JANUARY 2021

Happy New Year!

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous 2021. May this new year bring 10a renewed hope to us all.

Thank you

A big thank you, to all those who have helped deliver the Waylander this year in Griston. Currently helping me deliver The Waylanders each month are, Carol, Bridget and Brenda. Your help is much appreciated.

Griston Church Lottery

Congratulations to the January 2021 winners

1st prize Mrs Dorothy Hird 78 £25

2nd prize Claire Davis 200 £15

3rd prize Mrs Fiona Edwards 165 £10

We hope everyone managed to have a wonderful Christmas and we wish you all a very Happy New Year

Rory’s Nature Corner

It has been really cold the last few days and we have even had some hoar frosts. When the ice started to melt from the trees it sounded like it was pouring with rain. As a dare I stood under a tree at school to see how wet I would get in 10 seconds. It was quite a lot and I wasn't a wearing a coat at the time.

The other day we were talking about how we don't like rats. Mum doesn't like them or Granddad or me. When we were little there used to be lots of rats on the Thompson/Griston Rd where the pigs were kept. Occasionally we see them on the road now. There are over 56 different varieties of rat in the world.

In the UK the brown rat has grey-brown fur, a pointed nose, large, bare ears and a long, scaly tail and is much bigger than a mouse. Water voles look similar to rats but have rounder faces, smaller ears, and a furry tail, they are also very rare. Brown rats only arrived in the UK from the 1700's, arriving from Asia on trading boats. Rats find it really easy to adapt to new habitats all they need is shelter and a food source and they breed really well too which means it does not take them long to populate a new area. A female rat is called a doe and can breed from 3 months of age and can have as many as five litters a year with as many as 12 kits in each litter. Male rats are called bucks.

Brown rats are omnivorous,and will eat fruit, seeds, human food waste, insects, bird's eggs and even small mammals. Brown rats live in loose colonies and dig their own burrows. In the UK Rats are often seen as bad luck. On the Isle of Man, the Manx people won't even use the word rat they believe if you say the word 'rat' you will encourage rough seas, storms and bad weather. Rats are also bad news if you are a sailor or fisherman and if rats are seen leaving a ship it is as if they knew something bad is going to happen.

When we went to the Isles of Scilly if you saw a rat you had to ring the warden because rats are bad news for seabird chicks. Not all cultures think rats are bad news. In a temple in Northwest India, dedicated to the goddess Karni Mata there are at least 15,000 rats. They rats are treated like little gods and are protected and worshipped.

Here are some cool rat facts which may might help change your mind on rats. Although they are interesting I still think they are a bit scary.

Rats can swim

This is probably not a surprise because many people associate rats with swimming in sewers, but did you know some rats can tread water for up to three days and hold their breath for up to three minutes.

Rats don't sweat

Rats control their body temperature by expanding and contracting the blood vessels in their tails. 11Rats love having a laugh Rats like to play and when they are enjoying themselves they even laugh. Researchers observing rats found they let out a high-pitched chirping sound when they were playing and having fun.

Rats have super powered noses

Some rats have 1,207 olfactory receptors in their noses which is way ahead of dogs who have 811 and humans who have only 396. Rats in Angola, Mozambique and Cambodia have been trained to sniff out landmines. The rats are so light they don't trigger the landmine but are able to indicate where the landmines are so they can be detonated safely. They can also detect diseases in humans like TB.

Rats like a cuddle

Pet rats like to snuggle up to their human owners. They weren't the main cause of the Bubonic plague Rats can carry and die from the plague but researchers now think it was unlikely they were the main cause of the pestilence in the middle ages. The same fleas found on rats are also found on lots of animals including humans. Happy New Year.



DECEMBER 2020

GRISTON GOSSIP

Merry Christmas

Please note the deadline for next month’s Waylander 7th December.

Griston Church Lottery

Congratulations to the winners for December. They are

1st prize Luke Dorrington 65

2nd prize Malcolm Aldridge 11

3rd prize Ken Drysdale 45

We hope you all manage to have a wonderful Christmas and a very Happy New Year.

