The South Marysburgh Mirror | RE ES THE LAST WORD "Mr. Fix It" To be politically correct I should re-title this tome Mr. and Mrs. and Ms. Fixit, but enough of that stuff. Here in the County there are many Mr. Fixit's, and I for one am thankful to have them. They are in many cases not profes- sionally qualified, however years of experience in DOING the job have made them as well, if not better qualified to carry on their trade, whatever it may be. A certificate never fixed a broken pipe. Living in a rural setting does mean an above aver- age number of septic systems, pumps, filtration, heating/ cooling systems, larger than average lots, and the need for equipment to do the work. At some point in time any of these items will require attention -- usually URGENT at- tention, and it is then that your Mr. Fix-it comes into their own. Have you noticed that the lawn tractor always fails when the grass is growing at its most prolific, or the jet pump gives up the ghost when you are expecting the fam- ily to arrive for the weekend, and so it goes on. Fortunately, the Des Marcilles; the David Hicks's; the Glen Guernseys; the Harry Veenstras (and many more) of the County are at that moment just waiting for your call. They are your saving grace as they swing into action and save the day for you. As an aside, perhaps you were not aware that our illustrious Editor, Mr. Des Mar- cille, is an accomplished builder now turned handyperson SEINE FINANCIAL (anag. can fail in) PUZZLE SOLUTION HO- (T)-LY NO - (TAR) -ISE DUMBWAITER (anag. but weird ma) US -ED DE - TESTS INSTANT (anag. tan isn't) a BEE > |o|o|lo|iIrmiZ BE DOWN LIANA (a nail rev.) S- (TICK) -UM A -C-CURATE RECEDE (anag. decree) Zimm|{I|» S- (TI (it rev.) -PEND M- (ELODR (anag. older) -AMA DISPASSIONATE (anag. date | pass on) OPEN HOUSE (anag. one soup he) CAST -1-R-ON NO - TABLE CO- (RR) -UPT (anag. up cot) T-Y-RANT SHE - EN ACROSS f- ALL-STAR -tup P- RESUME TA- (at rev.) -XI CHIN- (CHILL) -A BACK - DROP D- (RE) -AD DOG MAT -1S-M 1-DEAL Pa Te (OOO, the bleeding heart liberals will be pleased with me for that one) who does great work for those who are now unable to do it for themselves. (don't edit this out Des!!!) Part of the joy of living in The County is just that; a wonderful eclectic group of talented individuals, (and a few who may be better avoided) who make their living helping and being of service to others, and this of course does not stop here. We cannot forget our elected officials who voluntarily put themselves in a position of serving the public in whatever their capacity may be. Theirs can be an onerous task, often facing unjustified criticism by those who do not have access to all of the facts, or perhaps are unaware of financial constraints. It is so easy to throw rocks at public figures when you know that there is little chance of them coming hur- tling back at you. Like the readers of the Mirror, I often glance over the letters to the editor of our other local press. The battles which are carried on in these pages are legion: Remember the Rec Plex; the Bergerons; the Hos- pital; the No Frills; the Sewage Plant and many, many more. I often wonder how much "fixing" goes on behind the scenes before these issues of seemingly 'national' im- portance are put to bed, fully and finally. What is our next big issue likely to be? What is it that might bring out the good citizens of the County in large numbers for a passive "sit-in" to block the three bridges to the County or surround the Mayor's offices? Do we have sufficient passion in our lives to even contem- plate such action? I think not. The truth is that we are a bit of a push over when it comes to protest. A few letters in the Mirror or the Gazette/County or Welly Times will fail to alter much in our lives, and we are more likely to be- come over-excited about a broken faucet. The recent news approving the No Frills expan- sion must be a huge let down for our Main Street, Picton business owners. I cannot understand the lack of comment in the press over this as it begins a trend that, if....sorry 1 should have said AS it continues, will eventually make our downtown area a ghost town. Avoidable? YES of course it is. If No Frills wishes to expand then why not take over one of the "gaps" in Main Street and develop it to the benefit of the town and the people who are their customer base! There is surely something wrong with our local government by- laws when development moves ahead in this way. I say to the Mayor and council: "reject the $60,000 which I understand has been offered and, hav- ing lost our ability to control development, at least retain our pride." - Bill Yates, - Friend of the County.