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4 the tribune thursday november 2 17 a ft bwbune james thomas editorinchief established 1888 charles h nolan publisher barrebeacock advertising manager edftofual oept joann thompson jkn koh display advertising dept lois widaoan uario emmarson busmess office jou marahman dormo omcon ebmq ciomt pumahad avary thursday at 54 main st stoufmsa onl tal 6402101 toronto phona 3611680 slngla copias 20 e subscriptions s1000 par yaar in canada s2640 auawhara marnbar ol canadian community nawtpapara aaaodation and ontario waakly nawapapars association sacond data mall registration numbar 0896 tha trlbuna la on of tha inland publishing co umhad group of suburban nawspapars which in- dudaa tha ajax whitby picturing nam advarttsar crimpmi guardian burlington post etoncr gazatta markham economist and sun nawmartet aurora era oakirwa baavar oshaara this waak hhsltaaiiga nawa oshawa this waakand acton fraa prass llirton canadian champion and tha oaorgatoam indapandanl 6402100 3611680 editorials detail education wrongs theres a feeling of unrest and dissatisfaction among many parents in whitchurch stouff ville concerning the public school system particularly at the secondary level their concern relates to sdss only because that is the location for higher learn ing in this area they would feel exactly the same if their sons and daughters were at tending at markham thomhill or aurora so its the system not the school thats wrong however since its difficult to change the system attention must be focussed on an integral part of it the high school in stouffville stouffville high it would seem does not meet the moral standard of instruction many parents would like to see for their children a standard on a par with what is taught in then- homes and their churches because of this some at considerable expense have enrolled their sons and daughters in private christian schools this of course is fine for the people who can afford it but not everyone can so theyre caught caught in a system theyd like to see changed changed for the better but what changes are wanted we would suggest theres not a trustee on the york county board of education not a principal or teacher in the region perhaps across ontario who wouldnt endorse certain changes if they know specifically what they are what benefical instruction is offered at a christian school thats lacking here in stouffville what type of instruction should be cut from the curriculum here to make it more acceptable criticism is one thing constructive criticism is another let those with com plaints list them on paper so solutions may result so far generalities are what weve heard specifics are what we need to unveil official plan a public meeting of great importance to whitchurch stouffville residents will be held thursday evening tonight in latcham hall at 8 pm prime purpose of the gathering is to unveil the towns official plan a 58page document thats been several years in the making the policies laid down therein hold the key to future development within this municipality during the next five years and beyond while information centres were set up this week both in stouffville nov 26 and ballantrae nov 27 recommendationsi embodied in the plan will undoubtedly remain unclear to many people however ignorance will not be accepted as any excuse should problems arise later on the time to pose questions and obtain answers is tonight your future is at stake is death proof enough saying we told you so wont bring back the life of a 16yearold cannington girl victim of a tragic twocar collision at the intersection of 17th avenue and kennedy road in markham we all knew it was going to happen it was only a matter of time days weeks months until someone would die along this route in fact this newspaper predicted the inevitable when the road was first opened a main highway intersecting other main highways are invitations to death and damage unless protected by automatic traffic signals instead of installing the lights as part of the construction project the regions been dilly dallying around counting cars to see if signals were warranted in other words they wanted proof theyve got it now we suppose that just viewing potentially hazardous sites would be an all too simple practice for the professional being scholarly types they must abide by the book un fortunately the process is slow too slow cars are wrecked people are injured and lives are lost we say traffic signals will eventually be installed at mccowan road kennedy road and warden avenue they have to be so better sooner than later too late for an in nocent victim friday a springlike scene in the month of november this scene saturday is what one might expect to see in midmarch rather than latenovember the fastmoving stream is only a branch of the uttle rouge river flowing parallel to 19th avenue east of dicksons hoi heavy weekend rains raised the water to near bank level jim thomas llpw come hor high water bailantrae will have a fire brigade i roaming around our living room just died for three years now my wifes had an inner desire to do something different anything after two decades of caring for kids and little else she feels shes earned it and she has no argument there bjut whata husband cant just toss caution to the wind and say do your own thing many a trusting man has done just that only to come home to a dear john letter and a sink full of dirty dishes while many a frau in her forties has struck out for greener pastures im not suggesting this could happen to me still give em an inch and a rich neighbor and who knows id be the last to take a chance and the last to know if shed do the same regardless i knew that together wed have to hit onsomething otherwise shed go it alone on occasions she hinted at returning to work maybe even parttime but i said no i couldnt bear the thought of two sons and two daughters leaving a motherless household each morning and returning to one just as empty at night and neither could she so we thought some more i suggested a steady round of visiting like parkview green gables and so on and she agreed but it wasnt enough she wanted a challenge something to tax her ingenuity then last september she found it and through an ad in the tribune no less night school at stouff ville high what shed wanted all the time we went down the list together dozens of opportunities to apply and expand ones skills there was cakedecorating dressmaking crocheting oilpainting flowerarranging drafting furniturerefinishing accounting woodworking housewiring and so on just about everything in the book but nothing that really caught her fancy then she saw it a fixit course for handypersons and she was walking on air while i silently questioned the wisdom of a woman taking up that kind of trade there was no denying the fact the knowledge was needed heck around our house you have to call in an electrician to replace a light bulb so i agreed