Hey LIX Chicks!

Well the municipal campaign is finally winding down...thank God...it feels like this thing has been dragging on forever! I'm thinking that it's a darn good thing that there are only a few more days left. Someone 'borrowed' our Alex Munter sign during the night (fortunately we had two). And I heard on CBC this afternoon that some right-wing lunatic pretending to be from an organization called 'Homosexual Supremacy' decided to stir up anti-Munter sentiments by sending an inane letter to Ottawa churches (fortunately that effort back-fired as well). If Monday's vote goes as expected, we're going to have an 'out' gay mayor in this town! I have to say this is very exciting for me. As an old dinosaur of the gay liberation movement in this province, I remember the days when we were struggling just to get basic human rights protection in Ontario. So whether or not you plan to vote for Alex, the mere fact that he's running is an amazing testament to the work of our community.

If the theft of our Alex Munter sign hadn't pissed me off enough today, this afternoon I got a call from a 'customer service representative' from the Ottawa Sun. 'David' wanted to know if I'd like to subscribe to the paper...to which I replied, "David, the Ottawa Sun is a disgusting sexist, racist, homophobic piece of trash. If I want to be insulted, I'll simply walk out to Preston Street and pay someone a quarter to kick me!". Well, poor David didn't know what to say...he very quickly wished me a good day and hung up.

Not to mention the Jehovah's Witness woman who showed up at my door last week (one of the hazards of working from one's home). After she introduced herself, she started to pull one of her pamphlets out of her huge black handbag. Before she had it half-way out, I said "Honey, I'm a lesbian. I don't think we have a good fit here." She replied, "Oh...that's okay. We don't mind." Eyes blazing, I snarled at her, "No you don't understand. I don't care if YOU don't mind. I MIND! See that rainbow flag there. That means I'm queer! I suggest that, in future, you stay away from houses that have rainbow flags hanging from their porches!" Watching her run down my stairs, I had to smile. What can I say...it's in my blood. Once an activist, always an activist.

For those of you who missed the coffee meeting on the 7th, you're not going to believe this. We're moving again! We have given it a good shot at the Bridgehead at Bank & Albert. But to be honest with you, we're tired of having to ask the straight patrons to move to another area of the cafe and we really don't have any right to ask them to move in the first place. Unfortunately for us, management predictions that this location would be 'dead' after 6:30 pm. have proved inaccurate. This is great news for the gals who own Bridgehead and we're very happy for them...but it's bad news for us. The other problem is that the acoustics suck...I, for one, don't want to have to yell to be heard above the noise of the coffee grinder. So the search begins! We will continue at Bank & Albert until we find a new location. On behalf of the LIX Steering Committee, I'd like to publicly thank Gina and Tracy of Bridgehead for welcoming us into their cafes. I hope LIX members will continue to support the various Bridgehead locations around the city.

So we used part of the coffee meeting this month to have a brain-storming session about potential new locations for our monthly meetings. The handsome and talented, Kerry Beckett, facilitated the session and the group came up with some exciting possibilities! Twelve fabulous LIX dykes are now racing around Ottawa checking out suggested locations. We will keep you posted on our progress. In the meantime, if any of you know of a suitable location for the LIX coffee meeting, please send me an email at info@girlswanttoknow.com. We are ideally looking for a place that is: central, free of charge, close to public transit and parking, preferably CLOSED to the public in the evenings and willing to open up for our meeting; and has: good acoustics, and sells good quality coffee, tea, desserts and snacks/sandwiches.

Thank you Wendy Denley. You are a saint! We had planned for Wendy to give a presentation on the LIX web site at the coffee meeting. So she did all her preparation, got there early, hooked up her computer and an extra monitor that would allow our members to see the web site as she was talking...and she was ready to go. She 'pulled up' the LIX home page and then, disaster...technical difficulties with the 'line' at Bridgehead. Wendy valiantly invoked backup plan 'B' and got everything going again, only to encounter further technical problems with the line. At that point, I would have been either in tears or tossing the bloody computer out the front window...but Wendy persevered and did, what can only be described as, a outstanding job of regrouping and going on with the show! Wendy, not only have you created a truly beautiful web site for LIX, but on Tuesday you demonstrated incredible patience and professionalism! We are blessed to have you girlfriend!

Special Interest Groups and Activities:

Conversational French classes...Louise has found six other women who are interested in forming a class with her so her plan is a definite 'go' for January. She's asked me to leave this announcement in for November in case there are any other women who would like to join them. If you're interested please contact Louise at redballoons101@hotmail.com.

 
Upcoming Events of Interest


 

  


1. The Kiss. An evening for women presented by Bisougirls. Mix and mingle after work the 2nd Friday of every month. The next get-together will take place on Friday, November 10th. Doors open at 5:00 pm. at Club Soda, 222 Slater Street.

2. Spinning Madly...turning fallen wood into art. Our own LIX member Sinead Bomba, 'artist in wood', is participating in three upcoming craft shows. The first is the Gloucester Craftsmans Guild Show at Lester B. Pearson High School, 2072 Jasmine Cres. on November 11th and 12th (10:00 am. - 4:00 pm.). The second show is the Glebe Craft & Artisan Fair at the Glebe Community Centre, 175 Third Avenue, November 17 (6:00 - 9:00 pm.), November 18th (10:00 - 5:00 pm.) and November 19th (10:00 am. - 4:00 pm.). And the third is Sinead's own show: Spinning Madly Open House at 179 Dovercourt Ave. on December 8th (4:00 - 9:00 pm.), and December 9th and 10th (10:00 am. - 4:00 pm.).

