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Wednesday, March 16,1994 • i sMs We Asked and You Said.. 3 Page from the Past 6 Community Correspondence 6 -10 | v'. "1, ..... . §8 . - ■ ' #3f :n % i '/X,; Sv- x - "SWj v" n ' . -x v 1 \\ = Kristin McCrea places hand-carved and hand-painted windows on splotches of black on the house --- these textured areas which look one of her bird feeders. She has been building her versions of disap- like stones -- are made with sawdust and carpenter s glue. Nothing pearing rural homes in the form of bird feeders for the last six years goes to waste in this workshop! at her workshop in Kendal, McCrea doesn't waste anything. The Intricate Woodwork is for the Birds by Laura J. Richards ! The bird feeders begin as pencil scribbles in coil-bound notebooks. * "I don't do houses per se, I do ■my version," explained Kendal area . resident Kristin McCrea. The bird feeders are popular among her friends. Everyone wants one. McCrea was madly working on a bird feeder the day this reporter visited her woodworking studio near Kendal. "I could do this forever," she added as she was painting sunlight detail on hand-carved windows for a feeder. The windows would later be glued to the walls of the structure. "I enjoy doing this. It is nice to. see something evolve." McCrea's speciality is bird feeders. feeders. They look like historic homes and outbuildings which are disappearing disappearing from the landscape of rural Ontario. - She prides herself on making bird feeders that look like some of these buildings. However, do not be mistaken. McCrea's feeders are not architectural architectural models. "1 would go bonkers doing an ar- chitectural rendering to scale. That isn't artistry. "I don't want to reproduce some- You don't need to find a leprechaun to capture a pot of gold this weekend. You don't even need to go to the end of the rainbow. Just go to downtown Bowmanville for the Business Improvement Area's Pot of Gold Contest. And, whether you win the draw for a one-ounce gold wafer or not, you're bound to save a pot of money when you join the fun. The stores will be offering spring merchandise and bargains galore. In addition, the Bowmanville Business.Improvement Area is giving away a one-ounce gold wafer valued at over $500 in its "Savin' o' the Green" contest which begins on St. Patrick's Day (Thursday, March 17) and concludes Saturday, March 19. Garth Gilpin, Business Manager for the BIA, noted that downtown shoppers can enter the contest by filling out a coupon in the participating stores. (No purchase is necessary.) There is also a coupon in the "Savin' o'lhe Green" advertisement which appeared in last week's Independent and is also in this edition of The Statesman. Or, you can enter by signing your name and phone number on the back of a sales slip. Coupons or sales slips should be dropped into the receptacles provided provided in the shops. On Saturday afternoon, March 19th, the draw will take place. Good luck, and we'll see you downtown! thing -- that takes the creativity out of it." McCrea sees her bird feeders as being folk art. "My definition of folk artist is someone who is relatively untrained and doing their version of something. something. ' ,, "In a silly way,'it works!" f7 N , Beginning with her scribbles in note books, McCrea settles on a size she would like to work with, along with a collection of ideas from others. others. She also keeps samples of small pieces. "If you keep a sample, you only have to do the math once." From the notes and drawings, she begins to construct the bare bones of the feeder. McCrea's workshop is stuffed with woodworking equipment, equipment, supplies and other projects on-the-go. "McCrea sees her bird feeder as being folk art." Once she has the skeleton carpentry carpentry work done, she looks at the detailing involved. Using what she has on hand, which is a lot of wood, (including some that came from an old bam), she experiments with building everything from columns to porches to painting fake stone exterior walls. "Nothing goes to waste," she said. Even the sawdust and carpenter's carpenter's glue are used to make a surface resembling stone. Windows are made from old cedar shakes. The process of building and completing completing a single bird feeder can take her up to two or three weeks. Everything is done with meticulous meticulous care. Mistakes get covered up or incorporated into the design. ■I McCrea was painting windows tor the bird feeder in the photo while this reporter questioned her about her projects. "Building a single bird feeder can take up to three weeks." She said she rarely makes