The Quill

Quick Updates for Independent Lifelong Learners

July 31, 2022

#411

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Course Registration Starts in Eight Days

Summersession - Tuesday, 8/2 to Thursday, 8/4

• The New Yorker Roundtable
• Current Events
• SPECIAL PRESENTATION: Tales from the Courtroom by Judge Kate Rosenthal

New Yorker Story for Tuesday, August 9

Writing The Sharp Edge of Mercy - Thursday, 8/11

LLAIC Zoom Happy Hour - Thursday, 8/18

No Geniuses on Wall Street - Monday, 8/22

Let's Go: Georges Island - Tuesday, 8/30

LLAIC Lit-Lovers - Friday, 9/9

French Conversation Group

Movie Mavens

Spanish Conversation Group

COURSE REGISTRATION STARTS IN EIGHT DAYS

Starting at 10 a.m. on Monday, August 8, you'll be able to to sign up for our exciting fall courses.

Visit our website to see listings of the great courses you can choose this fall. You can sort them by day, time, and Course Leader. Each description shows the starting date for the course, the number of weeks it will run, the course content, any required reading materials, and a bio of the Course Leader. The few classes that are in person are so noted next to the course title. The in-person classes will be held at Temple Shir Tikva in Wayland. The in-studio classes will be held at Lane Williamson's art studio in Sudbury.

Click here for an updated schedule of courses and venues. However you sort the listings on the website, you'll see the option to "Register for a Course" at the bottom of each page.

REMEMBER: To register for our courses, you'll need to sign up for membership for the next year ($80) or fall semester ($45). If you've already signed up, you're all set. If not, it's a good idea to get it over with now so you'll be all ready to register for courses on August 8.

Click here to be taken directly to the signup page on our website. You'll see and can print directions for membership signup and course registration here. If you've signed up for membership already, start at the top. Otherwise, start with "Membership Sign-up Details" at the bottom of Page 1.

If you're joining us for the first time (welcome!), you have to create an account and then apply for membership. The process isn't completed until you pay (unless you're a TST member). The good news: You only have to create that account once.

We have an exciting array of programming planned for you during the three remaining weeks of Summersession. Click on the links below to request Zoom invites for the sessions you want to attend this week. You'll receive them the day before each event.

TUESDAY - THE NEW YORKER ROUNDTABLE: The fourth week of Summersession begins on Tuesday, August 2 at 10 a.m. with a short story discussion. Everyone who enjoys short-form literature is invited to attend. No signup is necessary; just request a Zoom link before tomorrow noon. The story we will discuss on August 2 is "Arrivals" by Bryan Washington. You can read it here or in the July 10-17 issue of The New Yorker. Click here for a Zoom invitation.

WEDNESDAY - TIMELY TOPICS: This week Timely Topics will be led by Margalit Lai. As usual, there are plenty of topics to discuss and always unexpected news to weigh in on. Some of the topics we are likely to discuss are:

• Joe Manchin's change of heart.
• The upcoming swap of Brittny Greiner and Paul Wheeler.
• The RNC threatening to stop funding Trump's defense if he announces his candidacy.
• Good news from Israel that Americans can only dream of.

Click here for a Zoom invitation.

THURSDAY - SPECIAL PRESENTATION - TALES FROM THE COURTROOM PRESENTED BY KATE ROSENTHAL: Kate Rosenthal is recently retired after twenty years as a Syracuse City Court Judge. 

After graduating from Earlham College in 1976, Kate worked in Washington for US Representative Matt McHugh for several years as staff assistant.  During her time at law school, she worked during the summers as a law clerk for JAG Corps and The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in DC.  After graduating Syracuse University School of Law in 1981, Ms. Rosenthal worked primarily as a criminal defense attorney until she was elected as a judge in 2000. She received the Honorable William Brennan Award for Outstanding Jurist in 2009. Shark Tales, a compilation of lawyer’s stories by Ron Liebman, contains one of her own experiences!  Click here for a Zoom invitation.

All sessions begin at 10 a.m. on Zoom. Your invitation to request a link to each event will be in The Quill on the Sunday before it takes place. Each session is scheduled to last for 75 minutes. We hope you will take advantage of this wonderful programming which is offered as a FREE benefit of your LLAIC membership.

