The Grapevine Christmas 2022

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!!

Too early?! It seems this year that people are already going full on into Christmas despite the economy. I unfortunately found myself on Oxford Street at 4pm last Saturday and it was the busiest I think I’ve ever seen it...absolutley heaving...and pretty grim!

One of the joys of editing The Grapevine is being able to inflict my likes and opinions on the whole parish and this edition I have decided to share my favourite holiday films wheter you like it or not!

On page 10 there is list of all the changes to the bin collections over the holiday period and new year and on page 8 there is some advice from SODC about recycling of extra waste.

Wishing you all a peaceful new year!

WATLINGTON SOLICITORS

Stefanie O’Bryen

• Conveyancing • Family Matters

• Probate • Wills

20 Shirburn Street Watlington, OX49 5BT

Contact your local solicitor for a friendly and efficient service

Telephone: 01491 614 700 Email: info@watlingtonsolicitors.co.uk Out of hours messages: 01491 614 357

Authorised and regulated by the Solicitors regulation Authority No 405842

9.00am HOLY COMMUNION St. Lawrence, South Weston

6.30pm SERVICE OF NINE LESSONS AND CAROLS St. Margarets, Lewknor

7.30pm PARISH COUNCIL MEETING Jubilee Hall, Lewknor

9.00am HOLY COMMUNION St. Margarets, Lewknor

10.30am MORNING WORSHIP St. Lawrence, South Weston

7.00pm TOWN FARM CAROLS Jubilee Hall, Lewknor 4.00pm CRIB SERVICE St. Margarets, Lewknor

7.30pm PARISH COUNCIL MEETING Jubilee Hall, Lewknor

JACK GORDON DECORATING

ALL TYPES OF DECORATING UNDERTAKEN

INTERIOR OR EXTERIOR

Ring or email for a free quote: info@jackgordondecorating.co.uk 07590 517 444

www.jackgordondecorating.co.uk

POSTCOMBE POSTINGS BRINGING THE POSTCOMBE COMMUNITY TOGETHER

We would like to start this issue with yet more thank yous – a lovely place to be able to start!

Initially, thanks to Margaret and John Poole for hosting the October Postcombe Special Coffee morning, Plant Sale and Raffle in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support – Big Coffee Morning.

Also, a huge thank you to all those who donated plants and prizes and those who bought items and tickets even if they couldn’t attend the event in person. A wonderful £170 was raised for an incredibly worthy cause!

Now, another heart felt thank you - to the amazing people who continue to make it their mission to keep Postcombe tidy. To those individuals who, of their own volition, go and litter pick around the village and surrounding roads, to keep our village looking as smart as possible. We would like you to know that your efforts are noticed and very much appreciated.

Next, a plea. Has anyone else noticed that with the recent poor weather, leaden skies and soggy streets and the clocks going back an hour, it seems to have become, much, much darker, much, much earlier. The autumn and winter nights are properly drawing in. Could we please ask, if you are driving around the village, just be extra aware and vigilant, especially down the narrower straights. We have a significant number of dog walkers, horse riders and young people walking home from school buses etc, If all motorists could cut their speed by a few miles an hour and keep around 20mph, it would help to keep everyone a great deal safer. Plus, if you are out in the dark make sure you can be seen, light clothing, reflective strips, or a torch can all help give road users an early warning of your presence and position – let’s help each other to stay safe.

REMEMBER: BE SAFE – BE SEEN!

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

WEDNESDAY 21ST DECEMBER 7.00PM

POSTCOMBE CHRISTMAS SINGALONG!!

Please come and join us for a festive cup of good cheer, a mince pie, a cheeky sausage roll (or two) and a good old Christmas sing song, led by the very wonderful Howard. Christmas hats and jumpers are definitely encouraged along with tinsel scarves, bauble earrings and as many other Xmas decorations as you can fit on your person.

We had a great response to donations of lights and batteries last year and we hope that everyone liked of how the God Cake was decorated for the festive season. If anyone would like or be able to make a donation this year, please drop them round to The Old Bakery whenever you are able as we hope to do something similar this year.

POSTCOMBE COFFEE MORNING:

The first Coffee Morning of the New Year will be on: January 6th 10.30am – 12.00pm Elsdale Cottage, Lower Road.

