I changed the name of my Meetup from North York Seniors Discussion Group to Small Talk . I have learned several things over the couple of months that I've been doing this. 1. Don't make your group name too specific since this will limit your audience. 2. It's like fishing. Sometimes the fish bite and sometimes they don't. Just take it as it comes, eventually, the fish will start biting again. 3. Learn to listen! Here's the link to my online chat group https://www.meetup.com/discussion-meetup-group/
Posts
Doing a lot of Zoom Meetings. My main community is Sunshine Centre for Seniors where I participate and also present in the various online forums. I also Zoom two plant clubs here in Toronto. One is the African Violet and Gesneriad Society ( TAVGS ) & the other is Toronto Cactus and Succulent Club ( TCSC ). I also Zoom with EMCC my long-standing computer geeks group. I've added a seniors discussion group. We'll see how that goes.
During this time of lockdown, I live much as usual since I am, by nature, a solitary soul. I'm doing a lot of Zoom Meetings with my senior's group, my 2 plant groups, my longtime computer geeks group EMCC and a Canadian Science Fiction Writer's group on Meetup. Because of my Broadcast and Podcast experience, I shine during these events. In fact, I am doing hour-long presentations for my senior's group based on my podcast transcripts where the formula is while I am speaking anyone can interrupt with a question or comment and there are frequent pauses for discussion. Since my 'stories' are, in some sense, universal they tend to evoke a response. The hope is that the listeners will tell their stories as well. Other than that I don't leave my premises except for a cab ride to my Podiatrist every 6 weeks. Have to look after those diabetic feet :-) I'm writing a bit after taking a short writing course with my Sunshine senior's group.
Resistence I remember street agitation in New York City in the late 60s. I was living then on the Lower East Side. There were demonstrations around and about us. The sight I most remember were tanks rolling by on Houston Street which I could see from the back window of the apartment. This was gunboat diplomacy i.e. a show of force meant to intimidate rioters/demonstrators. It's happening again! June 4, 2020
Audience
When I first came back to Canada from New York City, I was shocked by the audience's reaction to performers. They just sat there and then, at the end, they would clap, sometimes politely, sometimes very heartily, but just clap. Nobody moved to the music. Nobody grooved to the music. They just sat there and, at the end, they clapped. In New York, on the folk scene in the 60s, those were our people up there on stage and we were listening to them and watching them make mistakes but hearing what they were doing. It was a creative period happening with people we knew personally up on a stage and singing songs that we were familiar with. It was part of our subculture, I guess you could call it. I had the good fortune to attend several performances at New York City's Apollo Theatre up in Harlem and I saw there an audience like you would not believe. The black culture there was embodied in the music. Embodied is a good word for it. What was going on there on stage was refle
