So now we're quilting on Sundays, are we?

Little did I know, but here in my rather newly adopted town which I call home, is a wonderful "underground" community of humans who all just happen to have sew much in common and have an innate need(le) to get together.

I am, of course, talking about the group of women who meet during the day on Mondays in the Niverville United Church basement. Quilting is the game. And without doing a stitch of advertising, these women are busy, busy, busy.

Today I was introduced to the group. I invited myself along on a friend's scheduled visit simply to make myself more aware of my community. I was not disappointed, for here I experienced the essence of community. The aroma was fresh, inviting, full of richness, and called the on-looker deeper into the experience.

What made this visit so nice was that I was simply expecting to drop in and have a quick look. I was quickly reminded that tasting something...really tasting something, requires intentional time...and repetition. Each return to the table brings a new perspective on the flavour. And the beautiful thing about discovering something new in your world, is the hint or even promise that there is still more.

Our adventure of connecting the community through various interests is full of promise...a promise of...I want to say harvest, but harvest is more of a getting; this is more of a seeing than a getting. People will begin to see that there is so much more than what we all see. So much more than all the things that are on the main drag and on our own cul-de-sac.

So the next time you are out and about in Niverville, look twice. Am I certain about what that means...no. Do I think that it has value...yes. There is so much out there that has value. And today I discovered some in a small church basement which I have walked, rode, and driven past without ever casting a thought. And now I have proof of their existence...I came equipped with a camera, and their photos can be seen by clicking twice on the flickr sidebar of this blog. Take a look. They are the first group of artists to be featured here, but there will be many more to come; so please keep visiting and we'll discover together Niverville's underground world.

Investing in People

There's lots of chatter in the nervous stock markets about where's the best area to invest.

Tonight I was at the Irish Association Club for a St. Patty's day event. With me were two of my children and three other teens from our community along with another dad. The reason we were there was to listen to the three teens sing a song they had learned on their own - more or less. They performed a song they learned from a Rankin Family CD - in gaelic! The first time I heard them was about last Wednesday at the Southeastern Manitoba Festival: I was so proud of their accomplishment, I thought more people should hear them and they should get more opportunities to sing. Fast forward four days and they played to a very appreciative audience and had a fabulous experience to boot.

I am glad we started this group to encourage Arts and Culture in Niverville. Tonight was a perfect example of why we are doing it. We are investing in people and that's always a good market.

what is art?

What do YOU think?

Honey, I'm home!

Tada! Niverville Style blog is now linked to our webpage's new home www.nivervillestyle.ca. It's good to have a sense of permanence for the page, now it feels like I can put more energy into the design. If anyone has ideas, suggestions or skills let me know.

We start!

A month ago we officially formed the Niverville Arts and Culture Group. We have several ideas and visions, this blog and accompanying website being one of them. Mostly we are about encouraging Art and Culture in and around Niverville. I hope visitors will engage in discussions here and help us shape the direction we take.

Last night was the final performance of Get Married or Die Trying, a play produced by our local drama club. I sat about seven rows back and it reminded me of one of the reasons why we formed this group. I would love to have a permanent stage in town with lighting and sound set in place. So much work goes into these productions yet the performance is always held in a less-than-ideal venue. The facility last night held about 200-250 people but that meant some sitting on the long staircase: good view, bad seat. All in all though, I enjoyed the production - lots of laughs.

So, are you from the area? Do you have any ideas or opinions about Art and Culture in the area? Come in, sit down and have a chat.