May 2008 Newsletter excerpt

Newcomers Annual Year End Dinner A Garden Party

At The Bungalow, Bowering Park Monday, May 26th 2008 6:30 pm Reception 7:30 pm Dinner
Cost: $ 35.00

In keeping with tradition our final social of the 2007-2008 Newcomer year will be an evening filled with friendly faces, good food and a few surprises. This year’s theme is “Garden Party” and our venue is the beautiful Bungalow in the heart of Bowring Park.

The park was officially opened on July 15, 1914 with the planting of a Linden tree by the Duke of Connaught. All are invited and encouraged to attend this social as we often don’t get a chance to see much of each other over the summer months lovely dinner will be prepared by Red Oak Catering and the menu selections are on a separate page at the end of the Newsletter. Each guest will receive a complimentary drink ticket and a cash bar will be available. Mark the date on your calendar, find a sitter if needed and spend an evening with friends.

If wish to attend, please RSVP to Andrea D. no later than Monday May 21st. Be sure to enclose your cheque for $35.00 made payable to Newcomers’ Club of St. John’s together with a copy of your menu choices.


Message from the President

Hooray, hooray it’s the first of May!

Isn’t it wonderful to have virtually all the snow gone and the early flowers blooming? Now the green grass is starting and buds on the trees are starting to swell. Spring is officially underway. We surely were blessed with wonderful weather for our April Social at “On Ocean’s Edge”. Thank You to Andrea Deutsch and Basia Price for the sweets and everyone who lent helping hands. This year’s May Social will certainly have unique undertones with no new Executive to introduce or to take over. The future of Newcomers’ will be interesting to see exactly how it plays out beginning in the fall. I still have hope that the familiarity we all enjoy will be missed, and a group of members will take over making sure ladies meet new friends and get to know St. John’s. I hope to see all our members at the last Social on May 29th. It sounds like a fun spring evening and will end the year in a big way

Ann Graham, President

St. John’s Newcomers’ Club Cruise

June brings along warmer and sunnier days, as well as pods of whales. Gatherall’s offer wonderful 1 ½ hr large catamaran cruises ideal for puffin and whale watching leaving from Bay Bulls to Gulls Island.
Newcomers’ Club is organizing a cruise either at 9:45 am on Saturday June 21, or June 28, 2008.
All family members and or visiting friends are welcome. More details at Gatheralls
In order for our group to receive a discounted rate, we need 30 participants. If you are coming to our May social, consider registering for this June event. Otherwise call Hana with your preferred schedule by May 27th, so that we can reserve the cruise. We will go on the day majority of our members prefer. It could mean going out with a bang in case no new executive is voted in at the end of May, or a lovely start for the summer and planning for Newcomers’ future. Hope to see you all.

Morning Coffee

Wednesday May 14th, 10:00 – 11:30 am

At the provincial Museum“The Rooms”- Café.
Join Newcomer friends for a visit and purchase a
coffee or tea and snack if you desire. This location
should simplify issues with arranging a hostess
each month. Invite any new friends or neighbours
to St. John's to our informal get together.

If you are new in town and feel kind of lost or just in the mood for meeting people,
this is a time you should mark in your calendars.

Interest Groups

Community Volunteers

The National Quilting Conference ‘Quilting on the Edge' is being held at Memorial University Campus from June 2^nd through until June 8^th 2008. The organizers are looking for volunteers to help with the conference.


Get Together Crafts
As always, we meet every Thursday morning from 9:30-12:00 at the Sobey’s community room on Merrymeeting Road.

Please join us! Bring your own project or get inspired.

Out to Lunch

May 23^rd 12 noon

The Pantry, 70 Clinch Cres.

RSVP by May 21^st

The Pantry is a lovely little spot just behind the Janeway Hospital with all proceeds going to programs of the Autism Society. We booked this restaurant earlier in the year but had to cancel because of snow. Perhaps this time we’ll be blessed with a hint of green in the trees and a few spring flowers.

Moms & Tots

Summer is the best time of the year in Newfoundland, please let me know if you are interested in meeting between June and August. Since I will be here, we can still meet at parks and beaches!

By being a convener, an executive and interviewing for Meet the Member, I have met many people. I was shy at first but in the end I enjoyed meeting many nice people. I met a lady for coffee for the first time to interview her.

She is now my very good friend. I encourage people to get involved and make the best of their time in Newfoundland.

Asuka D.

Book Notes

Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton

Wednesday May 7^th 9:30 am

The Road by Cormac McCarthy received a rating of 7.2 with 8.5 as a high and 5 as a low. The bleakness of the post apocalyptic setting makes for a rather dark read but not necessarily depressing. Father and son hold on to the belief that there are other “good guys” on the road. The writing style also mimicked the “sparseness” of the book. The ending was good as it gave hope and some closure to the story. Most found it to be hard to put down once they got started.

*Please note that May’s meeting is on a Wednesday and not a Tuesday. See you then.

Newfoundland Corner by Hana Semerad

Mists in May, heat in June

Well, the number of canceled flights in the Atlantic region on March 18^th is sufficient proof it was no Sheila, but rather Patrick and Sheila, so the foggy and wet days of last week end of April should not be a great shock to us. The return of the cooler temperatures is due to the higher than usual number of icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. I hope you were able to see the spectacular berg in Pouch Cove (see Tony’s photo below), whose sharp peak looked like a sail of a tall ship from the approach via Torbay. However, the few sunny and warmer days last week did help clear nature of most of the snow piles, our lawn’s colour is changing from drab bleak dirty brown to tweed speckled with green of new grass blades. Even some courageous tulip bulbs survived the yo-yo effects of thaws and timidly push new plants through the softened earth. Pretty soon may poles will appear, and the mayflowers, which will encourage a lot of grassing among the many teenage Grade XII Prom attendees.

The seniors adhering the local traditions will try to collect May water obtained by melting snow that falls in May, used for medicinal purposes; people will try anything to make the notion of actual snow fall in May more tolerable. Sorry, unless it can restore eye sight to the blind it will not do as an excuse for winter’s overstaying its welcome. Let us hope that if there is any more snow in May, it is but a light dusting not requiring any more muscle power, or worse yet the use of a snow blower, and we will be able to sweep the snow away with a broom In any case, be very careful and use your old broom. Under no circumstances are you to buy a new broom in May, to find out why go to your usual source quoted below, or wait for the June newsletter.

The following are definitions of some colloquial expressions from the Dictionary of Newfoundland

and Labrador which Hana used in the April Newsletter:

If the first days in April be foggy, rain in June will make the grass boggy – Foggy weather in early April indicates a rainy June.

floption – state of confusion

get out and push – that’s unbelievable!

dwy – snow, snow flakes

far as ever a puffin flies – a long distance