March 2018 President’s Report - U3A Benalla and District Inc....1 President’s Report My first year has seen U3A move from The Benalla College to our home here at the Seniors’

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President’sReportMyfirstyearhasseenU3AmovefromTheBenallaCollegetoourhomehereattheSeniors’building.Our thanks go to the Flexible LearningCentre forourtimewiththemandthecoffeeonmovingday.The move in day was the easy part. As you allknowwehavehadandcontinuetohavemanyupsanddowns.

CurrentlywehavebeenaskedbyBenalla Councilto provide a submission for the use of the RestRoomandformerRedCrossareainthekitchenforour Office and storage. The Executive is in theprocess of doing this and it will be submitted bytheduedateApril13th.

The noise issue also requires a submission alongwith a proposed solution. A suggestion is that awall be erected at the end of the corridor as astarting point. As it stands the building is notsuitableformultipleusesatthesametime.In June we had a display at the Library in theirdisplay cabinet. The range of activities on showwas verywell received,with lotsof commentsastothediverserangeofcoursesonoffer.

In the2nd semesterof2017membership reached250 for the 1st time this year.We now have 275andareagrowingandvibrantU3A.

I have been thrilled with the way the firstsemester was up and running in such aprofessionalmanner.All thenewconvenorshavesettled inwell. Ican’tthankyouenough.Withoutyou and all our existing convenors, Benalla U3Acouldnotbesuchasuccess.

Ihavebeentoanumberofgroupsandinterruptedthemwithanemergencyevacuationprocedure.Ifeelthisisanimportantexerciseandithasshownme that if we stack all the chairs along the wallnext to thepianowe thenhave fullaccess to thedoorways.Whenstackedcorrectlythechairsallfitinthisspace.Thisalsowillgivethecleanersaclearaccessandallowsusroomtomovefreelyaroundwhenmembersareseatedatthetables.

Bev Leeand JudithBorthwickhaveboth resignedfrom theCommitteeand Iwould like to take thisopportunity to thank them for their service toU3A.

Judith has been our publicity officer for manyyearsandhasbeenresponsibleforalltheadsandarticles seen in The Ensign. She has also been averycapableNewslettereditorformanyyears.

Bev’swork inhelping toestablishourTechSavvyCourses has seen her put inmany hours ofworkand her work on Benalla U3A webpage hasresultedinoneofthebestwebsitestobefound.Ithankyouladiesforajobwelldone.

I would also like to thank the members of theCommittee for their work during the last year.They have been a tremendous help tome.Whatthey have achieved is truly amazing. I hope the

BenallaandDistrictInc.

Newsletter–March2018U3ABenalla&DistrictIncPOBox674Benalla3672

President: [email protected]

Website: u3abenalla.weebly.comFacebook: facebook.com/u3abenallaNewsletter:[email protected]

Secretary: GeraldineMcCorkellP:57622134M:[email protected]

Pleasesendallnewsletteritemsforthenewslettertonewsletter@u3abenalla.combySaturday28thApril,2018

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newCommitteewill go fromstrength to strengthandmakeBenallaU3Aoneof thebest, ifnot thebest,inthestate.

Over thepastyearwehave lostanumberofourlongtermmembers.IwillnottrytonamethemasI would hate to leave anyone out but I mustacknowledge the passing of Life Member SuHughes. Su was a past committee member andwastirelessinherworkforU3ABenalla.

Finally, I am very pleased to announce theawardingofaLifeMembershiptoLouiseDoddrell.Louise started theWine Appreciation Grooup 21years ago, ran it for many years, and has puttogether a wonderful album of photomemories.Louise is very happy that it has been such asuccessandfindsithardtobelievethatthegroupisstillsopopular.

On this happy note I will finish and wish all ourmembershappyU3Aing.

DorothyWebber:President

GroupReportsArmchairTravellerArmchair travellersmet for the first time in 2018onMarch20. After a planning session looking atpossibilitiesfortheremaining4sessionsfor2018,Rupe and Gwen Cheetham showed us video ofthe firstpart of their 4WD journey through thecentreofAustraliabutwedidnotquitemakeitfarpast Uluru to the Gunbarrel Highway section inWesternAustralia.Wehopetoresumethattripatour next session onMay 15. Jan Andrews thencompletedher group walking tour through someof the lovely country tracks in the south ofEngland,muchofitinDartmouth.

NextMay we also plan to revisit Antarctica withMargLaw,andJanwillagaintakeuswalking,thistimeinNewZealand.

JohnAvery

ArtAppreciationThis month our group was surprised with a raretreat and we thank Bryony for her continuedsupport.

Bryony began by explaining the conceptunderpinning the Gallery’s Collection Lab, thengave us details of the paintings currently ondisplay. These paintings can be declared historicand refer to thecolonialperiod frombothsettlerand indigenous perspectives. The Collection Lab

will be a more or less permanent exhibition andwill be part of the gallery’s recording andexhibitingofpaintingsnormallykeptinstorage.

Bryony then brought out a storage box andshowed us its contents. There are several suchstorage boxes in the gallery’s collection, eachcontaining paintings removed from their framesformoresecurestorage.ThestorageboxselectedbyBryonycontainedaseriesofwatercoloursandwewere able to experience and share increasingenjoyment and surprise as each painting wasuncovered. Included was an unusual Heysonlandscape believed not to have been shown inpublic previously. Several other unknownwatercolours followed. Each painting offeredsome interest and our group clearly enjoyedviewing them and listening to Bryony’sexplanationsastotheirimportance.

Art Appreciation that was to be held on EasterMonday has be rescheduled to 9th April, whenBryony will speak about the Milk Bar ExhibitioncurrentlyonattheBenallaArtGallery.

NevilleGibb BirdWatchingOurgroupof14walkedaroundthesouthernpartof Lake Benalla on Thursday 8 March. It was apleasantmorningthatbecamehotbylunchtime.

