I went to class tonight a few hours after arriving home from Winnipeg. Joy I was at the Centre and came into the small room I was working in. I told her the I weekend meeting went well and I feel much clearer on what the research is and how it's going. I was conscious of feeling a little "pushy" about the topic, but also pressed by the fact that I want to "do" the research -I'm curious about the questions. I talked about what I wanted to do with the start to get their reactions/ input and she said it sounded fine.

We talked about how the Centre was already doing something especially for women to help them improve their literacy skills, by offering the Women's Upgrading Program.

For the first two years any woman who signed up for evening classes got channeled into the Women's Upgrading Program. That was not necessarily woman-positive. A men's evening program ran at the exact same time as the women's and they worked more intensely at getting ready for GED tests. It would have been more "positive" for women to let them choose which program they wanted.

The class decided to bake during the next week, then take the baking when we visit a few elders. A few people planned to bring cooking books next week so we could plan what to make.

March 25, 1992

After computer time, checking homework, and coffee break we sat around a table in the small workroom and began looking for recipes. The GED students had taken over the kitchen table - our usual meeting place. The talk about recipes made us cozy.

I found more cookbooks in the instructor's resource library and, with them, two copies of Our Bodies, Ourselves. I put them on the table and one woman said, "Oh, those are like… dirty books." Eventually another woman picked one up. She commented on one page with photos of live births. The conversation took off from there. We talked about our own birth experiences. A woman who is usually shy surprised me with her openness and leading role in discussing the book.

The conversation flowed naturally as we flipped through the book, looking at pictures and talking about everything from IUDs to STDs. The section about how our bodies look inside was quite interesting. The drawings of the male anatomy caused lots of laughter, especially the erect penis. I don't think the laughter was out of nervousness alone. I just remember how much they laughed at that part.

At the end I suggested we ask a nurse to class next week to talk more about our bodies and ourselves. They agreed.