Category: Community Groups

Transferrable Experiences Save Higher Fuel Bills, and Hops

WENVOE FORUM

Considering Tomorrow Today

Transferrable Experiences Save Higher Fuel Bills

One motivation for taking a holiday somewhere warm while it’s winter here, is that what you save in cash and carbon footprint on not heating and lighting your home, contributes to what you spend on travel. During January we escaped the rain for a fortnight to go somewhere warm and sunny. It was more of a retreat than a holiday, no swimming pool, no fancy cocktail bars and no tourist traps either! In 17 hectares of bush not far from the Atlantic Ocean and close to the equator there is a community that takes paying guests offering them a taste of another culture. The place doesn’t seem to have an official address I don’t know how you post anything to them. Locals who personally know K&A, whose home this is, will respond to an inquiry for directions with a broad smile and point out your path. Those who don’t, shake their head and are apologetic, almost distressed that they can’t help. It’s important to learn to navigate yourself around the area or get the phone number of a TAXI from K before you venture far.

When we got home here, we found that the electric shower in the main bathroom wasn’t working and the electrician couldn’t repair it for at least a week. Now we are fortunate we have alternatives a corner bath that takes a long time and a lot of water to fill or using a shower room downstairs. There is an electric radiator in that room, but it would be very costly to get the room to comfortable showering heat in February. This was not going to keep our fuel bills down!

However, our holiday experience came in handy. In our off-grid, tread lightly upon the earth cultural break we had become accustomed to putting a lidded bucket of water out in a sunny spot in the morning and by the end of the afternoon it was just the right temperature for a jug shower in the private but roofless room created for that purpose. I was amazed at how little water is needed for a thorough wash.

The bucket and jug method worked as well in our shower unit too, but it was not nearly as nice as having the warm sunshine on your skin, bits of the bush curling over the walls and unfamiliar bird noises to try to identify while you pour delightfully warm refreshing water over yourself. But learning about bush showering, upgraded a bit by having proper walls, and adapting it at home, certainly will have saved a hike in our bills. We have reverted to normal now that the shower is mended but the experience really underlines how wasteful we in the UK are with water and fuel. It also reminds us that we can learn a lot from other cultures and different ways of doing things. It seems likely that as climate changes such learning will be important to help us thrive.

The Wenvoe Hops Group

I just wanted to share the information I have had on good authority from our new member Chris Webster. If you have some seeds this is the method suggested for germination.
In February open the seeds and put them on a tissue for 4 to 5 weeks on a windowsill.
In March put them in a fridge for a further 3 to 4 weeks. Once this has happened they are ready to be put into individual pots in the house, keeping them damp, in soil. This should be April time. In May they should start to sprout and then are ready to go outside in pots. If we may have good weather, keep an eye on them regularly giving them water.
We are unlucky this year as our brewer hasn’t got any Rhizomes to share with us.
Hopefully we will have a good year for the hops, even if this year our seeds don’t come to fruition. We hope to celebrate the harvest this September so watch this space.
If you need any help or advice contact: Sian on 07837291362. Or if you want to join the group, of course.

To join our Facebook group, please ‘friend up’ with the GwenFo account @ https://www.facebook.com/gwen.fo.1 and then jon the Wenvoe Forum @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/635369267864402

Some further information and updates, blog site https://wenvoeforum.wordpress.com/. Any Wenvoe community member is welcome to join the Forum meetings, via Zoom, which are normally held 19.00 on the second Thursday of each month. E-mail gwen-fo.forum@gmail.com if you wish to join

“The Place of Tides” By James Rebanks

 

“The Place of Tides” By James Rebanks

This book is set on a remote Norwegian island, and the author writes about his time on the island helping Anna, an elderly woman, as she works with a friend, to keep alive the centuries old practice of harvesting the down of the eider duck. This is used to make the traditional and extremely valuable eiderdowns. Rebanks is a farmer and shepherd in the Lake District and had contacted Anna, a woman he had met previously, to offer his help on the island as he was feeling overwhelmed with his own life and decided this may help him to find a way forward. He left his wife and children to look after their farm and spent six months on the island, and he writes about everything that happened from early Spring until early Autumn. He writes about watching Anna and her friend prepare nesting areas and shelters to encourage the eider ducks to return to lay their eggs. The ducks line their nests with feathers which they pluck from their chests to keep their eggs warm. When the ducklings hatch and leave the island, the ladies collect the feathers and meticulously prepare them to be sold. Rebanks gains Anna’s trust and she allows him to work with her to undertake the many tasks that need to be done to preserve a way of life that has been passed down the generations. Rebanks learns the value of routine and undertaking purposeful work and the island became a place of reset for him.

The whole group felt the book was beautifully written and was calming and atmospheric and some felt it was a lesson on mindfulness. Anna lived a simple life on the island undertaking daily routines every day in all weathers; she was a guardian of the eider ducks and the island, battling all weathers and predators. Everything she did was essential to preserve this traditional way of life and the story about it gently unfolds throughout the book. Members of the group felt that there were some areas of the different characters that they would have liked to know about but, in the main, the book was well received and, after voting, we gave it an 8 out of 10.

 

January Events

WOMEN’S INSTITUTE

January Events

Unfortunately, we had to cancel our talk on “The Spanish Armada of 1588” on January 8th due to the weather,

but we will add it to our programme as soon as we can.

Our lunch at the Horse and Jockey on January 15th was excellent; thanks to the staff for making us so welcome. We are looking forward to going back again.

