November 30, 2010

Write Poetry with Chandra Mayor

The Writers’ Collective offers a Workshop - Poem as Spark: Fanning the Flames - with acclaimed Winnipeg-based poet Chandra Mayor.

According to Chandra... "Inspiration" is a terrible word, not least because it's so abstract and pseudo-mystical as to be virtually meaningless . . . come explore!

The class takes place on Saturday, December 11 
from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm 
at the University of Winnipeg
$15 for Writers’ Collective members
$30 for non-members.

To register contact Michael Van Rooy
at writerscollective@uwinnipeg.ca
or phone at (204) 786-9468. 


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

A Child's Christmas in Queens (part 4 - by Margaret Ullrich)

My friends’ homes had interesting sights and smells, too.  On the tables there were bunte tallers: dishes filled with nuts, candies, cookies and fruit.  The stoves had bubbling pots filled with bratwursts and potatoes.  


My friend Elise invited me to supper.  She told me to smear the bratwurst with the spicy mustard.  The green beans and carrots were familiar.  The bread was dark.  I was used to Italian bread and Maltese hobtz.  But after I put butter on the rye bread I had to admit it was good, too.  I’d had mashed potatoes before, but I’d never had hot potato salad.  I was curious about how Elise’s Mom made the potato salad.  It was sweet, spicy and tart.  Elise’s Mom smiled and blushed when I told her it was so good.  “Ach, it’s only potatoes.”       


After Thanksgiving, Sister brought a box of kringeln to class.  The kringeln were almond studded sugar cookies which had been twisted into figure eights.  We helped her hang them on our classroom Christmas tree.  It was beautiful and the cookies smelled wonderful.  We all oohed and aahed.  Then everyone sang a song, O Christmas Tree.  I just smiled and silently moved my mouth.

Then Sister told us to gather around her.  She was going to read us a story, The Visit from St. Nicholas.  Sister showed us the pictures in the large thin book.  They were drawings of Santa Claus and his eight tiny reindeer.  Sister said Santa was a “right jolly old elf.”    

My friends were delighted.  I was confused.  I had never heard any of this before.  There wasn’t any mention of La Befana.

Santa was supposed to slide down every house’s chimney and land in a fireplace.  We didn’t have a fireplace.  We had a huge, oil-burning furnace in the basement.  Ma hung our stockings, along with all the other wet laundry, on a clothesline near the furnace.  The furnace made awful noises and had fire in it.  If Santa landed in it he’d fry like a strufoli.  That would end Christmas forever.  I didn’t think Santa would take such a risk for a total stranger.  


Oh, boy...  I was in big trouble.  The lovely cookies felt like a giant rock in my stomach.


Sister talked about Santa checking his list of good little girls and boys.  Santa had a list?  I knew we were on the Registered Aliens’ list.  Every January a man on the television reminded Ma to fill out green cards so that the American Government would know where we were.  If we didn’t fill out the cards we’d be in big trouble.  We could either be sent to jail or back to Malta. 

How could I get on Santa’s list?  Could Santa get my name from the Registered Aliens’ list?  Did I need to fill out another card?  


The afternoon went from bad to worse.  Sister told us we could put our letters to Santa in the special mailbox in the classroom.  A letter?  What language did Santa speak - English or German?  He’d never heard from me.  I wasn’t on his list.  What could I say?  “Hi, you don’t know me, but I’d like some toys.”  

I’d never written a letter to La Befana.  She just gave me toys.  When we had moved to College Point, Ma had to fill change of address forms.  Was there a change of address form for Santa?  Could La Befana still visit me?  Did Mr. Santa Claus want to shoot La Befana because she had come to College Point?  


Oh, boy...  I was in big trouble.

November 29, 2010

WSO - 2011 The Concert

Tickets are now available for 2011 The Concert, A Celebration of Culture, which will be held on January 2 at 8:00 p. m. at the Centennial Concert Hall.

Tickets start at $20.11 (plus applicable fees)
WSO Box Office 949-3999
www.wso.ca
Presale access code:2011WSO

Ring in the new year with host Al Rae and these great acts...
Chai Folk Ensemble
Del Barber
Al Simmons
Momentum Aerial
Romi Mayes
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
Marni Enns
Les Surveillantes
Don Amero
The Dukes
Prairie Voices
Chic Gamine
Keith & Renee
The New Lightweights
Walle Larsen
The Waking Eyes
and
the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra


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

Interruptions in Glass: Ball, Toone & Hamon

Please help Aqua Books, and two poets named Jo(h)n, welcome Regina poet Tracy Hamon to our fine city on Thursday, December 2. 

