On a gloomy November evening, members of Crowlas and Ludgvan WI, along with guests and some prospective members gathered in The Murley Hall for a choc-tastic couple of hours. After the business part of the meeting, an update on the sub groups activities and news of a trip to Truro for late night Christmas shopping, out came bowls of chocolate. Everyone was then encouraged to taste the three varieties and try to work out the cheapest, most expensive and highest cocoa content. Then we were joined, via Zoom, by the speaker for the evening, Jane Napper from Simply Chocolate Whitstable. Jane explained how chocolate can be tempered in the microwave, then demonstrated how to make a stunning chocolate Christmas Tree, and gave other ideas on chocolate gifts for the festive season. The chocolate themed evening finished with hot chocolate and, of course, a selection of chocolate biscuits. (pics Jane Napper)
This book was chosen by Hazel, for our October read. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. Some of us found it rather difficult to understand with the various customs and culture in the south of India (Kerala region).
Hazel wanted to come along to the meeting to explain to us why she had chosen this book, having worked with Indian people for several years she had come to understand and appreciate their culture and found them to be gentle folk. In fact, with her explanations it made the book and meeting come alive and some of us will be rereading the book.
The book opens in the year of 1969 in the state of Kerala on the southernmost tip of India when a sky blue Plymouth car with chrome tailfins is stranded on the highway amidst a Marxist workers demonstration. Inside the car sit two-egg twins Rahel and Esthappen.
Armed only with the invincible innocence of children, they fashion a childhood for themselves in the shade of the wreck that is their family – their lonely, lovely mother Ammu ,who loves by night the man (Velutha) her children love by day.   Their blind grandmother Mammachi (who plays Handel on her violin) their beloved uncle Chacko (Rhodes Scholar, pickle baron, radical Marxist, bottom pincher) Ammu’s brother, their enemy Baby Kochamma (ex-nun (her love life did not work out as she wished) and incumbent grandaunt, and the ghost of an imperial entomologist’s moth.
When their English cousin Sophie Mol (Chacko’s daughter) and her mother Margaret Kochamma arrive for a Christmas visit, Esthappen and Rahel learn that things can change in a day.  Their lives can twist into new, ugly shapes even cease forever when their cousin Sophie Mol drowns in the river.  The book takes on love, madness, hope and infinite joy.
A critic writes that apparently Arundhati Roy has given people a book that is anchored to anguish but fielded by magic and wit.
One of our most popular Sub-Groups is Meet and Eat. Every month Karen books a different venue in the local area for a tasty get together and a chance to try somewhere that you might not have been to before. November’s Meeting was at Trevena Cross Garden Centre, a magical place to visit at this time of year, with a fantastic array of Christmas decorations and lights, as well as they well stocked plant nursery. The Garden Kitchen Cafe prides itself on serving locally sourced, reasonably priced food, from all-day breakfasts to Sunday roasts.
We recently visited Kresen Kernow in Redruth, a project that developed the old brewing house site with funding from the National Lottery Fund and Cornwall Council. The work was completed 2019. This site is now home to the world’s biggest collection of library material relating to Cornwall.
Our guide for the morning was Tamsin Mallett, the Collections and Development Manager. After Tamsin’s introduction we toured the public spaces created in the original brewing house which now comprises learning rooms, exhibition spaces, reading rooms plus the library itself. They have certainly created a wonderful, modern, beautiful space retaining as much of the original architecture as possible.
We were then shown behind the scenes to a temperature controlled purpose-built secure strong room. Here we saw some of the 14 miles of shelving and a selection of the 1.5 million items they care for, spanning 850 years of history in the form of books, newspapers, manuscripts, photographs etc. We visited the digitisation and preservation suites where we met volunteers who were busy cleaning and caring for documents.
On our return to the public area Tamsin showed us manuscripts that she had researched for us relating to Crowlas and Ludgvan.
I think I can safely say that we all had a very interesting and enjoyable visit and are looking forward to a return visit to research more of our local history. (Rosie)
The Murley Hall was full for the October Monthly Meeting, with members, guests and prospective members all keen to hear the speaker Clare Hall from local solicitor firm CVC. Clare had come to talk in particular about wills, probate and Power of attorney. Whilst most members already had a will, few were aware of potential future problems that can be avoided by making and registering a Power of Attorney, and Clare explained the merits of different types of these too. With time afterwards for a chat, alongside tea and cake, it was both an informative and enjoyable evening. Next month’s meeting is on Monday 21st November, when there will be a Zoom demonstration of making Chocolate Christmas Trees.
Mary very kindly led this month’s walk around Penzance. Despite the gloomy weather forecast the weather remained dry but blustery. We met at St John’s Hall and eventually finished at the Jubilee Pool for lunch. Mary pointed out the history of the beautiful old houses, churches, chapels, schools, shops and parks. Some of them we were able to go inside – well worth a visit. There is still lots to explore and we have decided to have another walk around next year.
Thank you Mary for a very interesting day. (Shirley)
Our Living Well subgroup met on Wednesday at Sainsburys Community Room for their latest informative get together. The theme this month was sleep. Kathy gave a really interesting talk full of fascinating facts about sleep.They included the importance of sleep for physical and mental well-being, what happens as we fall asleep and described the various cycles we go through as we sleep. Kathy also provided everyone with a handout to take away on tips to help you sleep. At the end of the meeting the group did some seated exercises and finished off with a relaxing visualisation meditation .
In this month’s crafting session members learned how to make traditional Dorset Buttons. These pretty handmade buttons are traditionally made with a process of thread winding and sewing, and have been made in the County of Dorset as long ago as the 1600’s. Ram’s horns were used as the original ring base, wrapped with linen yarns for higher quality clothing and locally produced wool yarn for a more basic button. In 2017 the Heritage Crafts Association included Button Making in their list of endangered heritage crafts.
This soup is a result of what was left in the vegetable drawer of my fridge one autumn day. My husband is not a great fan of soups but he gave this a thumbs up Good for chilly days. Enjoy ! (Karen)
Ingredients
Small pack of smoked bacon lardons (100g)
1 good knob of butter
A good sized leek
2 sticks of celery
1 large carrot
1/4 butternut squash
1 big handful of red split lentils
Method
Chop up the vegetables
Melt the butter in the pressure cooker.
Add the lardons and cook for about 2 minutes.
Add the vegetables to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes giving them an occasional stir.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add the lentils to the pan and then add enough water to cover the vegetables and a bit extra.
Pressure cook on high for 20 minutes then release pressure quickly.
Crowlas & Ludgvan WI 