It was a very good turn out for the Brimley WI’s July meeting, after a busy month of activities and events.

Unfortunately, our speaker had to cancel at the last minute due to covid, but our president, Jill Tregoning, stepped in with a talk about everyday sayings and how they originated.

For example, ‘Sweating like a pig’ (uttered a few times this week I’m sure!) is derived from the iron smelting process in which hot iron solidifies into a shape resembling a sow and piglets, then beads of moisture form on the surface.

‘Getting out of bed on the wrong side’ originates from Roman times when it was thought by the superstitious that the right side of anything was the positive side and the left was negative – people even pushed their beds up against a wall so that you couldn’t get out of bed the wrong side!

Many sayings have a naval origin, such as ‘a square meal’, referring to the use of square plates on ships which were easier to manage on a moving ship.

We then shared our family sayings, and we had some amusing recollections.

One member said when she asked her mum what was for tea, the reply was always ‘Chair backs and coat hangers’!

Jill, who was born in Bovey, also brought along some old photos of our town, including her dad’s album of very old photos, and pictures of the construction of Le Molay Littry Way in the 1980s, and we were invited to look through them.

Secretary Yvonne Brook brought us up to date with federation news and activities, and treasurer Joanna Higgs briefed us on our healthy financial position.

We were reminded that all educational trips are paid for by us.

The tea ladies and cake-makers were thanked by Jill, and we all had time for a slightly longer chat than usual.

The raffle took place, this time with members’ garden produce and flowers amongst the prizes.

This month we have helped with the Bovey in Bloom competition by doing a litter pick.

We also had a beautiful day out visiting the lovely gardens at Lanhydrock, and enjoyed a very nice meal out at Home Farm Café. The gardening group visited the Italian Garden at Ipplepen.

Forthcoming events include a film night with ‘Military Wives’ in October, a trip to Bath in November, and an aromatherapy workshop with Sarah Brewer of Bunny Brewer also in November.

There will be no meetings in August, apart from two walks for the walking group, and the next meeting will be on September 21 at our new venue, Wickham Hall, which has recently been beautifully refurbished.