- lesbian. “The businessman . . . grew pla

 
 
 

' Re 

Alison Bechdel

llanfessimis, Comix, and
Dykes To Watch Out For

ljust-spent» ree ays on amenta
getaway for my brain. In every momen
‘shoulds’ in my life, I’ve been totally absotl) ~‘

Author/subject Bechdel calls the 0:0
Readers expecting Dykes to Watch Out
answers all the basic questions. Wher
characters based on real people? Wher
Toni and Clarice have a baby girl?

She also provides an intricate tim , ,
tries marking major world events. ‘For i 1
that Mo began shopping for a therapist
coincidence? I think not.

The close look at the comic strip
most people to pick up a book. Howev
Alison Bechdel; DTWOF is only a part 0

It stops short of being a autobiogr
class Catholic straight child" chapter, but
enment, and coming out — all illustrate
behavior like eating, or whining? Does
tures as soon as they can clench a cra
commonly asked question.

Bechdel illustrates her introspectt
over the years. She refers to them as ch§r§%>t§%t:s&
and notes a metamorphosis in one of th '

MONDAY SATURDAY.

(continued from 11)

corporate world, Eve is on top. She“ is
adept at manipulating the male power sys-
tem and the male gaze for her own ad-
vancement within the system. But, being
tied in, she's also in bondage.As the pres-
sure mounts over her appointment, some-
thing snaps inside, and Eve is catapulted
into the wilds of her unruly psyche.

THURSDAY

Joseph & the Amazing ‘Technicolor

-Dreamcoat7:30 p.m. $39, $29, $16.

FRIDAY

Through 10. Women's Springtime by the
Sea Package in Ogunquit. Includes a Chris
Wflliamson/Tret Fure concert. A Clay Hill
Farm event. FMI 207-646-6661.

Janice Perry, aka Gal OUT FROM UN-
DERGROUND, City Hall 8 PM. Burlington,
VT. Gal brings her one-woman kabarett
back to Burlington with a 15 year retro-
spective show.

Women of the Woods Tenth Anniversary
Celebration Dance. 7:30 p.m. Montpelier
Unitarian Church. $5 per person. Mixed
music.

SUNDAY

Mother's Day with Mother Earth with the
Radical Faeries at the Kopstein Spa in
Huntington. Call 434 5653 FMI. Circle, Eat,
sauna, dig out the pond or something.
Starts around oneish. :

Full Moon and Beltain ritual, potluck, and
Burlington UU Circle meeting.AIl who sup-
port the Covenant of UU Pagans’ mission
are welcome. Wear garb if you like, and
bring something forfeast, a musical instru-

BY MICHAEL C. ALBERO

Christmas. For many the word
conjures images of warm, crackling
fires, reindeer, elves, a hearty glass of
hot apple cider, eggnog, and mad
dashes to the mall for last minute pre-

sents when a long lost aunt or uncle .

suddenly reappears.

No matter where one is from or
what one believes it is hard not to get
caught up in the holiday season and
Deborah H. Quick is no exception.
Three years ago she began decorat-
ing local store windows with images
of the holidays. Her creations became
so popular that fevered customers
soon requested the items displayed in
the store windowseven though they
were not for sale. The demand grew
so great that Quick decided to open
her own store in Montpelier in which
she hoped to share her enthusiasm for
the season with an array of seasonal
crafts and decorations available
throughout the year.

With a grand party in February
1997, she christened her store, but soon
grew very distraught when sales fell to
non-existent |eveIs.The numerous cus-
tomers who had requested her display
items during the-frantic Christmas sea-
son had magically disappeared, and
Quick was left to wonder. However, in-

spiration soon struck when several ‘

teenagers wandered into her store
seeking costumes and other items in
order to transform their identity. With
this, Quick’s store, Elfkins, metamor-
phosed into a costume shop that is

s’ Hel s Cuo

now fully prepared to serve the inter-
ests of wondering teenagers,
crossdressers, the transgendered and
anyone else in search of creative fun.

While the idea for a costume
and theatre shop was not at the fore-
front of Quick‘s mind when she first
established her store, it seemed a logi-
cal direction to move after learning the
identity of a close friend and reading
several issues of Tapestry magazine.
According to Quick, “Once I started
reading issues of Tapestry, I realized
that they [transgendered and trans-
sexual persons] are living in fear... and
it's just not right. I don’t think of them
as any different [from any other
peop|e].”This view was furthered when
a close family friend decided to change
his identity and become a female. Ini-
tially it was difficult to adjust to the
shock, but over time it became second
nature to refer to "him” as a “her."“| love
people and I think the diversity of cre-
ation is wonderful. I don’t care if you're
pink, yellow or green. I have friends
with feet in each category. I don’t think
a person’s sexual preference is that
important. I care more about what a
person is inside,” says Quick.