The evening begins at 7:00 p. m.

Tracy Hamon is currently the Program Officer for the Saskatchewan Writers Guild.  Her poetry has appeared in numerous Canadian literary magazines including Grain, Wascana Review, A Room of One's Own, sub-TERRAIN, and Event as well as numerous anthologies. 

Her first book of poetry This Is Not Eden was released in 2005 and was a finalist for 2 Saskatchewan Book Awards. 
Portions of Interruptions in Glass won the 2005 City of Regina Writing Award and has been shortlisted for 2 awards in the 2010 Saskatchewan Book Awards.

Jonathan Ball is the author of the poetry books Ex Machina and Clockfire.  His film Spoony B appeared on The Comedy Network, and his writing has appeared in The Believer and Harper’s.  He is the former editor of dandelion and the former short films programmer for the Gimli Film Festival. 

John Toone’s first collection of poetry, From Out of Nowhere, was published in 2009.  He also published 2 kids’ books in 2009.  John is a past president of the Manitoba Writers’ Guild.  


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

Aboriginal Arts Fundraiser

Columpa C. Bobb, the Program Director of the Aboriginal Arts Training & Mentorship Program, has secured a fabulous show line up for their fundraiser.

The event will take place on Saturday, December 11 from 8:00 pm to 10:30 pm at Manitoba Theatre for Young People, # 2 Forks Market Road.

It's going to be a great night... 
Hope you can be there.



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

A Child's Christmas in Queens (part 3 - by Margaret Ullrich)

After Barbara was born we didn’t have time to go to Corona very often.  It was easier to walk to the local church, St. Fidelis, instead of driving to Corona to go to St. Leo’s.  Even though Pop didn’t have to commute every day, he didn’t have any time to waste.  He was working a lot of overtime.  


I missed seeing the rest of my family.  


That September I started Kindergarten in St. Fidelis School.  Some of the good Sisters had wanted to travel and meet exotic heathens in far away places.  

Well, one Sister almost got her wish.  I was the first Maltese child she’d ever seen.  College Point had been settled by German and Irish families.  It was time for me to learn about America through their eyes. 


By mid-October my classmates started bringing samples of their mothers’ holiday baking to school.  They told me their attics were filled with apple slices which had been strung like beads on a white thread and hung to dry in their attics.  Their mothers also had pillow cases filled with cookies hanging from nails in the attic.  My friends said their mothers did this so that the cookies would be aged and perfect by Christmas.  

I loved the idea of an attic packed with bags filled with cookies.  I had never been in an attic.  Our house had a store front, but we didn’t use the attic.  Nobody I’d known in Corona used their attics, either. 


Some of my classmates brought in samples of their mothers’ cookies, the cookies that didn't have to age.  I brought some biscotti.  My friends were polite and ate the dry, double-baked bread.  Then we ate the pfefferkuchen, spitzbuben, sweet honey lebkuchen, and almond pfeffernuesse.  My favorites were zimtsterne, cinnamon stars decorated with almonds, and spitzbuben, sandwiched cookies with jam peeking through three holes in the top cinnamon cookie.  My friends called them little rogues.  


Anise was a popular holiday spice in College Point.  It was used in the springerle and the peppernuts. When I told Ma about anise, she said she used it, too, but she didn’t use as much in her cookies.  

Pop said, “If you like the taste of anise so much, you’d probably like to drink anisette.”  

Ma didn’t think that was a very funny thing to say.  I knew about the anisette liqueur.  Sometimes Uncle Des put some in his coffee when it was really cold outside.  He said it helped him feel warmer.  But, when I asked him for a taste, he said it wasn’t for little girls.  


There were also special holiday rewards.  When I helped Sister put away the puzzles, she gave me a small marzipan pig, wrapped in cellophane.  

I’d never seen a marzipan pig before.  Neither had my Ma.  When I brought the marzipan pig home, Ma put it in the china cabinet.  I was sad when it started to get moldy.  We didn’t know I was supposed to eat it.  


