Aqua Books Presents Brenda Sciberras

Aqua Books is pleased to be the home of the poetry series Speaking Crow Open Mic.


The Speaking Crow Open Mic starts on Tuesday, April 6 at 7:00 p.m., with featured poet Brenda Sciberras. Brenda's presentation will be followed by 2 open-mic sets and short breaks in between.

Come take up the mic and wax poetic about life, the universe and everything!


Brenda Sciberras earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Manitoba and is an alumni of the Manitoba Writers’ Guild Sheldon Oberman Emerging Writers’ Program, the Sage Hill Writing Experience in Saskatchewan, and the Banff Wired Writing Studio in Alberta.

Her poetry has appeared in The Collective Consciousness, Room of One’s Own, Contemporary Verse 2, Rhubarb and in the anthology A Cross Sections: New Manitoba Writing.

Brenda was raised in rural Manitoba, and now lives in Winnipeg with her husband, writer David Elias.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Winnipeg Humane Society's Viva Paws Vegas

Yappy Hour 2010 presents Viva Paws Vegas, a one-night whirlwind for you and your canine companion, in support of The Winnipeg Humane Society, on Thursday April 8, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at The Fairmont Winnipeg.
 

Join them, with or without your furry friend, for an evening of cocktails, dancing and fun. Dress to impress. Prizes awarded for best costume.

You could even win a trip for two to Vegas!
 

Beau, Tom and Frazier from 99.9 BOB FM will be in attendance and hosting the fun-filled night.

 
The evening will feature: 
• Muttrimony wedding chapel
• Pawdicures
• Tasty treats for your dog
• Photo Booth – pet pics
• Great prizes and contesting
• Show Girls, Elvis and Frank Sinatra


Tickets are $50 and include a partial tax receipt. Dogs are FREE!
Tickets are available online at The Winnipeg Humane Society or by calling the WHS at 982-2041.
 

All Yappy Hour proceeds will go towards caring for the thousands of animals The WHS cares for each year.
 

Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Aqua Books: Deborah Schnitzer, Struan Sinclair and Margaret Sweatman

The Manitoba Writers' Guild and the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers annually celebrate the local writing and publishing community with the Manitoba Book Awards.


Aqua Books is presenting a series of Nominee Readings, beginning on Wednesday March 31, 7:00 p.m., with readings by Deborah Schnitzer, Struan Sinclair and Margaret Sweatman, the nominees for the Margaret Laurence Award for Fiction.


Deborah Schnitzer’s new book, An Unexpected Break in the Weather, is a novel of unconventional friendships. Schnitzer is a 3M Teaching Fellow in the English Department at the University of Winnipeg.

Struan Sinclair is director of the Department of English Media Lab at the University of Manitoba. His first novel, Automatic World, has been nominated for two Manitoba Book Awards.

Margaret Sweatman is a playwright, poet, performer and novelist. She has been nominated for her long-awaited new novel, The Players.


The series continues with:

Wednesday April 7, 7:00 p.m.
Manuela Dias Book Design/Best Illustrated Book of the Year Award

Thursday April 8, 7:00 p.m.
Aqua Books Lansdowne Prize for Poetry / Prix Lansdowne de poésie
Nominees Jan Horner, Bertrand Nayet and John Toone

Tuesday April 20, 7:00 p.m.
Alexander Isbister Award for Non-Fiction
Nominees Jake MacDonald, Royden Loewen, Gerald Friesen, Brock Holowachuk and Robert Young


There will also be Kelly Hughes Live! specials:

Friday April 16, 7:00 p.m.
Nominees Michael Nathanson and Lise Gaboury-Diallo, Free Press arts reporter Morley Walker, with music by Matt Ward

Friday April 23, 7:00 p.m.
Nominees Allan Levine and Robert Young


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

The 11 Day Week - Winnipeg & Garbage, 2010 (by Margaret Ullrich)

Okay... It looked good on paper.

Lots of really smart government folks did a lot of math.


