RAPS Group Reports The RAPS Book Group. The book group met on February 21 and discussed In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick. The discussion was spirited. The first half of the book was about the whale hunt itself, and the techniques used so that five men in a whaleboat might capture a leviathan. Interesting also was the background of the Nantucket society from which the whalers came. The hunted whale rams the ship, and in the second half of the book man is no longer dominant but struggles to survive, a struggle that gives rise to many ethical issues. In the spirit of Portland State, we discussed supportive societies, insular cultures, recent research on trauma, fair labor practices, and many other things that I am sure the whalers never thought about. The March meeting will be at 1:30pm on March 21. The group will be discussing A Man Called Ove by the Swedish writer Fredrik Backman. The back cover describes it as an “uplifting exploration of the unreliability of first impressions and a gentle reminder that life is sweeter when it is shared with other people.” We will meet at the home of Felicia Wirtz, 16344 NW Avamere Ct., Beaverton, 97229. Contact Felicia at (503) 645-0947 or feliciawirtz@gmail.com to let her know whether you can be there, and for directions. The book selected for discussion in April is The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro. Set in postArthurian Britain, it is a tale of an elderly couple who set off on a journey to visit their son. The back cover describes it as “a luminous meditation on the art of forgetting, and the power of memory, an extraordinary tale of love, vengeance and war.” The book group meets the third Tuesday of every month at 1:30pm. New members are always welcome. -–Joan Shireman The RAPS Bridge Group. The RAPS bridge group meets in the afternoon on the first Tuesday of each month. We begin play at 12:15pm. We try to finish up by 4pm. We meet in Smith Center, usually on the second floor, but sometimes on the third floor. Please mark your calendars for the following upcoming months, bridge dates and times: Tuesday, March 7, 2017; 12:15pm in SMSU 294 Tuesday, April 4, 2017; 12:15pm in SMSU 294 I will send out the reminder email notice about one week prior to each date we play. The RAPS Bridge Group members are very friendly and are always looking for new players. If you wish to join us, please contact Steve Brennan, 503-646-6297. My email address is the.steve.brennan@gmail.com. --Steve Brennan The RAPS Hiking Group. At our December planning meeting, we changed our hiking day to the 4th Tuesday. On January 24th, 10 hikers, including new hiker Lee Buddress, were led by Steve Brennan. We hiked a new 5.2 mile section of the Westside Regional Trail of the Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation from the Nature Park to the Progress Ridge Shopping Center, where we had lunch at La Provence Boulangerie & Patisserie. By the time you read this, we will have held a short bird watching hike in the Steigerwald National Wildlife Refuge outside of Washougal. We will start the hike with a 9am 1 hour guided tour of the Pendleton Woolen Mills in Washougal and end the hike at the quaint “Wildflower Café and Cupcakes” back in Washougal. The March 28th hike will also be an aquatic birding hike in the “Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge.” We will hike the Carty unit as the Kiwa Trail doesn’t open until May 1st. It contains the Cathlapotle Plank House replica. Ken Ames excavated the original site several years ago. Meet at 9am in the Safeway parking lot on the Oregon side of the Interstate Bridge for a short carpool. Extra cars will be parked on the street. Confirm your participation with Larry Sawyer 503-771-1616 or larry_sawyer@comcast.net. Our complete schedule for 2017 with links to the destinations can be found on the RAPS Web Page quick link to the hikers page. www.pdx.edu/raps . 4 --Larry Sawyer
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