Margaret, editor of Frost Magazine, and Dick, hot footed from Carlton Miniott, their village on the outskirts of Thirsk, North Yorkshire up to Columbia during the week. We wanted to  say hi, and chat about progress with Marion and Bob, but more than that, to deliver a big box of jigsaws and books  donated by Carlton Miniott Post Office  (and hub of the village) to help fill up the new CCA bookcase shelves.

Marion was able to fill us in on the Christmas ‘doings’ of the CCA, which, though shut over the main festive days, was open on 27th  until 30th.  So, full of mince pies, turkey, chocolates, and of course wine,they were open again for business with Warm Spaces very much in mind. ‘True to form, the kettle is always on the boil and our new Christmas gift by the way of the lovely Alexa keeps us entertained,’ laughed Marion.

She filled us on the 4th birthday party which followed delivery of the bouncy castle and boy, did the  day ring with fun and laughter.  So was that it? Come come: the rest of the week was scheduled for the “Free holiday Club” and on Wednesday along came Andy Gilroy with his son Harrison to host the session. Harrison, just happens to be an athlete, playing quarterback/safety for the GB American Football Team- amazing.

Harrison and Andy were still there, when we arrived, so it was great to have a chat with this remarkable young man, and it proved to be  so interesting  that Frost Magazine have decided to follow Harrison’s inspiring progress in the sport throughout the year. So yet again, CCA has offered our readers a real treat.

The treats keep coming too for the CCA! Linda Williams brought handmade dipped HONEYCOMB, which just happens to be one of Marion’s favourites. Oh crikey, put it under lock and key – fast,  is Frost’s advice.

Community Opportunities arrived to deliver free training and soon got stuck in to playing a game of cards, no money exchanged hands only jelly tots (or so Lisa told Marion).

Then Margaret and Dick had to move on in the pouring rain – heavens, did it rain – and drove into Washington Village because they love to see Washington Old Hall when they are in the area, even though they can’t go in at this time of year. It is as you will all know, George Washington’s ancestral home, and later in the year Frost Magazine will talk more about it and show the front, and lovely gardens, which wasn’t possible this time.

But hunger was rampant  so past Holy Trinity Church we went, where my grandparents are apparently buried mum thinks, but she was a child when they died,  and round the green with the two trees festooned with lights, (if you peer closely enough you can make out a few lights, but trust me, they are festooned and show up far more off camera). Around the green are the flower beds which later in 2023 will no doubt be entered into the Village in Bloom again, (they have done well in the past, which is hardly surprising as the committee are hard at it for months) and into the Washington Arms  for fish n chips. Margaret thinks these are the best she has ever had, except for Cleethorpes Pier, where they have  plaice ‘n ‘chips. Plaice is better than any other fish, in Margaret’s obsessed opinion.

A rather wet Dick saying, ‘Hurry up.’

As well as eating and there were the usual friendly faces amongst the clientele. Clare and Jed told Margaret about a relative who has just started a craft ales brewery. How wonderful – there are also  a few around Thirsk, ( Dick is the expert,) and  hopefully Frost can visit Clare’s relative’s brewery and report back to you all. This will miff Frost Magazine’s Food and Drink Critic, but he’s down south and we are not, so there.

But back to Marion who will  close this week’s update as we reach the end of a momentous year for the Columbia  Community Association…

What a year we have had, met so many wonderful people, experienced so much kindness and generosity from our community for all the causes we have supported, to which we are eternally grateful. As this year comes to an end, and 2023 stands before us like a chapter of an open book let us make yet another wonderful story. All of us here at Columbia Community Association, along with the Residents of Brady Square would like to wish everyone near and far a very Happy and prosperous New Year, May all of your hopes and dreams come true.

Information: Columbia Community Association  Columbia uk Community Forum

Memories of Brady Square

Since the advent of the human world, winter has been an annual season characterized by cold. From the foggy weather to snowy mornings, it is the time to streamline plans; resort to materials that keep you warm. And as such, the choices of what you wear becomes as essential as staying sleek while fit.

