The Grapevine Magazine by sara-jane morley

may/June 2013 edition 280

the GraPeVine

The Leathern Bottel

neWs frOM The PArish Can we come out yet? Is Spring here at last? No one wants to say it for sure, but amongst the freezing cold, rain and hailstones, there have been a few moments of glorious sunshine. And doesn’t it gladden the heart? On 23rd June Adwell are having their annual Adwell Garden Pimms party from 2.30 to 6.00pm. The event is in aid of charity and let’s hope the sun will shine and we can support our close neighbours. A date for the diary is this year’s Safari Supper which will be held in Lewknor on 13th July. This is always a popular event and is open to residents and non-residents of the village alike. Tickets are £25 which includes a three course meal at 3 different houses and an exciting evening of mingling with people you know and meeting some you don’t. If you want to attend the event

or maybe you would like to host, please contact Victoria for tickets and more information at 07899 914 221. The evening is on behalf of Krakatoa Pre-school. Those that follow the Facebook page, Lewknor Life, will no doubt already know that there was a suspicous van parked on Hill Road, and thanks to vigillant homeowners, we were all made aware of the vehicle and the registration number. I know I have mentioned this before, but if you see any suspicous people or vehicles in the village, let others know and either call the nonemergancy police number 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. I have some enquiries as to what is happening now with fast speed broadband in the village. I have included the current update from OCC on page 19 and a representative from the council will be attending the AGM of Lewknor Parish council on 20th May. Please attend!

frOM The ediTOr if you have any suggestions, or would like to write a regular column, submit a piece to be included in the next edition or have a local photograph new or old, please contact sara-Jane on the new Grapevine email address: grapevinemagazine@hotmail.com. 1

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

what’s on

in Oxfordshire The Wizard Of Oz 8-11 May, Oxford Playhouse Oxfordshire Youth Music Theatre presents a magical journey to the land of Oz! Wicked witches, powerful sorcerers, flying monkeys and colourful Munchkins are joined by Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion in this timeless tale of self-discovery. Tickets: From £13.50

Jimmy Carr: Gagging Order 14 May, New Theatre Oxford Brand new show, brand new jokes, same old Jimmy. Gagging Order promises to be an hilarious night out...let’s see shall we? The show will be packed with one-liners, stories & jokes. Some clever, some rude & a few totally unacceptable. Everybody’s welcome. Just leave your conscience, sense of common decency & moral compass at home & come on out for a laugh. Tickets: From £13.50

Paper Aeroplanes 25 May, The Jericho Tavern, Oxford Having been compared to the likes of Gemma Hayes, Turin Brakes and Nerina Pallot, this year Paper Aeroplanes released mini-album “We are Ghosts” to more critical acclaim and reviews such as “With songs this good, Paper Aeroplanes deserve a far wider audience” – BBC Music’s Robin Denselow; “Album of the Month” – Maverick Magazine and being picked for The Guardian’s F&M playlist. Tickets: £8.00

The National Garden Scheme 23 June, Thame (see ngs.org.uk for info) Five gardens set in the historic market town of Thame, including a secluded garden planted with herbaceous beds and a small vegetable plot; a well-stocked garden designed to contrast with a modern bungalow, with borders brimming with perennials and climbers; a walled garden with raised beds containing fruit trees and in-filled with climbers, perennials and annual bedding, also handmade pots and sculptures. Rejoining the group this year is a small, quiet retreat planted with foliage for late summer colour and easy care perennials. New to the group is a colourful cottage-style garden filled with pots, pools and

perennials where children can take part in a quiz with edible prizes An Evening with Master Chef’s Gregg Wallace

28 June, The Lambert Arms

Includes a delicious 5 course meal with wine matched to each course and a chance to meet Gregg Wallace. £75 per person. Booking essential.

Oxfordshire Rural Community Council Affordable Housing in South Oxfordshire Affordable rural housing is often a long process (the average length of a development, from needs survey to completed homes, is just under five years). The Oxfordshire Rural Housing Partnership’s experience in South Oxfordshire shows that affordable housing is also like standing at a bus stop; you wait for one and then several come along at the same time. This is very good news for those wanting a home. If you are interested in an affordable home, make sure you are registered on the South Oxfordshire District Council’s Housing List. Anna Kennedy, ORCC’s Rural Housing Enabler is working in the following villages where it is hoped that there will be future developments: Culham, South Stoke, Forest Hill & Shotover, Great Haseley, Goring, Lewknor, and Kidmore End. Further details are available from Anna Kennedy on 01865 883488 or send an email to anna.kennedy@oxonrcc.org.uk Volunteering Qualification Oxfordshire Community Voluntary Action is running the Community Volunteering Qualification, an ASDAN level 2 qualification equivalent to GCSE grade B. Participants will develop their confidence and transferable skills, as well as building on their volunteering to develop their careers. Interested? The course starts 14 May and takes place every Tuesday in Oxford city from 10am to 1pm, until 19th July (excluding 28 May). Participants need to be currently volunteering and unemployed to apply. Contact Rebecca Burton at OCVA on 01865 258916, rebecca.burton@ocva.org.uk

