Welcome To Our 2009-2010 Weekend Series

We have eleven wwp weekends planned for 2009-2010.  As you will see, our unique wine women and philosophy learning experiences have something for everyone : from the Slow Food Cookery Experience with its embracing of epicurean pleasures, to Discovering Your Inner Fashion Designer and with it, the creative you.

If you have missed the date for a getaway that appeals to you, let us know and we'll let you know when another similar getaway is being organized in the future.

2009

The slow food movement began as Carlo Petrini's protest against the growth of fast food restaurants in Rome in the 1980s and has grown into an international movement.

Our wwp 'slow food experience' cookery weekend embraces Petrini's view that food should be 'good' - that is, tasty to eat, humanely produced, and economically and socially fair to those who work in its production. 


Slow Food Experience
led by Kate Duffield, a British cook with a Scottish flair!

16-18 October 2009
When it comes to slowing down, it is best to start small. Cook a meal from scratch. Take a walk with a friend... Or simply take a few minutes to sit still in a quiet place.
To this end, this weekend combines the practical preparation of local and seasonal produce with a philosophical exploration of the main tenets of the slow food movement.

Remember, at all wine women and philosophy weekends we take the time to savour the pleasures of preparing and eating good food - epicurean-style!  But when you go home from this particular weekend, you will be better equipped to integrate this approach to food into your regular culinary life.




Our wwp collective writing weekend is led by Pat Machin - a lifelong teacher who is passionate about the writing process and who describes herself as a ten-year-old at heart.
 
Writing, in itself, is like the sound of one hand clapping - incomplete, silent, and without impact. Only when the writer as the one hand, and the reader as the other, confront each other is there that clap, that spark of communication which makes literature alive.

Ming Fong Ho

Collective Writing

23-25 October 2009
 
Pat Machin



...a writer is not a tube of toothpaste!

Eleanor Wachtel
Pat is a firm believer in what she terms 'the side burner effect'...

"The brain is an amazing creation. It allows one to file ideas which will come to the surface when they are cooked. It allows one to write effortlessly despite all the warnings that one is supposed to struggle with an idea. It works on so many levels and catches one by surprise."

Over the course of this weekend Pat explores ways of serving up those cooked ideas, and making them sizzle. As a side dish, we explore 'the fragment' as a philosophical concept. The weekend culminates in an epicurean-style reading of newly produced work.



Want to try something new? Native to North Africa, Asia and the Middle East, belly dancing is one of the oldest social dances in the world. It is also a dance that allows you to express your inner-self and leave your inhibitions behind. 

Over the course of this weekend, Sharon introduces us to the basics: hip and chest circles, hip lifts and drops, shimmies and belly undulations.

Belly dancing sessions are interspersed with periods of deep relaxation, with an examination of the benefits of shared fun, and with a taste of Middle Eastern cuisine.

Belly Dancing

20-22 November 2009

 Sharon Levinger

Sharon has been teaching and creating choreographies for her own dance students since 2003 in both French and English. This includes teaching oriental dance classes at McGill University, at Salsa Laval, and in local gyms. She also gives private lessons.

 

Sharon Levinger has been belly dancing since 1998 and from 1996 to 2000 studied Latin dances such as the Salsa, Merengue and Bachata.

Through the years her passion for Oriental Dance has grown, and now focuses on the following techniques: Modern Egyptian veil-technique, Cabaret Oriental dance, Cane dance (Saidi) and Gypsy styling.

As a refined and elegant dancer she performed in Greece (Santorini) and Turkey (Selcuk) in 2001. She brings a warm modern touch to the classic Oriental dance.

Sharon continues to participate in a multitude of shows, festivals and Oriental cultural events.  She regularly performs at private events and in dance studios and restaurants.  




Taking inspiration from the novels and films being examined and enjoyed over the course of this weekend, participants of the Nurtury Book and Film Club combine the shared delights of book-talk, film-talk and food-talk to create an extended epicurean take on the standard monthly meeting.

