Nicole Guerra-Coon is the Assistant Children’s Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her column in the December 26, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
When I was about three or four years old, my parents took me to my
first movie in a theater - Disney’s “Snow White.” They weren’t sure if I would
be able to sit still, or if I would be overwhelmed by the darkness or the
sound. But I sat there, completely entranced, for the entire film.Only when it ended and the lights came up,
did I start to sob.My parents were
startled, and as they ushered me out of the theater, they kept reassuring me,
“It was just a movie! The witch isn’t real!” But as I sobbed through the
parking lot, the adults within earshot burst into laughter as I choked out
“I…just...didn’t want it...to end!”
This is a memory that has stayed with me, and I have always thought
about it through the lense of storytelling and its universal power.
Kate Tigue is the Head of Youth Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the December 12, 2019 edition of the Transcript and Bulletin.
I’ve never been big on New Year’s
resolutions. I find them a little depressing, knowing I’ll likely never keep
them.I don’t know what it is about the
word “resolution” but it has such a negative connotation for me that I always
avoid them. I prefer to set goals. Having goals sounds way more positive to me
than making resolutions. Goals are things you can work toward, resolutions are
things you have to keep.
I am a member of GoodReads, a social
media centered around books and reading. When I first joined, I primarily used
GoodReads as a way to keep track of the books I’ve read and the titles I wanted
to read. But several years ago, GoodReads start challenging it users to a
yearly reading goal in January of the new year. Participants can set the number
of books they wish to finish reading by the end of December and a member’s
homepage will track their progress toward their goal. I’ve set a goal every
year since this feature was introduced and mostly met them. This year, I was
very ambitious and hoped to read 25 books. I might fall a few short of that
goal as I’ve only read 22 and December is halfway over!
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the December 5, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
Carl Hiassen
wrote the little book, Assume the Worst
(2018), as the "graduation speech you'll never hear." He wrote it to
his son, Quinn, upon his commencement from high school that year.The advice as far as Hiaasen is concerned is
meant for anyone. It might be a bit too honest, and perhaps a tad pessimistic,
for many of us. Hiaasen argues against some of the favorite adages we hear all
the time, like "Live Each Day As If It's Your Last" and "If You
Set Your Mind to It, You Can Be Anything You Want to Be."His conflict with these sentiments? If you
lived every day like it was your last, you'd undoubtedly be broke, irrelevant,
and possibly in prison. And can you really be the next Willy Mays or Bill
Gates? Probably not. Hiassen's adage? "Self-delusion is no virtue."
Hiaasen
proclaims that it's more important to "figure out what you're good at and
get better at it." Or, more simplistically and realistically, "live
each day as if your rent is due tomorrow."
Lydia Sampson is the Assistant Director/Technical Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her column in the November 28, 2019 issue of the Transcript & Bulletin.
Imagine working at your job, at the library, police station or Town
Hall, for instance, and seeing a few strangers walk in with video cameras and
iPhones pointed at you. They don’t identify themselves, but ask for your name
and title. They speak calmly, but decline to answer when you ask for their
names and the nature of their business. In fact, they inform you that they do
not need to answer, and that they have the right to film you, a public
employee, and the building, a public space. How do you react? Do you debate their rights and yours, or the
Constitution itself? Do you demand that they stop filming, or kick them out, or
threaten to call security? Do you smile or scowl? Think carefully, because all
of this footage may appear on YouTube and go viral.
Librarian April Cushing is head of Adult and Information Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column published in the November 21, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
I
never thought I’d end up marrying my former best friend’s husband.
In
their Halloween class picture, our preschoolers are standing side-by-side dressed
as Batman and a ballerina. I have photos of their son giving my youngest a
bottle, and of our six kids hanging out in the hot tub at Sugarloaf while the
guys played golf. Over the years my friend and I logged countless hours confiding
in and commiserating with each other. When both our marriages went south, I found
myself looking at Batman’s dad in a whole new light. And, evidently, vice
versa.
But
how to break the news to someone with whom you’ve shared everything from babies
to book groups that you’re about to take sharing to a whole new level? I knew
she had moved on romantically so there was no residual torch-holding, but
still.