Thewaterlevelinthelakewasverylow,aswaterauthoritieswork to kill off the last of the aquaticweed Cabomba. Despite this, we had a verysuccessful session of bird watching. YellowSpoonbillswerestillnesting,andatotalof8birdsseen. We were close enough to admire thebeautiful plumage of male and female WoodDucksastheywalkedpastourgroup.WealsohadcloseviewsofAustralasianSwamphenandseveralDarters. It was interesting to watch a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo feeding a noisy beggingyoungsterinanearbytree.RobyndidwelltofindtheWhite-throated Gerygone calling nearby, and

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mostpeoplehadagoodviewofthisbeautifulbuttinysongsterwithitsbrightyellowbreast.Anotheryellowbreastedbirdwewere lucky to find is theCrestedShrike-tit,althoughitdidnotshowwellinthe foliage. Other birds seen included SuperbFairy-wren,GreyFantail,StriatedThornbill,White-throated Treecreeper, Sacred Kingfisher andKookaburra.

A total of 42 specieswas recorded. TheeBird listcanbeviewedat

https://ebird.org/australia/view/checklist/S43609753

KathyCostello

BrainGamesWe began by stretching the brain with somemirror- and non-preferred hand drawing andlearntthatlefthandersareinconveniencedbynotjust scissors but chequebooks and bulky spiralspinesonnotebooks.

Wedidsometrickyworkonwords,numbersandriddle-like lateral thinking and all took home acouple more neural links to enhance our brainpower.

Thosewho forgot to attendwill find it harder tocatchupwithusandmightevenoverlookthatournext sessioncoincideswithEaster so thatwewillmeetagainonMay7th!

Meanwhile I suggest you try a new puzzle,language or counting backwards in threes as youwhistleatune

ElspethMaconachie

BushwalksWed Mar 14 Harrietville

TwelveMid-WeekwalkerssetoffonthelongdrivetoHarrietvilleforthefirstexcursionoftheyear.Itmay be long, but the drive up the valley fromMyrtlefordismagnificent.ThefirstwalkwasfromPioneerPark, crossing theOvens river fora shortwalk to and round the TronohDredgeHole. It isanattractivelakewhichmusthavebeenahiveofactivityinthegoldminingdays.

We walked on to view the Ovens stream and acrossingwhich lookedabit“iffy”beforeretracingour steps for lunch beside the stream at thepark. After lunchwewalked the levy bank trackupstream to meet the Bon Accord track andreached the fore mentioned “crossing” from theother side. There was some beautiful bush landalongthisstretchandittooksometimetogetthe

walkers to leave thewaterwashed stonesbesidethestream.Wewalkedbacktothecarsanddroveto the Recreation Reserve for a further walkbeside the western Ovens stream that joins theeastern stream a bit north of the town. I mustmention the many well constructed andinformative sign posts throughout thetownship.AlsowelcometoNarelleHarvey.

VaughanCowan&SusieBuykx

EASYWALKWEDAPRIL4PLAINCREEK,CARTERSTIMBERTRACKSituatedontheMansfield–MountBullerroadjustpastSawmillSettlement,Ihavestartedthewalkingyearbeforewiththiswalk.Itisnotdifficult,throughmagnificentforestgivinggoodshade,andtheaddedinterestinsomeremnantsofthetramway.SomeofthewalkisbesidePlainCreek.WewillleavetheSeniorCitizensparkingareaat9.30.Pleasering57621980sowecanarrangetransport.OnWednesdayMay2wewilldrivetoBeechworthtowalkaroundthelakeandenjoythetreesinAutumn.Meetat9.30am.MIDWEEKWALKWEDAPR11MYRTLEFORD–OVENSRIVERLOOPThiseasy6kmloopwillstartfromRotaryPark.ItfollowstheOvensRivercloselyasitpassesthroughnativebushlandandcrossestherivertwicebeforepassingthroughcentralMyrtlefordandthenreturningtoRotaryParkviatheRailTrail.IfthereistimewemaywalkuptoTowerHill.WewillleaveBenallafromthetenniscourtcarparkBarklyStreetat9.30am. RingtheLeaderHelenSpinks57623223

VaughanCowanChatn’ChewOnApril 20our lunchwill beat12noonatNicha.(Old Vic Hotel opposite the railway station).Please confirm your attendance bymiddayTuesdayApril17.Phone57626768.

ShirleyKearney

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CollectorsOurMarchmeeting was held on the Labour Dayholiday and despite several apologies it was wellattended. Wehadnothemesetsowehadmanyvarieditems.NewmemberBettybroughtalongaframedphotoofherlatehusbandinhisslouchhatmeetingtheQueenatareceptioninKoreaaswellascommemorativecoinsetcelebrating50yearsofmarriage.

We saw family bibles, one from 1917, an early1900’s sewingbox,RoyalDoultonDickinsware,aslide projector, wooden doll’s shoes which werepossibly150yearsoldalongwithkerosenelamps,a silver cup and Jubilee silver teething ring andmanyveryprettyandcollectablecolouredbottlesandsomeRoyalWintonware.Alsoondisplaywasacollectionofamberdepressionglass.

Our next meeting will be held on April 9th. Ourtheme will be ‘from the shed’ or ‘from thegarden’.Gardengnomeswelcome.

JudithBorthwick

e-BookGroupDaringtodrivebyManalal-Sharif

Manalal-SharifchallengestheprohibitiononSaudiArabianwomendrivingvehicles,awarethatsheismerely breaching custom, not the law.Nevertheless, she is arrested, treated like acriminal and gaoled for a few days in appallingconditions.

Her initial rebellionmayberegardedasunwittingbecause, born in 1979 at the beginning offundamentalism in Saudi Arabia, she becomesdevoutly religiousand fanaticalaboutobservanceofalltherules,harassingherfamilytodolikewise.However, al-Sharif breaks the rules herself whenshe feels stymied in her drawing, sport andacademic endeavours and ultimately relaxes herextremeviews.

One salient point that emerges fromher accountofgrowingup ina segregated,oppressive societyisthepowerofeducation.Theauthor’spassionforlearning combines with her Libyan mother’sadamant insistence on schooling to ensuresuccess. She is the first female Saudi to beemployed in technological information securityand,workingintheWesternenclaveoftheSaudi-Aramco Oil Company, she earns a good income,worksalongsidemalesandisfreetodrive.

