Pat Taub
Marching (briefly) with Pride Supporters
Last Friday night, the day before the big Saturday Pride March, I was walking to dinner with my friend Lisa when we encountered a group of unofficial Pride marchers, undaunted by the rain, marching in a take-back-the-streets spirit. We briefly joined in, staying with the group for a few blocks until they disbanded. Feeling energized, we made our way to a favorite restaurant.
Marching in the pre-Pride parade
The Beach at Last!
I finally made it to the beach this week. Near me were high school students doing yoga on the beach, and mothers chasing after their gleeful toddlers. The ocean always renews me although I stupidly forgot to apply sunscreen. My red shoulders serve as a reminder to be more cautious on my next visit.
Crescent Beach, S. Portland Maine
The Prospect of Losing Obama care and Seeing Deep Cuts to Medicaid
This morning’s news reports that the Republican health care bill is ready for a Senate vote. It confounds me that Mitch and Co. can be so cruel. It also ups the War on Women, as Planned Parenthood will be defunded. Many folks overlook the fact that PP does far more than provided contraceptives and abortions; it offers vital services to women such as cancer screening and meds to treat endometriosis, which is a very debilitating illness for those women affected. Elizabeth Warren calls this bill an exercise in “blood money” since the cuts in health care will benefit the rich. Resistance is the order of the day!
Young Feminist Activists
My new read Roxane Gay’s bestseller, Bad Feminist, is informing me how young feminists of color and millennial activists see the world. At the Wednesday’s farmer market I chatted with Erin, a young activist, who was trying to drum up support for the Southern Maine Workers’ Center latest initiative to enact a law for paid sick. (The fact that this is something we have to lobby for makes me furious given that every other industrialized nation has been offering paid sick leave for decades.)
Erin from the Southern Maine Workers’ Center
Reconnecting with An Old Friend
Nothing is more restorative for my spirit than the company of good women friends. Today I’m having lunch with a woman I knew when I lived up the coast in Tenants Harbor. Janet and her husband recently moved to Portland to be closer to family. Janet is a wonderful poet whose book of poems I reviewed in a WOW blog last year. She’s also very funny. I look forward to breaking bread with her and laughing heartily.
