Archive for the ‘Mi Vida Loca’ Category

BLISS Weekend Announces Our Events

BLISS Weekend Newsletter August 9th, 2010 Hello, hello, hello! BLISS is around the corner!  Last Day to purchase tickets at the Early Registration rate is AUGUST 15th! BLISS Weekend 2010 is finally here!!! Karen Williams!!!!!  Sandra Valls!!!!!  Micia Mosely!!!!!!  Valerie Troutt!!!!!! and a beautiful group of amazing artists and talent throughout the weekend.  It is going to be a weekend to remember! We have a beautiful hotel, a fabulous pool, amazing talent, new events and an oasis just for you!  Don’t sleep book your rooms and buy your tickets NOW!  Scroll down to get all the information about the hotel, party bus and the events! WE ARE COMPLETELY SOLD OUT OF KING SIZE POOLSIDE ROOMS.  We only have about 10% POOLSIDE Double Queens left so book now!  No deposit necessary to book your room! Sincerely, Miz Chris and the entire BLISS Team Movement Productions www.movementinthebay.com www.blissweekend.com THURSDAY September 30th Start your vacation weekend getaway at the BLISS Welcome Party. A casual, relaxed early evening mixer with complimentary hor d’ oeuvres throughout the evening.  Join us and meet your fellow guests while enjoying beautiful views of the pool and the mountains. FRIDAY October 1st Throw on your bathing suit, grab your sunscreen, bring a towel and meet us at the Mansion for SPLASH! our first pool party of the weekend.  kain’bigan, one of the best caterers in the San Francisco Bay Area will be providing complimentary tasty treats throughout the afternoon, DJ Olga T and The Earth Tone DJs will be spinnin’ soulful beats, funk, R&B and Mona Webb as your host. This year BLISS welcomes some of the top LGBT talent in the US for our Artist Showcase.  Renown performance artists Micia Mosely, Valerie Troutt and Mona Webb anchor this fabulous showcase of talent.  Join us for a magical night with these amazing artists who will be performing a variety of performances such as spoken word, vocal stylings, dance and so much more. Then end the evening at the FAMOUS Bliss White Party.  Dress in your most fabulous White ‘fits and join us for this sexy evening of dancing, cocktails and beautiful people all night long.  DJs Rapture and Olga T will tearin’ up the 1s and 2s with all the beats you love Old School to New School, Reggae, Hip Hop, Club Anthems and more.  Plus a special guest artist will be gracing us with her fantastic performance! SATURDAY October 2nd BLISS is gonna be JUICY on Saturday.  We have rented out the entire pool at the Hotel Zoso.  This gorgeously appointed pool area boasts luscious cabanas, plenty of chaise seating, complimentary snacks and the best drinks (try their sweet tea cocktail which is AMAZING) to cool your afternoon. DJs Ai-Lo and Olga T will be keeping it cool on the 1s and 2s with Latin, Soulful House, Hip Hop, R&B and much more! Two World Famous comedians,  Karen Williams and Sandra Valls grace this year’s first ever BLISS Comedy Show.  The comedic powerhouses are set to tear the stage up!  They will make you laugh until you cry!  Don’t miss these two class acts Saturday night at the BLISS Comedy Show.  For more information about each of them and for YouTube snippets with their performances check the BLISS Website Head into your evening for a sexy night of PASSION!  Join us at the Mansion and enjoy first class style from beginning to end.  Dress to impress with areas to dance, lounge and chat.  DJs Ai-Lo and Olga T spinnin’ the hottest music on the 1s and 2s.  Special guest performance by an up and coming artist! SUNDAY October 3rd It’s your last day in BLISS and it is going to be a blissful day.  Start out at our Goodbye Brunch/So you think you can….?  Show us your Talent! (Part of the All Access Pass or $30 at the door) Join us for a fabulous brunch and watch some of our own BLISS Talent.  Are you a singer/comedian/drummer/musician/dancer or something else you would like to share with the BLISS family.  Sign up to show us what you can do! then join Karen Williams for her Let’s Laugh About Sex ($25.00) Humor is one of the simplest ways we can lighten our sexual psychic loads.  Too often, lesbians in particular, are accused of not having a sense of humor.  The worst part is that we begin to believe it ourselves.  Let’s Laugh About Sex! is designed to allow participants to take a look at the lighter, brighter side of lesbian relationships; and to uncover the more enjoyable, playful aspects of interactions that are often overshadowed by trauma, misinformation, and ignorance.  This session will empower participants towards greater self-awareness, self-acceptance and self-love. ·    Farewell Karaoke For those of us who can’t bear to leave our BLISS we have one last hurrah with our Farewell Karaoke.  Join us on the mic and strut your stuff on the Karaoke stage. HOTEL ZOSO Book Now! LAST DAY TO BOOK AT THE HOTEL AT THE BLISS RATE IS SEPTEMBER 9TH, 2010!!!!!! Hotel Zoso 150 South Indian Canyon Dr. Palm Springs, CA 92262 Phone: 760.325.9676 http://www.hotelzoso.com/ We are out of the King Pool-Facing rooms and our Double Queen Pool-Facing Rooms are 75% booked.  Book now there is NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED, but you will need a major credit card to hold the room (they will not charge anything on your card)! You must call, to make your reservations. Block code: BLISS Weekend You must call in to get the BLISS Weekend rate. Standard Room King/Double Queen (City View): $119 plus resort fee and tax Superior Room Double Queen (Pool/Mountain View): $149 plus resort fee and tax. *Remember that you can share costs by splitting the room to make it more economical. Check out all the details by clicking here! BLISS PARTY BUS It’s a Party! The BLISS Party Bus is heading out of Oakland down to PalmSprings. For $125 round trip leave Thursday and return on Sunday. Plenty of room for your luggage On board bathroom Nice & Large seats Free mimosas and continental brunch on the ride to Palm Springs On board host! There are only 56 spots on the bus and we will sell out so please buy your Party Bus Round Trip Passes! Click hereto buy your tickets! SEE YOU AT BLISS WEEKEND! September 30th - October 3rd We look forward to seeing you BLISS Weekend.  We will be announcing our comedy lineup and our Performance lineup on June 1st so stay tuned! Please forward this email to your friends and help us spread the word! Follow your BLISS! In This Issue Thursday Events Friday Events Saturday Events Sunday Events HOTEL ZOSO BLISS PARTY BUS Quick Links BLISS WEEKEND MOVEMENT IN THE BAY HOTEL ZOSO Join Our Mailing List

