STRICTLY PERSONAL

TO RETURN to the subject
of sexism, let me toss this
. little caveat your way.

Many years ago, I read a book
called The Female Eunuch, by
Germaine Greer.

It was my habit at the time to
seek out the most revolutionary,
outrageous work on any given
subject and quote from it until a
new, even more revolutionary and
outrageous book or article came

_ out, from which I would promptly .
formulate a sweeping new socio-

, political analysis of the world,
_which 1} was always kind enough

to share with anyone foolish
enough to ask.

Thus, the reading of The Fe-
male Eunuch. { had to. It was
reputed to be the baddest book on
the shelf. And it didn’t let me
down, It was great stuff.

I had always felt sorry for
persecuted minorities, but had not
quite got it in my head that
women were a persecuted, er, ma-
jority. (That was back in the late
1960s, 1 hasten to add.)

i had been raised by a single
mom, who seemed to have almost
mystical powers in the eyes of her
sons. There were plenty of nuns
around. To me, women had
always seemed strong, rather than
weak.

Men were cruel, of course, and
bullies were bullies, but they ter-
rorized everyone smaller than
themselves, including me, not just
girls.

The concept of weak women
per se didn’t enter my mind until
long after the innocence of
boyhood had passed.

Thus, as an adult | have been
fatally attracted to strong women.

My first wife was a strong per-
son indeed. Independent. Ofi-
nionated. Not quick to back
down, Oddly enough, although a
voracious reader, she had not read
Germaine Greer.

Having now discovered that

women were a persecuted majori-
ty, Lcould not keep this atarming
news to myself.

When | couldn’t convince my
wife on the basis of what Ger-
maine Greer said, 1 foolishly nag-
ged her into going to a woman's
consciousness-raising session with
a liberated friend of ours.

I think the first words she spoke
after she came home, slamming
the door, were: “You ass™***!"'

T have had a love-hate relation-
ship with the women’s movement
ever since.

Men are cads, J freely admit.
The question is our curability. If
it turns out, as many feminists in-
sist, that our disease is inoperable,
then what’s the use of trying? We
should all just be put down.

OK. So we fast-forward to now.
After a quarter of a century of
unremitting feminist indoctrina-
tion through the mass media, the
news is I believe myself to have
been almost cured, if not exactly
100%. 1am so liberated it hurts

The monster within seems pretty
much under control. People who
know me say they can hardly
detect it.

li any event, | remarried.

And, contrary to what you might
have expected, I did not marry a
wimp as compensation for the
first time.

My second wife, while dutifully

{ t

awestruck by my wit and charm,
could hardly be described as being
a pushover. She once beat up a
guy. She jumped him from
behind, which is dirty fighting,
but, hey, when was the last time
anybody fought clean?

During most of our 18 years
together, she worked. There were
several years when she was the on-
ly one working, what with me off
on missions. Over that time, she
rose in the ranks until she reached
management.

Then a little more than a year
ago, she got wiped out in an of-
fice power struggle, and landed at
home, jobless for the first time in.
her adult life.

Luckily, by this time, we didn’t
need her income.

It took a while for her head to
stop spinning, for the anger and
hurt to work their way through
her system.

She had to adjust to being at
home. And, for a while, it was a
shock. Post-Workplace Syn-
drome? A sense of isolation and
abandonment. Nerves all keyed up
for executive-level stress, trying to
cope with the staggering mun-
daneness of laundry and house-
cleaning chores,

But for the rest of us, what a -
joy! After years of microwaved
frozen food and delivered pizza,
the kids and I found ourselves sit-

ting down to actual homemade
feasts, and not just on weekends
but every night.

The house underwent a
transformation from top to bot-
tom, inside and out. It took a
quantum leap in terms of being
more comfortable, organized, and
— do I dare say it? Cosy.

Our lives, in fact, became more
comfortable, organized and cosy.

The most amazing change is the
kids. It wouldn’t have been fair to.
call them latch-key kids,’ since
they were always witheither a
babysitter or teacher after school’
until they could bé picked up, .
rushed home and plunked in front
of the TV until food could be |
ordered or zapped. Neither one’ Ss
marks were any good.

