Discussion Group

This group was started in 2022. Members gather together to discuss issues of the day in which they have an interest.  We usually meet at Harper’s Coffee Shop in Adderbury which provides a congenial atmosphere to share knowledge and gain insight from members’ wide-ranging professional activities and experiences.

2025 Our next meeting will be at 2 pm on Monday 9th June, as usual at The Burrow. Do come and join us as we discuss issues of interest to members and enjoy company, conversation and cake.

Our first meeting of the year was at 2pm on Monday 17 February at our usual venue, now called The Burrow.

2024  Discussion Group meeting, Monday 29 January, 2pm at Harper’s Coffee House, and then every 4th Monday of February, March, April, May, and June.  It was just too hot to meet on Monday 29 July and with no meeting in August, we meet again on Monday 16 September 2024 at our favourite coffee house, Harper’s of  Adderbury, and from now  on we will meet on every 3rd Monday of each month.

2023 There was no group meeting in August but members met again on Monday 25 September for fresh discussions and an exchange of views and ideas after the summer break and then again on 23 October. Our last meeting of the year was on Monday 4 December.

Monday 24 July Sheila and Margaret indulged in a wide-ranging topic discussion over drinks and polenta cake.

Monday 26 June We considered Communication in all its many and varied aspects.  Records not updated.  Out-of-date details still recorded.  Failure of connectivity and lack of attention to detail.  We aired our frustration with all means of communication from smoke signals to texts, emails and telephones, all in agreement that all means are often frustrating, tiresome and tedious.

Monday 22 May for discussions of a mostly domestic nature, not worldwide, yet all pertinent to our lives and to all women everywhere, where lives are lived, coped with and managed.  It was good to chat together.

Monday 24 April for housing issues and the general interest in and take-up of the use of Lasting Power of Attorney (LPAs)

Monday 20 March for various and wide-ranging topics of interest for everyone.

On 21 February a small group met for a good general discussion and we enjoyed our get-together and hot coffee.

Our first meeting of 2023 was on Wednesday 11 January for a good general exchange of ideas about a wide range of matters and concerns.

2022

We had agreed to meet in December but Christmas preparations kept us busy at home.

Our Discussion Group met on Tuesday 8 November for a good round of talk and comments on the NHS, Climate Change, Liquid Gas and the damage its return to a working state causes. We were joined by a very interesting visitor and a thoroughly enjoyable meeting was had by all members.

On Monday 10 October our conversations covered a wide range of interesting topics, from general ideas to patient handling issues and to transgender matters, which led our lead contributor to suggest this subject might be of interest for our members as a future monthly meeting’s presentation.

Our 6th Discussion group met on Monday 12 September and produced a number of great ideas on issues our members and their families and friends were already experiencing. We shared knowledge about items new to some and these and others meant we enjoyed a great exchange of really useful hints and tips for living sustainably. It seems we all recycle, repurpose, upcycle and reuse items, clothing, food boxes and bags.  Many of us have changed down to a lower temperature for our washing machines, dry our laundry outside wherever possible, or use drying racks for wet weather and where no outside air-drying is allowed.  Some new ideas – laundry sheets, washing in cold water, Smol – biological washing liquid, washing-out dog food tins and return to buy-from supermarket, excessive cardboard – use for your home compost mix, flimsy food wrappings – burn on your bonfire with garden rubbish.

At our fifth meeting, on Monday 27 June, compelling discussion took place on the question of prescribed pill wastage, return and safe destruction.  We had the added benefit of printed material on this very pertinent subject from Sandra, our past president, who gave much help from a pre-retirement view of medical prescriptions being wasted against the latest idea for fewer freely given medicines, on a time-tabled system, resulting in fewer pills circulating, fewer pills requiring return/safe destruction or inadvisable destruction by  patients themselves, throwing away unused or unwanted boxes of pills.  We had considered creating a resolution subject from our discussion and here again we had the benefit of Sandra’s counsel  who opinioned that we should not be able to construct such an entity.  However, our deliberations brought clarity and understanding on this current and modern issue.

At our fourth Discussion Group meeting,  on Monday 27 June six keen members engaged with medical stories, opinions and ideas for savings and recycling topics

On Monday, 30 May at Harper’s Coffee Shop, nine interested members engaged with much lively talk on autism, ASA, ADHD, Asperger’s Disease and poverty, both contemporary and educational poverty

We met again on Thursday 28 April, at Harper’s Coffee Shop, and two members talked about maternity, marriage and the benefits of cultural diversity

At our inaugural meeting held at Harper’s Coffee Shop in the village, on Thursday 31 March at 2pm, six members discussed labelling and education with regard to various medical conditions such as, dyslexia, ADHD and dyspraxia for children and adults alike.