Hello, hello, hello!

AUGUST is HERE!!!!! Whew! Do we have HELLA things for you to do this week and this MONTH! GOOD TIMES continues to grow and grow and grow. Thanks to everyone for coming out every week to support this community event that continues to be a no cover event with Free Food, hot music and a fabulous MC Mona Webb. 300+ beautiful people grace us with the presence every week. So THANK YOU and see you tonight.

GIRLSTOCK kicks off this Friday at Mama Buzz Cafe then head over to the New Parish for EAST BAY LOVE. Head over to San Francisco on Saturday for HARD FRENCH. Finally on Sunday come out to the Oakland Pride Fundraiser at Pizzaiola, HELLA GAY GOOD TIMES where 100% of the funds raised will go to help build the first ever Oakland LGBT Community Center.

AHHHHH but this month is hella packed with amazing events we have GIRLSTOCK, the FEMME CONFERENCE, OAKLAND PRIDE , BLISS and we are proud to announce a collaboration from the producers of Eden Weekend, Tease and Bliss for San Jose Pride. FIRE & ICE comes to San Jose on August 21st at Agenda Lounge on 1st Street, a Pride Party created by women for women and our friends. It is gonna be off the hook!

For the rest of the story click this link (work and computer safe) http://tinyurl.com/2fukdpy

Enjoy your weekend, no matter where you go, and I hope to see you at any or all these events. Be safe and be happy!

xoxo,
Miz Chris

Every WEDNESDAY morning I send out a newsletter detailing things in the Bay Area (San Francisco and the East Bay) that I find interesting, exciting, diverse and/or fun for women and our allies! If you want to receive this email in your inbox sign up by using the form below. Ensure that YOU get the latest and up to date information about what to do in the Bay, if your GAY!