Heart
pounding, I finally just blurted it out over the phone and braced for the
backlash.
“That’s
great, I’m so happy for you! I always thought you and Brad would be good
together.” Whoa.
Nancy Ling is the Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Nancy’s column in the November 14, 2019 issue of the Transcript and Bulletin.
Open any website, turn on any television, and you will see
the latest updates regarding the SAT scandal, dubbed “Operation Varsity Blues.”
According to an article
by Natalie Hope McDonald, “About 50 people (including more than 30 parents)
have been indicted by the U.S. Attorney in what could become the biggest
bribery scandal in college history.” The
story is hard to ignore because of the involvement of Hollywood stars like Felicity
Huffman and Lori Loughlin but, as a mother of two teenagers, I find it
upsetting on many levels.
For example, a slew of questions come to mind:
How much pressure have we put on our kids these days? How unfair is the college
admission process, economically and racially? What must students accomplish in
order to get into college?
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the November 7, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
I
stumbled upon this year's must-see documentary, The Biggest Little Farm.
Perhaps it was a teaser trailer online or a review I read somewhere. I'm a documentary enthusiast, so I was more
than thrilled to find the award-winning gem.
I instantly fell for the story of
Apricot Lane Farm. The documentary begins with hand-drawn animation - John and
Molly and their marriage, hopes and dreams that actually revolved around their
annoying yet loveable blue-eyed dog, Todd. Their love of Todd, a rescue who
would not stop barking when he was left alone, reminded me of the love I've had
for my own dogs. It didn't surprise me at all, as the documentary starts, that
John and Molly chose to move away from Los Angeles and purchase a farm so that
Todd could be with them all day long.
John and Molly found a 213-acre farm
only 40 miles north of LA for sale and purchased it with help from a family
investor. Initial video footage in the documentary reveals a dry and barren
wasteland with abandoned beehives, unproductive land, and fruitless and dying
trees. With the advice of a farming mentor, the miracle of nature, and their
absolute perseverance, Molly and John built Apricot Lane Farm into a thriving,
biodynamic business. The film's cinematography takes your breath away. The
captivating animals break or sooth your heart. Yet it's the documentary's clear
messages – heed Mother Nature and work
with the land and be patient – that will inspire everyone.
Liz Reed is an Adult and Information Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Liz’s column in the October 31, 2019 issue of the Transcript and Bulletin.
Here in New
England, Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 am on Sunday, November 3, 2019.
Before we turn in for the evening on Saturday, November 2, we will set our
clocks back by one hour to “fall back.” While this will gain us some extra
daylight in the morning, soon we’ll all likely be leaving our workday and
walking out into nighttime. And while we’re still likely to get a few more warm
sunny days, for most of us this is the time of year we start doing more indoor
activities. Many of us bookworms look forward to cozying up with a pile of good
books through the chill dark nights ahead.
As such, I
thought this turning point in the year would be a perfect time to offer some
recommendations for good books. But you don’t have to take my word for it:
these recommendations come straight from other Norwood readers.
Brian DeFelice is the Technology Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood. Read his column in the October 24, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
My friends and I were all sitting at a rustic
old table, drinking Guinness, and listening to the band that was playing at the
Charlemont Inn’s restaurant stage. The Inn was located in Charlemont, Mass., a
quaint little town of just around 1,000+ residents or so. The Inn was built in
1787, and had allegedly housed some distinguished guests like Mark Twain and
President Calvin Coolidge. The place was packed that night, not only because of
the good food and music, but also because many tourists stayed at the inn to
recharge from a day of hiking, biking, and sightseeing along the Mohawk trail.
My friends and I, well, we were doing a different, more unusual type of sight
seeing…
Norma Logan is the Literacy Coordinator at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read Norma Logan's column in the October 17, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
For Mothers’ Day this year, my daughter invited me to go
with her and her girlfriend to see the local well known psychic medium, Maureen
Hancock, later in May. I had never been to a psychic medium, but my
daughter had been a few times and was quite taken with Maureen. I was skeptical of the powers that mediums
profess to have, but it sounded like a fun evening.