Griston Church Christmas Bingo

Unfortunately due to the Covid 19 we have had to cancel this years Christmas Bingo as we can’t use the village hall In Caston just yet and have more than 30 people together. Fingers crossed all will be okay to hold a Bingo next year.

Thank you

Bridget, Darren and Tracey would like to thank everyone who sent cards and for the kind messages following the loss of Neil.

Thank you: Pauline Hyde

I would like to say a big thank you to Mrs Pauline Hyde for all the hard work she has done over the years to ensure the residents of Griston have received their copies of the Waylander each month. We are pretty sure 14 that Pauline has been involved since the beginning, which I have been reliable informed has been nearly forty years.

Recently, Pauline has been helped by her family and we extend are thanks to them too. Thank you so very much Pauline, you deserve a rest.

Rory’s Nature Corner

On the 31st October, Halloween, mum persuaded Eleanor and me to join her on a walk after dark to look at the stars. She had downloaded an App on her phone called StarWalk 2* (other’s are available) which helps you identify the stars, planets, and other celestial bodies.

● Firstly: make sure your phone is charged, because it can use a lot of battery.

● Secondly: calibrate your phone by waving it around in a figure of 8, the app will remind you to do this.

● Thirdly: Point your phone in the direction of the object you wish to identify and it will tell you. The best thing to do is find an object like the Moon or the Big Dipper (Ursa Major) that you recognise to test it out on.

We went out during the night of the Blue Moon which also happened to be on Halloween. This was the first Halloween in 46 years on which a Blue Moon fell. A Blue Moon occurs when two full moons fall in the same calender month. It is quite a rare thing to happen. The moon was really bright but not a blue colour, and probably didn’t help our star gazing and there was a bit of cloud cover too.

We walked out of the village and away from any artificial light source. We could see the red planet Mars, which is really bright and was close to the moon the night we went out. We also saw Saturn and Jupiter which look quite close together and at this time of year are visible early in the evening. Mum could point out some of the constellations and give them names but it isn’t as easy as it looks because the constellations don’t actually look like anything their names suggest. So Cygnus doesn’t look like a swan or Pegasus, a horse!!

Many of the constellations were named by the Greeks and the Romans who named them after their Gods. One of the first constellations mum discovered(!) was Cassiopeia, who was a Queen of Aethopia and who was very vain. Aethopia is an old Greek term for quite a large area of Africa not just modern day Ethiopia. She boasted to the sea god Poseidon that she and her daughter Andromeda were more beautiful than the very beautiful Nereids, (sea nymphs). Poseidon became upset at this and banished Cassiopeia to the sky where she is seen clinging to her throne, not that you would be able to work that out from her constellation! Poseidon, had Cassiopeia daughter Andromeda, tied to a rock as prey for the monster Cetus, but she was rescued by Perseus, who she later married.

The constellation Cassiopeia is really visible at the minute and you can’t miss her, she really lives up to her boastful name. Andromeda, her daughter’s constellation is next to hers. Mum says on a good night she sees at least one shooting star, but the best time to see shooting stars in December is the 13th14th when you can see the Geminids meteor shower.

If you are lucky and the weather is good you can see up to 100 an hour and you don’t have to stay up really late to see them. The mistletoe that Mum grew from seed a few years ago has got berries on it for the first time she is well impressed with herself!

Merry Christmas.

*The app cost me £3.99 others are possibly free.



NOVEMBER 2020

Mobile Library Times Tuesday 3rd November 2020 at 2.45p.m. until 3:10p.m.

This may of course change due to Covid Restrictions.

Church News

Griston church lottery

The lucky winners for October are

1st prize Peter Hall 72

2nd prize Beryl Warren 16.  Kindly donated to the church

3rd prize James Gulliver 105

The lucky lottery winners for November are:

1st prize Ms Claire Dyer 123

2nd prize Mrs Sue Ash 37

3rd prize Mrs A Bellingham 26

Griston Church Christmas Bingo

Unfortunately due to the Covid 19 we have had to cancel this years Christmas Bingo as we can’t use the village hall In Caston just yet and have more than 30 people together. Fingers crossed all will be okay to hold a Bingo next year.Thank you

A mo(i)st delicious mystery!

