The Abingdon Army Cadets have been in the town centre selling poppies again today. Remembrance Sunday is the 13th November.

There was a first frost on Thursday. Leaves have been falling steadily.

It is November the 5th and there is a chance to take part in a Firewalk at the Nags Head. Money raised goes to Blue Skye Thinking.

Also on tonight is the scouts’ fireworks, and tomorrow is Dalton Barracks fireworks and funfair. They normally also have a big bonfire.

I was reading in the library this morning Ron Chung’s recollections of life in Abingdon (a photocopied pamphlet in the local studies section called ‘Where are they now – The Slums and Courts of Abingdon’). He remembers “November 5th we wanted a ‘Bonfire’ so I asked the farmer to dump all the collected rubbish from the shops to be dumped in the ‘Reck’ for this which he carried out provided we kept it tidy and a great fire we had. (Remember all this was collected by horse and cart).”

NO LORRIES

Here is the St Helen’s Clock at 2 minutes before 8 this morning.

Here is the clock again at 2 minutes before 9 – after the hands had been moved forward eleven hours.

Putting the clock back an hour at St Helen’s Church involves moving the hands forward eleven hours. Here is the movie…

There is a Hallowe’en Haunt trail you can follow round the town centre with the chance of a prize of £100 to spend at town centre shops. The event is run by The Town Centre BID.

Walking round Abingdon this evening I was made to feel the fear by one or two of the shop window displays.

EEEHHH!

YIIEEEE!

St Michael’s Church was full of colourful stalls for the Autumn Fair. I was suprised on entering how many stalls and people there were, and had to ask “Is it always as big as this?”

There was a raffle with about twenty prizes including a Miele vacuum cleaner. There were charity stalls and games and entertainment and food; also there were craft stalls with people who had paid for a table. Money raised goes towards the church’s operating costs and for HOST Abingdon supporting Syrian refugee families settling in our area.

As people sat over soup and a ploughman’s lunch a man told us a little about the HOST Abingdon project. They want Abingdon to be a place of sanctuary for a few of those who have lost everything – asylum seekers and refugees.