After our Summer Holidays it was great to meet up with our Phab friends to find out what they had been doing, and have a chat.
We also started to plan the programme for the rest of the year, which needs to be co-ordinated with the church diary, and we will need to find out if some of places, such as Donnington Social Club will be available when we want to go. It looks as if we will have plenty to look forward to.
As we had heavy rain last year for our Barbecue at Simon and Sarah’s House, and it had rained at the Barbecue the previous year as well, the committee decided to plan for all eventualities this year. We hired Botley W.I. Hall for the evening, which turned out to be a good decision.
Simon still proved his mettle as master of the barbecue, ably assisted by Chris, and wisely lent us one of his two new gazebos in case it was needed – it was!
We erected the gazebo and got the barbecue started before most members arrived, when – luckily – it was not too wet.
By the time hungry members started to arrive it was wet !
Luckily there was plenty of space for people inside – this picture was before most people arrived.
We carried on cooking burgers (meat on the left side of the barbecue), vegetarian kebabs (we kept the right hand side of the barbecue meat free), vegetarian sausages. Inside the W.I. Hall we were cooking Chicken, the non-vegetarian sausages and preparing salads, setting out buns for burgers and rolls for hot dogs, serving drinks etc. There were also a selection of cheesecakes and other deserts.
Unfortunately there are no pictures of this feast, and the next stage was loading the minibus, packing away the gazebo, clearing the kitchen, sweeping floors etc.
So that we could leave the W.I. Hall looking tidy.
It was quite a warm night, even before we started doing Zumba. Some members chose to stay in the John Wesley room, but those who took part had a very enjoyable session. Thanks to George for the session !
Unfortunately the hoist at the boathouse was broken, so only a small group (who also had to be prepared to forego a Sunday lie-in) were able to go canoeing.
As we always find, the instructor was very good, and had everybody playing ‘tag’ – which he was much better at than everybody else !
A group, mostly of members who had not been able to have a go last year, had a chance to try the Zip Wire.
It was a thrilling experience !
While some members were on the Zip Wire, others were trying their hand at Archery, as we did last year.
Having worked up a good appetite we returned to the Lodge for home made pizza as our Pizza Night in June had gone so well.
Fueled by our lunch we loaded the minibus and cars and went home for a rest !
The Climbing Wall and the High Ropes are adjacent, so although we were split into two groups, we could try different activities, and watch how our friends were getting on.
After our picnic we relaxed and chatted in the lodges for a while, and then set off for the seaside !
We stopped at The New Forest Wildlife Park to eat the packed lunches which members had brought with them, and then to see the wildlife.
The lynx is normally hard to see, but we were there for feeding time, so had a really good view, and heard an interesting talk.
Finally it was time to return to our minibus and cars and continue to Avon Tyrrell, where we unpacked –
And made our, now traditional, campfire in the firepit beside the lodge.
After sunset we toasted marshmallows and sat around and chatted. A great start to our holiday !
A great bunch of people, including Oxford Phab, got together at the Christian Life Centre on Cowley Road to have a fun evening of Zumba and raise money for local cancer charities.
We had not, as a club, learned a routine this time, but Kelly and Trish had been practicing with a Zumba group, and joined in their group’s routine.
A great evening, and many thanks to George Martini and all the Zumba instructors for making us feel welcome.
We set up a Connect Four (Four in a row) tournament, knockout fashion.
Almost everyone participated and enjoyed the game, and as we have several sets anyone who was keen could continue to play even if they had been knocked out of the main tournament
Club nights which involve food are always popular, and when we cook it ourselves, that is even better ! A team in the kitchen made pizza dough, and prepared toppings.
Members created their own individual pizzas, which were ready to be eaten a short while later.
The results, fresh out of the oven, were delicious !
Oxford Phab aims to provide activities for a wide range of abilities, and often games are played in a spirit of co-operation. Beetle can bring out the less patient side in everybody, which is why there is no record from tonight of anybody actually playing Beetle. Once games started there were no spare moments for photography. In the Phab spirit we felt the anguish of those throwing every number except six, while others on the table were trying to complete a Beetle, and kept throwing sixes which were useless to them.
Our final winner generously shared out the prize chocolates with the whole club.