As Christmas approached, the windows of the German bakeries were filled with the most beautiful cookies I’d ever seen.  They were in all kinds of shapes: stars, angels, animals and wreaths.  They were decorated with coconut, jam, icing and tiny silver balls.  There were also holiday breads: glistening loaves of gugelhupf, a sweet bread filled with raisins and almonds, and fatschenkinder, small loaves that looked like babies wrapped in swaddling clothes. 

The stollen reminded me of panettone.  They both were rich butter breads, filled with raisins, almonds and citron.  I was amazed at what German bakers could do with bread.  I thought a German Christmas was beautiful and delicious.  


I planned to eat German and Italian holiday food every Christmas for the rest of my life. 

November 28, 2010

Concerts at Eckhardt-Grammatté Hall


The English Touch

Saturday, December 11, 8:00 pm
Sunday, December 12, 2:00 pm

English music came alive with 17th century composer Henry Purcell.  We'll explore and celebrate England’s rich musical life of the time, in the company of the WSO Chamber Players.


Romantic Masterworks

Saturday, February 26, 8:00 pm
A nurturing of intimacies, quiet reflection and a rich fund of melody characterizes Brahms’ Second Sextet for Strings.  The freshness of youth cloaked in genius sparked Mendelssohn’s Octet for Strings.  Two masterworks, whose presence on the same program elevate each.

Ordering by phone: 786-9000
WSO Box Office: 949-3999
By Email: 
music@uwinnipeg.ca               
boxoffice@wso.mb.ca


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

A Child's Christmas in Queens (part 2 - by Margaret Ullrich)

The Christmas Eve dinner was a feast.  Fish was traditional.  Eel for the parents, bluefish for the children.  There was also soup, chicken, pasta and vegetables, followed by ricotta pie, anise biscotti, pizzelle and cuccidati cookies, strufoli, creamy roasted chestnuts and torrone candy.  

My favorite was the huge strufoli, a golden mound of tiny doughnut balls covered with honey and multi-colored sprinkles.  Nadia’s favorite was the prune cuccidati.  Aunt Betty’s Cuccidati were filled cookies that reminded me of fig newtons.  Aunt Betty filled the cookies with a mix of prunes, raisins, dates, citron, ground almonds and cinnamon.  Aunt Betty also made cuccidati using apricots or dates instead of prunes.   


After dinner we played games while our parents talked.  Then it was time to walk to St. Leo’s for the Midnight Mass.  After Mass we returned to Uncle Des’ for hot chocolate and panettone.  Nonni’s panettone was a wonderfully rich bread made with butter, raisins, almonds and citron.  


Then Nonni would tell us to look at the manger scene for the surprise.  The blessed Bambino, Baby Jesus, had suddenly appeared!


Christmas Eve was a wonderful night.  But the big day for us children was January sixth - Epiphany, Old Christmas.  The night before we had hung our socks and gone to sleep expecting La Befana to fill them with treats and toys.  In the old days, Nonni told us, the children would place their shoes on the fireplace hearth for La Befana.  But in America we didn’t have a fireplace.  Nonni said she liked using the socks since they were cleaner than our shoes.  


We knew all about La Befana, a little old lady who had been sweeping her house when the Wise Men suddenly knocked on her door.  They had been looking for Baby Jesus and had stopped to ask La Befana for directions.  They then invited La Befana to join them.  The old woman refused, saying she had work to do.  Later that night a shepherd passed by and invited La Befana to come to Bethlehem, but she again said no.     

Later that night, when it was dark, a great light and angels appeared in the sky.  La Befana realized that the Wise Men weren’t kidding about somebody special being born that night.  Broom in hand, La Befana tried to catch up with the Wise Men.  She never found them, Bethlehem or Baby Jesus.  Every year she searches for Baby Jesus and leaves presents for good little boys and girls.  


La Befana took wonderful care of me for four years.


Then, when I was five years old, I was hit with a megadose of change: I got a new baby sister, I started going to school and I got Santa Claus.         


A few months before I started school, it was time for my sister to be born.  While Ma was in the hospital I stayed with Aunt Betty, Uncle Des and Nadia.  It was nice living in Corona again.  A few days after Ma went to the hospital, Nonni diNoto took me to the local five and dime.  She gave me a quarter.  

“Buy for sister.”   