EDEN - LAST DAY TO BUY EARLY REGISTRATION TIX

EDEN in the BAY Happy Gay Holidaze! We are less than TWO WEEKS away from EDEN the 1st Annual All Women, All Weekend Pride Event during San Francisco Pride. Our host hotel - SOLD OUT Our All Access VIP PASS - SOLD OUT Our EDEN Saturday Night Party VIP Pass - SOLD OUT Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your support of this very special weekend pride event. We still have available for sale online and at the door: Regular All Access Passes Comedy Show Passes TEASE VIP Tickets - VERY LIMITED NUMBER Tease Regular Passes Eden Regular Passes Good Times Regular Passes We have added hot celesbians to our lineup:  Pam Grier, lesbians from the Real “L” Word, Dani Campbell, Josie Smith-Malave, God-dess and She! And we are just getting started!  Join us for this amazing weekend, tell your friends and we will see you in Eden. www.edeninthebay.com Happy Pride! Miz Chris In This Issue Eden Celesbians Eden Welcome Party Eden Comedy Show Eden Tease Party Eden Flavour Brunch Eden Signature Party Eden Good Times Eden Dancers Eden Pricing About Us EDEN Celesbians June 24th - June 27th Throughout our entire EDEN weekend you will be surrounded by celesbians.  Chat, dance, share a cocktail or two with Pam Grier from Showtime’s L Word Mikey, Tracy, Rose and Whitney from Showtime’s the REAL “L” Word Dani Campbell from Shot of Love Josie Smith-Malave from Top Chef God-dess and She EDEN Welcome Party Thursday, June 24th EDEN Welcome Party hosted by Curve Magazine Parc55, SF 55 Cyril Magnin Street 7pm-9pm Only available to ALL ACCESS and ALL ACCESS VIP Ticket Holders EDEN Comedy Show Friday, June 25th EDEN Comedy Show co-sponsored by Olivia Travel Parc55, SF 55 Cyril Magnin Street 7pm-9pm Pride Weekend never looked so good.  Start it off right with the Eden Comedy Show.  Four of the funniest women in comedy start your weekend off right with tons of laughter!  You can check out snippets of their acts at www.edeninthebay.com. Featured Comedians: Dana Goldberg, Sandra Valls, Julie Goldman, Gina Yashere created by Movement Productions and Curve Magazine co-sponsored by Olivia Travel EDEN Tease Party Friday, June 25th TEASE Suite 181 181 Eddy, SF 9pm-3am Suite 181, San Francisco’s luxurious state-of-the-art space offers 16,000 square feet, 2 levels, 3 dance floors, 5 bars and 3 VIP areas. conveniently located only 1/2 block from Parc 55 (park at Parc55 and walk to the party or better yet get a room and don’t worry about parking at all!). Accessible by Muni, Bart and Taxi just off Powell Street Station. 2 Floors * 3 Dancefloors * 5 DJs * Gorgeous, Hosted VIP areas Bottle Service (VIP only) * Hot Go-Gos * Hotter Celesbians 2 for 1 ANY DRINK from 9pm-10pm $10 Premium Drinks, $8 Well, $7 Corona, $6 Beer $6 Cosmos & Margaritas Limited Bottle Service Available Featured DJs: DJ Olga T, DJ C-L.A. DJ Ai-Lo formerly known as DJ Calalo, DJ Campbell, DJ Rockaway Created by Movement Productions and Boiblue Events EDEN Flavour Brunch Saturday, June 26th FLAVOUR R.O.E. 651 Howard St, SF 11am-3pm FLAVOUR is the SEXIEST BRUNCH Event to Hit San Francisco PRIDE 2010. “A Flavourful Affair that’s Guaranteed to wake up