When it comes to winter clothing for women, outfit options are often non-different from the regulars. But for boots, it is. This is because boots are specialized for different ensembles and are one of the last things to overlook in public domains.

We know you won’t love frostbite or acknowledge unpleasant compliments due to your choice of outfits. Of course, not. Here we have provided guides for choosing winter boots and enlisting the best pairs in your racks. Keep reading and find out the one for you.

What are the Best Women’s Boots for Winter?

There are numerous options for women’s boots, but these pairs are the most appropriate for winter:

The Lace up-snow boots are familiar women’s boots to step up your fashion game during winter. Made with sheepskin lining – these boots are always adequate for whatever comes your way. And as their name suggests, they will enable you to spend more time in the snow while keeping your leg firm with the laces.

Talk about durability; the Lace-up boots are durable to outlive winter cycles for a long time with built-in rubber soles. From the Dream pairs’ snow boots to other brands, you can lock out snow whenever you have them worn. Want something to weave out styles in jeans and pants? The Lace-Up Snow boots are stylish for what you need.

Preferring Chelsea’s over other boots during the winter is not odd but the best choice for you as a woman. Chelsea boots are for all-season and are reliable to keep you on track in the colder half of the year. Besides being versatile, water-resistant leather boots come in diverse features that will sit well with your preference.

With insulated layers, the Women’s Chelsea boots will keep your legs warm when it is cold outside. And if you intend to participate in outdoor sports – their lugged rubber sole will suffice.

However, you don’t have to make the whole day deciding on what attire to wear with them. Their different manufacturer brands, including the Dream Pairs, are versatile, stylish, and suitable for casual and corporate dresses during winter and non-winter periods.

Telluride Boots are another boots to include for women when deciding what to wear in winter periods. If you plan to spend quality time outdoors in winter, these boots are the ideal companion. From layers to layers, you will get away with cold and create the best moments with your legs and uppers.

Their upper membrane is breathable and stylish such that you will enjoy comfort with style, like in Chelsea boots. With rubber lug soles, you can schedule each of your visits and have the best time skiing or snowboarding. And if you desire a winter style that differs from the regular, the Telluride winter boots are the ideal key to dressing.

Tuck your winter outfits into the Women’s Duck boots, and you’ll be glad you did. These boots are unrivaled in quality, unyielding in cold weather, and solely designed to provide the best for you.

Duck boots come in underlaid shearlings that warm the legs even on cold days. With their leather-made design, you can count on them for optimum safety and elegance. If you want to exude a certain flair, wear these boots with your favorite outfits, and they will go well.

Thigh-high boots are not new to women and are one of the finest boots to wear in winter. While these boots give adequate outer coverage for your legs up to the thigh, they also provide warmth and can get you through the winter months.

Though the Thigh-High boots have distinct styles and functions, their leather and suede-made materials are fashionable to leverage to your destinations. You can easily combine the pairs with mini skirts or make a statement with jeans. Either way, their zippers make it simple to slide them on and off when you want to replace them.

If you have a pair of biker boots in your closet, winter is the best time to wear them out. These boots are perfect for cold weather as they provide warmth with their interior lining and pair well with different women’s winter duds. With elastic sides and ankle cups, no boots could be better than these pairs.

Biker boots are suitable for several winter clothing, including skinny jeans, when you wish to go out outdoors. If you are petite, the bikers’ chunky soles will add a few inches to your body height and make you appear taller. Worried about frequent replacement? Biker boots are long-lasting and durable enough to withstand cold cycles.

As the name suggests, rain boots come in a design specific to rain and snow. They are one of the perfect boots to enlist in during winter and make you safer. If you’d spend most days outdoors, Rain boots are warm and will always keep your legs as such.

Made of rubber – the waterproof Rain boots are in tandem with time and style. Even better, their uppers become quickly drained when wet to enable re-use. Although they comprise lugs sole, Rain boots won’t get your feet bogged down. And when it is time to style, you can always count on them for the favorite outfits in your wardrobe.

