Note: you are in the Archive section of the site. To return to this year's homepage, use this link:
Archived 2008 pages:
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
Where does An Unholy Harvest take place?
An Unholy Harvest takes place in one main venue and one satellite venue located a couple of blocks apart from one another in central downtown Ottawa.
Where should I stay when I come to Ottawa?
We’ll block off rooms in two hotels nearby for attendees in case you’ll need a place to stay. More information will be forthcoming when we open registration on June 15.
Room-sharing
Once your registration form and payment have been received, we’ll send you an e-mail inviting you to join the Yahoo! group set up exclusively for attendees. Please join. Lots of info will be made available there, and it will save us a lot of time to be able to send everything out to all attendees at once. Also, it’s a great place to hook up!
I’ve never been to an event like this and I’m terrified. What will happen to me when I show up?
One of our priorities at An Unholy Harvest is to make sure that we’re welcoming to novice players and people who are otherwise new to the leather scene. We cultivate a warm and friendly atmosphere and we actively work to encourage first-timers to screw up their nerve and attend. If that means you—well, consider yourself encouraged!
We welcome a wonderful diversity of participants, so nobody will expect you to look, act or play “just like everyone else.” There’s no dress code for the weekend so you don’t need a closetful of expensive leather gear to fit in. We run a “Fresh Meet” workshop first thing on Saturday morning with plenty of get-to-know-you games to help get you started, along with tips on how to meet and cruise people and just generally have a good time over the weekend. And there will be a number of workshops that are especially welcoming to new players, whether you’re looking to understand the mechanics of swinging a flogger or deepen your perspective on dominant/submissive dynamics. Last but not least, we’ve got a fabulous team of PICs (People In Charge) who can be readily identified by their PIC hankies all weekend and who are there to help you out if you’ve got questions or concerns.
I use a wheelchair to get around and I’d love to come to An Unholy Harvest. Are your locations accessible to me?
As we gear up for our 2009 event, we’re looking for some help. Specifically, we’d REALLY like to make this a wheelchair-accessible event for 2009, but we’ve done lots of research (with some valuable help from the organizers of Mr. Leather Ottawa) and we simply can’t seem to find an accessible venue in Ottawa that meets our needs as a sex-positive kink event and falls within our budget capacity.
This is where you come in. We are taking any and all suggestions for ways to make An Unholy Harvest 2009 accessible while remaining affordable. Please contact us at unholyharvest@yahoo.ca if you have any leads! Here are our criteria:
- Reasonable price
- Centrally located in Ottawa
- Able to accommodate 100+ women and trans people for a full weekend, day and night, October 9-11, 2009
- Allows sexual activity on premises
- Able to accommodate dungeon equipment
- Wheelchair-accessible, including accessible bathrooms
- Ideally, includes a sound system, a kitchen or kitchenette (especially a fridge), seating options (chairs, couches etc.) and film projection equipment
Please send us your suggestions by May 20th!
In the meantime, here are the measures we’re taking to make our current spaces as accessible as possible to people with a range of dis/abilities:
- We’re looking into the cost of a full accessibility audit for Breathless, our main workshop and play space, and evaluating the merits of using an online audit checklist as an alternate measure if an in-person audit falls outside our budget. At the moment, the space is not wheelchair-accessible; the entrance is up a wide flight of 25-30 stairs (exact number TBC) and the bathrooms are not sized to accommodate a wheelchair. Once inside, the space is large and open and has no raised areas or steps.
- Once our satellite spaces are confirmed, we will post information about their accessibility.
- We will be making a few copies of our program available in large print on site. Please let us know when you register if you will need one!
- Our dungeon rules will be printed up in a large-print poster-size format and posted in a visible area in the dungeon.
- We believe the lighting at Breathless is sufficient for good visibility, but we’ll make the necessary adjustments if our audit shows that’s not the case.
- We are looking into the cost and availability of ASL interpreters for the weekend.
We’ll be updating this section on an ongoing basis as we find answers to our questions and come up with new plans, so check back often or write us a note at unholyharvest@yahoo.ca if you have any specific questions or concerns!
I’d love to give a workshop or lead a discussion at An Unholy Harvest. How do I send in a proposal?
We’re actively seeking presenters for the 2009 edition of An Unholy Harvest. Just fill out our handy Presentation Proposal Form, downloadable here (ADD LINK), and e-mail it to unholyharvest@yahoo.ca. We are very much open to hearing your ideas! Also, we’re very supportive of first-time presenters… don’t be shy to inquire.
Please note that while presenters from outside Canada are welcome to submit proposals, we will give first priority to Canadian presenters. We especially encourage submissions from residents of the Prairies, the Atlantic provinces and the Territories. Also, please note that our deadline for submission is earlier than in past years: June 15, 2009.
I’d really like to attend some of the weekend’s events, but not all of them. Can I pay a partial registration fee just for the parties or just for the workshops?
An Unholy Harvest is intended to be a full-weekend experience. With that in mind, we don’t sell partial packages. Of course you’re welcome to register and then show up to only the events that most interest you, but we really encourage you to immerse yourself in the leatherdykery!
I’m on a limited income and I can’t afford your registration fee. Is there anything you can do for me?
Information about our scholarships program will be available when registration opens in mid-June.
I registered, but my family is insisting that I join them for turkey dinner so I have to cancel. What’s your cancellation policy?
If you cancel your registration prior to September 30, you are entitled to a 75% refund; we will retain 25% of your fee. Registration fees are not refundable after September 30.
I’m not registered, but a whole bunch of my friends are coming up for the weekend. Can I just attend a play party or film screening with them?
Unfortunately, we cannot admit non-attendees to any events, both for safety and legal reasons. If you’re not a registered participant, you will be turned away at the door (even if you’re super hot and even if we like you!). We encourage you to register for the weekend and enjoy as much of it as you can!
|
|
