Denham Walk: Val, Catriona, Joy, Mark, Peter and Ian
On Sunday 16th October, a group of Mensans joined Val for an excursion to Colne Valley Park to admire the way the Grand Union Canal and Great Central Railway were driven across this watery landscape. They met on the train leaving High Wycombe at 12:57. From Denham Station they descended below the railway viaduct to reach a footpath heading for the Colne Valley park visitor centre, arriving just after 2pm. They passed Denham Deep Lock on the towpath of the Grand Union Canal, a good level path with no stiles. The total distance, including the walk to and from the station, was around six miles.
Regional News
Many thanks to Jacquie for taking over the role of Lincs LocSec whilst Christine had to deal with other priorities. Welcome back Christine and good team work, ladies! Don't forget you don't have to be an officer to host an event. Any member is welcome to do so. If you have a hobby or interest you would like to share with other members, why not invite us along? Or maybe you work somewhere we could visit for a behind the scenes tour? Please contact myself or any of the LocSecs if you have suggestions for future events. Especially if they may make good 'alphabet events'. We're trying to offer more than the popular eating and drinking events. So far we've included train rides, comedy nights, museum visits, greyhound racing, parties and more. But we're only half way so suggestions for M to Z welcome!
Don't forget we are still seeking volunteers to take over as LocSec for the DE, LU and NN postcodes. The role can take up as much or as little time as you wish. Please contact me if you'd like more information or for a no obligation chat.
As always at this time of year I'd like to thank everyone who has hosted or attended one of our events, the editors for providing us with a good read in Empress each month, Nick for maintaining our frequently updated web site at www.eastmidsmensa.org.uk as well as the office staff at Wolverhampton for their support. Hope to see you in 2017!
Maxine Bates
Regional Officer
Editorial
Welcome to the December Edition of Empress.
I have to start with sad news: there will be no more special birthdays in Empress. The Mensa office is removing dates of birth from listings from now on due to data protection. However, we start the festive month with a number of Christmas dinners to add to the calendar. We also have an article from Phil Jones who runs the Philosophical Discussion SIG. I hope you enjoy it. Finally, the member's profile for this month belongs to our new Empress Editor, Mark Sloan.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Maria Falces
Events and Meetings
More or Leicester
On Mon 19th Dec at 8:00pm - Christmas Curry
Christmas Dinner
Our normal 4th Monday of the Month will
be on the 3rd Monday of the month, 19th
Dec., and will - as if by magic! - transform
itself into the traditional Leicester
Christmas Curry! We'll head back again to
the Mem Saab in Highcross so booking is
essential.
Paul Coulson
Lively Lincs
On Sat 10th Dec at 12:05pm - Pub discussion
Meet at 'Adam and Eve' on Lindum Hill on
Saturday 10th, we're usually in the alcove,
MBlem on table. Friendly discussion on, "How
much should society organise itself around
religious festivals, Christian or otherwise?" starts
at around 12.30, food available, free parking.
On Wed 28th Dec at 7:00pm - Eating meeting
Our, now annual, mid-festivities meal,
opportunity to show off your Christmas
jumper/braces/shoes .. will take place
at Vincenzo's, West Street, Lincoln, on
Wednesday 28th at 7.00pm. Please book with me
by 18th if possible, thanks
Christine Howells
Contact [Email] for details
Notts News
On Mon 5th Dec at 8:00pm - 5OTM
From 8.00pm on Monday 5th we'll be having our monthly
get together at the Vat & Fiddle pub on Queensbridge
Road (near Nottingham railway station). Whether you are
full of festive spirit or feeling bah humbug you are
welcome to join us for a drink and chat. We're usually in
the Goldings Room to left of the bar and a yellow Mblem
will be on the table. Why not give us a try?
Nottingham Mensa
On Thu 8th Dec at 7:30pm - Christmas meal
Christmas meal
At 7.30pm on Thursday 8th we're at the Cadland in
Chilwell for the Christmas meal. Pre-booking is
essential so contact me to check availability or to see
the menu. It's £13.49 for 2 courses or £15.99 for 3
courses.
On Sat 31st Dec at 8:00pm - New Year's Eve party
Our final event of the year is a New Year's Eve party from
8.00pm on Saturday 31st at my home in Langley Mill.
