Members present were:- Vala with news of her daughter's appointment as Assistant to Secretary of Treasury. Congratulations & good wishes also to Vala for her 60th birthday: Jo had some news of a North West tree octopus???, Robyn recently celebrated her husband Joe's birthday. We welcomed Helene wearing a new Pandora bracelet which she obtained whilst visiting her family in Canberra. Wendy had nothing new to report & Mandy is excited about her forthcoming cruise of the Pacific. David returned from finalising his house move, he read a witty poem he composed for Vala's birthday. Terry has been assisting one of the speakers in a mental health forum prior to a Meet the Candidates election meeting.
As usual the Word of the Day caused some discussion:-
Wendy's were internet related - blamestorming - working out who to blame
ego-surfing - looking up your name on the internet
swiped out - credit card overuse
mouse potato - internet user
starter marriage - first marriage (practice?)
David puzzled us with nonet, explanation - uneaten
Jo's word could be used to describe some of our meetings - persiflage or joking chatter. Another word of Jo's was negatory - worthless: of no value
Terry:- Prognosticate: Predict or forecast
Helene:- Gravitas: substantial. serious demeanour
Cath:- Brabble: Quarrel noisily over trifles: discord: brawl
Vala:- Capacious: Roomy
There were interesting ideas on the subject from last week:- Three shades of white - in verse and prose.
Mandy wrote a moving tale of a poor family and a Peace rose.
Terry's poem covered many shades of white, from clouds to snow & surf
Robyn had researched white, how it is used as an example for purity, cowardice etc.
Helene used the subject to add another chapter to her novel
Wendy wrote an amusing poem of ladies obsessed with laundering sheets
Cath's piece involved wedding dresses worn by three generations of a family
David read a heartfelt poem relating to war experience, he then made fun of being on a diet with another poem, followed by a witty piece regarding laundry and three shades of white
Terry suggested an exercise which kept everyone occupied, silence reigned as the words, ivy, squat, mizzenmast, iguana, rivulet, muzzle, xerography, twosome, foyer, decibel, were woven into a sentence with top marks if they could be used consecutively. Hilarity was caused when the results of these efforts were read by the composers. It is amazing where a mizzenmast could be placed.
Next weeks's subject is A 60yr old transvestite man who loves Prada,favourite colour mauve,works at the Zoo, has an athletic build, speaks 3 languages with a lisp, has white, pointed teeth, teaches Zumba at a retirement home for old transvestites, drives an old Combi van, is South American, his name is Jesus and his hobby is writing poetry. We hope to hear some interesting stories about Jesus next week.
05 August 2010
30 July 2010
Wednesday 28th July
Mandy, Wendy, Melissa, Terry, Cathy, Jo, Robyn, present.
Brags:
Cathy: Rudd's band came second in the grand final. Well done!
Mandy: Did a good job giving the service in church. Provided a sugar scuttle for inspection.
Wendy; Had a 60's party for friend - went back in time in all ways.
Terry: Ran a Memoir course in Berry, was enthusiastic about his reception and the actual day. Is talking about doing the same in nursing homes.
Jo: Went to the doctor - again. Bronchiotomy next Wednesday...good luck Jo.
Melissa: Later, said she was working, teaching at TAFE, and is enjoying the work.
Robyn: Found a new convict ancestor.
Word of the Day
Cathy: Nebulous: hazy, perplexed.
Robyn: Terse: polished style, economy of expression, free of superfluity
Succinct: The exclusion of extraneous detail.
Wendy: Flout: mock, disregard rules.
Mandy: Tintinnabulation: ringing of bells.
Terry: Hubris: overestimating one's confidence, esp. for people in power.
Jo: Vituperative: to censure abrasively, to be severe
Focused: a word not spelled to her satisfaction in different dictionaries.
Dilettante: modern meaning: frivolous, old meaning: pretentious.
Homework - The Key
Robyn: Pam finds a note inside a teapot from a convict woman, who was sent to Australia. Pam finds a key in an old shed. The key was set with diamonds and made of silver, it was worth a lot of money.
