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A Grinch‘s Tale of Christmas The following comments do not reflect the beâ€" liefs of this paper or columnist. They are written in tribute of a friend who says ‘Bah Humbug‘ a lot at this time of the year and ranks Christmas just above scurvey on his list of dislikes. Christmas is driving 10 minutes from your home to Fairview Plaza to do a little last minute shopping on December 24 and then taking another two hours to find a parking spot â€" which you eventually do but it‘s closer to New Hamburg than Kitchener. If you have already leafed through this edition of the Chronicle you likely spotted a series of photoâ€" graphs depicting crowds of shoppers pushing and shoving their way to securing a gift for that special someone. The pictures would back up his theory beautifully and no doubt when he sees them he will triumphantly wave them under everybody‘s nose and say ‘"here I told you so."‘ _ Christmas is credit cards, those wondrous little plastic devices which makes holders feel like milâ€" lionaires until the end of the month when they feel more like paupers. Well I guess when you get right down to it a lot can be said about this festive occasion. The first outburst a relative of mine would be is ‘"Bah Humâ€" bug‘"* He would expound on his theory that Christâ€" mas isn‘t what it used to be and it is just a nonâ€" religious commercialized event which he would rather not participate in. Christmas is lying awake at night counting your blessings â€" which take about 30 seconds. _ ‘"‘Tis the season to be jolly," and I‘ve been told that our column should read along these lines. What can one say about Christmas other than it is the best time of the year? Christmas is borrowing your son‘s hockey elâ€" bow pads so you can battle the rush of people running toward the sales counter to save 39 cents on a $45 pair of boots â€" and then arriving at the counter just after Aldermen decided to go the route of appointing Waterloo‘s three members to the Waterloo North hydro commission, which assumes duties Jan. 1. The other two municipalities involved, Woolwich and Wellesley townships, as well as every other municâ€" ipality in the Kegion, will leave commissioners to be elected at large, when municipal elections are held. And the mayor already sits on the commission, for council‘s concern. Sometimes it seems that collectively, politicans often breed stupidity among themselves. It‘s never been more apparent at Waterloo council than Mon day night, with council‘s handling of whether to apâ€" point or elect the city‘s hydro commissioners. Sharpening the knife, just in time for some Christâ€" mas turkeys... This holds with a 70â€"yearâ€"old tradition, hydro chairâ€" man Bill Smith pointed out to council. Very simply, it makes the commission accountable to the public, to each and every hydro customer, rather than council. Elected officials don‘t have to curry political favor, as appointed ones do. Council, on the other hand, brand the hydro comâ€" mission as a special purpose committee of council, and therefore accountable to council. Aldermen also argued that hydro has been "to remote" from the workings of the city. They want to rope and corral the commission like a young steer, to have it, sit, stand, and salute at their beck and call. Well, from here, Waterloo council, usually as docile the last pair has been sold. Christmas is offâ€"key carolers at your doorstep sounding a little like Seals and Croft and a lot like Sears and Roebuck. Christmas is hearing a hundred versions of White Christmas on the radio and then waking up Christâ€" mas morning to a sea of green grass and slush. Christmas is having your boss drop subtle hints about the insecurity of your position by saying to you at the annual Christmas party, ‘"Say, didn‘t you used to work for us?‘" Christmas is being invited over to someone‘s house to try out a "fantastic‘‘ punch and discover it tastes like the Gobi Desert. Christmas is spending six hours in a hot kitchen to make a wide assortment of cookies and cakes for the season and then have them eaten in a 10â€"minute blitzkrieg by the neighbourhood kids. Christmas is wearing an aquaâ€"lung when you go shopping on the Friday night before the holiday due to lack of oxygen in shopping malls because of the When the evidence is thrown in my face I will be very gracious, (after all it is Christmas) and will politely nod in agreement. After years of arguing I‘ve given up. f When I become lost in the middle of one of these crowds and find myself being jostled between one shopping cart and another and when I reach for the last pair of striped socks only to have my arm disâ€" located when a hungry shopper grabs them out of my hand I‘m almost ready to agree with him. Alâ€" most, but