According to their math, a brand new garbage cart - with wheels - could hold all the garbage a normal, healthy, God-fearing, tree-hugging Winnipeg family of any size could generate in 7 days. I mean, really, experts know, you know?


It was a real good system. They were so pleased with themselves.

Like I said. It looked good on paper.

Unfortunately that piece of paper wasn't a calendar. A calendar with holidays.


Garbage-wise Winnipeg is divided into 5 sections. Garbage is collected Monday to Friday. A day for each section. When there's a holiday the garbage collection day is pushed ahead a day. Only fair. Garbage collectors get a holiday, too.

When the new system began, garbage in northwest Winnipeg was being collected on Wednesday. Then we had Louis Riel Day and Thursday became our collection day. Okay. That's only an extra day's garbage. We're Winnipeggers. We can handle a little inconvenience.


Now we're facing Good Friday and Easter. A double header holiday. It doesn't matter what religion you do or don't follow. In our neighborhood you won't see monster trucks swinging carts into the air for 11 days. Basically a week and a half.


A week and a half with a holiday dinner - turkey or ham - and all the garbage that creates.


Oy.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

The Winnipeg Humane Society on the Farm

Think The Winnipeg Humane Society only cares about house pets? Nah Uh.


The WHS’s farm animal advocacy campaign, Quit Stalling, advocates to ban gestation crates - 2 by 6 foot pens where pregnant pigs are forced to spend their entire lives.  Recently The WHS has teamed up with several other animal welfare organizations, including the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), to develop a cooperative plan to promote cage free eggs and chicken throughout Canada.


Jenelle Petrinchuk, Communications Coordinator of the Winnipeg Humane Society, just sent out a release saying that Manitoba Egg Farmers (MEF) announced a new policy that will see that laying hens live more humane lives. 


The policy states that after 2018 all new or renovated laying hen facilities must have enriched living areas that support all five freedoms:
freedom from thirst, hunger and malnutrition
freedom from discomfort
freedom from pain, injury and disease
freedom to express normal behaviour
freedom from fear and distress

The policy is built around the Five Freedoms, an animal welfare ideology that The Winnipeg Humane Society has been advocating for over a decade.

 
“The public’s attitude towards farm animals is changing.  We know that people care about how farm animals are treated,” said Bill McDonald, Executive Director of The WHS.
 

Penny Kelly, MEF’s General Manager, added, “MEF recognizes the importance of showing leadership and aligning ourselves with society’s values.”


Have a great weekend. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Winnipeg Humane Society's IAMS 1001 Donations

It’s a Radiothon, it’s a Telethon all rolled into 1001!


IAMS 1001 Donations Radiothon/Telethon in support of The Winnipeg Humane Society will take place at the shelter on Sunday March 28, 2010 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.


The WHS has partnered with media outlets CURVE 94.3, 99.9 BOB FM and Shaw TV for their annual Radiothon and Telethon. This fundraiser challenges the city of Winnipeg to make 1001 Donations within 9 hours, all proceeds going directly to the care of their shelter animals.

Satellite locations at Polo Park Shopping Centre and Kildonan Place Shopping Centre will be set up and ready to take drop in donations on event day.


Event Day activities at The WHS will include:
·         Mick E Moose and Goldie
·         Popcorn and Cotton Candy
·         Face painting
·         McDonald’s Drive-Thru set up on the WHS parking lot
·         Pet Pics
·         Fred Penner Appearance
·         Winnipeg Blue Bomber Glenn January Autograph signing
·         St. Mary’s Academy’s Support Team
·         WHS Online Auction to bid


Ways to Donate on March 28 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Phone in:   927-1001

Drop in: 
WHS at 45 Hurst Way
Kildonan Place Shopping Centre
Polo Park Shopping Centre

Drive-Thru: WHS parking lot, 45 Hurst Way
Log on: winnipeghumanesociety.ca
 

Helps us reach 1001 Donations Winnipeg!
 

Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Aqua Books: Workshop, Manitowapow & Spoken Lit

Manitoba Editors' Association presents
The Lighter Side of Punctuation Workshop

Tuesday, March 23, 6:30 p.m.    
$25/$15 (students)

Inspired by Lynne Truss’s best-selling Eats, Shoots and Leaves, this workshop will look at the tiny helpers that guide us through what we read. Winnipeg editor Bev Phillips will explain the wonderful world of punctuation marks.
RSVP to meaworkshops@gmail.com

----------------------------------------------------------------
2010 Manitowapow Series
Thursday, March 25, 7:00 p.m.

Honouring Manitowapow/7 Generations Launch
Featuring writer Jordan Wheeler, storyteller Roberta Kennedy and Aqua Books Writer-in-Residence David Robertson
hosted by Wab Kinew

The unique land of Manitowapow is a crucial part of the experiences of Aboriginal peoples. Modern-day pollution, urban sprawl and projects such as mining has created new complex experiences for the Aboriginal communities of Manitowapow.
On this night, the ongoing critical relationship between people and the earth will be honoured and debated as David Robertson launches Stone, the first in his four-volume graphic novel series 7 Generations.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Telling Tales Spoken Lit Concert Series
Friday, March 26, 7:00 p.m.   
$10

Whale Tales to Balaam's Ass: Bringing Out the Animal in the Old Testament
Storytellers Anne Morton and Rebecca Hiebert, with the Mennonite Blues of Bush Wiebe

Telling Tales is the new spoken word performance series from Aqua Books, and features the city's best (resident and visiting) storytellers, taking on folklore and literature's best stories. Some shows feature music by outstanding performers that complement the spoken word, and most shows are geared towards adults (but non-squirmy kids can come).


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

The Recycling Bubble - Winnipeg & Garbage, 2010 (by Margaret Ullrich)

Recycling is the new religion.

The mark of a good, responsible, God-fearing, earth-loving Winnipeg citizen is having more than one bright blue box jam packed and brimming over with recycling each and every week.


Recycling will save your soul.

Recycling will save the environment.

Recycling will save Winnipeg money.

Maybe.


The R.M.s of Headingley and Macdonald are having to pay more to recycle because there's been a crash in the value of recycled materials.


Crash? As in the Stock Market? As in the housing market? As in tanking RRSPs?


Yesirree. Let's face it, folks. If the price of gold and shiny new stuff can take a hit, do you think the value of garbage is anything on which to base a city's economy? Do you really think we're going to barter with old water bottles as if they were gold bars?


Headingly CAO Chris Fulsher said, "Right now the markets have gone south as far as recycling products are concerned - there are no markets for the recycling products. So right now we are paying more to recycle that we would if we were to dispose of these materials as solid waste."


Using more highly technical government jargon, Macdonald CAO Tom Raine explained, "When the market went all to heck last year, processors were charging him per tonne of recycling instead of paying him per tonne."


In December 2008 there was an economic downtown that reduced the market for recycled materials across North America and recycling facilities had an excess of recyclable materials that couldn't be sold.


And every week, as we've been ordered to do, we churn out more.


Whoops.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Irish Soda Bread Recipe - NY Daily News

Okay... tomorrow's St. Patrick's Day and you want something easy - and cheap - to mark the occasion.


Irish Soda Bread goes well with a corned beef and cabbage dinner or anything else you're serving.


And the cops will love you.


Here's the Irish Soda Bread recipe that I clipped from The New York Daily News 50 years ago. Absolutely Hobbit free.


IRISH SODA BREAD

grease cookie pan
preheat oven to 375º
bake 45 min. + 10 min.

combine
3 Cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
-----
stir in
1/2 Cup currants
-----
stir in
1 1/3 Cups buttermilk

Knead on a floured board
shape into a round loaf
place on prepared pan
cut a cross on top
bake 45 minutes
-----
combine for glaze
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons hot water
remove loaf from oven and brush with glaze
bake 10 minutes


Faith and beggorah! 'Tis a fine recipe.