What to Consider when Choosing Winter Boots

Winter days can be fun, memorable, or non-different from previous seasons. The moments momentarily depend on how well your plans are and the ensemble used to scale up the time.

If you’re indecisive about what boots to wear, you should start with the know-how of choosing winter boots. With the features outlined below, you will spot the best winter boots and enlist them with your favorite autumn wears.

Boots with multi-layers provide adequate warmth in winter and are typically the best choice for cold weather. While socks can naturally keep you warm, cozy boots enable optimum protection and prevent frostbite. The insulation provided will keep your legs reasonably warm on average, allowing you to spend more time outdoors.

If you have a winter coat or sweater, insulated boots are what you need for a perfect compliment. With the duo in place, you will have the best winter days.

Warm boots are okay for winter; waterproof boots make it extra better. While we’d prefer you prioritize getting your feets insulated, opting for waterproof boots is also a choice that isn’t out of place.

Aside from keeping you extra safe, water-resistant boots allow you to walk through light snow and puddles. Having them makes every moment outside more enjoyable and protects you from adverse weather-related conditions.

However, your choice of waterproof boots should also include a breathable membrane through which the leg can breathe and keep moisture out.

Wearing traction shoes is essential for any daily activity, and this is especially true during the winter. Though it is often cold outdoors during winter, sports events such as hiking and snowshoeing may leave you with no choice but to be outside.

Preferred if you want to navigate different terrain when there are droplets of snow, traction becomes fundamental. As such, boots with adequate traction can allow you to walk without gliding or slipping.

Final Thoughts

Having more than one winter boot in your rack is not odd but helps you become dynamic with your time and outfits. Preferably, you can opt for a pair or pairs from the ones listed above and get along with them if best suited for the weather. However, Waterproof boots remain the ideal option for cold weather or when there is snow. Non-waterproof boots are also not out of place to wear when the weather is below average. The best winter boots choices depend on how harsh or lenient the weather is.

Merry Christmas from The Brady Bunch

What a week it’s been. Marion pleaded for someone to tell her what day it was on Monday, as they spun about around collecting donations, trying to accommodate everything and everyone. They are all loving their new bigger bookcase courtesy of Joanne Leech.

MBC busy with arts and crafts

‘We needed more shelves to house the novels  written by our very own Margaret/Milly/Annie (so many writing names).’ said Marion. Well, there will be more books soon, as the village post office near Thirsk where Margaret lives would like her to bring up some of the  books on their shelves that are donated for people to read.

‘Share and share alike,’ they say. Margaret loves the little shop, owned by good people, whose goodbye to her this Christmas Eve was. ‘Don’t cause too much havoc.’ As though she would.

It was an incredibly busy week, Marion reported, but when isn’t it?

It started with Equans usual Monday meeting, then Shake that Boogey. MBC got busy with their amazing  arts and craft skills creating Christmas Arts and Crafts; there were n trees, snow globes and prancing Reindeers. livening up the centre. Let’s take a minute and draw a breath, but no, there’s no time as we gallop on with the news: the CCA had a Free Christmas Holiday Club for about 40 excited children. The team were asked to pick the winning painting, guess what, they  couldn’t decide so everyone was a winner. Sweets all round.

‘Refurb, who mentioned refurb?‘ gasped Marion. ‘All of this and our Warm Spaces is in full swing.’

The CCA team is thrilled with the  new lighting, Blackpool illuminations do not compare with their brightness. ‘So bright one needs to wear shades’, according to Marion.

More knitted hats arrived, brought by Susan Laing who dropped them off after her busy shift at Plain n Purl. A simple text message  was sent to Andy Hayes who arrived within the hour driving the Daft as a Brush charity bus to collect them.

A fourth box of toiletries were also collected and more arrived during the week courtesy  of St Roberts of Newminster, Marion tells Frost Magazine that the response for the Wearside Women in Need has been phenomenal, so well done, Washington Youth Council. Special thanks of course to the wonderful people who have contributed.

