But we made good use of our additional time in the multimedia room.  Mostly we were chatting about the wonderful pancake concoctions we were going to make, but the conversation soon took a turn and we ended up, and stayed on, the theme of fish.  I don’t remember how we got there, but here in no particular order are the details of the three major fishy topics of discussion:

1. Nick Bosdet made the amazing choice of Fish Paste as a pancake topping – not sure why – and the judges soon made it clear that they wouldn’t be tasting anything with Fish Paste on it – sorry Nick.
2. Ian Welch set a World Record when he caught a 55 stone Ray using just a rod – check out the details and pictures
3. Bruce Robison of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute has capture amazing pictures and video of the rare Pacific Barreleye fish (Macropinna microstoma) which has a translucent head – check out the pictures & video
   

Anyway, that’s enough fish for now.

At Amicus we try to celebrate the milestones of life and to make them special and memorable.  This evening we were able to bear witness to another milestone – David Putman has become a man.  I realise that might be a little ambiguous and get us in trouble, so let me clarify.  David Putman has his first proper facial hair {click the chin on the right to see it in all its glory}.  Congratulations David – we’ll be watching it with interest.

So onto the real content of the evening.  As you know, at Amicus today is “Shrove Wednesday” (because we don’t meet on Tuesdays), and we traditionally stuff ourselves sick with pancakes.  This year we had a slightly different approach, inviting everyone to enter a pancake into a competition with the following four categories:

1. Best Flavour Combination
2. Most Original Ingredient
3. Most Daring Ingredient
4. Wildcard Prize: for an outstanding creation which doesn’t qualify in the other categories

Everyone did a great job, and even with a slightly dodgy pancake batter, there were some delicious creations.  The pictures below obviously don’t convey the tastiness, but have a look anyway:

Here are the details of each submission, and details of the winners in each category:

• Nick – Sweet Chilli Sauce {Booby Prize: Worst Ingredient Choice}
• Flic -  Maple Syrup, Banana, Cream, Apple and Nuttella
• James  – Half’n'half Strawberry & Cream/Banana & Maple Syrup
• David – Reggae Reggae Sauce and Baby Food {Winner: Most Daring Ingredient for ‘baby food’}
• Matt – Black Pudding and Sundried Tomato
• Yolanda – Banana, Golden Syrup, Cream and Sherbert {Winner: Most Original Ingredient for ‘sherbert’}
• Simon – Parmesan, Pesto and Pine Nut
• Chris – Banoffee Pie {Winner: Wildcard Prize for best ensemble}
• Ricky – Fried Egg and English Cheddar {not judged}
• Graham – Chorizo, Pepperdew Peppers & Parmesan {Winner: Best Flavour Combination}

We closed the “formal” part of the evening with James leading devotions during which time he “expertly” likened life to a pancake, and suggested that we’re all “just a bunch of ingredients to start with” and that we’re all “going to end up being digested by the universe”.  Nice…

I was disappointed by the lack of response to last week’s “pants” challenge (see end of post) – anyone going to have a go?

The new programme now in the calendar (subject to change) so please head over and take a look at what we’re doing, and when you’re leading an activity or devotions – don’t get caught out!

Next week: Promise Auction Planning – we really need to crack on and make some more progress.

We resumed the session with the same teams, except for one tactical substitution, but before long the losing team got frustrated and a little disheartened. We shuffled the players around before starting again from scratch – this time the game was much more even. Perhaps a little too well-matched as there was only one goal scored in about 20 minutes, but an enjoyable game anyway. Then we had a complete change and tried to play dodgeball by following the rules which feature in the film of the same name (rather than the Junior Section favourite). It took a couple of attempts before we got the rules right, but we persevered, even in the face of enthusiastic debate. If you’re interested, you can play Dodgeball online here. On a not-quite-related note, check out the FaceBall phenomenon. Either watch the short video introductions below, read “A FaceBall Primer for the Memory Deficient“, or take a quick look at a couple of photos of how the game is played. It definitely looks like a possible future Amicus activity.

Despite discussing it with as many people as possible, and a reminder on the website last week, the Ikea breakfast wasn’t very well supported. Obviously a number of people of people have excuses because they are at work – but the rest of you… Despite there only being three of us this time, we had a great time. The breakfast was as good as ever, and a bargain, and we chatted about a whole range of things, none of which we’ll share. You’ll have to come along next time…

It’s been a long time coming, but I’ve finally managed to get round to writing the “start of session” letter. Yes I know it’s a few months late, but it’s done now. You can download it here, and it will also be emailed to all current Amicus members. It also includes the order form for the all new Amicus Hoodies which are available at the bargain price of just £20 (click the picture to the right to see the design). If you would like to purchase one please complete the form and hand it to an Amicus leader by Friday, 2nd May at the latest.

Next Week: Simon will be leading us in part two of our Bible Study series {see prequel and part one}