Shortly after 7:00, Lucy welcomed everyone and introduced Jess who works for New Beginnings for Youth, the charitable organization that runs the cafe. Jess gave us some background on The Roasted Cherry project as well as information on some of the other projects that New Beginnings for Youth has developed. You can find out more by visiting www.roastedcherry.com. We are very pleased to be partnering on such a valuable community initiative.

We had more than 55 women in attendance which made for a fascinating 'go-around' of one-minute introductions. Wendy did an outstanding job of emceeing these intros...that girl worked the room and made sure that every woman got a chance to introduce herself. It's very important to us on the LIX Steering Committee that our coffee meetings are friendly and fun which is why we take the time at each meeting for these introductions. We never want anyone to get lost in the shuffle or to feel neglected.

This month's five minute infomercial spot was a presentation by Wendy Barber who sits on the board of the Ten Oaks Project. Ten Oaks is a not-for-profit, charitable organization that serves children and youth of LGBTQ families, and/or non-traditional families, youth who identify as LGBTQ and their allies. The organization is based in the Ottawa-Gatineau region and currently offers a week long sleep-away camp each August. Wendy also talked about the upcoming fundraising bowl-a-thon that takes place on March 3rd at the West Park Bowling Lanes on Wellington Street. Several bowlers proceeded with their own versions of 'working the room' in order to collect pledges. If you'd like to sponsor a team or an individual, go to the Ten Oaks Project web site at www.tenoaksproject.org and follow the instructions for how to make a pledge.

Our LIX dinner/speaker meeting at The Pantry is sold out! I thought those reservations flew quickly last year...this year we sold out in five days! I already have a waiting list of women eager to attend so, as we get closer to March 19th, if any of you LIX chicks with reservations find that you cannot attend for any reason, please send me an email at info@girlswanttoknow.com. Doors open at 6:00 on the night of the event. We'll have a welcome table set up where you can check in before finding seats and chatting with your friends.

As part of our ongoing efforts to do everything possible to ensure that you receive your e-newsletters, we have some important information from LIX member, Pam. Pam recently figured out a solution for the women who've been having problems getting LIX e-mail and who use Norton Internet Security on their systems. If you fit in this group, you're probably reading this e-newsletter off the LIX web site at a friend's place or at an Internet cafe. Hopefully, Pam's information will help you and you'll be able to receive your e-newsletter on your own computer from now on! Pam's advice is:

• Open Norton Internet Security (double-click on the icon in your System Tray)
• Select Norton Internet Security Section (below Norton Protection Center)
• Select the Statistics option
• Click the View Logs button
• Select Email Filtering
• In the From column, look for the LIX info@girlswanttoknow.com entry
• Select that entry, then in the Details window below, select the Retrain as Clean button.

Next time an email is sent from the LIX account, it should be accepted. You may wish to scan through the Classification column to look for other 'Spam' entries to see if they should also be 'Clean'. If you're having a problem and you're quite sure that it isn't about junk email filters or weird software on your end, Wendy is happy to try and sort out the problem with you. Please contact her directly at wendy@imaginationseverything.com.

LIX now has an extension on Capital Xtra's Community Listings page! Our extension is 2013. Note that there was a misprint in the February 1st issue of Capital Xtra...our extension number was listed incorrectly. Our number REALLY is 2013...call (613) 237-XTRA to check out our enticing message.

Have you checked out the Members Links page on our web site www.girlswanttoknow.com? A small (but steadily growing) number of our members are taking advantage of the free advertising opportunity on the LIX site. We encourage you to visit the web sites of our LIX members and to support their business ventures. If you'd like to add your business information to the site, please send an email to the fabulous Wendy at wendy@imaginationseverything.com.

Many of you already know about the project to bring Vancouver lesbian writer, Ivan E. Coyote, to Carleton University in 2007 as a writer in residence. LIX member, Jodie Medd, is one of the driving forces behind the project. (See #2 in Upcoming Events of Interest for info about the fundraising brunch on February 18th.) The LIX Steering Committee has decided to follow the excellent example of some of our members so we are donating $500 to the project. This donation will be matched by the Carleton/Lambda group to create a $1000 donation. Hope to see lots of LIX chicks at the brunch!