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013 Community Food Preparing and sharing food is a great way to bring together people from different walks of life within your community, so ORCC has produced a ‘toolkit’ guide to give you the information and inspiration to do just that! If you are thinking of setting up a lunch group, a community café or market, our guide will give you the basic steps to getting your project up and running and includes a selection of case studies for you to see what others have done in their community. The toolkit can be viewed here - Toolkit The toolkit was produced by community development workers at ORCC as part of a one year joint project between ORCC and OCVA (Oxfordshire Community and Voluntary Action) to support communities in Oxfordshire to take action and develop a more effective voice. For further details contact Jane Barker, Village Shops Development Worker – email jane.barker@ oxonrcc.org.uk

JOHN HOWELL MP WRITES

Immigration and dealing with the UK Borders Agency are subjects that often arise with constituents. In this last month there have been Government announcements on these. Immigration I hope that it is widely acknowledged that some immigration is of benefit to the country as a whole However I also know that illegal immigration and the UK being seen as a soft touch is a source of discontent. The good news is that immigration figures show that immigration is slowly coming under control. The Office of National Statistics has recently published data which shows that net migration is down by almost a third since 2010 and Visa applications show that the trend is set to continue. The Government has now announced plans to ensure that neither our benefits system nor public services are abused and to clamp down on illegal working. UK Borders Agency My office deals with a number of concerns from constituents on processing of various types of visa applications and we have shared the frustrations of many constituents over delays in processing. While the Government has been making some progress in tackling backlogs, and improving performance and

systems it is acknowledged that many more urgent improvements are required. The Home Secretary has announced the intention to bring the functions of the UK Border Agency into the Home Office. The Agency was set up in 2008 and despite the best efforts of staff is not structured to enable it to deal with the level of immigration that has been seen. Media Regulation The media treatment of innocent people has been another issue of concern among constituents and thus I am pleased the new system of press regulation has been agreed. The Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, and the Leader of the Opposition have reached cross-party agreement on a Royal Charter which will help to deliver a new system of independent and robust press regulation in this country. This will put in place a system for up-front apologies, million-pound fines, a self-regulatory body with independence of appointments and funding, a robust standards code, an arbitration service free for victims and a speedy complaint-handling mechanism. It has been suggested that there is need for this to be enshrined in legislation however the ‘No Change’ clause specifically states that government Ministers cannot interfere with this new system without explicit and extensive support from both Houses of Parliament. The state of our roads A local issue that I am often approached with is the state of our roads. This comes under the remit of the County Council and as such I do not have any control over this. However I am in regular contact with the Highways team at the county council to raise matters on behalf of residents. Whilst they battle against weather conditions in trying to repair potholes I was interested to learn that they have filled some 36,000 potholes in the last year alone. Working in Westminster & the Constituency From time to time questions are asked about how MPs spend their time and the split between Westminster and the constituency. The work of an MP takes place in both Westminster and their constituency and time has to be split between the two. When Parliament is sitting MPs are expected to be in Westminster from Monday to Thursday to take part in debates, sit on Committees and attend a range of meetings. Fridays, weekends and periods when Parliament is in recess are when MPs can be in their constituency to attend events and meet with constituents.

the GraPeVine may/June 2013

lewKnor A hisTOry

Lewknor, 1910. “Usually you kept a pig down the bottom of the garden in a sty. The caring, feeding and cleaning of the pig was shared with your neighbour, and it was killed at Christmas, cut up and smoked or salted and every piece of the pig was used except the grunt! Water was drawn from a well in a bucket or from a spring where you dipped the bucket in and how lovely it was! You had a lamp or candle to work by when it got dark. And a favourite treat for the children was a magic lantern, playing hopscotch, bowling a hoop, playing marbles, top spinning with a whip, skipping etc. The favourite sweets were gobstoppers, a large round multi- coloured sweet on the end of a stick, sherbert dabs and jelly babies. There was a Sunday school where you were given religious instruction, and a stamp book. If you attended regularly you were given a religious stamp to stick in every Sunday and you felt very proud if you could fill the book. Two herrings cost 1 1/2 pence and a rabbit was considered a luxury, especially if an old man called Tommy Bross came round in his donkey and cart and collected the skin and gave you a halfpenny for it. You cooked this luxury rabbit, mixed veg and dumplings in an oval iron pot over an open fire, hung on a pot hook and hanger. To rent a cottage in Lewknor with no mod cons would have cost you 2/6 a week. A little old lady who lived in Lewknor would do your weekly washing for a very small sum of money. She used a copper to boil the whites, which were pushed down into the boiling copper with a copper stick.

