The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 15, 1997 - B41 TERRACE, STANDARD” INSIDE COMMUNITY EVENTS B2 KATHY FLORITTO Sweating the small stuff OLLOWING THE time-honoured tradition of wedding self-- ‘ improvement promises with the first day of each new year, most of° us remember, too late, that old caution ‘‘Marry in haste, repent at leisure.” Divorce is such a messy business, but within a week of January ist, we know we must extricate ourselves from the clutches of vows we can’t possibly keep. Naturally, we want to shake the dust of such pledges from our feet while cover-' ing our tracks and saving as much face as pos- sible, (And if you can come up with a string of at least three ‘‘iriteisms’’ in one 24 word sentence...call me. There’s gotta be a’ boardgame in there somewhere!) For those whose resolutions involved their workplace, i.e., being named the ‘‘employce of the year,’’ reaching one more rung on the cor- porate ladder and/or finally getting that raise you’ve been promised for the last three! “years...ere are a few stone-wrilten Laws set down by our old pal, Murphy. You remember Murph...he’s the light-hearted optimist who warned us that just when we think things can’t possibly get any worse, they-do. I think youll find them appropriate. Employee of the Year A pat on the back is only a few centimeters from a kick in the pants. Ladder Climbing @ The longer the title, the fess important the job. WAt work, the authority of a person is inversely proportional to the number of pens that person is carrying. (Check your pens...) #8 Don’t be irreplaceable, if you can’t be re- placed, you can’t be promoted. The Raise @ The cost of living is always directly propor- tional ta your income. (If you’re nol at least 5 bucks behind at the end of every month, some- thing is very, very wrong, There'll be a “corection’’ soon.) Now - for those who have recently entered or plan to enter the workforce this year, here are a few of Murphy’s unassailable truths for you to consider... W No one gets sick on Wednesdays. (Don’l be the add man out.) Wi The more crap you put up with, the more crap you are going lo get. WW When the bosses talk about improving pro- ductivity, they are never talking about them- selves @ And from me... If you think ‘‘don’t sweal the small stuff’ is good advice - reconsider. But, whether of not you fit in any of the cate- gorics mentioned, there is onc Law that Murphy warts is absolutely essential to remember...To err is human..io forgive is not company policy. Brian Tracey, the self-improvement guru of Phoenix Seminars fame, says most of us jot down too many non-negotiable promises for the year ahead. We set ourselves up for letting ourselves down. Instead, he advises, ‘Pick something ‘you ve always wanted lo learn/do and get good talit”” I like that. [t does an end run around the ' presumed objective of those resolutions, yet ac- complishes what is often never achieved by the more direct route, Procrastination is the first hu- man failing to vanish. Poor self-image can’t compele with the self-satisfaction of ‘‘getling -good’’ at a new skill or in acquiring a thorough ‘knowledge of any subject, If you’re determined (o shake off an unhealthy dependency, Tracey’s suggestion can help tremendously, [t's amazing how little time there is for indulging a weakness, when you're busy ‘doing something you enjoy. And if you began last year looking like a couch potato and cnded it looking more like the couch, distancing yourself from the television while putting the skids lo the Manana Syndrome will do wonders! Any failure will tcl! you that success. is just a matter of luck. If the opportunity to leam about or. learn to do just about anything we wish is luck, then we're among the luckiest people on earth. Happy New Year!! Volunteer is on the job in rain or snow TEMPERATURES ON Christmas Day were below minus * 20. Gelling anyone to work outdoors that day would have been nearly impossible, But 80-year-old Mike Homenick wasn’t working — he was volunteering, like he’s done for the past two and a half years. *F haven't missed a day yet,”” says Hamenick. Homenick walks to the Eby St. hatchery every morning with his golden retriever to feed the 8,000 young coho there. ‘It gives me something to do,’’ he says. “‘Otherwise I'd be sitling at home watching TV.”’ He walks the snowy path between the cages where the fish swim, carrying a bucket of food pellets. He enjoys watching the young salmon swarm to the tap of the water as he throws the pellets into the cages. The hatchery is ideally Located, as ils watersource is a nearby spring which is a constant 6 degrees celcius. The fish which are raised here are released into nearby rivers in the fall. Without the help of volunteers, the halchery wouldn’t ex- ist, says Department of Fisheries and Oceans officer Martin Forbes. To be kept healthy the fish need to be fed every day. And the DFO couldn’t do that without volunteers. Even neighbours of the hatchery help Keep an eye on the place. Forbes recalls the first large snowfall of the year. He drove down to the hatchery that night to shovel a path through the snow for Homenick. While he was working a man with a dog came walking by, and asked him what he was up to. “It’s the besi security system | could every have,” says Forbes. - Early this spring Homenick will have another 6,000 young fish to feed, as a number of incubating cEBss will hatch then. But Homenick isn’t worried. “It relaxes me. If I didn’t like it] wouldn’t do it.”’ Becoming new Canadians LAST FRIDAY TER- RACE was the site of the first Citizenship Court of the new year in Canada. Terrace was also the first city in the country to celebrate the SOth an- niversary of the Canadian Citizenship Act. Before the act was ° passed in 1947, there was legally no such thing as a ‘*Canadian.’’ Since the Act passed, over four million Cana- dians have been granted citizenship, And on Fri- day, 73 people from 17 different countries took the oath of citizenship in Terrace, adding to the to- tal. Many had travelled from surrounding towns, such as Kitimat, Stewart and the Queen Charlotte Islands in order to take part in the ceremony. Sandra. Crompton of Kilimat said she’d lived in Canada for 31 years, and last week finally de- cided to take the plunge and hecome Canadian. She had moved over from England when she was just a baby, and thought of herscif as Ca- nadian. “FT want to vote and have the rights of a Cana- dian,"’ she said. The right to vote was also behind Tony Ziegler’s decision to take the oath of citizenship. The Swiss man has lived in Canada for over 41 years, most of that in Ter- race. Gill Redpath echoed his words, She moved to Ter- _ race from Scotland 16 years ago. “IT don’t know why this has taken so long,”’ she said. ‘‘I felt the time had come. | wanted to vote and make my one voice heard.”’ She says she loves the lifestyle in Canada, SECTION B CRIS LEYKAUF 638-7283 HATCHERY VOLUNTEER, Mike Homenick has to feed 8,000 mouths every day, OVER 70 PEOPLE took the oath of cilizenship last Friday in Terrace, They were the first in the country to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the passing of the Ca- nadian Citizenship Act. BEFORE THE Citizenship Act was passed in 1947, men and women froin jects residing in Canada. When traveling abroad, they used British passports. The changed all this. In February 1945, a Canadian cabinel minister, Paui Martin St, visited a milita- ry cemetery in Dieppe, France. As he walked among the wooden ‘crosses, he was moved by the terrible sacrifice, that Canadian soldiers had made in the fight for peace. He was also struck by the varied origins of the names. on the graves. These soldiers had come from different ethnic and religious backgrounds, and from di ferent parts of the country. thal they were Canadians. : They ‘had they loved. Martin felt he must do sotiething to honour their memory atid their sacrifice. It was here in the cold’ winter of France that the idea of Canadian citizenship was this country were considered British sub- passage of the first Cilizenship Act The ove thing which united them was fought and died to defend the country A proud history born. a Martin, supported by Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzic King, drafted a Canadian Citizenship Act and presented it to the House of Commons in 1946. After much debate, it passed with: overwhelm- ing support. The Act received Royal Assent in July 1946 and caine into » effect January -1, 1947, 0 Shortly afterwards, ala citizenship ceremony in Ottawa, Prime Minister Mackenzie King liad the honour of being the first person ever to Say “I speak to youas a-citizen of Canada,” ‘after he recelved the first citizenship certificale. | — ‘Over (he past five decades, this country has grown -and developed into a leader among nailons; Canada is respected and envied as a. prosperats and compassianate country. . A Canadian passport is welcomed with a smile in’ countries around the ‘world. This 50th aniversary is an opportunily to think aboul how precious out citizenship is. It is alsa’ a chanee to’ reflect ot how much we have dccomplished as acauntty. $100 at no matter ‘what the weather, But he enjoys volunteering his time to feed the young coho, saying it gets him out of the house. (ee A message from Santa’s NW base SANTA SET up temporary headquarters at Nelson McGinlay’s home on Hwy. 16 West this Christmas, During the week before Christmas he made special appearances every night on McGinlay’s porch, to the delight of many children. Now he sends a message back to Terrace. Ho Ho Ho! | would like to thank the nice people from Terrace and area — there was even a group on holiday from Germany — who came to visit with me this Christmas. Throughout the week { had over 2,000 visitors come by io see me, many of whom were children. I also put up a donation box, and all the proceeds —a jolly 3650! — went to the Terrace Child Development Centre. i now have some very pleasant memories of your children. it was wonderftel to visit with them, They were very polite, honest and had some very interesting stories to tell, ’ Please keep up the good work ‘parents. Love and teach your children the values that make Caneda such a wonderful country. Remember... our children are our fieture. Happy New Year to one and all! Puttin’ on the Ritz TERRACE AND District Arts Council is pulling on its second-cver showcase of member groups this Satur- day al the REM Lee - Theatre. The showcase will include appearances by the Terrace Community Band, Terrace Symphouy Orchestra, the ~ pipes aud drams, Northwest Singers, Theatre Alive, Ter- trace - Independent ~=Music ‘Educators and more. ~The © gala performance staris at 8 p.m. Tickets are Erwin’s in the Skeena Mall.