ALL your Senses” FLAVOUR DJs: DJ C-LA. & DJ Ai-Lo, bring you the best hip-hop, electro, mash-ups, club classics and more! Ladies we will rock SAN FRANCISCO in Style!! ** NO COVER** BOTTOMS UP MIMOSAS DRINK SPECIALS Great Brunch Menu Sexy Flavourful Crowd WAKE up to an Early Morning Lap Dance! Birthday Celebrants get the THREESOME LAP DANCE SPECIAL. Created by Coalesce Productions * not included in the EDEN All Access Regular or VIP passes EDEN Signature Party Saturday, June 26th EDEN Taste the Forbidden Fruit 434 Brannan, SF Inside the historic Olivia Travel Building, 3rd Floor 9pm-3am Be transported into the Garden of Eden with 180 degree views overlooking the city. Movement Productions and FullCircle Events have created San Francisco’s very own Eden inside the historic Olivia Travel building 3rd floor warehouse space.  Come taste of the Forbidden Fruit. The Flyest Music * Hot Go-Gos * Drink Specials * Meet our Comedians Hosted Bottle Service (not included in the price of the ticket) Celesbians from the L Word, the Real “L” Word, Top Chef to name a few * Hosted VIP section * Red Carpet Valet Parking (separate charge)Edentini - $7 Forbidden Fruit Cosmo - $7 Eden Sunrise - $7 Shot + Beer - $10 Featured DJs: DJ Olga T, DJ Ms. Jackson, DJ Rockaway Created by Movement Productions and FullCircle Productions EDEN Good Times Afterparty Sunday, June 27th GOOD TIMES The Den, Oakland 7pm-midnight End your party weekend right at one of the most popular All Women’s event in the Bay, GOOD TIMES, in the city with the largest lesbian populationin the country, Oakland! GOOD TIMES is hosted at one of the most beautifully appointed venues in Oakland, The Den. Right across from the 17th street Bart, it takes less than 20 minutes Bart over from the city, and trust us, it is well worth the trip! Featured DJs: DJ Olga T, DJ Rapture, DJ Trinity, DJ Jacatac Created by Movement Productions and DJ Olga T presents EDEN Dancers June 24th - June 27th Hot, hot, hot! Our EDEN Dancers will be with us all weekend with the hottest moves and the tightest grooves for your pleasure. EDEN Pricing June 24th - June 27th The pricing for Eden is extremely affordable.  We are committed to giving you an AMAZING weekend for whatever your price range.  With that in mind we have have several pricing options.  Please note that these prices go up AFTER June 1st, so buy your tickets now! EDEN ALL ACCESS PASS - $125 (Best Value) includes THURSDAY: Pride Kick-Off Mixer (only included in package price), SF FRIDAY: Pride Comedy Show, SF FRIDAY: TEASE Party, SF SATURDAY: EDEN Party, SF SUNDAY: GOOD TIMES Closing Party, Oakland EDEN ALL ACCESS VIP PASS - SOLD OUT Don’t want to go to everything?  No problem!  Each of the events have individual ticket prices so you can create your own PRIDE PACKAGE! For all the ticket information go to www.edeninthebay.com About Us We are a collective of lesbian companies who have come together as a collective to produce this AMAZING Weekend!  To find out more about each of us please check us out! Movement Productions (www.movementinthebay.com) Curve Magazine (www.curvemag.com) Olivia Travel (www.olivia.com) BoiBlue Events Full Circle Events NYRO Inc.