My daughter suggested that I read Maureen’s autobiography, “The
Medium Next Door: Adventures of a Real Life Ghost Whisperer”, and I did read
most of it before the evening of the performance. Maureen
is from Massachusetts and continues to live here. The references to Boston area locales were familiar
and interesting. The story of her life
is intriguing but often sad from birth on.
She certainly has had challenges in her lifetime including a severe
childhood illness and a near fatal car accident.
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the October 10, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
This week on October
9, it is the thirty-eighth anniversary of my daughter's death. I recognize that
it can be an unsettling sentence to read. It is shocking for me to write, as
well.
Coleen was my firstborn, a daughter born early due to a
congenital heart condition that no one suspected until just weeks before her
birth. At the time, my ex-husband and I lived outside San Francisco. Two days
after New Year's Day, I was rushed to the University of California-SF Medical
Center to await an unknown future. It was new territory for all of us - her
father, and I, and our baby. Coleen was born on January 21, 1980, five weeks
earlier than her due date.
Kate Tigue is the Head of Youth Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the October 3, 2019 edition of the Transcript and Bulletin.
At this busy time
in my life, I’m starting to realize the true importance of friendship even
though I have never had less time to devote to it. My closest group of friends
are three women who I’ve known since I was six years old. We’re fortunate
enough to have weathered many storms together, even though we’ve been
physically separated for over 20 years. After we left our beloved Catholic K-8
school, we all attended different high schools and colleges. I moved away from
my hometown in New York to permanently settle here in suburban Boston. Another
woman in our group moved to Pennsylvania. Yet thanks to modern technology and
social media, we’ve kept in touch and are closer than ever as support one
another on the journey of motherhood.
Lydia Sampson is the Assistant Director/Technical Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her column in the September 26, 2019 issue of the Transcript & Bulletin.
In three days I depart
for Ghana, bound for a rural village with no running water or internet access,
to work on a construction project for two weeks. I acquired my mosquito net,
anti-malaria meds, and a large packet of pre-departure materials. This is how I
plan to spend my annual “vacation,” and right now I’m questioning my sanity.
The first time I ever
left North America, I ventured to Duran, Ecuador on a high school volunteering
trip. My Catholic school had a partnership there and groups visited annually to
help out in schools and a soup kitchen, and embed themselves in the local
community. In retrospect, we didn’t accomplish much of anything, but the value
lay in exposure to the reality of life and hardship in a developing country. As
a teenager, it opened my eyes to water and electricity shortages, unsanitary
conditions, infant mortality, and other struggles experienced by the warm and
welcoming people we met. Perhaps the experience sparked my interest in travel
to off-the-beaten-track regions, and service abroad.
Carla Howard is the Senior Circulation Assistant/Marketing and Media Assistant at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Read Carla’s column in the September 19, 2019 issue of the Transcript and Bulletin.
I remember, years ago, watching my
mother and aunt crochet the infamous “Ripple Afghan.” My mother’s was a range
of dark purple and magenta colors. I was fascinated, watching it unfold.She would watch her “stories” after finishing
her housework for the morning and then crochet. I was about 8 or 9 and was
always interested in all things crafty. I had made “Jeannie in a Bottle” using
a Palmolive bottle and a miniature doll after having seen one at my neighbor’s house.I collected my sister’s and brother’s old
baby socks to use as “stuffing” for my sock pets, which were more tied than
sewed. Seeing my interest, Mum patiently
took some of her scrap yarn and a G hook and taught me how to crochet. I was,
as the saying goes, hooked!
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the September 12, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
I was a rising high school senior in the summer of 1969. Far
away from Bethel, NY, on the coast of California, I never even knew Woodstock
was on the horizon. We all read newspapers and magazines and watched the nightly
news. So we knew that something momentous happened on a muddy farm 3,000 miles
to the east. Something terrifyingly huge, slightly obscene, and wickedly
defiant had ignited while I lived my mini-skirted, innocent,
bleach-blonded summer among the dry grasses of Northern California.
