by Judy Handley | Mar 17, 2026 | 2026 Life Logs |
2026 Life Logs, Day 76: Happy St. Patrick’s Day
Date: Tuesday, March 17, 2026
Weather: Mostly Sunny and Windy; High Temp 56, Low 24 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
Once again, I was either on the run or working on my computer every minute of today, so tonight, instead of writing a normal log, I worked on my jigsaw puzzle. I just really needed to think about nothing other than colors and shapes of puzzle pieces. It is very therapeutic. And since I have to get up very early tomorrow morning to go set up for the monthly Encore program meeting, I am headed to bed before midnight for the first time in ages. So, again, very little writing tonight. Just a listing of the craziness … Encore Programs planning meeting, book group discussing Andy Weir’s ‘Project Hail Mary’, errands, home to do computer work, off to take Ollie to his saxophone lesson (his first since breaking his arm in January), home to answer emails, phone calls, and texts that needed a reply by the end of the day, dinner, and jigsaw puzzle.
One little note about the weather. The high today was 56 degrees F, but that was at midnight. From there, it got cooler and cooler and the daytime high was 40 and tomorrow’s high will be 36 degrees F. This is a New England spring. Normally on St. Patrick’s Day, I celebrate by planting snap peas. But not this St. Patrick’s Day. It still feels too much like winter.
by Judy Handley | Mar 15, 2026 | 2026 Life Logs |
2026 Life Logs, Day 74: The Ides of March
Date: Sunday, March 15, 2026
Weather: Partly Cloudy; High Temp 42, Low 37 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
Today was the Ides of March, the date in 44 B.C. when Julius Caesar was assassinated in Rome. Fast forward more than 1600 years, when Shakespeare made this a day to “beware” as it marked the violent end of a dictator and a turning point in Roman and world history. Evidently, we were not “beware” enough, as we now have another great nation falling into the hands of a dictator. A violent end I am not wishing for, but a nonviolent turnaround, yes.
On this Ides of March, all I could think about was not a turning point, but a tipping point. Can we stop the madness happening in this country, nonviolently, soon enough to avoid another turning point in history? So, my day was spent getting ready for tomorrow’s Indivisible Falmouth de-escalation workshop. In 2026, we know from the extensive research done on the topic of civil resistance, that the fastest and surest way to turn a country from an autocratic break through back to a full democracy is through nonviolent resistance. The research shows that violence is actually slower and most often does not work. But the nonviolent approach doesn’t happen by accident. It takes the fierce determination and training and practice of a huge mass of the population. That is what Indivisible is doing nationwide by forming groups in every little town and every big city in every state across this country and offering trainings online and in person to thousands of people everywhere, all at once. I hope you are one of those determined people and that on March 28, the day of the third nationwide NO KINGS protest, you will be out there nonviolently making your voice heard. No Kings in 1776! No Kings in 2026!
by Judy Handley | Mar 14, 2026 | 2026 Life Logs |
2026 Life Logs, Day 73: State Jazz Band Competition
Date: Saturday, March 14, 2026
Weather: Mostly Sunny and Gale Warning Windy; High Temp 49, Low 29 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
It was a chilly, windy day, but as always, rain, shine, snow, or wind, we are always on the Village Green at noon on Saturdays to rally for democracy. I meet the most amazing people on the Green. Today it was couple who live just around the corner from me. Their daughter lives in Madagascar and we had a great conversation while holding our signs for democracy.
After the rally, I headed to Heather and Jed’s to ride with them to Norwood for the state jazz band competition. Falmouth High School won Gold in the regional competition. Today they gave an award winning performance. They didn’t win the top prize, but are already gearing up for next year’s competition. They won Silver today, which in itself was amazing. Falmouth High School hasn’t been in the state finals for 20 years. Mr. Borning, who is the current band director for the 5th and 6th graders, was in the high school jazz band back then. Mr. Hellwig became the high school band director last year. He took an already good jazz band and upped the level to get them back in state competition. I love watching them play because all of the kids really seem to enjoy what they are doing. They play like they are in a professional jazz band, not like high school students. Congratulations to Jonah and all of the members of the FHS jazz band!
by Judy Handley | Mar 13, 2026 | 2026 Life Logs |
2026 Life Logs, Day 72: Whoville
Date: Friday, March 13, 2026
Weather: Mostly Sunny; High Temp 40, Low 35 degrees F
Location: At Home with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
I have to keep reminding myself that it is still winter and that it is normal to be chilly outside. But we have had a few warm days, and one gets spoiled. But when you live on a peninsula in the North Atlantic Ocean (that technically became an island due to the human construction of the Cape Cod Canal) and are surrounded by cold ocean water at this time of year, the coming of warm spring weather is slow. The water temperature is going to rise much more slowly than the land temperature, so we still have a lot of cool weather in store while those living just a few miles inland are going to be much warmer. Today it felt 10 degrees colder than the thermometer said. And we are going to have a lot of days like this due to the wind and moisture blowing in from over the water. But, have heart, spring is on the way.
