Netherfield

Netherfield Village Hall Christmas Party: By the time you read this there will be three Saturdays to go until the Christmas Party at Netherfield Village Hall.. Food, drink, games, dancing and fun are all on the cards and the 'sounds' are provide by Musical Mo and His Disco. You can do the Cha-Cha Slide, the twist or even the valeta if you can find the tune to match it. For those who don't know what a valeta is it is a slow dance in waltz time. I had to look it up. The party is on 8th December from 7.30 till 11.30. Tickets are only £3.00 per person. However, family tickets are just £10.00. For large families that is a big saving. Tickets available at the Netherfield Village Shop or from Marrissa, Sam or Jo. See you there.

Netherfield Village Hall: I had hoped that there might be some suggestions on activities, clubs and get-togethers, which would strengthen the value of using the hall as a modern-day community hub. I appreciate that the position of the hall is not ideal from an access point of view, but maybe there are ways of addressing the access issues in a positive manner. However, to do that we need your input as to what can take place at the hall to make this a worthwhile project for change. Please let us know in any of the formats listed at the end of this column.

The Hall Committee would also like the Community to know that we are trying to improve the car parking facilities. Over the years the neglect has become apparent and ruts, grass and vegetation have taken their toll on the route into the facility. To make us look ready for the 21st Century requires at the initial vision to be pristine, or at least near enough. That can’t be achieved with a car park looking like the aftermath of a war-zone. Water, because of the lack of attention to repairs, has eroded a lot of the original base and that requires a complete removal job to be effected. Costly yes, but it will make the Hall the in-place to visit in the future. I will keep you informed.

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Netherfield Village Hall Library Service: As I have been reporting for some time the Village Hall Library Service suffers from a lack of storage and presentation equipment, or in other words bookcases. We have been offered many books, of all different sizes and subjects, from fiction to works of reference. Unfortunately, at the moment we can’t take them because we can’t store them. To try and address this issue I have written to East Sussex County Council to see if they can offer some suggestions. As is well known, our reason for opening the service, albeit at the moment for a short time, was the demise of the Mobile Service which visited the Village once every three weeks. I can now report that on Wednesday 28 November the Head of the Library Service is visiting the Hall to assess what our needs are and see what can be done. This may well be in the form of ideas, but I am also given to understand that it could be equipment. Having sent a drawing of our vision they are now aware of what we believe would make our Library Service achieve its aims. I will keep you informed. As usual we are open 2-4 pm on Wednesday each week.

Claverham Monday Badminton Club: II must be getting old. I might look 21 but the cold was certainly felt as I walked bare-legged into the heart of the building at Claverham. At least the inside of the building was warm, or was that just because of the contrast to the outside? Anyway, lucky number 13 was the total of attendees this week, which included the first visit by a young lad and his father who came along to see what all the fuss was about. We don’t require the disclosure of ages to join our local club, which is just as well given the years held by some of our ancient relics. However, he is a County player already in one of the junior sections. It must have seemed to him that he had inadvertently stumbled into a different dimension where the locals were all past it.

What he showed us was that you are never too young to start enjoying the game and playing like a true champion. We hope to see him again soon.

More next week........

Reflections on a garden: Yes they are still hanging on. No, not Christmas decorations but the vibrant coloured leaves of our acers. It is almost painful to the eyes they are so bright. An oasis of colour in a brown, drab forest of shrubs, surrounded by a sea of flower stems, wilting and misshapen, as they seek the protection of the soil on their journey to their New Year’s rejuvenation. Underneath and to the side of this vibrancy, growth in the grass has fallen away to almost nothing. The bare stems of grey and black bark, protecting our trees, is now exposed to the elements of the winter. Their leafy cloak a thing of the past, confined to the annuls of history as the insects dispose of the horticultural detritus in the factory of sustainability. I don’t know who writes this stuff but I wish they would stop.

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Also, it is now time to think about the mower and an annual service. Sterling work has been done throughout the year by this bastion of modern technology. You fire it up and the blades whizz around at incredible speeds and make the lawns look as though they have had a Number 2 at the barbers. Oil goes in one tube and petrol in another. Easy. Unfortunately, anything mechanical needs love and attention from time to time, a bit like us members of the human race. Aaah! No matter how good you are at cleaning your equipment it all needs a check-up every now and again. Aaah! I take ours to a place in Hastings. I have been using him for years and he makes sure mine is cleaned and polished, ready for action, at the pull of a chord.

More next week.......

Contact: If you have any stories or articles of interest that will give our readership a reason to buy the paper please contact me on email at [email protected]. Call 01424838410 and ask for Maurice or text 07957588172