Please come and join us for a coffee and some very lovely cakes and biscuits, whilst catching up on all that is happening in our local area. Hope to see you there!

BOOK CLUB

THE SALT PATH AND ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE:

We read two books since the last Grapevine, one a memoir, one fiction. The memoir was The Salt Path by Raynor Winn (2018, 288 pages), the fiction was All the Light we Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (2014, 530 pages).

Raynor Winn and her husband called, for some reason not explained, Moth have an ideal life in Wales running a small holding and bed and breakfast establishment. They are persuaded by a friend they trust to invest in a scheme that fails. The friend turns out to be no friend at all and claims that they still have some liability. There is a legal battle and the Winns loose. About the same time Moth is diagnosed with corticobasal degeneration, CBD. This is an incurable, degenerative condition causing pain, muscle weakness, mental problems and eventually death. With the bailiffs at the door and Moth with no hope of a cure they decide to leave the home on which they have spent so much time and effort and walk the 630 mile South West Coast Path, wild camping. No alternative seems possible to Raynor, the book focuses on her.The plan seems to be walk until Moth drops down dead. Spoiler alert, he doesn’t.

This book was the Sunday Times Best Seller in 2010, was shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize, given for writing about nature and travel in the UK, and won the Inaugural RSL Christopher Bland prize for writers 50 and over.

This book’s attraction is obvious, two ordinary people battling against nature and poverty, but we began to loose patience when we saw how woefully unprepared they were. Raynor makes the walk interesting and peoples the path with eccentric characters but there is the dark side, Moth’s condition and how it fluctuates with the effort of battling the elements.

All the Light we Cannot See is a tour de force which took 10 years to write. It has won many prizes including the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2015. We were surprised that Anthony Doerr was so young, 31, when he started to

write such a detailed novel.

The story is about two children growing up and surviving in the Second World War. Marie-Laure is the daughter of Daniel LeBlanc, the locksmith in control of the keys of all the rooms and cabinets in the Museum of Natural History in Paris. She went blind at the age of six In 1934. Her father, her only parent, takes her to work and she becomes familiar with the museum and it’s stories. Daniel has made her a detailed and accurate model of their neighbourhood so she can learn how to navigate the streets.

One of the stories she hears is that a fabulous jewel called the Sea of Flames is hidden deep in the museum. Is is supposed to cause immortality to the owner but misfortune to all around him. For this reason the jewel is hidden and never put on display.

Werner Pfennig and his sister Jutta are orphans in the coal-mining town of Zollverein, in Germany. He finds a broken crystal set and discovers an ability to mend and understand such equipment and this skill brings him to the notice of those in power.

As the war brings the Germans closer to Paris the museum authorities decide that the Sea of Flames should be hidden. Three copies are made and the four jewels, the real and the copies, are given to different museum employees. Daniel has one. He and Marie-Laure leave Paris and end up with Daniel’s uncle in Saint-Malo.

Werner’s skill with radio earns him a place at an elite school. At first he is thankful that he will escape the work in the mines that killed his father but the regime In the school is brutal. He is sent to be the radio operator in a mobile team detecting wireless broadcasts. This eventually leads him to Saint-Malo.

We see the two children growing through the years of the war. Marie-Laure learns to navigate Saint-Malo and

CHRISTMAS

MY TOP 10 CHRISTMAS MOVIES (WITH ABSOLUTLEY NO LOVE, ACTUALLY)

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE

(1946)

An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.

Every year I think, “Ooh! It’s A Wonderful Life is on!”, then remember it’s really depressing and go and eat a mince pie.

“Look, Daddy. Teacher says, every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.”

WHITE CHRISTMAS (1954)

A successful song-and-dance team becomes romantically involved with a sister act and team up to save the failing Vermont inn of their former commanding general.

It’s got Bing Crosby, it’s got Danny Kaye, it’s got Rosemary Clooney (you have to love Rosemary Clooney just because she’s related to George) and all that Irving Berlin music. You can’t beat a bit of Bing a’pa-rum-pum-pum-pumming...also just looks warm and cosy.

“How much is “wow”?” “It’s right in between, uh, between “ouch” and “boing”.” “Wow!”

ELF (2003)

Raised as an oversized elf, Buddy travels from the North Pole to New York City to meet his biological father, Walter Hobbs, who doesn’t know he exists and is in desperate need of some Christmas spirit.