Come and help me celebrate the end of 2016 and start of
2017. I'll provide a buffet, music and décor but please
bring whatever you would like to drink. Some floor space
still available for anyone wishing to stay overnight. We
may surface in time for brunch on New Year's Day!
Ciao for now!
Maxine Bates
Contact [Email] or [Phone Number] for details
Hertfordshire Happenings
On Thu 1st Dec at 8:00pm - FThOTM
As ever, we are at the Three Magnets, Leys Avenue,
Letchworth. Thursday nights are curry nights but other
food (standard Wetherspoons' fare) is available as
well. Leys Avenue is the main shopping street in
Letchworth and is a few minutes' walk from the station
(Kings Cross to Cambridge line). Call me for more details
and encouragement.
On Thu 8th Dec at 8:00pm - L is for Letchworth Garden City Brewery
Alphabet Event - L
L is for Letchworth Garden City Brewery
We're meeting at Hertfordshire's newest brewery
on Thursday 8th December at 8.00pm - to prove we
can organise a booze-up in a brewery! The
Letchworth Garden City Brewery is on The Wynd,
between the two main streets of Station Road and
Leys Avenue and is about a five minute walk from
the station. Call me for further details and
encouragement.
On Sat 31st Dec at 5:30pm - New Year's Eve concert
Viennese style New
Year's Eve concert at
the Barbican, London
This will be the twelfth year we've been
going and it remains as enjoyable as
ever. If you're interested, please drop
me a line or give me a call as tickets sell
fast. We meet at a nearby
Wetherspoon's for a drink and a meal at
5.30 and then walk to the Barbican,
which is about ten minutes' walk. The
concert finishes at about 10, so you can
get to any celebrations you may have
planned!
Richard Allen
Contact [Email] or [Phone Number] for details
Mensans in MK & Bedford
On Sat 3rd Dec at 3:00pm - T@3
Our first event in December is T@3 on Saturday
3rd in the restaurant at Dobbie's Garden Centre
in Fenny Stratford. We'll be there from 3pm,
probably in the conservatory area at the back.
On Sun 11th Dec at 10:00am - Sunday breakfast
We return to our new venue of Brown's, next to
Jury's Inn on Midsummer Boulevard, for
breakfast on Sunday 11th. Join us from 10am for a
full breakfast, a snack, or just a drink.
We will not be doing the Barge quiz this month as
we're never quite sure about their Christmas
arrangements, and December is usually a busy
month for everyone. We'll be back there in
January.
Just a reminder about our M-MK & Bedford
Facebook group - if you would like to join please
search for the group and send me a request. I also
keep an email distribution list for meeting
reminders and any last-minute changes, so if you
would like to be added to this please let me know.
We hope to see as many of you as possible at one
or other of our events in December.
Do remember that you're welcome to bring a
guest with you, so if you've never been to a
Mensa event and are a little nervous about
coming along on your own, just bring a friend.
I'd like to wish all our local members a very merry
Christmas.
Jo Sidebottom
Contact [Email] or [Phone Number] / [Mobile Number] for details
Mid Bucks
On Fri 9th Dec at 10:30am - Mornig coffee
Meet me from 10:30am onwards on Friday 9th
December for a morning of informal conversation and
coffee. This month we are visiting the Costa Coffee
Shop, 35-37, Sycamore Road, Amersham, Bucks. HP6
5EQ.
On Sun 11th Dec at 12:15pm - Tapas Lunch
At 12:15pm on Sunday 11th December we will meet for
lunch at Origins at the White Lion on Great Missenden
High Street, HP16 0AL. Origins describes itself as both a
vibrant wine and cocktail bar serving light international
tapas in a sophisticated environment and an oasis of
civilization on a busy high street. See
www.originswinebar.co.uk/Menus.aspx for further
details. It is very popular so I will need to book us a
table. Please let me know by Wednesday 30th
November if you want to join us.
On Sun 11th Dec at 2:00pm - Craft Fair
After lunch we will move on to Missenden Abbey's
Christmas Craft Fair, HP16 0BD. This features Christmas
craft stalls, festive food and drink, fun activities for kids,
Thomas Ball Children's Cancer Fund tombola, charity
raffle as well as free entry and parking. If you are not
joining us for lunch first, look out for me at the entrance
around 2pm.