Woodstock, like most unexpected events, might not have
occurred, had the stars not aligned. Two young guys, 24-year old Michael Lang,
and 26-year old Artie Kornfeld had an idea for a Studio-in-the Woods north of New
York City. Kornfeld was already a vice-president at Capitol Records, but he and
Lang needed financial backing. Enter two other young guys in their
mid-twenties, entrepreneurs Joel Rosenman and John Roberts. Roberts was an heir
to the Polident/Poli-grip fortune, and Rosenman was Roberts' good friend with a
musical background. They had met on a golf course and were apartment mates in
New York City. The two described themselves as "young men with unlimited
capital."
Kirstie David is a Literacy and Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her article in the September 5, 2019 edition of the Transcript and Bulletin.
When you’re in the
reading game, you get recommendations for all types about books you just HAVE
to read.Sometimes books are suggested
to me because people know that I am interested in a certain subject, genre or
author. More often, the people doing the recommending are overwhelmed by how a particular
book made them feel and they want to pass along the experience. I have learned
to adjust my expectations accordingly. I try to weigh what I know about
someone’s personality and reading preferences against my own before racing out
to get a copy of the book. This can be problematic, since I work in a library
and regularly get recommendations from people I don’t know at all.
Nicole Guerra-Coon is the Assistant Children’s Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her column in the August 29, 2019 edition of the Transcript and Bulletin.
When I was a kid, reading a book was the
surest way to get information on any subject. Television like PBS and the
History Channel were informative, but you couldn’t exactly just call up a
channel for information on a particular subject you wanted to learn about.But, as we all know, the internet has removed
many of the barriers in self education. You just need the motivation, access
and time.
Today, for instance, I needed to patch a
few holes in some drywall. Did I know the first thing about that? Nope. Usually
for anything home maintenance related, I call my dad as he knows how to fix
just about anything. But today I was feeling guilty that a grown woman was
waiting for her dad to come visit just to fix something for her. So I decided I
could do it. I know how to adult - I have all of the internet at my fingertips!
So I watched a few videos on YouTube, figured out what would work, and went to
the hardware store. I got the supplies and I patched those holes!
Kate Tigue is the Head of Youth Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the August 22, 2019 edition of the Transcript and Bulletin.
When
I first started in my career as a librarian, I secretly judged people who asked
me about the number of pages in a book before they were even curious about its
plot. I used my “concern” about dwindling reading habits of America’s youth as
a thin disguise for my own smug attitude concerning my love for long,
meandering novels. At one time, I could read three or four books simultaneously
and couldn’t understand why the length of a book mattered. If a book is
interesting and well-written, why would anyone care about the length? I
couldn’t fathom a different answer than my own.
No
matter how well-concealed, this is not a good attitude for anyone in a position
to recommend books, especially to kids. Age and experience have thankfully
intervened to eliminate the uninformed judgements of my youth. The past
fourteen years as a youth services professional in public library has taught me
all the reasons book length is such an important factor for many readers. Kids
definitely judge books by their covers, and by extension, they factor in how
difficult a book might be simply by looking at it. While many kids do love
massive tomes like J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series or Rick Riordan’s Percy
Jackson novels, some see a large book and immediately worry they can’t finish
it.
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the August 15,2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
Seeing
the Ghost Orchid was not on the Charlotte Canelli bucket list. I actually don't
have an official bucket list, although I've been known to mentally check things
off a list-of-sorts. I am hard-pressed to adopt any I-must-do-this-before-I-die
obsessions. Spending a night in a Russian monastery was a happy consequence of
a purposeful trip to the Soviet Union. Sipping mead in an Irish castle, viewing
fields of Texas bluebonnets in the spring, and observing a Santeria ceremony in
Cuba were the rewards of other whimsical adventures. My life has been a chaotic
mixture of loss, love, joy, and pain, and I've happened upon many serendipitous
experiences along the way.
How
I came to trod over a mile into southwestern Florida's Corkscrew Swamp to view
the elusive Super-Ghost Orchid is no mystery to me. I simply awoke one sunny
and hot July morning in Fort Myers, Florida, and placed it on top of my
must-do-today list.
