Hi everyone

Gosh time goes by fast doesn’t it. It is hard to believe that this is the last week before school holidays … when we’ll be taking a two week break.

In this final week we’ll have Garden to Plate on Monday (I haven’t set up the booking but please come along), Crunch on Thursday (as Lee was away last week) and our Friday program with Community Lunch will round out the week.

Over the holidays we have Project Stationery here again in the first week and I will put some info up on our website about what they are up to - they did give us a poster a couple of weeks ago that Kalimna put up outside - but annoyingly it blew away in the wind on one of those bad weather days.

Anyway, I hope to see you soon at ACC.

Cheers

Leanne

Thanks to everyone who came op shopping with us on Tuesday. We dodged the rain showers (mostly) and had a lovely time in Abbotsford visiting two op shops. We also stopped for Vietnamese for lunch on Victoria Street. Everyone bought something - Linda bought a footstool (which was tricky to carry around), Marie-Louise a dress, Monica some tea … and I can’t remember what the others got (I bought 2 jumpers and a long sleeve t-shirt).

Thanks to Clifton Hill/North Fitzroy Community Bank for supporting this adventure - it was really inspiring to go op shopping on public transport. Truly. So relaxing.

This last week it has been great to usher in spring - whilst Thursday felt like the depths of winter, Friday was sunshiny and lovely … and it was amazing to spend time in the garden! It is looking so fantastic and Clare and Corrado and Jenny - and everyone else who comes along on Fridays and contributes should be super proud. The wicking beds out the front, along with the delivery of fogo compost that we spread around, have transformed the bed outside our fence. Thanks to Yarra Council for helping us purchase the beds and for delivering the compost for free. On Friday Clare picked a huge amount of produce (our bokchoy was about to go to seed) and so we have lots of lovely home-grown vegetables ready for cooking this coming week.

Speaking of coming up this week we have all the usual things - our food programs, line dancing, book clubs, choir, music lessons, sound healing - along with two exciting workshops on the weekend. Weaving with Corrin starting up for a 6 week course (book in here) and Spoonmaking with Maylei - a one-day workshop (book in here).

We hope to see you at ACC soon.

Cheers Leanne

Last week we had a packed house for Garden the Plate, where we cooked vegetarian Indian dishes - they were really yummy. We had a pea raita, eggplant in coconut and a dry cauliflower curry, with basmati rice. It was excellent.

This week we are making okonomyaki (Japanese vegetable pancakes) - shining a light on cabbage. And we will make some teriyaki prawns and rice as well. Yum. Cooking starts at 11.30am. It usually takes about an hour for the cooking and then we sit down together to eat our creations … and finish up at 1pm. Book in on our website if you are coming along so we can judge numbers.

On Tuesday we have our Op Shop Adventure - you’ll find the details and the booking link the post below. We’d love you to come along. Last time was lots of fun - it was great to see what others were looking for and to compare bargains!

On Wednesday we have our 1st Wednesday Book Club here at night …and the two book clubs on Thursday (day and night). It is now the time of the year for book clubs to choose their reads for next year which is always a bit exciting! Darebin Libraries purchase new sets of books each year to try to ensure that book groups get variety year in and year out.

Speaking of Darebin Libraries, we have a little interactive community thing called Due Back up at Fairfield Library for Adult Learners Week. If you pass the library or an in the library please take a minute or two to fill in a card - a recommendation from you of a ‘book that stayed with you’ and a quick note about something you learnt from it There are some photos in the post below.

Corrin in starting up her Learn to Weave course in the Community Shed from this coming Saturday - if you are interested there are still spots available. It runs from 10am-1pm for 6 weeks and you will learn to weave and make something beautiful in the process - a scarf or the like. Here is he link to find out more and book in.

We also have Maylei back teaching a Spoon Making (whittling) for a one day workshop on Saturday 13 September from 9am-3pm. You can find out more in the post below.

Of course we have our Community Morning on Friday - a great chance for a chat inside or out (Clare will be busy in the garden with Jenny and Corrado and our garden is looking super with all their love and care) followed by lunch at 12pm.

We’d love to see you.

Cheers Leanne

I think we’re back on recovery mode again after the weekend.

I know I definitely need to mop the floors! So that’ll be my first job I think ….

Such a great weekend - lovely to see so many people from the neighbourhood on Friday evening. It seems 5-7pm Friday is a great time to catch people! A good excuse to leave work early perhaps?

Art works (purchased or unsold) can be collected this week anytime we are open (eg. 9am-3.30pm).

This week on the radar we have:

• Garden to Plate on Monday at 11.30am

• Men’s Group on Tuesday at 7pm

• Playgroup and Line Dancing at 10am and Armchair Theatre (1.15pm) on Wednesday and Sound Healing at 7.15pm.

• Crunch on Thursday at 12.30pm and Talking about Life and Death at 1pm

• Community Morning on Friday (gardening, craft etc.) followed by Community Lunch at 12pm.

We also have our next Op Shop Adventure coming up on Tuesday 2 September. Please let us know if you can make it!

Also, check out the post below for photos from the Winter Arts Salon exhibition.

Also also … thanks to everyone who dropped off citrus this week - we have made marmalade, preserved lemons and dried grapefruit slices so far. And lots was sold this weekend so maybe we’ll get another batch going this week?

We look forward to seeing you at ACC soon.

Cheers Leanne

Wow, I think we had over 100 people along on Friday night for the opening of the Winter Arts Salon exhibition - which was just super. We had over 50 artists exhibiting, and hung around 150 works - it was LOTS of work to hang, but the whole place looked amazing.

Thanks to all the artists who person-ed the gallery over the weekend, and everyone who came along. It all felt very neighbourhoodly!

I have included some snaps I took but will make a post with Kalimna’s photos next week!