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NEWS
Let's Talk Some More!
LLAIC Loves Art Needs Our Support
It's Fun to Lead a Course
SPECIAL EVENTS
LLAIC Loves Art: New York Historical Society - Wednesday, 12/13
GROUP MEETINGS
Current Events - Friday, 12/1
Spanish Conversation Group (La Tertulia) - Monday, 12/4
LLAIC Lit-Lovers - Friday, 12/8
Movie Mavens - Friday, 12/15
No Geniuses on Wall Street - Monday, 12/18
French Conversation Group
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LET'S TALK SOME MORE!
We are excited that LLAIC’s new Let's Talk program is underway. Two groups are already meeting regularly and new connections are being forged. We have two more groups planned for the winter and spring: “Downsizing: Should We Stay or Should We Go” and “Interfaith Family Relationships for Parents and Grandparents.”
We are now looking for more facilitators and topics for the spring session and beyond. If you have some experience leading groups and would like to volunteer to be a facilitator, and/or if you have ideas for group topics, please contact Gail Stone at 781-752-8397 or [email protected] or Margret Krakauer at 508-965-7976 or [email protected].
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LLAIC LOVES ART NEEDS OUR SUPPORT
For several years now we have been privileged to have a wonderful LLAIC Loves Art program that brings docents and museums around the country to our membership. Elaine Paster has been working tirelessly to contact museums and arrange these fabulous programs. In fact, LLAIC Loves Art has become a cornerstone of LLAIC’s programming, bringing in new members and enchanting us all.
For the few years during the worst of the pandemic, museums were willing to offer these programs to us free of charge. Now that museums are returning to normal attendance, however, they are not as able or willing to present these programs without charging us for their service. We are reluctant to pass the charges along to our members, so instead we are asking for donations.
If you have enjoyed our LLAIC Loves Art presentations and want to make sure they continue, please consider a donation to LLAIC to fund the program. You can mail your donation to our treasurer Joel Shwimer, 21 Stagecoach Road, Bedford, MA 01730 and designate LLAIC Loves Art as the destination. Or you can click here to donate via our website, and note "LLAIC Loves Art" under "Donation use."
Thanks in advance for your consideration.
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IT'S FUN TO LEAD A COURSE
Leading a course is a wonderful opportunity to share a topic that interests you with other like-minded people! Think about leading one in the spring.
Look at our website for the range we offer now. Look over the literature and art courses. Do you have a favorite author or artist, or even a genre? Could you share your knowledge? Or think of a course you'd like to take but it isn't there, such as the history of professional tennis or economic recessions. Would it be fun to create it? The Curriculum Committee has the expertise and patience to help you to develop your idea into a course, running from five to ten weeks.
This fall LLAIC has been offering several in-person classes at Temple Shalom, our new home in West Newton. It’s a lovely facility, with plenty of space for our schmooze room—just waiting to be used for special programs and lunches. We'd love to offer more in-person courses; but if that doesn’t work for you, Zoom will continue as an alternative. There’s full tech support for all virtual classes, with a dedicated person managing Zoom so the course leader can focus on teaching. There’s also A/V support for in-person classes.
While course leaders teach on a volunteer basis, they receive a free annual membership and may register early, tuition-free, for up to two courses in the semester they are teaching or in the following semester. So think about what you’d like to explore, and click here to download the course proposal form. Contact the Curriculum Committee if you have any questions. And if you know anyone else who may be interested in teaching, let them know about us!
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SAVE THE DATE!
LLAIC LOVES ART
NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 13 @ 1:30
Attendance will be limited. Details to follow in the next Quill.
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CURRENT EVENTS
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2023
@ 10:00-11:15 P.M.
LED BY JERRY JACOBS
Some hostages have been released and humanitarian aid is being delivered to Gaza, after delays, as part of an agreement on a ceasefire. Whatever happens next, Jerry will lead our gifted and forthright group skillfully through our usual lively discussion. He looks forward to our continued meetings and opportunities to be grateful.
Click here before noon on Thursday, November 30, to request a Zoom invitation. You'll get it that day. Newcomers are welcome.
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SPANISH CONVERSATION GROUP
¡Bienvenidos a La Tertulia!
MONDAY, DECEMBER 4 @ 1:00
Our format consists of reading and discussing articles from various Spanish language media sources of general high interest. There is no homework although everyone is invited to submit articles they might find for our agendas.
The hosts for the group are Miriam Grodberg and Larry Krakauer. Contact Miriam at [email protected] with any questions.
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LLAIC LIT-LOVERS
THE ISLAND OF MISSING TREES
BY ELIF SHAFAK
DISCUSSION LED BY YVONNE SACKS
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8 @ 10:30
Two teenagers, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, meet at a taverna on the island they both call home. In the taverna, hidden beneath garlands of garlic, chili peppers and creeping honeysuckle, Kostas and Defne grow in their forbidden love for each other. A moving, beautifully written and delicately constructed story of love, division, transcendence, history and eco-consciousness.
Click here to request a Zoom invitation before noon on Thursday, December 7. The meeting will open 15 minutes early so we can socialize before we begin the discussion. Contact Joan Chasan if you have trouble signing up. All book-loving members are welcome.
Looking forward:
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January 12: The Blessing Way by Tony Hillerman (led by Karl Kelber)
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February 9 – The Tale of the Rose by Consuelo de St. Exuper led by Patricia Cole
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MOVIE MAVENS
AMERICAN BEAUTY
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 15 @ 2:00
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American Beauty was Sam Mendes's directorial debut, winning Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Kevin Spacey), Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography. The screenplay was written by Alan Ball, who also wrote the award-winning drama Six Feet Under that ran on HBO from 2001 to 2005. The film won three Golden Globes and numerous other awards.
The black comedy/drama about a man's midlife crisis is also a searing critique of American culture at the end of the 20th century. The opening scene draws us in with voiceover narration from the “afterlife” and the “God's eye” cinematographic point of view. Mendes makes several homages to Billy Wilder with the Sunset Boulevard-like opening and shots of Lester's workplace that are reminiscent of The Apartment. Mendes uses his own unique cinematographic, editing, and sound techniques, and some magical realism imagery to help us see Lester's experience through his emotional state of mind.
The family drama brought on by Lester's crisis, his wife Carolyn's frustrations trying to maintain the American dream, and teenage daughter Jane's unsurprising alienation, brings out great performances by Spacey, Annette Bening (Carolyn), and Thora Birch (Jane).
Despite Spacey's recent problems with sexual assault charges -- long after the film was made -- we hope you can separate the man from the artist and appreciate his performance for the great acting it represents. (Note that screenwriter Alan Ball is gay and his work often deals with the struggles of gay men in a heteronormative culture.)
This film can be streamed on Netflix or Hoopla or rented on numerous formats listed on the app “Just Watch,” including Amazon, Redbox and Vudú. Movie Maven par excellence Stan Hitron will lead the discussion. Watch this space for the link where you can request a Zoom invitation on or before Thursday, December 14. All movie-loving members are welcome.
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THERE ARE NO GENIUSES ON WALL STREET
MONDAY, DECEMBER 18 @ 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, December 17, to request a Zoom invitation. If you have any questions about the group, contact Richard Lewis: [email protected] or 617-448-4439.
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FRENCH CONVERSATION GROUP | |
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We are reading some stories from "Great French Short Stories of the Twentieth Century" edited by Jennifer Wagner, a dual language book.
We are a group of intermediate to advanced level speakers. We read books aloud over Zoom, 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].
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