Have we finished? Nah, the news is still flooding in. Twelve, yes twelve Chromebooks arrived. John Ford from Gentoo asked Kayley Hope to deliver these to the community centre, which is overwhelmed at the generosity.

The postman brought a wonderful cheque from ASDA foundation; ‘Whoop whoop; new blinds are on the menu once the decoration is completed.‘ say the team.

The gifts kept on coming during the week including another volunteer who has pledged her time to help the community, ‘Thank you, Christine Parker and welcome aboard.‘

The kindness of the Columbia community seems endless. Vicky from the “Little Onion Club” delivered an array of biscuits towards our Warm Spaces. Thursday saw the delivery of a huge bag of tea bags, biscuits and coffee from someone who lives close by. (No photos, they said they are not photogenic). and Joy Dagless must be called out too, as she beavers away securing booking for 2023 not to mention all the donations.

Marion was emphatic that there are just so many people to whom the CCA is grateful and who they cannot  thank enough for their kindness and generosity over this past year. Without them all, the the team insists, they would not have been able to achieve what they have. And my word, what a huge amount has been achieved by the tireless efforts of everyone involved.

‘Special thanks to the staff of Equans for the gift of a Christmas Hamper, and for your help through these difficult times, but most of all, for your friendship and dedication to our Centre and our community.’ says Marion.

Marion also insisted that I must include the following: ‘Our heartfelt thanks go to a very special lady, a renowned author, editor of Frost magazine, who has taken an interest in our community (which was her mam’s) and how we are moving forward. Margaret Graham, thank you for all you do for us, it means so much. We have adopted you as one of our own, a proper Brady Square lass.‘

Mum would be so pleased, and thanks a million but frankly, Frost Magazine is in awe as we witness the sense of community, the untiring efforts of the team and ALL of you, as you  bring this priceless community asset into being. You will, we know, succeed and in 2023 the CCA centre will hum with life and good will.

‘From our House to your House near and far a Merry Christmas one and all, and a very happy and prosperous New Year,‘ say the CCA team.

Frost Magazine echoes these words. Bravo the lot of you. Ever onwards, stronger and stronger, more and more inspiring and we will be with you all the way.

Information: Columbia Community Association  Columbia uk Community Forum

Memories of Brady Square

ARRAN Sense Of Scotland have done it again. Just as I’m dreaming of getting out of freezing rain – a weather phenomenon of which I had been blissfully oblivious for my entire life, until yesterday – and warm up in a hot bath, they launch After The Rain Bath Salts.

Regular readers will know I simply love ARRAN Sense Of Scotland fragrances, which all reflect the beautiful and wild Isle of Arran, home to this family company.

The company philosophy is to help the world connect with nature, and After the Rain captures the unique scent of an Arran spring garden following a rain shower. Irresistibly fresh and sensual, the fragrance is a blend of rose petals, musk and floral citrus, mixed with the soft notes of Arran’s precious woods.

So, never needing an excuse to run a hot bath and do nothing, eh I meant do research (slip of the pen), the distinctive fragrance hit me as the white bath salts tumbled into the hot water. The salts are packed full of sea salt and magnesium (a fabulous muscle relaxant and great for cramps incidently), with other minerals such as potassium, iron and calcium. Feeling cosy, and totally relaxed now and looking at the driving rain from inside I’m feeling that life is good – was it the fragrance, or the magnesium? Who cares.

After The Rain Bath Salts cost just £16 for 225g, presented in a lovely glass bottle from ARRAN Sense Of Scotland – take a look at their website, there are lots of fabulous products to choose from.

By Dr K Thompson, award-winning author of From Both Ends of the Stethoscope: Getting through breast cancer – by a doctor who knows

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01A7DM42Q http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01A7DM42Q
http://faitobooks.co.uk

Note: These articles express personal views. No warranty is made as to the accuracy or completeness of information given and you should always consult a doctor if you need medical advice.