Monday, November 12, 2007

Back a Few Years

My father emigrated from Poland about the same time as my mother. He was 20 years old. He landed in Montreal and worked at menial jobs until he went to Sudbury, Ontario where he worked under ground at the Stobie mine for International Nickel company. Ironically 40 years later after I graduated for Wayne State University in Detroit Michigan with a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology I worked for a while in that very same mine. I was married and had two boys at that time--Steve and Kevin. Sudury, in those days was, a dismal mining town. The smelter spewed sulphur fumes from its smoke stack and, depending on the direction of the wind the fumes caused your eyes to smart. The sulphur laden air killed and stunted the trees and shrubs in the area and blackened the surrounding rocks. A few years ago the company built a new smoke stack which, I believe, is the tallest smoke stack in north america. The sulphur smoke is now much disseminated and lands someplace far to the east and is far less potent.

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