On February 5th, Charlotte Archibald, the Engagement & Fundraising Manager of our 2026 chosen charity, The Vale Domestic Abuse Service, is giving a presentation on the work of the service and ways that we can support the charity during the year.

The following month we welcome local author Marc Harris who will be giving us a talk on the Wildlife, People and Places of South and West Wales.

Visitors and prospective members are always welcome to our meetings, which are held in the Church Hall at 7.00pm, usually on the first Thursday of the month.

Please ring 07881853032 for further details.

Carol Charlson (President)

“Orbital ” by Samantha Harvey

OFF THE SHELF

“Orbital ” by Samantha Harvey

This book made a strong impression on our group.

The novel takes us into the lives of astronauts orbiting the Earth, following the course of a single day in which they circle the planet nine times. From this unique vantage point, Harvey invites the reader to reflect on humanity, fragility, and perspective, as the vastness of space contrasts with the intimacy of the astronauts’ inner lives.

We felt both the tension and the quiet wonder of their experience – the fear, the discipline, and the profound sense of achievement. The writing is thoughtful and atmospheric, encouraging reflection long after the final page.

It was very much worth reading, and our group rated it 9 out of 10.

Ann Gill

 

Page Turners Reading List

 

Page Turners Reading List.

 

Secret Santa did an excellent job in giving preloved books to all the Page Turners. At the first meeting of the year, everyone was asked to provide a brief synopsis of their book (with no spoilers) and a recommendation for its inclusion (or exclusion) on the next Page Turners reading list.

We will be reading the following books in the forthcoming months. Why not read along with us and decide if you agree (or disagree..!!) with the reviews that are published in What’s On every month?

February The Place of Tides, James Rebanks

March The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, James McBride

April An Equal Music, Vikram Seth

May The Wonder, Emma Donoghue

June The Names, Florence Knapp

Happy reading

 

 

 

 

Ewenny – A Glorious Morning

Ewenny – A Glorious Morning

As we approached Ewenny Priory, to park, we could hear shooting. Leaving the cars the sound intensified and the dog that was with us jumped back into the car and started to shake. We could see men, down on the banks of the river Ewenny, holding rifles with which they were shooting ducks and there were dogs retrieving them. As we set off, the dog had to be carried for the first few hundred metres. We passed a couple of men stood on the side of the footpath, one of whom was holding a dead duck. None of us particularly enjoyed that start.

But it was a glorious morning, icy cold with full sunshine, as all our Saturdays have been in January. This makes walking so much easier as even the muddiest stretches become firm paths.

We were heading for Castle-upon-Alun and as soon as we had climbed above Ewenny we could see snow on the hills to the north where the wind turbines were visible against the clear blue sky.

As the morning warmed slightly layers were adjusted, as we crossed farmland and approached a copse of cedar trees. A frost covered summerhouse looked picturesque in a garden on the icy road to Castle-upon-Alun. Near the river the air was still misty, and a field of tall grasses was frozen white in the sunshine. We crossed the river via the stepping stones admiring the reflections and atmospheric views.

After a steep climb, we emerged onto a common where the views were excellent from the snow-clad hills in the north to the Vale spread below us. We considered having lunch here but it was too early.

Back to the river Alun, passing the Nature Reserve, and across the clapper bridge; a clapper bridge is made from stone slabs and was used by packhorses and walkers. Some stopped here for lunch while others continued to an open field where we could sit in the sun. It was so warm that coats were abandoned to fully enjoy the relaxing sunshine. A robin hopped about near us, lots of other birds sang and hazel catkins looked lovely against the blue sky.

We climbed again to reach the railway, this time crossing the live rails (carefully). A farm had an enormous number of black plastic wrapped bales

White hens clucked away in their run and the few sheep in the next field stopped and stared. At this point we had extensive views over the beautiful Vale of Glamorgan.

Large flocks of sheep grazed a mud-spattered field, heads down munching on the tops of a root crop and grass. At a brick stables a horse held his head over the wall so that he could watch us as we walked past. Bridgend and Ewenny came back into view below us, and we noted how much snow had melted on the hills. A white vinca flower shone out from its glossy leaves under a tree. We walked down the road between Corntown and Ewenny and along a footpath back to the priory.

On return to Ewenny Priory most of us turned into the churchyard to explore the ruins, maintained by CADW, and the church. William de Londres was a Norman knight, and leading invader of Glamorgan, who built the priory as a ‘Highway to Heaven’. This was another takeover; there is evidence that the Welsh were already using it for Christian worship. The walls around the priory make it look like a castle. Monasteries were abolished by Henry VIII in the 16th century, and a private house (19thC) replaced the monastery, but the church remained as the parish church; worship at Ewenny Priory church of St Michael has been continuous for at least 900 years. It is a peaceful place with many interesting artefacts.

The nave of the parish church was probably separated from the monastic end by a screen as was usually the case in medieval times. A pulpitum screen, created by Swansea artist, Alexander Beleschenko, was installed in 2006. The glass represents the Resurrection of Christ; an empty cross has clouds of butterflies emerging from it, symbolising the resurrection of the soul. The National Museum of Wales has a JMW Turner drawing of ‘the transept of Ewenny Priory’ which was shown at the Royal Academy.

The short days of January encourage us to stay local and although this walk is known for its spring flowers, we thoroughly enjoyed it in January. Tea at the garden centre was very welcome.

Walk 7. 6m 880ft Map OS151

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