Men's Social Network -Tucson

Information Update - - March 1st, 2010 

Greetings!

 
It is really hard to believe that another  year of M.S.N. events has come and gone and that we are
entering our 16th year of providing an alternative source of entertainment and activities away from
the bar scene for our gay and bi brothers of Tucson.
 
For various reasons, our membership numbers have slipped over the past few years but we are still 
doing good and remain a strong service to our current members.  
 
The problem of getting and retaining the younger members remains our main challenge. It is hard for
the younger guys to see (and better yet to admit) that as every day passes, they too, are getting older
than the younger guys born 2, 4, 6, 8 or 10 or more years before themselves!!!   I can recall when I was
a "know it all teen ager" - I sure couldn't wait until I was 21 so I was "legal"!!  Finally that big birthday
arrived, I immediately went and got the 21 year old drivers license -- back in those days we had to
renew our drivers licenses more frequently than the guys in recent generations, so maybe it was the 
more frequent renwal periods that made us more aware of our "age."  (Those teen years seem like
yesterday - but - that is only in my dreams!!!)  Now days a drivers license may not expire until 20 or 30
 years after issue - - lots of time for a guy to forget that he is aging right along with the rest of us!!!  
Anyhow, remember, we are diversified in age and welcome those from 21 and older to become active
members of our group.  
 
If anyone has any suggestions on how to recruit and retain younger members, please let me or any
Steering Committee Member know your thoughts.
 
Also I want to take this opportunity to let all past members know that although they may have dropped
their active membership (dues paying), they are always considered members of the MSN brotherhood
and are welcome to return at any time to active membership.
 
I'm still looking for someone interested in being our e-NEWS editor.  Always looking for articles of
interest to be published in either the e-NEWS or any of our special e-NEWSletters - - contact me - -
 
Sincerely,
 
Thom Goodrich
Men's Social Network
 

PS - - In March,we will begin distributing the 2010/11 Membership Benefits Folder - to all current members. It 

will contain the M.S.N. Membership Directory and many other new useful things, something we hope you will

find useful and enjoy, an added benefit for M.S.N. members. 
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SAVE THE DATE 
WRITE A WILL
WORKSHOP 

Will
 
Saturday, March 27, 2010
10:00am-11:30am
SAAF Office, 375 S. Euclid Ave
Free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided.
To reserve your spot for this educational session, please
contact Michele at (520) 628-7223 by Friday, March
19th. 
 
It has been said that a person will work more than 40 years
 
to accumulate assets
, will spend 10 years conserving what
 
has been accumulated
, but will spend almost 0 time
 
planning how it will be distributed
after their lifetime. 

One of the greatest burdens to a family is the economic chaos created by

someone's death.  Having an up-to-date will can alleviate that

burden.

This educational session is made possible by the support and partnerships 

of Attorney Doug Newman and Southern Arizona AIDS

Foundation (SAAF).
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About The Picture At The TOP 
 
You may be wondering why there is a picture of raffle tickets at the top of this newsletter?  This will be the
 
second year that we have not held an Annual Auction to raise funds to add to our general fund so that we
 
can sponsor the Annual Jerry Curl Memorial Scholarship Fund and other "extra" things that we have enjoyed
 
in the past when we had extra funds.   For the second year, we have had to pass on presenting an annual
 
Scholarship. 
 
The Steering Committee has talked about different fund raiser events instead of the of an Annual Auction. 
 
Presently the only extra fund raising event we have is a 50/50 raffle which Ken Cooper has graciously
 
volunteered to oversee at our Monthly Pot Lucks, total collected this past year is $476.00, after paying the
 
50% Prize, it leaves $238.00 for our general fund, this of course does not bring us anywhere near the
 
desired $1000.00 we need to provide for one Scholarship.
 
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____________________________________________________________________________________________
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2ND ANNUAL OSCAR GALA
FEATURING "REVEILLE REACHES OUT" AWARDS
HONORING JOEL MEISTER AND ALLEN KINZEY
 
Join Reveille Men's Chorus for the 2nd Annual Oscar Awards Gala on Sunday March 7, 2010 from 6pm-10pm! We will be rolling out the red carpet, and watching the telecast on big screen televisions in a lovely downtown location (Casa Chadwick, 227 S. 4th Ave.).
 
This year Reveille is proud to honor Joel Meister and Allen Kinzey with the "Reveille Reaches Out Award" for their tremendous work in the Tucson LGBT community.
Featuring performances by Reveille Men's Chorus, a silent auction of glamorous items, fine food and drink, door prizes, raffles - all hosted in Reveille's unmatched style!
 