You lit the copper with sticks called faggots and fed them through a hole in the front with larger sticks which were known as billets, which were collected by the little old lady the previous evening. The rest of the wash was done by hand in a zinc bath, and a red crock was used for rinsing the clothes, with a knob of Reckitt’s Blue popped in to make the whites look a lot whiter. When this was achieved the water from the containers had to be poured into zinc buckets and taken down the garden and thrown away. In this garden were poles and washing lines, where there were rows of clothes hung out to dry in the fresh air with dolly pegs, probably made by the gypsies, rows of children’s little white knickers with lace on blew in the wind. These later were goffered or crimped with a goffering iron and the rest of the washing was ironed with an old fashioned flat iron, which stood on a trivet in front of a red hot fire to heat the irons, usually three in a row. These were used alternately, often being wiped clean with a duster. The net result was arranged in a large wicker basket, it really was a work of art. This particular old lady also had a large mangle, iron framed with large wooden rollers, through which you put the wet clothes to squeeze out the excess water.” As told by doris Morris, formerly of Lewknor.

VACANCY FOR CLEANER & CLEANER IN CHARGE Salary: £6.38 - £6.61 per hour for Cleaner & £7.04 - £7.64 per hour for Cleaner in charge Fixed Term Contracts to end of Summer Term with possible option to extend 2 hours per day late afternoon / early evening Mon-Fri Term time only We are seeking two enthusiastic & reliable people to clean the school every day. The Cleaner in Charge will have additional responsibilities. The successful candidates must be conscientious and able to work as part of a team. They will also be subject to an enhanced DBS check (previously known as CRB check). Knowledge of COSHH would be advantageous. th

Closing Date: Monday 13 May rd To start: Monday 3 June Must also be available for handover with current th cleaners on 2 or 3 days during w/c 20 May 2013 For more information please contact the school office, or see details and application form on the Oxfordshire County Council website http://jobs.oxfordshire.gov.uk LEWKNOR C of E PRIMARY SCHOOL High Street, Lewknor, Oxon, OX49 5TH Telephone: 01844 351542 E-mail: office.3184@lewknor.oxon.sch.uk

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

FOOD AND DRINK

with Catherine Gallacher braising it here in cider but you can use white wine, light beer, chicken stock or whatever you like really! Rabbit bones are quite brittle and can splinter if you start jointing it so the preferred method in the Gallacher household is to cook the beast whole then flake the meat off to plate up, so you don’t get shards of bone - of particular importance if you are feeding the kids. One big rabbit will feed 2 adults and 2 kids and should cost less than a fiver so it’s a real money saver and is, of course, free range! For this lovely Spring recipe you will need:

Stop Rabbiting on! Well, do we dare believe the weather has perked itself up a bit? I really, really hope so, although the annual Lewknor School Maypole dance will doubtless precipitate the usual array of rain/ gales/hailstorms... Thank you for the positive feedback I have received so far; I got a warm glow inside thinking of villagers rustling up my recommended recipes, although there’s a chance that was down to the gin. This time we are cooking rabbit. I know, I know but why such controversy surrounding the eating of poor little Thumper? It is very lean (typically only 10% fat, compared with 20% for turkey and 45% for pork) and very low in cholesterol. It also contains only 700 calories per pound, making it the lowest in calories of any commercially available meat. Add to this the fact that it tastes great and one starts to question the unpopularity of rabbit meat...having said that, this has the benefit of keeping the price very low, which suits me! We get ours at Calnan Brothers, Watlington, where it only costs a few quid for a nice fat one but most good butchers sell it, often frozen. So what to do when you get Benjamin Bunny home? Before you buy it, decide what you’d like to do with it. Due to the very low fat content, rabbit meat can be dry so ideally needs to be cooked in liquid (poached or braised) or wrapped in bacon or pancetta and roasted quickly. I’m

I ng red i ents • 1 fat bunny • 1 handful of good pancetta in cubes, or lardons (chopped streaky bacon will do)

• 2 large onions, sliced • 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or crushed • 3 large carrots, peeled and cut in about 3” long chunks

• 2 sticks of celery • “Some” DRY cider • 2 tablespoons of grain mustard • A couple of sprigs of fresh thyme (lots in my garden if you need to come and raid!)

