Had a bit of hangover this morning, why are all of my friends such a bad influence? My wife’s singing is quite painful at the best of times, but this morning she was hitting notes which I am sure would have permanently deafened passing seagulls. I’m not sure why she was singing, but I think my delicate state was enough cause for her solo celebration. Around 10 o’clock our friends waddled in having had another full breakfast after their stay at Westover Hall. This morning was the Family Food Fun at Shorefield and Horrid Henry’s Lunchbox at the library, however as I have yet to perfect the art of being in two places at once I was already committed to the Church Hall Food Day, so resplendent in my shorts, I headed off bright and early to let everyone in.
As the various stalls set up, there was an air of anticipation as to what would happen when the doors opened at ten o’clock. There turned out to be no need for concern, as the hall immediately filled up as soon as we opened. The first point of call for the families was David Rogers pottery wheel, where the kids could ‘throw their own pot’. Little did he know that he was going to be welded to his chair without any sort of break until closing time! The visitors also made a beeline directly to the WI stall, where the girls had their home baked cakes & marmalade. Their stock lasted less than an hour in the constantly full hall. As people wandered around the stalls Jenny was explaining the concept of Raw Food For Health, Amanda had full audiences at her canapé demonstrations and Claire had to find some more stock for her Spice N’ Easy stall as people just kept buying. By now I had only eaten a few canapés & some crackers with dips, so it must be time for lunch. The WI girls having anticipated they would sell out quickly, had volunteered to do tea & coffee for our visitors, & also to serve a lunch of potato & leek soup with French bread, and amazing chicken liver or smoked salmon pate, all homemade of course. We were all struggling to decide what to have, so I ensured that I did not choose the wrong one by ordering both courses. My mum, ladened with bags from the day was happily chatting to the friendly locals as I tucked into some cake for pudding.
Whilst all this was happening Nicola from Yum was holding her second Kids Cookery Course in the front meeting room, with her mum at hand she had them baking & decorating cakes. For the sake of research it was necessary for me to test the icing, & I can confirm that it was just as icing should be. As Nicola is pregnant, it was fortunate that she could have the evening off. Oh no she couldn’t, as she was also doing the cakes & tea for the Choirs interval tonight. Ah well, that’s life in cakes.
In the afternoon more new faces kept arriving & the hall remained full all day with over 500 estimated visitors. A number of the people had come straight from the Fish Filleting Demonstration & Lunch at Verveine, & they were full of praise for the experience. Our speakers for the afternoon kicked off with Richard Barnett, who gave a talk about the New Forest Transition Group. He explained how the world’s natural fuel resources were declining, & how everyone can help by shopping locally, buying local produce & growing a small amount of produce for themselves. I have to say I found the argument compelling, unlike the scepticism I have for global warming. Ironically, Richard’s statement would be happily accepted by many, & if taken up by the masses would solve the global warming issues at the same time. Perhaps the world’s governments are making the wrong argument. (Sorry, not sure what happened there, I seem to have got a bit unexpectedly political.) Later on I was chatting to my wife & mentioned my surprise that Richard had normal ears. ‘Why wouldn’t he?’ she asked, ‘well, I know that he is a vegan’ I made the mistake of replying. Her heel caught me square in the shin & I went down like a sack of potatoes. She then bent down, and growled in my ear ‘Vulcans, its Vulcans that have pointed ears’. As I got up, & trying not to limp, I calmly walked away muttering to those that could hear, ‘Anyone got a mop? Someone seems to have spilt a drink making the floor slippery’.
Our next speaker, Charles Dowding was just as interesting. Being a renowned author on growing vegetables, he explained how he had proved that better vegetables can be grown without digging. It was a process that takes a few seasons to implement but for the keen gardener it must have been music to their ears. As someone who is not a gardener I was a bit disappointed to find out that chocolate is not a vegetable & his method would not help me grow some.
In the evening The White Horse had their curry & bottle of wine offer, and the WineShak were holding wine tastings, but I was already back for duty at the Choir & Cake Night in the Church Hall. We had no idea how many people would arrive, but when we had all of the seats full & a queue still going out of the door I anticipated we may have a problem. I went to the front of the hall to ask if any of the seated audience would be happy to stand at the back to allow our older friends to use the chairs. Without exaggeration about half of the hall immediately stood & it was a warm moment to see such instant gallantry. After a bit of shuffling & squeezing, we had over 150 in the hall & lined up the hallway to watch the 40 strong Total Voice Choir come onto the stage. The village choir was only started in January by our local resident Christine Mulgrew, and we were soon to discover the great job she had done in preparing them for their first public performance. The choir burst into song, giving us all the amazing sound of voices in harmony. With each number their confidence grew & the end of each song was greeted with rapturous rounds of applause. More than a few of the audience had lumps in their throat during some songs. The night was a complete triumph & everyone returned home on a high.
Chance for an early night I thought, chance for a drink & a late night Mum, Gary & Joy thought. Guess who won.
Today’s weight: 19 stone 9 lbs | See the photo’s & stories from each day at:
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