Pat Taub
Key West
Lucky me, I’m still enjoying my Key West break from Maine’s crappy winter punctuated by icy roads and sidewalks. Last week my youngest son paid a brief visit. We walked a lot, beached a little and ate like the locals, feasting on Cuban sandwiches, conch fritters and the ubiquitous Key Lime pie. After sampling a few pies, we declared the Key Lime pie at “Blue Heaven” the winner. Its mile high meringue topping landed it in first place.
Posing with my Key Lime pie. For chilly nights the restaurant has a stack of crocheted blankets.
Two Moving Films
Parallel Mothers
During my son’s visit, we ventured to Key West’s movie theater, Tropic Cinema, where we saw Parallel Mothers, the new film by the quirky Spanish director, Pedro Almodóvar, about two women who meet in the hospital when they are in labor. Plot twists ensue as Penelope Cruz, in the lead, gives a stand-out performance, which has won her an Academy Award nomination for best actress.
The Fallout
This absorbing movie on HBO Max features two high school girls who hide out in the school’s lavatory during a school shooting. Their shared trauma brings this unlikely pair together: one is very popular with a big Instagram following, while the other is a rebellious nerd who wears oversized boy’s clothes.
The film haunts back to the 2018 Stoneman Douglas High School shootings in Parkland, Florida. One of the students, in a comparison to the Parkland student leaders, dedicates himself to stopping gun violence. Before seeing this movie, I had not contemplated the long-lasting trauma of students who witnessed school shootings. It breaks my heart to recognize our country is failing them through its inability to pass legislation to curtail the sale and distribution of guns.
A Brilliant Novel
I’ve become obsessed by the great fiction writer, Michael Ondaatje, having read The English Patient, Warlight and Anil’s Ghost. Continuing my Ondaatje streak, this past week I finished reading, Divisardo, which masterfully spins three plots, taking the reader from San Francisco to the raucous backrooms of Nevada’s casinos, and eventually to the landscape of south-central France. Only a genius like Ondaatje could pull this off. His poetic imagery left me gasping and pausing to take in his words.
Michael Ondaatje, my new literary crush
Happy Valentine’s to All
Key West is famous for its wild chickens and roosters who freely roam the city streets. Their frequent crowing quickly loses its charm, but the locals love their chickens and roosters and use their images freely. Here’s a rooster and chicken Valentine’s window display in a local flower shop.