Wendy: Poem about Karaoke at the RSL.
Mandy: 'Keys to Life'. Lyn met Tom. Tom makes their relationship seem difficult to continue. The key to the continuation was something she had to discover that was important about her.
Terry: 'Michael'. Poem about a homeless man who discovers the key to his new self.
Making a start on rejuvenating himself.
Jo: 'Moskeytoe Land' about a bush rover who encounters a locked door and with the key opens it to meet a giant chook, Colin, who spends a lot of his time swatting moskeytoes, viz. black crows.
Much talk about the art of songwriting, Melissa's playing field, with a paper presented by Jo re Dicken's illustrator, Phiz.
Quikwrite: We had to write a resume as a fairy tale character applying for a job. We chose different characters, which was interesting.
Homework: Write a short story about "Three shades of white."
Jo
Mandy, Wendy, Melissa, Terry, Cathy, Jo, Robyn, present.
Brags:
Cathy: Rudd's band came second in the grand final. Well done!
Mandy: Did a good job giving the service in church. Provided a sugar scuttle for inspection.
Wendy; Had a 60's party for friend - went back in time in all ways.
Terry: Ran a Memoir course in Berry, was enthusiastic about his reception and the actual day. Is talking about doing the same in nursing homes.
Jo: Went to the doctor - again. Bronchiotomy next Wednesday...good luck Jo.
Melissa: Later, said she was working, teaching at TAFE, and is enjoying the work.
Robyn: Found a new convict ancestor.
Word of the Day
Cathy: Nebulous: hazy, perplexed.
Robyn: Terse: polished style, economy of expression, free of superfluity
Succinct: The exclusion of extraneous detail.
Wendy: Flout: mock, disregard rules.
Mandy: Tintinnabulation: ringing of bells.
Terry: Hubris: overestimating one's confidence, esp. for people in power.
Jo: Vituperative: to censure abrasively, to be severe
Focused: a word not spelled to her satisfaction in different dictionaries.
Dilettante: modern meaning: frivolous, old meaning: pretentious.
Homework - The Key
Robyn: Pam finds a note inside a teapot from a convict woman, who was sent to Australia. Pam finds a key in an old shed. The key was set with diamonds and made of silver, it was worth a lot of money.
Wendy: Poem about Karaoke at the RSL.
Mandy: 'Keys to Life'. Lyn met Tom. Tom makes their relationship seem difficult to continue. The key to the continuation was something she had to discover that was important about her.
Terry: 'Michael'. Poem about a homeless man who discovers the key to his new self.
Making a start on rejuvenating himself.
Jo: 'Moskeytoe Land' about a bush rover who encounters a locked door and with the key opens it to meet a giant chook, Colin, who spends a lot of his time swatting moskeytoes, viz. black crows.
Much talk about the art of songwriting, Melissa's playing field, with a paper presented by Jo re Dicken's illustrator, Phiz.
Quikwrite: We had to write a resume as a fairy tale character applying for a job. We chose different characters, which was interesting.
Homework: Write a short story about "Three shades of white."
Jo
22 July 2010
Meeting on 21st July ‘10
Attending: Mandy, Jo, Cath, Robyn, Terry
Brags: Jo Her son Danny is now doing street art in Sydney, Another son Murray has
been approached by ABC re his wildlife photos
Cath… a performance at her church for Christmas in July
Robyn…further work on her ancestors, 2 convicts found
Mandy…had a fa…no she fell…okay though…nice that she still bounces
Terry… read out a terrific poem from his 11 y/o grandson…a proud Pa
Words… Cath…attenuate…to reduce, minimize, weaken, impair
Terry..beguile…to deceive, to cheat, (he beguiled me….)
“ visceral…touching deeply, affecting inner feelings (a visceral
experience)
Homework readings
Mandy…”What diet are you on?”