This morning (23/9/20) a ‘Vegan With Love’ cake was donated to the Macmillan Coffee Morning @ the Red Lion marquee. My dear friend saw it & thought, ‘A perfect early Christmas present!’ And she was right, it is!! Hope your coffee morning was fun! All you kind & generous people.

Mrs Savage x

Notes from Griston Parish Council

Hello, I thought I needed to update the residents of the happenings of the Parish Council. It seems to take a long time to get anything done, especially at the present time, however, the three Parish Councillors are working hard in the back ground to ensure that the Recreation Ground and other issues in the Village are dealt with. As a result of the downpours in August, the parish Clerk has written to the Highways Department to ask that the gullies and ditches are cleaned in order that the rainwater can drain away freely. The lighting in Manor Road has been inspected, the Council has been informed that new lanterns are needed, which will cost a substantial amount of money. This subject will be discussed at the next Parish Council and a decision will be made. The mound in the Children’s play area, in the recreation ground requires repairs, because it is suffering from erosion. The Parish Council are seeking quotes as I write so that remedial work can take place very soon. Once the work is carried out, the mound and slide could be out of use for a short while in order for the ground to settle. We will know more soon and a notice will hopefully be published in The Waylander to keep you informed. There has been a notice stating that the mobile library is back in operation. It will be visiting the village on Tuesday 3rd November 2020 at 2.45p.m. until 3:10p.m. For anyone who doesn’t know it stops near the Waggon and Horses. The Parish Council is desperately seeking more members, if you feel you are able to give a little of your time The Parish Clerk would really like to hear from you. Please stay safe and keep well.

Rory’s Nature Corner

Both me and mum had to take Covid 19 tests as part of some scientific study. I did better than mum who made a right fuss. She was really glad she didn’t have a full stomach. Eleanor did one in the summer. We have all tested negative so far. During October English ivy was in flower. Ivy is an evergreen plant which means it does not shred its leaves during the autumn and winter. Ivy grows really well throughout the UK and can be found in lots of different habitats, including woodland, scrub, wasteland and on trees.

The flowers are in clusters called umbels and are a yellowish green colour. The flowers smell really strong especially on a warm day and help to attract lots of wildlife. There are two species of ivy in Britain they are Hedera Helix and Hedera helix hibernica. Hibernica does not climb but spreads across the ground. The young ivy plants which are called juvenile have three to five lobes and a pale underside. On older plants leaves are oval or heart shaped without lobes. Only mature plants produce flowers, these in turn produce black/blueish berries which are poisonous and must not be eaten by humans. The nectar, pollen and berries of ivy are an essential food source for insects and birds during autumn and winter when there isn’t much else about. The berries are quite high in fat and a lot of birds eat them including thrushes, blackcaps, woodpidgeons and blackbirds. Ivy is important to many insects including butterflies and moths including holly blue, small dusty wave, angle shades and swallow-tailed moth before they go into hibernation.

Some of the main insect species which forage on the nectar and pollen of ivy are bees, hoverflies and common wasps. It also provides shelter for insects, birds, bats and other small mammals. Most people think ivy is a parasitic plant which means it sucks all the goodness out of the trees and other plants it grows on , but this is not right. Ivy uses trees and walls for support so it can reach up to better levels of sunlight. Ivy has its own separate root system in the soil and is able to absorb its own nutrients and water.

Ivy DOES Not damage trees or make them unhealthy. English Heritage found that in some cases ivy helped to preserve stonework on old buildings.  Wearing a wreath of ivy leaves around the head was once said to stop you from getting drunk. The Roman god Bacchus or if he is Greek Dionysus, the god of wine, was often shown wearing a wreath of ivy and grapevines. Ivy was also a symbol that you were quite clever in ancient Rome and wreaths were used to crown winners of poetry contests. Wreaths were also given to winning athletes in ancient Greece. For the Druids, ivy represented peace as it helps to bind different plants together. Ivy was also a symbol of fidelity and priests would give a wreath of ivy to newly married couples. Some brides still have ivy in their bouquets today. The rain has been really bad and it has been along time since we had a completely dry 24 hours. Hopefully we will have a nice November

OCTOBER 2020

Griston Parish Council News

Councillor Vacancies Griston Parish Council has vacancies, if you are interested in the village you live in, why not try to make a difference? Are you able to work as a team, take part in meetings, make sound judgements based on what you think is best for the community, whilst abiding by majority decisions, then, you have the qualities of a Parish Councillor. Training is available.

