12 PREVIEW Wednesday, September 30, 1992 Fiddler’s Green a delight in dining @@ Sunday Brunch can’t be done any better than at Nelson restaurant Your Guide to Fine Dining | inthe | West Kootenay By Neal McKenna It was one of those dog-day Au- gust mornings you always remem- ber with fondness. The sun was bright and warm, birds twittered, and the flowers were fragant. My guest and | arrived at Fiddler’s Green on Nelson's North Shore. Atter checking in at the reception area, we were seated at a reserved table under a bright blue umbrella on the patio. Somewhere beyond the fence someone chanted a mantra. Some- how, it all meshed into place. Ithad been several months since my last dining at Fiddler's Green and perhaps a year since I'd taken in the Sunday Brunch. It was nice to be back. We were served by an attractive young woman with an intriguing accent. Of course, there was no decision to be made, we had come for Sun- day Brunch and immediately head- ed for the buffet table for pre-break- fast appetizers. Burger & Steaks English Fish & Chips The selection was endless: fruit salad topped with sweet whipped cream, Nanaimo Bars, pastries, rum balls, mini quiches, deviled eggs, croissants, jams & jellies, fresh juices and more. Like the ardent reviewer that | am, had a little of everything, and more of special favorites. Eggs Florentine atop English muffins, smothered in Hollandaise sauce, served with pan fried pota- toes, and a pineapple wedge as a garnish arrived for me. Eggs Benedict with similar ac- counterment was placed in front of my ex-mother-in-law. We conducted our once-a-month visit al fresco. | should explain. Since my divorce, my former mother-in-law and | have remained friends. Honest, it can happen! We check in on each other once a month just to make sure the other is still alive. Sunday Brunch at Fiddler’s seemed an excellent means to — to if you'll pardon the expression — kill two birds with one pleasant stone. 35 Different Entrees, One Great Price $10.95 Phone 368-8600 « Trail Relax & enjoy the best view in town from The Onlywell Pub Food service 11:30 a.m.-11:00 p.m. daily or bring the family & enjoy fine dining in The Roundhouse Restaurant Lunch 11:30-2 + Dinners 5-9 Kee Flying Steamshovel Inn corner of Washington & 2nd Ave. in Rossland + 362-5323 The Springs Dining Room @ sso? iH emoRniNne Sra’ Clip & Save invites you to enjoy the ultimate in fine dining and receive complimentary pool passes with every full meal. We cater to people with Allergies and ) | Diet Disorders. | Authentic Russian jf Food still our specialty. TRY OUR JUMBO BURGER & FRIES 1] i| For Reservations Call 229-4212 Open Tuesday to Sunday 4:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. 10% Seniors Discount « Childs Portions 2629 Broadwater Road, Robson- 365-0181 Seperate Dining Room Entrance Beside the Pub We ate too much and drank champagne and orange juice for al- most two hours. By one in the afternoon, it was time to go. As | passed the buffet table, | real- ized one of life’s little tragedies was about to transpire: so may pastries, so little room. A doggie bag would have been gauchely inappropriate but | consid- ered the notion quite seriously. In the end, proper decorum pre- vailed and | departed sans a hidden stash. Brunch at Fiddler's Green had been a more than a pleasant Sun- day morning interlude. My best advice to you is: try it for yourself soon. This coming Sunday, perhaps? | hate to say it but summer is fast on the wane. Only a few sunsoaked Sundays remain for Brunch on the patio. And remember to make a reser- vation first, Fiddler's Green is always busy. Try Our All New Dinner Menu VEE 422 Vernon St., Nelson * 352-5331 Your Host: Ron & Deb Matthews Di scover | Nelson’s finest prime | riband 1 steak house Famous for our prime rib, steaks, sandwiches and luscious desserts. Relax in one of our cozy booths after iif your golf game! Open for lunch and dinner. 646 Baker St., Nelson, B.C | 352-5358 _ : @ Wednesday, September 30, 1992 AroundT OWN Our person for Our People Corinne Jackson 365-7266 SERIES FOR SENIORS The Crescent Valley Centre is offering a series of daytime classes for seniors and their caregivers. Films and discussions will range from taking care of aging parents to traveling tips for seniors.Sessions are held Thursday's from 2 p.m to 4 p.m. and run until Oct. 15. Refreshments are served and admission is $3. For more information call 359-7564. POET READS PROSE Poet Dale Zeiroth has been invited by Selkirk College to read some of his works. There is no admission cost and everyone is welcome. The event takes place on Thursday, Oct. 1 at noon at the Castlegar campus. SYMPHONY SURPRISE Ticket-holders to an Oct. 3 concert at Nelson's Capital Theatre are in for a treat. Selkirk College music instructor Gilles Parenteau will be giving a solo performance demonstrating the recent advances in music technology. Tickets are $11 and are still available at the Capital Theatre and Eddy Music in Nelson. _ OurPEOPLE Blood donors clinic returns Organizers set lofty total for one-day Castlegar clinic NEWS STAFF The Red Cross Blood Donor Clinic is ready to roll into town. The annual drive is set to take over the Castlegar and District Community Complex on Oct. 8, beginning at 2 p.m. For six hours, § Red Cross crews will hope to gather 350 units of blood from generous Castlegar population. . The 1992 drive may be hard-pressed to beat