Out and About
SUN 10/24
In an effort to remind the city of its many services, the Lesbian and Gay Community Center is throwing its tenth annual festival and fund-raiser, Out in Westport. This fall has been a time of, um, renewal for the center, which reopened with regular hours this month after a summer of what center member Mitch Levine euphemistically calls “growing pains.”
“We had two goals for October,” Levine says. “One was to get the doors open, and we’ve done that. The other was to have this fund-raiser.”
The festival, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Westport Road between Central and Wyandotte, showcases gay-friendly groups such as the Midwest Alternative Families Alliance, KC Pride Democratic Club and Literary Lesbians. Local artists and businesses display their wares, and there’s a raffle to raise money.
“We envision ourselves as a full-service community center, and part of that means letting people know what groups and organi-zations are available to them in the city,” says center member Jason Fulp. “Our main goal is to get the word out, to get people involved, to find volunteers. We want to pull the whole community together. ”
The LGCC (207 Westport Road, suites 212-218) is open every weekday from 6 to 9 p.m. and plans to schedule regular weekend availability soon. The center offers meeting space, support for people coming out or struggling with their sexuality, and other resources. Call 816-931-4420 or see www.lgcc-kc.org. — Sarah Smarsh
How Many Candles?
FRI 10/22
Most people don’t throw big birthday bashes when they turn 29. But the University of Kansas’ student-run radio station, KJHK 90.7, defies con- vention with not one but two celebrations Friday at the Bottleneck (737 New Hampshire in Lawrence). Given the station’s reputation as an innovative alternative, we’re just excited we won’t be subjected to 50 Cent’s “In Da Club.” Doors open at 6 p.m. for the first concert, which spotlights local talent Q and Not U; taking the stage at 10 p.m. are Airborn Audio, Deep Thinkers and Free All Beats. The $8 tickets are good for only one show, but revelers receive a $3 discount for the double feature. Call 785-841-5483 for information. — Julia Westhoff
Get Out
“I’ve never been politically active,” says Linda O’Dell. But when she heard Al Franken tell people that if they wanted George W. Bush out of the White House, they needed to do something, she says, “I took it personally.” She organized Saturday’s Resident Bush Eviction Party, which starts at 7 p.m. at Harling’s Upstairs (3941-A Main). For $15, partygoers get to hear some of Kansas City’s most popular performers, including Pendergast, Amsterband, Bob Walkenhorst and Snakebite Orphans, and bid in a silent auction of health treatments housewares, hair-care supplies and cookies. Proceeds benefit MoveOn.org’s efforts to fund last-minute anti-Bush TV spots. Call 816-531-0303 or e-mail evictionparty@riseup.net. — Annie Fischer
Up in Smoke
SAT 10/23
We think it’s cute when young, out-of-town businessmen (who don’t normally smoke, because it interferes with their chances of picking up women at the health club) convene at cigar-friendly hotel lobbies to suck phallic Churchills like teenagers. The cigar and tattoo party (featuring Drew Estate’s Acid cigars), starting at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Outlaw Cigar Company (6234 North Chatham), should help stem the tide of cigar gentrification, thanks to Acid’s hip brand of smoke, which appeals to those who think cigars are for sitcom cab drivers and Rush Limbaugh. And it doesn’t hurt that “the Gypsy,” an on-site tattoo artist from southeast Kansas, looks like he eats CPAs for breakfast. Call 816-505-2442. — Jason Harper