• 3 bay leaves, also in my garden • 2 tablespoons plain flour • 2 tablespoons tomato puree • 8 chestnut mushrooms and/or 8 shallots (optional)

• A blob of creme fraiche, half fat if you like method Take your bunny and pat him gently with kitchen paper. Dust him very lightly with flour then heat some good olive oil in a large casserole dish, which has a lid, and fry him gently for about 5 minutes, turning once. He ought to be a lovely nutty brown colour. Remove the beast from the pan and put him in a heavy based casserole dish. Add the pancetta to the pan and fry until starting to turn brown, at which point add the onions. Fry together, along with a really good grinding of black pepper. Once the onions are softening, stick the garlic in and give it all a good stir. Now sprinkle in a couple of tablespoons spoons of flour. Stir

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013 it all around until the flour has absorbed all the oil and juices. This will thicken your sauce. Now you can start to stir in the cider; you might want to “test” it at this point in a large glass...Stir constantly whilst pouring in the cider, you need enough liquid to cover the rabbit when you return it to the pan. Once he’s bedded down in the bottom of your pan, chuck in the carrots, thyme, bay,celery and stir through the tomato puree. Put the lid on, or cover with foil and cook in the oven at 160C for around 2 hours. If you like, after 1 1/2 hours you could throw in a few shallots or chestnut mushrooms, or both. When it’s all beautifully cooked and the meat is falling off the bone, remove it from the oven and take a peek. If it’s a bit watery, use a slotted spoon to remove all the bits and put the pan on a high hob to reduce the sauce. Then stir in the mustard and creme fraiche and you’re ready to go! We eat this with creamy mash and spring greens but you can have whatever you fancy with it, or simply some crusty bread for mopping. It’s worth pointing out that we tend to discard the celery as it does its flavour-enhancing work in the oven, and also that we don’t always add creme fraiche and mustard, which gives a lighter and cleaner flavour. Now you’re (hopefully!) salivating, we need to talk wine. What you need is something nice and crisp but with aromatic notes. Most Alsatian pinot blancs would work with this, or look for Austrian wines, grape variety Gruner Vetliner, which is perfect with it. Waitrose has one on offer at the moment but I won’t name names as I fear the offer is due to finish soon! If you want to go down the red route, I would try a Loire Valley red. These are made using Cabernet Franc grapes and tend to be lightish with notes of cherry - look for Saumur Champigny which is lovely. Or just drink what you like, dry cider or a pale ale work very well here too. Cheers!

BOOK CLUB at lewknor The Affair Santa Sebag Montefiore In March, we read Santa Sebag Montefiore’s novel, The Affair. On her marriage, Santa exchanged

her maiden name, Palmer–Tomkinson, for her historian husband’s equally well-known one. In doing so, she also did not change the milieu in which she grew up and remains, with her sister, Tara, a hob-nobber with royalty and undoubtedly a possessor of a number of Birkin bags. She is, however, a very successful author producing chick-lit for the wealthy and in The Affair she describes a life-style of a children’s author which the reader predictably assumes is based on her own experience. The blurb on the website, Goodread, gives a very succinct summary of the plot: Wonderfully wise Santa Montefiore will capture your heart with this “bittersweet and thoughtprovoking” novel about a modern wife who must ask herself, ‘Would I risk everything for love?’ Her heroine, Angelica, does just that and we are treated to a pastiche of South Africa, as a country only recognisable from a travel brochure (she asked her cousin who lives there to provide answers to a list of questions about the Cape), to provide the background to her affair with a married man interestingly conducted with the consent of his wife. Our credibility stretched to the limits, we are treated to a series of pretentious quotations, from unattributed philosophers, as the epitaphs to each chapter but we are at last released from our misery by the magical words ‘The End’. It is probably just envy that this ‘light’ writing can earn shed loads of money, so perhaps we should wish good luck to Santa. But the ultimate comment on her book from someone in the group was that Fifty Shades of Grey was more entertaining!

Cold Comfort Farm Stella Gibbons In April, Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons proved to be an entirely different book which was a complete contradiction of the impression given by its title. It was presented by Jo whose edited assessment of it now follows: Cold Comfort Farm (1933) was written as a parody

the GraPeVine may/June 2013 of the contemporary Mary Webb style of ‘loam & love child’ novel and though it may be considered dated, the wry humour and light touch makes it entertaining for all time. The main character, Flora Post, has much in common with her creator. Both lost parents when they were just starting out in life and both intended to make their own way. Gibbons became a writer and journalist but Flora, with superb disregard of others’ lives and comfort, decides that she will live off her relatives. Flora is oddly detached from family and the society of the early ‘30s. Her parents are described as absent, she has left her school without any friends except the eccentric Mrs Smiling and she knows little of the relatives whose lives she hopes to share and mould. The relatives she chooses are the Starkadders who readily admit that they owe something to ‘Robert Post’s child’. The various Starkadders are the true gothic cast of characters, living their lives under the baleful influence of the sukebind. Their farm is run down and out of date and ruled from the shut upstairs bedroom by Aunt Ada Doom who as a moppet saw ‘something nasty in the woodshed’. Undaunted Flora sets out to shake the place up. Confidently she assumes that her reading of their characters, aspirations and abilities is right and that she has the right and ability to solve everything. You forgive her because her sunny confidence shines through and her interference seems to be exactly what is required. Conclusion: we all unreservedly enjoyed/loved this book and if anyone is in need of cheering up, then we can thoroughly recommend reading it.

castles and princesses! During the term we will talk to the children about road safety, holding hands with an adult, not crossing the road by themselves etc. We will talk about the importance of wearing a seat belt too. We also welcome two new members of staff, Libby Jackson and Natasha (Tash) Scott who are both from Lewknor and we are sure they will become valuable assets for Krakatoa Pre-school. Jeanette Portnall (supervisor)

Please Clean uP after your doG!!!