I didn’t have any idea what a baby sister would want.  I liked watching westerns on television, so I grabbed a toy gun. 

“No.  Buy rattle.”  

A rattle?  That sounded boring, but I bought a pink plastic rattle.  


In those days children were not allowed to visit anyone in the hospital.  When Aunt Betty visited Ma, she gave the rattle to my new sister.  I waited outside the hospital and waved to the window of Ma’s room.  

When Aunt Betty returned she had a gift from my new sister for me: three fancy pieces of chocolate.  Well, wasn’t that nice of my new sister, Barbara.  Not as nice as a toy gun, but I thought that maybe that was all Barbara could get from where she’d been.  


Maybe having a baby sister wasn’t going to be too bad. 

November 27, 2010

MAWA: For Women Who Refuse to Choose

The acts and demands of child-rearing are exhausting and challenging. While caregiving, it can feel like we are not taken seriously as artists. Some women give up artmaking completely. Others refuse to choose.

MAWA, located at 611 Main Street, is hosting monthly group meetings for artist mothers who refuse to choose. 

This peer-based, self-generated group is meeting on Wednesday, December 1, 
from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. 

The focus and activities will take a form decided upon by its members.  Possible ideas could include monthly discussion topics, slide presentations, speakers and general sharing of work, ideas and inspiration. 

Build your community and feel empowered in your decision to call yourself both an artist and a mother. All artist mothers, at any stage of child-rearing, are welcome and encouraged to attend.

In May 2009, MAWA co-sponsored the screening of Who Does She Think She Is?, directed by Pamela Tanner Boll and Nancy Kennedy.  This film addressed the plight of the artist mother, and asked, “In a half-changed world, women often feel they need to choose: mothering or working? Your children’s well- being or your own? Responsibility or self-expression?”


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

John Lennon Night

December 8, 2010 marks thirty years since we lost John Lennon.

On Wednesday, December 8 from 7:30 pm to 11:30 pm at the Park Theatre, 698 Osborne, we'll play and sing his songs in celebration of this great musician, this wonderful idealist and this brilliant poet.

Starring: 
Keith & Renee
Lindsey White
JD Edwards
Garth Riemer
The Tigers


Tickets for the big show are now on sale at 

www.ticketbreak.com/parktheatre

They'll go fast. Don't delay!

Funds raised will go to the support of the Children's Wish Foundation.


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

A Child's Christmas in Queens (part 1 - by Margaret Ullrich)

At times I really envied my cousin Nadia’s family's rooted past.  By the time I was five I’d had enough changes to last a lifetime. 


My folks had to learn a lot of new things after they had come to America.  For example, in Malta Christmas was celebrated without Christmas trees.  Tree shopping was something very new for my parents.  But, after their first two American Christmases, Ma was comfortable enough to get her usual real bargains.  

We would go to the parking lot where the trees had magically appeared, like the ground beef at the A & P.  There we’d browse until we’d found a tree we liked.  Ma would quickly  switch our chosen tree’s price tag with that of a cheaper tree which no one liked.  Then we’d carry the chosen tree to the clerk, who gave us the fish eye as he noticed the fullness of such a ‘good find’.  Then he’d sigh and take Ma’s money.  The whole deal would be done in ten minutes.  

Another American Christmas had begun for us.  


In Corona Christmas was a festive season.  It began with the first Sunday of Advent, was packed with feastdays of special saints such as St. Barbara on December fourth, and ended on January sixth with a visit from La Befana.   

December twenty-fourth was an all-day family affair.  At lunchtime we visited Aunt Demi.  She was the eldest sister.  It was a sign of respect.  The visit there was always short.  Aunt Demi never let us forget how much she had slaved over the holiday.  She had a talent for inducing guilt with a weary ‘Do you know how long I slaved over this dish’ look.  Everyone understood.  The Aunts knew how many platters of cookies Aunt Demi had in the pantry.  We all knew that she was determined to unload every one them.


Maltese desserts are simple: fresh fruit and cheese with an occasional cookie.  One Maltese cookie, the biskuttini tar rahal, could be described as hardened library paste with a hint of lemon and a dash of rock hard royal icing.  A variation on the biskuttini cuts the sugar by half and replaces the royal icing with a sprinkling of sesame seeds.  Both cookies are wonderful teething rings.  

