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That settles it, I thought. I'm going to spend the summer growing basil and parsley and beefsteak tomatoes, just to prove it to myself and them. But first, the garden had to be dug from a corner of the lawn. The manure had to be "You'll be bored," snorted James, putting on another cup of coffee. It was the voice of experience - James had spent several years planting and tending vegetables in the far corner of his property. 'Wll tie you down," said Ulrike, no doubt imagining me whining at having to water the carrots when the day would be far better suited to a few hours of canoeing in a marsh somewhere. But that January, as I stared out Jams' window at his garden, an idea began to form. A garden would give me something to do on weeknights, after dinner. It would give me an excuse to drink beer while standing around with my shirt oft, catching a few rays, and listening to Roxy Music. Most importantly, it would give me a chance to beat a phobia of mine. You see, I have a black thumb. The thumb of death. Give me a plant, any plant, the most healthy plant you have, and within three months I'll kill it. It was time to prove to myself it didn't have to be that way. arrives, a new and more chipper [an arrives, as if deposited by migrating geese. In the warmer months, I don't like to be tied down. And certainly not by a garden, a companion of white picket fences and look-alike houses. Finding cure for the tyiht'iit"""'tiEiiilYiit2'rr" ft au, a big step for me. iriGi2; oiGiiiiillii," {and winters depressing - very depressing. But when spring arrives, , not anti more chipper [an arrives, as if ItmminJanuag, tE1987, starlngout the window atthe - piling up outside, that we decided to plant a herb and vegetable garden come spring. It was to be not just any garden - it would be a herb and vegetable garden. LaDptt_ttmiieaatttoth-ttfttt"vertlttgt- (ttlt,utret',g."'""'n'ho"'u'eh,t,,,tt, Wltouoo orlnn. hump... IN FASHION hm” This, year that old cement block oompoeter is coming down. Replacing it is a blue barrel composter supplied gratis hr the region (call 747-2226 to get yours). It has a top, and holes drilled for aeration - a vastly superior model to my original. Over 20 per cent of my garbage will be redirected to something constructive - feeding the herb garden, as well as James' bushes and shrubs and Ulrike', flowers. The veggies tasted great, especially the tomatoes. And I made enough pesto to last most of the winter from the basil and parsley. I wasn’t bored, I got a good tan, and overcame my black thumb. Last year we repeated the exercise. mrktdfn,andthepeat.Theseedshadtotseorted. And the computer. The composter had to be built. For this was to he an organic garden - no chemical fertilizers, no insecticides, or pesticides, no deadly poisons to pollute our food and harm the environment. Nothing. Well, about that composter. We (yes, we - James and Ulrike joined in the hut) built it from concrete blocks begged from a neighbor. It was open to the air, and not very pretty. But it worked, and gave us two yields of fresh compost to enrich our soil that year. We saved everything from our kitchens. Well, almost everything. Meat and bones, and dairy scraps are bad news as compact. But we saved fruit and veggie peelings, bread scraps, leftovers, eggshells (and eggs that went bad before I had a chance to eat them). I threw in a few used rags. James threw on the lawn clippings (ehernieariree of course - pesticides and herbicides kill the bacteria that make a oomposter work). In the fall we added leaves. And amazingly, there was no smell. And no rats, or mice. Just fresh, rich, dark soil made from our garbage. To add to the garden to enrich the soil and make the veggies grow up strong and healthy like Popeye. feel of this place. The bureaucrats call it quality of life, and it sounds silly, but that's Why, it is alrright. "Well, actually. Jason, it's not so bad as it seems. Sure, some of the older folks like me, and like Mary too, well, we like to gripe about it. And sure. the town’s not a town anymore. But things change and..." "Yeah, but what about the atmosphere?" interrupted Jason, warming to the topic. "Why, Tara and I moved here in 1980 because of the "When we liv'ed in Toronto, we spent all our money on rent. We amldn't afford our own No easy answer to growth "I guess it’s been kind of tough, seeing a beautiful town like Waterloo change and grow and get covered in gloss and concrete," said Jason, taking another sip of his cappuccino. Damn, that poppyseed struedel looks good, he thought to himself. He signalled the waitress to bring him one. "Yeah, I suppose it has, in a way," began Martin, thinking of all the people he knew who had moved away, and all the new younger people who took over his neighborhood over the last 10 or 20 years. People like Jason, he smirked, big city people out in the country for a lifelong picnic. "Yeah,f've been here a long time, all right, Born at the corner of Dupont and Peppler Streets, I was, and 62 years ago next month, too. I've seen the town change, for sure" Jason took a long sip of his cappuccino. It's always better with cinnaman than chocolate, he thought, "Actually, Martin, Tara was saying yesterday that she thinks Waterloo', losing its small-town flavor. I guess it is, when you think about it. You’ve been here a long time, haven't you? What do you think?" Jason looked up from his cappuccino to see his neighbor ordering a poppyoeed struedel and coffee. "Hi Martin," he called cheerfully, and get tured for the older gentleman to have a seat at his table. Martin sat down. "Hey, Jason, Ihre been reading this controversy about Waterloo's growth. What do you think?" City Seen Ian Kirkby" reporter Ian Klrlrby demonstratea one of the many uaee for the backyard blue barrel computers. currently available from the reglon (call 747-2232). Computer: are great tor vegetable and flower gardens and shrubs and can reduce household waste by over 20 per cent. an. new. new Compoalen cure fup, god troof tpr you, too. Chronicle Jason wasn't convinced, We'll argue it agam another day, he thought. "Oh, wmtress. can we have another coffee and a cappuccino over here. please?" "You came from Toronto because you could have big city living, but a small town feelmg So did all those other people. Now we have bl; city living, and an almost blg city feelmg It's your fault. And, because you‘re here. and you like it small, you want to stop the growth. eh" No, I like it now, with most people working. and with things to do, But I know your type. you're never happy. You'll try and Mop this growth, or at least slow It down And maybe it won't be so bad if you do, I don't know, But there's no easy answer, Jason, therds no easy answer.” It was too much for Martin, “Listen. Jason. he said, his voice pitched higher now “I‘ve seen this city grow. I've seen it prosper, But I also lived here when it was tough to get a Job, when there wasn't a lot of choice out there Sure. it's great new, the economy is booming. Jobs are everywhere, salaries mew. But it wasn't always like that. There's more companies out there new. and more people to support them And everybody's happier, Was a tune when this town was sure boring for a young man or woman, Jason Now it's not place. By the time the rent was paid, and the groceries, we didn't have much left for fun I mean, Toronto's full of great restaurants, and theatre, and there's Harborfront and the Beaches and all sort of great places, but we were stuck in the apartment reading and watching the tube. Here, we could afford our own place. We go to the " Symphony once In a while. I can spend an afternoon here In the cafe. We even drive to Toronto to go to a restaurant and a play a couple of umes a year PF "So, what's your point?" "Well, now the house prices here have shot up. The subdivisions are everywhere The population has gone up by 50 per cent 1n the last decade. Waterloo's getting crowded. there y concrete and glass everywhere. not brick and stone. It doesn't feel like Waterloo anymore It feels like ... well, like Mississauga. I thmlt someone should do something about It Some, one should swp the growth. It's destroying our quality of life, and it's destroying the natural environment, too. There's too much pollution, and we don't even have enough water now to supply our own people and industry Someone has to stop it all." “Thu-UM