Tickets are $10 per person and are available online! Tickets may be also be purchased at the door, from any Reveille member, or by calling (520) 304-1758.
Visit www.reveillemenschorus.org for more information, or call (520) 304-1758.
_________________________________________________________________ 
M.S.N. OSCARS PARTY - - (Plans in the making)
 
(Davis Palmer, Chairman of Communications & Media sent a note.  More details will be available at the March
 
Potluck, looks like we will have an Oscars Party at Bill and Darrin's home -- attendance will be limited to about 12 --
 
the event will replace the regular Sunday Night Dinner OUT on March 7th, Pizza and beverages will be provided by M.S.N.,
 
get your reservation in NOW!!!  Below is the email from Davis - -)
 
All--
 
At dinner tonight (Feb. 21st) at Mimi's, I mentioned MSN should host an Oscar party
but I wasn't sure where.
 
When I got home, I called Bill & Darrin to sign up for Tuesday
evening's movie and Darrin said Bill was thinking of an Oscar party so
it came together very quickly.
 
I am planning this INSTEAD of Sunday dinner out for March 7 so please make note.
I suggested a pot luck but Bill thought that too messy and suggested
pizza.  I told him I thought the club would pay for it as it is an MSN
function, though I don't know where to get really good pizza here and
how much we need.
 
As it is in Bill & Darrin's home, seating will be limited so reservations are a must.
I will be revamping March and making the April calendar to distribute
at the pot luck, so please e-mail me any schedule changes ASAP.
 
Davis, Bear & Claude  (325-4754 or email [email protected])
 
(For reservations contact Bill or Darrin @ 396-9295)
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Avatar (3D version)
 
Harkins Tucson Spectrum 18
ADDRESS
5455 S. Calle Santa Cruz
Tucson, AZ 85706
(520) 889-5588
 
 
If anyone missed Avatar and is still interested in seeing it in 3D -- it is still here in Tucson at the new Harkins Theaters at Irvington and I-19.  Bill Biggers, our old bud now living in S.C., did a pretty good "review" of the controversial film - - I am not sure how much longer it will be showing in town - especially the 3D version - but when I called and checked it should still be here at least until Thursday the 4th of March.
 
Howdy all;
This is going out to the few folks who may be interested in Avatar, that is if they haven't seen it already.  This is my take on the film.  OK buddy, here it is.  Note, not going back to edit and polish - just informal, random unpolished takes here:

