7.25.10 Domingo Newsbytes...

Cast of Thirst: Left-To-Right: Claudia Martinez, Josie Dykas front Diane Herrar and Diana Pando in the back I woke up this morning  reflecting on this week  and I can’t help but be blown away by the amazing amount of Latina talent and creativity that is emerging. Here are some quick highlights: This week our reading series was packed over at Café Catedral. Folks got to see our feature writer Cristina Correa read her work and hear some new emerging Latina talent during the open mic portion like Awilda Gonzalez and Laura Nuñez. Later during the week, I had the...

07.18.10 Domingo Newsbytes...

Last week Diana lamented that summer is passing her by much too quickly.  I’m glad to report that she’s managing to get some fun into her schedule. I got to catch up with her yesterday when she invited me to join her for the Goodman’s Latino Theater Festival’s reading of El Nogalar by Tanya Saracho. Afterward we strolled down to Millenium Park and enjoyed a beautiful summer afternoon sipping cocktails and people watching.   We caught up with our perspective projects and I realized that our crew of women is a busy bunch this summer. Thelma...

07.11.10 Domingo Newsbytes...

In the last week I’ve had a few folks tell me that “summer is over”. How can I have missed summer? This can’t possibly be true, summer isn’t over. It reminded me that we need to be in the “now” to truly enjoy summer. It also dawned on me that between presentations, emails, texts,  phone calls and Facebook I haven’t been doing anything fun. Like most hyper-busy Latinas we get caught up in the hustle and bustle of our work and family life. So, I decided to be spontaneous and I went to the “Memory of Fire”...

07.19.10 Cristina’s flash fiction ...

Our third Monday Proyecto Latina feature for July is Cristina Correa, writer, poet and fierce wordsmith. Held at the lovely Cafe Catedral in Little Village. Bring your chismes and come ready for the open mic. Get the full scoop below and plan to join us. Date: Monday, July 19, 2010 Time: 7 p.m. Place: Cafe Catedral, 2500 S. Christiana, Chicago, Il Cristina Correa is a working artist in the city of Chicago.  Most recently, she has been published in Latina Voices, Say What Magazine, Ghost Factory Magazine and participated in a poetic and visual exhibition entitled...

07.04.10 Domingo Newsbytes...

This Domingo Newsbytes is brought to you by the letter I.  The words independence and irony are resonating for me right now.  I know most of us are in holiday mode so I’m gonna keep it short and sweet. In Bioshock, a role playing video game my husband played last spring, your character is  left to survive in an underwater city, one of the merits you earn as you fight your way through the game is a badge of irony.  When I first saw this I got a kick out of it.  I first learned irony from my mom, as I was growing up she loved to point it out in an array of...

Summer Book List 2010...

Are you on the prowl for a good summer read? Well you’re in luck! The other day I asked friends on Facebook if they had any good summer reads they could recommend. I should have asked sooner because they came up with quite a list. So in between work and being on Facebook  sneak in some summer reading. Special thanks to for helping compile this list: Yvonne Soltera Nieves, Sandra A. Trevino, Alma Montes, La Bibi, Carlos Cumpian, Mirella Zrodriguez, Sara Vazquez, Steph Diaz Reppen, Catherine Murphy The Summer Book List of 2010 Includes: The Bridge Called my Back by...

06.27.10 Domingo Newsbytes...

This week I had an opportunity to attend the US Social Forum in Detroit and was able to attend many social justice workshops ranging from media, environment and immigration. The picture above is of a stained glass Native American image in one of the buildings I wandered into. After one of the workshops at Wayne State University I crossed the street to the Detroit Institute of Art to see the Diego Rivera Mural. I felt like I was back in Mexico City seeing this mural and walked away feeling thankful to be able to see this mural in Detroit. In another workshop I also had...

06.20.10 Domingo Newsbytes...

A few weeks back I sat down with Luz Chavez, reporter for Gozamos.com and we talked about everything that Proyecto Latina does. If you have never attended but wondered, or better yet, if you joined us and now think its something your friend, prima or sister will like and can’t quite find a good way to explain what its all about–Luz captures it precisely. Hopefully then you will plan to join us tomorrow, June 21st for our first summer reading with Alicia Tellez of La Dulce Palabra. Bring something for the chisme box and note that we love to discover new talent...

Alicia Ponce leads the way to greener li...

At 6 years old, Alicia Ponce–a tom-boy that didn’t mind getting dirty while playing with dirt and rocks–observed her uncle, a civil engineer, directing at a construction site and got hooked on architecture. Three years ago Alicia founded ap.MonArch, an architecture, interior design, and green consulting firm. She talks to us about the challenges that led her to becoming self-employed–including a corporate structure where colleagues refused to learn the proper pronunciation of an ethnic name but conveniently dropped it into proposals to...

Domingo Newsbytes: 06.13.10...

One of the things I was reflecting on recently, is how wonderful it is to see so many Latinas on the move. These women are always a great source of pride and inspiration and I’m delighted to be able to spotlight some of these women and the work they do. This week our hermanas at the Chicago Foundation For Women’s Latina Leadership Council will be holding their summer fundraiser to raise funds for the Maria Mangual Unidas Fund @ Teatro Luna’s Generic Latina 2010 production on Thursday, June 17, @ 6:30 p.m. reception, 7:30 p.m. performance Chicago Dramatists...