THE NORTH Shore YMCA of- fers sports and activities for 10 to 12-year-olds and 13-to 15-year-— olds on Friday nights. This program includes going out roller skating, ice-skating, swimm- ing, learning to play racquet ball, other court sports and more. The youth program director at the Y says “this type of program gives teens a chance to be out on a Friday night in a fun and safe environment. The program will be run by an adult who worked as a . senior counsellor in the Y’s sum- mer program. “Brett McDonald has a lot of experience, a Class IV licence to drive the Y van and a great rap- port with teens of this age.”” The program will run from Oct. 18 to Dec. 6 from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday nights. Preregister or call the Y at 986-0388 for more in-. formation. Hillside involved | in diabetes canvass NOVEMBER IS _ Diabetes Month, and this year when the 500 or so volunteer canvassers take to the streets, about 30 students from the Hillside Middle School’s leadership P.E. program will be among their ranks. This is the second year that these teens have been involved in the Canadian Diabetes Association’s Residential Cam- paign. Shawn - McGuiness, cocr-' dinator of the leadership P.E. program, is really keen about the students supporting the cause. A ‘“‘pep rally’? and orienta- tion session is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 25 at 8:25 a.m. at the school. BCTV sportscaster Barry Houlihan, honorary chairman for the campaign and father of a diabetic son, will address the group. This week’s question: Should seniors at Carson get to smoke? 980-KIDS NEWS Shale Cindy Goodman CAN HE do it? Dallas La Porta, 10, will get a cool $500 from his mother Stephanie if he can go for one full year without watching television. The ceremonia! unplugging of the boob tube took place after school on Thursday, Oct. 24, and Dallas is now seeking other leisure-time pursuits. : Time to escape the escapism The real world may just be passing you by I WROTE about escapism a few weeks ago and I’d ‘like to tontinue on the subject, or maybe it’s better to put it as “escaping escapism’’ this time ’round. Escapism, as the dictionary defines it, is the ‘“‘avoidance of reality by absorption of the mind in entertainment or in an imagina- tive situation.”” (Random House Dictionary, College edition. 1968.) We all participate in escapism regularly: on Tuesdays when movies are cheap, on the weekend when we’re out of school or off work. I mean, we all need fo kick back and relax. No problem: The escapism that troubles me, though, is the kind that carries on day to day, seven days a week. In the past year I’ve seen a sharp increase in the number of young people who live in their own little world, and when that happens the real world passes you by. There are two main groups that, as far as I’m concerned, par- ticipate in this. Like I said though, all of us do so to some extent, so it’s not like I’m saying **You’re bad. 1 condemn you.’’ One is very aggressive; the other is the exact opposite, passive. The former lives the life of in- ner-city gang members while reap- ing the benefits of a middle-class lifestyle. The latter immerses itself in the more superficial aspects of the 1960's ‘‘counterculture.’’ By Karl Schmitt North Shore Youth Council I’m sorry if that comes as a harsh analysis of these two social groups, but this is just my point of view. I think from time to time we all wish we could just run away and forget about the problems we face. I know I do. Adults say that this is the first generation of young people this century who don’t have more to look forward to than their parents did. Not exactly the cheeriest statement I’ve heard. But pretending that life is great is not the same as actually fiving a life that is great. If we can wake up and smell the coffee, look beyond what goes on inside our heads, then that’s a first step. YouthSpeak, the youth con- ference held last year, looked at possible solutions to what adults had labelled ‘‘the youth prob- lem.”’ They never told us what the problem entailed, though. Kind of like going to the doctor and his only diagnosis is, “Well, you seem desperately ill. The bill’s in the mail, have a nice day.”’ Out of YouthSpeak came the formation of the North Shore Youth Council. We (NSYC) tried to help and made some gain, but there are still things that could be done. With North Vancouver City Council’s rejection of a proposed youth club, it seems discouraging, I know. That would have been at least a partial solution. But I’m positive that things can improve if we give it a go. The North Shore Youth Council will be holding our first annual ‘general meeting next month and I’m encouraging and inviting any- one and everyone to show up and voice your opinion. The tentative date is set for Saturday, Nov. 23. The location will be announced before then, so keep reading Zap! for more details. Study finds kids are the key -KIDS ARE key instigators in get- _ ting their families to reduce their garbage by encouraging recycling at home, says a study conducted by Canadian Facts for the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD). Greater Vancouver area children interviewed were more knowl- edgeable about the three R’s than . adults who took part in the survey, and knew that reduction of waste is of primary importance followed by re-use and recyling. Nearly 71% of residents in households with children said that their children have participated in recycling activities at school. Sev- enty-seven per cent said that their children have encouraged other household members to recycle or take other actions to protect the environment. The study on public attitudes about waste reduction and recycl- ing within the GVRD was con- ducted by the polling firm Cana- dian Facts in June of this year. The GVRD’s goal was to deter- mine public awareness and at- titudes towards waste reduction in order to develop public educa- tional and promotional programs.