I’m sure many residents are aware of the increasing problem of dog mess in the village, especially around Jubilee Hall and outside the school. Whilst the majority of dog owners are very responsible when dealing with what their dog leaves behind, there seems to be the odd few that think it’s someone else’s responsibility. Last month we even had the nappy sacks and trowel, that were generously donated by Catherine Gallacher, taken from their place on the school fence. These are now back up, so there really is no reason not to scoop and bag!

Next month we are reading Stone Fall by Ian Pears. If you are interested in joining us for a glass of wine and an interesting evening’s discussion of the book, then I can be contacted on the number below. elan Preston-Whyte. Tel. 01844 350 382.

KraKatoa This TerM

This term we have asked the children what they would like to learn about or what activities they would like to do. We are going to talk about ‘bridges’, what they are? Types of? Build them etc We are also going to concentrate on dance, focusing around Maypole dancing! Different colours which will incorporate Moshi Monsters! Transport – we will talk about different types of transport, diggers, boats, cars etc Also Dragons,

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

an a to z of herbs

Achillea millefolium (Yarrow)

Goutweed, Jack-jump-about, Goatweed, Herb Gerard, Ashweed, Achweed, English Masterwort, Wild Masterwort, Pigweed, Eltroot. A familiar and widespread weed in the UK and across Europe and especially in my garden! It cultivates easily, grows about half a metre high with wide broad leaves and creeping roots. It does however have some medicinal uses. Aching joints and rheumatism can be treated with a warm poultice of boiled roots and leaves or you can infuse a handful of fresh leaves in 1/2pt of boiling water and drunk twice a day as a gentle sedative tea. If however, like me you can’t stand the stuff, the RHS give the following advice to get rid of the pest:

Also know as: Knight’s Milfoil, Old Man’s Pepper, Soldier’s Woundwort, Herbe Militaris. Thousand Weed, Nose Bleed, Carpenter’s Weed, Bloodwort, Staunchweed, Sanguinary, Devil’s Nettle, Devil’s Plaything, Bad Man’s Plaything, Yarroway. The tough, adaptable Yarrow grows in most climates as a weed. It can be grown easily from seed or root and it’s flowers can be used fresh, or dried just as the flowers begin to open. The young leaves have a pleasant taste and can be used in salads, or blanched like spinach. Yarrow was formerly applied to wounds, and its old names of Soldier’s Wound Wort and Knight’s Milfoil testify to this. It is rich in vitamins and mineral and you can bind bruised leaves to cuts or make an ointment by pounding the flowers and mixing it with beeswax. You can even chew leaves to cure toothache!

Tackling large infestations of ground elder in a well-planted bed can be difficult. To get rid of it completely requires time and patience. Try the following non-chemical approaches: • Lift cultivated plants and carefully remove and destroy any pieces of ground elder rhizome from around their roots. • After you are sure it has all been removed, replant your garden plants in clean soil or pots. • The ground elder can now be evicted by digging, or by covering the ground with black polythene to starve the weed of light. It may take several seasons until the ground elder is completely destroyed.

If Yarrow is grown in the garden, it is said to increase the health of nearby plants and can be used to encourage fermentation of compost. A strong infusion of the plant can also be used as a fertilizer.

One of the nicest ways to enjoy herbs is to add them to your bath water. To avoid getting out of the bath looking like you’ve been rolling a scented ditch, a simple muslin bag can be filled with your favourite herbs and either infused in the water, or tied to the tap as the bath fills. The bag can then be dried and re-used for several baths.

aegopodium podagraria (Ground elder)

RElaxing bath bag 3 parts chamomile 2 parts meadow sweet 2 parts lime flowers 1 part valerian

invigorating bath bag 3 parts marigold 3 parts pennyroyal 2 parts grated lovage root 1 part pine needles

Also know as: Bishop’s Elder, Weyl Ash, White Ash, Bishopsweed, Bishopswort, Ground Ash,