This Weekend in the YaY! Area 4/21-4/25

YaY! Area Newsletter April 21st-April 25th Snapshot Good Times Starstruck Salt Lines Mango La Vaquerita Info Movement Facebook Miz Chris Blog BLISS DJ Olga T Hello, hello, hello! The past weekend was off the hook.  So many wonderful things.  Big shout out to San Jose for making AFTERGLOW the hottest party in the South Bay over 300 women came out to party under the stars!  Big ups to Tyyger’s Den’s DJ Lady Fest for supporting our very talented lesbian DJs! THIS WEEK starts at GOOD TIMES.  We are back at the DEN, which means kain’bigan’s yummy FREE food is back too! On Thursday head down to San Jose for STARSTRUCK or if you are in the city hit up Medjool for GLAM sponsored by Betty’s List and Olivia Travel. SALT LINES is going down this Friday with three fierce Femmes spittin’ the word.  Saturday, it’s MANGO!!!! at El Rio.  This is a special nectArena benefit.  nectArena is celebrating its 10th year anniversary as the Women’s Stage for San Francisco Pride.  Then on Sunday LA VAQUERITA, a Boricua Productions event, is opening at the Bench and Bar. Enjoy your weekend, no matter where you go, and I hope to see you at any or all these events.  Be safe and be happy! xoxo, Miz Chris Upcoming  Events 05/01/10, Oakland, WETbar (Movement Productions/FullCircle Events) 05/08/10, San Francisco, TEASE (Movement Productions/BoiBlue Events) 05/16/10, San Jose, Afterglow(Movement Productions/FullCircle Events) 05/15/10-05/22/10 Mexico, Cancun Resort(Olivia Travel/DJ Olga T) 09/30/10-10/3/10, Palm Springs, BLISS Weekend(Movement Productions) WEDNESDAY APRIL, 21st GOOD TIMES The Den, OAKLAND Telegraph @ 19th, Oakland 7pm-midnight NO COVER THIS IS A WEEKLY EVENT FOR WOMEN - so tell you FRIENDS! Featured DJs DJ Olga T DJ Trinity Every week is good times @ Good Times.  The hottest weekly party in the East Bay for women who love women.  With rotating DJs every week, the music is always fresh and the women are always beautiful.  Come join us every Wednesday at the Den! GOOD TIMES and Movement Productions fully supports and is completely committed to our exceptionally talented lesbian and queer DJs, artists, poets, and musicians. We will be playing music from various genres ranging from classic joynts to current hits, including Hip Hop, Reggae, R&B,  Come out for this very special weekly event! This is an all inclusive free event for women from Oakland to Berkeley, San Jose to Santa Cruz, Daly City to Santa Clara, Palo Alto and so on… North Bay and Sacramento folks, if you can get down here, we’d love to see you too! For GOOD TIMES pics click here! THURSDAY APRIL, 22ND In San Jose go here…STARSTRUCK Brix, San Jose 2522 Mission St, SF 7pm-11pm FREE Hollywood may only be six hours away but here in the bay you can be just as Starstruck. At the nightclub that has been renovating its self and recreating what it means to the crowd that it caters to. BRIX is bringing a monthly event that will bring the party like it has never before. Starstruck is a party that delivers a celebrity guest that isn’t scared to socialize and integrate themselves with the surroundings.April 22ndyou have the opportunity to start your weekend off with a bang, bad girls style with Oxygen’s very own Kate from the bad girls club season four! In San Francisco go here… GLAM Medjool, SF 2522 Mission St, SF 7pm-11pm FREE Featured DJ DJ Rockaway FRIDAY APRIL 23RD SALT LINES a night of release, revolt & revolution 2022, Oakland 2022 Telegraph Doors open @ 7pm Show starts @ 8pm $10 Cover 21+ w/ID Join us on Friday, April 23rd as we welcome 3 powerhouses of poetry to Oakland - Sonya Renee, Tara Hardy and Denise Jolly Sonya, Tara, and Denise are performers, educators, facilitators, developers, and believers in the human ability to create change by honoring and expressing personal, cultural, and social history. During any given show,Tara, Sonya and Denise will storm, sing, slam, and sling salt into the eye of all that has ever silenced voices meant to be heard. SATURDAY APRIL 24TH MANGO Nectarena Fundraiser El Rio, SF 3158 Mission St, SF 3pm-8pm $8 cover 21+ w/ID Mango is bringing the heat as only Mango can. Join your Mango crew as they host the annual NectArena Women’s Stage Silent Auction & Raffle. Don’t miss your opportunity to support the stage that for 10 years has ensured a dedicated space for the women’s community at the SF Pride celebration. We will be auctioning/ raffling off products and services donated by our very own community. Be the one to walk away with a gift certificate for a massage, dance lessons, self–defense class, tattoo artist, erotic toys, club passes, hair stylists and much more…. Check out resident selectas in rotation Olga T, La Coqui, Edaj and Marcella serving up the best hip hop, r&b, dancehall and all the latin grooves that make you move. SUNDAY APRIL 25TH LA VAQUERITA Bench and Bar, Oakland 510 17th Street, Oakland 5pm-11pm $5 b4 7pm $8 after 21+ w/ID Boricua Productions presents La Vaquerita the best in Norteña, Cumbia, Durangense, Punta, Rock en Español music and more with DJ La Niche the debut of DJ Fresca! SPOTLIGHT GOOD TIMES 4/14 PREVIEW WETbar is coming back in May, better than ever!  1st Sundays!

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Last night I had the pleasure of seeing Andrea Gibson live! And as much as that was and extraordinary experience, there was so much more going on for me…

I come from the tiniest of towns in Texas. You only need to blink on the freeway to miss it entirely. I state that up front because I think it is important to frame my reference points. I remember being eleven and declaring to my mother that I would live near or in a big city. Even at that young age I hated small town life. As soon as I turned 18 I moved as close to a “big” city (Fort Worth) as I could. While Fort Worth is considered a city it wasn’t Dallas, home of big hair, big cars and Alexis Carrington (I wonder who will get that reference). I moved into the Big D in 1997 and there I stayed in my “big city” blocks from downtown, minutes from every trendy spot (yes we have them) and moments from the grassy knoll.. for ten years. I visited other BIG CITIES like NYC, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco… And although each of them had their own charm, San Francisco, with its gay pride and bomb ass artists was always the place that intrigued me most. I read, like most people who are not from here and do not live here, about San Francisco. I read about all the highlights like Twin Peaks, the Tenderloin, Alcatraz, Pier 39, Golden Gate Bridge, the Castro etc. These sort of big items that if you visit you must go see and when I visited San Francisco I visited all those places. But what intrigued me most when I was in the city was seeing all of these interesting places and wanting to explore them. But that was near impossible on a four day weekend.