Despitesomeapparentinconsistenciesthatgroupmembers attributed to the use of a ghostwriter,thememoirisincisiveandcompelling.Theviolentbeatings by parents, teachers and husbands andtheemulationofthisbehaviourbytheyoung,herdisfiguring circumcision and the brutality of thereligious police are related succinctly anddispassionately, resulting in a searing impact onthereader.

Al-Sharifassertsthat,‘Therainbeginswithasingledrop’-anditdoesappearthatrightsforwomeninSaudiArabiaareadvancing,albeitslowly.

BarbaraRogersExercisesforFunExercising has hit the news headlines lately,claimingtocureallkindofailments!

Our groupof enthusiasts are becoming fitter andmore mobile each week, as they enjoy thecompany of others, whilst exercising andmarching. There is also a little boot-scooting’thrownintoo!

All members are welcome to come along to“Exercise for Fun” with our group, then socialiseafterwithacuppa.

HelenJeffree

ExploringNewOperasBenjaminBritten’soperabasedonthenovel“TheTurn of the Screw” by Henry James, was oursubject in March. First performed in 1954 inVenice,weviewedanOperaAustraliaproductionfrom1992.Thisisanother“chamber”operawhichcan be performed with minimum stage effects.However this DVD used lavish and contemporaryeffects to simulate the dark and mysteriousrecesses of an isolated country house innineteenth century England. Two children andtheir governess are troubled by the ghostlyappearances of the former governess and theestate manager both who died after having anillicit liaison and corrupting the two children.

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Britten’s bleak music and libretto create atroublingbackdropas thenewgoverness tried torescue the children from their nightmares andmemories.We all needed quite a lot of cheeringupafterthisviewing.

MegDillon

ExploringtheUniverseTheLightfromtheFirstStars

Astronomers have discovered a signal from thefirst light of the first stars in the Universe. Thediscovery was made using a small, simple radioantenna not much bigger than a table, in thedesertofWesternAustralia.

These stars are the oldest physical objects. Theyemerged 180 million years after the ‘Big Bang,’from a time when the Universe was an emptydarkness of cooling gas and radiation. TheyheraldedtheCosmicDawnofwhatwehavenow,ofmillionsofgalaxies,fullofstarsandplanets,andtoallthebotanyandbiologyonplanetEarth.Yes,evenyou!

NineyearsagoasmallteamfromtheU.S.startedobservations at the best place for this on theplanet; the CSIRO’s isolated MurchisonObservatory in W.A. in an area protected by a‘quiet zone’ of 260 kms. The weak signal theywere searching for was coming from the earlyUniverse 13.6 billion years ago. In this excellentsite andwith world class engineering they foundit!

At E.T.U. we viewed a collection of U- tubesshowing the progress that has been made incosmicdiscovery inonly22years,beginningwiththe film ‘Hubble Ultra Deep Field in 3D ’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAVjF_7ensg

In1995 theHubbleSpaceTelescopewaspointedatanareashowingnothingfor10daysandfoundover3,000galaxies.Weviewedfurtherdiscoveriesand technology through those years to the latestnews.

“The birth of the first stars.” Can be seen on:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU6KXoO0NEE

We finished the session with Rupe taking usthrough thebasics of the Sunand thenwentoutontothelawnandviewedtheSunsafelythroughasolar telescope.Wewere lookingat ‘ourSun’butwewerealsolookingataStar.Agoodwaytoendaninterestingsession.Whynotjoinus?

BevMorton

FilmandLiteratureThismonthwewatchedTheRailwayChildren. Genre:FamilyDramaPlot: After the enforced absence of their father,three children move with their mother toYorkshire,where theiradventures revolvearoundtheRailway.

Key Characters: Mrs. Waterbury (DinahSheridan), CharlesWaterbury (Iain Cuthbertson),Roberta ‘Bobbie’ Waterbury (Jenny Agutter),Phyllis Waterbury (Sally Thomsett), PeterWaterbury (GaryWarren), Albert Perks (BernardCribbins),OldGentleman(WilliamMervyn).Review:weratedas3.5outof5.Everyoneenjoyedthismovie.Onedescribeditasa sweet movie, others as engaging. Theperformancesbythekeyplayersweregood,withsome overacting that was found to be charmingrather than distracting. Lighting and colour wasusedtogodeffect.Forexample,whenthefamilyfirst arrives in Yorkshire, the house is dark anduninviting, but as they settled into their new lifethe house became lighter and friendlier. Thecoloursofthegrassandflowersalsoreflectedthemood of the children as their life became lighterandhappier, although still poorandmissing theirfather. In many ways it was episodic. Eachadventure experienced by the children wascompletein itself. TherewasaTVseriesmadein1968, two years before themovie. Whether theadventureswerewhat lent ittobemadeintotheseries,orwhethertheepisodesintheTVseriesledto the episodic approach to the movie could beopen to debate. It might be interesting to readthe book on which it was based as part ofinvestigatingthisquestion.

Further: Our April movie will be Please MurderMe, starring Raymond Burr and Angela Lansbury.We aim to start watching themovie promptly at1:00pmsothatwehavetimetodiscussthemovie.

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Withallthemovieswewatch,welookatthemasliterature – literature in a different medium, themediumoffilm.Thishelpstofocusthediscussion,covering ideasaroundgenre,characters,plot,butalsoaddingtheaspectsthatrelatetofilm,suchascinemascope,musicandatmosphere.

JoyShirley

GardenAppreciation

Thursday26April–Wehaveafullbusforourtripto theBallarat Botanical Gardens & LambleyNurseryon26thApril.Wewillbeleavingfromthecar park behind the Fire Brigade building at7.15amonthedot–sotrytoarriveearlierthanthisifyou can. Lunch will beat Pipers by the Lake atown cost. Gwen is happy to put names on awaitinglistincaseaspacebecomesavailable.Thecost of the coach is $30 per person. ContactGwen57627017or0438627010.

PhotographtakenatGardenAppreciation’sMarchtriptoWangarattaNurseriesbySandieChrimes.

GwenTurner

GardenTeam

Our Garden Team at Kathy’s worked in superbautumn weather trimming and pruning shrubsaround the garden, and along the driveway. Agreatresult,especiallywhenmostofthepruningswere then cut into manageable pieces for easycomposting or disposal. We then enjoyedafternoon tea, particularly Val’s deluxesandwiches.

