General Chat

I'm here, I'm here. I am sorry to have gone AWOL but a couple of mishaps cropped up :-|
Thank you all for posting, it's been an interesting read. I'm sorry some of you have had upsetting experiences too but I have to say - I'm glad it's not just me!

Yes, I had my card marked at one group as to the pecking order of who gets the comfiest seat. :-0

I'll add more tomorrow as I am past ready for my snooze.

:-D :-D :-D

I learnt how to infiltrate such places from my youngest daughter. She was the master of interacting with people from aged two when she joined a play group, with a mother who people ignored for over an hour.. she gave me my courage to say Hi I am this person. I was made secretary of that playcentre and later I put myself up for the committee at the kindergarten. She went on to be on debating teams at primary and high school and then in her work got up there and did presentations.. something I still would not be able to do... but I can get myself noticed.

Of course there is always bribery to fall back on and you take along so home baking.

"Ann" you made me laugh when you said don't take a regular's seat at bingo..

I used to work evenings sometimes in our Chief Post Office and there was just the telegraph and toll counter open and two of us on duty and the caretaker.... those were they days of telegrams... and the floor area was huge, plenty of desks and chairs in rows through out the place. One woman used to come in of a night and bring her typewriter and type a way there.. one night she came in and another woman was sitting where she normally sat... there was empty desks and seats everywhere but hers was taken. These two women had a fist fight over that chair and the caretaker had to come and break them up. We had ring side seats to watch the event.

Maybe a member of the WI who is on GR can tell you (dear Island) about their WI and how it works for them. I do know of people that enjoy it. My mother belonged to league of mothers with the church and later she joined a senior citizens group called "the Cheer Club" .. we wondered for ages what she was doing at a chair club.. it is the way kiwis say Cheer that sounds like chair. Could have been her baking, she was good at that.

I have moved around a lot until 1980 when we landed in our present abode (meant to be temporary). Mentioning WI bought my experiences to mind. Not having any children of school age - nor going to a place of employment it was difficult to meet people apart from dog walkers, when I was invited by an neighbour to join the WI.

Off I trotted every month for a year until one evening I returned home and said to OH - 'all my life I have been known as someone's daughter, a wife, a mother and tonight I have hit bottom. A member actually came and spoke to me and said 'I know you - you are Sam's mother'.

OH thought it was hilarious and no greater praise - SAM WAS OUR NEWFOUNDLAND DOG.

Needless to say I never darkened the doors of WI again. After the year apart from mm neighbour I knew no one else. I had a friend who as a young mother went to join the Mothers Union at church and told they were full up.

Years later I was asked to demonstrate sugar flowers by WI - I was sooooo busy however I did find time to do it for the Ladies Group.

A very sticky situation Ann.

:-D

or stuck up with her jam!!

I reckon she's got all tangled up in her knitting!

:-D

She ha probably been elected president of her local WI. :-D

Dottie where are you?

They haven't locked you in the toilets at the WI meeting have they?

:-0 :-0

Our library offer a room free to local groups.
We have groups in almost every day making use of the facilities.
Amongst them,we have 2 knitting groups.
One meet during the day, the other in an evening.

The difference between these two groups is honestly like night and day!
Our daytime ladies are lovely. and welcome anyone into the group.
They often bring home baking for the staffroom too
They are always doing something for a chosen charity, which is sold ( like hotcakes) at the counter on their behalf.
The evening group are not a very nice gaggle of women
Loud, quite crass, very cliquey and as far as i know, they have never done anything for the community or for charity.

My daughter joined a reading group at her library.
At 24, she was by far the youngest member there.
Attended by men, women and married couples, it's the highlight of her monthly social calendar and she just loves it.... all welcome too.
They have regular, wild nights out on the town!

Prickles....if you want to feel intimidated or not part of the gang, try going to Bingo and sitting in someone's regular seat :-0 :-0 :-0 :-0

I was traumatised :-D

OMG thankyou for this thread :-D. I always thought I was a right anti-social whatsit as I don't like 'joining' things (neither does OH so we're a couple of boring old farts). It's not just me who has bad experiences then! I have done a number of evening classes over the years but they haven't really been long-lasting groups. Even some of those were a bit cliquey but some have been great (including the current one).

I was wearing earing's and lippy Ann.

:-D

Glamour and youth must have intimidated them Prickles...just too much ;-)

I joined a Mensa group, and took a friend along.
Fortunately it was held in a pub, so, although the two of us were totally ostracised - and bored - the group (all men) just waffled on about computers **Yaaawn**, we got stuck into the beer :-D

Only went twice.

Much more fun learning sign language. We weren't allowed to speak, so, as soon as the coffee break came, you couldn't stop us!!!! Had some great times there. :-D

Having said that, we went on to stage 2. Teacher was soooo boring, we (and a few others) ended up going to the pub again. We had children, had babysitters for the lesson, so why waste the time? :-D

Yeah........that must be it!!

;-) ;-)

Aah that is it!!! And they obviously didn't want you steaming in there telling them how far back you had got your tree. Or............. maybe they didn't think you were old enough to have a tree :-D :-D

They were all a bit older than me Ann so perhaps they were jellyous of me youf!!

:-D :-D

PH :-D :-D :-D

What gets me is that most of these groups are always advertising for more members. In your case I would be tempted to write and tell them why they don't get more. Did there appear to be a leader, or was it a group of people who met to share knowledge. I imagine it was an organised group. Maybe theyw ere shocked that somebody actually wanted to join.

Thank you Ann.

Sniff, sob, hiccup. :-\

My psychiatrist thinks I will recover by the end of the year.

:-D

When I did my training I was the only woman with 250 men and really didn't have a problem. I feel comfortable talking to men and mostly we have something we can discuss although some imagine I am making a play for them.

Of course, discussing the merits of the Wankel engine (no pistons) or whether that bit of whatever was gas or arc welded is guaranteed to get you the man of your dreams.

Possibly because I know I have no hope of attaining the attributes that women are told to aspire to and so I don't really try so find I am either ignored or quietly advised by those who have attained them.

I quite like watching the knowledgeable displaying their knowledge at certain events because I certainly don't pretend to have any.