I was feeling a bit overwhelmed today with the many time sensitive things I have to get don when I took a break to peruse our local newspaper that arrives on Friday mornings. I picked it up from the driveway when I returned from taking Shadow to his every seven weeks’ grooming appointment at Pampered Paws. The thing that caught my eye was a letter to the editor from my friend Jerry Lanson. Jerry is a Professor Emeritus, Emerson College, a lifelong journalist, a writing consultant for graduate students at the Harvard Kennedy School, and a good friend. His letter was a plea for every one of us to show up on March 28th at a No Kings protest. He makes an analogy to the people of Whoville in Dr. Suess’ children’s book, “Horton Hears a Who.” It reminded me of why I am so immersed in Falmouth Indivisible and the Falmouth Immigrant Rights Coalition right now. The work can be exhausting, but it is where I will spend all of my energy until our collective voices are heard. Reading his letter gave me the energy to continue. I hope you will read Jerry’s letter that follows, and I sincerely hope you will find a No Kings protest somewhere nearby wherever you live where you can go and have your voice heard on March 28. In Falmouth, that place is the Village Green at noon.
MARCH 28 MATTERS: PLEASE SHOW UP
To Make a Dent, Huge Numbers Need to Turn Out for the No Kings 3 Protests
JERRY LANSON MAR 13, 2026
My cousin — I’ll call him Charlie — is one smart guy. He graduated from Harvard University, started and runs his own business analyzing big data to help medical providers, and plays a mean piano. He’s certainly no Trumpie. But I think he — and his mother and aunt — have lost their way when it comes to confronting the reality of contemporary politics.
They consider protesting a waste of time and believe the next election likely will start to resolve the problems that ail this country. They seem, despite mounting, daily evidence, to be oblivious to what I see as a clear and present threat to that very election and to our democracy itself.
We had a spirited conversation last weekend at a birthday party for Charlie’s younger daughter. I was urging them all to participate March 28 in the third No Kings protests, which will likely be held in a few thousand locations across all 50 states. Unfortunately, I don’t think I made a lot of headway.
Let me try again with you (I’ll forward the column to them, too).
These are dangerous times. Full stop. Period. In my view, they are the worst in my 76 years, which span the fight for Civil Rights, efforts to end the Vietnam War, and Watergate.
A friend in Arizona wrote to me yesterday in horror to tell me that “30 to 50 ICE agents,” armed with assault rifles, had surrounded a car just blocks from her house in broad daylight to arrest someone. This was on the same day that ICE and police in South Burlington, Vt., engaged in a full-day standoff with protesters before arresting three adults in a house there. And it came two days after a federal judge ordered the release of a 14-year-old girl he said was detained under “questionable circumstances” in Marlborough, Mass., and quickly deported out of state.
Minneapolis is not over. It has spread nationally.
These times also are the worst in my lifetime because the unending and mounting violations of law and due process are actively sanctioned and encouraged by the president of the United States, the yes men and women around him, and nearly all in his governing party
The No Kings rallies will take place as massive, armed conflict spreads violently across the globe; as Donald Trump’s government moves aggressively to buy land to build gargantuan detention centers to incarcerate immigrants; as his oligarch buddies siphon billions from our Treasury; as decades worth of advances in Civil Rights are eviscerated; and as hard-working Americans struggle mightily to eat, buy gas, and pay their rent, utilities and medical bills.
It is time for us all to speak out. Standing up to autocracy and for our Constitution can be hard and exhausting work. It can be frustrating if we succumb to the sense there’s nothing we can do. It can be intimidating. And it can be easy to leave to others.
Yet serious scholarly research suggests each of us does matter. Scholars such as Harvard University’s Erica Chenoweth have found that only after 3.5 percent of a country’s population sustains non-violent resistance over time is a tipping point reached where the odds of toppling an undemocratic regime is more likely to succeed than not. In the United States, a start in that direction would mean drawing nearly 12 million people to city halls, town parks, village greens, intersections and other gathering points on March 28. Collectively, we can and must raise our voices to demand adherence to the rule of law; insist on accountability for those killing our fellow citizens; condemn those grifting taxpayer dollars; fight for affordable rents, medical care and utilities.
Granted. Turning out 12 million will be daunting. It would be millions more than have participated in prior massive No Kings protests. But it is doable. To get there, more of you who object to what’s happening in this country but haven’t turned out yet need to do so where ever you choose March 28. It’s simple math.
For inspiration, remember Dr. Seuss’ well-known children’s book, “Horton Hears a Who.” It tells the story of a lovable elephant named Horton, who is as kind as he is large. He becomes obsessed by a speck of dirt on a dandelion because he hears the collective voices of a microscopic village living on it – Whoville. The trouble is none of the other jungle creatures believes him. They set out both to destroy the speck of dirt and punish Horton.
