U3A in London Update – 11 April 2022

This information was published on: April 11, 2022

U3A in London Easter Programme 2022:

This will take the place of our usual programme until we return on 3 May after the Easter break.  I’m afraid we can’t be responsible for any last-minute unavoidable changes

Unless coordinators decide otherwise, all in-person classes in the Town Hall will have a well-earned rest. Most Zoom classes will also take a break, but if coordinators wish to continue, they will let their members know and supply the necessary links and details.

The Design History class will meet in Room 1.22 on 12 April at 14.00.  The group will also meet at the V&A on the 19 April when we take a look at the newly re-organised 20th Century galleries.

Social Bridge group.  During the break we will be meeting on Thursday 14 and Friday 29 April from 13.00 – 16.00 in Room 1.24.  If you would like to join us, you should be at intermediate level (unless a table of 4 beginners wishes to attend). Tea, coffee and biscuits are available for a charge of 30p per person.  

The Sir Tom Harris Memorial Lecture

This will be a Grand Finale to our Easter Programme.  It will be held in the Town Hall in Room 2.21 at 16.00 on Thursday 28 April and will be available on Zoom.  The title is “Working with Tom, or How to be a Diplomat”

We remember Tom with great fondness and were greatly saddened by his sudden and untimely death.  This lecture, to celebrate the time he spent with us, will be given by one of his colleagues, Sir Rodric Braithwaite. We look forward to seeing you in room 2.21 – drinks and refreshments (catered by Joanna) will be available for everyone to enjoy after the lecture.

Next Term

Next term begins on Tuesday, 3 May (the day after Bank Holiday). The next Update will be for that week and will be available, as usual, when we are due to return.

Annual General Meetin (AGM)

We have more than twelve candidates standing for the Committee this year and need to hold an election. The list of candidates has been sent to you and you may notice that some familiar names are missing.  This is perfectly in order; committee members step down after serving for four successive years and so Gerta Regensburger, Amalia Michaels, Anthony Sober and Ron Tucker are not available for re-election. However, our Articles of Association allow the new committee to co-opt up to six more members and so they may continue to serve if they are asked and are willing to do so. 

This is probably the first time you have ever been made aware of this procedure as there has only been one election before in the 40-year history of our U3A.

Zooming In

You can, if you wish, “Zoom in” on your smartphone, iPad or laptop to a coordinator who is giving a Zoom class from home, wherever you may be. However, if you want to join in from a screen in one of our rooms in the Town Hall this can easily be set up.  It’s not difficult – you only need to switch on, click on the Zoom icon and know the meeting ID and the passcode which you can find in the full Timetable. All we need is to have a “Zoom Buddy” in each class to set it up.

Zooming Out

(enabling in-person classes in the Town Hall to be available to Zoom viewers at home}.  So far, rooms 1.33 and 2.21 have been set up to enable this, but there have been some problems.  Please bear with us while we try to sort things out during the Easter break and let us know if you are interested in “having a go”, or if you can help in any way.

Common Room

This has, on the whole, been popular and people have enjoyed using the facilities. Some members have asked whether we would be willing to provide a microwave oven and we are considering the idea.  The main problem is possible misuse – liquids may boil over and I’m afraid that some members are not very reliable about clearing up any mess they make.  The Office staff do their best to check that the room is left clean, tidy and properly stocked, but we do need your cooperation.  Let us have your views.

There is a problem each Monday afternoon when Shirley Levy’s popular Art Appreciation class crams into Room 1.33 from 14.00-15.00 while the Common Room is almost empty.  I suggest that just for that hour we have a trial period with people who want to chat to each other use Room 1.33 as a Common Room so that Shirley’s class can move back into Room 1.29.  The trial will start on 9 May.

LONDON REGION SUMMER SCHOOL 26th & 27th JULY 2022
St Bride Institute,14 Bride Lane (off Fleet Street), EC4Y 8EQ
BOOKING NOW FROM THEIR WEBSITE

To make you smile

A husband was met by his distressed wife one day when he arrived home. Tearfully she explained, “The chemist insulted me this morning on the phone. I had to call ever so many times before he would even answer the phone.”

The husband confronted the chemist to demand an apology.  He started to tell him how upset his wife was, but the chemist broke in saying, “Now, just a minute…hear my side of it. This morning the alarm failed to go off, so I was late.  With no breakfast I hurried out to the car to realise I’d locked the house with my car keys inside. I had to break a window to get my keys.  Driving a little too fast, I got a speeding ticket – then about three streets from the shop, I had a flat tyre.”

“When I finally got to the shop, a queue of people was waiting for me to open up.  I started serving these people and all the time the phone never stopped ringing. Then I had to break open a bag of coins to give change to the customers and they spilled all over the floor.  I had to get down on my hands and knees to pick up the coins and the phone was still ringing.  When I got up, I cracked my head on the open cash drawer which made me stagger back against a showcase with bottles of expensive perfumes on it.  Half of them hit the floor and broke”.

Meanwhile, the phone was still ringing and I finally managed to pick it up.  It was your wife. She wanted to know how to use a rectal thermometer.  Believe me, all I did was tell her”.

 

Best Wishes from Gilli and Amalia