Hey there Poly Compeers,
what a lovely intimate evening we had at Discussion group this
month; a bakers dozen of us gathered at the delightfully
comfortable and accommodating Glasshouse Hotel.
A big Thank you goes to Sally, my co-pilot for a very successful
evening! For those of you who couldn't attend for whatever reason,
here's a taster...
*A round-up of last Sunday's Pride March including comments that
the warm glow of Pride was taken home literally with some people
marching behind the Poly banner getting sunburnt, (owee, Aloe
vera=good)! Also, a couple of schools marched in uniform to
support their LGBTIQ students. There was generally a good and
interactive response from spectators, some even close to joining
the Poly group on the spot! We heard about the types of definitions
on what poly is when asked during the march, one offering from
PolyVic members being more cerebral and one being both short
and Kewl, but both types effective :-).
*Question on how to introduce the possibility of moving to poly when
in a couple, responses included have a look, dip toes, but
remember it can be done in small steps, take your time and pull
back if becomes uncomfortable for either of you.
*An old favourite, Books on poly: "have read The Ethical Slut", so
was able to move on to other books (see links for suggestions
below).
*Another favourite, Poly movies such as Goldfish Memory, French
twist; and it was suggested that Google was a good way to find lists
of movies with poly/polyish themes. Here is a sample of some of the
URL's that came up when I searched myself today using the
keywords 'poly movies' -
www.polyamory.org/Howard/movies.html
http://stason.org/TULARC/.../polyamory/20-Polyamory-Movies.html
http://www.listal.com/list/poly-movies
This looks like a bit of a gem of a site with lots of poly related stuff,
books, movies etc. http://www.theinnbetween.net/polymovies.html
There are many more mentions, I just wanted to whet your
appetites with an entree sized list :-).
*Discussion on why people could find poly threatening - around
perceptions that stem from fear of loss and around changes to their
relationship.
*Religion and Poly, specifically what Christianity has to say, and how
certain congregations deal with members who are openly poly!
Some of the points discussed were, that the attitude from some is
'love the sinner and hate the sin'; 'poly being outside the church's
teaching'; 'sanctity of marriage'; how it is ok to be doing whatever as
long as it remains quiet/hidden. Conversely, being open and honest
about it is a huge challenge, that is often rewarded with loss of
'friends' and/or excommunication *sigh*!
*What is being considered for Valentines Day amongst poly folk?
More generally, how do we mark the achievements of partner's
partners? Quite a few Poly's seem to be against Valentines Day, on
the basis that it is a 'Hallmark' event & one should be doing the
same stuff every day anyway! With others thinking it is a lovely thing
to do, however, there did seem to be a consensus on celebrating
special occasions of partner's partners :-).
We also had our regular spot of community announcements for the
coming month that included:-
*the annual combined bi & poly picnic having been postponed due
to extreme temperatures has been rescheduled for this Sunday,
13th February, 2011.
Time: 12:30pm onwards (usually until around 5-6pm)
Place: Fairfield (Boat House) Park, Heidelberg road, Fairfield. Look for
the beautiful big spreading tree beside the amphitheatre, and
Overcaterers Anonymous! *giggle* :-P. http://tinyurl.com/46t738f
clicking on the small map brings up surrounding streets!
*Poly Social gathering
When: Sunday 27th Feb 2011
Where: The Glasshouse, 51 Gipps St, Collingwood.
Time: 5:30 pm - 9:30 pm ish.
*Mardi Gras parade, and the poly float themed PolyGLAmorous,
when: 5th March 2011, where: Sydney, NSW.
*Poly family picnic~
When: Sunday 6th March and throughout 2011, (first Sunday every
second month - odd numbered months).
where: Quarries Park, Clifton Hill, 3068.
Time: 12 noon til 3pm.
"This is an opportunity for a gathering with other poly parents and
poly-family-friendly people, with or without kids, where we can talk
about poly-family matters and enjoy each others company."
*Bonus Poly points for anyone getting from Sydney to Melbourne in
time for the Poly Family Picnic! :-P
*Melbourne Queer Film Festival ~17-27th March, 2011,
http://www.mqff.com.au/
As you can see lots and lots of interesting stuff :-) why not come
along next time and be part of the discussion on Tuesday, *8th
March 2011.
Cheers,
Sharlot & Sally.
