hurwunderful

We had a lovely time this week. Local drama group Phakama ran a warm, welcoming and fun-filled drama workshop for us with singing, stories, games and a little bit of wire scupture too. Even if you, like me, you went along feeling rubbish, what with the cold, wet weather and viruses about this week, you came out feeling energised and full of life. We're delighted that the lovely Corinne from Phakama wants to work with us again and has invited us to become part of their community chorus in their show "The World at My Feet", to be performed in February 2011, so look out for more information in our next newsletter.

Our Friday coffee morning at Hurwundekei was fab too. Good cakes, well up to EEWI standards, in vintage surroundings with a table large enough to accommodate a dozen chatty women and, erm, a horse's head for company. As you can see, not a crumb remaining when we left, though we did leave the horse. Well worth a visit if you are in the area.

And, if you like all things crafty, you might think about going along to Curvey Crafters, a new group for over-18s set up by multi-talented EEWI members Jo and Noeline. They are meeting tonight from 7 - 9pm at the Salvation Army building, Kerby Street, Poplar. Just take along a current project - knitting, sewing, card making, whatever - and make progress with some good company. There's a charge of £1.50 - refreshments will be available. The group meets every two weeks; next meeting scheduled for 11th November.

Finally, an apology from me for failing to post info on October meetings on the blog.  I'm getting old and forgetful...obviously.

Message From The President

Dear All,

I am really sorry to have discovered that many of you have not been receiving the newsletter by email. There seems to be a technical issue that we are looking into as when I send the newsletter out it all looks fine from my end. However we now email over 300 women and I recognise that when you are dealing with this many people hiccups can occur. So first of all many, many apologies. Secondly we will do our very best to keep the blog up to date so that it is your first port of call if your newsletter doesn't appear. In the mean time if you think you have not been getting the emails please let me know by contacting me on niki.stevens@btinternet.com.

Next meeting is the AGM and is members only although you can join on the night if you so wish and don't forget that gives you from now until December 2011. The meeting is on Tuesday 16th November at St Margaret's House and is wine and non-alcoholic drinks tasting. 7.30pm onwards.

On the whole we always meet on the third Tuesday of the month however our December meeting will be on the 14th of December to avoid being too close to Christmas.

There will be more information about everything above on the blog in the near future.

Many apologies again

Niki Stevens
President EEWI

a visit from little anne

We had a new visitor, several in fact. Beverley Jeal from the London Ambulance Service brought them along to show us some first aid.

It was harder work than we thought it would be.

And we had to overcome our squeamishness about mouth to mouth.

Once we overcame any initial apprehension, we were really pleased to learn such a valuable new skill. But then we had a great teacher - Beverley was brilliant! - and if all of the ambulance service staff are as good as her, then we certainly are in safe hands.

september meetings

If you missed seeing Niki at Paradise Gardens testing out a LAS paramedics bike, you'll be able to find out a bit more about the real thing at our next meeting on 21st September.  Beverley Jeal, a public education co-ordinator for the London Ambulance Service, will be coming to give us a little talk with information about the London Ambulance Service including their responses and figures etc, the difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack and how to recognise them, then the basic life support skills.  After this the floor will be open to questions. This is a great opportunity to leave the meeting with a new life saving skill and a better understanding of The London Ambulance Service.

We are also playing host to a project that recycles and mends old and broken jewellery to raise money for the Alzheimers Society. They are collecting and need anything from gold, silver or fashion pieces and metal to make into new items . Pieces will be for sale and if you have any old or broken jewellery you could donate please do bring it with you.

We'll be meeting as usual at St Margaret's House in Old Ford Road.  Usual time - 7.30pm for 8.00 start.  Refreshments provided, though do feel free to bring a bottle to share. To get to St Margaret's House, from Bethnal Green Underground (Central Line), take the Museum of Childhood exit.  Proceed along Museum frontage to the first corner which is Old Ford Road.

Turn right into Old Ford Road and No.21 is on the other side of the road, just past York Hall.

Buses: Nos. 8 -106 - 254 - 309 - 388 - D3 and D6.

Car: There should be parking in
Victoria Park Square, Approach
Road and other surrounding roads.

Our coffee morning on Friday 24th September will be at Roastars cafe, under the Green Bridge,  389 Mile End Road, map here.  We'll gather at around 10.30am.  Look forward to seeing you there.

harvest time

Here are a couple of events you might be interested in: 

Abbey Gardens Harvest Festival, Saturday 11 September midday - 4pm 
A free event celebrating the second season of What Will The Harvest Be? at Abbey Gardens.

Anyone is welcome to come along and enjoy the garden, delicious food made with produce grown by our gardening club and lots of tea and cake. Activities for grown-ups and children include garden-inspired competitions, garden tours and craft making. Vegetables, plants and flowers to take home are available for donations from our Honesty Stall.