This fundraiser for Capital Pride 2007, takes place at Le French Quarter, 80 Promenade du Portage, Gatineau. Cocktails at 6:30, dinner at 7:30. $100 a plate (table d'hote), $500 for a table of six. Performance by Glenn Nuotio. Prize for the best Mardi Gras mask. Tickets are available at After Stonewall, mother tongue books, One in Ten, Venus Envy and Wilde's. For information check the Pride web site at www.prideottawa.com.

Help bring lesbian writer, Ivan E. Coyote, to the Capital by attending a fundraising brunch from 10:30 am. - 2:00 pm. at the home of LIX member and assistant professor at Carleton, Jodie Medd. Jodie's address is 387 Sunnyside Avenue (between Leonard and Rosedale). Join Coyote fans for fabulous food, coffee and company and make a donation to support the plan to bring Ivan to Ottawa as a writer-in-residence at Carleton University in 2007 - 2008. Carleton & the Lambda Foundation will match donations pledged at this event - your pledge will be worth twice as much! Donations of over $25.00 are tax deductible. This is also a celebration to cast a good spell on the Canada Council grant application for the residency. You can expect: Ivan in performance on DVD & CD, an auction, chances to win a signed copy of one of Ivan's books, Ivan's latest books on sale, organic fair-trade coffee, scrumptious homemade food, a good time for a great cause! Information on Ivan E. Coyote and the Lambda Foundation can be found at www.lambdafoundation.com/coyote.htm. Do you have questions? Do you want to help out? Contact Jodie at jmedd@ccs.carleton.ca.

The Ottawa-Gatineau Pride Committee invites you to one of its 'february is for pride' events. The Buzz, 374 Bank Street. 6:00 pm.

Come out and enjoy the company of other single women over a fabulous meal at The Urban Pear, 151 Second Avenue in the Glebe. Drinks are at 6:30pm and dinner at 7:00pm. The reservation is under Savour, but please rsvp to bisougirls@yahoo.com so that they can ensure there's enough space - it fills up quickly!

Don't miss this opportunity to get away from the cold and snow in Ottawa with the second annual Women at Sea tour! On February 24, 2007 women will be boarding the Star Princess and heading to the Western Caribbean. Special tour price includes round trip airfare to Ft. Lauderdale, a pre-cruise hotel room the night before the ship sails, transfers to and from the airport, 7 night cruise, all your meals and a Women at Sea t-shirt. Call George at the Cruise Ship Centre (1-866-313-3309) for information on cabin availability and prices or check out www.outstuff.ca/cruise.html for details.

Back after another successful year of raising awareness and funds for the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Ottawa! Performances will be held at the Bronson Centre. This year's theme for Vday is "Reclaiming Peace". To that end the Ottawa Vday girls are also trying to raise funds and link with a group in the Democratic Republic of Congo. There, rape is commonly been used as a weapon of war. Ottawa Vday is an ad-hoc group of women who have come together to be the Ottawa members of the Worldwide Vday Campaign, a catalyst for mobilizing communities to raise awareness to stop violence against women and girls. You can find out more information at www.ottawavday.ca. Proceeds from local productions of "The Vagina Monologues" are donated directly to organizations that are working to stop violence against women in their communities. Tickets for the event are $20.00 and are available at Venus Envy, mother tongue books, and the Ottawa Women's Credit Union.

West Park Bowling on Wellington Street. A number of women from LIX are bowling (on various teams). If you'd like to sponsor a team or an individual, go to the Ten Oaks Project web site at www.tenoaksproject.org and follow the instructions for how to make a pledge. The Ten Oaks Project is a not-for-profit, charitable organization that serves children and youth of LGBTQ and/or non-traditional families, youth who identify as LGBTQ and their allies.