Another favorite is the biscotti.  The big thrill with a biscotti is seeing how much milk it can suck up before breaking in half and falling into your glass.  It’s like eating the sinking Titanic.  For the holidays, we borrowed recipes from the Sicilians and made kannoli tar-rikotta (ricotta in a fried pastry tube) or a qassata (a sponge cake covered with vanilla custard). 


For our main Christmas Eve festivities, we gathered at Uncle Des and Aunt Betty’s home.  A whole corner of their living room was filled with Nonni DiNoto’s manger scene.  St. Francis would’ve loved what Nonni DiNoto had done with his presepio idea. 

Nonni DiNoto’s daughter Betty had married Pop’s brother Des.  Then, two years after we had arrived in America, Nonni's son Salvatore had married Pop’s sister Helen.  So, Nonni was a double Grandma in their families.  

Since all my grandparents were in Malta, Nonni treated me as a grandchild, too.  


Nonni’s manger scene was not just a simple shed with Mary, Joseph, three kings and one shepherd standing around Baby Jesus.  Nonni had a complete village with houses, shrubbery, trees, hills, paths, ponds and animals.  There were people walking around just minding their own business and doing real things.  Some of the figures were really old and we couldn’t play with them.  

But each year Nonni added something new: an old woman carrying a basket of eggs, a farmer carrying a head of cabbage, a man carrying a bundle of wood for a fire to keep the baby warm.  There were rich people, too, walking through Nonni's Bethlehem and looking very important.  


Nonni’s manger scene was better than any Manhattan Fifth Avenue store's window display.

November 26, 2010

Spelling Bee at Gio's

Prizes for spelling bee winner!
Prizes for best spelling bee outfit! 
You don't need to be in the bee to compete for this!!

What's not to love!

Registration for the Spelling Bee is at Gio's Club and Bar, 
155 Smith Street, on Monday, Nov. 29 at 7:00 p. m. sharp.

Bee starts at 8:00 p. m. and ends November 30 at 3:00 a. m.

Best Spelling bee outfit will be judged just before the last round of the Bee!

Come and compete, cheer for your favourite speller and support your local U of W food bank all at the same time!!

Cash or Food accepted at the door!!!
All proceeds to benefit the U of W food bank 

******
Dance your spelling bee a** off following the event!! 
Email song requests to gios@gio.ca 
subject line - SPELLING BEE PLAY LIST


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

November 25, 2010

Aqua Books: Dean McTaggart & JD Edwards

Come to Aqua Books at 10:00 pm, on Friday, November 26 to meet Juno-nominated singer-songwriter Dean McTaggart and JD Edwards.

Tickets are $10.

Dean McTaggart started as the lead singer/songwriter for the Canadian rock/pop band The Arrows in 1981. 
An independent release Misunderstood was followed by two albums for A&M records which produced the hit singles Meet me in the Middle, Talk Talk, and Heart of the City

Dean has penned many hits including Darkhorse, a number one in Canada for Amanda Marshall, as well as hits for Anne Murray, Australian super star Tina Arena, Terri Clark, Kelly Coffee, Johnny Reid, John Berry, The Guess Who, John McDermitt, Wynonna Judd, The Rankin Family, Danny Brooks, Shakura S'Aida and many others. 

Dean has twice been nominated for a Juno for Songwriter of the Year and has received many SOCAN and ASCAP awards. 
Dean has been producing, recording, writing and playing live both solo and with a band. 
His new CD is Drop the Needle in the Groove.


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

50-500 Member Show + Sale

Come to the Opening Reception of the 7th annual 50-500 Members Show at Urban Shaman: Contemporary Aboriginal Art on Friday, November 26.  
The gala event will start at 8:00 p. m. and continue to 11:00 p. m.

Each member has up to 4 pieces of original artwork for sale.  
Works are sold from 50 cents to 500 dollars.
All the proceeds go to the artist!

Works will be on exhibit until January 22.

Come and get your holiday shopping done in one go!

****
Artists must be members in good standing of Urban Shaman. 
This is a great time to join!

Memberships are available at the gallery.
$  20.00/yr - Students and Under-employed
$  25.00/yr - Regular
$150.00/yr - Institution/Organization


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

Happy Thanksgiving!!! 

Wishing my American readers a Happy Thanksgiving! 