NEW YORKER STORY FOR TUESDAY, AUGUST 9

On Tuesday, August 9, we will discuss "You Tell Me" by Clare Sestanovich. Read it here or in the August 1 issue of The New Yorker.

WRITING THE SHARP EDGE OF MERCY

PRESENTED BY CONNIE HERTZBERG MAYO

       THURSDAY, AUGUST 11 @ 10:00 A.M.

NEW YORK CITY, 1890: Lillian Dolan is optimistic about her new job at the New York Cancer Hospital after dreaming for years of becoming a nurse. But she struggles to fit in, and her only friend at the hospital is Jupiter, a Black man who runs the crematorium. When the confident Dr. Bauer arrives as the new surgeon and takes a shine to Lillian, she is thrilled to be noticed. Lillian has been warned not to get too close to the patients, but Mrs. Sokolova draws her in, and Lillian wins praise from the nurses for making progress with a difficult patient. But when Mrs. Sokolova's situation becomes dire, she puts Lillian in an impossible situation-all while Lillian slowly loses control of her relationship with Dr. Bauer. Her decision to help her patient throws her life into chaos, and Jupiter may be the only person who can help her with the choice before her: capitulate to Dr. Bauer's demands or face possible arrest.

Connie Hertzberg Mayo, who will tell us about the trials and tribulations of writing this historical novel grew up in Westchester County, NY, but came to Massachusetts to get a literature degree from Tufts University and never ended up leaving. Her first book, The Island of Worthy Boys, was published in 2015 by She Writes Press and won an “IPPY” – the 2016 Gold Medal for Best Regional Fiction from the Independent Publisher Book Awards -- and the 2015 Silver Medal for Historical Fiction from the INDIEFAB Book of the Year Awards. Connie’s short story, “Little Breaks,” was published by Calyx Journal in 2017. The Sharp Edge of Mercy was published by Heliotrope Books in May 2022. Connie works as a Systems Analyst and empty-nests with her husband and two feuding cats.

There will be a link to sign up in next week's Quill.

LLAIC ZOOM HAPPY HOUR

THURSDAY, AUGUST 18

4:00-5:00

At our July Happy Hour we talked about scams, meeting people by coincidence, names being changed at borders, keeping birth names, women once not being able to have credit cards, children who cook, restaurants with outdoor seating, attitudes toward Covid, continuing to hold classes on Zoom, art crime, and the hot weather. 

We hope you'll all join us on Thursday, August 18, from 4 to 5 p.m. Bring your drinks, snacks, and conversation. New members are especially welcome.

Click here to request a Zoom invitation before noon on Wednesday, August 17. You'll receive it that day.

THERE ARE NO GENIUSES ON WALL STREET

MONDAY, AUGUST 22 @ 10:30-12:00

Are you an experienced investor, or are you new to "the market" and want to know more? We are an easygoing discussion group that deals with all market-related topics. Bring your opinions, insights, and questions. Or just listen.

Click here before noon on Sunday, August 21, to request a Zoom invitation. If you have any questions about the group, contact Richard Lewis: [email protected] or 617-448-4439.



Announcing the first three books for the coming season of Lit-Lovers:

• Friday, September 9: Open Season by Archer Mayor. (Please note that there are several books with this title, so be sure that you read the one by the right author.)

• Friday, October 14: The Netanyahus: An Account of a Minor and Ultimately Even Negligible Episode in the History of a Very Famous Family by Joshua Cohen.

• Friday, November 11: Norwegian by Night by Derek B. Miller.

The sign-up form for the September 9^th meeting will be available in the August 7^th Quill.

The French Conversation Group is reading Le Chateau de ma Mere by Marcel Pagnol.

We are a group of intermediate to advanced level speakers. We read books aloud, taking turns, and stopping often to discuss any interesting aspects of what we are reading. If you are interested in this group, please contact Betty Salzberg at [email protected].

MOVIE MAVENS

ON SUMMER VACATION

We'll see more superb films together in the fall! Watch this space.

SPANISH CONVERSATION GROUP

¡Bienvenidos a La Tertulia!

AWAY FOR THE SUMMER

The LLAIC Spanish Conversation group, La Tertulia, is taking July and August off. The group will return in September to meeting every other Monday.

The hosts for the group are Miriam Grodberg and Larry Krakauer. Contact Miriam at [email protected] with any questions.