This is the traditional, ‘beginning of Christmas’ movie in our household. You have to time it just right...one year we watched it

way too early and the whole Christmas was out of sync. It manages to be full of Christmas spirit without making you vomit. I need to get out more.

“What about this: a tribe of asparagus children, but they’re selfconscious about the way their pee smells”

EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (1990)

An artificial man, who was incompletely constructed and has scissors for hands, leads a solitary life. Then one day, a suburban lady meets him and introduces him to her world.

I have seen this film more times than I’ve seen any other film ever. I don’t care who knows it...I cry every single time I watch this, ‘Hold me!’. ‘I can’t!’. Blub...

Oh Johnny...the cruelty of time.

“You see, before he came down here, it never snowed. And afterwards, it did. If he weren’t up there now... I don’t think it would be snowing. Sometimes, you can still catch me dancing in it.” (sniffle)

DIE HARD (1988)

An NYPD officer tries to save his wife and several others taken hostage by German terrorists during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.

What do you mean this isn’t a Christmas movie??!! It so is! Plus you’ve got Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber...the best German terrorist ever...I can’t think of another German terrorist but he still wins.

“Now I have a machine gun. Ho ho ho.”

A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS (1965)

Depressed at the commercialism he sees around him, Charlie Brown tries to find a deeper meaning to Christmas.

This film brings back memories of a childhood Christmas... this was only a few years old when I was living in the US where I’m sure I watched it for the first time. I’ve definitely always been a bit Charlie Brown...you butthead.

“I guess you were right, Linus. I shouldn’t have picked this little tree. Everything I do turns into a disaster. I guess I really don’t know what Christmas is all about.”

HOME ALONE (1990)

An eight-year-old troublemaker must protect his house from a pair of burglars when he is accidentally left home alone by his family during Christmas vacation.

Don’t lie...you’d leave Kevin home alone too.

“Damn. How can you give Kris Kringle a parking ticket on Christmas Eve? What’s next, rabies shots for the Easter Bunny?”

PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES (1987)

A Chicago advertising man must struggle to travel home from New York for Thanksgiving, with a lovable oaf of a shower curtain ring salesman as his only companion.

A Christmas film doesn’t have to be at Christmas, it can also be a Thanksgiving because I’ve just decided that. Along with Uncle Buck, this is by far one of John Candy’s finest films... taken way too young...always tugs at my black heartstrings.

“Del, what are you doing here? You said you were going home, what are you doing here?”

“I uh... I don’t have a home. Marie’s been dead for eight years.”

TRADING PLACES (1983)

A snobbish investor and a wily street con artist find their positions reversed as part of a bet by two callous millionaires.

I’ve never looked at salmon the same way after watching Dan Ackroyd eat one through a dirty Santa beard.

Very politically incorrect but has the best joke about a snail in any film since and taught me a lot about frozen orange juice and the commodities market.

‘So, this snail is standing in front of a Cadillac salesman and says, “How much is that Cadillac? I want a big ‘S’ put on each door, and on top of the car, I want a big ‘S’ so everybody can see it.” The salesman says, “Why do you want that?” He says, “When I drive down the avenue...I want everybody to say ‘Look at that S-car-go.”’

CHRISTMAS WASTE

SODC ADVICE ABOUT COLLECTIONS OVER CHRISTMAS

Our call centre is open for queries from 9am – 3.30pm on 23 December, 9am – 5pm on 28, 29 and 30 December. Call 03000 610610.

CARDBOARD BOXES

Please flatten cardboard boxes to put them in the recycling bin or put them flattened beside the recycling bin when you put it out for collection. Paper packaging such as cards and envelopes can be recycled too as long as they don’t have glitter on them.

DISRUPTIONS TO COLLECTIONS

If we cannot empty your bins when the roads are unsafe due to snow or ice then please leave your bins out for two days after your scheduled collection day and we will try to catch up.

If that’s not possible we will empty them next time they’re due and if it’s a black bin week you’ll be able to leave out up to one bin load of extra waste next to the bin. If collections are disrupted by bad weather we will post updates here on our website, Facebook and Twitter and we’ll send notifications out to the BINZONE app.