The
Ghost Orchid (or Dendrophylax lindenii in horticultural parlance) is one of the
rarest flowers in the world. It is an epiphyte – or a plant that grows on air.
The Ghost Orchid and other epiphytes are not parasites, but like bromeliads,
mosses, etc., they derive their nutrients from the water, air, and the detritus
of their host plants. Ghost Orchids are native to the Everglades of Florida and
Cuba – in the moist and warm environments that make their lives possible.
The
Ghost Orchid flowers in an 85-day blooming phase, mainly between June and August.
The Ghost Orchid got its name because it is a master at camouflage - it is
challenging to make out from its background - the trunk of a tree. Its thin,
pale-white petals and curling tendrils form what looks like the hind legs of a
frog, and it is also called the white frog orchid.
When
Charles Darwin became fascinated by orchids later in his life, he suggested
that a particular pollinator would be found for each specific orchid. In
Chasing Ghosts in the Everglades (Forbes Magazine, July 19, 2019), the story is
told of a team of three photographers who braved Florida swamps filled with
alligator, panthers, snakes and bears. Armed with high-powered cameras, they
were on a mission to photograph, at last, the ghost orchid's mysterious
pollinator.*
Lydia Sampson is the Assistant Director and Technical Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her column in the August 8, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
Photo by Skitterphoto from Pexels
I hesitate to admit it, having lived in the
Boston area for my entire life, but I don’t follow the Red Sox. Or the Celtics.
Or Bruins. Not even the Patriots. Don’t hate me! I’ve never been much of a
jock, and don’t understand the finer points of team sports, but the main reason
I neglect these undisputed best teams on the planet involves my commitment to
super-fandom of another athletic endeavor – one that consumes so much spectator
time and energy that it leaves little opportunity for interest in any other.
“My” sport is called mixed martial arts, and it has no season. On any given Saturday you’ll find me online making my picks, scouring mixed martial arts (MMA) websites, and solidifying my predictions for the evening’s bouts.
Librarian April Cushing is head of Adult and Information Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column published in the August 1, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript Bulletin.
“If you can keep your head when all about you / Are losing theirs and
blaming it on you…” I’d heard these words, of course, but never realized they
originated from Rudyard Kipling. “If--” is consistently voted the most popular
poem in Britain, and all too frequently quoted, according to its author.
Despite being woefully unfamiliar with his other works, I was thrilled to be
invited to spend a weekend at Naulakha, the Kiplings’ home in Dummerston, Vermont
during their four years in America.
Nancy Ling is the Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Nancy’s column in the July 25, 2019 issue of the Transcript and Bulletin.
I grew up with an awkward middle name. Lincoln. It wasn’t
exactly the pinnacle of cool and hip. As a young child in the ‘70s when most of
my friends had middle names like Ann and Marie and Jean, I was well-aware that Lincoln
was not a name to be shared out loud if I could help it. The only folks who
knew this secret information were the local bank teller and the pediatrician.
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the July 18, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
I am, perhaps, one of the most
uncoordinated women on earth.Oh, yes, I
had the distinction of managing my seventh-grade softball team, but, in
retrospect, I suspect my team gave me the job as a manager because voting me
the position of manager kept me from either guarding a base or handling a bat.
I have somehow accomplished a few sports
during my lifetime. I learned to ice skate at the tender age of five on a
meandering city park pond in the heart of Worcester. I managed to straighten my
buckling ankles and have lovely childhood memories of taking care of my
gorgeous pair of lace-up, white skates. I continued to skate for fun after we
moved to the West Coast and into my preteens on the public indoor ice close to my
neighborhood in Berkeley, CA. The San Francisco Bay Area was also where I
learned to swim and play tennis in free summer camps.
I also
roller-skated everywhere as a young girl, traveling on expandable metal roller
skates with the skates’ key dangling from a piece of ribbon around my neck.
Moving to the hilly suburbs, however, put a damper on that activity when, used
to flat, city streets, the brakes were applied to my skating when I fell and
broke my left arm for the third time.
