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Show (DdDmmBmt Free Press - Wednesday, April 22, 1987 - Page 2 People shouldn't be gagged in open public meetings How much can the public say,, when the public addresses a public body? According to the Alpine Board of Education, sometimes not as much as the public might think. Unfortunately, when members of the school board limited comment at their most recent meeting, they did a disservice to the public and themselves. Controversy during the supposed "Public Opportunity to Address the Board" centered around the firing of a teacher at Manila Elementary. In a tersely-worde- d letter, parents, represented by infringes on a person's freedom of expression, but it creates an atmosphere that will discourage, rather than encourage, public participation at future school board meetings. That hurts everybody. The problem here is confusing what public bodies are allowed to do with what they are required to do. Public agencies exist to conduct the public's business, and laws have been established to ensure that such business is conducted in the open. Of course, some matters are too delicate for a public airing, and the Utah Legislature has allowed four exceptions to the requirement that public business be conducted publicly. These agencies can close their doors for the following purposes - and only for these purposes : ' - Evelyn McNair, took issue with the decision and with the person who had made it, the school's principal. The complaint itself may or may not have merit. That is a separate issue. But to what degree should school board patrons, or anybody for that matter, be gagged when addressing legitimate concerns at a meeting convened to conduct the public's business? In this case, parents were told quite plainly that they would not be allowed to discuss references to perto the extent that sonality conflicts in the meeting they were not allowed to mention the name of the principal involved. In fact, there is no law or regulation which prohibits the discussion of personalities or personality conflicts in any open meetings in the state of Utah. n the contrary, prohibiting such discussion not only By BETTY FOWLER We always have a family Easter Egg Hunt and this snowy Easter was Sharon Morrey By SII.AKON From now on, I'll do I his in I he wee hours of the morning or at midnight when the house is quiet and no one is about. It's just too hard when have help making the birthday cake. This time, it was a Dolly cake for MOKHKY 1 my daughter's fourth birthday and since I was essentially out of time, 1 ; decided to let her help me. She wanted to watch and I couldn't see a way to work without her seeing what I was about, so I agreed. Usually I try to make the cake a surprise event and actually I know better than to accept offers of help in the kitchen from people under 10. "It would be fun for her to see how I do the dolly cakes," I decided. "And how bad can it be?" Pretty bad. See, I've decorated a lot of cakes in my time. For a while. I even sold i a few. I started out experimenting with a lew tips and ideas and found it was fun. I've learned to make roses that wait on waxed paper in the freezer and to do laccwork that hangs off the side of a cake without falling off. I can make pansies and stars, leaves and scrolls. I took a class and learned to work with the icing that freezes up instantly - ready or not. It's interesting work and the decorator gets to lick the spoon and eat up the mistakes. I enjoy it. Over the years I've made Easter Bunny cakes. Raggedy Ann cakes. Care Bear cakes and Rainbow Brite cakes. I've invented the Airstrip cake (for my brother who's a jet pilot in the Air Force), the Golf Course cake (for my husband, the duffer) and the Cliffhanger cake (for my son who wanted a" cake with cars crashing over the side). I've learned that a cake must be cooled before you put on the crumb cake is coat. (In fact, a the best kind to work upon. I have learned to bake my cakes slowly wrapped in wet towels and tip them out of the pans quickly. I have developed special muscles in my hands - I can now grip a decorator bag and squeeze for hours n ) i. Thanks 5; time without getting a cramp. I said, during this time. I've enjoyed myself and learned much but I very quickly learned that to really enjoy decorating a complicated cake, I must work alone. It isn't the same when I have someone standing .over me with a verbal whip..., I can't relax when I have a pint-siz- e foreman asking relentlessly, "Is it done yet, mommy'?" It's difficult to concentrate when small children are walking on the counter around the cake trying to see how "you do the necklace." I find it upsetting to have a child lose his balance and put his hand into the cake to catch himself. When I have all this help. I find myself gripping the decorator bag so hard tha all the frosting comes out the back onto the floor. I try to hurry and I make mistakes. Or I find myself grabbing a big flower tip so it'll take less time to cover the remaining surface. This last effort was particularly trying, since it was Sunday and all my children were at home "helping" me. I had to conduct a series of walkthrough lectures on how mommy got the dolly inside the cake and where were the dolly's legs and were we going ,to eat the whole dolly? I finished it about twice the time it would normally have taken. I was tired and crabby and dissatisfied with the results. promised myself that next time I would work alone if I had to rise at three in the morning to do so. That is, I told myself that up until Kari came in for a final survey of her cake. She looked long and carefully at the little pi'nk dolly with rosebuds in her hair and around her neck. She touched the satin bows on her "skirt" and peeked at the frothy white lace "slip." She beamed at me. her brown eyes all big and shiny. "I love her. she's beeeeeyou-ti-ful- , a As .' 