First, I believe "Avatar" is a Masterpiece - Boogie, WOW, Da'hmn, Incredible, wonderful, marvelous - plain durn perfect.  Is that effusive enough?  Nope.  It is the most beautiful piece of place and people "message" I've seen to date that hearkens to what humankind has suffered on the earth and suffered upon fellow humans from the whites with American Natives, from the US (and Halliburton) with Iraq (note, not the same as Afghanistan at all which personally I think is justified but is it do-able?), the English and their once World dominating colonialism - specifically India comes to mind, then there's the Chinese invasion and cultural genocide of Tibet and how about the plunder of diamonds in Africa - among others; the list in human history is endless...  stories of our polarized human nature, a nature of great beauty and great horror.
Where the Hell is the Middle Road all the great teachers have taught?  I guess we are not yet capable as a species, but thankfully there are individuals who continually surface can keep leading, the way-showers.
The creators of the film have drawn, almost seamlessly and often blatantly from Native American belief systems, the Sikhs, the Hindu, the Buddhists and I'd venture to guess the purest of Christian intent, Christ consciousness... but it doesn't stop there.
The Greens are going to love this film; anti-war people will rally around the anti-war messages. Avatar celebrates the anti-war and aggression theme. Avatar asks us to consider a place where all sentient beings (which in this case includes plants and the very earth) are in concert with, in harmony with their planet and environment, only taking what is needed for their own sustenance and possessing the wisdom to understand the intricacies of interconnectedness, something any Earth biologist understands in Biology 101.  I'm certain this will become a Green cult film far surpassing the craze of Star Wars in the seventies.
Who the hell wouldn't want to be a beautiful, brave 10 to 12 foot tall Na'vi (Naive?)?  There's more than a single theme, a single message of peace, understanding and respect for all things packaged in a rip-roaring and highly entertaining work of art.
Imagine M. C. Escher's mountains, like the one featured on a Kafka book cover, floating, suspended by some strange vortex.  Then there's the ability to spiritually and physically connect with other beings, including plant life... imagine dandelion-jellyfish-like plant seeds, luminescent, sentient and recognizing pure intent, the pure of heart... and speaking of luminescence, I couldn't believe the riot of beings and plants aglow in their luminescence to the point they compete with creatures deep in our oceans...
The audience literally gasped at the visual beauty and swash-buckling action.
Avatar presents itself like a lucid dream, a dream I personally would love to dream and realize.  It's poignant that this particular work of cinematic art comes with the increasing crisis of our planet in peril, when humanity can easily become a malignancy upon the planet, a planet that will eventually revolt and survive no matter what, becoming inhospitable to our kind for an unthinkable period of time until it is once again healed.
These giant peoples make me think initially of American natives picking their own steeds, a mutual dialogue and understanding before the horse is "broken" - then there's all the cowboys, soldiers, merchants, adventurers in our many human "advanced" cultures who once they encountered the mysteries and beauty of another so-called primitive society, went native - happily so - conquerors blessed by being seduced by the way of life and people they wish to conquer, a people with their own set of unique values - and value.  In almost every case these "primitive" peoples had and have complex social orders and live in what appears to be perfect harmony with their environment.
While watching "Avatar" I couldn't help continually thinking of war criminals who will go to any lengths to dominate another culture of beings, take their freedom, their homes, their self-governance, and all this being shown in a Rip-Roaring yet incredibly beautiful piece of art-entertainment (art-er-tainment).  That's the best way of getting one's message across and Cameron and his fellow conspirators have polished off an instant classic.  Metaphors are too numerous to account, but there are obvious ones, like the Tree of life theme, sacred places, industrial-military domination over those a so-called step behind... this is one film I have to see again, once for only the spectacular visuals, another time for all the "hidden" messages, another for the metamorphosis of the good and honorable soldier who in turn morphs into a pure-heart defending those slated to be exploited at any cost, even to inhalation of culture and people.  It's just too cool.
Remember "Dancing with Wolves" and "Lawrence of Arabia" as just two films with this general theme... and then the government, the corporation (of any time, day and place on earth) seeking to exploit this planet of Pandora, a true Pandora's box for those who wish to invade, who upset the fragile connectedness of it all.
The best thing about this film is that it is tailored in a way everyone can relate, understand and enjoy...
Tomorrow I see "Holmes" with my cousin Tom; I wish we were seeing "Avatar."  After a short period of digestion, gonna see this puppy at the very least once more.
Bill
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What's coming up??
     
3/1/2010 9:30 am Bowling - contact Merle Hudson 888-7264
3/1/2010 7:00 pm Scrabble @ Lee & Merlins call 207-5336 - Limited space
3/2/2010 All Day eNewsletter Information
3/5/2010 5:45 pm Oasis Social Group (Mixed) Davis 325-4754
3/5/2010 7:00 pm Charades -- call Lee or Merlin 207-5336 for details
3/6/2010 7:00 pm Pot Luck and Social -- Shamrocks and Pipers 
3/7/2010 7:15 pm MSN OSCARS PARTY -- LIMITED SEATING -- contact Bill
or Darrin @ 396-9295 
3/8/2010 7:30 pm Trivial Pursuit--Call Lee or Merlin @ 207-5336 
3/9/2010 7:15 pm Movie Night "The Gang's All Here" LIMITED SEATING, Bill
or Darrin @ 396-9295
3/14/2010 6:30 pm Dinner Out - Contact Ken @ 294-6606 or Davis @ 325-4754; Chef Alisah's,
5931 N. Oracle Rd. (Bosnian Cuisine)
3/15/2010 Articles for e Newsletter for the 20th of the month Article Submission Deadline
3/15/2010 6:30 pm Gay Men's Book Club contact Stephen Reidy @ 307-6537
3/21/2010 6:30 pm Dinner Out - Contact Ken @ 294-6606 or Davis @ 325-4754; Furr's Family
Dining, 4329 N. Oracle
3/23/2010 7:15 pm Movie Night -- "Gods & Monsters" -- LIMITED SEATING, Bill
or Darrin @ 396-9295
3/28/2010 6:30 pm Dinner Out - Contact Ken @ 294-6606 or Davis @ 325-4754; Yoshimatsu
Healthy Japanese Eatery, 2660 N. Campbell Ave.
4/3/2010 12:00 pm Pot Luck and Social - details coming soon
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