On Mon 12th Dec at 8:00pm - Board games
Join Dave and Alison at their home in Flackwell Heath
for a relaxed evening of indoor board games. Arrive for
an 8pm start on Monday 12th December. Please contact
Dave on [Email] or [Phone Number] for directions and to let him know which games
you would like to play.
For further details or encouragement contact me.
Val Hinkins
Contact [Email] or [Phone Number] for details
Derby Diary
On Sat 3rd Dec at 11:00am - Llama experience
As well as the official 'alphabet events' around
the East Midlands region I'm organising my
own. Which led me to find a Llama experience
at National Forest Llama Treks in Burton On
Trent (DE13 8ED) just off the A38. An hour
long session includes a talk about the llamas,
feeding, grooming, a short trek and chance to
look at their other small animals followed by
coffee and cakes. The cost is £10 per person
and all ages welcome. I've booked the
11.00am session on Saturday 3rd. Numbers are
limited and nearly sold out as soon as I
advertised the event online (see, there are
perks to belonging to our Facebook group!) but
do contact me to check availability if
interested. If it's fun I may look at us doing a
half day llama trek in the spring/summer.
On Wed 21st Dec at 7:30pm - 3WOTM
On Wednesday 21st we're at the Standing Order on Irongate in the city centre.
Wetherspoons don't appear to be taking prebookings
for Christmas meals this year
although say they will be offering a festive
menu. So come along from 7.30pm until late
for food and/or a drink. Look for a yellow
Mblem on a long table at the rear of the pub.
On Thu 8th Dec at 7:30pm - Christmas Dinner
Christmas Dinner
Our regular event at The Cadland in
Chilwell becomes the Nottingham Mensa
Christmas meal on 8th December. £13.49
for 2 courses or £15.99 for 3 courses.
Contact Maxine for menu and to book.
Fiver deposit required.
Maxine Bates
Contact [Email] or [Phone Number] for details
Member's Profile - Mark Sloan
What's your name?
Mark Sloan
Where were you born?
I was born in the town of Heswall which is on the Wirral peninsula (the bit which sticks our between Liverpool and Wales).
Where do you live?
Castle Donington, which is in Leicestershire but has a Derby Post Code. Nearby there is the Donington Park race circuit and East Midlands airport
When did you join Mensa?
I joined in September 1981, around about the time I started university in Sheffield.
Why did you join?
There was a Mensa-themed quiz which ran for a week on the local radio and I had a go, only struggling on one question. This inspired me to go for the proper test, which I passed - at the second attempt.
Have you attended any events?
When I first joined the first event I went to was an 'At Home' event near the hall of residence I spent my first year at Sheffield. I got on quite well with the host such that I continue to attend other events in the local area. Eventually I ended up renting the spare room in this host's flat which was infinitely preferable to student digs.
After university I stopped going to Mensa events when I moved down to Reading. When work took me up to the Midlands I eventually spotted that the AG was going to be in Blackpool. This inspired me to start to go to meetings again and I haven't looked back.
How have you benefited from your Mensa membership?
New friends and lots of adventures which I have had, such as visiting the pyramids in Egypt, the Chernobyl reactor in Ukraine and seeing penguins in the Arctic Circle, all through people I've known in Mensa. It has made up the best part of my social life for the last fifteen or so years.
Any hobbies/interests?
I like to take photos although I'm really just a 'point and shoot' person who occasionally gets lucky and produces a good picture. I enjoy a wide variety of films but especially sci-fi. I also like to tinker with computers, having built a couple from scratch
Anything else?
For quite a few years now I have been the Regional Meetings Coordinator for the East Midlands (the long title for a simple job - to organise the meeting notices from the locsecs into some sort of order for the main magazine). For some strange reason they are now allowing me to be guest editor for the January Empress. Anything could happen!
The Philosophical Discussion SIG by Phil Jones
An update on the Philosophical Discussion SIG that I run from the scenic heights of Matlock ...
Having introduced myself to fellow East Midlands Mensans last year, I thought an update might be in order. Firstly, I'm pleased to report that the SIG continues to thrive. Membership has risen above the 500 mark, and is now progressing steadily towards 600. As with most SIGs, however, the number of contributing members is significantly fewer - of the order of tens, rather than of hundreds.