A year later, they are both do-
ing excellently i in school. They’ re
happy almost all of the time. I’m
happy. My wife’s happy. It’s all
terribly mushy and luvy-duvy,
and the toaster works, the cars - ,
start, that sort of thing. There is .

life after work, it turns out,

Nowadays, Germaine Greer _.
writes about how women should |<
just give up on men and learn to
live'on their own, or with other
women.

Iam not pushing her. views on
anyone this time arourid, least of
all my wife.

. Squamish members complete marine training program

SQUAMISH Nation elders, band
counciliors, relatives and friends
gathered for a luncheon at the
Squamish’ Recreation Centre on
Friday, Jan. 22;-to pay tribute to
eight band members who recently
_ completed the first: part of .a 26-
.week marine training program,

i

By Paul Hughes
; Contributing Writer

David. Baker,
Mark Nahanee,

Charlie Baker, |
Keith . Baker;
Walter Nahanee,
Stan Paul and Simon Spence have
Spent the past 10 weeks at: the

.Pacific Marine Training Institute .

in .North Vancouver Jéarning
“navigation and chartwork, basic

engineering, first aid, net building

and other marine skitis.

| The program is designed to heip
Squamish Band members gain ‘the
techniques necessary to find

Reno Natrall, |

employment in the fishing in-
dustry,

Lynne Widdows, a managing
consultant for T’ Kaya. Consulting
group, set up the projeci in con-
junction with the Squamish Band
Council. .

Funding was provided by both
the band and Employment and
Immigration Canada.

Widdows, who worked in the
fishing. industry herself, saw the
need to establish a training system
for the Squamish Nation, whose
presence among the coast’s com-
mercial fishermen has divindled
over the years.

“With our current employment
probiems,’’ said Widdows, ‘I
wondered ‘why doesn’t the band
have people trained as fishermen?”

Widdows pointed out that over
80 commercial fishing licences
were once held by Squamish peo-
ple, but over the years that figure
has dropped dramatically.

Although .primarily set up for

NATIVE AFFAIRS

aspiring fishermen, the wide scope
of the training process also leaves
the door open for the trainees to
work in other areas of the marine
industry, such as on tugs and fer-
Tics, :

The final 16 weeks of the
course, Widdows said, will. be
spent on fishing boats, fearning
various skills through practical,
hands-on experience.

Said band councillor Frank
Rivers, “I see the possibility of
growing employment. Fishing is a
resource to us, but ! maintain it
isn’t just 4 resource. Jt’s a part of
us, a part of our culture,”"

Rivers said that fishing, has
always been a central component
of the Squamish heritage, and he
looked on the project as ‘‘a sign
(that) we are heading in a new di-

If you are an avid Heritage lover, and you support efforts to

save historic buildings in the City, this Valentine’s Day £
Heritage Brunch is for you! In celebration of Heritage ;;
‘Week in Canada, The City of North Vancouver plans to

host a brunch at the grand and historic Hamersley -

House.

Highlights of the event include granting of Heritage
Awards by. Mayor Jack Loucks, and guest speaker |
Terry Reksten will talk about the remarkable life and
work of Francis Rattenbury who designed such notable

rection. I see this as a rebirth; go-
ing back to our roots, our
culture.’” ;

Bob Baker, project manager for
the training program, fished the
B.C. coast for 40 years before
retiring.

Speaking at the luncheon, he
said, ‘My dream is over, but it’s
still in my mind that one day I'd

like to go out there with them,” ,
Simon Baker, an elder. of the.’

. Squamish Nation, expressed . pride

in the accomplishment of the cight
trainees. ‘

Addressing thesn, ‘he - said,
“When you go to school, when
they give you -a diploma, . get
good frame and hang it where you
can see 3! every day. ”

Your Professional,: ‘Committed
“Real Estate, Expert’ fo
OFFICE 984.9711

PAGER: 645-9651
FAX: 984-3350

2096 Lonsdale Avo:
; North Vancouver »

ae Duildings as the Provincial Parliament Buildings,
% Vancouver Courthouse, and many more. Tickets” |
| must be purchased BEFORE February 12thl. ‘So mt

3 call today to join us:

Sunday, February 14th at 11:00 a.m.
h Historic Hamersley House Restaurant. - ..
} Tickets $15.00 (includes GST & gratuity) :
: Call 983-7351 orvisit the City Clerk's Office,»
; City Hall, 141 West 14th Street.
North Vancouver, B.C,

The City of } North Vancouver

The Heart of Your Community _