Food on Wheels

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the February 22, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

This fall we discovered a great little bakery on the southern Massachusetts coast where the Acushnet River flows into Buzzard’s Bay. The town of Fairhaven shares a harbor with what was once the most-famous whaling-era seaport, New Bedford. The south coast is a hidden gem of Massachusetts that our family is learning more and more about all the time.

The Flour Girls Baking Company just opened shop in Fairhaven, having moved from a start-up in-home bakery in another local town. The website for the bakery and café admits that the Flour Girls (with an s) is a misnomer. The bakery is really only managed by ‘one girl’, Jill Houck, who hails from Vermont. Ms. Houck took up baking for profit, having learned her skills from her parents who loved to bake themselves. One of the delightful things about the Flour Girl’s business is that Houck also owns a The Flour Girls Baking Company sweet truck that travels on demand throughout eastern Massachusetts.

If you haven’t heard, the recent phenomenon of food trucks is sweeping the state of Massachusetts (particularly in Boston) and the entire country from coast to coasts. From early morning through evening residents and visitors of big cities across the country see these mobile kitchens, or food trucks, parked along busy streets, in intersections or parking lots.

Hidden Resources @ the Library

Read Marie Lydon's column in the February 15, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

The New Year saw changes in publishing that made me realize more than ever that the times definitely are changing. Newsweek, a magazine I had subscribed to since college and beyond, ceased publication altogether in December. It had altered a lot in the last few years and definitely slimmed down but I was still sad to see it go. Around the same time that Newsweek made its announcement Morningstar sent notice that after its December issue, it would no longer publish a paper edition of Morningstar Mutual Funds, which the library had been subscribing to for years. So, when a couple came into the library recently and sat down with the investment notebook, they were surprised to learn that it is now available only online as Morningstar Investment Research Center.

We're Sweet on Our Library Volunteers

Read Charlotte Canelli's column in the February 8, 2013 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Note: This column was written before the 2nd Annual Volunteer Appreciation Tea. The event was postponed until Valentine's Day, February 14, 2013. All sweets and appreciation will be the same as 'advertised.'

On Friday, February 8 we are celebrating our volunteers at the Morrill Memorial Library. We’ve invited them to the 2nd Annual Volunteer Appreciation Tea where they will spend time with us between 10 am and 2 pm in the library’s Simoni Room.

Our first annual tea was such a success in 2012. It was also oh, so delicious. Library staff and trustees baked a plethora of sweets. There was a catch to the task, however. The recipe had to be from a cookbook available on our library shelves or through the Minuteman Library Network. Each dessert was featured with the name of the cookbook, the recipe and the baker. Library staff was on hand throughout the day to greet and thank our volunteers personally.

Last year’s desserts included everything from cheesecake to macarons. (Yes, that’s macarons which are different from the traditional macaroons.)