1 mommy," Penny Inchers she breathed and clapped her small hands. "I'm so glad to help you, Mommy. I will help you again," she promised. How can I refuse such an offer? believe it exception. The girls hid notes, eggs and prizes outside in the weather, but they had to come inside for the prizes. Wow! There were cold little hands, feet and noses. But they their slightly winterish enjoyed surprises. We tried to sing "Here comes Peter Cottontail hoppin' down the bunny trail," ala Autry, and we did sing "In your Easter bonnet with all the frills upon it" and any other Easter song we could think ot (Somebody could make a fortune if they could come up with a new Easter song.) And we sang a few Easter songs and chants like: "Oh Easter time is the time for eggs and the time for eggs is the Easter Time, Oh the hen got loose and stole my goose," and some more Heckell and Jeckell tunes, but the little Kids j looked at us with embarrassed look: on their faces - so we shut up. We did, however, sing along with Choir Sunday Tabernacle the morning, and added a few favorite hymns of our own. That was neat, we'd come home smelling like the champion king of the road. This year I was content to put my A&R weiner in the microwave and eat my hotdog in front of the television while watching Fifth Avenue's Easter Parade. I've decided the other way is by far the most fun. I've gotta get out on an Easter hike again. No kidding. Isn't it a lot more fun to stay home and eat clean stuff, than go roughing it and eat sooty hot marshmallows, Fowler-brow- n dogs, and cracked Easter eggs? Yes, we're the sissy generation! And I love it. Gee, you guys call it roughing it when all you do-i- climb into your ATV's and cruise up the mountain! How do you know how it feels to scale the highest peak on toot? To get up there and gaze down on the real world and "realize that patchwork quilt down there is your oyster and you can do anything you want to do. It's a free day and all How can you get that yours? exultant surge if you just leisurely drive up there? Without the work it's a trip in vain. Oh yeah, says my kids. How about getting that ATV ready? Making sure it has gas, the tires aren't flat, checking the oil, and taking 'there are that precautions flashlights and an emergency kit s ' - By BETTY FOWLER Highland from our homes in lower Amercan Fork. There weren't many homes up there then, but there were lots of grassy nooks and hideouts complete with a cover of trees and bushes. We'd build a little fire so we could have hot, not cold, hot dogs, and too. Gone are the days when kids rose early on Easter morning, packed their yummy Easter lunch and went for a hike. We used to go up to . packed inside? All the work is done beforehand. But - and this is the , bottom line, you gotta do it, and if you don't, you're apt to be in trouble. I'll never forget when I stole my , dad's '28 Chevy and took my first ; ATV excursion up to Alpine. It would ' have helped if I'd known how to drive. I just thought I did. And when the time for getting I back home before the folks did was passed, I hurried down the Alpine road and some smarty-pant- s friends' forced me off the road into a ditch.' Ohhh, woe was me. Those friends noticed my plight and came back to help me get the' little green Chevy back on the road again. No, my folks weren't home; yet, but when they did come I blurted out the whole story of my ' recklessness to them and took a chance on getting the tingly willow treatment. My folks were really nice, but I'll never enjoy an ATV again. Never! tit 's too bad today's' children can't have a similar object lesson. I've honestly tried not to be wayward since. And it's still difficult. Anyway, the view from my television set is just fine for me. And I'll take my trusty Old Blue and go a couple of miles away to my daughter's for Easter lunch. That's thrill enough - I get my kicks from listening to my grandkids ! Men don't stand a chance in romance So, it's spring with flowers that scent the air, and as the old saying goes, "In the spring a young man's fancy turns to thoughts of love." The modern version of this is, "In the spring a young man's fancy turns to things his girlfriend has been thinking about all winter." Frankly, we men don't stand a chance in the romance department. The women have too many arms in their war chest. All you need to do is to look at advertisements for toiletries. Let's look at a few. Aviance. Night Musk. have an Aviance kind Put it on of night. A soft, luscious scent that will turn all your evenings into a night to remember. Madeleine De Madaleine Parfum. The aura of beauty, the nature of pleasure: the soul of a woman, brotusinq one. You may be sorry.: "Touch of Venus Perfume." A