The Parish Council meets six times a year, life can sometimes be busy, but if there are more people in the team sharing the load, it is not an onerous task. For more information contact:

The Parish Clerk, Jean Williams Tel: 01953 884082. Email: gristonclerk@gmail.com

Rory’s Nature Corner

I am back at school now after six looooong months at home. We are only allowed to have lessons in one area of the school. My year, nine, is based in Cavel House. We still get to eat in the refectory and we don't have to wear face masks either. We are able to play sport, but can't have a shower afterwards. It is good to be back, although i'm not so keen on having to get up in the mornings again. Eleanor does not board anymore and is at home full time and she is almost as bad at getting up in the morning as my mum is!!

Harry found some interesting galls on a tree on Thompson Millenium green. He showed mum and she said she would try to find out what the tree is. It turns out it is a Black Poplar tree (Populus Nigra) and it is quite rare in Britain today. East Anglia is one of the best places to see them. They grow best in boggy conditons near watery places so the Millenium Green is ideal.

The mature trees can grow up to 30m in height and can live for 200 years. The bark of the tree is dark brown but can appear black and if you were to peel the bark away you would find white wood underneath. The bark of the tree has really deep cuts in called fissures. The twigs are lumpy and knobley especially on older trees and the leaves are a shiny green heart-shaped. When the leaves first emerge in the spring they are covered in fine, tiny hairs but by the autumn these are gone.

Black poplar trees are dioecious which means that male and female flowers are found on different trees. The flowers are catkins and it is easy to see which are male and which are female as they come in different colours. Male catkins are red and female catkins are a yellowey green and the are pollinated by the wind. Once they are fertilised female catkins develop into fluffy cotton like seeds which fall off the tree in late summer. The Black poplar is home to lots of different species of caterpillar including the wood leopard, poplar hawk and figure of eight. The catkins are a good source of nectar for bees and other insects in the spring and birds like to eat the seeds. There only around 7,000 wild Black Poplars in Britain today and of these, only 600 are female, which if you look at how they reproduce it isn't much of a surprise there are not many left in the wild and they are in fact Britain's most endangered native timber tree.

Traditionaly Black Poplar wood was used to make cart wheels and wagon bottoms because it is a quite springy. It is also quite fire resistant so was used to make floorboards in the days before electricity was used to light our homes. Because the wood can be coppiced you can make clothes pegs and woven baskets with it. Today hybrid Black Poplar timber is used to make artificial limbs, wine cases, pallets and toys. In legend and according to Greek mythology, the Black Poplar was created after Phaeton’s fatal attempt to drive Apollo’s chariot. Phaeton's sisters made such a fuss mourning his death that the Gods transformed them into Black Poplars. It is also said that fallen red male catkins are Devil's fingers, and bring bad luck if picked up. In Celtic mythology the Black Poplar stands for victory.

The funny shaped galls at the bottom of the leaves which look like little brains which Harry discovered and thought quite interesting are caused by an aphid named Pemphigus Spyrothecea. One of mum's favourite poems is called the Poplar Field and was written over 200 years ago by William Cowper, who lived for a time in Norfolk and is buried in the church at East Dereham.

SEPTEMBER 2020

Church News

Church Lottery Results

The winners of the September draw are:

1st prize Carol Tennant 42

2nd prize Nicola Lane 10

3rd prize Malcolm Newby 167

Grand Second Hand Book Sales

As I write this on another blisteringly hot August day it is interesting to reflect on the year so far. How life has changed for so many of us! As we try to adjust to the “new normal” of social distancing, facial coverings, and contact with many of our loved ones reduced to remote mediums, we wonder what the future will bring. Rest assured, however, that all involved in the Second Hand Book Sales are doing their utmost to continue. Understandably, given the current restrictions, and with everyone’s safety in mind, the SALE SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 10th has been CANCELLED.

