Pat Taub
Key West
I’m now enjoying my second week in Key West, indulging in the warm weather, while I read and write, feeling grateful for my winter escape. Here are a few Key West images taken on my walks. Roosters are everywhere and they crow all day long! The sign on the house in the bottom right photo says, “Key West Hunting Lodge.”
Susan Collins
I was a little surprised to see an article from this morning’s Bangor Daily News, reporting on a recent national survey, which found that Susan Collins has the highest disapproval rating of any senator. I knew her popularity had taken a hit after she voted for Kavanaugh, but I hadn’t realized it was this serious. This report tells me Collins can be beaten. Three women are challenging her. My support goes to Lisa Savage, who hopes to be the Green Party candidate, providing she gets enough signatures to be on their ballot.
Collins won’t be smiling for long once we take her out come November!
A Talk by Two Esteemed Writers
This week I heard the very gifted writers, Francine Prose and Clare Messud discuss their writing, what they’re reading and how they write. Both women raved about Lost Time, a prisoner’s account of his time in a Soviet prison camp. Messud read a beautiful selection from the book. I wondered if Lost Time moved the writers because it’s a story about finding hope in a desperate situation. Today many of us are feeling hopeless as we confront huge environmental and political challenges.
Clare Messud relaxing in her beautiful study
Movies
I love to watch films on the big screen, but rarely do, tending to stream movies on Netflix or Amazon Prime. On vacation I altered my pattern. This past week I saw two new films at real movie houses. They were 1917 and Bombshell. The former is a film about WW l, filmed in one continuous shot, which gives the movie a gripping immediacy, but it romanced and sanitized a horrible war where over 37 million were killed! I was also captured by Bombshell. It has a strong plot and strong leads.
Water Dancer
At the moment I’m reading the brilliant novel, Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates, whose previous works were nonfiction accounts of white supremacy vis-à-vis Blacks. Water Dancer is a slave narrative, rich in poetic imagery. I heartedly recommend it.
