US National Committee for UN Women, in California
The annual meeting of the US National Committee for UN Women was held in San Francisco this year. I flew out on Friday to be ready for the Saturday annual meeting in the morning and the board meeting in the afternoon.
I loved seeing this bride arriving for her wedding!
We stayed and had our meetings at the Garden Court Hotel in downtown Palo Alto. The charming boutique hotel is the venue for weddings and other events. I couldn’t resist taking a picture of this bride arriving.
The USNC approved the creation of a new chapter in Silicon Valley. Two women leading the effort were present and enthusiastic about their work.
The board approved a special fundraising effort to support resistance to the effects of climate change in the Caribbean. Our President Lalita said UN Women had asked us to subscribe to this program.
I believe it is part of the larger UN effort that is described in the UN Newsletter. The UN recognizes the importance of preparation and building capacity.
I thought board members might do something together on Sunday morning and I hoped to see two dear friends, classmates from the Yale School of Management, who live in San Francisco. So I booked my return flight for Sunday night.
There were flowers all over the hotel, real ones!
But other board members left Sunday morning. Only my friend Victoria was free, and she drove to Palo Alto for breakfast on Saturday. It was so lovely to see her and catch up on each other’s lives.
Unitarian Church in Palo Alto
Board members went out to dinner together on Saturday. But that still left all day Sunday. First, I checked for the nearest Unitarian Church.
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Palo Alto was not far from my hotel. I went to their service, which they followed with a church picnic nearby. Eight of us sat together to enjoy the hotdogs, veggie burgers, potato and green salad, and delicious desserts. There was even wine!
Of course there are always connections to make! One couple moved to Palo Alto recently to be near their children. They came from the West Hartford (Connecticut) Unitarian Church. “We had a minister come to preach three or four years ago who was very impressive. Do you know who that might have been?”
When they described a little more about him, I realized it was our own Rev. Dr. John Morehouse. He had preached in West Hartford as part of our search process. ,
This delicious dessert was brought to our USNC lunch by a Syrian refugee family who have opened a catering business.
I was on the search committee. We arranged five different “neutral” congregations where we could hear applicants preach. West Harford was John’s. I brought them up to date on our choice and how pleased we are.
Afternoon Movies
Then I had the rest of the afternoon free. I wanted to go to Three Identical Strangers, the movie about the triplets separated at birth. But Lyft refused to recognize the address, a couple of miles away, and Uber couldn’t make a connection!
The Syrian family who made the dessert and spoke with us about their lives
So I went to the movie theater in walking distance from the hotel and saw Leave No Trace and Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot.
My choice was based on the two movies they were showing and their start times! I knew nothing about either. I’ve learned more now.
Leave No Trace
Leave No Trace depicts a father and daughter who live almost invisibly in the forest. The father, a vet, is unable to endure society. The New York Times review has a clip narrated by Debra Granik, the producer. She talks about the lush scenery of the Pacific Northwest and the background depth it provided for the characters.
The police find the father and daughter who are camping illegally. They take away the father, while the daughter is cared for by social workers.
Race an Undercurrent
Debra’s comments in the narration to the clip are excellent! She said all the people working on the scene where the father is captured had to wonder what would have happened if the father had been Black instead of white.
Easy to imagine a different outcome when the police discovered the man’s knives! Even though the film was not directly addressing the question of police violence against Black men, it was in the undercurrent.
The film drew me in. It’s spare and overall somewhat depressing, but brilliant. I wanted a happy ending, but there wasn’t one.
Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot
The second movie, Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot, is the true story of John Callahan, an alcoholic, cartoonist, and quadriplegic who died in 2010. The producer is Gus Van Sant who talks about the film-making process.
I agree with the summary by Peter Travers writing in Rolling Stone, who said, “Joaquin Phoenix and director Gus Van Sant turn a biopic of quadriplegic cartoonist John Callahan into something tender, unique.”
If you want a story of unusual depth about alcoholism and dealing with life’s adversities, you would like this. It’s also very funny!
After the movies I had to try the Impossible Burger, completely plant-based, at Wahlburgers near the theatre. Tasty, great texture, and very filling. I recommend it!