Have a great St. Patrick's Day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Don't Tell Me About St. Patrick (part 2 - by Margaret Ullrich)

There's lots of stuff about Ireland on the internet. Did you know that corned beef is not the national dish? It was eaten as a last resort during hard times. Irish coffee was the invention of the Buena Vista Cafe in San Francisco. When Irish Eyes are Smiling is an American song. And many Irish people consider green to be an unlucky color.


Finally I found it - The Traditional Irish Soda Bread Recipe - and double clicked.


Now how was I supposed to know the cosmic forces that click would unleash? Before you could say "Faith and beggorah", my computer started to glow, I heard a banshee wail and my printer took on a life of its own printing sheets of I didn't know what. Odd characters strolled around my room. They looked like a touring company of The Lord of Rings. Some were chanting, some were crying and some were doing tai chi.


This was not a good thing.


Enough was enough. I pressed the option and command keys, made the sign of the cross and punched the escape key. It worked. iMac 1, Druids 0.


The pages were all over the floor. Seems somebody is holding a cosmic grudge.

Acccording to legend, St. Patrick put a curse on venomous snakes in Ireland. Then he drove all the snakes into the sea. Well, according to my visiting Hobbits, the snakes were a popular tourist attraction, their version of the Narcisse Wildlife Management Area.

You've heard of Narcisse, where thousands of red-sided garter snakes emerge from the limestone sinkholes in late April and tangle in a mating ritual for three weeks. Ok, it's not Disneyland, but tourists come and spend and that's always a good thing. Why wreck a nice little cottage industry? Why, indeed. I guess History rewrites by the winner is not a new thing.


Oh, among the pages was a recipe for traditional Irish Soda Bread. I don't think I'll try it. No, the corned beef and cabbage is enough. I don't need the bread.

Hmm... the Atkins diet, which cuts out bread, is sure popular in the Age of Aquarius.


Coincidence? I think not.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Don't Tell Me About St. Patrick (part 1 - by Margaret Ullrich)

Remember how we were all gaga about the dawning of the Age of Aquarius?


I mean, even if you didn't know enough Astrology to know your own sign - let alone what house you were mooning - you couldn't avoid Hair, the song, play or movie. And everybody saw the 5th Dimension on the Ed Sullivan Show. Remember how they just stood there, swaying and singing When the moon is in the seventh house and Jupiter aligns with Mars, then peace will guide the planets and love will fill the stars?


Ok, Janet Jackson it wasn't.


So who are Aquarians? Kim Novak, Vanessa Redgrave, Jeanne Moreau, Mia Farrow, Carmen Miranda and, the comeback king, John Travolta. We're talking a major sign here.

Some people poo poo all this but I think we'd better start paying attention. This is a new millennium and cosmic forces are just itching to find any teeny tiny hole where they can get a toehold to shake things up on dear old planet earth.


No kidding.


Take St. Patrick's Day. I'm from New York where St. Patrick's was like Christmas. Everybody - no matter where they came from - sat down to a corned beef and cabbage dinner on March 17. Hey, nobody was dumb enough to not notice all the Irish cops, carrying billy clubs, pounding down Fifth Avenue in the St. Patrick's Day Parade.


Trust me, you didn't want to make a New York cop mad.


For decades I used an Irish Soda Bread recipe that I'd clipped from The New York Daily News. Then, like everybody else, I discovered Martha. Ok, she's Polish, but she had a humdinger of a recipe. I watched her teach it to some Irish lady who said, "Faith and beggorah! 'Tis better than me own sainted Mum's recipe."

When I heard the 'Tis word, I was hooked. I downloaded the recipe from Martha's website and everything went tickety boo.


Until Martha got convicted.


Well, that shook everybody up. Her stock took a tumble and you could've shot a cannon through the department store aisles where her household items were gathering dust. Frugal housewives were clipping Martha Stewart labels from towels and sheets. With visions of mad cops marching in my head, I thought it wouldn't be kosher to whip up a loaf of Martha's Irish Soda Bread.


