Happy New Year to everyone! Here are some dates for your new 2024 diary!

Thursday 25th Jan: The Hall Committee’s first Warm Welcome Games Afternoon of 2024 is on Thursday 25th January from 1.30-3.30pm in Fearnan Village Hall. It’s a relaxed afternoon of chat, table tennis, quoits and easy board games. Light refreshments with a Burns flavour!  

Tuesday 13^th February: Yes. It’s Pancake Tuesday and the FVA will be serving freshly made pancakes in the Hall from 11am.  Whether it’s a dropped scone, a tossed crêpe or a somewhat more static scotch pancake, we have something for all tastes, sweet or savoury. Join us for freshly made tea or coffee and pancakes.  £3pp at the door.

Saturday 6^th April: The FVA’s popular Daffodil Tea returns to the Hall from 3pm to 5pm. Join us for a superb afternoon tea.

Mulled Wine and Mince Pies

There was plenty of pre-Christmas cheer going around at the Village Association’s Mulled Wine and Mince Pies in mid-December.

Many thanks to all those who popped ideas for future events in the Suggestions Box – we hope to announce the full 2024 events programme shortly.

Farewell to Friends

A very warm celebration of the life of Douglas Miller was held in the McLean Hall in November and was attended by his many friends in the village and from the surrounding area. The event was also attended by his two son, Keith and Iain, from Surrey who were able to hear first-hand the high regard in which their father was held. Douglas had a long association with the village and a resumé of his interesting life was given. We send our warmest condolences to Jo and family.

Just before Christmas, we were sorry to hear of the passing of Yvonne Mitchelson.  Yvonne and her late husband, Alan, spent their weekends in Fearnan over many years and their lochside home was designed by Alan, an architect. Yvonne often spoke fondly of Sunday morning rides on Boreland Hill in the days when Liz Menzies was running the stables at the Farm and afterwards the riders would make their way to the hotel, Tigh an Loan, for Sunday drinks.

Sadly, the news then came that Ian Fletcher also passed away at the very end of the year. Ian and Isobel lived in Fearnan for many years and Ian, who was a keen golfer and curler, chaired the Village Hall Committee from 2001 – 2005. They left Fearnan to move closer to family in the west. We send our warmest condolences to Isobel and family.

Fearnan Book Club

Linda writes:

”From government policy and medical research, to technology, workplaces, and the media, Invisible Women reveals how in a world built for and by men we are systematically ignoring half of the population, often with disastrous consequences. Caroline Criado Perez brings together for the first time an impressive range of case studies, stories and new research from across the world that illustrate the hidden ways in which women are forgotten, and the profound impact this has on us all”

Following the theme of our previous book, the best-seller Lessons in Chemistry, we read and reviewed Invisible Women by British author Caroline Criado Perez.

This well researched non-fiction book was a 2019 Sunday Times bestseller that exposed the gender bias women face every day. 

It gave us an impressive range of case studies to dip into depending on our interests and experiences and provides the reader with an overview of the ways in which women remain invisible in many spheres of life. It explores many products and services that have been designed from a male point of view to the detriment of female users. 

The discussion was lively and animated and full of anecdotes related to our own experiences on the subject.  All agreed that progress has been made in the sharing of domestic chores, societal attitudes and learning from mistakes, perhaps due to unconscious bias, which were detrimental to women.

Some enjoyed the hard data, statistics and percentages which they found compelling. Others questioned the rigour and the use of percentages which promoted negativity.

Some found it strident in places with the author pushing the point and every chapter providing the same end result.

Examples discussed included:

• Urban planning- no provision for women and buggies. Rehousing on the outskirts of towns and cities leading to social isolation for women.
• Research in medicine not tested on women or female mice etc. resulting in eg. thalidomide.
• A campaign needed to get a woman’s image on bank notes.

Some commented on the difficulty in acquiring work-related clothing that fitted properly. 

We found it fascinating and thought provoking and were surprised at how many policies and attitudes had impacted on the quality of life for women. The world is not designed for women. It was thought proving and aroused a range of emotions and left us feeling sad, angry and surprised.

In December we had a very sociable end-of-year meal at The Waterfront Restaurant in Kenmore. We discussed the books read and reviewed in 2023 and chose our favourites. There was no clear winner this year although The Bookseller of Inverness by Shona MacLean and The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams were the two most popular. 

Our next read is The Mercies by Kieran Millwood Hargrave. This fictional story is inspired by a historical event – the 1617 storm in Vardo, Norway and the subsequent 1621 witch trials.

It is a story of love, fear and obsession and the strength and courage of women.