This Christmas season prominent religious leaders like Pope Francis and Rev. Munther Isaac, Palestinian pastor in Bethlehem, call on...
Short Takes
A Remarkable Nun, Sunflowers, The Purple Lady & More!
A Remarkable Nun Last Sunday and Monday I hosted Sister Megan Rice, the 88 year-old activist nun from Washington, DC who was in Maine to promote the new documentary she’s featured in, The Nuns, the Priests and the Bombs. This photo was taken in front of my condo, which was formerly a residence for nuns who worked at Mercy Hospital across [...]
Pat Taub
A Scary T-Shirt, “Motherland,” A Full Moon Ritual & an Inspiring Nun
A Troubling T-Shirt This week I was in an office parking lot, approaching my car after an acupuncture treatment when I noticed a tough-looking guy wearing this T-shirt. Its hateful, menacing message rattled me. I traced it to an Internet website with similar menacing shirts. The image is below. Motherland, new Sundance series [...]
Pat Taub
Online Support, Sen. Collins, My Cottage Retreat & Weekend Plans
A Little Help from My Friends After blogging this week about my struggle to accommodate to my aging body’s inevitable decline with a focus on my newly visited sciatica, I received numerous helpful suggestions on the post’s comment section and on the WOW Facebook page. There was lots of supportive advice from others describing how they’ve [...]
Pat Taub
Portland Rally, More London Photos, Serena Williams & More!
Portland’s Rally for Migrant Rights I joined the crowd of 2,000 at Portland’s city hall last Saturday, June 30th, to support migrant rights, which means family reunification and the end of indefinite detentions and especially the end of ICE. I was encouraged by the large crowds, especially the numbers of young families. I find myself [...]
Pat Taub
London Photo Journey
Having just returned from a family vacation in London, I’m dedicating this week’s “Short Takes” to a photo journey of our trip. Granddaughter Jane Our holiday was generated by my granddaughter’s Girl Scout troop’s visit. Her family, myself and my youngest son crammed in the usual tourist sites: the Tate Modern, The Tower [...]
Pat Taub
Street Theater, William Trevor, Remembering Kate Spade & More!
Street Theater Last Friday I participated in the silent tableau, “Gaza Bleeds” staged in downtown Portland. I joined with Maine Voices for Palestinian Rights to protest Israel’s shooting of unarmed demonstrators in Gaza who have been protesting for over two months calling on Israel to end their illegal blockade of Gaza. My task was [...]
Pat Taub
Dark Times, A Granddaughter Graduates, RBG documentary & More!
Trying to Manage Dark Times Periodically the dark times we’re experiencing get to me. I sink into despair. I have discovered that the most effective way to climb out of my political despair is to join others in protest actions. Today, I’ll be standing with a Portland noon contingent in front of the US Attorney’s office to protest [...]
Pat Taub
Gaza, Granddaughter Jane, Signs of Spring & More!
Poor Gaza! The past few weeks have seen 111 unarmed Gazan protestors shot by Israeli forces as they gathered at the Israeli border to mark Nakba, the day 70 years ago when Israel forced Gazans to leave their homeland. Ever since they have been living under tight Israeli military rule in what many call the “world’s largest open-air prison.” [...]
Pat Taub
August in May, A Sudden Death, Appearing in the Boston Globe & More!
August in May Wow! Wednesday set a record for Portland, Maine with temps climbing close to 90! It was crazy in that the previous day I was wearing a spring coat and a day later I’m in a T-shirt and thin slacks. Does this portend an unusually hot summer? It certainly speaks to the erratic temps brought on by global warming. [...]
Pat Taub
Cosby is Nailed, Season 2 of A Hand Maid’s Tale, Gaza & More!
Justice is Served! Like women across the country I celebrated yesterday’s guilty verdict for Bill Cosby. One news story claimed he assaulted over 62 women! Let’s hope this verdict sends an alarm to other perpetrators and would-be perpetrators. Next let’s pray that before too long the Orange Monster pays for his sexual assaults! A [...]
Pat Taub