A Delicate Balancing
Act
(an abbreviated extract from Matthew Van Dongen's writing
in The Hamilton Spectator)
How can Hamilton take advantage of its awe-inspiring vistas while
keeping the public safe from harm ~ and from lawsuits? To start,
think signs, fencing, parking crackdowns...and a ban on night
waterfall illuminations. The guy perched precariously on a line above
Smokey Hollow Falls is a visual metaphor for the tricky balancing act
facing “The City of Waterfalls.”
In one picture, an unidentified slackliner hangs upside-down from his
knees
over a 3-storey drop into the rapids-washed boulders of Grindstone
Creek in Waterdown.
Another shows a man walking ~ knees slightly bent, arms stretched
out
to maintain balance ~ toward the drooping mid-point of a 40-metre
long
canvas line stretched between trees on opposite cliffs.
You can almost feel the spray misting off the burbling falls
nearby.
(A
dramatic colour photo last September illustrates the gravity-defying
display in Waterdown that highlights a difficult question for the
city and other local agencies. How
do you balance the desire to welcome escarpment visitors with the
need to prevent them from literally falling for the scenery?)
Most people are familiar with the spike in injuries and rope rescues
at local waterfalls over the last 2 years, including 21 calls for
first-responder help
and a falling death this past summer.
Unprecedented prevention efforts focused this year on Albion Falls ~
which accounts for half of 2017 rope-rescue calls ~ including new
signs, unpopular fencing and trespassing tickets.
A spectacular colour photo, centers Eric Kostiuk amid forest
greenery
as he highline swings 12 metres above Smokey Hollow Falls in
Waterdown.
History
Restoration
“As
2017 came to an end, the Friends of Freeman Station (FOFS) are well
on their way to completing the restoration of the historical train
station in Burlington. Although the station was only open 2 days
last year to give the public a sneak peak at the progress of
renovations to the 1906 hub, about 1,000 visitors poured through the
doors. Recently completed projects at the Fairveiw Street location
include the installation of fresh water and sanitary hookups, with
the washrooms and HVAC to follow shortly.
“Insulation
was stuffed in the attic for the first time in its 100 years .
Four inches of concrete was poured over 60 tons of gravel in the
basement.
Locally grown Burlington hardwood is currently being laid in the
large waiting room area.
“It
was cut many decades ago and has been in storage and recently donated
to the station; the hardwood is a combination of red, yellow and
white oak as well as hard maple ~ each plank to be planed, sanded and
beveled. When the spacious basement is completed, a diorama will be
1/25th
scale model of Burlington at the time Freeman Station was built to
about the 1920's and the golden age of railways.”
Rob
Miller, a FOFS member said, 'This
will be a museum quality interactive experience featuring the
heritage of Freeman what life was like 100 years ago and what we can
learn about railway technology.
(Published by Kathy Yanchus and Burlington Post Staff)
“We
Are Now Taking the Place of God in Shaping the Properties of the
Earth”
stated
David Suzuki addressing hundreds of local High School students at
the Burlington Performance Arts Centre.“With a population explosion
from 1.5 to 6 billion human beings within a century, our ecological
footprint rose dramatically. The tremendous amount of technology
created by synthesizing it out of the Earth and then throwing it back
into the Earth, further increases our ecological footprint. Now 70%
of North American economy is based on consumption. We
now buy the things we want, not the things we need.
Our consumptive habits increased our ecological footprint and we now
have a global economy serving our desire to consume. We don't know
enough to apply our tremendous power in a way that is sustainable! In
this powerful position where we are affecting the properties of the
planet, we are undermining the very things that keep us alive.”
Order
of Canada
Ancaster
Pianist Celebrated for her Music and Role as Educator, Builder of
Classical Culture:
Natalie Paddon (The Hamilton Spectator) wrote: “British born
Valerie Tryon, 83, was one of 125 new appointments announced by
Governor General Julie Payette. She was presented with a lifetime
achievement award at the City of Hamilton Arts Awards in June. At
McMaster University she has been an associate professor of music
since the 1970's.
“With
accomplishments in science and medicines, included also is Bernard
(Barry ) Sherman, from Toronto) founder of the generic drug giant Apotex.”
“One
of the country's highest civilian honours, the Order of Canada
was established in 1967 to coincide with Canada's centennial.”
Ringo
Starr Tapped for Knighthood
Published from New York: The Beattles drummer was selected for
knighthood by Queen Elizabeth in her 2018 New Year's Honours list,
along with Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees ~ and Michael Morpurgo,
author. A ballet dancer, Darcey Bussell has been named a Dame. Starr
released a statement saying, “It's an honour and pleasure to be
acknowledged for my music and my charity work, both of which I love.”
How
a Library Cat Enjoys His Fame
“Max
thinks Film Shoots, Bookstore Visits and Many Adoring Fans are
Purrfect!”
Sharyn
Jackson commented to Star Tribune in Minnesota. “Max sits on the
windowsill of his St. Paul home, staring longingly out at the street
he no longer has the freedom to roam. Since rocketing to viral fame,
the orange tabby known for frequenting the Macalester College Library
~ and then being banned from it, Max had become an indoor cat. Paw
thing.
“He
gazes at the street, and late at night he howls ~ withdrawal symptoms
for his addiction to fresh air and musty old books. But on a recent
winter morning, his human, Connie Lipton, took Max out of the house,
strapped into a handsome red-and-black harness. She loaded him into
her Mazda, with Max perched looking out the rear window...took him to
a nearby bookstore. Max rose to national status last month after a
cutesy sign appeared at the Macalester Library that warned people not
to let him in. Max had previously been spotted on security cameras,
roaming the stacks.
More than 200,000 people 'liked' a Twitter post about the library
sign,
and Max's own Instagram (managed by Lipton), blew up to 16,500
followers.
“In
addition to the library, he'd been visiting students in the science
building, language buildings and dormitories. But a construction
project near his house and an allergic library worker, made Max's
free range travel no longer feasible. Hal Johnson, who owns the
Against
the Current used-book
store drew “Welcome
Max” on
the chalkboard outside his Grand Avenue shop. That's where Lipton
took Max. The curious kitty wasted no time making himself at home.
He climbed up into the window display and rubbed his face on Doris
Lessing's book 'On
Cats!'
Compiled by Merle Baird-Kerr...January 3, 2018
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