is Aad

My friends had gone out
for groceries: and I was
babysitting their children.
Maureen, six, was playing

with her toys on the rug,’

Patrice, age two, was fooling

around with a toy green

rubber fro, arg.

Patrice’s frog reminded .

me of a story that I made up
about.a frog who owned a hot
dog stand. ‘‘Moe,”’ I asked,

Let’s face it, I’m no Jimmy |
Connors. Slightly the wrong
shape, for one thing. But I
still get an enormous amount °
of fun out of being beaten at:
_ tennis.

It hasbeen’ painfully: ‘clear

for two or’ three. years that
I’m not alone. Most week-

ends back in the later sixties —

you could. usually walk
straight on to the first public
ceurt you came to, pausing
only to chase away the kids
on rollerskates and their dog.

Sometimes they got their.
revenge by sticking around -

as spectators, making’ un-
complimentary | comments
about our quaint, old-fash-
ioned form of recreation.

Today, at any public court
on the North Shore, you’re:

_ lucky to get away with a wait.
. - Of ‘as little as half.an hour.:

And whom | are you waiting
for? ;

‘letters

Editor _

echaicn of forth ahare free enews Ie

See enters

VIM DH .

Circulation: 46,000

. Founded: in 1960 as ‘an Independent,’
community ‘newspaper, the North Shore
News Is published weekly, and. distributed

to every door on the North Shore. It iba |

reglstorad newspaper, under Part 111,

_ Schedule Ill, Paragraph JI of the Customs ‘

, and Exolae Act.

Olfice
Classitied
Ciroulation

page 2, June 16, 1976 North Shore News

‘ that’s “who.
playing just like Jimmy and .. .
Chris. And even when they |
.:, finally yield ‘the.
there’s always the risk that.
they may sit down to watch

“*72 . Munich -

"980-0811
000-3464
006-1937

“did I tell you the story about

the frog who owned a hot dog

stand and saved up his -
‘money:and bought a motor-

cycle?’ Moe said no, tell me

it.

"Now Patrice is just learn-

ing to talk. She is at the
experimental stage, - where
words may or may not make’
sense, to others, at least.

‘ The rollerskate kids - “of

seven or eight years | ago,
All of - them.

- court,

you play. .
Joining a club won't solve
the problem. nowadays,
either. The main difference
is whether you prefer to pay

' for waiting or to do it free of

charge courtesy of the Parks
Board.

It hardly surprised. me, |
therefore, to learn the other |

day that’ tennis has out-

' Stripped: golfi in popularity for

the first time ever. The-A. E.

Neilsen. - Survey. company,
‘whose job it is to: tabulate
everything | we: do or’ think,

has discovered that there are

- now 15 million. North. Amer-

icans Smashing. with their

Stay away,

i Pa Habitat:

So you artived, a splendid

4 display of love and. sym- |
a | ~~ pathy, .a. vast storehouse of
(... consideration and free. spirit...
-You came blazing to pass the

message. on of new: housing
and more assistance to the
undeveloped countries.

’ That’s wonderful, but
you've become as bad as the
Olympics!
‘You've become concerned
with who speaks, If it’s the

. Israelis, you ‘walk out. You
.. spit‘and ‘snarl on_ political:

News Editor

the story, and I started into -

- rather ““square,”’
ioned pastime of parents —

- Canadian .

Publisher. 8

' - Assistant Publisher, .
Managing Evitor :
Picture Editor: .

Advertising Manager

’ Staff: Hoathor Andrews, .
’ Yvonne Chapman, Carolyn Colectough, Helon |
Dickoy, Linda Douglas, Paula. Ford, . Linda
‘Green, Wendy Green, Carol Halsiodd,; Barbara’ ‘
Haywood, Randy Hilihouse, Berni Hilliard,

_ Jennle . Johnson, . Terry Johnson, -. Barbara
Kean, Mike Keen, Botey. Knight, Ann’ Kofod,
Gulltermo Lam, Joyce Lawry, Marna Lolren,

_ -Madoloine Loroy, Faye McCrae, Jessie Marks, —
Darling Mason, Jill: Pless, .Maureen ‘Roach,’
‘Leigh Anne Siym,. bytvia Sorenson, : Fisna’:
Stewart, Sam -Stewart; Alan Twigg,’ Clair
’ Vandal, Kate Wallace, Allison Wateh.

