Smart BOM

I am truly impressed that someone decided to cover the freaks of Montreal ["Straw Man around town," Best of Montreal, May 6]. These are people that many Montrealers appreciate and accept as part of our daily lives. But I am severely distressed that the leather-clad Harley Davidson tricycle guy was not mentioned: he should definitely be classified as one of the freakiest guys in Montreal!

--The Sasquatch

Your straw man is no weirdo. He's just an obnoxious fart who smokes his pipe at a coffee shop on St-Laurent. No respect.

--Anthony Bouchard

Pizza Hut?! I suppose everybody's favourite drink is toilet water. And these are the same readers who have the nerve to call politicians jackasses! Also, what ever happened to Charlie Brown? He was that "weirdo" downtown whose mouth was filthier than he was.

--Nyce

While I'm both frightened and honoured by my inclusion in the "Most Prominent Scenesters" list in this year's Best of Montreal poll, I'm puzzled by the parenthetical prediction that I would deny such a thing. I may apologize for it, curse it and make light of it, but I deny nothing.

To my fellow honourees, Mado and Jake, I suggest a joint venture to titillate the most fervent scenester populations of the pathologically self-evaluating Plateau and surrounding areas: the Gay Poetry Bingo Ska Slam '99, featuring cross-dressing spoken word poets reciting bingo numbers in freestyle verse to the groovy sounds of '60s ska instrumentals. Woo-hoo!

--John Jordan

What happened to the section for "Best Pick-Up Lines"? The question was asked in the survey, yet there was no mention of it all in the last edition. Are you holding back to put them in separately, not enough entries, what's the story here?

In any case, this year's Best of Montreal edition was the best yet.

--Stephen Pickford

[Ed's note: You'll find the inadvertently omitted category on page 24 of this issue.]

The long and short on Little People

In response to Kristian Gravenor's very confusing article ["Something short about midgets," April 22], I would like to update some of his assumptions.

First, just to make sure that next time you write about this subject, you will avoid insulting some concerned persons: "shorties" and "midgets" are nowadays considered terms not to be used anymore, having been replaced by "little people" or, with a certain reserve, "dwarfs."

Since my intention is not to scrutinize each line of the article, I simply want to point out that the Midget's Palace was no more than a family house opened to the public as a museum. Everyone was invited to see the modifications made to the environment to enable the owners to live a normal life in their private house, since all furniture and appliances were made to measure. Even though some other little people worked in the business, only members of one family, either the first owners, the Nicols, or the second family of little people who owned the place, lived within the walls of this house.

And as to your declaration to the shorties remaining "spiritually homeless" since the Palace closed in 1991: maybe you should know that since 1976 there has been an association established here in Montreal, representing, helping, counselling and defending the rights, as well as promoting the cause of, little people of Quebec.

So, even without the Palace to mark our existence socially speaking, there are many of our members wishing to let you know that, as it was then and as it is still today, little people, despite their physical handicaps requiring some adaptations, are living normal lives, in normal houses, with normal people.

Those wishing to know more about our association can contact us at L'Association québécoise des personnes de petite taille, 2177 Masson, suite 205, Montreal, H2H 1B1. Tel: 521-9671; E-mail : aqppt@total.net

--Danièle