As a
high schooler, I learned to ski in the Sierra Mountains near Lake Tahoe. I
continued for years, leading my young daughters down New England slopes. Yet, I
soon lost my ski partners when they abandoned me to the double black diamonds
on the slopes in Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire. I bought myself
cross-country skis instead. I fell in love with the solitude of whispering
pines and quieter, slower trails, but gave it up when falling became too
threatening for 60-year old bones.
I had
the distinction of earning a high school Varsity letter at the Senior Sports
Banquet in June 1970. I received the honor because I had spent the season
expertly, and proudly, handling my football statistician’s clipboard, while
managing to send beaming smiles to my handsome Varsity team boyfriend.
Coincidentally,
in the wake of a star-struck nation obsessed with the Women’s World Cup win, I
was suddenly struck by the fact that none of my high school girlfriends had
been members of a high school sports team, let alone a soccer team.
Liz Reed is an Adult and Information Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Liz’s column in the July 11, 2019 issue of the Transcript and Bulletin.
Have you ever had
the experience of finding the exact right book at the exact wrong moment? And I
don’t mean those times when you’re sure you put the book down somewhere where
you knew you definitely wouldn’t forget it, and you know you’ll find it eventually
but you’ve looked EVERYWHERE and have given it up for lost, so you finally pay
the late fee at the library and get back in your car only to find it under the
front seat.
Instead,I mean those occasions when you don’t even
know you should be looking for a book and the universe intervenes to drop into
your hands the book that perfectly fits your situation...only about two days
after it would have been really useful.
Brian DeFelice is the Technology Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood. Read his column in the July 3, 2019 edition of the Transcript & Bulletin.
My parents had just picked me up from my
friend’s house that warm September night in 1989. When we got home and walked
through the door, my parents told me I should go right to my room. “Huh?” I had
thought to myseIf, “I didn't do anything bad (well...this time anyway). However
being a six year old, and exhausted from a day of playing with my friend, I
didn’t think too much about their request and headed up the staircase to my
room.When I opened the door, both of my
brothers were smiling at me, and that's when I saw it...
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the June 27, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
A few
years ago, when our eldest granddaughter was mimicking sounds and words, I
delighted both of us by teaching her to “caw-caw” like a crow. Being an ardent
birder, my husband Gerry taught her to sing “fee-bee” just like an Eastern
Phoebe that shares her name. Sitting outdoors in the fresh morning air, we
pointed out sequences of Osprey chirps and the sing-song lyrics of an Eastern
Towhee (“drink-drink your tea!”)
I’m an
amateur birder, absorbing just enough to detect a cardinal flitting over the
yard or an eagle’s nest high over the highway. When I had some time recently to
listen to an episode of one of my beloved podcasts (Ologies with science-writer
Alie Ward), I chose Corvid Thanatology. In –other-words, the study of crow
funerals.
Kate Tigue is the Head of Youth Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the June 20, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
Summer is finally here and now is the
time of year when every book-related website publishes its own spin on the
beloved “beach read”. Many readers start to look for stories that aren’t too
weighty or serious but still keep their attention. The plots are usually
fast-moving and the ends are often happy.These books are meant to satisfy and relax but not ruin the good vibes
of your vacation.In theory, this is a
wonderful idea. In practice, I’m terrible at finding good beach reads.
Lydia Sampson is the Technical Services department head at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her column in the June 13, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
A few years ago I moved into a house in the
country (well, Holliston), with a bit of land, fenced in garden, and… a chicken
coop. Mercifully, the previous owners did not leave chickens behind, and I
convinced my husband that knowing NOTHING about raising poultry, we’d best wait
a bit before starting a flock. As a librarian, I committed to doing my research
before diving into a new endeavor caring for living creatures.
