Flaming June! … this photo was taken in December but I suspect we’re not alone in lighting the log fire in much of May this year and even in the second week of June
Coming up…
More details in church gazette and separate wel-e-bulletins
Sat 2 / Sun 3 July Appleton Scarecrow Festival
Sat 30 July Afternoon Teas, Village Hall, in aid of church funds
Wed 10 Aug Teesside branch of the Cactus & Succulent Society 7pm Village Hall
Quiz of the month…
Log fire: (prompted by our cover picture), what log fire within ten miles of Welbury famously burned continuously for 300 years?
Answers from last month (as far as we know; tell us if you know better).
Last frost? Rod advises that recorded temperatures of 2°C at c. 1.2m above ground correspond to ground frosts, and we had one of those on 1st May this year. Looking at records for the latest frost in the last six years, Rod wrote last week “As you can see, it’s usually the first/second week in May, though last year was a major exception, i.e. 2nd week in June, so those delicate seedlings definitely aren’t safe yet!!”
Snippets…
Blocked drains: Some drain blockage is reported at Spring Hill. Residents are asked to be careful with what is flushed down.
Coffee morning: The annual coffee morning and plant stall at Welbury Village Hall on Saturday raised £483 for church funds.
Unclaimed raffle prize: White 894 please contact Joanne 07796436020
Weather from Rod …
With a mere 32 mm of rain, May was the driest month since June 2015 (29 mm), though it did seem wetter with half the monthly rain falling around the weekend of the 21st/22nd. Monthly rainfall was also less than last May (38 mm). The average monthly temperature of 11.3 °C was half a degree warmer than May 2015 and the minimum night temperature only dropped to 2 °C – unusual not to have a sub-zero night in May. May 5th was the first day of the year to exceed 20 °C and the month brought a total of seven days over 20 °C, the warmest reaching 25 °C on the 9th.
Up until 12th June, this month’s been highly variable; dry for the first week, 15 mm of rain since then and a scorching day on the 7th that reached almost 30 °C – our hottest day since 1st July 2015 (34 °C).
Happy days
And they haven’t changed a bit! This old picture recently recirculated at the Village Hall Committee remembering those heady days of getting the new hall funded and built.
Book of the month…
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde
by
Robert Louis Stevenson
We are probably all familiar with the story but may not all have read the book. This is the work which established Stevenson’s reputation as a writer and is beloved of examiners as a prescribed text since it falls into so many genres: drama, horror,
mystery, thriller, Gothic and sci-fi.
As we all know, the phrase ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ has become a part of the language to describe a person who changes dramatically in character from one situation to the next.
Stevenson was intrigued by the idea of how personalities can affect us and how good and evil exist in the same person. Dr. Jekyll seeks to discover his inner self. He is an eminent London physician at one moment and, at the next, discovers his inner monster, Mr Hyde. The book is certainly mesmerising and is a terrifying study of the duality of man’s nature. It is a gripping and fascinating book which it is impossible to stop reading once you have started. The language is descriptive and powerful and the characters are depicted convincingly. If you like a ‘good versus evil’ story, a meaty mystery or a bit of sci-fi, then I would suggest that you have a stab at this famous novella.
Sarah Hoiles
W I Report (May)
From Dervor Hanson
Some ladies are more adventurous than others. While most of us are happy to lie on a beach Pam Towse goes off into the desert on a camel. Wearing suitable clothing and illustrating with slides and items of interest she told us of her adventures in Africa and the Middle East. The competition for “one hump or two” was won by a silver camel charm. Next month Stuart Andrews speaks on Bees Abroad. The completion is for something that buzzes.
Photos by Dervor Hanson 21-04-2016
Coffee morning…
The annual coffee morning and plant sale was held at the Village Hall on Saturday 11 June 2016, raising £483 for church funds.
