Hey LIX Chicks,
 Holy festivals and parties! Ottawa and area is hopping this summer! The Jazz Festival, Canada Day, Bluesfest, the Red Roof Women's Music Festival, 'Out on the Queen' in Kingston, Capital Pride, the LIX Proud Chicks Dance Party, Cornwall Pride. I can hardly keep up. We live in a city where the winters can be so grueling that even the ski bunnies are 'fit to be tied' by mid-February! I find it downright hellish...my favourite winter sport is reading. So I look forward to the summer with great enthusiasm. Not that I start roller-blading or jogging or anything strenuous like that...reading's my favourite summer sport too...but I get to do it outside!
Lucy and I went to Toronto Pride at the end of June and had a blast. The highlight of the weekend for me was, most definitely, the lesbian dance at Palais Royale Ballroom out on Lakeshore Boulevard. Palais Royale was originally opened in 1922 and quickly became one of Toronto's most famous dance halls. During the big band era, it showcased the likes of Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Glen Miller. Well fortunately for us, the ballroom has been restored to its original splendor and now offers its elegant, art deco fabulousness to lesbians on the Friday night of Pride in Toronto. They even had a red carpet rolled out in front when we arrived! The wooden dance floor is 'sprung' which means it's easier on the old knees...a feature I particularly appreciate. If you've never been there, I encourage you to think about heading down to Toronto next June so you can dance the night away in style. As a dyke who's been out for over 35 years, I've spent far too much time in dingy basement clubs. It was truly lovely to climb the stairs into a beautifully-decorated, lesbian fantasy space. If you'd like to have a look for yourself, go to www.palaisroyale.ca.
The next morning started out grey and rainy, but by 2:00 pm. the sun was shining, hundreds of women were gathering on Church Street, and the sound of dykes on bikes could be heard as they revved their engines to lead the Toronto Dyke March. Lucy and I were craning our necks to see which contingent we wanted to join for the March when who should we spot amidst those formidable lezzie bikers...Laura and Angela from LIX! And they managed to get themselves interviewed by the Toronto Star! For video coverage of our gals, go to www.thestar.com/fpLarge/video/450435. LIX Chicks rock!
Well we're back in Ottawa and revving up for our own Pride celebrations. Tickets for Proud Chicks Dance Party 4 went on sale at the LIX networking meeting on July 3rd and are now available at After Stonewall, mother tongue books and Venus Envy. Lakeside Gardens may not be the Palais Royale but the gals will be rocking and the fairy lights twinkling on Friday, August 22nd. Get your tickets early if you want to make sure you get in. We had to turn away women at the door last year (a real bummer if you've taken OC Transpo all the way out there!).
And speaking about the LIX networking meeting, this month we were happy to welcome the lovely and talented, Lily Ohana, for her five-minute infomercial. Lily is a graduate of the Home Inspectors program at Algonquin College and owns her own home inspection company called HomeStat. She is proud to be an associate member of the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors and the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors. Lily explained that a home inspection is an objective visual examination of the physical structure and systems of a house, from the roof to the foundation. Since buying a home can be the largest single investment that we ever make, it's important to minimize nasty surprises and unexpected problems before we buy. And that's where Lily's expertise comes in. The typical inspection takes about 3-4 hours.  Lily encourages her clients to be present and follow her around as she does her work. That way, you can ask questions and raise any concerns that you have about the property. Lily also provides you with a detailed report which includes a description of every system, its components, recommendations for action and reference material. So whether you're buying an older home or a newly-built house, or looking for an pre-listing inspection before you put your house on the market, consider contacting Lily at (613) 963-0772. She has a great web site at www.homestat.ca.
If you've never done a five-minute infomercial or if you did one but it was a long time ago, we encourage you to add your name to the list by contacting Lucy at (613) 231-4347 or at info@girlswanttoknow.com. Infomercials don't have to be business-related. Do you have an interesting hobby? Do you belong to an organization that you'd like to tell us about? How about volunteer work that's meaningful to you? We have spots available now.
I posted a couple of items recently that I hope all you LIX Facebook gals liked. "Which doctor" was a piece written by Ivan Coyote about her experience as an out dyke with chest hair going to a walk-in clinic in Ottawa. And "Heinz Deli Mayo TV Ad" is an hysterical video with a twist about one family's morning ritual. Talk to you next month... |
We encourage you to send us news of events and/or workshops that you are involved in so we can add the information to our Upcoming Events of Interest section of this monthly news update. We need to know the who's, what's, where's as well as cost, where tickets are available, if pre-registration is required, and if it's a fundraiser, what organization you're raising funds for. If the organization has a web site, that web address would be helpful. And we'd love to see more of your entries in the Special Interest Groups and Activities, the LIX Chicks Want Ads, and the LIX Chicks Tips. Networking works...for information, business and pleasure! Send your news and ideas to me at info@girlswanttoknow.com. We need your information by the end of the month in order to guarantee inclusion in the following month's issue.
So...there you go! For more information about the LIX network, check out our web site at www.girlswanttoknow.com, send us an email at info@girlswanttoknow.com or chat with one of us at a networking meeting at Swizzles.
Cheers,
Marie Robertson
for the LIX Steering Committee |