At long last, after enormous trials and tribulations, the mayor of Whoville and Horton, working together, get every last resident of the microscopic village to yell, scream and bang drums. The mean jungle animals, who have tied up Horton and are prepared to destroy Whoville, hear them and relent. Whoville is spared. Horton, too.
Let’s consider every hamlet and village across the United States to be Whoville on March 28. To protect our neighbors, ourselves and our Constitution, we need to raise our collective voices, reaffirm the founding principles and practices of American democracy, ensure fair elections.
If the citizenry standing together could save Whoville, I’ll bet they can save our country, too.
My cousin — I’ll call him Charlie — is one smart guy. He graduated from Harvard University, started and runs his own business analyzing big data to help medical providers, and plays a mean piano. He’s certainly no Trumpie. But I think he — and his mother and aunt — have lost their way when it comes to confronting the reality of contemporary politics.
They consider protesting a waste of time and believe the next election likely will start to resolve the problems that ail this country. They seem, despite mounting, daily evidence, to be oblivious to what I see as a clear and present threat to that very election and to our democracy itself.
We had a spirited conversation last weekend at a birthday party for Charlie’s younger daughter. I was urging them all to participate March 28 in the third No Kings protests, which will likely be held in a few thousand locations across all 50 states. Unfortunately, I don’t think I made a lot of headway.
Let me try again with you (I’ll forward the column to them, too).
These are dangerous times. Full stop. Period. In my view, they are the worst in my 76 years, which span the fight for Civil Rights, efforts to end the Vietnam War, and Watergate.
A friend in Arizona wrote to me yesterday in horror to tell me that “30 to 50 ICE agents,” armed with assault rifles, had surrounded a car blocks from her house in broad daylight to arrest someone. This was on the same day that ICE and police in South Burlington, Vt., engaged in a full-day standoff with protesters before arresting three adults in a house there. And it came two days after a federal judge ordered the release of a 14-year-old girl he said was detained under “questionable circumstances” in Marlborough, Mass., and quickly deported out of state.
Minneapolis is not over. It has spread nationally.
These times also are the worst in my lifetime because the unending and mounting violations of law and due process are actively sanctioned and encouraged by the president of the United States, the yes men and women around him, and nearly all in his governing party.
The No Kings rallies will take place as massive, armed conflict spreads violently across the globe; as Donald Trump’s government moves aggressively to buy land to build gargantuan detention centers to incarcerate immigrants; as his oligarch buddies siphon billions from our Treasury; as decades worth of advances in Civil Rights are eviscerated; and as hard-working Americans struggle mightily to eat, buy gas, and pay their rent, utilities and medical bills.
It is time for us all to speak out. Standing up to autocracy and for our Constitution can be hard and exhausting work. It can be frustrating if we succumb to the sense there’s nothing we can do. It can be intimidating. And it can be easy to leave to others.
Yet serious scholarly research suggests each of us does matter. Scholars such as Harvard University’s Erica Chenoweth have found that only after 3.5 percent of a country’s population sustains non-violent resistance over time is a tipping point reached where the odds of toppling an undemocratic regime is more likely to succeed than not. In the United States, a start in that direction would mean drawing nearly 12 million people to city halls, town parks, village greens, intersections and other gathering points on March 28. Collectively, we can and must raise our voices to demand adherence to the rule of law; insist on accountability for those killing our fellow citizens; condemn those grifting taxpayer dollars; fight for affordable rents, medical care and utilities.
Granted. Turning out 12 million will be daunting. It would be millions more than have participated in prior massive No Kings protests. But it is doable. To get there, more of you who object to what’s happening in this country but haven’t turned out yet need to do so where ever you choose March 28. It’s simple math.
For inspiration, remember Dr. Seuss’ well-known children’s book, “Horton Hears a Who.” It tells the story of a lovable elephant named Horton, who is as kind as he is large. He becomes obsessed by a speck of dirt on a dandelion because he hears the collective voices of a microscopic village living on it – Whoville. The trouble is none of the other jungle creatures believes him. They set out both to destroy the speck of dirt and punish Horton.
At long last, after enormous trials and tribulations, the mayor of Whoville and Horton, working together, get every last resident of the microscopic village to yell, scream and bang drums. The mean jungle animals, who have tied up Horton and are prepared to destroy Whoville, hear them and relent. Whoville is spared. Horton, too.
Let’s consider every hamlet and village across the United States to be Whoville on March 28. To protect our neighbors, ourselves and our Constitution, we need to raise our collective voices, reaffirm the founding principles and practices of American democracy, ensure fair elections.
If the citizenry standing together could save Whoville, I’ll bet they can save our country, too.