Back to the computer.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Smile. You've got garbage - Winnipeg & Garbage, 2010 (by Margaret Ullrich)

Politicians in England - who have way too much time on their hands - are proposing to put microchips in the garbage bins to record the amount of garbage folks are throwing out. They might also take pictures.


Monkey see, monkey do. We might end up doing the same.

Actually, it could end up being an interesting collection of photos. Never the same line up from one week to the next.


I'll explain.


The dust has settled around the garbage in the north end.

Some are still fighting the system. They keep putting their garbage carts out on their own driveway, forgetting that there's no service on their side of the back lane. But, for the most part, people are trying to make the best of a really dumb idea.


The problem with garbage is that the amount varies from one week to the next. A family could be going along quite nicely with the regulation size bin until a once in a while thing happens. Something like a large family party or a teenage son's sudden growth spurt. You know. Life.


What to do with that week's extra garbage? I mean, it didn't fit with this week's load and next week will see the same sized load. It just keeps coming.


Some folks, caught by the crap, have been making like Santa Claus. First thing in the morning they're creeping around back lanes, toting a full bag or two of garbage. These not so lively old elves are checking out their neighbors' cans, hoping someone has room for one more. When they luck out, well, it's like winning the lottery. Halleluia!!! They can go home garbage-free!


Think of the happy expressions those microchips will capture. Oh, if only they had audio!


Well, it's one way for politicians to get to know the voters.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Prairie Fire Press Presents Marilyn Bowering

As part of the upcoming World Poetry Day Celebration, Prairie Fire Press and The University of Winnipeg are presenting award-Winnipeg poet and novelist Marilyn Bowering.

Marilyn will deliver the Anne Szumigalski Memorial Lecture, titled Re-discovering Ancient Springs: A Consideration of Metaphorical Space.

The lecture will be presented on Friday, March 19 at 7:00 p.m. at the University of Winnipeg, Convocation Hall, in Wesley Hall at 515 Portage Avenue.


On Saturday, March 20, Prairie Fire Press and the Winnipeg International Writers Festival will celebrate World Poetry Day with readings by visiting writer Marilyn Bowering and local writer Dennis Cooley.

A Question & Answer with Marilyn Bowering and Dennis Cooley, hosted by Charlene Diehl, will follow the readings.

This event will take place at McNally Robinson Booksellers (travel alcove). Readings start at 7:00 p.m.


Both events are free and open to the public.


For more information contact Prairie Fire Press at 943-9066 or prfire@mts.net


Have a great weekend. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Video Pool Presents 090909, Imaginary Places

Come join the folks at Video Pool for the screening of 090909 in its entirety.

The screening begins on Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 12:00 noon, at 300 - 100 Arthur St.

Feel free to stay for as long or as little as you like.


090909 is a 9 hour, 9 minute and 9 second long audio visual excursion made as part of Weberg's p2p art project.

p2p art is art made for - and only available on - peer to peer networks. The original artwork is first shared by the artist until one other user has downloaded it. After that the artwork is available for as long as other users share it.

The film and all the files used to create it were deleted on 09/09/2009.


At the end of the screening, Weberg will be deleting the file and thus will possibly be deleting the last available copy of this film forever.
 

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/event.php?eid=308949131445&ref=ts


For more info call (204) 949-9134


Have a great weekend. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

University Women's Club Presents The Power of Print

I received the following from Muriel Aboul-Atta


THE POWER OF PRINT: SERIES TWO
Six Tuesdays, April 13 to May 18, 2010
9:30-11:15 a.m.
University Women's Club
54 West Gate


Six More Books that Shaped the Western World

The Continuing Education Committee of the University Women's Club is pleased to present 6 scholars who will present lectures on books that have had an impact on our understanding of our world.

They will discuss what prompted the writing of the book, what the author had to say, its influence at the time it was written, and its continuing influence.