Jo………” Dodo requiem for an old bird”…a nonsense poem
Helene (read by Jo)…about a safety pin…terrific, very funny her best yet…keep it up
Robyn…”Diet – a story
Cath….also Diet…a poem
Terry…a story about old Sid and a computer
Exercise…Mandy…Gave the word…dermatology…we had to make as many words as we could from the letters…Jo streaked out in front with 64 words…you could almost hear those electrical impulses crackling around in her head…we all compared words afterwards and amazingly there were only about 50% common. What a great language we have.
QuickWrite…fifteen minutes to write a story using the words…alarm clock, match, and postcard.
As usual a wide interpretation and variation on the final stories.
Jo…” True to myself”
Cath…”Adelaide”
Robyn…”Uncle George’s house”
Terry…Jane’s adventure”
Mandy…” A romantic story”
A really good day...but missing Helene,Melissa, Wendy, Vala, Mary and the two Davids
Homework…”discovering a key…”
See you next week
Terry
Attending: Mandy, Jo, Cath, Robyn, Terry
Brags: Jo Her son Danny is now doing street art in Sydney, Another son Murray has
been approached by ABC re his wildlife photos
Cath… a performance at her church for Christmas in July
Robyn…further work on her ancestors, 2 convicts found
Mandy…had a fa…no she fell…okay though…nice that she still bounces
Terry… read out a terrific poem from his 11 y/o grandson…a proud Pa
Words… Cath…attenuate…to reduce, minimize, weaken, impair
Terry..beguile…to deceive, to cheat, (he beguiled me….)
“ visceral…touching deeply, affecting inner feelings (a visceral
experience)
Homework readings
Mandy…”What diet are you on?”
Jo………” Dodo requiem for an old bird”…a nonsense poem
Helene (read by Jo)…about a safety pin…terrific, very funny her best yet…keep it up
Robyn…”Diet – a story
Cath….also Diet…a poem
Terry…a story about old Sid and a computer
Exercise…Mandy…Gave the word…dermatology…we had to make as many words as we could from the letters…Jo streaked out in front with 64 words…you could almost hear those electrical impulses crackling around in her head…we all compared words afterwards and amazingly there were only about 50% common. What a great language we have.
QuickWrite…fifteen minutes to write a story using the words…alarm clock, match, and postcard.
As usual a wide interpretation and variation on the final stories.
Jo…” True to myself”
Cath…”Adelaide”
Robyn…”Uncle George’s house”
Terry…Jane’s adventure”
Mandy…” A romantic story”
A really good day...but missing Helene,Melissa, Wendy, Vala, Mary and the two Davids
Homework…”discovering a key…”
See you next week
Terry
16 July 2010
14.7.10 Meeting
Present: Wendy, Mandy, Cathy, Joey, Davidy.
Word of the day:
Imprecation: spoken curse, wish evil to
Agog: in a state of eager curiosity.
Parsimony: extreme unwillingness to spend money, cheapskate, niggardly, close-fisted, cheese paring, penuriousness.
Carapace: the hard shell of a turtle, or crustacean. Underside of crustacean is called plastron.
Nudiustertian: the day before yesterday. (try and fit that into a story!)
Lickspittle: today, servile person.
Alterego: another self
Ipso facto: by the fact of itself
Prima facie: the first case
Status quo: as things were before
Erudite: learned
Tocsin: a bell, a call to arms
Brag:
Robyn had a card written to her and signed by Paul Keating years ago.
Wendy wanted food ideas for party.
David cleaned the house.
Cathy sorted through materials in order to make kids' dresses in Uganda.
Read out Helene's description of the scribblers' she is attending in Canberra.
Homework:
Wendy, The Biggest Lie Of All. A poem, 'Lies, all lies'. the funniest poem about what grown-ups tell you about what will happen to you if you do this or that. All gruesome.
Mandy, They Are All Gone. About the Army. New recruit lasted less than l2 hours.
David, Life On The Planet Kristina. A poem about Kristina Kenneally - who came from space - has supernatural powers.
Cathy, Get On With Your Life, Son. about Adam, a musician. How he found his family.
Jo, The Darkest Hour, about a mysterious book which appeared on an empty football field.
Exercise. Word Game by Robyn.
