24th February 2013.

Dear All,

We have managed two walks and a swim this week. We are leading a walk just as we return from Norway so carried out a recce on Wednesday starting at West Row then to Mildenhall, Barton Mills and Worlington. The route takes in a section of the River Lark and there were numerous panoramas of snowdrops in full flower. As the soil thereabouts is sandy it was much drier underfoot than of late.

Snowdrops

                                                   Barton Mills watermill

On Thursday the walk was in Hertfordshire: High Cross, Dane End and more hilly than us flat landers are used to, but an excellent walk with a large herd of deer and several large parks.

High Cross

 Lectures this week included “Receptors” in the brain, a discussion in “Science and Religion” and Charlotte Bronte (part 2) and Lord and Lady Grange in “Biographies” These folk lived in the 1700s during the Jacobite Rebellion. She was an unstable character and he arranged for her to be kidnapped and exiled to St Kilda for 10 years. Nobody knew where she was and a funeral was held in her absence!

We both managed the U3A film this week which was “A Foreign Affair” starring Marlene Dietrich and most remarkable for showing the ruins of post war Berlin.

The Sat Nav saved me some embarrassment this week as I was setting out to deliver a Garden Club talk at Offord and discovered that that the post code was in fact Orwell!

Esther fulfilled another of her challenges this week feeding the penguins at “Birdworld” together with Natasha, Mary-Ann and Amélie.

  

Zoo Quest

She has now gone to join Andy, Mary-Ann and Amélie at Welford – on – Avon for a few days holiday.

It was “Messy Church” again yesterday on the topic of Noah’s Ark and Kate distinguished herself with decorated animal cakes.

 Animal Cakes

A postscript to our burglary: I cut the grass for the first time this week and found the stolen wine stuffed in the hedge where the miscreants had evidently affected a rapid escape. We think it proves that we disturbed them when we returned.

Love

Mike & Kate

17th February 2013

17th February 2013.

Dear All,

Monday was quite busy beginning with the dentist, then writing up notes from the “Awayday” for the church magazine before “Understanding the Brain”, sorting a new Garden Club talk, sourcing seed for Moldova and ending with a Dickens Society meeting. The latter was a dramatic portrayal of the court case “Pickwick v Bardell” and featured two of our walking colleagues. They only read the scripts but it was augmented by a couple of trained actors and was very funny.

Pickwick  

   

                                                                   The Judge

The guest speaker at “Science and Religion” was John Polkinghorne who was a Physics Prof. Before being ordained and has written many books on the subject. He is rather ancient now but still worth listening to. I purchased a guide to Stockholm to mug up for next month then we departed for Godalming. Mary-Ann and Andy put their house on the market this week and accepted an offer on Thursday from a first time buyer with no “chain” – so far so good. They plan to rent while looking round for somewhere else.

On Wednesday, Kate, Amélie and I did a walk round Dunsfold village. It was very pretty but exceedingly muddy and Kate had not brought her boots. We then went on to Winkworth Arboretum to see the Witchhazels and found carpets of daffodils already flowering. We had to leave early as I had a Garden Club talk to do on the way back at Whittlesford – and you can never predict the M25. As it happened it was not too bad despite snow and sleet flurries.

 The Path

  

                                                         Dunsfold churchyard

 Daffodils 

                                                                     Witchhazel

The Thursday walk was near the A1 at Hinxworth, Ashwell and Dunton – again rather heavy underfoot but completed just before the rain.

The Biography this week was Joseph Paxton, head gardener at Chatsworth and architect of the Crystal Palace as well as designing many public parks a Crimean hospital and eventually becoming an MP.

I managed a little gardening this week but it is still very soggy.

We have a “Faith Lunch” then CEEM Board meeting this afternoon followed by a rededication service tonight.

Love

Mike & Kate

10th February 2013.

Dear All,

We have spent a couple of days in Streatham this week decorating Ben’s main room. On the plus side the surfaces did not need too much preparation or filling, on the minus side we had to work round furniture and the ceiling is quite high. Anyway it seemed to look better when we had finished and we had time to erect a shower rail and curtain.

We arrived early on Tuesday and went to the cinema to see “Les Miserables” with about 10 others. Streatham was as usual like a foreign country, multicultural and buzzing at night – but slow to rise in the mornings. You can get your hair cut or nails trimmed at midnight but struggle for a sandwich at 9 am.

 Ben’s Flat after Decoration

  

Shower Rail & Curtain

We managed a swim on Monday and then I had my second session of “Understanding the Brain” – bit harder this week so I will probably postpone my offer of brain operations for a week or two!

The topic of “Biographies” was Dorothy Hodgkin, the first female to be awarded a Nobel Prize for Science for her work on crystallography, describing the structure of Insulin, Penicillin and vitamin B12. When she wrote her first learned paper in the 1930s she had to have a male colleague read it at Oxford and was not even allowed to be in the audience. She was a lifelong communist and ironically taught Margaret Thatcher chemistry at Somerville College, Oxford.

In the evening we were guests at the Over Day Centre Volunteers meal. It was originally planned for 18^th January but postponed because of the snow. As most of the food had been frozen since then it was a voyage of faith but fortunately turned out OK.

Yesterday Graham led our “Church Awayday” at March on the topic of “The Church in 10 years time”. As ever he was brilliant in his role of facilitator and the attendance and participation were both the best we have had. Graham and Mary stayed for dinner so it was good to catch up.

Love

Mike & Kate

3rd February 2013

3^rd Februray 2013.

Dear All,

The excitement this week has been dominated by our break in and the aftermath. We arrived back at 9.30 pm from Godalming on Wednesday night to find the house had been “turned over” with virtually every drawer and cupboard emptied. Alarming though this was we were then puzzled to find hardly anything missing. The police constable eventually arrived at 11.30 pm and offered the explanation that it was probably the work of opportunistic burglars who were only looking for cash and jewellery. Fortunately we did not have a great deal of either – I am not sure whether Kate is miffed or relieved that they checked all her valuables and decided none was worth stealing. There was some cash left from the last chapel meal but this was locked in a filing cabinet which they had tried to force but not succeeded in opening. So far we have only missed two bottles of wine which were in a presentation carrier that I was given for speaking at Elsom’s Conference and a £10 note left in an envelope following the chapel cricket season.

The Police have been very thorough in that the first constable was followed next morning by a CID fingerprint man, then the “Bobby Scheme” security officer who fitted alarms and locks all round, then a follow up visit to see whether we had forgotten anything then a phone call to see whether were traumatised and needed counselling.

 It’s not usually like this – honest!

Other than that I started another new U3A course on “Understanding the Brain” – so will be available for minor brain surgery quite soon! “Science and Religion” was lead by Pakistani Mohammedan whose life has been threatened because he believes in evolution. The Biography topic was “Alan Turing” of Enigma fame.

We had to miss the walk this week due to the CID visit and clearing up.

On Wednesday we took Amélie to Wisley to see the tropical butterflies then visited Guildford cathedral and the pet shop in Godalming.

  

Wisley Butterflies

  

Wisley flowers

 Guildford Cathedral 

                                                               Guess who?

I have started sowing a few things in the greenhouse this week but it is still decidedly chilly.

Kate Foster has spent a week in hospital with internal pains which were diagnosed as gall stones and an associated infection. Further scans have also shown a growth in the ovary direction. She came home on Friday so we visited her Saturday morning.

In the afternoon I watched Over 2 v 1 Soham Town Reserves.

Love

Mike & Kate