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The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron own blog. It’s bedtime for 2023. It has been an ugly year. Ukraine. Hamas’ October 7th attack. Bloodshed in Gaza. Wildfires and floods from global warming. House of Representatives chaos and gridlock. Biden’s slump in polls. Social media’s pollution of young…

This essay by Henri Marchand was first heard as a radio essay on the “Sunrise” program of WUML, 92.5 FM, at UMass Lowell. Today we continue our tradition of reposting the essay each year at Christmas.     The Christmas Fruitcake: An Ageless Tradition By Henri Marchand I think there…

In December 2012, fifty-six people from Lowell, Massachusetts combined to recite “A Visit From St. Nicholas” by Clement Clarke Moore. Here’s the result:

Living Madly: The God of Doors By Emilie-Noelle Provost One of my father-in-law’s favorite sayings was: There’s always the unexpected. No matter how carefully our plans are laid out, or how much we might want a particular thing to happen, or not, the possibility that something unforeseen will derail our desires…

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron’s own blog. Small wonder that public approval of Congress ranges between 13 and a scant 15 percent. The year started with chaos and the gelding of Speaker Kevin McCarthy after 15 marathon rounds of voting. It ends with the House commencing an…

Joyeux Noël (PIP #12) By Louise Peloquin A meeting takes place in the long rectangular room where jacks-of-all-printing trades feed linotypes with a cornucopia of lead letters. They are working on important December issues – important because the holidays bring an abundance of ads, important especially because local events, duly…

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron’s own blog. As the nights get shorter and colder, here are some novels to curl up with by the fire, even if you read them on Kindle. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride is a delightful novel set…

“Use your tongue” (Speak French) By Louise Peloquin Before PIP #9, here’s a throwback on Thanksgiving 1944.  *********  L’Etoile November 22, 1944 Thanksgiving in times of war is different than that in times of peace. Let us be grateful for our victorious armies, for those who maintain their faith in…

The Lowell City Council met this past Tuesday night with the most anticipated part of the meeting being the roll call at the very start. That is when the public learned that Councilor Corey Robinson, who had been arrested several days earlier, would not be physically present at the meeting…