Lithuania and from Shetland, Fair Isle and Guernsey. Thanks also to the members and attendees who bought examples of their own work and some interesting patterns to share. Almost every country in the world has a word for knitting although recognising where they come from is a challenge!
Many thanks to Gillian Fulton for talking to us about the history of knitting, from its earliest appearance in Egypt to the modern day. We saw some wonderful examples of silk purses and stockings. She also took us on a tour of a number of countries - with patterns from Norway to
Lithuania and from Shetland, Fair Isle and Guernsey. Thanks also to the members and attendees who bought examples of their own work and some interesting patterns to share. Almost every country in the world has a word for knitting although recognising where they come from is a challenge!
0 Comments
On 9th November a number of our members practiced their French with the Friends of Compiegne at CASA restaurant. Many thanks to the Friends for organising this. A good time was had remembering as many autumnal words as possible. The next event organised by the Friends is a Christmas Quiz at the Southgate Community Centre on Saturday 30th November. We'd be happy to put you in touch if you would like to join the town twinning group for this - please use the contact page on this website and we will pass on your contact details. Merci!
In October we read “The Kind Worth Killing' by Peter Swanson. We all thoroughly enjoyed this book - it was an easy read but addictive and gave us plenty to talk about at our meeting. Highly recommended. The next book is “The Farm” by Tom Rob Smith and our next meeting is at Oakes Barn on 7th December at 2 pm. It was fascinating to hear local author Tessa West talk about her most recent biography of Sue Ryder (Baroness Ryder of Warsaw) and her experience preparing Polish freedom fighters returning to fight in occupied Poland during WW2. We also enjoyed earlier poetry and fiction (including poetry from 'The Other Vikings', about Viking women's experiences). Her explanation of the publishing process for a new author - including self publishing and the experience of finding interested publishers for both her biographies seemed as complex as the actual writing itself! Thank you Tessa for a really interesting talk - and what a character the very driven Sue Ryder was! At our coffee morning on 13th September we discussed the mythical and archaeological concept of the Viking warrior and the recent discovery that one particular warrior always thought to be male was in fact female. We discussed the surprising change in perception and the response that publication of the findings received on social media. What part did myth (the Valkaries in particular) play in our perceptions, and how much can we really know about this individual warrior? On 16th June we opened our Diversity Garden as part of the Hidden Gardens Scheme, raising money for St Nicholas Hospice. We were delighted to have over 430 visitors during the day and to work in conjunction with the Fair-trade Cafe who offered refreshment. Visitors showed considerable interest in the planting, which is designed to be representative of all continents. Many thanks to our volunteers and visitors who made this such a successful day. Our popular book club meets every first Thursday of the month and reads books suggested by members. Recent books include "Double Negative ' by Ivan Vlkadislavic, a vivid representation of life in South Africa during and after apartheid. The main character, a photographer, uses his profession to reflect how one gauges truth in both life and photography. In June the group read ' A Darker Shade' - a collection of seventeen Scandinavian crime and mystery short stories edited by John-Henri Holmberg. Please contact us via the website if you would like to join our book group - or come along to one of our coffee mornings and meet the members.
|
MWG eyeReports on what MWG members have been up to. Archives
November 2019
Categories |