A good online resource of dried herbs and all things herb related is Baldwins and Co., who have been selling herbs since 1844. There may be cheaper shops out there, but Baldwins are top quality and have everything you may need. www.baldwins.co.uk

the GraPeVine may/June 2013

needles and Pins

with Alison swain Well – where to start with what has been an exciting month for sewing. At the same time as Lewknor hosted the inaugural meeting of its’ stitching club, 2.5 million TV viewers have been eagerly tuning in to watch “The Great British Sewing Bee” which, for those who haven’t seen it, is a sort of “Masterchef” for sewers! Contestants were put through a wide variety of timed sewing challenges, ranging from men’s trousers to an evening dress. Some challenges were to make a garment following a given pattern; others to adapt a readymade garment to a radical new look. As with many such programmes the tension mounted as sewers were gradually ‘sent home’ by the experts to leave three very talented finalists. I won’t discuss the winner in case you missed this and want to rush off to iPlayer now to catch up. Tempted myself, and persuaded by family, I have downloaded the application form for the next series. Expecting just to have to supply name and contact no etc I was surprised to find a seven page document looking for far more than the average job application. Questions not necessarily easily answered such as “What is your greatest ambition” or “greatest achievement in life so far”! A tad easier were the questions on sewing abilities /levels of expertise with different sewing projects. One such project, (a sign of the times) was “customising or upcycling”. In the current climate of recession and austerity, this is perhaps an increasing trend. After that wardrobe clear out, why not make something new out of those old clothes you are really reluctant to part with. Who amongst us hasn’t sorted out those clothes you last wore 10 years ago into piles of … “too good for jumble”, “not fit for the clothes bank” or “too many happy memories”. One simple idea, depending on the suitability of the fabric, is to make them into a patchwork quilt. Cut up your garments into equal sized squares, about 4 to 6 inches in size, and spend a fun evening with them spread out on the floor to work out your design – get all the family to join in. Number the pieces as you go so as not to forget which goes where

when you start sewing or take some photos for reference. Machine or hand sew the squares together to the size you want. Start simply by making a child’s quilt or wall hanging. Once the squares are sewn together, make a “sandwich” of your finished article with a piece of wadding, available from fabric shops or online, and some backing fabric. Make the backing fabric slightly larger all round than the finished quilt so that you can turn the excess over to sew a nice neat border. Finally, top stitch in criss-cross straight or diagonal lines through all layers to create your quilted effect. And what of the Lewknor sewing club – well I’m over my word count now, so you’ll have to wait till next time; but to the very kind lady who phoned from South Weston to offer the club some sewing materials, I’m very sorry I didn’t call you back but I lost your number – please do try me again.

We are asking the people of Lewknor and parents of the children who attend the village school to support the school by helping with some DIY. If you can do basic DIY or plant up a flower tub and can spare an hour or two on the morning of Saturday 18th May then please let us know. Your help will be much appreciated. Bacon butties and coffee will be provided by Friends of Lewknor School (FoLS) and one of our parents has kindly agreed to co-ordinate events on the day. Please call the school office on 01844 351542 to volunteer

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve

When you read this newsletter I shall be in the middle of moving to Dunblane, in Scotland, to be near our daughter and family. I shall miss writing about the reserve but will never forget the Chilterns as we have a large beech tree in the front garden, of the house we are moving to and are near where Red Kites were first released into Scottish skies. I am writing this at the end of April, so as to meet magazine deadlines and after one of the most prolonged winters, that I can remember, everything, everywhere, is at least a month behind in its development. Deciduous trees are normally in leaf by early May, while, at the time of writing, the leaf buds, this year, are only just beginning to swell, brimstone yellow butterflies and queen bumble bees are only, now, beginning to be seen flying around as temperatures begin to rise and violets and primroses are in flower but no sign, so far, of flowering cowslips on Bald Hill. June and July this year, are certainly going to be very interesting times to explore because as it gets warmer both the late spring and early summer plants may all be out in flower together. With the flowers come, hopefully, butterflies which have somehow managed to survive the harsh winter and listen, also, for the buzzing of insects and bees. Look for orchids such as the Early Purple, the Common Spotted and the Pyramidal and butterflies such as Orange Tip, Small Tortoiseshell and the Peacock. Listen for the cheeping of baby birds in the tree tops and if you do find one on the ground do not touch it because often it will, eventually, manage to get back to the nest through encouragement from the parent birds. Recently, though, a group of walkers found a red kite with one of its wings trapped in a wire fence. The bird was gently released from the fence and taken to “Tigglewinkles”, in Haddenham, the famous wildlife rescue centre.

