PAGE 10, WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 2, 1983, WHITBY FREE PRESS Between You and Me By RUTH COLES Experience enables you to recognize a mis- take when you make it again. Franklin P. Jones. This is the time of year when our thoughts on oc- casion turn to our gardens and growing things. We have a few months to go, but in the meantime how about growing and tending herbs? They corne in pots or can be started from seed and put outside in the spring. Choices and variations by the dozen we find at Richter's in Goodwood on Num- ber 47 west of Uxbridge. Mrs. Richters, an Austrian by birth, is a well-known lecturer on the subject of herbs. What a fascinating study and there is much to learn. A pot of herbs makes a wonderful gift especially for children who can look after them or for the ill and elderly. A minimum of care is needed, the main concern of course is watering. We have written about herbs before and all the wonderful things which can be done with them from chasing fleas away with garlic, to planting all the vegetables with herbs close by. That topic we'il keep until April comes. To me, aloe is the most important herb and various varieties are sold at Richter's green house. As a medicinal plant it tops the list and is well- known all over the world. It Is used for many ail- ments with great success but especially for burns. I think every child should have a pot of aloe and be taught how to use it. Children on occasion do get small burns on their fingers which can be painful and troublesome. Now to a stupid and careless story about myself which I hope will never happen again. I am not a child, but an adult who may not be too wise on oc- casion, so I will relate this sorry but not serious tale. I guess I do funny things with phones, especially if I am busy doing something and I hear the phone ring. I bend down and pick things up, reach across a table for a book maybe, not to read but to move it or walk about from place to place. So one day when the pline rang and I was sitting on the bed upstairs looking out across the lake after watering the plants in the window I reached for the phone on the sill and lowered it to the floor. My hair was not pinned back and fel across my face. I reached for a cigarette, lit it and suddenly I was going up in flames, that is my hair. The first thing I saw were bright orange flames shooting above my head and the crackling; sizzling noise was really dreadful. Without any conscious thought I put my hand up and smoothed it out while my husband did the same thing. It, the fire, was out in less than a second and I was stil listening to my young friend Mary.· I didn't mention it to her because I felt it would be a shock to hear me say "hold on, my hair is on fire!" My face felt charred and rough so I smoothed the black stuff off with my hand and we said our good- byes and then I made my way downstairs and across the house to find an old jar of aloe cream. We had a plant in the basement and if I had thought of it I should have broken a lower leaf off and washed my face with it. By this time I could feel two blisters rising on my skin, one rather large, the other quite small. The cream took the black off the side of my face and when it was all off, I put a thick layer on that rather charred part. Within a minute all the pain had gone, my face was smooth and no blisters just a tinge of red. It wept a bit, but within an hour that stopped and all was well. A stern reprimand from my ever loving husband, "Don't you ever do that again." A very well deser- ved reprimand and needless to say I will never do it again! The aloe is known as the Ancient Egyptian medicine plant for good reason. The succulent leaves of the aloe vera are one of Nature's perfect packaging miracles. If you break a leaf off the fleshy stem from which a fan of sessile lëaves radiate, the plant quickly seals in the vital juices. If wrapped in wax paper or whatever it will keep in the refrigerator for two or three weeks. There are many other uses for this plant and there are books and pamphlets available for anyone who is interested. This topic brings up many others. What about young children who these days are left to fend for themselves or old and sick people who are alone. It's a miracle more accidents don't hap- pen. The list of these plants goes on and on. We bought a large pot of parsley and try to pick it often so the lower leaves won't turn yeilow. If you like onion and garlic eat a bit of parsley and no one will know what you have been eating. Do you remember those thin bread and butter sandwiches made with water cress? Especially good with afternoon tea. We brought a pot home and along with the others will be planted in the garden when May comes. How about mint, and what kind do you like? Pep- permint, spearmint, pineapple, applemint, horse- mint, menthol mint or Austrian mint, and you don't need even one green thumb to make them flourish. Have you ever had a herb piilow to induce sleep and sweet dreams? They are very popular in England and are often sent over here as gifts. The list goes on and on and gives you ideas of maybe starting a new hobby. Attendant knocked down The Texaco service station on Baseline Road in Ajax was rob- bed of $768 in cash late last Thursday. Police say two men entered the station at about il p.m. and grabbed the 16-year-old attendant. The men reportedly pulled the telephone off the wall, and knocked the atten- dant to the ground. They then took $768 from the cash register and ran from the build- ing. One man is described as white, six feet tall and weighing ap- proximately 170 pounds. He is in his early 20's and was wearing a black leather jacket at the time of the incident. The second man is described as non-white, possibly East Indian, with a black afro hair cut. Police are investigat- ing the incident. Legion christens new expansion Branch 112 of the Royal Canadian Legion in Whitby officially opened its 2,800 square foot extension Jan. 22. The extension, which will help accommodate the Legion's growing membership, was offi- cially opened by the Legion's provincial president, Larry Keen of Cornwall. About 200 Legion members were on hand for the ceremonies, and Councillor Tom Ed- wards represented the Town of Whitby. The Legion began con- struction of the expan- sion in July, 1982, and raised funds for the pro- ject entirely through Legion activities and donations. The membership con- tinues to grow, Branch president Robert Adams says. Families of yeterans continue to use the facilities, giving Branch 112 more than 700 members. On hand for the open- ing was Rev. Woolcott, Padre of the Oshawa Legion, and Brian Bar- ton, vice president of CDS Construction, builders of the exten- sion. A banquet was provid- ed by the Ladies Auxiliary of the Legion Branch, and a dance followed the opening ceremonies.