Dayton Pridefest 2009, 3-6 June

June 3-6 . Dayton PrideFest '09
Throughout downtown; times vary.
The Pride Dinner will open the festivities on June 3 at Sinclair Community College, which will feature nationally acclaimed comedienne Poppy Champlin and keynote speaker Malcolm Lazin. Thursday is Pride Night at the Neon with a screening of Saint of 9/11. On Friday, Pride on the Quadrant will be held between Third and Second Street. The week will end with the regular Dayton PrideFest Parade and Rally on Saturday at 11 a.m.

You can find a lot more information at PrideDayton.com and register for the dinners at EventBrite.

Gem City Circle Walking Tours 29 & 30 May @ 945am

May 29 & 30 . Gem City Circle Walking Tours
Dayton Metro Library, Local History Room, lower level, 215 E. Third St.;
9:45 a.m.

Enjoy a Walk of Historic Ludlow Street. See the Terra Cotta District, the former sites of the RKO Colonial Theater and the RKO Keith Theater. See historic photos of the interior of this theater and the terra cotta exterior, and examine the exterior of the Arcade with an update on the restoration. Pass sites of long-gone mansions, the oldest restaurant still open, the historic 1909 building that was built to look like a bank, and more. Walks are about two hours long with an additional hour for lunch. We rest at bus benches and park benches. Reservations required. $8 per person, not including lunch. 274-4749.

From Homeless to Harvard - 28 May @10am

May 28 • Town Hall Lecture Series: Liz Murray
Junior League of Dayton; Schuster Performing Arts Center, Second & Main; 10 a.m.

Liz Murray is one of the speakers in the Town Hall Lecture Series put on by the Junior League of Dayton, and serves as a fundraiser for them. It sounds like an interesting event:

From homeless to Harvard…Liz Murray's life is a triumph over adversity and a stunning example of the importance of dreaming big. By age 15, Liz's cocaine-addicted mother had died and she was homeless. Amidst this pain, Liz always imagined her life could be much better than it was. Determined to take charge of her life, Liz finished high school in just two years while camping out in New York City parks and subway stations, and is now studying at Harvard University.

There are a few ... interesting... things about this. The cost is $35, and tickets are available at Ticket Center Stage (click on the date). What I find interesting are these couple of things in tandem:

• Her message is being touted as an example of individualistic success to overcome adversity. It's great that she did this, and individual responsibility has a lot to do with one's success. On the other hand, when you frame it the way the media has around her (I have not heard her speak myself), it implies that those who have not succeeded are only there because of personal flaws. Which, um, is false.


• All of the Junior League speakers on their webpage... well, they look pretty damn white to me.


• Those who might benefit by her inspiring message are busy working at 10am on a Thursday, or don't have the $35 cover.

Yes, I understand that these are fundraisers. I also can't help but see everything else around the fundraiser as well.

Still, I bet it would be an interesting talk. If, um, I wasn't busy working.

GloryCon - 24 May 1000-2300

Oh, how I want to ask if they have a big hole at this Con. But hey, the con I ran as a student was called ConVent.... so I guess I can't complain.

WSU GLORY CON
Sunday, May 24th
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.
Student Union Atrium, E156 & E157 Student Union, and The Pathfinder Lounge

Glory Con is a tabletop, role-playing, and video game convention hosted by Wright State’s Adventurers Guild. Events include large and small team PvP table top games, Rifts micro campaign, Call of Cthulu, Reapers Paint and Take, and a video game room. Admission is $2.00 and it allows access to all events. There will also be vendors from Bellbrook and Comic on site.
For more information contact Cameron Sanders at sanders.50@wright.edu

Aullwood Audubon Center

As the weather warms up, you might want to consider stopping by the Aullwood Audubon Center.

Aullwood is an environmental education center in western Ohio. We are an Audubon Center of the National Audubon Society. Our goal is to promote the protection of birds, other wildlife and the habitats on which they depend. Aullwood offers both children and adults the opportunity to experience and appreciate the world through experience-based education.