Trying to write many words that mean the same thing, eg. words that apply to organs or parts used in the production of the voice. Larynx, throat, windpipe etcetera.
This was a difficult exercise although it looked easy. It certainly showed how much notice we do take of alternative words when writing.
Ten minutes Quick Write. David.
About rats. Very different offerings on this. No one thought the same about rats.
Homework..."Diet"...whatever comes to mind...poetry or prose
Finis.
Jo...ey
Present: Wendy, Mandy, Cathy, Joey, Davidy.
Word of the day:
Imprecation: spoken curse, wish evil to
Agog: in a state of eager curiosity.
Parsimony: extreme unwillingness to spend money, cheapskate, niggardly, close-fisted, cheese paring, penuriousness.
Carapace: the hard shell of a turtle, or crustacean. Underside of crustacean is called plastron.
Nudiustertian: the day before yesterday. (try and fit that into a story!)
Lickspittle: today, servile person.
Alterego: another self
Ipso facto: by the fact of itself
Prima facie: the first case
Status quo: as things were before
Erudite: learned
Tocsin: a bell, a call to arms
Brag:
Robyn had a card written to her and signed by Paul Keating years ago.
Wendy wanted food ideas for party.
David cleaned the house.
Cathy sorted through materials in order to make kids' dresses in Uganda.
Read out Helene's description of the scribblers' she is attending in Canberra.
Homework:
Wendy, The Biggest Lie Of All. A poem, 'Lies, all lies'. the funniest poem about what grown-ups tell you about what will happen to you if you do this or that. All gruesome.
Mandy, They Are All Gone. About the Army. New recruit lasted less than l2 hours.
David, Life On The Planet Kristina. A poem about Kristina Kenneally - who came from space - has supernatural powers.
Cathy, Get On With Your Life, Son. about Adam, a musician. How he found his family.
Jo, The Darkest Hour, about a mysterious book which appeared on an empty football field.
Exercise. Word Game by Robyn.
Trying to write many words that mean the same thing, eg. words that apply to organs or parts used in the production of the voice. Larynx, throat, windpipe etcetera.
This was a difficult exercise although it looked easy. It certainly showed how much notice we do take of alternative words when writing.
Ten minutes Quick Write. David.
About rats. Very different offerings on this. No one thought the same about rats.
Homework..."Diet"...whatever comes to mind...poetry or prose
Finis.
Jo...ey
07 July 2010
meeting on 7/7/2010
Present were Terry, Jo, Robyn, Cath, Vala, David, Wendy, Mandy, and a visitor from South Australia.
Word of the day,
Wendy- bow, lots of meanings and pronunciations.
David-Droll, Dry amusement.
Cath, Umbrage-Resentment.
Frivolous-not serious, trifling.
Jo,-Popinjay-A fop, or a parrot or woodpecker.
Homework was This morning marks the anniversary;
Cath wrote about getting used to all the new technology happening, and how far we have come.
Terry told us about famous people who were born or had died on this day.
Mandy,- A racy tale, of innocence, greed, and lost virginity.
Wendy,- a poem about her hero.
David, -A poem tinged with sadness, about Greece, and a summer he spent there with his sister.
Jo,- Told us a true story about a murder in 1944, and how she was linked to it.
As it was a social day, we had lots of munchies, and some good discussions.
Homework is a Newspaper head-line we all chose from Robyns' bag of goodies.
Happy writing, see you next week.
Word of the day,
Wendy- bow, lots of meanings and pronunciations.
David-Droll, Dry amusement.
Cath, Umbrage-Resentment.
Frivolous-not serious, trifling.
Jo,-Popinjay-A fop, or a parrot or woodpecker.
Homework was This morning marks the anniversary;
Cath wrote about getting used to all the new technology happening, and how far we have come.
Terry told us about famous people who were born or had died on this day.
Mandy,- A racy tale, of innocence, greed, and lost virginity.
Wendy,- a poem about her hero.
David, -A poem tinged with sadness, about Greece, and a summer he spent there with his sister.
