I’ve chosen trailblazers in literature, music, painting, political activism and medicine. Many communities lost their own notable...
Beach Bodies, A Great Read & Streaming Series, Elizabeth Strout & More!
Beach Bodies As summer heats up (at alarming temps), more and more older women are donning bathing suits as they take to the beach, swimming pools or lakes. While putting on a bathing suit can be daunting as our bodies age, the Spanish government has launched a campaign encouraging women of all ages and shapes to hit the beaches with the [...]
Pat Taub
Where Did Feminism Go?
Feminism has always been in my blood. Growing up I sensed something was wrong with the ways my mother easily succumbed to my father’s demands. In my college classes I had to endure the ridicule of male students when I uttered an insightful comment. I learned to stuff my anger to get along, until the women’s movement erupted, validating [...]
Pat Taub
Summer Reads that WOW
This year’s WOW summer book picks feature novelists who never fail to transport me, along with absorbing nonfiction selections on the climate crisis, racism, and mysticism. FICTION Oh William! Elizabeth Strout’s latest novel is short enough to complete on a plane or train ride. It’s the compelling tale of Lucy Barton’s ex-husband, [...]
Pat Taub
Rethinking Climate Change
GUEST POST by LINDA CREE Climate change is on everyone’s mind. The media, scientists, and policy-makers talk a great deal about it, and each day seems to bring a news story about melting glaciers or rising sea levels. Politicians are pushing solar, wind – even nuclear power – to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Addressing climate [...]
Pat Taub
July 4th, Katherine Bradford, Gun Violence, A Great Read & Netflix Series
Fourth of July My Chicago family, son David, daughter-in-law Mel, and grand teens, Jane and Max flew to Portland to spend the fourth with me. Jane, a funky art student, and I combed the local thrift stores and took in the Katherine Bradford exhibit at the Portland Art Museum, while Max and I binged on the Netflix detective series, Lupin. [...]
Pat Taub
Then The Line Went Dead
GUEST POST by MICHAEL STEINMAN A self-confessed dinosaur, I have always liked telephone conversations, especially the old-fashioned kind: two friends, one (me) on a landline, perhaps drinking tea, leisurely describing events but more endearingly, feelings. The telephone handset made possible the kinds of intimacy one might be shy of having [...]
Pat Taub
We Won’t Go Back!
Friday morning, I was driving with the car radio on, blissfully contemplating my summer weekend when my reverie was interrupted by a news flash that the Supreme Court had declared Roe v. Wade unconstitutional. I screamed in outrage before erupting into tears, crying for college friends who had back-alley abortions when abortions were illegal. [...]
Pat Taub
My Secret
GUEST POST by MARGIE CAMPBELL I’m going to tell you a secret. It isn’t something that I tell readily these days. It is something that has been a burden lately. Perhaps if I share it with you, I’ll become more comfortable with it. So, what is it that causes you so much concern, you may well ask? Okay, here it is—some months ago I turned [...]
Pat Taub
A Riveting Documentary, Barbara Lee, A Recommended Book and TV Series
A Riveting Documentary To mark June as Pride month, take time to watch the riveting documentary “My Name is Pauli Murray” on Amazon Prime. Murray (1910-1985) was a legal trailblazer whose ideas influenced RBG’s fight for gender equality and Thurgood Marshall’s civil rights arguments. She was a non-binary Black lawyer, activist, poet, [...]
Pat Taub
My Father: The Tyrant
I grew up in the 1950’s when gender roles were strictly defined. My mother, like most women of the era, stayed at home, focusing on creating the perfect home and perfect children. My father, like Don Draper in “Mad Men,” spent long hours at the office, mainly seeing his kids at the dinner table and on weekends, when he wasn’t catching [...]
Pat Taub