. Without going into too much detail, the customer service really sucks lately. From inappropriate conversations between co-workers at the till to incorrect change being given, we need to take a stand! We, as customers and clients, should be more picky and not allow these establishments to offer substandard service. This stupidity and lack of service will continue unless we demand the employees in these places (along with the management) address this issue. That's just me. Let me know what you think!
