The shortest day of the year has come and gone and the days lengthen minute by minute. It’s time to consider: Are you an Early Bird or a Night Owl?
Our genes predetermine our chronotype, our predisposition to either wake up early, or to sleep in and stay up late at night. About 40 percent of us are morning types, some 30 percent are evening types, and the rest of us vary between the two.
So, will you stay up late or get up early to see the Super Moon on January 31? It’s about 30 percent larger than usual. It’s the second full moon this month, making it a Blue Moon. And the earth’s shadow will pass over it, making it a Super Blue Moon Eclipse. It begins at 6:48 a.m. Tough luck, Night Owls.
HEAR YE, HEAR YE
Tickets are now available for the Settler Story, the new theatrical production about Captain Josiah Sawyer and the other early settlers of the area. The play is coming right up, with two performances at 2 and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, February 17, and maybe a third one on Sunday, February 18.
Written, directed and produced by Kendra Parnell, the play covers the period of 1792, when the land was proclaimed open to settlers, to 1825. It’s a two-act play with 16 scenes. Actors from previous productions are back, such as Don Atkinson, Austin Bailey, Marlene Lowry, and Denis Palmer. Palmer also designed the set and props.
The Settler Story is at the Sawyerville Community Centre, 6 Church Street, Sawyerville. Entrance is $10. To reserve tickets, contact Elaine Lebourveau at 819-563-8700 or elebourveau@videotron.ca. Seats are limited, so step right up. Proceeds help support the Eaton Corner Museum.
SEEDS, SEEDS
Saturday, February 17, is also the date of the 5th annual Seed Festival. From 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., there will be presentations, kiosks, workshops, a seed exchange, children’s activities, and a buffet lunch featuring local products in the form of soup, chili, moussaka, taboulé, cole slaw, green salad and beverages. Yum.
Presentations begin at 9:30 a.m. with one on the availability of bio matter in soil by Renaud-Pierre Boucher of the CRIFA, an agricultural training centre in Coaticook. At 10 a.m., An Intelligent Pharmacy is the topic of Chantal Parent, herbal therapist. At 11 a.m,, Yvan Perreault will talk about New Nordic Food from Forested Farms in Quebec, utilizing the patterns and features observed in nature. And at 12 noon, Daniel Labonté of the Ferme Jardins des bocages will speak about garlic and its history, properties, varieties and cultivation.
The afternoon speakers begin at 1:15 p.m. with Green, a Regenerated Biodiversity Farm with Samuel Tanguay and Jason Lessard of Les Maraichers de l’or vert. At 2 p.m. is A Little Story of a Farmer from a Wild Family, with Yannick Guay of La Ferme du Jardiner déchainé. And at 2:45 p.m. is a presentation on the rare and forgotten vegetables of Quebec by Lynne Bellemare of Terre Promise.
Five well-known seed producers will be there. Participants will have an opportunity to exchange with local producers who put a lot of effort and expertise into furnishing excellent fruit and vegetables cultivated with ecological methods that leave a loving ecological footprint, says the Garden’s president, Chantal Bolduc.
Available for sale will be four-, five- or six-toothed grelinettes, garlic markers, leek planters, and more.
Entrance is $5 per person. Lunch is $10 per adult and $6 per child aged 6 to 12.
The whole event will be at the Ramana Hotel, 18 Principale North, Sawyerville. It’s a collaborative production of a lot of volunteers, the Town of Cookshire-Eaton, the Sawyerville Community Garden and La Relève du Haut-Saint-François. Info: chantalbolduc99@bell.net or 819-889-3196.
STAND UP, STAND UP
Congratulations to the graduates of the recent Stand Up program in Bury, in English, and in Ascot Corner, in French. They finished a 12-week program of exercises and strategies on avoiding falls, organized by the Centre d’action bénévole du Haut-Saint-François and led by Marie-Claude Bégin.
The Bury group, standing tall, are Brenda Bailey, Jane Bishop, Evelyn Blake, Patricia Campbell, Isabelle Laroche, Brenda Lowe, Sandra Morrison, Geraldine Murray, Marilyn Salter, Beth Strapps and Myrna Sylvester.
PILATES, COOKSHIRE
Two new courses of Pilates began last week at the Maison de la Culture in Cookshire on Thursday evenings, beginners at 6 p.m. and intermediate at 7:10 p.m. Audrey D’Amours is the teacher, and space is limited to a maximum of 10 participants per group.
It’s not too late to register at the Cookshire Town Hall. The fee for residents of Cookshire-Eaton is $110; for non-residents, $130. The course is 10 weeks long. The Maison is located at the main intersection of Cookshire, 25 Principale West.
FADOQ, SAWYERVILLE
FADOQ Sawyerville is planning an activity day on Thursday, February 8, in honour of St. Valentine’s Day. Starting at 10 a.m. with cards, pool, and sand bag toss. Lunch is at 11:30 a.m., and darts at 1:30 p.m. At the Sawyerville Community Centre, 6 Church Street.
CHURCH SERVICES
United. On January 28, the Sunday worship service is at 9:30 a.m. in Cookshire, and at 11 a.m. in Sawyerville. On February 4, the Sunday service in Cookshire begins at 9:15 a.m., and in Sawyerville, at 11:15 a.m. This is to accommodate the Birchton-Bulwer-Cookshire-Island Brook (BBCI) Congregational Annual Meeting at 10 a.m. Info: 819-889-2838 (listen to message).
Baptist. In Sawyerville, the Sunday worship service is at 9 a.m. in French, and 11 a.m. in English. Sunday school is at 10 a.m. in English and French. Info: 819-239-8818.
Anglican. Sunday services are in Bury at 9:30 a.m., and in Cookshire, at 11 a.m. On January 28, the Cookshire service is in the lower level of the Trinity United Church, 190 Principale West, and on February 4, in the theatre in the Manoir d’eau vive, 210 Principale East. Info: 819-887-6802.
Do you have news to share? Call 819-300-2374 or email ra.writes@gmail.com by January 29 for publication February 7 and by February 12 for February 21.