May your stuffing be tasty 
May your turkey be plump,
May your potatoes and gravy 
Have never a lump.   


May your yams be delicious 
And your pies take the prize, 
And may your Thanksgiving dinner 
Stay off your thighs! 

Men Against Violence

What role do men have to play in ending violence against women? 
What can we learn from men doing progressive women's rights work in the global south? 

The Nicaragua-based Asociación de Hombres Contra la Violencia (Association of Men Against Violence - AHCV) is presenting a free public event on Wednesday, December 1, from 7:00 p. m. to 8:00 p. m.

Come to the Carol Shields Auditorium, Millenium Library, 251 Donald Street where Juan Benicio Jiménez Vásquez and José Lenin Muñoz Gallegos will be discussing the challenges and successes that they have experienced in their work with AHCV in Nicaragua. They will discuss challenging cultural and communal ideologies around gender roles and violence, and illustrate the importance of citizens creating change in their own communities.


There will be free refreshments.
This event is child-friendly and wheelchair accessible.

**
There's another presentation on Dec 2 at UW in case mornings are better for you!

Riddell Hall Cafeteria
11:30 a. m. Thursday, December 2


Our partners in bringing AHCV to Winnipeg are:
Global College
Oxfam Canada
Regina Public Interest Research Group (RPIRG)
Rights and Democracy Group
Saskatchewan Council for International Cooperation (SCIC)
Sisters in Spirit
Institute for Women and Gender Studies
Peg City MOBilizers


More information contact:
Anna Clara Jensen
annaclara@volunteer.oxfam.ca


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

November 24, 2010

Write Scripts with Danishka Esterhazy

The Writers’ Collective offers a Beginners Course in Scriptwriting with Winnipeg-based writer/director Danishka Esterhazy!

The class takes place on Saturday, December 4 
from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm 
at the University of Winnipeg
$15 for Writers’ Collective members
$30 for non-members.

To register contact Michael Van Rooy
at writerscollective@uwinnipeg.ca
or phone at (204) 786-9468.

Danishka Esterhazy has written and directed several short films including the National Screen Insititute Drama Prize winner The Snow Queen.  In 2008 she was awarded the prestigious Kodak New Vision award and she was recently shortlisted for the John Hirsch Award for Most Promising Manitoba Writer. 
Black Field, her first feature film, premiered at the Vancouver International Film Festival and won the Best Canadian Feature award at Toronto’s Female Eye Film Festival. 
Black Field received a Canada-wide theatrical release in the summer of 2010.  


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

Todd Gordon's Imperialist Canada

Join Arbeiter Ring Publishing, the Winnipeg New Socialist Group, and the University of Winnipeg Politics Department for the launch of Todd Gordon's Imperialist Canada on Thursday, November 25, in room 2M70, Manitoba Hall, at the University of Winnipeg. 

Doors open at 7:00
Launch begins at 7:30 
Light refreshments will be served. 

Copies of the book will be available for purchase ($25, tax included).
Email info@arbeiterring.com for more info

Imperialist Canada exposes Canada’s imperialist past and present, at home and across the globe.  The book digs beneath the surface of Canada’s image as global peacekeeper and promoter of human rights, revealing the links between the corporate pursuit of profit and Canadian foreign and domestic policy.

This launch is part of the 2nd Annual Indigenous Sovereignty Week.
To see a list of all events - visit
http://www.defendersoftheland.org/winnipeg
  

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

Women Without Men

CFIC’s next movie event is the screening of Women Without Men by Shirin Neshat, based on a book by Shahrnoosh Parsipour. 

It will be shown on November 25 at Pauline-Boutal Hall, Franco-Manitoban Cultural Centre, from 8:00 p. m. to 10:00 p. m. 

Tickets are $10 
with 50 % of the net donated to Human Rights Watch. 
For tickets call Marzieh at 509-4995

This movie won the best director prize at the Venice Film Festival 2009 and was the official selection of both Toronto Film Festival and Sundance Film Festival 2010.

The book was written during the summer of 1978 in Paris.  After the revolution, when the writer went back to Iran, she was imprisoned.
The book and movie are both banned in Iran.  


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

November 23, 2010

Story Time with Mrs. Santa Claus

Have plant lovers and gardeners on your gift list?
Have little kids?

