Coffee Mornings

VIRTUAL COFFEE MORNING –  10am Tuesday 2nd February

Hoorah!   We will be holding a Coffee Morning on Zoom on the first Tuesday of every month, until we are allowed to meet again in person.
All members are most welcome and a link to join this first Coffee Morning Zoom meeting on 2nd February was sent in a separate email yesterday (Thursday) and a reminder  will be sent on Monday 1st February.

Sadly, we will not be able to provide coffee and scrummy cakes, but you are welcome to bring your own  delicacies to the Zoom meeting and share them on screen!  No prizes for the most tempting!

We will be setting up “Break-Out Rooms” which enable you to chat with just a few people; you will also be able to move from one room to another – just like our real Coffee Mornings when you could move between tables.  We will also have a Break-Out Room hosted by Caroline, our Groups Coordinator, so if you have any questions about groups which are currently active, or which you would like to restart or even a group which you would like to have help in setting up, you will be able to get information.

The Membership team and helpers will be in a “Members Break-Out Room” to welcome members old and new.  We are aware that members who joined since March 2019 have not been invited to a New Members’ Meeting, at which we explain a little about the ethos of the global organisation of the u3a and more particularly how the u3a in Chichester works with and for our members.  We will be sending out a special invitation to all members who have joined us in the last couple of years and look forward to introducing you all to the Committee and, indeed, to each other.

We will also have an “Ideas” Break-Out Room for any suggestions for current or future activities, offers to help with virtual or real events – in fact anything which you could bring to the u3a to make us more lively, vibrant and engaging.   Talking of which…….   have you had a look around our new website?  Still work-in-progress, but improving by the day.

See you over coffee on Tuesday 2nd Feb!!!   Stay safe and cheerful.

The next U3A Quiz!

The next U3A Quiz by Zoom will be on Tuesday, 2nd February at 19.30

We need to keep numbers manageable, so the number of attendees will be limited to 20.  You can enter singly or with the person with whom you are in isolation!  We will take names on a first come, first served basis, so if you would like to join us please email me, the organiser, giving your name(s) and I’ll get back to you with confirmation of your booking.

We will admit attendees from the Zoom Waiting Room in time for a 7.30pm start.  There will be 5 rounds of 10 questions each. 

We look forward to hearing from you.

Hope you’re all keeping well

Desbina

Groups News

Your Favourite Walks

We now have a “Your Favourite Walks” section in the Bulletin and we now have the beginnings of a collection of these walks on the website here.  We are inviting members to submit a description of a local walk which they have enjoyed personally and which might appeal to other members.  If you have a favourite walk to contribute  please send it to us using this form.

We have been asked if we could post a walk suitable for wheelchairs from time to time – if anyone has one to recommend that would be much appreciated.

Bosham to Smugglers Lane alongside Bosham Channel

With the wet weather making most footpaths a muddy quagmire, and lockdown rules limiting our willingness to travel, walking options do seem rather limited. And yet getting out to walk is one of the few outings that we are allowed! Here is a walk that should be free of mud and without too much traffic.

The Walk

Where to park: Bosham Lane pay and display car park (with public conveniences) . Sat nav PO18 8HT. Map: OS Explorer 120 SU805039
Length: approx. 4 miles round trip, but with shorter options by parking in parking bays along Shore Road.
Accessibility: apart from the beach, all tarmac paths and roads. The beach section should be fairly dry underfoot and easy walking, but will be cut off at very high tides. Although there is a good stretch of road walking it is not at all busy, in fact pedestrians seem to take priority over any traffic!
Refreshments available at the excellent Shoreside Café in Bosham, which has stayed open for takeaways during lockdowns.
The route: Exit carpark, turn left at the road to go towards the shore and then left through a gap in a flint wall opposite Shoreside café. Walk along this footpath keeping next to the water’s edge. You can stay on the upper path, or walk along the road at low tides. The path/road bends round to the right, and then turn right again along Shore Road to walk westward along the south side of the harbour with views across to Bosham village. There are obvious places where you can diverge from the road along the way. Note that at very low tides you can take a short cut by going across the causeway between the village and Shore Road.
When you reach the information board and the ‘end of speed limit’ road sign, keep going along the road for just over half a mile until the road bends sharp left into Smugglers Lane. Keep straight ahead along a footpath until you reach the beach with views across to Itchenor. (This is where you can catch the ferry to Itchenor during summer months.) Here turn right along a waymarked footpath along a really attractive stretch of beach with lovely views across to Chidham peninsula, until you eventually come back to the road. Retrace your route back to the car.