NextmonthwillbeatLois’s.

KathyCostello/ElspethMaconachie

InvestmentAttheMarchmeetingofInvestmentwelookedattheMidcap stocksboth for2017andalso for the

first two months of this year. The Mid caps hadincreasedoverall lastyearby15%,butonlyafewofthemhadshowngoodincreasessofarin2018.

John Hanlon provided us with an overview ofsuccessful managed funds especially those withinterestsintheoverseasmarkets.

ThemonthofFebruarywasthemidyearreportingseasonforASXcompanies.Welookedattwentyofthe companies and considered their net profitafter tax, their dividend and whether any sharepriceincreasewassustainedaftertheyreportedtothe market. For a few of these companies otherfactors which had been announced at the sametime as the report were influential on theirresultingshareprice.

ThenextmeetingofInvestmentwillbeonFriday6April 2018 at 1.30pm in the U3A room at theSeniorsCommunityCentre.

MargaretJenkins Let’sTalkBooksThe highlight of our gathering on the 6th Marchwas a great tale from one of our members whomet Bryce Courtenay in person, it gave anotheraspecttothisauthorandprovideda lotof laughsin the telling, we are hoping for anotherinstalmentnextmonth.

AsusualawidevarietyofbookswerereadamongthemPoetbyMichaelConnelly,thisbookkeptthereaderengrossedtothe lastpage. TheKeeperofLostThingswaswellwrittenbyLynHogan.

TimeofGodofGoldbyWilburSmithwaspraisedfortheexcellentdescriptions.TheregularauthorsDavidBalducci,JDRobb(NoraRobb)arestillreadwithenthusiasm.

Wolf Hall by HilaryMantell and the sequel BringUptheBodieswerediscussedalongwithStatelessby Anna Coslove. Alice enjoyed Everything isTeeth by Joseph Summer. An old favouriteAlexander McCall Smith was mentioned andMinette Walters story The Last Hours set inEngland in1348about theBlackPlagueprovokedcomparisonwithGeraldineBrooks.Laurietoldusabout Vision Australia who have a Radio Stationthat quote articles from the daily newspapers,unless you need it you don’t know about theseinteresting things are happening all around us.StephenCarrolaMelbourneauthorhaswrittenabookonTheSpiritofProgress. Quitea fewofusremembered the train going betweenMelbourne

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and Sydney. Good readingeveryone, see youonthe3rdApril.

GeraldineMcCorkell LifeballLifeball continues along its merry way, despiteclashingwithMonday’sexercisegroup,whichhasseenuslose2players,andwearesadaboutthat.

Nevertheless we have gained another 3 players,whichissomecompensation.

On May 7th, we are having our annual Fun andFriendship Day at the Indoor RecreationCentre. Because this is a gamewhere running isNOT permitted, only walking, there are so manybenefits from a good health point of view, but Ithinkoneofthemostimportantbenefitsisfromasocialpointofview.Someofusfinditdifficulttomeet others socially, but when we finish playingonMondays,wesitaroundthetableforacuppa,and chat and laugh, as much as we do on thecourt,soitsatisfiesourneedforexerciseandourneedforfriendship.

Teams participating on the day will come fromDeniliquin, Albury, Rutherglen, Myrtleford,Wangaratta,Eildon,Mansfield,andofcourse,us.

Allournewplayersaresogladtobeable toplaywith like-minded people, and they have beenmade very welcome. We are always on thelookoutforanyoneelsewhowouldliketogiveusatry.

SocomealonganyMondaymorningtotheIndoorRecreationCentreat9.30am,andevenhaveago,toseewhatyouthink.

Youdon’thavetobemad,butitISanasset!

MargMerriman,Secretary,

MeetandMingleFrank Reeves, guest speaker at our Marchmeeting,presentedamostinformativesessiononthehistoryandcurrentstatusoftheElectriccar.

ThenextMeetandMinglewillbeheldintheU3aRoomsonWednesday18thApril,whenDianaJohnstonfromtheRACVwillspeakonthetopic‘RoadSafetyforSeniors.ThenonMay16th,JohnLloyd,PresidentofBenallaSustainableFutureGroupwillspeakonthetopicof‘AnUpdateonRenewableEnergyintheBenallaArea’.

JudithBorthwickandBillParris

MomentsinAustralianHistoryOur two sessions in March looked firstly at thesettlement of the Western District of Victoria,predominantly by free Scottish settlers in the1840s.Wewerehelpedbyviewingthewonderfulwatercolours in the Challicum Sketchbook byCooper,apartnerintheChallicumRunsouthwestof Avoca. These watercolours documented thefirsttenyearsoftherunasitwasdevelopedfromtents to a whole range of timber buildings. Thissettlementpatternwasquitedifferent from thatseenmuchearlierinNSWandVanDiemen’sLand.

Our second session took up again the concept of“revolution” in the colonies. We revised theVinegarHillConvictrevoltin1804inNSWandtheRum Rebellion when officers of the NSW CorpsdeposedGovernorBligh in1808.BothwerequitedifferenttypesofrevoltsandbothwereputdownbytheColonialadministrators.

What of Eureka in Victoria in 1854? We werehelpedbytwousefulfilmproductions:anaccountof the actual Stockade incident in which S.T. Gillwatercolours gave us a good impression ofconditions on the Ballarat goldfields; and moreimportantlyafilmproducedbytheABCofthetrialfor treasonof 13prisoners takenby the soldiers.This explained the little known strategies of thedefence lawyers to win the case and have alldeclared not guilty. Within two years several ofthese men were elected to the Victorianparliamentandhelped introducefullvotingrightsforallmeninthecolonyincludingAborigines.Thepredominanceof Irishsettlerswasnoted in theseeventsandwillbecontinuedwithanexaminationoftheKellyoutbreakinVictoriainthe1870s.