romantic fragrance of love and passion. How about "Galore Bouquet De Decembre Trio." Indulge in this spicy floral scent that goes from day to evening. So alluring - totally -- captivating. So, who is to be allured and captivated? You guessed it, it's us 3 - h By TOM GRIFFITHS scent to reveal in all day." And be careful when she uses Senchal Perfume by Charles of the Ritz: "A little passion - be swept away by Senchal." Then there's Generation 900. Helps your skin keep the glow of youth! This ultra rich formulation replaces what your body loses, drawing moisture from the air and locking it into your skin. So if your lovely lady complains of dry skin don't waste your money on Generation 900, just spray her with the garden hose. Men, don't buy this for your loved -- Madaleine. Mono - there's not another woman in the world like her. Men. watch out for this one: Epris Concentrated Cologn Spray by Max Factor. "Part of the art of being a woman is knowing when not to be too much of a lady. A wonderfully spirited ,. men. Now, you gals who have a hard day at the office, or the store, or even at home, and feel down in the dumps, cheer up for here is "Champagne." Tells you to live wonderfully and well. Revel in Champagne, a deep, hypnotizing scent - a fragrance for all the shining moments of each day and night. Please girls be careful. If you use "Imprevu Cologne" by Coty. The unexpected can happen with this scent. Then there is Creotien Ted Lapidus. For $9.95 you can get a $40 value. It's new to America. The fragrance sensation from France. Spicy, provocative, fragrance for sophisticated. the woman A who knows her own limits - but dares to . go a step beyond. of London an offers Yardley "Aloe 30 All Over Body Lotion." A 30 concentration of Aloe Vera is blended with emolients and rich oils to soften, smooth and moisturize your skin. Now men I can't guarantee this product. In fact it is downright dangerous. A friend of mine bought some for his wife which "she used before retiring to bed. My friend informed me it was a bad investment. His wife's skin was so slick she kept slipping out of bed. Then there is "Wind Song" by Prince Matchabelli. The story goes he is not a prince at all. He is a Frenchman who fell into a sewer and when he got out he decided to go into perfumes. As for us men, what do we have to offer. There is Northwest Mounted Police that makes you smell like a horse. Then there is Stetson, a perfume that makes you smell like a sweaty old hat. My favorite is called "Disappear." You put it on and it makes you invisible so no one can tell where the smell is coming from. , CLEAN CARPETS Free press to Editor: Thanks to all who have helped in ; ;any way to make the collection of funds for children at the Primary Medical Center. The project "Pennies by the ilnch" has been very successful due ito the splendid cooperation of those :who have so unselfishly given of Iheir time, contributions, etc. A special thanks to citizens of Alpine, '.American Fork, Highland, Lehi, Lindon, and Pleasant Grove. Donna Brock Area director ; at you better no From now on, I'll bake at midnight ' and personnel any hint of this type of discussion matters is the most common justification for holding an executive session. In fact, despite clear regulations calling for open meetings, some agencies make the closed session a regular part of all meeting agendas, whether there is a real need for one or not. What the school board did last week was to use these guidelines and extend them to individuals who were expressing their opinion in what is billed in the agenda as a "Public Opportunity to Address the Board." Certainly, no one wants to have the board's detailed deliberations or his or her professional competence aired at a public meeting. But that has little to do with patrons' complaints at a comportion of the meeting designed to hear such a discuss comments those because may plaints simply of conflict personalities. purported On the contrary, by prohibiting such discussion to the point of forbidding the mention of someone's name has a chilling effect on all public expression at future board meetings and makes a mockery of the board's committment to respond to the concerns of board patrons in an open fashion. Certainly the board has the right to close its doors to discuss specific personnel problems, but the board should not interpret that right as a license to stifle public comment in a legitimate public forum. Snow didn't deter family egg hunt Copyright well-froze- . -- To plan strategy for law suits, the purchase of land or collective bargaining. -- To discuss the deployment of security personnel and devices. -- To investigate allegations of criminal misconduct. -- To discuss the character, professional competence or physical or mental health of an individual. But there is no law requiring that public meetings be closed for any reason. Unfortunately, many public agencies interpret these guidelines so they may retreat behind closed doors at - tidbits . L ISSN No. 87504669 U.S.P.S. No. 309-50- 0 ! lr J p K. r YOU CAN LOVE AGAIN! II 1 I I 111 M WE BRING YOU in for Thanksgiving anfl Christmas by Newtah, Inc. 32 West Main l.chl, I tan 84043 , Telephone Numbers 9 Advertising & Circulation. 3 News Brett R. 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