Definitely a good way to spend an evening or part of your weekend.

Address to Address Planning on the RTA

(h/t to Steve B. on Twitter)

The Greater Dayton RTA now has an address to address trip-planning service right on their main landing page. This is great - I find the maps and route tables confusing as all get out. Unfortunately, this is also as they're planning service cuts and rate increases. I was against that kind of move in 2007, and I still am today. Gas prices lowered again during the fall of 2008, but they're starting to come back up. In the long run, I think that lowering was a fluke, not the trend. Public transit will become more important, and Dayton will hurt itself by reducing its public transit capabilities.

When will we get accountability for school administrators?

While the announcement that Sugarcreek administrators are freezing salaries is a good step in the right direction, it's a small step, and only by a small section of the educational establishment.

And I don't mean the teacher's unions.

Whenever we talk about schools, levies, and cutting corners, the unions get brought up. But I don't think they're the problem. First, consider this truism: Adding money to a school system does NOT guarantee that things will get better. Taking money out of the system practically guarantees that things will get worse.

The reason for this disparity is not the teachers. Before the last round of levy votes, I had the opportunity to speak to several teachers in the Dayton and Cincinnati area. These were all casual conversations, with relatively random individuals, but there were some common stories. First, that even though parents have been contributing more and more to classroom supplies, so have the teachers.

Secondly, all of these teachers could easily think of bad spending decisions and mismanagement by principals, superintendents, or other administrators. One notable (but too common) story told how a principal who had just been transferred into the school took money earmarked for paper supplies for the children and used it to buy a new desk, chair, and other office accouterments for himself.

There is currently no way for school principals and administrators to be held individually accountable to the taxpaying public. While we vote for the school board, that's a pretty indirect way to make our feelings about individual administrators known. When a principal commits a massive FAIL, there is little pressure parents and taxpayers can bring to bear. Should the superintendent, say, spend money building a downtown office center instead of on books for the children, there's even less we can do.

We say that our children should have good teachers - so we should pay them what they're worth. At the same time, we have to keep the bureaucracy surround them from devouring our tax money.

When the administrators lower their pay to the same as the teachers in their schools, then I'll believe they have the welfare of kids - instead of their pocketbooks - at heart.

Really Really Free Market

I wish I had known about this beforehand. From the DDN article:

And that’s how things went all day long at the first ever Really Really Free Market on Sunday, May 17, at the downtown community garden near the intersection of Fourth Street and Wayne Avenue.

There were no sales receipts, price tags or credit card machines.

People brought goods, services and items with which they wished to part. They left the market — the brainchild of Dayton artist and bartender Jennifer Breman — with things they either needed or wanted.

The next one is scheduled for October. Be sure to check out their Myspace page (yes, I know, I know - but it's much more tolerable with AdBlock Plus) for more information and updates.

I'm part of the Dayton Circus Sideshow...

...at least, a small part. My story "Last Dance" appears in the 'zine Collage that is available at the Dayton Circus Sideshow III. The 'zine is put out by Mock Turtle Press, run by C. Dendy. Surrounding it are their absolutely amazing photographs. The Sideshow is still there tomorrow, 16 May, so stop by, see the art, and grab a copy!

DJ Ruckus Roboticus - 15 May 7-11pm

May 15 • DJ Ruckus Roboticus
Practice Yoga, 504 E. Fifth St.; 7-11 p.m.
Dayton's own one-man robot band Ruckus Roboticus will provide live, loud inspiration for the happy hour Vinyasa class, followed by sets from 7-11 p.m. Don't miss a rare local performance from this crate-diggin', genre-mixin' boy wonder! $12. 321-7676.

You can check out some of his tunes and see what you're going to get at MySpace (yes, I know, I know) and at Impose Magazine.

Hills & Dales construction nearly complete

I think one of the often-overlooked resources of Dayton are the fantastic variety of MetroParks in the area. Sure, we can argue about some of the details - or geographical distribution. Regardless, they're relatively accessible and most services are free.

