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City should play by its own rules Irecemly came home from work to a "courtesy notice" in my mailbox from City of Waterloo bylaw, saying I have to clean the remainder of the snow and ice off my sidewalks or they will do it for us and charge us. 1 decided to phone bylaw. I was ready to blow up because the sidewalks on Wissler Road, which are the responsibility of the city to keep clean of ice and snow, were covered in snow and ice. 1 took the liberty of taking picâ€" tures and videos of the entire street including Wissler Road for evidence. It wouldn‘t be so bad if the entire street‘s sidewalks were clean and mine wasn‘t; I‘d deserve this notice. Or it wouldn‘t be so bad if the city‘s sidewalks on Wissler Road were clean and mine wasn‘t... 1‘d deserve this notice, but no one‘s sidewalks are clean â€" with the exception of maybe one or two. I was the only one on the street Well. I‘m more than a little disappointed. Here the new mayor, Brenda Halloran, has been in office some three months, and she still hasn‘t taken my suggestion on the city‘s bylaw against onâ€"street parking. We live in the northwestern area of Waterloo, a spot notorious for its small driveways, which, I think, was appraved by the city as a way to increase parkâ€" ingâ€"ticket revenue. _ This, of course, is of primary importance because my daughter got a ticket last week for leaving her car in front of our house overnight. There‘s no snow on the street and neither of our neighbours had a problem with it, but a ticket was received anyway. I understand there needs to be some control of onâ€"street parking in some areas. Certainly we don‘t want cars parked along the main streets during rush hours (although that seems to be OK in uptown Waterloo, for some reason). And we need to keep residential streets clear when there is snowfall, and the plow operators need to get around. I‘d happily support a weatherâ€" dependent bylaw over the winter that‘s against onâ€"street parking. In fact, 1 would happily support snowâ€" plow drivers who want to run over cars parked on the street. 1 think that would be a far more effective solution than a litâ€" tle ticket. I‘m pretty sure the city could come up : with an effective bylaw that would allow on â€"street parking during good weather and still proâ€" tect against people keeping their derelict cars on the road... and keep the roads clear. Personally, | think it might be more important to keep roads clear of parked cars during busier times of the day, rather than overnight. when, trust me, there‘s no one on the roads. Doesn‘t that make more sense? Every time 1 see the bylaw enforcement vehicle roaming the streets in the middle of the night, I can‘t help but think it‘s nothing but a complete grab for revenue. In our case, we just happen to be a temporary sit Parking tickets are a cash grab Why would I be specifically tarâ€" getted with this notice of violation when everyone around me is also in the same violation â€" including the city? to get this "courtesy notice." Yes, the only one. I spoke to all my neighâ€" bours and no one else had received it. Public square can‘t be put off Andrea Bailey‘s suggestion Chronicle, March 21, 2007) that construction of a new city square in uptown Waterloo can wait is not possible. The contract between the First Gulf Corporation and the City of Waterloo states quite clearly that construction of a square must begin before the end of May 2007, or it must be rebuilt as a parking lot. The square has been recomâ€" BRIAN COMMENT uation. We have too many people and too many However, I think that‘s a quandary in which more people will find themselves. Kids these days are stayâ€" ing at home longer than ever. And unfortunately, in the "burbs," public transit is not an attractive option depending on where you need to go. Right or wrong, we remain very much a carâ€"cenâ€" tric country, and there won‘t be a quick solution to that. Pa®t of the problern is geographic â€" we are just so spread out. Yes, we need to build up, not out, as many like to say. But that kind of change doesn‘t come easily in a society where, for many people, the dream is to own their own small piece [ O| of land. And we do need to be les# dependent on the automobile. Paul Hannoush Waterloo fi‘K‘E I Reducing the amount of driving we do in this country isn‘t going to be easy. I still think our best chance for reducing the pollution and emissions of the autoâ€" motive sector won‘t come from convincing people not to drive because, for many, that‘s not a viable option. â€" Though changing what we drive, with different and cleaner fuel sources, more efficient vehicles or smaller vehicles, might offer more hope. o O Andminkhowrfianyofihosetin}carswemld park in our municipally reduced driveways. * Hear more of Brian‘s thoughts on life with the KOOL Morning Crew every weekday morning from 6 to 9 a.m. on Waterloo radio station 105.3 KOOL FM. For me, the buses don‘t even run when I go to But that change is tough too, in a society where a car is really viewed