We are looking to have 3 next year as normal; the dates still to be decided. Watch this space! Because we will not be holding any more sales in 2020, we must regrettably put a halt to more donations too. What we already hold in stock will see us through until next year. When we can start collecting again will be notified here, but realistically that might not happen until January 2021.

Please take care everyone, stay well, and we look forward to seeing you all next year.

Keith and Caroline

01953 880153

Congratulations

Congratulations to Eleanor Bailey-Tufts on the most amazing GCSE results. I know things have not always been as easy for you as they have others but you have truly triumphed and should be rightly proud of all your achievements.

With love and admiration, Mum x

Rory’s Nature Corner

Usually we would have been on holiday by now but because of Covid we have been unable to go anywhere and it has been a bit boring. I went into Norwich with my friend Alfie on the bus it wasn’t too bad. We had to wear face masks which made us a bit warm but it was OK and I got some new Nike trainers.

We have had some pretty wild rainstorms over the past few days. In Griston the rain was cascading down the steps from Thorp House onto the pavement and then along Church Road. There was some flooding in Griston but I think everyone’s house was OK. Mum showed me some photos of me when I was about two splashing around in the flood at the top of Church Road a few years ago, on reflection she says it probably wasn’t the most hygienic thing to do but I didn’t get typhoid so no harm done.

Midnight came in covered in Sweethearts they were all over her it looked like she had a tropical disease it took ages to get them out of her long black fur. Goosegrass as it is called grows really fast and can form really dense patches, it is the small hooked hairs growing out of the stems and the round burrs which are also covered in hooked hairs which get attached to people’s clothing and animals as they walk past. In the summer from June to August they have tiny starshaped greenish white flowers. In the autumn they begin to die back but are not killed off by frost.

You can eat the sweetheart seeds and some people roast them to make coffee, but you have to be careful because they can have a laxative effect. In France and Germany people use goosegrass to make wine and some people smoke it to help them stop smoking tobacco. Recently it has been used in vegan cheese as a substitute for rennet which is obtained from animal stomachs. Dyers use the roots of goosegrass to make red dye.

AUGUST 2020

Good Luck

Good luck to all those who are awaiting exam results in August 2020. Some of you will feel cheated that you didn’t get the opportunity to perform in an exam and others will feel they have dodged a bullet. Hopefully, you will all be pleased with your results and able to transition successfully into further study or employment in these challenging times.

Church News

Once again we are starting a new year, from July, for the Griston Church Lottery.

The lucky Winners for July were

1st prize Mrs C Ashdown 58

2nd prize Lisa Tubby 79

3rd prize Mr & Mrs Stainthorpe 114

The lucky winners for August are

1st prize Jolene Ayrton 104

2nd prize Amy Chamberlain 2

3rd prize Robert Duncan 76

Thank you everyone who has rejoined for the coming year and Thank you to the new people who have joined us for the coming year. If anyone would still like to join you are very welcome. Good luck everyone

Grand Second Hand Book Sales

Well, the good news is that the governmental restrictions are gradually being lifted; it seems almost on a weekly basis. So more good news; we are still taking donations for the book sales!

Our own restrictions, as outlined below, will remain in place for the moment, but as things continue to improve we hope to be able to change that soon.

Please remember that:

• We will only accept delivery to us here in Griston, not at Thompson Community Hall.

• People must call first to arrange a delivery slot, so that no more than one vehicle is here at any one time.

• We can only accept donations from households not exhibiting any symptoms of the virus. • We are currently only taking books, anything else by prior arrangement.

• The health and well-being of everyone involved is important to us; we ask you to bear with us as we take tentative steps towards “normal service”. I’m sure lots of you have taken the opportunity of having a “covid clear-out”, so will be pleased to know that we are happy to take your items!

The situation with regards to our nextsale, booked for October 10th, is still uncertain. However, whatever happens with that one, we are continuing the sales next year and are grateful for your continuing support. Thank you and we wish you, our friends, volunteers and customers, good health.