"So the story began. I as
lying on the couch. The frog

Story was unfolding when {I -

felt: Patrice’s small hand on

‘ my. knee. She was looking up

at me with intent
expression. She . “held the
rubber. frog.up to me and
Said §‘*Mah?’*

is.”

I stopped the story, and

forehand compared with a
mere 14 million wielding the
club.

One impcztant factor i in the

‘dramatic upsurge. of enthus-

iasm aniong North American
youth for what they regarded
less than a decade ago as the
old-fash-

refusing to grow old grace-
fully is the commercial

potential of tennis.

Once the sporting goods

and allied industries cotton- |

ed on to the money-making
possibilities of the sport,
they cranked up their prom-

‘otion machinery and waited.

(not very long, in the event)
for the. dollars to . start

- bouncing into their court. —

a And do they bounce? —
and . American.

tennis players are currently
Spending over $500 million

: ~arannally on: Sporting B goods

7 issues. ‘The: PLO. ‘manipu-
- lates, :

‘continue to sell CANDU .

-and. Canada . will

reactors.

have: disappeared... as .you
approach .

etc, .

‘That's her.
word for ‘tell me what this -

the “ ‘supposed.-
“rainbow”: of new ‘one

said. “Frog. That's .a frog,
Patrice.”’

She mulled it over, her

the word. **Fog’’ she ven-
.| tured.
‘No, sweetie,” I. said.

“Frog. Fur-aw-guh. ann

**Fwop”” . she said.
“*Fwog.”’. She looked at me
expectantly.

That" s almost it,”” I said,
**But it’s frog. Frog. Frog.
Fur-aw-guh.”” o

‘‘Frog’’ she said.

**Perfect! ’* ¥ beamed.

‘alone—notably racquets and

balls. One major racquet

- manufacturer’s sales are up

44 per cent over the past
year.. ,

That; mark you,
taking

is not
into account § the

numerous secondary indus- .

tries being pulled into the

- act: court construction (6,000

new courts a year are being
built in Canada and the
U.S.), lights for night courts,
bubbles, fences, backboards,

mechanized teaching aids .

and, of course, clothing.

Even so, there has to. be
more to the tennis boom than
gung-ho |
manufacturers. Coming back

‘to where I started, I’m pretty

certain I discovered years

ago the real reason why the .

game was bound, eventually,

- to. grip the imagination of

millions.

- Tennis, you see, isthe .

. ideal, game for life's losers. -

Right up to the final

service—usually about 30

” Don't close
Delbrook.

- On behalf. ‘of the many

re . students’ and ° parents. of
“Ithas become t too political,
The love and sparkling ideas

Delbrook High School, we
seek your support in public-

izing our wish to keep this © ¢
" school. open.

‘ ‘

Delbrook has an excellent

. record of | academic excell-

Is Vancouiver willing to: ‘pay

$15 million to support polit-
ical arguments? Not likely. If

Habitat returns, ::1:: hope.
someone will pass ° this
message on, ;

Lynda King

West Vancouver a

Peter Speck
flex Weyler.
' Noel Wright
Ellsworth Olckson
Gulilermo Lam

_ Bob Graham...

Patricia Cardie,.

Vk

B. C. mainland’s largest woekly newspaper

A North Vancouver...
“apsatatens sesbstidt tnansonate
LETTERS...

“ence, .is ‘centrally-. located,

. and we want to keep it as our
_ top regional High School. If it

is. closed, -students: will have

" to: ‘travel ‘much further, and
| we would lose one. of the few

‘remaining’ ‘schools on the
‘North. Shore where students
and teachers still take pride

_ in keeping scholastic stan-
. dards high.

“ ‘Don't “Tet them

cillors that you want to Keep
Delbrook alive. -

Ellis Dray

4

EDITOR aro welvommed
Seay ane fo publish as
ae aS apace permite

each ‘wook. This is your

| Own community news.

paper and we value your
contributlons on whatever
‘subjocis are of concer to

i POORER SR

areca sehen

promoters and.

**Frog.’” she said. And
then, a little louder, “frog.”
Suddenly she rushed over to
her older sister and held out
her green rubber.

of the couch. where I

-- sprawled.

Safely out of my reach, she.

stuck her tongue out at. me.