EXTRA RECYCLING AND WASTE (too much to fit into your bin)

We do not take extra rubbish. 80 per cent of household waste can be recycled. All bins must be fully closed with their lids shut. If you do have extra rubbish that does not fit into the closed bin then you must put it in the next rubbish collection or take it to a Household Waste Recycling Centre.

We do take extra recycling if it is put out in a cardboard box or a clear plastic bag next to the green bin.

GARDEN WASTE

We do not collect Garden Waste over Christmas and New Year. There will be no collection in week commencing 27 December. The garden waste will resume in week commencing 10 January.

THE TRADITION OF GIFT GIVING AT CHRISTMAS

The exchanging of gifts is one of the core aspects of the modern Christmas celebration, making it the most profitable time of year for retailers and businesses throughout the world. On Christmas, people exchange gifts based on the Christian tradition associated with Saint Nicholas, and the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh which were given to the baby Jesus by the Magi. The practice of gift giving in the Roman celebration of Saturnalia may have influenced Christian Christmas customs, but on the other hand the Christian “core dogma of the Incarnation, however, solidly established the giving and receiving of gifts as the structural principle of that recurrent yet unique event”, because it was the Biblical Magi, “together with all their fellow men, who received the gift of God through man’s renewed participation in the divine life.”

LEWKNOR CHURCH OF ENGLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL

We have lots of lovely Christmas events planned for December. We start the month with our Christingle service at St Margaret’s Church on Friday 2nd December. Mums, dads, grandparents and all members of the Lewknor community are very welcome to attend. The children from Krakatoa Pre-School will also be there as will Peter, our vicar, to give a blessing. All the children make a Christingle at school and then light it during the service – it really is a magical moment. The service starts at 9am.

Thursday

And thanks to FOLS funding, the children and staff will also be enjoying another treat on Monday 12th December. On that day we are off to the Lambert Arms for a slap up Christmas dinner.

The children will be heading off to the Oxford Playhouse to enjoy a performance of the pantomime Cinderella on

The staff, governors and I would like to say a massive THANK YOU to all the parents who have dug deep into their pockets this past year to donate funds to the many events organised by FOLS. School was presented with a cheque for an incredible £5,400 at the FOLS AGM recently. The funds will be used for a range of exciting trips and

Lewknor Church of England Primary School’s Christingle service at St Margaret’s Church

Above: Ned, Wyatt and Harry with their Christingles

8th December. This jolly trip has been made possible because of the funding received from Friends of Lewknor School (FOLS).

Our Nativity was held in the playground

last year. Pictured above if Si-Si as Mary and Ralph as Joseph. Fabian, the donkey (horse), belonged to Si-Si

resources that will help bring learning to life for our children. We have lots of exciting events lined up for the new year too. On Friday 13th January a troupe of dancers and artists will be visiting school to help us celebrate the Chinese New Year. The children will be learning about Chinese dance and art. We will hopefully be able to put on a mini performance at the end of the day to show the dance moves we have learned as well as our Chinese artwork.

And FOLS will be funding another whole school trip. This time we will be visiting the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford on Friday 27th January where we will be treated to a performance by the Oxfordshire Youth Orchestra.

for details in our school’s weekly newsletter, which is published on our website, of our Transformation Evening which will be held at school soon.

GARDENING

THINGS TO DO THIS MONTH

CHECK YOUR WINTER PROTECTION STRUCTURES ARE STILL SECURELY IN PLACE

Cold, wet, windy winter weather can damage trees, shrubs and garden structures such as trellis. Improving shelter, staking plants, mulching, wrapping pots and careful matching of plants to places will help to prevent this kind of damage.

INSULATE OUTDOOR TAPS AND PREVENT PONDS FROM FREEZING

If your pond is stocked with fish and it does freeze over, melt the ice by placing a hot pan on the surface, or install a pond heater or water feature to prevent freezing occurring.

PRUNE OPEN-GROWN APPLES AND PEARS (BUT NOT THOSE TRAINED AGAINST WALLS)

Apple and pear trees trained as free-standing bushes are best pruned every winter to ensure a good cycle of fruiting wood. Trees that are not pruned become less productive and congested with old branches. The aim is to create an open goblet shape with a framework of four to five main branches.