Abbey Gardens is a community garden where anyone may learn to grow organic vegetables, fruit and flowers. There are regular garden club sessions and the garden is open to visitors from dawn till dusk. New gardeners are always welcome.  What Will The Harvest Be? is a project by artists Karen Guthrie and Nina Pope, of Somewhere, with Friends of Abbey Gardens, a group of local residents. The gardens surround part of the ruins of a 12th-century Cistercian abbey.
More information on Abbey Gardens blog;http://www.abbeygardens.org/> or What Will The Harvest Be? <http://www.whatwilltheharvestbe.com/blog/>

Map:   Nearest tubes: West Ham (Jubilee, District and Hammersmith & City) or Stratford (Central). Cyclists usually visit us via the Greenway, which has an exit onto Abbey Road. No residents’ parking restrictions on Saturdays but parking on Bakers Row itself is limited. 

Spitalfields Show and Green Fair Sunday 12th September 2010 12pm – 5pm

The Spitalfields Show and Green Fair 

is being held in Allen Gardens and Spitalfields City Farm, Buxton Street, E1 5AR.

 It combines the annual horticultural show of fruit, vegetables, flowers and home produce with a Green Fair promoting the care and enjoyment of our natural environment.

The Spitalfields Show is a glorious display of home grown produce by people from all over London. Entries are accepted in 13 sections and 101 classes, featuring everything from flower arranging to fruit, vegetables and herbs and from pot plants and preserves to cookery and handicrafts, not forgetting the special children's section. Whether you have a garden, allotment, backyard, balcony or window box you can enter this show.

The Green Fair will feature stalls promoting healthy living and giving out nutritional advice, you can pick up information on recycling, composting and growing your own food or attend a biodiversity and sustainability workshop. Visitors will also have the opportunity to join in with activities on Spitalfields City Farm.

bags, buttons, bikes, biscuits and bats

Well done everyone who managed to make a bag at our silk screening session last week.  Jill worked really hard to make sure as many people as possible got a chance to print and take home a bag and we are really grateful to her for sharing her time and for being paid in cake.  And there were some very vibrantly coloured bags made - looking forward to seeing them around the East End full of good things. We're hoping to run a separate session at the Brady Centre so that those who didn't get a chance to make a bag have another opportunity, so look out for more information soon.

Thanks too to Elizabeth for turning out some lovely Dorset Buttons with her diligent group of buttoneers.  We'd love to see what you do with them.  

There were lots of great suggestions for the Cafe Direct Coffee Sacks  so we're planning a wee competition ourselves for our AGM - more information coming up in our newsletter.  Cafe Direct have been really supportive of East End WI so we want to come up with some brilliant examples of sack crafting.  You can see what other WIs have been getting up to if you follow the link to the Cafe Direct website. So get your thinking caps on and your scissors sharpened.

And is if that wasn't enough excitement for one week  (some of us lead very quiet lives, you know), we had a lovely green tea-time picnic in the park on Friday evening - plenty of food, drink,  good company, lots of bikes and no rain.  Not much evidence of Olympic themed menus other than five oat and raisin cookies mimicking the Olympic symbol.  But surely the prize should go to Victor for his Olympian efforts in giving us a tour round the park on the back of his bicycle made for two!  Our gold medal winner, I think...

Next up, Batwalk, 7pm Tuesday 31st August, starting outside the Palm Tree pub.  

fun and games

We'll be picnicking in Victoria Park from 5pm this afternoon so come and join us.  You'll find us just north of the Pavilion Cafe - look out for the EEWI bunting! There's an Olympics theme to our picnic, and there will be  a prize for the best picnic menu.  Bring food, bring drink, bring games, bring the family, but most important bring yourselves.

Bus Tours of Olympic Site

Remember that there's an invitation to take a bus tour of the Olympics site during Open House Weekend on 18th or 19th of September.  To book a place on a tour call 03002012550.  Seats are being offered on a first come. first serve basis - be quick as spaces are likely to fill up quickly.  Tours will run from the SCORE complex on Oliver Road in Leyton where there will be an interactive exhibition and will run between 8.30am and 6.15 pm on both days.  Please note that children under 8 are not allowed on site as this is a live construction site.

London WI Event

If you are a fan of Emma Bridgewater's pottery here's an opportunity for London WI members to hear Emma talking about her 25 year old pottery company and plans for the future.  The lovely ladies of Fulham and V&A WIs. have organised the even which is scheduled for 7pm on 15th September at the Victoria and Albert Museum (entry is via the side entrance on exhibition road.  The talk will be followed by a wine reception from 8pm - 8.45pm.  Tickets cost £10 and are available from Alex Gibbs (email: a(dot)gibbs(at)vam.ac.uk or call 02079422277.  Book early as places are limited.