Jo,- Told us a true story about a murder in 1944, and how she was linked to it.
As it was a social day, we had lots of munchies, and some good discussions.
Homework is a Newspaper head-line we all chose from Robyns' bag of goodies.
Happy writing, see you next week.
02 July 2010
Meeting30-6-2010
Mandy, Terry, Jo, Cath, Vala, Dave and Wendy braved the cold weather.
Brags
Jo helped another writer to join an American Society.
Caths' grandson and his band are in the grand final of a contest in Sydney. Good luck.
Dave Is selling his house at Katoomba, and concentrating on his eco-friendly place over the other side of Goulburn.
Mandy booked a cruise online, they sail off into the sunset on the 7th August.
Wendy, Terry and Vala were bragless.
Jo set us an interesting little exercise to see how logical we were.
Word of the day.
Mandy-Anathema-things come in 3's
Terry- Ossify- to harden or change to bone.
Jo- Bloc-Coalition or alliance.
Cath- Subservient-To yield to anothers' will.
Dave- fawn-A young deer, or to crawl to some-one.
Sycophant-A servile flatterer.
Wendy- Cuckold-A husband or wife of an unfaithful spouse.
Homework was-things come in 3's
Cath wrote a story about old wives tales with a happy ending with triplets on the way
Dave- A poem 3's, very funny.
Vala, a poem, Numbers. Offbeat.
Wendy 3's A funny poem.
Mandy An uplifting sermon, Life comes in 3's, got us all thinking.
Terry-3rd time lucky, a poem about funny old sayings.
Exercise was I Remember paragraphs. Some funny, some happy memories, and some sad ones.
Quick Write was- After the door shuts, and the footsteps die away.Jo and Cath wrote
eerie stories, Dave, Vala and Wendy wrotr funny pieces, Mandy had a tramp finding shelter for the night, Terry had a naughty little boy[him?]having a good old nosh up'
Homework is: This morning marks the anniversary of---
We are having a social day next Wednesday, so bring along a plate. Happy Writing.
Brags
Jo helped another writer to join an American Society.
Caths' grandson and his band are in the grand final of a contest in Sydney. Good luck.
Dave Is selling his house at Katoomba, and concentrating on his eco-friendly place over the other side of Goulburn.
Mandy booked a cruise online, they sail off into the sunset on the 7th August.
Wendy, Terry and Vala were bragless.
Jo set us an interesting little exercise to see how logical we were.
Word of the day.
Mandy-Anathema-things come in 3's
Terry- Ossify- to harden or change to bone.
Jo- Bloc-Coalition or alliance.
Cath- Subservient-To yield to anothers' will.
Dave- fawn-A young deer, or to crawl to some-one.
Sycophant-A servile flatterer.
Wendy- Cuckold-A husband or wife of an unfaithful spouse.
Homework was-things come in 3's
Cath wrote a story about old wives tales with a happy ending with triplets on the way
Dave- A poem 3's, very funny.
Vala, a poem, Numbers. Offbeat.
Wendy 3's A funny poem.
Mandy An uplifting sermon, Life comes in 3's, got us all thinking.
Terry-3rd time lucky, a poem about funny old sayings.
Exercise was I Remember paragraphs. Some funny, some happy memories, and some sad ones.
Quick Write was- After the door shuts, and the footsteps die away.Jo and Cath wrote
eerie stories, Dave, Vala and Wendy wrotr funny pieces, Mandy had a tramp finding shelter for the night, Terry had a naughty little boy[him?]having a good old nosh up'
Homework is: This morning marks the anniversary of---
We are having a social day next Wednesday, so bring along a plate. Happy Writing.
24 June 2010
Writer’s Group meeting 23rd June 2010
Attending: Mandy, Jo, Robyn, Cath, Vala, David R, Wendy, Terry
Melissa…we missed you…are you going okay?
