Eclectic Wine and Cheese Book Club

Hello all Eclectic Wine & Cheese Book Club members -

Get ready to mix creativity with tranquility as we dive into the art of Ikebana, the Japanese style of flower arranging! Join us for a delightful evening where blooms and wine pair perfectly with creatvity.

All supplies and instruction included - You'll receive (and keep) a Japanese style pottery vase, kenzan (flower frog), flower shears, and an array of seasonal blooms to craft your own masterpiece with the guidance of a certified Ikebana instructor. At the end of the night, you'll leave with your very own stunning Ikebana arrangement to kick off the start of Summer!

Whether you're a seasoned artist or a complete novice, this is the perfect opportunity to socilaize and explore the beauty of floral design (while enjoying wine & cheese of course!). Cheers to an enchanting evening of flowers, flavors and fun!

Attendees are asked to please bring one of the following:

1. A wine or beverage of choice
2. A cheese & cracker or alternate nosh of choice
   Host will provide glasses, wine opener, plates, napkins and some Japanese treats too!

Bring your friends or come solo - everyone is welcome!

**Fee covers the cost of supplies. Thanks in advance for your understanding!**

We invite you to an engaging evening of wine, cheese and savory conversation around Tina Fey's humorous Bossypants. In this book, Tina Fey reveals all, and proves what we've all suspected: you're no one until someone calls you bossy.

From Goodreads:

Before Liz Lemon, before "Weekend Update," before "Sarah Palin," Tina Fey was just a young girl with a dream: a recurring stress dream that she was being chased through a local airport by her middle-school gym teacher. She also had a dream that one day she would be a comedian on TV.

She has seen both these dreams come true.

At last, Tina Fey's story can be told. From her youthful days as a vicious nerd to her tour of duty on Saturday Night Live; from her passionately halfhearted pursuit of physical beauty to her life as a mother eating things off the floor; from her one-sided college romance to her nearly fatal honeymoon—from the beginning of this paragraph to this final sentence.

As always, please feel free to join even if you have not finished the book - no stress :-)

All attendees are asked to please bring one of the following:

1. A bottle of wine
2. Cheese and Crackers
3. An alternate beverage or nosh of your choice

Host will provide glasses, wine opener, plates & napkins.

To enhance the opportunity for great conversation, we would like to keep the group small. Please feel free to sign-up to meet us along with up to 2 friends.

In the future, we will vary books by genres, settings, eras, awards, themes, etc. The group will make the selections for dates and books at each meeting.

Please feel to share book titles for consideration for the next few months - perhaps we can share some ideas for Fall 2025 reads at the meeting.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU ARE COMMITTED TO ATTEND WHEN YOU RSVP FOR THIS EVENT. We ask that ALL folks honor their RSVP. If you are unable to attend after sending in a YES, please update your status so that others may join us. In the event you do not communicate and are a no-show, your ability to RSVP for future events will be restricted. Thank you in advance for your understanding.

If you are unable to join us in June, we hope you'll remain interested and join us for an evening in the future. Looking forward to wine & cheese with you soon - happy reading!

Join us for an exciting evening of Mahjong, where players of all skill levles are invited to come together for fun, laughter, and friendly competition! Please bring $5 - see updates below.

Whether you're a seasoned pro or a curious beginner, this event is designed to foster a welcoming atmosphere where everyone can learn, play and enjoy the timeless game of Mahjong.

New game plan (updates from January meeting):
Starting in February 2025, each attendee is asked to bring $5.

$1 per game: Each player will contribute a dollar for every game we play. Don't worry; the winner gets to keep their dollar!

$3 per game for a Good Cause: The remaining $3 from each game will go into our collection jar. At the end of the year, we'll donate these funds to an agreed upon local non-profit organization that supports local literacy efforts.

Let's make our mahjong nights not only fun, but also impactful!

Per usual book club nights, attendees are also asked to please bring one of the following:

1. A wine or beverage of choice
2. A cheese & cracker or alternate nosh of choice
   Host will provide glasses, wine opener, plates & napkins.

What to Expect:

- Friendly games with players of varying experience
- A brief introduction to the rules for beginners
- Opportunities to meet new people and connect with fellow enthusiasts
- Light snacks and refreshments to keep you energized

Don't miss the chance to dive into the world of Mahjong! Bring your friends or come solo - everyone is welcome!

We'll reconfirm RSVP's again before the event to avoid no-shows and allow those on the waitlist an opportunity to join.

We look forward to a fantastic night filled with strategy, skill and socializing!

WAITLIST:
Meetup does not allow a waitlist for paid events. If this event fills and you are interested in adding your name to the waitlist, please send host a message through the app.

** The small non-refundable registration fee helps us share the cost associated with the Meet-Up platform ($360/yr) and reduces the likelihood of no-shows, allowing us to better plan our events and accommodate all participants. Meetup charges $0.51 and Paypal charges $0.53 on the $2 registration fee. Thanks in advance for your understanding!**

** Hello all - this month's meeting will be held at a pool booked through Swimply (uber for pools - haha!). The total cost was $155.25 for our group, so we'll plan to split the cost amongst those who attend the meeting. Hope that works out ok for everyone! In the event of inclement weather, we'll pivot to an indoor venue. Thanks all for being great sports!**

We invite you to an engaging evening of wine, cheese and conversation around Louise Penny's debut mystery novel Still Life. Still Life is the debut novel written by Louise Penny and published in January 2005. This novel won the Anthony Award for Best First Novel in 2007. It is the first in a series of mystery novels featuring Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and set in Quebec.

From Goodreads:

The discovery of a dead body in the woods on Thanksgiving Weekend brings Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and his colleagues from the Surete du Quebec to a small village in the Eastern Townships. Gamache cannot understand why anyone would want to deliberately kill well-loved artist Jane Neal, especially any of the residents of Three Pines - a place so free from crime it doesn't even have its own police force.

But Gamache knows that evil is lurking somewhere behind the white picket fences and that, if he watches closely enough, Three Pines will start to give up its dark secrets...

As always, please feel free to join even if you have not finished the book - no stress :-)

All attendees are asked to please bring one of the following:

1. A bottle of wine
2. Cheese and Crackers
3. An alternate beverage or nosh of your choice

Host will provide glasses, wine opener, plates & napkins.

To enhance the opportunity for great conversation, we would like to keep the group small. Please feel free to sign-up to meet us along with up to 2 friends.

In the future, we will vary books by genres, settings, eras, awards, themes, etc. The group will make the selections for dates and books at each meeting.

Please feel to share book titles for consideration for the next few months - perhaps we can share some ideas for Fall 2025 reads at the meeting.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU ARE COMMITTED TO ATTEND WHEN YOU RSVP FOR THIS EVENT. We ask that ALL folks honor their RSVP. If you are unable to attend after sending in a YES, please update your status so that others may join us. In the event you do not communicate and are a no-show, your ability to RSVP for future events will be restricted. Thank you in advance for your understanding.

If you are unable to join us in July, we hope you'll remain interested and join us for an evening in the future. Looking forward to wine & cheese with you soon - happy reading!