February is the most depressing month of the year so let us help you banish those February blues at the start! As ever, we are at the Three Magnets, Leys Avenue, Letchworth! 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 on [Phone Number] for more details and encouragement.
Lots happening this month! We start with our regular get together at the Vat & Fiddle pub from 8.00pm on Monday 5th. New faces always welcome! Free parking outside and close to trains, trams and buses. Look for yellow Mblem on a table in the Goldings Room to left of bar.
Join Dave and Alison at their home in Flackwell Heath, near High Wycombe, for a relaxed evening of indoor board games. Arrive for an 8pm start on Tuesday 6th February. Please contact Dave on [Email] or [Phone Number] for directions and to let him know which games you would like to play.
Alphabet Event - Z is for Zen Garden
Milton Keynes has the honour of signing off East Midlands' series of alphabet-themed events with a visit to Zen Garden on Wednesday 7th at 7pm. This is a pan-Asian buffet restaurant on Midsummer Boulevard near Jury's Inn. Please let me know by Monday 5th at the latest if you plan to come so I can book a table.
Our "natter and nosh" event unusually falls in the same week. Join us from 7.30pm for a meal or later for a drink at The Cadland, High Road, Chilwell. A yellow Mblem will be on display on tables 20-24 at the far side of the bar.
Meet me from 10:30am onwards on Friday 9th February for a morning of informal conversation and coffee. This month we are going to Costa in the Next superstore on Crest Road, adjacent to Junction 4 of the M40, HP11 1UA. For further information on the venue see http://www.next.co.uk/stores/ There is plenty of free parking on site.
Our regular second Saturday meeting is on the 10th. Join us in the Adam & Eve Tavern at 25 Lindum Road, Lindum Hill, for a discussion around "Is the internet destroying or enhancing our personal relationships and moral standards?" Look for the magazine in the alcove from 12.00 noon. We usually move onto the topic at about 12.30. There is food available and the parking is free. For more details, please contact Jacquie on [Phone Number] or [Email], or, because Jacquie might be on holiday, contact Helen Shovlar on [Email]. All welcome.
For our second postcode district in our tour we will visit Swarkestone Garden Centre in DE73. Join us at 3pm in the café on Saturday 10th for tea and cake or whatever you fancy. Look for the magazine and please let me know you are coming if you would like me to look out for you. Contact Susan or Mark on [Phone Number] or [Email]
As usual our breakfast/brunch meeting is on Sunday 11 February at the Rendezvous Coffee Shop in Market Walk, Northampton Town Centre. We shall be reviewing our activities and theatre plans for the year and explaining what would happen <<if I ruled the world . . . . .>>. Contact Marianne on [Phone Number] or email: [Email] for encouragement or to confirm your worst fears.
Come to Ashby de la Zouch on Friday 16th and help me celebrate my 21st again! (OK, it's my 60th really but I still feel like I'm 21) Finger buffet at my house. BYOB. Soft drinks provided. Please let me know if you are coming by Sun 11th Feb so I know how many to cater for. Contact Pen on [Phone Number] or [Email]
Then it's Around the County time. Join Helen and Paul for a light lunch at The Old Stables Tea Room on Saturday the 17th. It's tucked away in a passage off the Market Place, but very popular. Soup, panini, etc. on offer. Afterwards, depending on the February weather, there are various things to do, including the Town Walk or a visit to the Joseph Banks Centre. Please book with Helen on [Phone Number] or [Email] by Thursday the 15th.
On Saturday 17th it will be our final "alphabet event" and we're going zip wiring! This is part of the Go Ape adventure course at Sherwood Forest which also includes cargo nets, bridges, high ropes and ladders. The whole activity lasts 2-3 hours, including a 30 minute safety briefing, with no time limit to complete the course. You should dress appropriately with flat secured footwear and gloves. The restrictions to participate are minimum age 10 years, minimum height 1.4m and maximum weight 130kg. Cost is £25 for age 10-15 or £33 for age 16+. Please express interest with Maxine. I propose booking the session to start at 2.00pm so that we are finished before sunset.
If anyone is feeling charitable and would like to get involved in a little fundraising we are doing a bucket collection at Tesco in Hucknall from 10.00am to 4.00pm on Sunday 18th for Cancer Research UK. Please get in touch with Maxine if you may be willing and able to spare an hour or so to help. It's a lot more interesting than it sounds and a worthwhile cause!
On Monday 19th February at 8:00 pm we shall celebrate the Chinese New Year by holding our regular third Monday gathering at the Cradock Arms, 201 Knighton Road, Leicester, LE2 3TT. I shall be waiting for you in the lower part towards the rear of the bar. Look out for the Magazine. If you need any directions or encouragement, please contact me on [Phone Number] or by email at [Email].
Our regular Third Monday visit to the Barge in Woolstone for the quiz is on Monday 19th. Meet from 8.15 - the quiz starts at 8.30pm and costs £1 per person. Please let me know beforehand if you're coming - the maximum team size is 6 people so it helps to know whether we'll be one team or two, or somewhere in between.
We now have a regular event in Newark that takes place at The Ram on Castle Gate on the "3rd Tuesday" so our next get together will be from 7.00pm on Tuesday 20th. Contact host Pete on [Phone Number] or [Email] for directions/encouragement or just turn up on the night and look for a yellow Mblem on the table to the right of the front door. Food is available if you wish to eat.
The usual 3rd Wednesday get together at the Standing Order on Irongate in the city centre falls on 21st. Meet from 7.30pm for food and/or drink and chat. Look for a yellow Mblem on a long table in the rear section of this Wetherspoon pub. New faces welcome.
Last Friday is at our usual venue of the Cowper Arms, Digswell. The pub is next to Welwyn North station and is served by stopping trains from Kings Cross to Peterborough and Cambridge. Good food, beer and conversation guaranteed! Please call me on [Phone Number] for more details and encouragement.
This month's evening meal is at Belvoir Brewery restaurant, Crown Park, Station Road, Old Dalby LE14 3NQ at 7:00pm on Saturday 24th. If you would like to join us, please let Sue know the week before (i.e. by 17th Feb) Contact Sue on [Phone Number] or [Email]
Sunday breakfast, is Sunday 25th, when we visit Brown's, next to Jury's Inn on Midsummer Boulevard (West), for breakfast. Join us from 10am for a full breakfast, a snack, or just a drink.
Join me at Bella Vita, 1 Bell Street, Princes Risborough, HP27 0DE at 12:30 on Sunday 25th February for a relaxed Italian lunch. More details at http://www.bellavitarestaurant.co.uk/menu-risborough Afterwards we will have a short walk around the town. I will need to book so please contact me on [Phone Number] or e-mail me at [Email] by Monday 19th February if you would like to come.
To link in with the winter Olympic games taking place in South Korea this month our "eating meeting" at 7.30pm on Tuesday 27th will be at Korea House, High Road, Beeston. As the name suggests this is an authentic Korean restaurant with BBQs set in the middle of the tables. If you've ever wanted to taste kimchi or bimbibap now's your chance! It's moderately priced and gets glowing reviews on the internet. Book your place with Maxine by 23rd please.