3. Transforming Faith. The Unitarian Church in Ottawa is holding a special service on Sunday, November 12th at 10:30 am. devoted to the Trans community. The service will be given by trans people and will include speakers, songs, and info on the community. The service takes place at 30 Cleary.

4. Municipal Election. Don't forget to exercise your rights on Monday, November 13th as Ottawa heads to the polls to choose leaders for the next four years. With many issues facing our community, this is an important election. For more information, go to www.ottawa.ca/city_hall/elections/elections_2006.

5. The Divergence Movie Night is a monthly event featuring independent queer films. The next screening is Changing Our Minds, a film about the work of Dr. Evelyn Hooker. During the 1950's, she undertook ground-breaking research that led to a radical discovery: homosexuals were not, by definition 'sick'. Dr. Hooker's findings sent shock waves through the psychiatric community and culminated in a major victory for gay rights - in 1974 the weight of her studies, along with gay activism, forced the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its official manual of mental disorders. Tuesday, November 14th at 7 pm. at Galerie SAW Gallery, 67 Nicholas Street. The event is FREE but a $5 donation is much appreciated.

6. All About Almodovar. Acclaimed Spanish director Pedro Almodovar is one of the foremost gay filmmakers working today. In honour of his latest film, Volver, which means “to return,” the ByTowne Cinema is holding a Pedro Almodovar Retrospective. His movies are renowned for their strong female characters, sexual taboos, scandal and gay themes. The Retrospective starts Thursday, November 16th with Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down and ends on Thursday, December 21st with Bad Education. In all, six of his films will be screened including the Oscar-winning All About My Mother. To see the full film schedule, go to www.bytowne.ca.

7. The 19th annual Montreal International LGBT Film Festival will be held from November 16 - 26. Queer-themed and inspired films and documentaries from around the world will be screened at the Cinema Imperial. For full details and schedule go to www.image-nation.org.

8. The annual Trans Day of Remembrance ceremony will be held on Monday, November 20th. This event honours those of the trans community who have suffered and died for being who they were born to be. An outdoor vigil will be held at the Human Rights Monument on Laurier at 7:00 pm. It will be followed at 7:30 pm. by a ceremony in the council lounge at City Hall, 110 Laurier.

9. Lady in Red 3, a wine-tasting, fundraising event for Harmony House, will be held on Tuesday, November 21st from 7:00 - 9:00 pm. at City Hall, Jean Pigott Place, 110 Laurier Avenue West. Tickets are $25 and are available at mother tongue books, After Stonewall, Venus Envy and Capital Xtra.

10. Capital Pride. The Capital Pride Committee will be holding their Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, November 21st at 6:00 pm. The meeting will include final details on this summer’s festival plus nominations for next year’s committee. Ottawa City Hall, 110 Laurier.

11. Venus Envy regularly holds workshops of interest to women. To see what's happening in November, check out the web site at www.venusenvy.ca.

12. "The Voice" is a new Ottawa-based women's literary fundraising magazine...that will donate its proceeds back into various events and charities in the community. The first issue will be out at the beginning of October. 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.

13. 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.

14. Mother Tongue Books is holding a launch party for author Marusya Bociurkiw’s latest novel, The Children of Mary, on Wednesday, November 22nd at 7:00 pm. The author will be on hand to read from her latest work. Refreshments will be served. Mother Tongue Books is located at 1067 Bank Street.

15. 'Certain Sort' presents Cherry Bomb, a dance party for all queers on Friday, December 1st from 10:00 pm. - 2:00 am. at Shanghai Restaurant, 651 Somerset W. Tickets will be available at the door for $5. This event is sponsored by Venus Envy. Proceeds will go to the Venus Envy Bursary Fund.

16. Butch Cooks. The Lee Lynch and Renee La Chance Butch Cookbook needs more recipes. They would like recipes, stories and a short bio from butches who cook and even those who don't. Send them to greenhat66@gmail.com. Deadline is December 1st.

17. 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. The next meeting is Monday, December 4th. 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 email her at cproulx@familyservicesottawa.org.

18. Ottawa’s queer choir, Tone Cluster, presents North Wind, a Christmas concert featuring music from northern climates and holiday favourites. This event is also a CD release party for their new CD 'This is Tone Cluster'. The concert is being held on Sunday, December 3 at 3:00 pm. at First Baptist Church (Elgin at Laurier). Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door and are available at mother tongue books, After Stonewall, Wilde's, and at The Leading Note. Accompanied children under the age of 12 will have free admission at the door. For more information about Tone Cluster, check out their web site at www.gaycanada.com/tonecluster.

19. Our next LIX Coffee Networking Meeting will be held at Bridgehead at the corner of Bank & Albert on Tuesday, December 5th from 7:00-9:00pm. If you have any interest in presenting a five-minute infomercial about your business, please contact us at info@girlswanttoknow.com.

20. Wednesday, December 6th is the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre. On that evening women will be meeting for a Vigil at the Women's Monument in Minto Park at Elgin & Gilmour at 6:00 p.m. The theme this year is 'remembrance and action to end violence against women'. The vigil will be followed by a service at First United Church at 397 Kent St. at 7:00 pm. If you would like further information about the vigil, please call Valerie at (613) 230-6700 or check the WISE web site www.wiseottawa.ca.

21. 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 http://www.outstuff.ca/cruise.html for details.

As always, 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 section of this e-news. Networking works...for business and pleasure! Send your news and ideas for interest groups to me at info@girlswanttoknow.com.

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.

Cheers,
Marie Robertson
for the LIX Steering Committee


www.girlswanttoknow.com


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