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Recent Posts
- Cul Dreimhne – The Battle of the Book
- The Spanish Armada – According to the Irish
- In Yeats Country
- On My Bookshelf – Swallows and Amazons
- We’ll Always Have Pittsburgh
- The Impeachment of Hillary Clinton
- The Night I Met Mick Jagger
- Gambling on Trump
- The Sexy Seniors of Anacortes
- A Women’s History Sampler
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Author Archives: dispatchesfromtheformernewworld
Cul Dreimhne – The Battle of the Book
What do you think of when you think of monks? Silent hooded figures praying in a shadowed cloister perhaps? Or the ethereal sound of Gregorian chant? You probably don’t think of a violent battle leaving thousands of dead and dying … Continue reading
The Spanish Armada – According to the Irish
Along with every other English schoolchild I learned the story of the Spanish Armada. In 1588 Philip II of Spain sent the largest fleet ever seen to conquer England, depose the heretic Queen Elizabeth I, and restore the Catholic faith. … Continue reading
In Yeats Country
Our boat slowed and began to circle the little island in the lake. Then over the loudspeaker came the voice of our captain, George, reciting the W. B. Yeats poem The Lake Isle of Innisfree. We were circling that very … Continue reading
On My Bookshelf – Swallows and Amazons
My favorite childhood book was never on my own childhood bookshelf. I borrowed Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome from my local library and enjoyed it so much that in subsequent weeks I checked out all the other books in … Continue reading
The Impeachment of Hillary Clinton
Perhaps the most shocking thing, out of all the shocks that have battered us since the inauguration of President Trump, is the complete lack of responsible reaction from Congressional Republicans. Beyond a few bleats of “troubling” and “concerning” there is … Continue reading
The Night I Met Mick Jagger
Bubbling with the exited anticipation of teenagers, my friend and I rode the number 66 red double-decker bus into Romford. It was February 25th 1964 and we were headed to the Odeon Theatre to try to catch a glimpse of … Continue reading
We’ll Always Have Pittsburgh
Americans used to love Paris. There’s even a song about it, something about springtime and fall and drizzles and sizzles. George Gershwin wrote a whole musical on the theme. He thought Paris ‘S wonderful! American literary types used to hang … Continue reading →