While changing the information sheets on the Nature Discovery Trail, from “Autumn – Winter” to “April – June”, Simon Pettit, another volunteer, and myself were privileged to see a male Ring Ouzel, with its distinctive white ring, below its neck, in the juniper plantation below Linky Down. Every spring this bird spends a few weeks on the reserve, on-route from Africa to its breeding grounds in Northern England and Scotland. I have now reached Sculpture 5 in my description of the “Talking Trail”. Sculpture 5 is entitled “The Changeling” and is to be found on the right hand side of the path, leading towards a metal gate after Sculpture 4 “The flying Machine”, by a yew tree and opposite a field containing a number of juniper trees. The second band of the audio system is about how the male Ring Ouzel got its distinctive white ring. I quote: “There was once a pure white bird, with no name, which travelled from Scotland to Spain every winter to escape the cold weather. On Beacon Hill lived a faerie spirit who lived in an old Juniper tree. A local farmer kept on cutting down branches from the Juniper tree because he was scared of the faerie. One spring morning the faerie saw the bird flying overhead and tempted it down with her dark, juicy berries. The faerie allowed the bird to rest in her tree and when it woke up he found he had black feathers with a white ring round its neck. The bird asked the faerie why she had changed the colour of his feathers. The faerie said “I have blackened your plumage and marked you with a white ring around your neck to show you are mine. You must come back each year and sing to me and you must also tell the farmer not to cut anymore branches from my tree”. To reach Sculpture 6 go through the metal gate and continue to walk along the path until you reach a group of very big, old beech trees on the right hand-side of the path and coppiced hazel trees on the left. The nest-like structure is called “Gathering” and to quote the description on the leaflet: The final structure on our walk is a nest-like structure inspired by the habits of the hazel dormouse, which builds both summer and winter nests for its lengthy sleeps here on the reserve. Dormice thrive in coppiced hazel habitats and in this sculpture hazel twigs are interwoven with willow to create the outer walls and partly covered in lime render made with locally quarried chalk”. Mrs Joan Newman (Outreach Volunteer) For more information contact the Reserve Office on 01844 35183

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

LEWKNOR PARISH COUNCIL www.lewknor-pc.org.uk

Recent Local Planning Applications Below are the planning applications that have been considered by the Council and their current status: P13/S0096/HH 12 Watlington Road Lewknor Loft conversion with 3 front facing dormer windows and associated roof lights approved P13/S0241/LB Lower Vicar’s Barn, Wormsley Estate, Stokenchurch Listed Building Consent: Refurbishment of barn for use as artist’s studio No decision P13/S0789/FUL The Old Inn, London Road, Postcombe Change of use from office to Early Years Setting for Children aged 6 weeks to 5 years To be considered by Parish Council on 13th May No decision To view the full planning register go to: www.southoxon.gov.uk/services-and-advice/planning-and-building/find-application/planning-application-register

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the GraPeVine may/June 2013

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THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

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THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

• • • • • • • • • • •

Effective treatment for all ages

Osteopathy

General foot care Bunions Cracked heels Corns, callus and verrucae Problem nails In-growing toenails Foot and heel pain Athlete’s foot and fungal infections Diabetic assessments and footcare Biomechanics and gait analysis Sports injuries

Also: Cranial Osteopathy Paediatrics & Post-natal Osteopathy

Podiatry

Saturday appointments Ian Luxton D.O Victoria Inglis-Smith B.Ost, MSc Roger Whalley M.Ost

Appointments Monday – Saturday

Registered Osteopaths

The Luxton Clinic Stonor House 57 Lower Road Chinnor . OX39 4DU

Back Pain Frozen Shoulder Headaches Hip Pain Knee Pain Migraine Muscle Strain Neck Pain Sciatica Sports Injuries Tendonitis Tennis Elbow

Tel: 01844 352200

also at Thame Road, Longwick. If you would like to make an appointment please phone

01844 352200 Debby Luxton BSc (Hons), MChS

HPC Registered Podiatrist

Stonor House 57 Lower Road Chinnor OX39 4DU

Cross Keys Practice High Street Princes Risborough HP27 0AX

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THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

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THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

SUDOKU

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easy to play Sudoku! Simply fill every Please see page 19 for the answers column, row and 3x3 box so they contain eSudokuPuzzles.com every number between PrintFreeSudokuPuzzles.com 1 and 9.

8 Level: Easy

Puzzle Set #D7578 Level: Difficult

EASY

DIFFICULT

2 9 9 4 3 7

4 5 8 7 2

6 1 4 2 5 8 5 8 7 9 8 7

1 5

6 8 6 1

3 2

1 6 6 3 5 1 8 3 6 9

9 2

4 9

1 8 2 5

7 1 3 7

7 9

9 6

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013

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SudokuPuzzles.com Level: Easy [Key]

THE GRAPEVINE May/June 2013 PrintFreeSudokuPuzzles.com Puzzle Set #D7578 Level: Difficult [Key]

