Under and over

7th September
The local WI Craft group has now finished its contribution to the Federation book of samplers so that is ready to join the others from WIs in the county. I am looking forward to seeing them all together. We were a bit disappointed that the drawings submitted from our WI for the tea towels were not considered worthy of a prize but it was heartening that there had been such a large response. We are now making some Christmas tree decorations which involve lots of cutting up of scraps of material and tiny pins so that will keep us quiet for a while. Also we are off to the Alexandra Palace Knitting and Stitching Show in October with a local coach company. I hope someone will stop me buying more wool and materials for new projects before I finish what I have already stacked about the house.
6th September
The Book Group met this afternoon. We had been reading "The Return" by Victoria Hislop which was thoroughly enjoyed by most people.We had liked "The Island" by the same writer and I must admit that I thought beforehand that she was returning to Crete but it was to Spain many years after the civil war.The theme was quite topical as there has been a lot in the press about the lifting of the silence over that event; it is only recently that this silence has been broken.Some of our members had actually visited the enormous tomb which the political prisoners were forced to build. I did think that the story sometimes became a cover for the historical account but on the whole it worked. It certainly prompted a lot of discussion of the disaster that is civil war, the role of religious belief and the general ignorance of what actually happened so recently.We also talked about the Laurie Lee books about the Spanish civil war which many of us had read in the past. Good news for us is that we have gained two new members to our group and that our next book appears in talking book form as well for our member that is struggling with sight problems.
9th September
The local WI held an extra meeting this evening when Clarins Beauty firm was invited to give a make-up demonstration to members and friends.It was a pleasant evening but it did make me wonder how anyone has the time to actually go out, if they have to go to such lengths in preparation.The cost is astronomical too and so many of the products smelled to me of good old fashioned Ponds Cream which our grandmothers used to use!
10th September
The subcommittee for Education and Current Affairs met today. We spent time making final preparations for next week's repeat crossword session which is really a re-run of the successful event in the north of the county.Nearly all the people who had been disappointed in the ballot previously had applied for this one which was good plus some new people.The next event is the International Day on Holland which is taking shape and after that next year we are planning a Tudor Day. We wish our lives away, but every event has to be organised so far in advance because of demand for halls and speakers.
11th September
Ten of us travelled to Norway today on the WI holiday.We were collected from our doorstep and whisked down to Heathrow in fine style.We had been issued with electronic tickets which was a first for many of us. I wish I had had a camera to hand to photograph our group coming to terms with the machines which issued our boarding cards. We managed it with great aplomb and agreed that this was the first part of our educational process on the holiday.Since returning the media is telling us that to cut costs several airlines will only issue electronic tickets in future so if you need any advice ask us! I am not going to regale you with all our adventures, suffice it to say we had a marvellous time: we saw a lot of beautiful places, the hotels were first class, the food was great and the weather was unusually good for the time of year ie we had one misty morning.We visited museums where we learned about Vikings and the Kontiki expeditition,we shut our eyes travelling up and down amazing road passes, we marvelled at the engineering expertise of the tunnels, and we never saw a moose.We educated the Americans with whom we were travelling into the history of World War II especially the Shetland Bus, the WI beyond the Calendar Girls whom they knew about, England beyond the Cotswolds and the Health Service.No American we talked to had read the Barak Obama books, yet they had been in the UK's bestsellers lists for months.What a wonderful country Norway is and how pleasant and welcoming the people are! The cost of living makes one's eyes water and I shall never forget the face of one of our members when she was asked the equivalent of £1.90 for a small mug of boiling water and a separate teabag! But if we were asked for a knitting pattern for a traditional Aran sweater, could we produce the instructions in Norwegian or any other European language for that matter!
23rd September
I hope you all read the latest issue of WI Life because there are several mentions of Bucks in it. Congratulations to Maids Moreton for its full page spread, to the lady who won a prize for her crochet from Flackwell Heath and again in the archive column about District Nurses we have a reference. But if you are feeling depressed, please read the letter from the lady who bought the magnetic appliance to help with her menopausal symptons.I haven't laughed so much for ages.The other more serious article about the interview with the BBC was picked up by the national press in the discussions about ageism, not just in the media but also in nursing care.So you see there are people out there wanting to know what we think on very different topics.
Also some time this week the national press mentioned a Town Council that had had to move its meeting place to avoid the WI's raucous singing of Jerusalem. There must be more verses than I know. I bet the council didn't want the WI to hear the waffle from it! Actually one evening class that holds its session nextdoor to our local WI asked us to leave the door open so that they could listen and join in too!