MegDillon

MusicAppreciationIn late February our lesser known composerwasJean-MarieLeclair.Anobviouslytalentedman,hewasbornintoalacemakingfamilyandthiswashisfirst profession. By somemiracle in his twentieshe became a ballet dancer and from there he

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progressed tomusicwherehewasbothmusicianandcomposer.Hewasabletopresentmusicthatwas clear, harmonic, balanced and rational - allthings that sum up the enlightenment. He wasalso influential in developingtechniques forplayingtheviolin.

All in all a very impressive man and we greatlyenjoyedthepresentationJohnbroughttous.

We also heard selections from the CzechcomposerDvorák. Dvorákisgenerallyconsideredto be the great composer of Eastern Europeandthe selectionsweheard certainlyhadan EasternEuropeansoundtoit. Hewasabletobringafolkmusic influence and a peasant dance sound intohis works and the selections we heard wereexamplesofthis.

We finished up listening to all 3 movements ofBeethoven's Piano Concerto No 4. This is anexampleofBeethoven'searlyworkandwhocouldnotbethrilledbyit.

OnMar9thwebeganbylisteningtotwopiecesofviolin music by Karol Lipinski (1790-1861 bothtitledThreeCapriccious.Op10andOp27.

ThetalentedchildofaPolishCourtmusicianbothLipinskiandhis fathers’careerswerecutshortbythepartitionofPolandin1795whenthecourtwasvirtuallydisbanded.InadolescenceLipiskitookupthe violin and became a virtuoso to the pointwherePaganinibecameanadmirerandplayedhismusic. Paganini remainedan admirer somuch sothat when he died he left Lipinski one of hisviolins.

We then listened to all 4 parts of SibeliusSymphonyNo2inDMajor.Op43

Sibelius is considered to be the classic FinishComposeralthoughhebecamepopular inEuropeand especially in England. His music has a softlysoftly feel to it and it is felt promotes Finnishmythsand legendsandexcitesFinnishpatriotism.The music is melodic with seemingly unresolvedchordal structures and incorporates elements ofMahlerandWagner.

At the end of the meeting it was resolved toapproach the executive with a request for moreequipment

NevilleGibb

OverThereThismonthinresponsetophotographsbroughtinby a member of the group, John reviewed howgrave markers had changed once the Great War

wasover.AftertheWar,theCommonwealthWarGravesCommissionexhumedthousandsofbodiesfrom their graves on the battlefields with theirhomemade markers. Instead, the bodies wereinterredinpurposebuiltmilitarycemeteries,eachgravewithasimilargravestone.

The family of the fallen Australian soldier couldchoosetheemblemtobeused- fromachoiceofthree and the personal inscription to be used -provided it did not exceed a specified number ofcharacters. Families of Methodist soldiers whohad fallen often requested the Star of David,rather than a cross, on the gravestone. Johnwouldbeveryinterestedifanyonecouldprovideareasonforthis.

This month John also reviewed the ten gamblesthatGermanytookintheGreatWar.Thisgambleswas all lost by Germany. Each loss renderedGermany's task of winning the Great War moreandmoreimpossible.

It is said that war was the national sport ofGermany, so John also compared these gambleswith the equivalent gamble taken byGermany inthe SecondWorldWar. In eight of ten gambles,where there was an equivalent in the SecondWorldWar,Germanylostallthesetoo.

John then showed the first episode of a French-CanadiandocumentaryabouttheGreatWar.Theclasscommentedonitspowerandimpact.Thisisbecausethedocumentaryisincolourwithpeoplemovingatnormalspeed.

JohnBarry

PatchworkJanet Gourley has spokento the Benalla ShowCommittee and they have added a Table Runnersection. That gives us a good reason to get busyand produce some beautiful table runners toenter.ThanksJanet.

DorothyWebber

PlayReadingAtourMarchmeetingwecompletedAct2ofAliveandKicking.Whileprovidingquitealotofhumour,therewasasadnessunderlyingtheplayrelatingtoageing. Spirited discussion followed and manyagreed the characters in the play had the rightapproach. Boycott “going into care” and share ahouse with like minded people! A line whichamusedmanyofus“Idon’twant todieuntil I’vefinishedupallmybitsofwool...”!

ThePrime ofMiss Jean Brodie is ‘the story of an

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eccentricEdinburgh teacherwho inspirescult-likereverence in her young female student-followers,referredtoas“thecrèmedelacrème.”TheBrodieSet is at first dazzled by Miss Brodie’sunconventional ways and her distaste forconventional education. She instills in them herown passion for art, music, men, and all thingsItalian. However Miss Brodie’s excessive self-confidencealsoexposesthegirlstoanewworldofadult games and boundary crossing’. Her passionforteachingandextraordinarycapacitytousetheEnglish language is clearly illustrated with thefollowing outburst at the school Principal. “Youwill not use the excuse of that pathetic, thathumorous document to blackmail me! Mr.Lowther, you are a witness to this. MissMackayhasmadetotallyunsupportedaccusationsagainstmynameandyours.Ifshehasoneauthenticshredof evidence, just one, let her bring it forth!Otherwise, if one more word of this outrageouscalumny reachesmy ears, I shall sue! I shall takeMissMackay to the public courts and I shall suethetrusteesofMarciaBlaine,iftheysupporther.Iwill not stand quietly by and allow myself to becrucifiedby awomanwhose fetid frustrationhasovercomeherjudgment!Ifscandalistoyourtaste,MissMackay,Ishallgiveyouafeast!”

The play met with great controversy when firstperformed in the late 60’s and provides aninteresting comparison with the social norms oftoday.

JennyMcKennaandKeithRogers

PoliticsandCurrentAffairsNowelection fever is past thePolitics groupwaitfor Kim&Trump tomakeadeal!Meanwhile theTrump crew try to unravel the US/Iran nucleardealmadebyObama,strangerthanfiction?Theremustbeplentyofvacancies&spareofficesintheWhiteHouse.Anyonegametoapplymustrealisetheworkisona"casual"basis,thatistheDeal!

TerryCase

RecorderGroupWe’re getting through some music,’ Janet washeard to say and that’s what we did! TheBeginners and Those Who are a Little FurtherAlong theRecorderTrack tackled “LaMourisque”with theaddedbonusof learningsome fineLatinterms.