Which makes the renovation at Hills & Dales even better.

A visit to one of the region’s most historic parks is soon going to feel as though you’ve entered a time warp.

Hills & Dales MetroPark, courtesy of $4 million in construction, now feels like a ramble through a thickly wooded upstate New York forest, a visit to a bygone era when Adirondack architecture was all the rage, a place and mind set where visitors became part of the landscape and weren’t there as intruders. It’s ideally suited for casual strolls and photography.

Take a look at all the things offered and - once the weather clears up - take advantage of these resources and programs here in Dayton.

Free Health Screenings at DIFI 16 May

There will be free health screenings offered by Premier Community Health, Premier Health Partners that include the following:

• Blood sugar-A1 C test (which provides average blood sugar level of last 3 months)


• Blood pressure


• Cholesterol screening


• Easydetect kit (for cholerectaral screening)

This will be at the Dayton International Festival (DIFI) - also known as the World A'Fair - on Saturday May 16, 2009 from 12 noon to 10 pm in Room 204

They also need some physicians and volunteers to help - if you can, contact the AAC-Dayton VP Ramesh Srivastava to get set up.

Outrageous River Derby Kickoff - 14 May

May 14 • Outrageous River Derby Kickoff Event
c{space, 20 N. Jefferson St.; 6-8 p.m.

It’s just 3 months until we put our inventions to the test on the Great Miami River in the Outrageous River Derby: Walk on Water Challenge, when contestants will build watercrafts out of anything that floats, except boats, and then attempt to walk across the river on them! Join us in the hottest creative space in downtown Dayton for a fun evening as we prepare for this event. Fun, refreshments, and live music by SleepyBird. For cost, more information and to RSVP, email innovationcollaborative@gmail.com.

Gospel Giggles - 6pm TODAY

Just saw this on the DDN Twitter stream:

Sharonna Sinclair has never been any kind of comedian, but she is the primary force behind the increasingly popular Gospel Giggles shows of the past three years.

“I just promote. I try to stay away from the microphone,” said Sinclair with a smile.

Still, she has brought a number of comics to the microphone for her Christian comedy nights, which she started in 2006 as an alternative to the typical comedy club scene with very adult content.

While I rather enjoy the adult types of comedy, I can also understand how it makes others uncomfortable. It's great that she's taken the initiative to provide an alternative for those who want it.
Read more about her story and the genesis of Gospel Giggles at the DDN's website.

Gospel Giggles

WHEN: 6 p.m, today, May 10.
WHERE: Ware Banquet Center, 735 Cincinnati St., Dayton.
COST: $20 in advance, $25 at the door
INFO: (513) 424-7214 or (937) 626-0350

The Dayton Circus' Sideshow - 15 and 16 May

Click the image to embiggen.
THE SIDESHOW llll

An event of grand proportions to connect the local art community AND Downtown Dayton.
The Sideshow is an annual event in cooperation with The Dayton Circus Creative Collective.

This Sideshow is an annual multimedia extravaganza in cooperation with the Dayton Circus Creative Collective. Each year 50 plus artist of all trades - video, photography, painting, music, sculpture, and performance - come together to display their talents at one breathtaking event.

Imagine you are in downtown Dayton. You enter a previously empty commercial space and begin your journey through sculpture and 2D art while live music plays. Weave your way through large-scale environmental installations and be enveloped by each artist’s view of the world. Stop at the main stage to enjoy a vaudeville act, watch a play, or be intrigued by performance art. Enter the screening room to sample video art. Mingle with performers in the crowd. Guests will be bombarded with spectacle, sound, and vision.

There will be no monetary gain from this endeavor. The show will be supported solely by it's participants and members of our community. We hope to expose the burgeoning underground art scene and connect it to the more established art community. The Sideshow will be free of charge and open to as wide of a population as we can reach.

This years event will run from 5pm-1am in conjunction with Urban Nights on May 15th continue at 5pm-1am May 16th with new performances and more to celebrate.