Photography Competition

THE WINNER OF OUR
“FESTIVE SEASON” 
PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION
IS

Christmas Night Lights at  Canal Basin 
by Roger Pagram

The subject of the new February competition is

SUNRISE – SUNSET

There have been some really lovely sunrises and sunsets recently.   You may have seen them.  The best thing is that you don’t have to get up at something silly o’clock to snap the sunrises at the moment or go out late in the evening to record a sunset.

Delicate pink pearly dawns.   Dramatic blood reds splashed across the sky of a sunset, so dramatic that sometimes you just want to take a picture of the sky with no foreground.

You may already have photos of sunrises and sunsets that have inspired you.  Whichever way you have recorded them, we’d love you to share them with us.

To submit your photos: Click here

Would anyone like to either lecture or run a regular zoom group on photography for Chichester U3A.  Or perhaps someone would like to give individual sessions on wildlife photography, composition, etc. If so, please contact us HERE.

Ideas from the National U3A

• Encouraging Chess in u3a. Wednesday, February 3rd at 10:00. This event is for anyone currently engaged in, looking to start or join or anyone with previous experience of Chess groups in u3a.
• Egyptology: An Introduction Monday, February 8th at 14:00 
  An Introduction to Temples in Ancient Egypt – will explore the nature and function of temples in ancient Egypt
•  Foe to Friend: The British Army in Germany since 1945. (National Army Museum Talk) . Thursday, February 11th, 10:30. This is not arranged by eventbrite, but following the link above will take you to a page with more details and a link to a registration process. 
• Maths Activities and Games. Thursday, February 18th at 14:30. A repeat of previous session
• Maths Problems and Puzzles Workshop. Tuesday, February 23rd at 14:30. A repeat of previous session
• Meanwhile, the U3A continues to put forward good ideas and activities to occupy ourselves, such as Amateur Radio and Virtual Choir as well as old favourites such as Maths Challenge and Bird Watch. Details of all these can be found here. You can find out more about national U3A activities by subscribing to the weekly newsletter here. And they have a YouTube channel which includes a radio  podcast.

Solution to the Bridge Problem

South is non-vulnerable and may open under the rule of 20.  He can use the losing trick count to justify the game contract.

CONTRACT 4♠ by S Lead Q♦ (top of a run)

PLAY West leads the Q♦.  South must lose a trick to the A♠.  A heart loser is also certain, along with other losers in both diamonds and clubs.  In order to hold his losers to just 3, South must quickly try to develop a heart trick in North’s hand as soon as possible.  If South tries to play trumps first, the defence will win the A♠ and continue in diamonds or clubs to knock out an entry to the dummy hand.  South would then be unable to do anything with North’s heart suit.

South should win the A♦ and lead the 2♥, conceding a heart trick.  The defence will win this trick and return either diamonds or clubs.  Declarer wins the A♣ or K♦ in dummy and leads a heart from North.  If East plays the missing high heart, South can ruff.  He can later get rid of his losers on dummy’s good hearts.  If East plays low on North’s heart lead, South should discard from whichever minor the opponents have established.  (Loser on loser)  South may lose a second heart trick, but dummy’s last 2 hearts are now good and will provide a discard for South’ other minor loser.

Clive Grinyer Felpham Bridge Group January 2021

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