Though many are quite satisfied
with their “inner self,” it is a desire to
transform their outer appearance for
which a sojourn to Elfkins may be nec-
essary. In addition to a wide array of
costumes, wigs, hats and other acces-
sories, the store carries a full line of
make-up from Ben Nye, Mehron,
‘Kryolan, Stein and Bob Kelly.-“I can get
body paints, beard cover... anything

Find Themselves

anyone wants, I can do. I even have
books for different |ooks,” notes Quick.
For those who are not adept at apply-
ing make-up, lessons and facials are
available by appointment. “In general,
people try and soak transgendered
people for a lot more money than what
something actually costs, and I don’t
think that is right. I wouldn’t be doing
that to anyone. I do people up for an
event, offer advice, teach them how to
apply make-up, and help them pick out
basic outfits available and wigs.
Women have no problem dressing as
men.They have been doing it for years.
I just don’t want men to feel sheepish
about dressing as a woman.”

Despite this optimistic outlook,
men may still feel awkward about seek-
ing out assistance in a local business.
Nevertheless, Quick believes her shop
“...offers people a chance to come in
somewhere where nobody is going to
raise an eyebrow. There is privacy and
nobody will come into the shop and
make fun of them). That doesn’t hap-
pen here. For added security and pri-
vacy, I'm willing to do things after hours
in my home or in the shop by appoint-
merit."

‘ Having recently celebrated its
one year anniversary, Elfkins’ greatest
achievement to date is just continuing
to exist. Like many people in the com-
munity, the store has struggled to find
an identity since it’s inception. How-
ever, the new direction is a comfortable
fit for the owner, and the store strives
to have something to fit each customer,
too!

ment, and a cushion to sit on. HC acces-
sible. 6 p.m. First UU Society of Burlington,
152 Pearl ST. FMI Dian 658-9689.

Seventh Annual Covered Bridges Half
Marathon foot race in Quechee and
Woodstock,Vermont.This popular running
event draws 2,000 entrants and features
4 Vermont covered bridges, a pastoral
route along the Ottauquechee River, mu-
sical bands en route, lots of great food and
excellent organization. The race is sanc-
tioned and certified by the USA Track &
Field (USATF) for 13.11 miles. For more
information, visit our Web Site at
www.coolrunning.com/coveredbridges.
We can be reached by mail at P. O. Box,
722 Woodstock, VT 05091, by phone at
802-457-‘.1228 ' or E-mail at
chioffi@va|Iey.net.

MONDAY

GLITTER Gay And Lesbian Literature
Discussion Book Night. Rubyfruit Jungle
By Rita Mae Brown. See May 4 listing for
details. _ ,

WEDNESDAY

Rainbow Business Association mixer at
Loretta’s, 44 Park St., Essex Jct., VT 6:30
p.m. - 8:30 p.m. $10 includes hors
d'oeuvres, cash bar.

Brattleboro, 7pm Vermont Freedom to
Marry Task Force organizational meeting.
At the home of Mark Herman and Jeff May.
FMI 258-9099

3 MONDAY

Dyke Talk, Topic LUST. 7 pm at the Fight
Back office on N. Winooski next to the
Coop. FMI caII.Crow 64 5595

Glitter - Johnny Guitar (1954, USA) Direc-
tor: Ray, Nicholas. Nicholas Ray’s thrillingly
overwrought anti-Western has been read
variously as a parable for McCarthyism,
as a “psychological western" of the kind
common in the late '40s and early '50s,
and as an operatic quasi-lesbian send-up

of the genre, in which women play the roles
normally assigned to men. Joan Crawford
plays Vienna, a tough former saloon girl
who's managed to screw her way to the
top — the top here being her own saloon
and a tract of land the railroad will pay her
a fortune for. Vienna has few friends — a
trio of two-bit criminals and a couple of
employees — and a lot of enemies, most
powerful among them capitalist landowner
Mclvers and a vicious, sexually frustrated
old maid named Emma (Mercedes
Mccambridge). Mclvers and Emmaframe
Vienna for a murder in an effort to seize
her land, but their plans are spoiled by the
appearance of an old boyfriend, “Johnny
Guitar” (Sterling Hayden), who joins
Vienna to improve her odds.All the action
stems from the aggressive instincts of
Emma, who's all too willing to slip the
noose over Vienna's neck when the
“menfoIk” balk; and from Vienna, who
blows Emma away with aplomb.
See May 4 listing for details.

BLT Health Network will be meeting at the
Peace and Justice Center at 7:00 PM.
Come visit us, join us, participate, in the