regular-looking regular-looking bird feeders unless someone asks her to. There is no creativity involved, she said, in describing describing the construction of conventional conventional feeders. Her largest feeders can hold up to 10 pounds. That's enough for two weeks, depending on the number of birds you're feeding and the time of year. McCrea has a small village of bird feeders in her backyard. During the winter, a variety of birds frequent frequent the feeder for food. The appeal of the bird feeders goes beyond the actual image of the feeders to, in some cases, a place of fantasy. One of the feeders she has been, working will become a train station. Initially, it was supposed to be some other type of building. The pieces take on a life of their own, as they evolve. Photo Radar Units Taking Aim at Aggressive Drivers by Lorraine Manfredo Installing polarized licence plate covers or over-sized trailer hitches to avoid identification on the highway is no way to beat photo radar units, advises the staff sergeant in charge of the province-wide project. In fact, anyone who hides or obscures their plates with such devices -- or even allows the plates to be covered in plain old mud -- may be breaking the law and will certainly not escape the attention of police. "We want the driver that is like a rocket out there." Staff Sergeant John Macintosh, Macintosh, of the Ontario Provincial Police, was speaking to the Clar- ington Community Policing Committee at the Flying Dutchman Dutchman Hotel on Wednesday evening. evening. The fledgling Newcastle- based policing committee has been working at identifying unsafe unsafe traffic conditions on major arteries in Clarington and will be recommending solutions to the police. Alan Mote, spokesperson for the Clarington Community Policing Policing Committee, appreciates the benefits of photo radar and hopes it will contribute to saving lives. "The biggest advantage is the financial deterrent," he says. "If my car belongs to my boss, he's going to see every ticket ! get" Plate-owners of cars caught by the photo radar cameras will receive an 8 1/2 by 14-inch violation violation notice in the mail, complete with a computer-generated photo of their vehicle, stating the date, time and how fast the driver was travelling. This will be a deterrent to teens who borrow their parent's car, adds Sergeant Ross Nelson, of the Newcastle Detachment of the OPP. He believes photo radar is an effective means of nabbing the habitual speeder. Local police detachments will continue to use their own discretion discretion in tolerating certain speeds over posted limits on highways in their jurisdictions. Enforcement Enforcement depends on factors such as road conditions, weather and traffic traffic flow. The units can be set to photograph only those drivers exceeding exceeding a set limit. "We want the driver that is like a rocket out there," says Sergeant Sergeant Nelson. "Those don't want to go with the flow. The ones who come up behind you and want you to get out of the way. We're after the aggressive drivers drivers who cause accidents." The province will begin using the first four units on 400-series highways and other major routes in early April. This means it is possible that a speeder will get photographed three or four times on a trip from Peterborough to Toronto, says Staff Sergeant Macintosh. Six months into the pilot project, project, 16 more radar units will be added, with an an additional ten added annually for the next two years. The staffed units will be located located on the side of the roadway in plain view, Staff Sergeant Macintosh Macintosh says, directing a beam 22 degrees out from the shoulder. A shutter speed of 1/1000 allows two frames per second. A total of 850 shots can be stored on one canister, which should last an entire entire shift. "In the time it now takes an officer to write up one roadside ticket, the photo radar unit will easily produce 19," he says. Macintosh also said "Fuzz- Buster" radar detectors won't offer offer any warning for speeders either. either. "You're through the beam and your photo has been taken before it even beeps," he explains. explains. Sergeant Nelson adds: "Once they get enough equipment, the odds will go from one in a hundred hundred that you'll get caught, to 100 to 1 that you will. " 'The biggest advantage is the financial deterrent." During the first six months of the pilot project, the owner of the plate will be liable for the fine, but no demerit points will be recorded. recorded. That is because the plate owner may not be the driver. Macintosh showed the group test photos taken from the rear of offending