Weweretherewith“London’sBurning”playedasa roundwhile “Horseshoe” saw some good sightreading,notaneasyskillwhenoneisstilllearningthe notes andhow to play them. “Wewent out”soundedgreatandintroducedustodottednotes.“Minni Amor” was played in three parts, anddidn’t the tenor and alto recorders sound greatwiththedescant?

The round, “Turn the Glasses Over” had uscounting beats and giving us a crash course infractions.Who knew thatMusic andMathswereso closely related? We’ll be practising “Windsthroughtheolivetree” forhomework,alongwithourgrowingsongpile.

It is rumoured that someone in thewaiting classsaid,“They’resoundinggood,aren’tthey?”

Ithinkweare.

PatTreleavenNote–TheRecorderGroupwillnotbeheldWednesday25thApril(AnzacDayHoliday).

SingingforFunMarchhasseenafewmorenewmembersjointheSinging for Fun group. We are regularly gettingmore than 35members at each of ourmeetings,which is great. The increasednumbershave seenbothan increase in thenumberofmalevoicesaswell as some new sopranos. It is good that ourU3A room is being filled with this number ofregularparticipants.

Our three leaders are encouraging with theirchoice of songs. Faith Hicks has had a very goodresponse to some of the rounds she has chosen,whilstMargaretMerrimancommencedoneofhersessions with the “Birth of the Blues” which isalways a favourite. Brian Greed has started theentire group on the “Rhythm of Life” which theHarmony group practised last year. Our pianistGwenBarnescontinuestoprovidethetunesforusonthepiano.

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Don’t forget that all members of Singing for FunarewelcomeattheHarmonysessionwhichisthesecondThursdayofthemonth.

MargaretJenkins

StockandLandBureaucraticbumblingclosedlocalfoodshopSandyLeatham,whosuccessfullyranBenalla’sHookandSpoonbutchershopforabouteightyears,closedherbusinessneartheendof2015whenshefoundoutPrimeSafewasintroducingnewhandlingguidelinesfordry-agedbeef.ShetoldtheMarchStockandLandU3Agroupthatwasthefinalstraw.“I’dfoundthem[thestatutoryauthoritydesignedtoregulatethesafetyofmeat,poultryandseafoodacrossVictoria]verydifficulttodealwithandwhenIheardaboutthenewguidelinesIdecidedtoclosetheshop.“PrimeSafeallowedrestaurantstodryagebutnotmeandintroducednewguidelineswithoutconsultation”.Thehangingprocesstenderisesandintensifiestheflavour;“themeatismorejuicyandtheflavourisstronger."Sandysaidsomeregulationswerenecessarybutnottheoftenextreme“Mafialike”measuresresortedtobyPrimeSafe.AtonetimeitwascleartwolargesuitedheaviesweresentfromPrimeSafetointimidateher.“Acustomerwassoalarmedshestoodbetweenthemandme,”Sandysaid.Thebeginningofherinterestindirectsellingfarmproduce,startedinthelate1960sfromafarmatKingston,southofHobartwheresheranabout30dairycows.ShepackagedmilkfromtheherdintohalfpintbottleswhichshedeliveredaroundHobart.AnotherbusinessandfourbabiesinterveneduntilSandyandherhusbandacquiredabeautifulbutquiterough250hafarmatWarrenbayne.TheybredDevon,SantaGertrudisandAngusinathreewaycrosswhichproducedsmallcalveswithhybridvigour.TheLeathamskilledcattleatabout20monthsyieldingbeefwithdesirablethreetofivescoresformarbling.“Myinterestwasinproducinghealthygrassfedcattleandsheep,withoutresortingtosupplementalgrain,becausegrainalterstheotherwisebeneficialomegathreefattyacidsinmeat,”shesaid.Sandyandherhusbandinitiallyhadtwocattleandsixsheepkilledeachweek.ButthesheepdroppedbythewaysidebecausetheLeathamsreckonedto

producethebestpossiblemutton,theywouldhavehadtoirrigate.

SandyispicturedherewithStockandLandconvenorsKathyMurphyandDavidPalmer.

ForthefirstsevenorsoyearsofHookandSpoon,PrimeSafeassuredSandythatifsheabidedbylocalgovernmentregulationsformeatpreparationandsaletheirproductswouldmeetallhealthrequirements.“ButthenPrimeSafesaidithadtoregulateHookandSpoon,despitemostofourmeatbeingcooked.Thanstartedaraftofnonsensicalrequirementslikecheckingthetemperatureofhamshalfway.OurguestspeakersforApril–LibbyPriceandLachLidgerwood;followedinearlyMaybyavisittoalocalsheepproperty.

DavidPalmer

TechSavvyiPadforBeginnersInMarchweworked at sending emails.We usedthecameraappand tookphotos.We then foundthephotos in thephotos app to attach to emailsandsendtoournewcontact‘JennyUthreea’.

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FinallywelookedattheCalendarappandenteredsomeevents,onebeingthecancellationofournextTechSavvyBeginnerssessiononWednesday4thApril.OurnextsessionwillbeonWednesday18thApril.

JennySawyerTechSavvyProjectsTech Savvy Projects is now operating in its newformat, with ‘Family History’ preceding ‘OtherProjects’ on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays, and an ‘E-Shed’grouponthe4thThursdayformemberswhoalso go to the ‘Tech Savvy Talks’ café discussiongroup.Thefocusinthe‘FamilyHistory’sessionison using information technology and programssuch as ancestry.com for family historyprojects. At our last session, U3A member andexperiencedfamilyhistorian,HeatherSloan,spokeabouther familyhistory journey. Heathersharedmany ideas for using the computer for familyhistory, and stressed the importance of alwaysdoublecheckingevidencebeforeaddingto familytrees. The projects in the ‘Other Projects’ groupare quite diverse, including developing ananimation; producing a ‘perpetual’ calendar withbirthdays listed on it; producing travel blogs,examplesofwhicharealreadybeingpublishedtothewebandcheckedoutinclass,andmore.The‘E-Shed’ group before Tech Savvy Talks eachmonth is also likely to result in a diversity ofprojects.AtthefirstsessionBillbegantodevelopa slide show presentation which requiredorganising a huge collection of photos whileNevillebeganworkon fine tuninghisblog,whichis now three year old. Les bought along hisArduino board and idea for a project, but hewillneedtotellusaboutthisnexttimeashewaskeptquitebusyasamentorinthegroup.