but alas less than fifteen applications were received so her doityourself dream went out the door but that wasnt the end no siree she was bent on doing something and one disap pointment wouldnt stand in her way so she selected interior decorating and design classes commenced sept 19 and will extend over ten weeks the cost was only 14 best money we ever spent believe it or not but every wednesday night she comes home a new person the people are great the insfructor is great the ideas are great everythings great a team of horses couldnt keep her out of class in fact shes only missed one session since it started while id never say it its been my v by jim thomgs opinion that the socializing is every bit as important as the learning its a break from the sometimes boring humdrum toils a devoted wife and mother must endure and thats fine she deserves it however after wednesday of last week im not so sure i deserve it for on my return home thursday evening i really wondered if id stumbled into the wrong house the living room where we do most of our living was in total disarray the only recognizable stick of furniture was the piano and i swear shed have moved that too if it hadnt been so gosh- damed heavy the hifi had been switched from in front of the window to the west wall and in its place a vase of artificial flowers on the floor the chesterfield had been moved out from the north wall and shifted to the east so it partially blocked the entrance to the dining room one chesterfield chair cut off the en trance to the hall and a coffee table was smack dab in the centre lucky for me i switched on a light or i could have done myself permanent damage she was there to greet me with that old how do you like it theme an answer to which im still considering in the meantime im contemplating a course of my own how to build a two- room doghouse one room for the dog and the other for me window on wildlife colorful pileated woodpecker by art briggs-jude- in the quiet of the northern woods youll often hear the silence broken by a loud ck- cukcuk call coming from a nearby ridge or stand of large pine to the untrained ear it may sound somewhat like the call of a hardy flicker that for reasons we can only guess at has decided to spend the coming cold weather months there but as you listen to those clear repetitious notes echoing across the now leafless forest you begin to realize theyre different than the sounds made by the more familiar flicker for one thing like many of the moods suggested by your surroundings the pace is slower the notes lower pitched yet with greater volume often this initial out burst is followed by some heavy pounding suggesting a cottager just over the next rise has decided to make some late autumn repairs the mystery deepens however when you gain the top of the ridge for a vast acreage of woodlands greets your eye with no sign of human habitation and alas often no trace of the callmaker unfortunately in many in stances the sounds of its voice with its hammering accompaniment or the results of its woodworking activities are all one ever sees of the spectacular pileated woodpecker yet this crowsized woodpecker with the flaming red crest has recovered from the status of a rare bird and is now as common in the wooded sections of this province as it was before the settlers arrived and while the clearing of its forest habitat played a large part in the birds disappearance such a large brightly coloured target was also too often included in the bag of the unscrupulous market hunter when you come upon the workings of the pileated woodpecker you can be sure you are in a mature forest or at least amongst trees that are the remnent of one luckily this big barkclinger has adapted to our changing landscape and where large dead trees are still available it can still peck out an existence its visits to rotting logs and stumps leaves a scattering of chips lying about as it tears into the punky wood for the grubs and ants contained therein more often than not these excavations take on a rectangular shape rather than the usual round hole routings of other woodpeckers and the dimensions of these crevises too suggests the workings of a largesized bird the cavities frequently measure four inches across and sometimes intermittently follow the curving contours of the tree varying in length from several inches to a chiselled vale several feet long probably because of their specialized habitat and somewhat shy disposition pileated woodpeckers are not noted for visiting manmade feeders during the winter one notable exception however occurred on the property of dr rc laird at purpleville just west of maple here in a heavily wooded valley on the upper reaches of the humber river my wife was able to entice one of these conspicuous avian carpenters to feed within a few feet of the window using an upright mesh feeder filled with raw suet she regularly fed this female pileated for four consecutive winters if by chance your home is really close to a woodlot or parkland containing large trees you may be able to do the same if so we would certainly appreciate word on your success the actual sighting of one of these truly magnificent birds up close is a memory that lingers on for many years early one spring for example while on a trout fishing trip northeast of the marten river we had set up camp on a small island the weather suddenly turned really warm and my companions went across the short distance to the main shore to retrieve some ice from beneath the rocky bluffs i had gone into the tent to get the bug dope and as i began to crawl back out of the shelter a shadow swept across the canvas turning to peekout the entrance i was treated to the sight of a beautiful male pileated woodpecker clinging to a tree trunk less than six feet away at first it didnt notice me as it drove its heavy dark bill into the dying pine sending a shower of debris in the direction of the shelter i tried to remain motionless in that half turned position on my hands and knees but those big yellow eyes with the black centers soon detected my presence it raised its fiery crest uttered a single warning note and was gone but not before i had had a good look at the cockofthenorth as they were often called in days gone by although that was actually my closest encounter with these big birds ive had the good fortune of also seeing them near hunt- sville in the haliburton highlands and along the parkway of the lower niagara river several other sightings were added to my list last week in the rideau lakes district near the town of westport yet you sometimes dont have to travel that far to observe this strikingly marked woodpecker sightings for instance are reported almost every year from places nearby such as maple kleinburg bethesda ballantrae bruces mill and altona of course if you want to snap a picture of this black beauty with the flaming head dress youll have to remember to walk softly and carry a big lens f7 i