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Well, Lord. ics been great and we're grateful, But there's only one flaw in the ointment. as we say no literary circles The weather's been so glorious It has sparked a round of activities at our place that has me staggering with fatigue and reeling with confusion Well, it's nice to know that God reads my column. A few weeks ago. a bit daunted after 80 days and nights of rain. I wrote Him a direct and rather petulant letter suggesting that He turn off the taps. that we'd got the message Boy. He doesn't fool around. If I'd sent the letter by mail, He would not have received It until next spring. when we'll probably need some rain, That's why I put It in a column. which he obviously perused during a celestial coffee break, Within 24 hours. He had turned off the showers. brought on! the sun. which I thought Hell mislaid permanently. and favored his favorite critters with a couple of weeks of the best weather we've had since July As long as the rains poured down. we just sort of huddled around the boob tube and I had a perfect excuse for not get- ting the last of the grass cut. the leaves raked, the storm windows on. and various other chores too boring and mis- cellaneous to mention This is a note of introduction to a series of articles which will be appearing from time to time in the com- ing months, dealing with the care of trees and various subjects involving the street trees of Waterloo. In recent years there has been an increased interest locally, concerning the well-being of the trees which shade many Waterloo streets. Road widening and oth- er anstruction developments have been met with some opposition where the fate of a tree is concerned and understandably so, but the concern voiced try Waterloo residents has stimulated an increased awa re- ness in the community and on city council of the v,alue of healthy shade trees in contributing to property value, aesthetic appearance of the neighborhood and general quality of life within the city. This concern led council to appoint an advisory tree committee to study topics such as legislation and maintenance involving public trees in Waterloo. It will be members of this advisory tree committee that will be writing these articles. Trees have always played an important role in our society, far beyond the simple need of greenery to break the harsh cluttered lines of the city. Wood has been an irreplaceable building material for construe tion, furniture and containers. It has provided paper and a host of chemicals and other by-products, so use- ful in filling todays greatly diversified needs. But the minute that sun came filtering Into our soggy lives Trees have great value in the city as there foliage acts like a filter to dust and smog and tends to muftle traffic noise. and leaves are always attractive whether they are green or gayly coloured. It was only fitting that Canada selected the leaf of the maple tree as our national symbol, representing natural wealth, free- dom and beauty, things we all cherish. While the Tree Committee is basicly .concerned with the advantages of having healthy shade trees along our streets and with the problems of planting and maintaining them. we are interested in all aspects of arboriculture and in all subjects that relate to trees. We invite you to correspond with us to ask any questions regarding trees or to share some interesting bit of information which we could pass on to our read- ers. Cards and letters should be addressed to "the Tree Committee, c/o Community services, City Hall, Mars- land Centre, Waterloo. Ontario, NN 4A8‘. Topics which we hope to touch upon soon are those concerning winter and salt damage and methods of detecting and preventing these problems. There will be articles about kinds of trees. their description and naming; what to plant or not to plant; how trees are effected by street lighting, which by the way has been studied recently at the University of Waterloo; and the effects of air pollution, insects and structural damage to trees. There are many things to write about and we invite your comments concerning these and other topics and we hope you will enjoy reading these arti- cles. _ In the madcap rush of the Christmas season, when the stores are crowded with bustling shoppers and the strains of a, favorite Christ- mas carol lull us into a buying mood, it is even more important to shop carefully. Today the Jing- ling sound we hear is that of cash registers. not sleigh bells, and an over- abundance of Christmas spirit could herald a bleak January. Before joining the an- nual foray. here are a few timely tips: Know the store's refund policy Stores are not obligated to refund money or to ex- change merchandise pur- chased as a gift. Policies Spent a sunny Sunday driving to the City and back (could have been golfing) to deliver a couple of outfits our resi- dent dressmaker had made for her daughter. the student teacher. which the latter had forgotten to take last time she was here. The dummy, We found the student teacher in an advanced state of con- trolled hysteria. fingernails bitten to the first knuckle, eyes ticmg Wildly. She was to start teaching next day. My wife was convinced. not without reason. that Kim would go to her first teaching assignment wearing jeans. a T-shirt and sneak- ers, about all the clothes she's got. I hope she had better luck than one of the student teach- ers in our school this week. Poor guy tried to break up a fight in the cafeteria between a couple of massive Grade Twelvers. and was kicked in the head. Anyway. that blew the first nice day. But it was only the beginning. Our front door wouldn't open. our back door wouidn't close. and if you were In the bathroom and pulled the knob to open the door. it would come all and you might be there forever Then the pole at one end of the clothesline was. ‘bowing neither deer went down for the count. the Old Battleaxe whetted her edge and started whittling at In an effort to prove who's king of the castle. or at least head honcho in the deer compound at Water- loo Park. these two Young bucks locked horns in a short-lived contest. No champion was declared. and ' 'tis the season vary from store to store: some offer a credit note. some offer a cash refund or exchange. some offer a re- fund or excahnge only for a limited time (often 10 days after purchase). Some stores will not refund your money or exchange goods after purchase for any rea- So if you're not sure that Uncle Joe likes polka dots. check the store's policy be- fore you buy. Be sure that a refund will be given or an exchange made if mer- chandise is unsuitable and that this agreement is clear'- ly stated on the bill. If a company represents that it has a refund policy and money is not returned. this is in contravention of . " . L-ut' DEER ME Waterloo Chronicle, Wednesday, Novombor 30, 1977 . Page " Show a Ilttie style. The Business Practices Act. But if no promise is made. don't expect a mfuqd. livery Post offices are full to overflowing during the holi- day season and a rush of orders to a mail order firm will probably take much longer to process as well, as to deliver. Stores offer- ing delivery services are often backlogged because of the volume of sales. Don't be disappointed when Christmas Eve ap- proaches and those special presents still haven't ar- rived. Allow extra time for delivery for all purchases. whether by mail or by van. toward the garage at a 45 degree angle. And the squirrels had chewed a hole and were enjoying daily coffee klatches at 6:30 am. Lawn was knee-deep in you know what. Bricks were falling out of the back of the house. four shutters were missing, as were l0 shingles where the guys took off the ice last year. After a couple of days at "Bill. when are you gonng to... Bill. what about the... Bill, why don't you call..." I was forced into action, I told the old lady to call our neighbor. a contractor, I personally contacted my Grade 9 leaf-raker. I ran into Mike at the liquor store and mentioned the storm windows If you -are buying furni- ture as a Christmas gift. Well, sir, things began to happen around here. Our front door opens and the back one closes. You can go into the bath- room and know you won't be there for days. The clothesline pole no longer looks like a post-coital phallic symbol. The storm windows are on. The lawn is raked. Even the squir- rels are frustrated by a piece of tin over their hole. "iii,' might thiiTk ilfGi irAkty good, But right in the mid- dle of all this executive organization of mine, my wife got us into one of those log jams we have about once a year, She de- _ Give us your news I; I (try?! extra iime lot de- (Contimd on par 20) " "c'iteiti' ft' ivw'dis u Ar9fa"'e"' 'Ne' insist that the promised delivery date is clearly stat- ed on the bill of sale. even if you are given a verbal promise of pre-Christmas delivery. Pay for the item on a cash-on-delivery basis or, better still. arrange to have the goods picked up yourself. Unsolicited goods aren't your responsibility - Many companies or or- ganizations send unsolicited goods, .such as Christmas cards. through the mails at this time of year. They ask you to send money to pay for the items. If you didn't order them. you are not obligated to pay for them. You may keep them, destroy them or send (Continued on page 20)