Looking ahead

21st January

We met in a member's house to bring and buy jigsaws in aid of Adoption UK. (The usual 10% to go to the WI.) There were many people attending for coffees and/or soup and a roll and lots of talk. In the evening a smaller group of WI members met at the Discussion Group in another house. The topic was Room 101and we played a version of the TV show. Subjects varied between mosquitoes, discarded chewing gum, dressing children as mini-adults, public displays of mass grief, the use of mobiles in public places such as restaurants and cafes and the practice of banks, theatres and booking agencies charging extra for handling our own money on top of the stated prices.We were not allowed to bring in politics or religion or I think  we would have been there all night. Fortunately no one mentioned badgers this time!

 

19th January

Another meeting of the craft group this afternoon when we decided to learn how to do hardanger embroidery. One of our own members will provide the materials and instruct us all. One of my new year resolutions was to get rid of craft materials in the house by producing items from what I already had available, and here I am taking in something new--- so that didn't last for long.

 

14th January

The speaker was from the Wildlife Trust and she spoke about the various ways to encourage garden birds. Somehow or other we managed to spark off a fierce argument about badgers in which the President had to intervene and placate the participants.The first meeting of the year is always busy because we have the paying of the subscriptions and the voting on the resolutions to be done as well as the bookings for Spring events. The school building work is running a bit behind schedule so our meetings will remain where they are for a couple of extra months. We are making plans for when the WI baton comes to Winslow in April which will involve catering and a publicity stall in the centre of the town.

 

5th January 2015

Happy New Year! A bit belated, I know but nothing much happens on the WI front over Christmas and the New Year. In fact some WIs do not meet at all in January.This is to be a year of celebration for WI members and I was delighted to read one member's letter to the Daily Telegraph complaining that when it had listed the anniversaries and such coming up in 2015 it had not mentioned the centenary of the WI. She went on to list the major achievements in campaigns and the part played by members in wartime.The member from Holywell in Northumberland also advertised the speakers coming to the AGM in the Royal Albert Hall in June.That'll teach them to forget us!

The local craft group met today to plan events and undertakings for the coming year. We are each going to produce something which can be displayed when in the summer we hold our promotional event in the market square and have a sales table as well.Some are visiting the craft fair in Norfolk but we are not going to the NEC. We are also going out for our Christmas lunch in February. It was a very well attended meeting because there was so much to talk about after more than a month apart.