the record set one year ago. That year, Castlegar came out in full force, eclipsing organizers forecast to contribute 368 units of blood to be used throughout the province. “That was the highest we’ve ever had and we’re looking for more,” Castlegar blood donor chair Dr. Keith E. Merritt said. More indeed. Merritt said that of the 35 per cent of eligible donors Canada-wide, only six per cent contribute on a regular basis. “One unit of whole blood helps several different people,” he said, “it’s very important that people come out and contribute.” Merritt urged first-timers to come out and support the clinic, saying their is no risk involved with donating blood. “This is a safe procedure,” he said. “This is completely safe for the donor. We have professionals working with single-use needles.” First-timers should be aware of new screening procedures the Red Cross is incorporating at its 1992 clinics. In addition to the normal screening procedures, Merritt said new donors are required to provide two pieces of picture indentification before giving the gift of life. Previous donors must also provide one piece of photo ID and their Red Cross card. Merritt dismissed the myth that the Red n News file photo The 1991 blood donor clinic was a huge success and organizors are hoping to repeat that on Oct. 8. when the Red Cross sets up shop at the Castlegar Community Complex from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Cross is only after certain types of blood. Instead, he said “every type of blood is needed, without exceptions.” Based on that, Merritt outlined the age requirements of a blood donor. He said new donors can be between the ages of 17 and 60. He added that new donors should be in good physical health, weigh at least 100 pounds and free of prescribed medication. Previous donors, meanwhile, can be between 17 to 70 years of age provided they have given blood in the last two years. Merritt said that the donated blood quickly regenerates itself. He said the plasma — or liquid portion of the blood — is replaced by the body in 24 hours, while the red blood cells regenerate within six weeks. In anticipation of long line-ups, Merritt urged donors to be paitent. While the actual donation time takes some 10 minutes, Merritt said citizens should expect to spend an hour at the Community Complex before giving the gift of life. “People should bring a book if they wish and bear with us,” he said. “It will be busy.” Busy, but well worth an hour in anyone’s day. For more information on the blood donor clinic, contact 365-3911. rue confessions of one needle-shy guy Scott David Harrison EDITOR I hate needles. Why, the prospect of being pricked by a shiny silver thing is about as inviting as breakfast with the Thrums Elvis Presley Fan Club. No offence, Toby. Maybe it goes back to the time when, as a four-year-old, I got duffed over the head with a frying pan while camping with the ‘fam-damnly’ at rain-soaked Goldstream Park. I remember that day clearly... my poor mother trying to explain to the doctor that, despite my frequent temper tantrums, she was not at the other end of this strong-willed frying pan when it hit my noggin. I didn’t mind the six stitches and the permanent scar, though. In a neighborhood where boys and girls were judged on the amount of stitches they endured during their pre-elementary days, I was somewhat of a legend. By the time I hit kindergarten, I must have been good for 30 stitches, while Dear Old Ma had the equivalent in grey hairs. Let’s face it, in some kind of Neanderthal way stitches were cool. It’s the freezing needles that had me squirming like the baby I really was. Though they were only two to three inches long, in my eyes those pesky needles were as large as West’s flashing ‘W.’ Those feelings remain true as an adult, so much so that I have two scars that are bigger than they should be because I was too whimpy to take the freezing. Despite my fear of needles there is one thing I will gladly face a needle for — the Canadian Red Cross. To me, the Canadian Red Cross is kinda like the kid selling the Girl Guide Cookies — I can’t say no. With that in mind, I’m set to roll up my sleeve and roll back my eyes on Oct. 8 to help with the Red Cross Blood Donor Clinic. The clinic, set for 2 p.m to 8 p.m. at the Community Complex, is one cause I have no qualms about supporting — bruised blood vessels and all. In preparetion for the event, I had an interesting conversation with Dr. Keith E. Merrit last week. The Good Doc informed me that he was hoping the generous Castlegar lot would contribute some 350 units of blood to the 1992 drive. That didn’t seem like a heck of a lot to me, considering Castlegar’s population is hovering around 7,000. But then he added that only six per cent of some 35 per cent of eligible blood donors contribute-on a regular basis. With that in mind, I urge Castlegar to support the ’92 blood donor clinic. The cause is as genuine as they come, which is why I roll up my sleeve every year. If that isn’t enough incentive for you, trust me when I say that it is a painless experience. The satisfaction you will feel from helping the Red Cross save lives is well worth the momentary and minute flash of discomfort. Take it from experience, despite being the needle-shy fellow I am, I’ve given blood eight times. The ninth will come Oct. 8... not bad when you consider I could be having breakfast in Thrums.