Calling all moms of kids 12 and under! Rainbow Families, a drop-in group for LGBTTQ parents and their children 0-12 meets the first Monday of each month from 6:00 - 7:30 pm. at Centretown Community Health Centre, 420 Cooper Street. At the beginning of each meeting, the families share a cheap and cheerful supper of pizza together. After the meal, the kids play together in supervised childcare while the parents meet for a support group. The facilitators need the names and ages (kids only) of those attending and your pizza preferences. They also ask for a $ contribution for pizza to the extent that you can - $5/adult and 2-3$/child is suggested but they are happy to receive whatever is manageable for your family. For information about this group, please contact Carol Proulx at (613) 725-3601 X126 or check out the web site at www.around-therainbow.com.

Our next meeting will be held at The Roasted Cherry at 93 O'Connor Street at the corner of Slater on from 7:00 - 9:00 pm. If you have any interest in presenting a five-minute infomercial about your business at one of the coffee meetings, please contact us at info@girlswanttoknow.com.

Pink or blue. Male or female. Mommy or daddy. Categories that we all take for granted are broken apart in Transparency, a documentary about 19 female-to-male transsexuals who have given birth and who, in all but a few stories, have gone on to raise their biological children. Free admission; $5 suggested donation. SAW Gallery, 67 Nicholas Street at 7:00 pm.

Guest speakers for this popular event are writers Helen Humphreys and Alex Brett who will both be reading from their work and answering questions after we enjoy a scrumptious vegetarian dinner. The Pantry, 175 Third Avenue in the Glebe Community Centre. Please be there at 6:00 pm. to pick your table and visit with other LIX members. This event is SOLD OUT.

Get ready for the sexy, raunchy and sensational third annual Heart on Burlesque show! This queer burlesque style night for women, womyn, wimmin and transfolk will be held at Club SAW. The organizers are looking for various acts such as: skits, literary readings, comedy, singing, dancing, and prancing, drama, spoken word, drag, vaudeville fun, burlesque, silliness, seriousness, and more!! Show Proceeds go to Agitate: Queer Women of Colour, the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Ottawa, and SAW Gallery. Anyone wishing to perform or volunteer may send inquiries to cuntettes@bust.com

The "Keep it Simple" group of Al-Anon meets every Sunday evening at 7:30 pm. at the Jack Purcell Community Centre on Elgin Street. Millions of people are affected by the excessive drinking of someone close to them. If you fall into this category and are looking for a safe GLBTQ space to get help and support, this meeting is for you. For more information call (613) 860-3431 or go to the web site at http://al-anon.alateen.on.ca

"The Voice" is an Ottawa-based women's literary fundraising magazine...that will donate its proceeds back into various events and charities in the community. The creators are looking for interested subscribers as well as women who wish to submit writing, photography or artwork for upcoming issues. The yearly subscription rate is $18. Find details on advertising, sponsorship, subscriptions, submitting work and more at: www.mwdesign.ca/TheVoice.

Integrity Ottawa Monthly Eucharist takes place on the first Sunday of each month at the Church of the Ascension, 253 Echo Drive, Ottawa at 7:00 pm. Integrity Ottawa is a gathering of gay men, lesbians and straight friends living in the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa. They are interested in supporting the lives of LGBTTQ people in the Anglican Church of Canada and abroad in the wider Anglican Communion. For more information, check out: www.ottawa.integritycanada.org or email Gillian Wallace at ottawa@integritycanada.org.

Venus Envy regularly holds workshops of interest to women. To see what's happening, check out the web site at www.venusenvy.ca. Venus Envy is located at 320 Lisgar Street.

Pour Les Femmes is a new group for francophone women who love women. Lesbians and bisexual women are invited to get together to discuss various issues at the Lowertown Community Centre, 40 Cobourg. Meetings are held every Tuesday. For more information and/or to register, call Kiera Denault at (613) 789-3930.

So...there you go! For more information about the LIX network, feel free to call Kerry at (613) 237-7133 or Marie at (613) 231-4347. You can also send us an email at info@girlswanttoknow.com or chat with one of the four of us (Kerry, Lucy, Wendy or Marie) at a coffee meeting. And please check out the LIX web site at www.girlswanttoknow.com.