April 13 The Confessions of Saint Augustine
Dr. James Christie, Dean of Theology, University of Winnipeg

April 20 Marc Bloch, Strange Defeat: A Statement of Evidence Written
in 1940 (a classic in France and in historical debate)
Dr. Robert Young, History Department, U of Winnipeg

April 27 Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoevsky
Dr. Myroslav Shkandrij, English Department, U of Manitoba

May 4 The Plays of William Shakespeare
Dr. Lloyd Siemens, English Department, U of Winnipeg (Retired)

May 11 The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
Dr. Luke Tromly, English Department, U of Manitoba

May 18 Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
Celine Kear, Past President of the Jane Austen Society of North
America; Founder of the Winnipeg Chapter of JASNA


This course is presented in cooperation with Creative Retirement Manitoba.


To register:
Janice MacDonald, Manager, University Women's Club
54 West Gate
Winnipeg MB R3C 2E1

$55 (Members)
$70 (non-members)
Payment must accompany registration.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Winnipeg Model Railroad Club Auction & Train Magazines

Have some old trains no one's played with since the last century?


The Winnipeg Model Railroad Club is inviting everyone to their Grand Auction at 7:30 p.m., March 12 at Westworth United Church, 1750 Grosvenor Avenue. 

It'll be lots of fun and there are great deals to be had.  Admission is free.  Refreshments are available.


Okay. You might be wondering "How do I know I'm getting a 'Great Deal?' Maybe these are some snake oil hucksters who'll give me 5 bucks for a real collector's item. I mean, how do I know what a 50 year old toy is worth?"

Well, outside of the fact that you know you're dealing with some really nice Winnipeggers, there is a way to know what's a fair price. There's actually a price guide.  


Greenberg's Guides - Lionel Trains is a pocket price guide for all Lionel trains made between 1901-2009. It's edited by Roger Carp and published byKalmbach Books.

It's the same book the fellows at the Winnipeg Model Railroad Club will be using throughout the auction. Members will be glad to let you look up a price.

Greenberg's Guides - Lionel Trains also has useful material on collecting, operating and caring for your Lionel trains.

Toad Hall Toys usually carries Greenberg's Guides - Lionel Trains. It sells for $19.95.



Classic Toy Trains Magazine, which publishes 9 issues a year, Greenberg's Repair and Operating Manual for Lionel Trains, 1945-1969, 7th edition and Lionel Accessories at Work on Toy Train Layouts are other handy reference publications.

Call 1-800-533-6644 for details or view online.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Welcome to Point Douglas - Winnipeg & Garbage, 2010 (by Margaret Ullrich)

Yeah. You read that right.

According to the map, we live in Tyndall Park. Ask anybody. The area near Burrows and Keewatin is Tyndall Park. We are just east of Garden Grove and south of Meadows West. It's a relatively new development and is still growing. Especially the northern part of Keewatin Street, where we have a few of those new Mc Mansions.


But, according to our politicians, we live in Point Douglas. Mention Point Douglas to any Winnipegger and he envisions an older area which has seen its share of problems. The folks living there are trying very hard to reclaim their community and everyone applauds their efforts.


We live in a riding that's a few blocks wide and about 15 miles long. It stretches from Point Douglas to the perimeter.

That's a honking long riding.


Our elected representative has to present the needs of folks living quite different lifestyles. But, hey, they all live in Point Douglas.

Good luck with that.


During the past weeks we've been amazed at the, shall we say 'lack of awareness' our politicians have shown regarding this new garbage system. It's like they didn't know anything about our streets, back lanes, lifestyle or family sizes.

Like maybe they never look west of McPhillips.


Whenever the Leisure Guide comes out, folks around here just toss it. What's the point of looking through it? All the activities, all the funds, all the concern, is for the core area. Well, how bad does it have to get here before we get a lousy exercise class in our neighborhood?

Maybe they never look west of Salter.


It's always been said that folks vote for the name they know. Yes, it's familiar. Yes, it's lazy. Yes, it's the "Better the devil you know, than the devil you don't" mentality.


Maybe it's time for a change.

Maybe it's time to get to know someone new.

Maybe it's time to vote for a name we don't know, but belongs to someone who knows us.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

International Women's Day

We've been having a real 'in like a lamb' March. Tomorrow looks like it'll be a good day to get out and be heard.