Brags:
Mandy…Robyn liked Mandy’s romance story…thinks it good enough to publish
David: Read a poem about his trip to Cairns…very good
Cath…no brag but presented some old spelling and grammar books
Wendy: Her vintage car club took their cars to Culburra school…the kids loved it
Terry: Said he has just woken from a long sleep…more later on
Jo: Her war time stories to be put on display at the Lady Denman
Words of the Day
Robyn…euphoric…a feeling of happiness and bodily well being, ecstatic, joyous
David…manes…the souls of deceased loved ones, the god-like souls of ancestors
deify…worship something as a god
passé…no longer fashionable parody…ape, mock, mimic
Cath…..anfractuosity…quality of being winding and tortuous…as in a road?
Vala…..mendacity…to lie, given to falsehood
Wendy..clishmaclaver…casual chat or gossip aglet…plastic end on a shoelace
Terry…fulminate…to censure strongly, to denounce violently
Jo…….schism…a division, separation or split in a group or organization
Homework…we each picked out blindly a newspaper clipping and wrote about it.
Robyn…called ‘Life for Charlie’…a story about a dog
David R…called ‘Fear’…a knock on the door from someone with a religious pamphlet
Cath and Vala…writer’s block this week
Wendy…called “Mother has Alien baby”…poem…funny as ever…what a talent for humour
Terry…clipping called “the home truths we dare not confront”…Terry wrote about a lifelong battle with depression and his decision now to do something about it…community wide…much discussion and acknowledgement of the mental health issue generally and the ineffectiveness of governments to adequately address it.
Mandy…about “Making a Difference” the joy of giving and the thought of what the world would be like without us in it
Jo………called “Farmers Hairy Picnic” a poem…about the effect of the ‘ugly stick’ on a family
Exercise (Mandy)
Using the words “they all saw him walk to the end of the road and he was never seen again”
As per usual a wide interpretation and selection of thoughts made up some very interesting stories and poems.
Homework for next week…”these things always happen in threes”
Next week…Wendy will facilitate and Vala will set the exercise…
Attending: Mandy, Jo, Robyn, Cath, Vala, David R, Wendy, Terry
Melissa…we missed you…are you going okay?
Brags:
Mandy…Robyn liked Mandy’s romance story…thinks it good enough to publish
David: Read a poem about his trip to Cairns…very good
Cath…no brag but presented some old spelling and grammar books
Wendy: Her vintage car club took their cars to Culburra school…the kids loved it
Terry: Said he has just woken from a long sleep…more later on
Jo: Her war time stories to be put on display at the Lady Denman
Words of the Day
Robyn…euphoric…a feeling of happiness and bodily well being, ecstatic, joyous
David…manes…the souls of deceased loved ones, the god-like souls of ancestors
deify…worship something as a god
passé…no longer fashionable parody…ape, mock, mimic
Cath…..anfractuosity…quality of being winding and tortuous…as in a road?
Vala…..mendacity…to lie, given to falsehood
Wendy..clishmaclaver…casual chat or gossip aglet…plastic end on a shoelace
Terry…fulminate…to censure strongly, to denounce violently
Jo…….schism…a division, separation or split in a group or organization
Homework…we each picked out blindly a newspaper clipping and wrote about it.
Robyn…called ‘Life for Charlie’…a story about a dog
David R…called ‘Fear’…a knock on the door from someone with a religious pamphlet
Cath and Vala…writer’s block this week
Wendy…called “Mother has Alien baby”…poem…funny as ever…what a talent for humour
Terry…clipping called “the home truths we dare not confront”…Terry wrote about a lifelong battle with depression and his decision now to do something about it…community wide…much discussion and acknowledgement of the mental health issue generally and the ineffectiveness of governments to adequately address it.
Mandy…about “Making a Difference” the joy of giving and the thought of what the world would be like without us in it
Jo………called “Farmers Hairy Picnic” a poem…about the effect of the ‘ugly stick’ on a family
Exercise (Mandy)
Using the words “they all saw him walk to the end of the road and he was never seen again”
As per usual a wide interpretation and selection of thoughts made up some very interesting stories and poems.
Homework for next week…”these things always happen in threes”
Next week…Wendy will facilitate and Vala will set the exercise…
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)