vehicles, and he does not rule out the use of front-end photos during this test stage period. period. Front end photos have been criticized for invading the privacy privacy of citizens, but may be necessary necessary to identify the driver if points are going to be deducted. Macintosh said photo radar was invented in Holland 37 years ago and has been in use in Australia Australia for several years where it has contributed to preventing many traffic fatalities. Statistics from 1991 show that every six minutes in Ontario someone is injured in a motor vehicle vehicle collision. The cost in hospital stays, ambulance ambulance calls and police hours and damage to .highways and bridges is estimated to be over $9 billion annually. inn ' li. by Lorraine Manfredo Bob Homme is still the big- hearted guy lie was back when he ran the castle. i ; But these days, instead of performing performing in a TV studio with a sev- cp-foot giraffe and a chicken, he plays his recorder at local hospitals and charity events accompanied by a friend on the ukulele. Gerome the Giraffe, and Rusty the Chicken The American-born musician was the star of the memorable Friendly Giant scries which ran weekday mornings on the Canadian Broadcasting Cor|>oration from 1958 to 1986. Mr. Homme visited the Bowmanville Rotary Club on Mardi lOili to talk about his long career as a children's entertainer. Across Canada, more Hum one generation remembers the Friendly Giant. Few fans have forgotten the theme music which quickly brings to mind' memories of being invited across the lowered drawbridge and into a cozy rocking chair for a good story. The 5T1" star said the show's quiet, one-on-one flavor was intentional intentional and not just the result of a limited budget. "It was conceived before they invented all the hi-tech tricks and you had to use your imagination." imagination." The absence of special effects in no way lessened the appeal of the show. In fact, die shows arc still being being re-broadcast to yet another appreciative appreciative generation on the YTV network. Even in the hi-tech '90's, Homme still favors down-to-earth children's programs with realistic adult role models. The Friendly Giant concept came to him while he was making a career career transition from radio into television television in Wisconsin. During a low period trying to cam a living as a Muzak salesman, lie let his imagination wander, while thinking up concepts for kids' shows* "I rcsoitcd to daydreams to cs- ca|)c reality and the idea of a giant with a miniature set came to me. Sometimes you have a good idea and you want to tell everyone, and sometimes you have a good idea and you don't want to tell anyone. This was one of the latter," he said. The 5' 11" Giant Started on CBC Network in 1958 "My only concern was that a giant might be too fearsome a figure for a child," he recalled. But his wife suggested that it wouldn't be a problem if the giant was "friendly." After further thinking, Homme decided the most logical friend for a friendly giant would be a giraffe. Rusty die chicken rounded out the trio. Only one puppeteer was needed to operate both Gerome and Rusty. Homme told Rolarians about the time a desperate floor director kept waving signals for a speedy wrap- up, but couldn't seem to get his message across. Afterwards he realized realized that he should have been direct ing his signals to the puppeteer instead instead of the puppets. The Friendly Giant came to Canada Canada and the CBC in 1958. Homme was happy because, at the time, Canada's national network had a reputation for being the best in the world for producing quality children's children's programming. Rod Concybcarc was lire Canadian Canadian puppeteer. Homme recalled the day he left the set to fetch a book he had left in the distant dressing 1 room .This left Concybcarc alone, live on the set, trying to carry on a conversation with himself. "It took almost the length of the program to get die book," Homme recalled. "I learned how to delegate authority dial day, but I learned not to do it too often because everyone said it was the best show ever." Bob Homme lives in the Grafton area and is currently a member of the Cobourg Rotary Club. Ho was thanked on behalf of the club by Rotarinn Valerio Vadja, who said Homme's familiar deep baritone voice made her feel like a kid again. L ■ ' i " V I'.'Av L > » i v .1- The Friendly Giant, alias Bob Homme, was prepared for the inevitable inevitable request when lie visited the Bowmanville Rotary .Club last Thursday; he had his recorder in his briefcase and obliged club members members with a rendition of Ills Friendly Giant theme.