BeverleyLeeTechSavvyTalks

ThismonthwehadthesecondpartofatwopartseriesaboutArtificialIntelligence.

FirstlywelistenedtoaTedTalkbyZeynepTufekciabout the impact of the use of AI by the bigsoftware houses Facebook, Google and Amazon.The strategy of these businesses is to keepinternetusersgluedtotheirrespectivesitestoselladvertising and products. These organizationscollect and process enormous amounts ofpersonal data and use AI to greatly increase thisdata and categorise people into various groupswhich can be individually targeted by users andunscrupulous users, including political andgovernment.

This was followed by two short videos from theWall Street Journal about the revolution inrobotics leading to the unemployment of largenumbers of people worldwide, even includingChina. This is likely to have a society alteringimpactwhichmustbeaddressedbygovernmentsoverthenexttenyears.“Thenexttenyearswillbeeither the best or the worst in human history”accordingtoanMITprofessor.

Finally we looked at a couple of short segmentsfromStanleyKubrick’s1968movie 2001-ASpaceOdyssey, showing what a super intelligentcomputer could do if it had no moral or ethicalalignment with human values. This was followedbyTedTalksopposedtoandinfavouroftheideaofanExistentialThreattohumanityfromArtificialSuperIntelligence.

Videosused:

ZeynepTufekci,TedTalk

WallStJournalMovingUpseries

2001-ASpaceOdysseyvideoclips

GarryBoochTedTalk

NickBostromTedTalk

Postscript: Changeofvenue:Nextmonth’s‘TechSavvy Talkers’ discussion group will be at ‘theNortho’ (North Eastern Hotel), 3 to 4pm onThursdayApril26th.

LesRodgers

TowardsaSustainableFutureThis month an article headed 'Shipping First asCommercialTankerCrossestheArcticSeaRouteinWinter' was among climate change topicsdiscussed in our group. Warmer waters in theArcticSeawereaccompaniedbyseverefreezinginEurope. We continued to discuss topics such aswaterpolicy; the reality check resulting fromthedecision by China to slash imports of recyclablerubbish; the need for the introduction ofmeaningfulreuseprograms;andmore.Therehasbeen much to debate, much to be concernedabout. There has also been much to celebrate,with good news stories regarding the success oftheTESLAbatteryinSouthAustralia;thepotentialforAustralianwindpower turbines to play a roleas active participants in the National ElectricityMarket; developments in proton batteries, andmore.FrankDuninreportedonadevelopmentinenergy retailing by 'DCPower'which is aiming tobecome a crowd funded, dedicated solar

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company. To find out more, checkouthttps://www.dcpowerco.com.au Good newsonthelocalfront-BenallaRenewableEnergyandMondoPowerarerunninginformationsessionsontheirbatteryreadysolarbulkbuyofferforBenallaresidentsandbusinesses-BPACCTuesday10Aprilat7pm&Sunday22ndAprilat2pm.

BevLee

TravelGroup

LeavingHomeOur first trip away to Kangaroo Island, via thecruise ship Eden, has about 23 people stilllaughing. On board the ship was a fantasticexperience,entertainmentandfoodwasgreatandthe company of so many Benallians made thecruise all the more hilarious. Our fancy dressnightsontheshipwereasighttobehold,andtruetoform,Benallareallygotintotheswingofthings.There are photos circulating via Geraldine ifanyonewantstocopysome.

Payment for the Eildon Social Barbeque on May31st is due now. Contact Cath O’ Connor fordetails or you could leave the payment at theRedB4bookshopclearlymarkedwithyourname.Cath’snumberis0428286556.Anychangestotheitinerary or price will be announced at the April

Travel Group meeting. This day out in a relaxingsetting isachance foryoutoget toknowpeopleyoumaybetravelingwithinthefuture.

JudyPerry

WineAppreciation

A very surprised Louise Doddrell received a lifemembershippresentedbyNoel!

U3ABenallaWineAppreciationgroup celebrating21st Birthday at Gracebrook Winery on 28thMarch. Louise Doddrell, convenor until 2013, ispicturedwithcurrentconvenors,Keith&HeatherRogers&NoelMeagher.

Wednesday25AprilAnzacDay.

Meet at the tennis court car park behind Aldi inBarkly Street at10.00 amto travel to PfeifferswineryatRutherglenwhereourlastvisitwaseightyearsago.LunchisatthePickledSisterscafé.

Keith&Heather57624086

WritingWorkshop

‘A Friendship Tested’, our 500 words topic forMarch, proved to be challenging. It followedFebruary’s (not always) warm and fuzzy topic‘Grandparents’ and comes before April’s lightertopic ‘What Iwaswearing…’ (though one of ourmembers suggested this could be ‘What I waswearing….wascoveredinblood”…!)

As always when we share stories on challengingtopics,weare leftreflectingonboththediversityof presentations and the common themeswithinthem. Stories were shared about tests tofriendshipswhichhadbeen resolved and tests to

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friendships which didn’t survive the testing,perhaps because deeper values were challengedand ‘righteous indignation’ remains; some forwhich there are still remnants of deepdisappointmentandongoinggrief.

The session also included the sharing of somewonderful writing on past topics including‘Grandparents’, ‘Working Dog’ andmore. MemberswhoattendtheCreativeWritingsubgroupwillmeetnextonMondayApril9from1to 2.15 pm to share ‘children’s stories set in theNorth East’ (well, largely in the North East);followedbyacatchupwithothersat‘TheNortho’at2.30pm.

ThetopicforournextregularmeetingonMondayApril 23 at 1.30 pm is ‘What I Was Wearing’ -‘Some items of clothing are linked tomemories,emotions and experiences; The ‘lucky jobinterview’undies,thejacketyouworeonyourfirstdate,orabikinithatdidn'tfarewellinwater.Tellushowanoutfitplayedapartduringasignificantmoment’. Newmembersarealwayswelcome–alist of topics for the year is now available on thewebsite

BevLee

NewsletterReportAt the AGM held inMarch, I offered to edit theNewsletter for U3a. I have been amember ofU3a for 3 years and am very impressedwith thevarietyofareasthatmemberscanenjoy,learnanddiscuss.