Always use sharp secateurs, loppers and a pruning saw; blunt tools leads to strains and tatty pruning cuts. Start by removing crossing, rubbing, weak, dead, diseased, damaged and dying branches. Shorten the previous year’s growth on each main branch (primary) by about one third to a bud facing in the required direction. This will encourage the development of new branches and spurs and maintain a good shape. Leave young laterals (side-shoots) unpruned so they can develop fruit buds in the second year. Only remove the young laterals if they are crossing or if the growth is too crowded, i.e. growing closer than 10-15cm (4-6in) at the base Remove strong shoots (great than 15cm (6in) long) growing towards the centre of the tree. On older trees, remove or thin out any spur systems that have become congested. Wherethinning or removal is required, remove spurs on the underside of the branches, where the developing fruit will not receive enough light, and produces inferior fruit.

HARVEST LEEKS, PARSNIPS, WINTER CABBAGE, SPROUTS AND REMAINING ROOT CROPS

There are some really robust vegetables that can put up British winters, ensuring that you have a supply of vegetables throughout the winter months. Try Brussels sprouts, kale, leeks, parsnips and cabbage.

TREES AND SHRUBS CAN STILL BE PLANTED AND TRANSPLANTED

Planting new trees and shrubs is not a difficult job, but one to get right, if you want your new plants to have the best start in life. The most important considerations are root health, weather, soil

conditions and aftercare. Planting is best done between October and April. Avoid planting in waterlogged (water sitting on the soil surface or pooled in the bottom of the hole) or frozen (too hard to get the spade in) soil.

Container-grown plants can be planted any time of the year, but are easier to care for if planted in autumn or winter, as they need less watering than ones planted in spring or summer.

Bare-root and rootballed trees and shrubs are only available in autumn and winter. They should be planted immediately, but if this is not possible, then they can be heeled in (temporary planting in the soil to prevent the roots drying out) until planting is possible.

REDUCE WATERING OF HOUSEPLANTS

Many houseplants are easy to grow, long lived and can be very rewarding. Whether you are a fan of large architectural plants to use as focal points in a room, miniature plants for growing in terraria, or fascinated by collecting and growing a particular group of plants like orchids or cacti, there are houseplants available to suit everyone’s tastes.

TAKE HARDWOOD CUTTINGS

Many houseplants are easy to grow, long lived and can be very rewarding. Whether you are a fan of large architectural plants to use as focal points in a room, miniature plants for growing in terraria, or fascinated by collecting and growing a particular group of plants like orchids or cacti, there are houseplants available to suit everyone’s tastes.

more info at rhs.org.uk

LEWKNOR PARISH COUNCIL

PLANNING APPLICATIONS AS OF 24TH SEP 2022

i) P22/S1308/HH ANNTARA HOUSE, 8 SHIRBURN ROAD, LEWKNOR

Erection of a front porch, extension of / alterations to the roof structure of carport / garage including six dormer windows, conversion of the roof space into a home office / gym and an external staircase.

REFUSED / APPEAL LODGED

ii) P22/S1403/FUL THE MANOR HOUSE, WESTON ROAD, LEWKNOR Storage shed for garden equipment and vehicle storage REFUSED

iii) P22/S2049/FUL PRIMARY SCHOOL & PLAYGROUP, HIGH STREET, LEWKNOR

Add a climbing frame to grassed area next to the playground in front of the school APPROVED

iv) P22/S2744/HH & P22/S2745/LB POPLAR FARM, BOX TREE LANE, POSTCOMBE

Proposed single storey rear extension, and internal/fenestration alterations to the existing house. DECISION AWAITED

v) P22/S3243/FUL HIGHFIELD, LOWER ROAD, POSTCOMBE

Change of use application to create a secure dog field on part of the extensive garden/open area of the applicant’s house and a 2m high fence around the field DECISION AWAITED

vi) P22/S3040/FUL YE OLDE LEATHERN BOTTLE, 1 HIGH STREET, LEWKNOR

Proposed wood shelter at far end of pub garden WITHDRAWN

vii) P22/S3508/HH 5 MANOR CLOSE, LEWKNOR

Single storey rear extension APPROVED

viii) P22/S3510/HH 6 MANOR CLOSE, LEWKNOR

Single storey rear extension APPROVED

To view the full planning register, go to: www.southoxon.gov.uk/services-and-advice/planning-and-building/find-application/planning-application-register

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INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR DECORATOR