Solutions

easy DIFFICULT

6 8 2 9 7 1 3 4 5 1 9 5 4 3 8 7 2 6 3 7 4 5 6 2 9 8 1

7 3 4 6 1 5 8 9 2 6 9 2 7 8 4 5 3 1 8 1 5 9 2 3 4 6 7

9 6 1 2 8 3 4 5 7 4 2 7 6 1 5 8 9 3 5 3 8 7 9 4 1 6 2

4 5 6 2 3 9 7 1 8 2 7 1 8 5 6 9 4 3 3 8 9 1 4 7 2 5 6

8 5 9 1 2 7 6 3 4 7 4 6 3 5 9 2 1 8 2 1 3 8 4 6 5 7 9

5 6 3 4 7 8 1 2 9 9 2 8 5 6 1 3 7 4 1 4 7 3 9 2 6 8 5

Broadband

update FROM OCC

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When we conducted our survey last year, nearly 100 per cent of Oxfordshire’s residents were clamouring for faster broad band. And no wonder, because faster broadband is vital to Oxfordshire’s economy and will dramatically transform the life, work and play of each of us. It will boost business efficiency, streamline access to the council’s numerous customer services and enrich our leisure and social time. In fact, almost everybody will benefit from this major investment. That is why the Council and the government are investing nearly £14 million to improve Oxfordshire’s broadband network and infrastructure.

7 4 8 3 9 5 6 1 2 6 2 5 1 7 4 3 8 9 1 3 9 6 8 2 5 4 7

But we want it now: Community self-help options

9 5 1 7 4 8 2 6 3 4 6 2 9 1 3 8 7 5 3 8 7 5 2 6 4 9 1

The Council has been working closely with communities to establish a network of ‘Broadband Champions’. Broadband champions are people who have an important role in representing their local areas’ need for better broadband. We now B have a network of over 300 champions covering 196 localities in Oxfordshire and we have a dedicated email for them: bbchampions@oxfordshire.gov.uk.

up to speed sooner.

2 9 6 3 5 4 1 7 8 7 5 8 6 9 1 2 3 4 4 1 3 2 8 7 5 9 6

As the completion of the contract is just a couple of months away, we’re currently encouraging communities to wait and see the extent of the offer from the Oxfordshire programme. Then they can determine if they believe there will be any shortfall in their local service before pursuing other options.

5 8 1 4 7 3 6 2 9 6 3 2 9 1 8 7 4 5 9 4 7 5 2 6 8 1 3

At this point in the negotiation process, the intervention area for funding will have been fixed. Should communities engage providers in the intervention areas, it could well change their areas for upgrades by our appointed supplier as well as triggering legal issues or investment remodelling for our contract.

8 7 4 1 3 5 9 6 2 3 2 5 7 6 9 4 8 1 1 6 9 8 4 2 3 5 7

However, once the detail is announced, where gaps in local service remain, there are a number of avenues communities can pursue to enhance broadband service beyond the improvements delivered by the Council’s investment. B

• Public funding • Self funding • Working with OCC’s contract arrangements Many of our Broadband Champions have asked • Specialist broadband providers Instructions, Tips,itAnswers, & More Sudoku Puzzles Instructions, Online! Tips, Answers, Reprints & More Sudoku Puzzles Online! whether would beReprints better and quicker to purchase • Wireless services their own broadband option for their community. They ask us whether they should wait for OCC’s Please see: www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/publicappointed infrastructure service provider to bring site/broadband-oxfordshire for more info. them up to speed, sometime during the next two years, or seek a more immediate solution by A representative from OCC will be attending the contracting an alternative provider to bring them Parsh council AGM to discuss this further.

the GraPeVine may/June 2013

lewKnor Parish diary MAy 2013

13TH MAY

ANNUAL PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

19TH MAY HOLY COMMUNION 9.00AM 19TH MAY FAMILY SERVICE 10.30AM 20TH MAY

7.30PM

JUBILEE HALL

ST. MARGARET’S ST. LAWRENCE

PARISH COUNCIL MEETING (OPEN TO RESIDENTS)

7.30PM

JUBILEE HALL

June 2013 2ND JUNE 10TH JUNE

YOUNG PUZZLERS

10.30AM

PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

ST. MARGARET’SL

7.30PM

16TH JUNE HOLY COMMUNION 9.00AM 16TH JUNE FAMILY SERVICE 10.30AM

JUBILEE HALL

ST. MARGARET’S ST. LAWRENCE

if yOu WOuLd LiKe TO inCLude Any eVenTs Or MeeTinGs in The diAry, PLeAse LeT The ediTOr KnOW ViA The GrAPeVine eMAiL Address: GrAPeVineMAGAZine@hOTMAiL.COM An OnLine VersiOn Of The GrAPeVine is AVAiLAbLe AT hTTP://issuu.COM/GrAPeVineZine/dOCs

Let’s carry on that puzzle! On Sunday June 2nd at St Margaret’s Church, Lewknor at 10.30am, the next meeting of the children’s church will take place! Why not come along and join in the activities as we continue on a fun and exciting journey as “Young Puzzlers!”........