Join the International Women's Day March at the Legislative Building on March 7 at 1:00 p.m.

There'll also be a Feminist Fair at The MERC, 430 Langside, at 2:30 p.m.

Come on down and make a day of it.


Have a great weekend. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

Aqua Books Presents Boreality

Prairie Fire Press and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra invite you to a short performance of a unique work in progress, Boreality, on March 9, 2010 at 7:00 p.m., at Aqua Books (274 Garry Street). Light refreshments will be served. Admission is free.


Join Katherine Bitney, Sid Robinovitch and Ken Gregory as they workshop text, sound and music inspired and collected during the first year of the Boreality project.

Although Mandy Malazdrewich is not able to be there, some of her amazing photos will be shown during the performance.


This fresh, spontaneous performance is a precursor to the orchestral piece slated to appear in the spring of 2011 as part of the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra’s season.

Boreality is a multi-year collaboration between Prairie Fire Press and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. The purpose of this project is to celebrate the boreal forest of Manitoba through a multidisciplinary approach to writing, music, soundscape and photography which will result in a musical performance, a special issue of boreal forest writing, and a boreal festival and art/sound installation.


For more information on the Boreality project, please go to www.prairiefire.ca and click on the bright green Boreality button.

Boreality is made possible by support from the Winnipeg Arts Council’s New Creation Fund, The Manitoba Arts Council, Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Tourism, and The Winnipeg Foundation.


Have a great weekend. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!

The Millenium Library and The Manitoba Writers' Guild

Come on down and take part in The Millenium Library's last lecture and concert features of this season:

Mar. 3 - Prof. Cherie Werhun, UWinnipeg Psychology, talking about "The Effects of Stereotyping on Intellectual, Emotional, and Social Behaviour".

Mar. 4 - RISING STARS, from the piano studio of Megumi Masaki, Brandon University


Mar. 10 - Prof. Catherine Tosenberger, UWinnipeg English: "Lest Your Heart's Blood Run Cold: The History of Fairy Tales".

Mar. 11 - LE JAZZ HOT! Rob Hrabluk leads the University of Winnipeg Downtown Jazz Band in the Skywalk Season Finale.


It's all free, but seating is limited. The events are from 12:10 - 12:50 pm, so bring your lunch and come early to the Carol Shields Auditorium.

The schedule is subject to change without notice. To confirm, or learn about future events call the Reader Services at 986-8386 or dpilon@winnipeg.ca


Check out the Children's and Teen Programs at the Winnipeg Public Library. There's lots happening there, too.



While you're at the Millennium Library check out The Manitoba Writers' Guild Envoi Series. Come see these framed broadsheets, featuring the works of Manitoba writers in a design by Manitoba Book Design Award winner Susan Chafe, printed by the Martha Street Studio (Manitoba Printmakers Association).

Participating writers are: George Amabile, David Bergen, Di Brandt, Simone Chaput, Dennis Cooley, Lisa Gaboury-Diallo, Maureen Hunter, Charles Leblanc,Roger Léveillé, Duncan Mercredi and Joan Thomas. The series takes its name from Robert Kroetsch poem of the same title.


A few copies of each broadsheet (out of only ten printed for each) are still available for purchase at $100.00 each (plus tax) at McNally Robinson. The series is a fundraiser for the Manitoba Writers' Guild. All the work for the series has been donated, from the texts to the sales support by McNally Robinson Booksellers.


Speaking of The Manitoba Writers' Guild... Does your group need a private place to meet, rehearse, have a lecture, or screen a video?

The Burns Family Classroom fits up to 40 people and is equipped with chairs and tables that can be arranged for your purposes; plus a couch, a wall-sized blackboard and audio/visual equipment. There is also a coffee machine, a hot water kettle, a microwave and a refrigerator.
Rental rates are $70 for up to 4 hours or $140 for a day.

Write info@mbwriter.mb.ca to check availability, or enquire about their member and "frequent renter" discounts.


Have a great day. How can you miss - you're in Winnipeg!