Urban Nights - 15 May from 5-10pm

[I admit, lifted wholesale from the ARTScene newsletter]

Walk on Downtown’s Creative Side at Urban Nights,

On Friday, May 15, from 5 to 10 p.m., downtown will come alive with the energy of Urban Nights. This popular event brings out downtown’s creative side, and nearly 100 businesses, organizations and other unique venues will be on display for the community to enjoy.

Urban Nights showcases downtown’s dining, nightlife, art, music, retail, and housing. Businesses and restaurants offer special discounts, artists and galleries open their doors to the public, roving musicians and entertainers of all kinds perform throughout the center city, and downtown’s most impressive urban living options are open for tours. More than one hundred creative places and spaces will be a part of the event, including locations throughout downtown, the Oregon Arts District, and the Wright-Dunbar Business Village. A map of participating venues and a complete performance schedule is available online at www.downtowndayton.org.

Urban Nights will also feature exciting performances by local artists and groups on the Main Stage at Courthouse Square as well as on satellite stages throughout downtown. The Main Stage on Courthouse Square will be programmed from 5 to11 p.m. with local bands jammin’ the night away! The satellite stages will feature a variety of local talent, including performances by students at Sinclair Community College.

Dr. Horrible in Dayton - 7 - 9 May

Excerpted from the DDN article, h/t to Steve B

The Miami Valley School will be presenting the nation’s first authorized high school production of “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” an Internet sensation that stormed to the top DVD spot on Amazon.com and led to Time magazine naming it one of the top 50 Inventions of 2008.

The production, which hits the school’s stage May 7 through 9, is a musical series initially produced exclusively for the Web.

Tickets for the MVS Dr. Horrible production are available by calling (937) 434-4444 or emailing ross.williams@mvschool.com.

Ways to Get Downtown

One of the things that's a constant bother to me when going downtown is parking. I'm not sure where the best places to park are, what my options are, and so on. So it's pretty cool that the Downtown Dayton Partnership has put together a nice one-stop informational page with interactive map to find parking options, and information on bus routes, taxis, and carpooling to get downtown.

Alison Bechdel @ WSU - 11 May 2009 - FREE

May 11, 2009 @ 7 p.m.
Free & Open to the Public
No Tickets Required

Alison Bechdel, author of the critically acclaimed Fun Home (called "one of the very best graphic novels ever" in Booklist) and of the syndicated comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For (DTWOF), has become a cultural icon for lesbians and discerning non-lesbians all over the planet. . . At the podium, Bechdel redefines race and gender roles while taking aim at some of the most controversial topics of the day.

More at the official event page.

WSU Cabaret - 3 June 2009 @ 7pm

Steve's note: I just learned this event has been rescheduled for 3 June 2009. Sorry about any confusion.

Title: WSU Cabaret
Date: May 06, 20093 June 2009
Time: 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Location: Apollo Room
Description: The WSU Cabaret - formerly the WSU Charity Drag Show - is entertainment by WSU students for WSU students raising money for the PFLAG scholarship sponsored by Beta/Beta and cosponsored by SG, GAC, RSA, Rainbow Alliance, BSU, PSA and The Astronomy Club. Tickets are 4.00 for PreSale and 7.00 at the door. This fun evening will be from 7:00 pm until 10:00 pm on May 6th3 June 2009. Contact Julie Allen for more information.

Russian, Turkish translators needed

The League of Women Voters needs Russian or Turkish interpreters to help with translating for officials coming to Dayton for a week, starting 29 May. The delegation is part of an effort to stress transparency, accountability, and good governance. More info is available at the DDN article I learned about this from, or you can contact Susan Hesselgesser at the League office, 228-4041.

Metroparks Online Games

Okay, so this seems a little cheesy. But considering that this weekend is likely to be completely unlike last weekend, this makes a lot more sense: The Dayton Metroparks have a few online games for you (and your kids) to do. What makes them different is that they're all related (in some way) to the outdoors - so when the weather clears up, you can use it to help your kids tie information from online to real life. The games are coded in Flash.