Keith and Caroline 880153

Church Yard Bins

PLEASE: To assist us to keep the churchyard tidy will you please refrain from using the steel bin behind the church. In it’s place please use the GREEN WHEELIE BIN near the gate. Preferably, if you are able, it would help if you could take it home for disposal. Many thanks. 

Rory’s Nature Corner

The weather hasn’t been so great this month but as restrictions have lifted I have been able to meet up with a friends for socially distanced football and cycle rides in Rocklands. It is good to be able to see people again, and although I do get to talk to my friends over X-box it’s not the same as being able to see them in person and play football.

There have been loads of bugs in the garden especially on the wild flowers that mum grew from seed. The corn marigolds and corn cockles have gone mad and taken over a bit and she said you can kind of see why farmers had to try to control them getting into the cereal crops. The good thing is though that it shows they are really easy to grow and that we could all try to grow some in our gardens. Mum said if you buy the individual seed packets rather than just a wild flower mix you get want you want and you have more control over where the plants grow and you get healthier stronger plants but it is more work.

The bees love the time thyme path but you mustn’t go any where near it with bare feet!! One of the bugs you see loads of this time of year is the common red soldier beetle. It is a medium-sized, thin beetle commonly found on open-structured flowers, like daises, cow parsley and hogweed, during the summer. You can see it on grasslands, along hedgerows, and in woodland, parks and gardens. We have seen it on hogweed flower heads.

The adults feed on aphids, and also eat pollen and nectar. The larvae eat invertebrates, such as slugs and snails, and live at the base of long grasses. The adults only live for a short time during the summer and spend most of that time mating, which is why they are often seen in pairs. The common red soldier beetle has a narrow, rectangular body and longish antennae. It is a bright orangey-red with black marks near the tips of the wing cases.

There are about 40 species of soldier beetle in the UK, displaying various colour combinations of black, red and orange. Mum also found a green one but not sure if this is a freak of nature or a different species. Most of the Soldier beetles we see are on hogweed which you can find along hedgerows and verges. It has large umbrella like clusters of white creamy flowers. Hogweed is native to Britain Giant Hogweed is not and it is Giant Hogweed that can cause blistering to the skin. The common red soldier beetle is also known as the ‘bloodsucker’ for its shiny red colour, but it is harmless. It is really good to have in the garden as the adults eat aphids and the larvae eat other pests.

Eleanor’s cats Merlin and Midnight have started going for walks. They like to walk down to the churchyard walk round then walk back to the house. They have got so used to going for a walk that Midnight will wait for someone to take her. Sometimes she follows without being asked and has to be walked back to the house which is really annoying. Mum did try to get Midnight to wear a harness because she worries about the road but she was having none of it.

We had some real excitement at the house when mum dug some old bones up in the old driveway. It all started as a bit of a joke and at first she assumed they were animal bones, but as we got a few more and they looked very different to the other bones in density and size and as they were also being dug up alongside items of clothing that she had never seen before it all became a bit sinister and she thought she had best ring the 10police. They sent the forensic photographer out really quickly. Mum was told if they were human we would have to stop work at once until they could be aged. If they are over 70 years old then it is handed over to the archaeologists but under 70 years and you have a crime scene and the police have to investigate. They were really quick with the results and by midday the next day we were told they were animal and we could continue digging.

My aunty Caroline was really disappointed they were animal as she is into true crime. I think mum and Eleanor were hoping for an ancient burial. So far mum has found some yellow and red y-fronts, a ladies sandal, a woollen hat, lots of old pottery, some old nails and a one shilling from 1954.

During June we had the summer solstice. Mum got up to see the sunrise but no one else was very keen. She said it was beautiful much better than at Stonehenge where it was cloudy. Unfortunately the sunny weather didn’t last long and it clouded over and started to rain here too. She did say she wished had got up earlier and cycled out of the village to see it better.

• 1st prize   Mr Andrew Garner No. 96
• 2nd prize  Mr Mark Dorrington No. 65
• 3rd prize  Griston Church No. 18