Come to Shelmerdine on Wednesdays and Fridays at 1:00 pm. 
From November 24 to December 22 Mrs. Claus will entertain the children with her special Christmas stories, which will be followed by some cookie decorating!!

A great way to create memories for grandparents and grandchildren.

$4 per child
Funds raised will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Winnipeg.

*****
It's Wreath Week at Shelmerdine from November 22 to 29.
10% off all fresh wreaths!
The florist at Sparkle Station will customize your wreath for you!!

While at Shelmerdine enjoy a snack and gaze at the white, cream, pink, plum and variegated poinsettias which are guaranteed to get you into the holiday mood.

*****
International Holiday mail deadline is November 29.
Need cards?
No problem.
Shelmerdine has quite a selection of holiday cards.


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

Elimination of Violence Against Women

As part of the 2nd Annual Indigenous Sovereignty Week - International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, there will be special activities on Thursday, November 25. 

Events include:

The Men's Banner, which will be available to have hand prints added to it.

University of Manitoba University Centre, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
University of Winnipeg - date and time TBA
  
The Men’s Banner is a project directed at men to promise not to use their hands for violence against women, and not to ignore the violence they witness. 
This project is in reaction to the missing and murdered Aboriginal Women in Canada. 

***** 
Walking the Road Together
women's discussion group and sharing circle
4:00 pm to 6:00 pm 
North End Women's Centre - 394 Selkirk Ave.

Walking the Road Together women’s discussion group is sponsored by the University of Manitoba Womyns Centre.

To see a list of all events - visit
http://www.defendersoftheland.org/winnipeg


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

Policy Baby: The Journey of Rita/Bev

Come to the Magnus Eliason Recreation Centre, 430 Langside Street @ Ellice Avenue, on November 23, at 7:00 p. m. for the film Policy Baby: The Journey of Rita/Bev.
  
The film will be followed by a workshop/sharing circle at 8:00 p. m.

Bev Jones is from Keeseekoowenin, a First Nations reserve in western Manitoba. Apprehended at 2 months of age and put into foster care with a non-native family, she was returned to the reserve when she was 6.  Dislocated from her family and without a native tongue, she suffered abuse.  She was then uprooted again and returned to her foster home.  
She spent years in a state of dislocation between 2 cultures, without solid roots in either. 
Today she is a social worker and riveting storyteller in her mid-forties, who coined the term “policy baby” to encapsulate her all-too-common story of dislocation and loss. 

In Canada, it is estimated that in the 1950s and 60s alone, over 16,000 Aboriginal children were disconnected from their families in this way. T his is the story of 2 cultures and 2 histories and how Bev Jones was able to thread a pathway across extremely unstable ground to reconnect with her roots and heal.

To see a list of all events - visit
http://www.defendersoftheland.org/winnipeg


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

This Ain't Your Grandma's Craft Sale & Manitoba Crafts Council

C'mon down!! 
Support your local crafters and artists. 
You won't find this stuff anywhere else...

TAYGCS and Manitoba Crafts Council join forces for Day 1 of the MCC Handmade Holiday Sale! Doors are open at the West End Cultural Centre on 
Friday, November 26, from 5:00 p. m. to 10:00 p. m. 

There'll also be 
Dora & Derek & Those Guys
DJ Fleur
Knitting The Bridge 

Come for the craft... stay for the craft, music, and more!

******

Here's Day 2... 

The sixth annual TAYGCS at The Park Theatre on Sunday, 
December 5, from 6:00 p. m. to 10:00 p. m.

DJ Fleur, vendors and the great food and drinks will keep you busy! 

The holidays wouldn't be the same without a craft sale at The Park Theatre...


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

November 22, 2010

2nd Annual Indigenous Sovereignty Week

Winnipeg 2nd Annual Indigenous Sovereignty Week: 
Resistance and Revival 
is running to November 26 at various locations throughout Winnipeg and in Sagkeeng First Nation.

To see a list of individual events - visit

http://www.defendersoftheland.org/winnipeg


Co-sponsored by:
w.ipsm / friends of grassy narrows
Boreal Forest Network / Boreal Action Project 
Amnesty International - Group 19
U of M Aboriginal Students Association
Winnipeg Anarchist Black Cross
U of M Womyns Centre 
U of M Department of Native Studies
U of M Department of History
  

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

Aqua Books: Crafty Minions

Just in time for the holidays!! 