as one of the ultimate examples of perâ€" sonal freedom. And despite the growing concern about the environment, that view hasâ€" n‘t changed too much, even among younger people. _ Talk to a few 16â€"yearâ€"olds and you‘ll find they‘re every bit as excited about getting their driver‘s licenses as we WLU students lead by example mended continuously by urban planners and advisory boards for the past 20 years. The time has come to build it. Laurier Students for Literacy surâ€" passed all expectations March 10 when (the group) incorporated the environment and ecological literacy into their educational outreach efforts. (The event) inspired a new genâ€" eration of environmental enthusiâ€" When one witnesses the comâ€" mitment, compassion and positive energy that this program shares with children in our community, it is truly education in action. Catherine Fife Trustee, Waterloo Region District School Board IRONICH Steve Lindt Waterloo ast Friday, the ghost of John Abbott paid an unexpected I visit to his son, Jack, to voice grave concerns about his ent engagement to Sharon Newman. Such is the melodrama of The Young and the Restless, an American soap opera [ have watched since childhood. For 25 years, John Abbott â€" founder of Genoa City conglomerate Jabot Cosmetics and Abbott family patriarch â€" has been my favourite character. As a longtime fan of daytime‘s highestâ€"rated soap, I have had the opportunity to meet several of the characters from the show, including Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman), Brad Carlâ€" ton (Don Diamont}, Ryan McNeil (Scott Reeves), Nicholas Newman (Joshua Morrow) and Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott). Always the strong moral voice of the show, the character was not only a wealthy pillar of the community, but also a lovâ€" ing and devoted father to all his children before he was killed off by a massive stroke last August. And though I haven‘t been keeping up in recent years on all the storylines, I‘ve never lost my interest in the characters on the show â€" or their realâ€"life counterâ€" I was particularly intrigued to learn that Jerry Douglas, the actor who plays John Abbott, has found lifeâ€"afterâ€"fictionalâ€"death as a jazz artist. Jabot to jazz ... and the best is yet to come 1 was so intrigued, in fact, I asked him if he‘d like to chat about his new album, The Best is Yet to Come. He was as gracious on the phone as his character always was onscreen. "I started singing when 1 was very young, and wanted to be the next e (Frank) Sinatra," Douglas explained. "My first love has always been MARSHALL singing, and when I finished the big WARD storyline on the show where my charâ€" acter went off to jail, I had two months to get into the studio and record these songs that 1 have always loved singing." From Fly Me to the Moon to When I Fall in Love, the album is a lyrically beautiful and an engaging collection of timeless classics, capturing all of the warmth of a live performance. _ "I wanted to sing live with the band in the studio," Douglas said. "I have always enjoyed singing live, and it has to be real to me. With each song, I try to find an approach to telling the story â€" just like in acting. When you listen to the song My Funny Valentine, the lyrics are somewhat sad when Sinatra sings, ‘Your looks are laughable, Unphotographable," but then he says, ‘Yet you‘re my favourite work of art.‘ For fans of The Young and the Restless, Douglas‘ choice of romantic songs for the CD will identify with the romantic perâ€" sona of the John Abbott character. "John Abbott was very romantic, and he even sang a couâ€" ple of times on the show with Gina (Patti Weaver)," Douglas explained. "I love the character and he will always be with me in my heart and I take John with me when I perform live." With the Canadian release of his new CD this week, and a tour soon to get underway, Douglas will be returning to Toronto on Aug. 30 to perform at the Canadian National Exhiâ€" bition. Marshall Ward is a professor in the fine arts program at Wil frid Laurier University. Email is welcome at mward@wlu.ca. "I chose that song because it speaks about real beauty â€" beauty from within. The beauty that makes a marriage last." Douglas shared many fond memories of visiting Canada over the years, including his first big live performance at Monâ€" treal‘s Beliview Casino in the late 1960s, along with a trip to Ottawa with actress Eileen Davidson (Ashley Abbott) the first year he was on The Young and the Restless. "Canada has a very unique spirit and | absolutely love going there," said Douglas. "I hope the fans come out to see me when I‘m there because I always love seeing them." Jerry Douglas will be making public appearances this week for the Canadian release of his new CD, The Best is Yet to Come. On Thursday he will be at Chapters/Indigo at 55 Bloor St. W., in Toronto, Saturday at the Walâ€"Mart at Scarborough Town Center and next Monday at Walâ€"Mart in Square One in Mississauga. WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, March 28. 2007 +9