I have lived in the Bay Area for 21 months. Clarification, I have lived in the East Bay for 21 months. And in that time I have come to love every place between Hayward and Berkeley. I can move around these areas with great ease. The city, however, is still a big mystery to me. When I go into the city invariably Olga drives us in because I am afraid to drive there. It seems somewhat daunting and like a video game. I don’t parallel park (hello, Texas, big and flat we have tons of places to park) which seems to be the only type of parking in the city unless you want to pay $15 bucks. AND I have no idea how to get anywhere except Mango and the Castro, seriously.

So yesterday I had to go into the city, one of the few times (and I can count those times on one hand) where I would have to drive myself over that bridge and not to just one but TWO different places. I was nervous but I managed to make it to both locations unscathed even if it took me 30 minutes to find parking! Olga and I had driven by the Utah on several occasions. I always wondered what it was because I loved the architecture of the building. In fact late one night as we were passing it I remember thinking to myself I wanna go in there one day. And that one day was yesterday night.

When I saw the FB invite to Andrea Gibson and it said Hotel Utah I had no idea what or where it was. Imagine my surprise when I realized it was this place that I had wanted to go into. I drove around for quite some time until I found rockstar parking right in front (what? what!) and I walked inside. Inside this place I had seen but never been and wanted to go. A place where art was being spit like the way fire sometimes crackles. A place where the people were friendly, the bartenders downright hospitable and the venue historic. This might seem strange to the locals here and downright hokey to everyone else but when you come from a small town where the biggest bar was in front of the the local liquor store where everyone hung out to drink the booze they just bought inside, then maybe you would understand. You would understand that my eleven year old girl who proclaimed with such certainty to my mother that I wanted to live in or by a big city was jumping wildly up and down inside last night. I am living my dreams. And I know you might think why in the hell would be going to a bar (the Utah!) to see spoken word (Andrea Gibson!) in the city (San Francisco!) be a big deal?!?! Because when you are an eleven year-old girl stuck in a town that doesn’t like you because of the color of skin, in a school where creativity and art is not rewarded and downright discouraged and in a place where few people escape from and you lay in your bed surrounded by books that tell you there is a bigger life out there but not quite knowing when and how you will be able to escape and feeling the despair of that, then seeing Andrea Gibson at the Utah in San Francisco is a big fucking deal. Because I remember those nights in the dark wishing I was anywhere else and now I am.

I was born and bred in the great state of Texas. For me one of the best things about being a Texan was being an 8 hour drive or 45 minute plane ride from New Orleans. Absolutely one of my favorite cities in the United States, I have grown up with New Orleans and my relationship with her has deep roots.

I started going to New Orleans when I was 18 and it was the legal drinking age of Louisiana. My early trips were most definitely of the party variety. Too much drinking, too much partying, too much food
and definitely too much EVERYTHING else. When I got into my middle 20s I started to explore New Orleans, the French Quarter, the Garden District, Metairie, Uptown etc. In my 30s I went there for Southern Decadence and had one of the Butch-Femme.com Bashes there. We held the bash one year before Katrina in the exact same hotel as the Femme of Color Symposium. I returned to New Orleans two years post Katrina and while it was definitely a different city and devastation was still painted across her body, she felt resilient if somewhat empty.

This past weekend I took my 21st trip into the Big Easy. I was as excited if not more as I have always been to return to her. Bringing Olga, who had never experienced New Orleans, was very special.
Returning to be part of a groundbreaking event (FOCS) made it that much sweeter. Sharing vacation time with my new bestie Amy was fabulous. Reconnecting with old friends and making new ones (some of who live around the corner from me in the BaY!) was soul quenching. But the thing that struck me most was that this was the first time, in all the times I have visited, that I had spent time with women who lived in New Orleans. Some were born and bred, others were long time transplants and still others were recently moved. It was really amazing to listen to their stories, to talk to them about the post Katrina work that they have done, to listen to them speak with such pride about their city’s history and all of this from a lesbian/queer perspective. It was amazing, enlightening and beautiful

Yes I come from Texas so I know what it is like to be a lesbian in the South. But every region is different in the struggles and triumphs they face as women, as lesbians, as queers and as persons of color. I found the women in New Orleans to be strong, powerful and bad fu*king ass. I learned so much from them about what they face on a day to day basis. I watched and realized so many of them are activists in their own community starting as young as 21. It rejuvenated my spirit to see them in action, working it out and doing the work. It renewed my sense of activism and for that I thank you women of New Orleans! I hope we meet again soon.