Summer primer * THE SEASON of ihe househusband is upon us. Paul St. Pierre” PAULITICS & PERSPECTIVES Women and children flee the family demesne for holidays on the grandparents’ farm or Disneyland and the male, whose work is never done, remains. Despite what the feminists claim, the sexes in our society are not equal in ail respects. While any man may win a passing mark at the outdoor barbecue, there is not one in 20 who keeps a house to women’s standards. Those standards are largely in- visible. They resemble what religionists call a state of grace, perceptible only to the high priests. However, we must strive for them, whatever they may be, and . advice never hurts. MISSING SOCKS In houses where wives com- mand the clothes washer, half a pair of socks goes missing, on average, every third wash day. Some husbands are convinced it is a deliberate act by their spouses who, cursed with an inability to remember and retell a good story, try to get their laughs by practical jokes. This is an unworthy suspicion as he will now discover. When he is in charge, single socks disappear at exactly the same rate. ‘Nobody can say what happens to half-pairs of socks. We know that missing socks form the outer two rings of Saturn but we don’t know why. . It must be all part of a Divine plan and no doubt on Judgment Day all our missing socks, with our name on the bundle, will be presented us by the Heavenly Host. The man who is bothered by getting back only one of the two socks from the washing machine has nobody but himseif to blame. His problem is easily overcome. Early in life, at junior high school graduation day, say, every mate should decide wheiher he is going to wear grey, blue or brown clothes all the rest of his life. Once that decision is made, he can buy socks of m ‘ching colors and identical appearance. His socks will go rnissing from the machine at exactly the same rate, but it won't matter any more because in his entire wardrobe, one sock matches every other for the solo sock. You just buy some more identical socks from time to time. THE BATHTUB OVERFLOWS Positive thinking helps. If your wife were here, she would remind you in that ir- ritating way that wives have that she has insisted for six months that you hire a plumber and that you have replied that plumbers, like doctors, don’t know their own trade. ft is much better that you deal with the situation now privily. The flooded bathtub is a good test of a househusband’s common sense. As he stands ankle deep in sudsy water that has come over the sides of the tub he will reveal whether he has what is needed to run a house free of pain and guilt. First, assess the situation. Well, no, not the first. First turn off the damn taps. The second job is to see how this catastrophe can be met with the least possible inconvenience. Cleanliness does not enter the calculation. This is soapy water. You were going to wash yourseif in it. Anything good enough to wash you is good enough to wash a bathroom floor. It is in this spirit that you should approach the question of whether to get a mop and pail and whether there are enough days be- fore your wife’s return for the water to disappear by evaporating and going down into the floor- boards where it can’t matter anymore. i. Almost always it will be seen Society opens NV social housing project THE ENTRE Nous Femmes Housing Society recently opened the 19-home Margaret Heights social “housing project in North Vancouver. The project, located at 1800 Rufus Dr., wit! provide 19 homes for low-income families. it also includes two two-bedroom units that have been modified to ac- commodate the physically dis- abled. © Complete system check © Front whee! @ Machining of front rotors ¢ Installing new metallic pads © Topping up fluid e | Compo rood test ring service “We rely on efforts of com- munity groups like Entre Nous Femmes Housing Society to pro- vide housing for those in need,”’ said North Vancouver MP Chuck Cook. “The members of this organiza- tion make a valuable contribution to their community,’’ he added. B.C. Housing Minister Robin Blencoe said the project provides much-needed -housing for families in North Vancouver. The Margaret Heights develop- ment is funded under the feder- E> . A ISMISSION - 1 SERVICE. INCLUDES _ © Install new fluid ® Clean screens © Full adjustment * New pan gasket ‘© Complete road test °C/V joint inspection ai-provincial social housing pro- gram which, in six years, has pro- duced over 11,000 social housing units in B.C. The society will receive an an- nual subsidy of $232,000 to ensure that tenants pay no more than 30% of their income for rent. The federal government will cover two-thirds of the subsidy through the Canada Mortgage and Hous- ing Corp., and the provincial gov- ernment will contribute one-third through B.C. Housing. — Brakes -— Custom and dual exhaust — Automatic and standard transmissions -—- Clutches and all drive-line components — 25 Ton motorhome and truck hoist — All work guaranteed * May not ce combined with any other offer. Expires June 15/92 Most cars & light trucks. Friday, July 3, 1992 — North Shore News - 9 that time, the great healer, will repair the bathroom. You may, however, choose to get in a professional plumber while she is absent. She need never know that you did it and where the eye cannot see that wounding expression ‘‘I told you so”’ cannot be spoken. DUST We have said it before and ap- parently we must say it again. Dust is no problem if you leave it alone. Dust is composed of tiny parti- cles that are so light that many of them will take more that two weeks to fall and two weeks is the length of time of the average housewife’s vacation. Dust is composed of minute particles, bits of our dandruff and itsy bitsy mites that feed on the Thing househusband dandruff and then poo. Much of dust is mite excrement. Do you want the excrement de- posited on the furniture or do you prefer to stir it up into the air where you car. breathe it? Exactly. ; So don’t stir up dust. Let it set- tle. FULL-BLOWN CATASTROPHES Frightful things can occur. The carpet burns. The fridge fails, and the smell when you open the door is unspeakable. For these and others, go lie down with a good book. Remember the ofd movies where the U.S. Cavalry arrives, TARA TATATARA, just in time to save the wagon train? So, also, help is on its way to you. She will come home. . S are not always as they appear. When we begin looking past the outward appearance of things, new possibilities open up. Join Michael B. Thorneloe, a former lawyer, now a Christian Science practitioner and lecturer, while he walks through the countryside of his native England, and examines his lifelong experience as a practicing Christian Scientist. His half-hour talk is titled: Square Sunday, July 4 at 1:00 p.m. on Vision TV (Shaw Cable Channel 30) Sponsored by First Church of Christ Scientist, West Vancouver Michael 8. Thormeloe is a member of The Christian Science Board of Lectureship. Spring and Summer merchandise by Margareta, Adrienne Vittadini,;Como and more. West Vancouver open Friday, July 3 — 1am-9pm Kerrisdale 266-6211 ¢ West Vancouver 926-2113 © Robson Street 681-6612 Kitsilano 736-9499 ¢ White Rock $38-6688