Aqua Books is having  their Crafty Minions - The Handmade and Vintage Sale on Saturday, December 4 from 11:00 a. m. to 5:00 p. m.

It's never too early to begin your holiday shopping.
It's never the wrong time to pick up something beautiful for yourself. 
It's always the right time to support local artisans and crafters, 
and maybe even become inspired yourself.
This is a sale not to be missed!!

Admission is free.


This shindig will be even bigger than the last. Only one sale in, Crafty Minions is already Winnipeg's second-largest indie craft sale. Our talented sellers will include: 

- Head in the Oven
- Marathon 1981 
- Lady Tees
- Just the Goods
- Julrei
- Midkid
- Paper Girl Productions
- Mrs. Glockenheimen
- Velvet Vixen
- Tumanov Regalia
- Inspyred Creations
- Dizzie Dame
- Hello Goddess
- Kwagala Foundation 
- Boomerang 360
- Velvet Jeanie
- Blackbird Bazaar
- Of Course You Can
- Echo Creations
- C J Tennant


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

November 21, 2010

Dance, Dance, Insurrection!

Dance, Dance, Insurrection! Another property is possible...  
is a benefit social for the A-zone Co-op, a group of tenants coming together to buy 91 Albert St. in the Exchange District and preserve this vital community space. 


This licensed event is taking place at the Ukrainian Labour Temple, 591 Pritchard Avenue, on Saturday, November 27.  The fun begins at 8:00 p. m.  


Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at Mondragon Bookstore, 91 Albert St. 

Come out for a night of carnival games, music and dancing! 


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

buy nothing dub

The mixtechs deejays are putting together the buy nothing dub at pyramid cabaret, 176 Fort Street on Wednesday, November 24 at 10:30 p. m.

It's an evening of dub infused dancefloor destruction in support of buy nothing day.

Featuring:
dj cain - innovation canada / low self - banff
theo tzu - bass invaders / in da jungle
el richee - bass invaders / dzion
turtilian - bass invaders / monkey dub
the silver fox - rebel lion / szoldier
crabskull - music trader
riddim - bass invaders - in da jungle

Hosted by:
four20 - innovation canada / low self - banff
metro rotonto - jfk dub soundsystem
diverse - bass invaders

This is a pay what you can event!

18+ with valid photo ID
carnivalesque costumes encouraged!


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

November 20, 2010

Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk

McNally Robinson is presenting David Sedaris and his new book Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary on Monday, November 22 at 7:30 p. m.

Featuring David Sedaris’ unique blend of hilarity and heart, this new collection of keen-eyed animal-themed tales is an utter delight.  Though the characters may not be human, the situations in these stories bear an uncanny resemblance to the insanity of everyday life.

David Sedaris is a regular contributor to The New Yorker and Public Radio International’s This American Life.  
He is the author of the books When You Are Engulfed in Flames, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, Me Talk Pretty One Day, Naked, and Barrel Fever.

This event is co-presented by CBC Manitoba and The Walrus Magazine as part of their Walrus Reads series.


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

Yellow Dog: Catherine Hunter & George Amabile

Catherine Hunter and George Amabile are the featured writers in the third reading of the Manitoba Writers’ Guild Yellow Dog Tavern reading series on Monday, November 22 at 7:30 p. m. 

The fourth reading will feature Melissa Steele on Monday January 24.

Seating is limited to 30. 
Reservations are encouraged by email at info@mbwriter.mb.ca. 
  
Regular admission is $10.00, with a request for a donation, at the door.
Those purchasing a series pass for $100.00 will receive a tax receipt for $50.00.
All proceeds will go to the Manitoba Writers’ Guild. 

***** 

Catherine Hunter is the author of 3 books of poetry. She is also the author of 4 books of fiction, including the crime novel Queen of Diamonds, which tells the tale of a scheming psychic and her wealthy River Heights clients.
Catherine teaches Creative Writing and chairs the English Department at the University of Winnipeg. 

George Amabile has published his poetry, fiction and non-fiction in the USA, Canada, Europe, England, Wales, South America, Australia and New Zealand in over a hundred anthologies, magazines, journals and periodicals including The New Yorker, The New Yorker Book of Poems, Harper's, Poetry (Chicago), American Poetry Review, and The Globe and Mail.  He has published 8 books of poetry. 


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