We produce a quarterly newsletter, THINK (I usually refer to it as a "journal") with a special edition in January each year. The special addition serves mainly to advertise our annual Spring gathering at Oxford, where we usually have around 60 or so attendees. If you haven't been to Oxford (or even to any Mensa meeting) before, then this annual gathering could be a good place to start - it's open to all Mensans, plus family and friends.
The 2017 gathering will take place at Balliol College on Saturday 1 and the morning of Sunday 2 April, though several people will turn up early the Friday before.
Keep an eye on the Mensa Magazine (or email me) if you may be interested.
"What's the difference between Philosophy and just .. Thinking?" my wife occasionally asks. Well, I don't suppose there is much difference really. It's just a process of asking questions and trying to arrive at tentative answers - on pretty much any subject. We often pose a topical "problem" or two for readers to reflect on, so let me give a sneak preview of a question to be posed in the upcoming December issue of THINK:
In the Tory Party Conference in October, Theresa May commented that: "If you believe you're a citizen of the world, you're a citizen of nowhere. You don't understand what the very word 'citizenship' means".
Is she right?
You don't have to be a SIG member to answer that question, so please feel free to email me your views, and I'll publish responses (probably in the Spring 2017 issue). I'll also email you the relevant copy of THINK so you can see your answer in print.
I find a philosophical approach to life to be helpful, and particularly like a quote from Michel de Montaigne (a 16th century French philosopher) who once remarked: Rejoice in the things that are present: all else is beyond thee". His attitude resonated during a period of personal challenge in 2012, when I had an unexpected stroke - a brain haemorrhage - which eventually led to being diagnosed with Cadasil, a rare genetic disorder. I've made a good recovery, but the event made me more aware of my personal vulnerability and limitations, and I now try to factor that into any commitments that I make.
Although further neurological challenges probably lie ahead, I take active steps to optimise my health - I go to the gym regularly, walk in the Derbyshire Dales, travel, read, write, study, engage with my grandchildren . and just keep taking those tablets. Not too different from many people my age, I imagine.
If you'd like to learn more about the SIG, or about the Oxford gathering, or even just comment on the question above, please email me at mensaphil@tiscali.co.uk
20 Questions (No. 182)
Did you know the answers to the 1940s quiz in the October issue? They were Lancelot Ware and Roland Berrill, White Christmas, Jackie Robinson, Glenn Miller, The Pentagon, Mahatma Ghandi, 872, Pinocchio, New Mexico, Agnetha Faltskog, General Dwight Eisenhower, Alfred Hitchcock, Jan Smuts, The Philippines, It's That Man Again, Italy, 8th May 1945, Captain America, George De Mestral and attack on Pearl Harbour. Congratulations to Pamela Covey of Woburn who wins the £10 book token.
We have a festive quiz for you this month. Send your answers to arrive by 10th December either by email to [Email] or by post to '20 Questions (No. 182)', [Address]. Remember to include your name and address however you enter.
1. What is the name of the character played by Will Ferrell in the film 'Elf'?
2. Which country eats the most Brussels sprouts per annum?
3. What is the best-selling Christmas song of all time?
4. Christmas Island is a territory of which country?
5. A snowflake has how many points?
6. Who had a hit with 'Mistletoe And Wine'?
7. Ilex is the scientific name for which plant associated with Christmas?
8. Which Christmas song was the first to be played in space?
9. In which year did Queen Elizabeth II deliver her first televised Christmas message?
10. Which company put Santa Claus in red rather than the original blue and green?
11. The song 'Walking In The Air' comes from which film?
12. Which alcoholic ingredient goes into a snowball cocktail?
13. Tinsel was originally made from which precious metal?
14. In 'The Twelve Days Of Christmas' my true love gave nine what?
15. What is the highest grossing Christmas film?
16. In which year did the river Thames last freeze over in order to hold a Christmas fair?
17. Estonian families traditionally visit where on Christmas Eve?
18. Which country donates a tree to London's Trafalgar Square each year?
19. Who invented the Christmas cracker?
20. The tallest snowman at 122 feet was made in which US state?