Talk,talk

11th August
Three of us from our WI got together this afternoon to plan our exhibit for the Bucks County Show. Gone are the days when the BFWI used to have its own tent at this event but we are promised an area for promotion and for displaying a craft competition. We hope to improve on last year and on the result from the Mums Matter competition in which our WI did very well.Several other members are contributing items but the person arranging the floral part always has to be able to set the display up on the day previous to the Show as flower arrangements don't travel well.

10th August
The WI Discussion Group met tonight and although the set topic was Dentistry, I'm afraid we were straight into the city riots of the weekend. In fact more than half the allotted time was spent on discussing what had gone wrong over those few days and what was the real cause of such a breakdown of the rules of behaviour.We came up with a selection of suggestions on how to repair the situation.The general feeling is that it will take about 20 years to re-build the public attitudes to society and that the lack of respect for anything at all, lies at the heart of the problem.The importance of communication between parents and children was stressed, the relationship of teachers and pupils and the importance of example from public representatives whether government or sporting personalities. Solutions ranged from the re-instatement of parent-facing pushchairs, some sort of National Service and the teaching of basic principles eg that rights come with responsibilities.

Dentistry had improved technically and was something positive to think about, although it was still very difficult to sign on with NHS dentists and the alternatives were expensive. We considered ourselves lucky to have escaped the false teeth at an early age with which our parents' generation battled.Were jokes about false teeth still made or had they become outdated?

9th August
The Book Group members had been reading Africa House by Christine Lamb which was the biography of a man who spent most of his life in Northern Rhodesia. He built an English style mansion and a complete village for the native community based on the production of fruit and herbs. He played a major role in the setting up of Zambia and fought against apartheid although he treated his staff quite brutally at times. The book was very well written and caused a lot of discussion because Gore-Browne was a man with such conflicting characteristics and he lived such a hard life.I think we all felt that we were glad not to have had to live with or work for such a man! The book was enjoyed by everyone.

8th August
Our local WI fields a regular team to help serve drinks to the blood donors when the unit comes to the town.There is always a steady stream of donors so the three hours of talk and tea-making passes quickly. We now wear our WI badges because people ask why we are there and it does prompt enquiries about membership of the WI. It is also part of our contribution to the local community.

Vague ramblings

3rd August
Today dawned bright and fresh after the storms of the night so another couple and ourselves set off for a walk in the Vale and decided to have lunch together at a village pub. Once more it wasn't long before I recognised other WI members enjoying eating together in three different parties from WIs within the county. The WI really is a network stretched all over the country so it would never do to try and fix an illicit rendezvous because someone would be sure to turn up and recognise you!
This evening the local WI held its summer al fresco meeting with a buffet supper and sporty games on the grass around the hall where it meets. There was a little time for consultations on events coming up but no real business done. It was enjoyable just to be frivolous and compete in garden party type activities.

2nd August
There was a big turn-out of WI members at the funeral of one of the Bucks County stalwarts from the past Catering Committee.Of course her local WI provided the refreshments for the buffet after the ceremony and another member played the organ.Mary Bowden died at the age of 87 but it is only within the last five years that she declared herself unable to lift the huge pans necessary for bulk catering.We are all so grateful to have known her and will always remember her cheerfulness.

1st August
I forgot to mention that several of our local WI are learning to crochet so we meet on Monday afternoons.Some people are starting from scratch, others are remembering what they learned before and others are learning to read and make sense of written instructions. I am trying to remember how to tat and discovering that my fingers are far too stiff to take it up again easily.We use the sessions to plan future activities and to catch up on holidays already taken.

July
I don't usually comment on private holidays but thought I should share some of the things that occurred this year. My husband and I set off to walk the middle stretch of Hadrian's Wall, a length of about 65 miles which is the interesting bit in the middle. I knew that 3 couples from our town were going to be doing the whole lot around the same time---one being our WI President.So I wasn't all that surprised to hear her shout across the moor where there is the site of the Temple of Mithras but what was amazing was that three out of five of our hostesses at the B&Bs where we stayed were WI members. The first one recognised my Denman College sweatshirt and she phoned along ahead to the next hostess. As a result we enjoyed long talks about common WI problems and campaigns. What came out very forcibly was their delight at the stay of execution for bank cheques. The cheque is vital for their businesses and for them living out in the country, often with poor internet connections and no reliable mobile reception. You can imagine my husband's opinion of these conversations: he was heard to mutter that he had walked miles to get away from the WI. I am afraid that it can be compared to the hidden Mafia sometimes!