“You're .a a big green frog ;
and you live in a dirty old .

mud puddle!”’

Soon the two of them were

dancing around the couch

_ laughing and singing | “frog,

frog, frog, frog, frog.”’

seconds before you vault the

net, pick yourself up on the:

other side and shake your
victorious opponent warmly
by the hand—you can still
kid yourself that you’re going
to win after. all.

In other games, once you
fall too far behind,

frog. _

Moe picked it up. ‘‘You’re .
a frog, Peter;'’ she chall- ©
enged. The story. forgotten, °
she came around to the foot

. Freg-
frog frogi””

. We were - all: ‘breathless

: with laughter when their’

parents came home. Some-
times little things bring more
pleasure than Rolls Royces.

the comeback trail, recover
your form, get the -other
fellow rattled at last, and
sweep relentlessly ¢ on to > take
the match.

Even when. your score is
0-5 and the next game is your
opponent’s service,- you can -
still snatch the set from him.

such It has been done.
. self-delusion becomes im-
possible. You play on to the

I know. I did. it. myself

bitter end not in order to find Once. --well, almost.

out whether you’re going to.
lose, but only to find out by
how much. In golf, when you

Having suddenly: g got him

embark on the last hole with on the run, I took the. next
a 90 to your opponent’s 70, five. games in a row and -
there’s obviously no way pulled level” at. 5-5. After

you’re going to make it.

that, each point I lost to him
only ‘convinced me more |

That fact, indeed, has firmly than ever that just

probably been clear to you cight more. serves would give
for quite a number — of me the set.

previous holes—which. can.

be rough on your arteries and °. - They didn’ t, ef course: He
your duodenum if you're the finally wiped me out 8-6 with

resentful type. .

. @_ single

smash . lasting |

exactly one ‘second—and

No. such problem with right up that very last second.

. .tennis. To begin with,, there

hope still burned brightly.

isn’t time to mope,; and hope © .
springs eternal. Lose a point, If lose you must, ‘what a
a.game, a complete. set— beautiful’ way to lose. And
with the very next. service’ what a pity life itself doesn’t
you know you’ re going | to hit. use the same scoring system.

OF power

- Dear Peter Speck: |

should be banned—and may

1 add to that list power Saws.

Mother’s Day but it was my

birthday and I'd promised -

myself I would lie out.on our

rock in the sun,, overlooking’.

Passage Island . and Light-
“house Park. "

cléat *
- Delbrook—write, phone, and.
' tell’ your friends, teachers,
school trustees, and ‘coun-:

1 specially asked for a soft,
warm day and'l got it. And as
I lay there watching the

_ eagles soar over their nests -
and little sail boats passing,.

some power-mad idiot star-

» ted. his power saw.'I won't
' say it: ‘oe my: day; but it’.

dutled it.

vee

I'd like also to comment on
the poop scoop issue. As a
regular Ambleside dog-
walker, |} would soy that

Ambleside Park where dogs .

are allowed to run free at the
east end is surprisingly
clean, because dogs are not

I read your editorial with ‘
delight because I know your’
secret garden and I do so.
agree, power: mowers. and. -
small. planes on Sundays ~

. pects self-made men: It.is a

That, 1 suspect, is the true
explanation : -of. today's':new.
cry: “Tennis everyonel’” mo

oo *

To independent | ‘North:
Shore business: people: “who
sometimes. feel. the. whole
world is ganging up on them
I offer, these cheering: ‘words

from ~ Oliver’. Wendell
. Holmes: = :
“Everybody tikes’ and | res-

great deal better to be made
in that way than not to:.be. .

. made at.all,”’

Sunday. was a a special day x
for me: not only was it.

a

naturally public . ‘performers

“and prefer to retire ‘to the’

bushes for their: ‘toilet pur-
poses, This.is part: ‘of puppy
training, which‘ the: council

appears to have overlooked.

“The people who keep their
dogs always.oh a lead cannot.
blame the dog if it does drop
its load on a path~it has got
no choice. But it is'so easy, .
when you are training. a pup
to the lead, and toilet
training, to steer it to the

’ ditch.or some bushes, when

tlie pe p indicates, it-needs to
go. Then, if you praise it for a
good effort in the right place,
there are no problems. |

We do enjoy your paper. Its
gets better and better... |

Ellen Tattersfield’:.
West Vancouver: