North
Island
April
2012
To all Red Hatters
April –
Fools day, Anzac day, School Holidays - has flown away. Forward on to May, My favourite quote for this month - We are not retreating
- we are advancing in another Direction" General Douglas MacArthur . Red
Hat Friends, advance!
APRIL MEANS A HAPPY RED
HATTERS BIRTHDAY TO US ALL....
And may there be many many More happy returns.
This timely reminder was all we needed for us to shake our tail feathers and
Get Cramming as much as we could of April 2012 into our lifes suitcases....
So! In nearing the end of this month I am happy to report our illustrious Crimson Crazies have with great vigour, managed to stuff a big Fat Aprils worth of experiences and fun into those cases and are sittin on top, exhausted but
Satisfied
Not only did they negotiate April Fools Day, Easter, Anzac Day and
Family matters but also managed to have an absolutely Fandamtabulas Friggatriskaidekaphobia day with one of the Nations most famed Numerologists,Peter Vaughan and learned all about our lucky numbers, and that feared by some....(Number 13) and other figgerations..
N.B. We hope to be lotto winners in the near future.....lol.
Lunch was held at Madame Ski Max's Gardens Chalet, it was definitely a
Full house! Of cards...hearts and Diamonds aplenty....lol...and a Chapter effort with us all bringing a plate of home made fingerfoods to share....Of course, Bang! Went our Diets
And the fun continued,when we met again at the end of this month to open our Red Hat Soup Kitchen....This we held at The Duchess's Domain
Each gel brought their special pots of Chowder, Broth,Soups,and Consomes
Here we formed a line where we grabbed some fresh baked French bread and sampled all the delectable Soups..(Not all at once though lol...) This was followed by a wonderful arvo of crafting Red Hat Dollies with Craft Tutor, Stephanie.
Oh how the arvo passes so quick when one is having jolly times.
But wait! It's virtually a week until we meet for Tiffin once again.....
Better shake out the
furs and feathers!....till next month
Cheers
Helen, Queen of the Dames
Crimson Crazies of South Auckland
The
Ever Readies of Tauranga
In March a few of the Red Hatters came to Althorp - got to see around the Village and then we shared a lunch together. After this I shared a DVD of The Convention held one of the years in Vancouver. This particular one had a theme of Mardi Gras and was held in The Bayshore Hotel.
The girls present enjoyed seeing the participants and also The Parade Of The Queens. Some people enjoyed the atmosphere at Althorp being away from the Restaurant type of lunch, although we enjoy that too, it was just a little different. Unfortunately we had a smaller attendance than usual due to illness, vacation, Easter etc.
Our April gathering was to Kwang Chow at Mount Maunganui. It was Anzac Day so we wore our Poppies. Next day was the official birthday of our Chapter and so a lot of us wore red with the purple hat. We had a larger turn out than Althorp and we all had a good time with a lovely chinese buffet lunch and great chat and friendship was had by all. The only thing that dampened this day for us was, that on our return to our homes, our Queen Val sent us the news that the husband of one of our Red Hat sisters had passed away the night before. We are keeping her in our thoughts and prayers.
Regards, Janet (Lady Email for Ever Reddies)
DECO CITY DIVAS - NAPIER
The Divas celebrated their 9th birthday in Napier on 24 April 2012! We gathered at our ole watering hole Cafe GMK (formerly Breakers) on Marine Parade, Napier, for a meal and drinks. Each of us had brought some newspaper-wrapped White Elephants for Dirty Bingo prizes and the prize table was fair bulging with spectacular treasure! During the meal our founding Hysterian Lady Sheila ceremoniously passed the reins of this hysterical job to Noble Nell (a.k.a., Lady Helen B) to keep our records in order (for the police, undoubtedly). The meal was finished, dessert and coffee cleared, and the games began! Queen Carol called the numbers as the ring of "Bingo!" commenced! Ladies were tidy at first and extremely well-mannered, but that soon changed into a veritable pirates paradise as the prize table emptied and piles of loot appeared in front of the players. Lady Latrinus (Lady Barbara) was again caught in the act of hiding prizes inside her red hat ... and ELSEWHERE...! Oh, my! After much thieving and even more laughter, the game was over and prizes opened! What true treasures! Lady WhichHazel won the most fantastic anatomically correct apron which she immediately modelled for the photo shoot and then refused to remove! Lady Helen S won some fabulous rabbit ears -- just what she was wishing for, apparently! Our new Lady Angela was rendered speechless by the valuable prizes that she got to take home. And our young Pink Lady Sarah had the distinct misfortune of sitting next to Lady Latrinus AGAIN this year. Oh, dear, bad luck, my girl! In all, another successful night that opened and finished with a rousing "Happy Birthday to Us!" on the kazoos! We all behaved like nine year olds for our party!
Queen Carol
Deco City Divas – Napier
RAVISHING
RUBIES
- Our Rubies held our own Mini-Limpy Games during April and it was a
brilliant event. Because of the inclement weather we transferred the
venue from the beach to our Lady Flow-along’s
house. After a lovely hot-cross bun morning tea we commenced our
games. Well, you had to be there to believe what was happening. The
laughter was deafening and several of our Rubies had to excuse themselves to go
to the little house as they laughed so much they thought they might wet their
pants! (Lady Flow-along reported afterwards that our ladies used up one
and a half rolls of loo paper during our visit!) Hula hoops, potatoes,
balls in stockings, wet tee shirts, a rubber duck and a toilet brush and a
toilet roll were all part of the events and we have never laughed so much in a
long, long time. After the games we had a great lunch, bought in from the
local lunch bar. A great day was had by all and we shall have to repeat
the event next year as it was so much fun. Queen Ruby was lucky enough to
be down in Napier/Hastings last week and met up with three lots of Red Hatters
down there. What a lovely bunch of ladies, good to catch up with old
friends and meet some new ones as well.
Cheryll – Queen Ruby
Hamilton Red Hat Ladies
It is just over a year since the official Coronation Ceremony of the Hamilton Red Hat Ladies was held. For such an auspicious occasion Jodi Vaughan (our surprise fairy – dressed appropriately in Red and Purple of course) did the honour (with real decorum) of bestowing the title on Queen Joce-a-lina. Plus handing out the official 'Red Hat Name' badges to all. At that luncheon we voted on a number of issues & it was agreed that one year on we'd gather again to assess how our first year had gone. Well this month we gathered again at the Te Rapa Racecourse for a 'scrummy' morning tea (ably organised by Lady Natalie & Lady Pink Frachie). It was well attended where lots of good ideas & events for our second year were put forward. There were lots of 'patting on the back' with all we've achieved & done with lots of good outings for our first year.
Lady Lavender Laughs-a-lot, Lady of the Bridge & Lady Flutterbuy (our 3 hostesses this month) picked Cafe 547 in Hamilton East for this month's outing. The venue was perfect as we were seated in a quiet secluded corner. We could really relax & enjoy good food & good company with lots of laughter & idle chit chat. Hamilton was all 'a buzz' with lots of visitors in town for the V8's. We received the usual lot of smiles & questions of what was the occasion plus compliments on how lovely we all looked. A couple of ladies spoke of 'optional' events for the coming month so we have a lot ahead to fill in our days.
(My only problem with all these outings is the glorious food we eat & the scales get a hammering).
Lady Betty Op Shop
Doubtless Bay Dolls - Mangonui
(Big
River) RIVER CRUISE
On a beautiful sunny
Autumn morning in April nineteen DOLLS arrived promptly at 9-45am for cast
off at 10am on an Awanui (Big River) Cruise aboard "JETON" a
beautifully appointed Houseboat .We were Welcomed Aboard by Skipper Tony and
Boss Jean departing right on time from their Jetty in a quiet backwater on the
river. It was hard to imagine this was once a busy little Port with Scows and a
Coastal Steamer the APANUI unloading and loading there
The tide was high as we cruised down river past the Dairy Factory and Wharf(now
derelict) and on past lovely farmland. The cows were not startled by our Red
Hats and Purple Outfits but the wild ducks made a fast exit to anywhere else.
It was so peaceful and quiet --just the sound of the motors and of course the
DOLLS. On down past mangroves and duck shooting Maimais, past the site of an
RNZAF jet crash, an old fish processing shed and fertilizer shed and wharf to
the upper Rangaunu Harbour where Skipper Tony anchored for bubbles and a
fabulous lunch followed by raffles etc.
The tide was now receding so it was back to the Jetty. As the water got
shallower Titanic was mentioned and the Bow scene was reenacted by some Dude
who had been smuggled aboard and a DOLL.
Fortunately we all arrived back safely after a truly wonderful day.
Hostesses Duchess Kanga and Lady Jenfleur and scribed by Duchess Kanga.
Queen SweetPea
Crimson Kiwis
South East Auckland.
Hooray for Hollywood ! Remember the song ? The place where all of the Stars come out to play,The Rich,The Famous and the Glamorous ! So where else would you find a fabulous bunch of Red hatters .We may not win Academy awards ,but with our purple garments and gorgeous Red Hats, ablaze with Bling...we shine as brightly as any Star when we meet for our monthly lunch.
Next month we head further afield for a special treat. See you all there...
Wiki Beek..
The Precious Pukekos of
Howick
It was fun planning the mystery trip and managed to keep it a secret which was quite a task. It was a real fun day with lots of laughter on the bus ,a few of the Ladies had been to some of the places before but enjoyed going back again.
Congratulations to Eunice and Frances on winning the raffles.
Thank you Jill for writing this months' summary of our trip.
Please remember our Trivia / Fun morning coming up. Planned for September, so mark it on your calendar; .more about that later..
What a beautiful day for a Mystery Trip. In a bus driven by Jack we left the Howick Club just after nine for our Mystery Outing. We welcomed Eve, a prospective new member, Laurelle & Margaret, from NSW, who were holidaying, staying with Cheryl.
First stop was River Estate Olive Grove, where we had a few group photos; gosh there were a lot of us to squeeze into one picture! 30 to be exact.
Fancy 5 generations of one family on this beautiful property, which has gone from dairy farming to olive growing. There were 6 olive oils for us to taste, each one slightly different.
Next stop was Prenzel of Whitford for some more tasting, alcoholic this time!. We started with a lovely mulled wine, and then their famous Butterscotch Schnapps with cream – yummy. Then we tasted some of the delightful Liqueurs and Dessert Toppings. Most of us bought something and one of our ladies managed to leave her “goodies “ on the bus.
Still in the Whitford area we visited Bill’s Antique Toy Collection. What an amazing place, full of restored pedal cars, trikes, dolls prams, matchbox toys and so much more, a trip down memory lane for many of us, then we enjoyed a very welcome cuppa and a bikie.
Lunch was at Pine Harbour, which was truly sparkling on such a gorgeous day. Our thanks must go to Christine with help from Bernice for arranging such a special Mystery Trip.
Pukekohe
Hi all. Well another two months have gone by since I last wrote a article. Hasn't the weather been lovely for the last few weeks, think we are having our summer now, though must admit I nearly got my slippers out the other evening.
For our March lunch
22 of us went to "The Edinburgh" again. It has a lovely atmosphere
and the food is great. Our April meeting fell on Anzac Day, so I issued a
"Royal Decree" that we would not lunch on that day, as I felt that it
was a day for families and reflection. So 10 of us went over to join with
Waiuku ladies for a lovely lunch the week before. We took with us a new lady
who was overwhelmed by the friendliness of all. Thank you Elaine and ladies for
always making us feel welcome.
Queen Witchy Poo Ann
Strawberry D'Lites of Palmerston North
Strawberry D'Lites of Palmerston North celebrated the Red Hat Society birthday by having both a lunch and a supper , some of us who went both to lunch and supper just had ice cream at a fabulous Gelato parlour for supper which is owned by the restaurant opposite.
We had a very interesting afternoon at one of our members homes to show and share treasures or collections. Hatpins, silver mesh bags and kaleidoscopes were the collections. The treasures included jewellry,baby memorabilia, embroidered pictures and a gold bangle given to Marie by her now husband when she was 16. The stories were great.
On the 14th April we were delighted to join with The Red Poppies of Paraparaumu to celebrate their birthday.
Red Hat Hugs to all,
Josie (Empress Josephine)
WAIHEKE
FLAMES What a wonderful day we Red Hatters had on Tuesday 27th March. We were all invited to our Queen Pat's home for a game of Croquet.It was a beautiful sunny day.
Also on this auspicious day we celebrated Pat's 80th Birthday. When we arrived, there were lots of flowers and cards from Pat's family and friends. There was a beautiful bouquet of flowers from our Red Hat group and some lovely jewellery as a Birthday gift for her. Pats daughter Trisha and grandson Paki were there and as we all sang Happy Birthday, Paki brought out a beautiful chocolate cake with a lighted candle on, one that plays Happy Birthday. Then it was a yummy feast outside on Pat's back deck and lawn. When we were all full of B'day food and cups of tea it was time to go out on Pat's front lawn for our game of Croquet.
Jill had brought her Croquet set from home and as Pat's front lawn was flat it was ideal for our game. There were 4 mallets and 4 balls: 1 red mallet and ball, 1 yellow mallet and ball, 1 green mallet and ball, and 1 black mallet and ball. There were hoops pushed into the ground at various intervals. We had to hit our balls through these hoops, do a circuit then come back to the middle where we hit a pretty striped stick to finish.
We all had a few rounds and it was lots of fun and laughter sitting in the sun
watching each other and having a few drinks. Barbara on her1st round scored 44 strokes and on her 2nd round scored 37. Pauline on her 1st round scored 47strokes and on her 2nd round scored 32. Pauline Dick did well to score 39points. Jill had 3 rounds scoring 33 for the 1st, 38 for the 2nd and 34 for the 3rd. Bobbi did very well scoring 29 for her 1st round, and 28 for her 2nd round and in the lead so far. Jenny had 3 turns, her 1st being 42, her 2nd being 37 and her third was 23points. I don’t know how she managed this. I think she must have got her hockey swing into action.
Any way it was another wonderful day of sharing with love and laughter on The Birthday of our Red Hat Queen Pat.
On the 17th of April we took a trip out to Waiwera mineral hot springs.
What another lovely day we had.
As we all have the Gold card it was a free ride over by ferry and out by bus. With our picnic lunches and togs we met on the ferry then onto the bus headed for Waiwera. Its an enjoyable ride going on the busway then through Albany City, Albany Village, through Silverdale, Orewa Beach, Hadfields Beach and finally Waiwera Springs. We passed farms on the way lots of native bush and it was just really a pleasant journey.
When we got to the Springs it was so good watching the wonderful expressions
on everybody’s faces as they got into the lovely hot water. Next to this hot-hot pool there was a cooler pool which we could alternate with.
After a while we got out and had lunch sitting outside in the sun. Then it was back into the water for another dip. It was such a relaxing uplifting beautiful time.
The feeling of wellbeing afterwards makes it very beneficial. The Flames were so enthusiastic about wanting to go to Waiwera again.
with love
Lady Juniper Jenny
Waiheke Flames
Red Hot Flashes – Napier
What could be more exciting than an invitation to a cocktail soiree at The Duke of Gloucester in honour of the first anniversary of Wills and Kate’s wedding? Not much according to 14 ‘Flashes’ who got decked out in their royal finery and attended the gala event.
Speeches, poems, readings and toasts to the couple for much love and happiness and heaps of babies were part of the evening’s festivities. The regular patrons of the pub were curious and entertained by the spectacle of such royal beauty and talent and inquired who the visions in purple and red were.
Our lovely Lady Trisha
of Hawke was inducted into the group and given her red sash after making her
solemn vows. Well, maybe not too solemn. She has kindly consented to becoming
our ‘Drama Queen’ and leading us in song, dance and other theatrical pursuits.
Lady Trisha also won the prize for the hat that most closely resembled Princess
Beatrice’s spectacular headwear.
Birthday kazoos and song followed for the amazing Princess Grace who is currently fulfilling her bucket list, and our delightful Pinky, Lady Lisa Shake-a-booty who has hit the ripe old age of 45!
Then on the Friday we gathered at the local cinema to watch The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. We have been thwarted before as the show has been sold out, but this time with organization, we prevailed with reserved tickets. What a brilliant movie and a perfect way to end the week. A funny film and a tipple and taste afterwards at the pub next door.
Sublime!
Monday evening had us shopping with Queen Ruby of the Ravishing Rubies who came to Napier with goodies from the Little Red Hat Shoppe in Auckland for those of us way out here in ‘the provinces.’ Thank you, Cheryll and Warren for bringing your shop to us.
Look out May! We have three events planned for the ‘Flashes.’ We don’t have time to become middle-aged. Hang on to your hats girls!
Her Royal Behindness
Queen Heather
Baroness Du Botox
Red Hot Flashes
RUAHINE REDS OF CENTRAL HAWKES BAY
Our March gathering was intended to be a visit to see some alpacas but little did we know that this idea had to be changed and it morphed into seeing an iron collection... Who would have believed that it would prove so fascinating?!! There were over 700 irons and nearly all of them pre-dated the electricity era; from all around the world, different ways of heating them, a huge variety of sizes, shapes and weights. The collector knew all their histories and was a wealth of knowledge, they were well displayed in a small shed and it was an amazing treasure trove in our community that we knew nothing about!! From there we moved back to Peggy’s place for a most yummy afternoon tea, good chat and catch up with each other.
Definitely a fun and different outing!!
Red Hat friendship to you all - Lady Min
WHANGA RED HEDZ; Whangamata
Seventeen Red Hatters met at the Whangamata Club for their April get together. We had an enjoyable lunch for $9 which a few indulged in a decadent dessert and drinkies.
After luncheon saw great concentration of four teams dressing one of their members in newspaper for a day of Fashion on the Field. This was won by team Sizzling Hot Virgins with their model dressed in a mini skirt and top, necklace, handbag, hat and shoes with a champagne flute in one hand and a very long cigarette with red tip in the other. There was also Team Box Trifecta dressed in box pleats and all accessories. Our elegant Rangi was one of the models who did a very classy Angelina Jolie pose with the leg showing through the split in her skirt. The judging was done by two wonderful ladies who were visiting our town and just had to be having, (or trying to) a quiet lunch.
They thoroughly enjoyed judging and said that one of their daughters was getting married soon and we gave them the idea of dressing a model in newspaper for one of the hens night (wedding gown of course).
Next month two of our members have planned a luncheon at the Ocean Sports Club.
Queen Crowning Around Joobs
WAITAKERE FERNS
It was a bit of an adventure finding our way to Bricklane for our monthly luncheon in April. After months – probably years – of road works to sort out.Central New Lynn’s street problems, the roads are now complete, but a bit of a puzzle! Where to turn? Which lane to get into? Watch out for that other car! Which set of lights to turn down? More than a couple of us were confused (and in the nicest possible way!) However, despite the little detours, there was a good muster. Because it was school holidays, a notable absentee was Flora Queen Pat who was sunning herself at the beach with the grandchildren. Vice Queen Marie gave us the notices and introduced us to two new members, Judith and Pam. There might be some interesting tales to tell as to where Hatters have recruited newbies, and these ladies were “accosted” at the Henderson Swimming Pool, by Dame Wringa Belle Colleen and Queen Pat. They tell us that exercises in the water are easy and very good for you. The enthusiastic Judith and Pam, were suitably decked out and we were impressed with the specially made red headgear on Judith. We had a tasty and economical meal, followed by the second adventure of the day – manoeuvring our way out of New Lynn, then onwards to home!
Next month we’ll be looking at the boats at The Marina in Hobsonville.
Cheers - red wine of course!
Lady Ginger Joan - Royal News Reporter
Thames Ruby Redz
22 seats left for “Menopause celebrated International Red Hat Society day in style at the Goldfields Shopping Mall on Wednesday 25th April, as usual we were a spectacle in the food court, but we enjoyed ourselves and attracted three new members. The ding dong cakes (official Red Hat Society Cake) were enjoyed immensly, this years seemed more full of chocolate, raspberries and more chocolate than last year. The raffle was won again by Lesley Ann, one of our pink hatters who will be having a REDuation at the end of this year. Four of our chapter travelled to Taupo, three hours there and three hours back, a lot of fun was had at the party as well as in the travel. We will never forget Ekatauna and what can get lost there. Thanks to the Regal Rainbows for sharing their birthday with us and the other visitors, we enjoyed the stories, the refreshments, the meal, the hat game, the raffles (we won two of them) and the comradeship of Red Hatters. Was also nice to hear the benefits others were getting from Red Hatters, their traditions, just how we can all have fun no matter what our circumstances. Thank you.
“Menopause Made Me Do It” 26th May ,The Rose Centre Takapuna, tickets $13 each shared lunch before hand for those that want it and there will be a Red Hatters Stall, Raffle tickets. This play is set 10 years after last years play of Crazy Ladies. O:nly 22 seats left.
Contact Queen Izzy, thamesrubyredz@xtra.co.nz to book.
Maureen, Queen Izzy
Botany Babes of Howick
The April Meeting was a well attended noisy meeting – which proves everyone is enjoying themselves. The ”clacker" was well used by Rainbow, Queen, who shared her husband’s joke re the Aah Bra, [in store at the Warehouse if anyone is looking]. A new red hatter was welcomed to the group, [we can’t have scared her off on the Devonport trip], and we celebrated two birthdays.
We are Five! - 5th Birthday Meeting
St Botanycus schoolgirls, plus one stray schoolboy, set off for a day of fun and frolic. The school banner was proudly displayed, many thanks to Lorraine for her great effort. Neville, our driver took us on a mystery tour to the Toy Museum at Whitford [however he did manage to turn the bus very well and eventually point us in the right direction]. I did have visions of us going round and round and round [just like a Carry On film]. The Toy Museum was every child’s dream, from dolls to aeroplanes. After morning tea it was back onto the bus for a ride to Corogate Café. Princess Snowflake had made chocolate fudge, beautifully decorated with Red Hat ladies which she shared around – a real treat.
Angie and Bill made us very welcome when we arrived at the Corogate café and a lovely lunch was served. It was a double celebration as it was our 5th birthday and Angie and Bill’s 1st Wedding Anniversary. The Red Hat birthday cake was a stunner, and plenty to share around. (Our waistlines are increasing) They went far and above what we expected, and really made the day. The organisation was superb – and they even provided appropriate music for our - Naming Ceremony: Following lunch we all gathered in the foyer with William and Kate [Duke & Duchess of Cambridge] for the Naming Ceremony. To the tune of I’m forever blowing bubbles Princess Snowflake, Gypsy Rose, Dancing Fairy, Purple Flutter, Dizzy Lizzy, Countess Daffodil, Poppy and Hydrangea Lace Cap were gonged. Bill wasn’t going to be outdone so he too sat on the throne to be gonged. – now officially known as Romeo Bill
It was then time for home – did we trust Neville to get us there? And we did wonder if he was hijacking us when he headed for Howick Village. Even our rendition of “Show me the way to go home”, and the “Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round” didn’t alert him to the fact that he was heading in the wrong direction. The wheels continued round and round until he finally stopped at Nixon Park Hall to drop us off – a long way to walk home! Once he was reminded that he had in fact picked us up at St Columba Church he found his way back and we arrived home safely.
WHAT IS IT ABOUT BUSES AND RED HAT OUTINGS –It’s either flat tyres or drivers with memory loss! A great day and thank you to Jill, Carol and Rosemary for organising it all.
Scribe; Lilybelle
The time has come," the Walrus
said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."
And I have just returned from my Tuesday night walk with friends – well rather more of an amble these days – and stood looking at the sky and stars therein. No falling stars though. Neither man made or natural. I can remember when that was our treat at night, going outside to watch for falling stars - totally natural those days.
And so another missive completed for your enjoyment. My apologies – we are in midst of house moving, and I have taken a short cut this month, using the same graphics for each chapter as last month. I will improve! As always, the outings enthuse, amaze, and point the way to further red hat fun.
‘Bye for now,
Country bird,
aka Barbara
