MONTREAL's GAY PRIDE PARADE 2010, by TICKLEBEAR

WE REMAIN UNDAUNTED!!!

despite the uncertain weather,

the obvious lack of fundings,

(my special heartfelt thanks to STEPHEN HARPER AND HIS GOONS...

along with other political instances that came up short on the cash...),

and some other controversies,

the GAYS, LESBIANS, BISEXUALS and  TRANSGENDERED

walked on RENE-LEVESQUE boulevard yesterday afternoon,

proudly, colorfully, determined  to show to everyone

they are full-fledge citizens of this society we live in,

as individuals,

as families,

as workers investing as much as anybody else

into this country we love.

as i've distanced myself from the "scene"...

i don't know why the clubs weren't there,

but their absence was felt

as there was a bit less entertainment and eye candy...

but nonetheless,

those participants had the resolve to make this happen,

and montrealers and tourists showed up in large numbers to see it.

i was not overly impressed,

but as i said,

when the cash isn't there,

it's hard to give the best show in town.

it was still worth seeing,

if only for the principle.

we cannot afford to become invisible again,

as some would wish it.

we cannot afford to be silent either.

we must be heard,

we must be seen,

we must be recognized

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

as the saying goes:
WE'RE QUEER,

WE'RE HERE!

GET USED TO IT

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

while the parade may have lost some of its political edge,

it is still a nice event to attend,

and if i may say so,

a most needed one,

as it brings everyone together,

for a change...

look at the photo gallery and enjoy!!

BE PROUD, PEOPLE!!!

:)~

HUGZ

LES FEUX LOTO-QUEBEC, MONTREAL 2010: CLOSING CEREMONY AND JUPITER WINNERS, by TICKLEBEAR

well,

every good thing must come to an end...

and so,

the festival of LOTO-QUEBEC's fireworks of MONTREAL 2010 is over.

SNIFF!!!

we got to enjoy a few last minutes of fireworks,

even if the music wasn't broadcasted...

here were my favorites:

FRANCE

SWEDEN

TAIWAN

the jury seemed to feel differently:

FRANCE (BRONZE)

SWEDEN (SILVER)

CANADA (GOLD)

i must say i am most surprised by this last one.

TAIWAN, in my opinion, was so much better on all levels,

but being just an amateur...

who am i to say?

but when i think i had rated

the USA, the Portugal, POLAND  and ITALY

even better than CANADA,

you can imagine my surprise at the outcome...

still,

i think it was a fantastic year

and i am SO looking forward to next year.

and i did get two out of three right...

thanks for having dropped by and see you in 2011.

:)~

HUGZ

LES FEUX LOTO-QUEBEC, MONTREAL 2010: FRANCE, by TICKLEBEAR

the french raised the bar last night!!!

much to our delight!!

:)~

if they had tasted in the past the silver,

this year,

they aimed for nothing else but the gold.

a spectacular entrance,

a jaw-dropping display of their savoir-faire surely insured their place among the best this year.

it was refreshing to see a company step away from the easy choice

of a crowd-pleasing soundtrack relying on the pop charts,

to [successfully] introduce more original material

that splendidly supported the fireworks.

this was an absolutely dazzling show

that remained captivating from beginning to end.

throughout the show,

i couldn't help but think of VERSAILLES

as the sky was gilded in gold

and beset with celestial jewels sparkling over the city.

BRAVO LES FRANCAIS!!!

:)~

HUGZ

LES FEUX LOTO-QUEBEC, MONTREAL 2010: SWEDEN!!! by TICKLEBEAR

well,

i'm all sweet over the swedes!!

:)~

what a lavish show they've given  us last night.

truly a moment to remember.

so cheerful, so graceful,

a lively music selection covering the hit parade of past decades,

kicking things off with ABBA [obviously!!],

including a medley of MICHAEL JACKSON's songs, 

and various songs that made us dance for hours in the past [and still now!!],

and one of my faves,

CINDY LAUPER's "TRUE COLORS",

done ever so gently,

it was beautiful!!

an all-you-can-eat-buffet of colors and sensations.

you'll understand here

that the swedish team is,

in my opinion,

a strong contender for the gold jupiter.

this was truly an impressive display of their craftmanship.

LYCKA TILL LYCKA TILL!!

:)~

HUGZ