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"A Family Tradition for 132 Years" NN. ~ PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, July 6, 1999 - 7 @he Pout Povey Shae Question of the Week... What do you think of plans to implement township-wide garbage pick-up? Do you have a suggestion that you think would make a good question of the week? Call us at 905-985-7383. David Byers I have it now and it has worked well so far, at least for me. I would have to say I favor Pete Snowden I'm definitely in favor. I'm fed up with subsidizing the dump with my gas money and the time involved in carting to the dump™ Eric Holden Since they have started charg- ing at the dump anyway, I think it will be much easier. I don't mind going to the dump, but if I have to pay then they can pick it up. Dave Watson We prefer to deliver it ourselves. We are in a rural area where pickup would cause some problems with animals. Going to the dump has never been a problem. LETTERS Town doesn't owe teens amusement To the Editor: Well, I see another world-wise teenager is fed up with our rural town. It seems there is nothing to do in upscale Victorian Village (Forget the curfew; give kids something to do, Letters, June 29). So, the only thing to do is, blame our council, the residents, and GO transit, plus the bad people who put a seniors' building right smack in the middle of this individual's little world. Does the world revolve around you? I don't think so. You say there is nothing to do; how about getting a job? If not, do some community work. Your parents could have you cut the lawn, paint the house, or many other things. The town and its people do not have to enter- tain you, nor anyone else. I have a simple solution for you: This town is a drag on you, and now that you are a grown- up, you can move to the big town of Oshawa or Toronto. Once you are there, you can take in all the concerts, parties, whatever, and there will be one less person threatening to do damage, or create mayhem on peoples' hard-earned property. This is a great little town. I love it, most people do. Your parents moved here hoping for a nice quiet place %o live, a very good place to bring up kids. So much for that theory. Most kids are happy to be in Port Perry. You have a lot to learn. I hope, for your sake, not from our court system. Think about it: You made threats. These will not be tolerated. The people can understand what you have written. I say to you, grow up, stop whining, get a job, enjoy your teen years. You may be a parent someday. Think about that. Frank Harris Nestleton Something on your mind? You can e-mail the editor: port.perry.star @ sympatico. ca - Back in the 1930s and 1940s Port Perry didn't haves abublic swimming pool, so area children used the pier at the lakefront to dive and swim in Lake Scugog. The diving board, seen above in this photo taken in 1940, was put there by the newly formed Port Perry Lions Club in July 1938, along with a triple-swing set for the park. ditor's otepad by Jeff Mitchell RIGHT IDEA, WRONG TIME Sometimes, after trying and failing and trying and failing and trying and failing again, you have to sit back and wonder: Is it the idea that's wrong, or just the timing? It's that way with a lot of things: column writing, television sit- coms, election campaigns, and the introduction of municipal trash collection. There are others, but let's focus on those that have the most relevance here. And no, television sitcoms are not among them. Take as a ferinstance column writing. Writing a column can seem like a swell idea (beats working!), until the writer sits down, cracks his knuckles and, just before turning his attention to the screen for a session of intensive opinion-forming, looks out the window, and is taken by the gentle beauty of sunshine on leaves, and pudgy clouds floating by in a blue sky.... "It's not much different from going to the shed to haul out the lawnmower and being distracted by the sight of your golf clubs, | then spending the afternoon hitting a range ball with a pitching wedge, all the while attempting without needing to to convince yourself that working on your short game from the rough is what you really ought to be doing. And take delivery of municipal services: Several times over the past several years -- five, in my experience -- we have seen one local politician or another raise the possibility of considering township-wide garbage collection, only to have his head torn clear off by a vociferous and borderline-violent reaction. Country living: You can raise my taxes, cut my provincial transfers for roads, make me buy a licence for the old dog who hasn't left the porch for almost four years and smash the bejeezus out of my mailbox in the middle of the night. But DON'T TOUCH MY GARBAGE. Personally, I've always preferred having my garbage picked up. But some folks would rather not. Some see it as an unnecessary expense, or an encroachment of urban ways on rural communities. Some argue they're so efficient at recycling, reusing and composting that it's a waste of tine to send the garbage truck to their house every week. Some people probably just like going to the dump each week, dammit. : Fair enough. But the point is that introduction of the service throughout the township has always been an inevitability; it's just been a matter of timing, that's all. Now, with the region fixing to impose a fee on each and every visit to the local dumps, council figures the iron is hot, and is striking. As comedians, politicians, bank robbers and the occasional, rare sober drummer all know, timing is everything. If you don't succeed, etc. Same with column writing. Better luck next time.