IlovetoreceivemyNewsletterandIknowIhaveahard‘acttofollow’fromhowJudithBorthwickandmore recently Freida Andrews and Terry Dillonhaveproduceditinthepast.

Aswithmany things, a change of Editor can alsobe a time for changes to be made in theproductionoftheNewsletter.ThebasicformatoftheNewsletterwillnotchange.

PreviouslyConvenorsreportsweredueinthedayafterMeetandMingleactivity,whichcouldbethe15thof themonthtothe21stof themonth. Thiswasidealwhenthereportswerehandwrittenandwererequiredtobetypedup.However,inthesedaysofcomputersthatisnotnecessary.

IwouldliketoreceivetheConvenors’Reportsonthe 28th day of the month, which means thatConvenorscangiveafullmonth’sreport.

This will enable me to look at the reports andplace them into theNewsletter in similar format,readyforforwardingtomembersinthefirstweekofthemonth.

The Calendar for the upcoming month will alsoinclude the first week of the following month’sactivities so that you will have up to dateinformation.

Wewill give this change a try over the next twomonths and, if it works, look at adopting in thefuture.

HeatherWallace,NewsletterEditor

2018AGMTheAnnualGeneralMeetingofU3ABenallaInc.washeldonWednesday21stMarch2018priortoMeetandMingle.ExtensionsofthetermsofeligibleofficebearersandthepositionsofTreasurer(NevilleGibb),PublicityOfficer(CherylTurner)andageneralmember(HeatherWallace,alsonewNewsletterEditor)weredecidedupon.

ProgramNewsTherehavebeensome'tweaks'tothetimetable:.TechSavvyProjects-nowinthreesubgroups2ndand4thTuesdays-‘FamilyHistoryProjects’1.30to3pm;‘OtherProjects’3pmto4.30pm.4thThursday1to2.30pm'E-Shed;projects(beforeTechSavvyTalks'cafediscussiongroup).RecorderGroup-changeoftimeto12to1pmon1stWednesday(from12.15-1.15pm)PlayreadingGroupchangeoftimeto9.30amto12middayon1stWednesdauTravelClub:changeofnametoTravelGroup.TechSavvyTalkscafédiscussiongroup–venuechangefromRustikto‘TheNortho’3pm4thThurs. PleasenotethatWednesday25AprilisAnzacDay.WineAppreciationisbeingheldonAnzacDay,butRecorderGroupisnotbeingheld.CheckWhat’sOnbeloworkeepaneyeofthecalendaronourwebsiteforlastminuteupdates.

ThankYouStephRyanandherofficestaff

fortheprintingofhardcopiesofournewsletterformailingoutanddistribution.

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What’sOnThursdayApril510am–12pmSingingforFun1–4pmPatchworkFridayApril69:30–11:30amTowardsaSustainableFuture1:30–3:30pmInvestmentMondayApril99:30–11:30amExercisesforFun9:30–11amLifeball10–11amArtAppreciation-'TheMilkBarExhibition'(rescheduledfromEasterMonday)10am–12pmCollectors-'FromtheShed'or'FromtheGarden'1–2:15pmCreativeWriting–‘Childrens’stories’2–4pmGardenTeam-'Lois'sgarden'2:30–3:30pmWritingWorkshop@'TheNortho'TuesdayApril1010am–12pmPolitics&CurrentAffairs1:30–4:30pmTechSavvyProjects

WednesdayApril119:30am–3:30pmMidWeekWalk-Myrtleford-OvensRiverLoop10am–12pmTechSavvyTalks1–3:30pmFilm&Literature-'PleaseMurderMe'7–10pmExploringNewOperas2018ThursdayApril129:30am–12:30pmBirdwatching10am–12pmSingingforFun-HarmonyGroup1:30–3:30pmExecutiveMeetingFridayApril1310am–12pmMusicAppreciation1:30–3:30pmMomentsinAustralianHistoryMondayApril169am–5pmLifeball-FunandFriendshipDay9:30–11:30amExercisesforFun1:30–3:30pmProgramServicesTuesdayApril171:30–3:30pmExploringtheUniverseWednesdayApril1810–12Meet&Mingle-'RoadSafetyforSeniors'12:15–1:15pmTravelClub-Speaker-SamanthaRiddell,LocalTravelConsultant1:30–3:30pmiPadforBeginnersThursdayApril1910am–12pmSingingforFun1–4pmPatchwork

FridayApril209:30–11:30amTowardsaSustainableFuture12–2pmChatn'ChewLunchGroup-'NichaattheOldVicHotel1:30–3:30pm'OverThere'MondayApril239:30–11:30amExercisesforFun9:30–11amLifeball1:30–3:30pmWritingWorkshop-'WhatIWasWearing'TuesdayApril2410am–12pmPolitics&CurrentAffairs1:30–4:30pmTechSavvyProjectsWednesdayApril25-AnzacDay10am–3:30pmWineAppreciation-PfeiffersWinery,Rutherglen

ThursdayApr267:15am–5:15pmGardenAppreciation-BallaratBotanicalGardensandLambleyNursery9:30–11:30amProgramServices1–2:30pmTechSavvyProjects-'E-Shed'3–4pmTechSavvyTalks@'TheNortho'FridayApr2710am–12pmMusicAppreciation1:30–3:30pmMomentsinAustralianHistorySaturdayApr2812–1pmNewsletterDeadlineMondayApril309:30–11:30amExercisesforFun9:30–11amLifeball2–4pmGardenTeamTuesayMay110am–12pmE-BookGroup10am–12pmStockandLand–Excursiontolocalsheepproperty1:30–3:30pmMembershipServicesGroup2–4pmLet'sTalkBooksWednesdayMay29:30am–3:30pmEasyWalks–AutumninBeechworth9:30am–12pmPlayReading12–1pmRecorderGroup1:30–3:30pmiPadforBeginnersThursdayMay310am–12pmSingingforFun1–4pmPatchworkFridayMay49:30–11:30amTowardsaSustainableFuture1:30–3:30pmInvestment