The theme of this particular weekend is belonging, and to this end, Linnet Fawcett facilitates our sampling of literary and cinematic works created by female authors and filmmakers that deal with this tenuous state.
Nurtury Book and Film Club

27-29 November 2009



Participants on this weekend are expected to arrive having read the following 3 books:
  1. The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCuller (1946)
  2. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells (1996)
  3. Persepolis : The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi (2000)
Over the course of the weekend we will view the films to emerge from these books.



As the holiday season beckons, there's nothing like a weekend of carol singing to get you in the mood. Join Kathy McKnight as she works us through the traditional caroling repertoire: satisfying that burning desire to sing 'Hark the Herald Angel' at the top of our lungs (and without apologies!) whilst refreshing and rejuvenating this and other old favourites with an array of new harmonies.
Tuning-up for the Caroling Season

 5-6 December 2009
 
 
Whether you are an experienced singer or somebody who only works those vocal chords during the holidays, you'll have a great time celebrating the festive season in snowy Lakefield before the seasonal rush sets in.

This weekend combines the joys of singing with the joy of cooking, festive-style.

visit our blog to hear how we sounded!


 

2010

Looking for a great way to beat those February blues? Join us for a weekend of social bridge. If you already play some bridge, The Nurtury is the ideal place to experiment with  that 4NT bid. If you are a beginner or just starting out on your bridge journey, we will make sure that you will be teamed up at a table that puts you at ease.
The Nurtury Bridge Club

19-21 February 2010

 
One way or another, this the weekend to pull up a chair fireside and bridge yourself out as the winter howls outside. Delicious feel good meals and snacks ensure that we are well pampered between rubbers.  As for food for thought,
Rona Brodie takes a philosophical look at who we are, and what we reveal about ourselves, when we play games?  



Marta Fudakowska's passion for sharing yoga with others came from a natural extension of her interest : developing a healthy body, mind and  spirit. Her background in teaching Lifestyle Management and practicing meditation became the inspirational impetus for illuminating others with the benefits of yoga: realizing one's full potential through a centuries old Eastern practice.
Yoga at The Nurtury

19-21 March 2010

 Marta Fudakowska
 
Western yogis helped shape Marta's style of teaching to include beginners to advanced students of different ages, abilities and special needs.
Her major influence is her daughter Yasmin, under whose guidance she has developed her love and enthusiasm for this enriching practice called yoga.
 



Soundwalking Weekend
  24-25 April 2010



Spend a weekend in Nature seeing and capturing the new growth and hope of spring. 

Learn more about your camera and how to get the best out of it. Get a feel for using Photoshop in order to enhance both your photographs and your own creative process. 

Practical forays into the world of macro photography will be enhanced by an exploration of the hidden stories that photographs tell.
Digital Photography and Photoshop

30 April - 2 May 2010

Lea Stillinger is an architectural photographer classically trained in large format 4x5 cameras.

With the advent of the digital world and spontaneity of a computer darkroom she has embraced seeing and sharing our abundant world through the lens of a 35mm camera.




Back by popular demand  the Nurtury Book and Film Club combines the shared delights of book-talk, film-talk and food-talk to create an extended epicurean take on the standard monthly meeting.

The theme of this particular weekend is generosity, and to this end Linnet Fawcett facilitates our sampling of literary and cinematic works that focus in on the giving and taking that transpires in teaching and mentoring environments.
Nurtury Book and Film Club

(TBA) - watch this space!



Participants on this weekend are expected to arrive having read the following 3 books:
  1. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Sparks (1961)
  2. Music of the Heart: The Roberta Guaspari Story by Roberta Guaspari-Tzavaras (1999)
  3. The Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell (1999)
Over the course of the weekend we will view the films to emerge from these books.



Discover the world of design through the eyes of Montreal Fashion Designer Astri Prugger.

From idea to finished product, what does the design process involve?
Drawing, flat pattern making, cutting and sewing...Join Astri on a journey to create your own unique project and discover your inner designer on the way!

Discover Your Inner Fashion Designer

(TBA) - watch this space!

Astri studied fashion design for three years at St. Lawrence College, in Kingston Ontario, graduating in 1984 and opening her first boutique in the same year.

Astri is known for her elegant custom and ready-to-wear design, accessories, and jewelry.