not quite. When I visit a school and see signs posted on the walls asking for food and clothing for the needy and when I see the results of such a campaign I realize that Christmas is more than buying gifts for peoâ€" ple who already have the necessities of life. _ When a group of children entertain me at my door with Christmas carols and refuse the change I offer them and simply wave and yell Merry as a bunch of Sunday school teachers, look like a pack of powerâ€"hungry zealots! While the harpoons are still going council‘s way, here‘s another one. Just why on earth did council There was absolutely no reason in the world to start changing the rules, simply becasue the appoint or elect option was left open to them. _ . Some aldermen openly admit that hydro is a technical thing. Yet they figure they‘re going to beâ€" come overnight experts on the matter. This same bunch who query staff endlessly on technical matâ€" ters when it comes to dealing with other things. It just doesn‘t make sense. The hydro commission is a low profile agency at the local level, and there aren‘t all that many earthâ€" shaking decisions to make. But it‘s been nice to know that grassâ€"roots rapport between the public and commission has always been there, even if the average householder hasn‘t taken advantage of it. Elected commissioners have done a good job, and the people have seen fit to return them to office. Now the darn thing‘s going to be appointed. Just the way conservation authorities, Royal Commissions, and local parks boards, etc. have gone. _ It leaves the door open to a lot of political patronâ€" age. possibility. Why not give council the school boards, too? It may never happen, here, but it now looms as Waterioo Chronicle, Wednesday, December 21, 1977 â€" Page 7 Christmas is being eightâ€"yearsâ€"old and being told by your folks that you have to go to church before you can open any of your presents. Christmas is watching Bing Crosby and Danny __ Kaye,/in White Christmas and then have a tube in | levision blow out just as the sentimental finale allow itself to become a listening post, for more than an hour, for some developer‘s proposal, that should have been dealt with in committee? â€" When I go to church and watch the sunday school classes stutter and stammer through ~a nativity scene and smile at the end of it all I realize that religion is still very much a part of Christmas. _ _ _ Again technical matters had aldermen befuddled, and city staff never had a chance to see modified plans for the townhouse development. . | Christmas I forget about my battle in the departâ€" ment store earlier in the day. C â€" So the whole schmozzle gets dropped in council‘s lap, and aldermen were so moved by the developers‘ alleged financial plight, (he had to begin constructâ€" ion before year‘s end to suit his banker) they let the entire thing drag on, and on, and on. When I hear youngsters telling their mother not to buy those coloured balls for the tree or tinsel because they want to string popcorn and make their owrf decorations I feel like hugging those chilâ€" dren. _ When I receive homemade gifts from my friends it makes me almost sorry that I ever entered a department store. _ _ _ o _ Let those people say ‘"Bah Humbug!"" It doesn‘t bother me any more. I‘ve got my own feelings and memories about Christmas 1977 and I‘ll bet there are a lot of people just like me. Merry Christmas! And this same development supposedly comprises lowâ€"cost unitsâ€"at the incredible rental price of more than $300 a month‘ â€" fe The proposal was improperly presented, staff wanted more time to study it, and instead of deferâ€" ring the matter and letting the developer suffer the consequences for his own shortâ€"sightedness, counâ€" cil allowed the controversial project to go through. It appears council‘s sense of reasoning took an early Christmas vacation ... Christmas grinching isn‘t my specialty, it‘s only a sideline. But I do feel something of an explanation is in order here, considering the mound of Christmas cards on my desk. I really-appreciate the thought, but I‘ve never gotten into the Christmas card habit myself. But thanks, all who sent one. And to you and yours, have a happy and safe holiday. huge mass of humanity. Christmas is getting a snow blower from Santa to give relief to your aching back and then finding out in January that your company is transfering you to Hawaii. is starting. Christmas is getting a pair of underwear with a hole in it. Christmas is pretending to laugh at your next door neighbour‘s jokes which you have heard each year for the last 12 Christmas‘. â€" s P.S. Well, that was written for those Christmas grinches out there. Actually, Christmas is the best time of the year. _ Wishing you and yours the merriest.