Carla Howard is the Senior Circulation Assistant/Marketing and Media Assistant at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Read Carla’s column in the June 6, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
After a recent jaunt to Sandwich, I reflected back on my
first trip to “Cape Cod’s Oldest Town” where I visited the famous Glass Museum. There is a large collection of both blown and
pressed glass pieces, as well as many artifacts found in the grounds long after
the factory was closed. The Museum makes
for an interesting few hours, especially if you are a history buff, interested
in Cape history, or blown glass, both the history of it and as an art
form. The museum also puts on live glass
blowing demonstrations, and these alone are well worth the trip. In fact, on Friday, July 19th, the
Sandwich Glass Museum will be participating in the 2019 “Free Fun
Fridays.” Admission is free for
everyone! Check out their website at sandwichglassmuseum.org
for more information.
I had first
seen glass blown at the Greenfield Village at the Henry Ford Museum in
Dearborn, Michigan, in the 1980’s.That
was a wonderful first introduction to glass blowing.The artist first heated the glass up to a
temperature of about 2000 degrees Fahrenheit, where it turned into molten
(basically liquid) glass.To make the
process even trickier, the glass blower had to work fairly quickly, as the
glass needed to remain at a temperature of at least 1400 degrees Fahrenheit in
order to remain pliable.I was soon lost
in the swirl of glass colors, deft movements, and the excitement (Will he drop
it?Will he burn himself?).I was truly fascinated by the entire
experience.
Victoria Andrilenas is a reference librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the May 30, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
One of the many things I didn’t realize about Norwood before
moving here is that we have the Walter F. Tilton Memorial Carillon at Town
Hall. My undergraduate alma mater also has a carillon which I always
enjoyed hearing so I was excited the first time I heard bells here. I don’t remember the specifics but I suspect
I was stopped at the light on Nahatan and Washington and figured the tower was
at one of the churches on the Norwood Common since municipal carillons are not
very common in the United States. Eventually I discovered it’s in Town
Hall and try to listen for at least a few minutes whenever I hear the bells.
Town of Norwood Walter F. Tilton Memorial Carillon
Our current Town Carillonneur, Lee Leach, is a frequent library
user and at some point the topic of Norwood’s carillon came up in conversation.
I told him how much I enjoy hearing the bells and that I am always
reminded of my college days. The
carillon world is fairly small; there are fewer than a dozen carillons in
Massachusetts so Leach knows the current carillonneur at my alma mater.
Not only does she usually participate in the summer concert series, she
also brings students to play at Norwood a few times a year. Earlier this winter I was lucky enough to go
up in the tower and see/hear some Wellesley College students practicing.
Kirstie David is a Literacy and Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her article in the May 23, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
I was listening
to the radio a while back when the DJ mentioned National Pizza Day. “Malarkey!”
I said (or something like that.) Sure enough, when I did a Google search for
national days, I found National Pizza Day listed on nationaldaycalendar.com. This
is not to be confused with National Pizza Party Day (May 17.) Of course a
little overlap is to be expected on a site that’s now tracking 1,500 national
days, and where anyone can fill out a form to register a special day for annual
recognition. I was relieved to see that the site doesn’t declare national days
for individuals, since that literally requires an act of Congress.
Nicole Guerra-Coon is the Assistant Children’s Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her column in the May 16, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript.
This past weekend
was Mother’s Day, or as it is known in our house, the one day of the year my
family has to accompany me to an art
museum. I chose to go to the Museum of Fine Art (MFA) in Boston, which is
showing an exhibit through June 16th entitled “Frida Kahlo and Arte Popular” (the ‘Arte Popular’ refers to
traditional Mexican folk art, which Kahlo collected and surrounded herself
with.)The exhibit combines Kahlo’s own
art with the arte popular that she loved, and asks viewers to consider how
these objects impacted her art and aesthetic.
Frida Kahlo is
one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century.She has joined the ranks of Van Gogh and
Picasso among others, who are so ubiquitous you don’t even have to know much
about art to know who they are.Her work
is on a $10 poster in some kid’s dorm room, as well as t-shirts, handbags,
toys, and even lipstick. She is no longer just a famous artist - she is pop
culture.
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the May 9, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
The story
of Theranos begins with Elizabeth at 19 – a college dropout – and a concept
that depended on all the stars aligning and the pieces of the puzzle falling
into place. Most importantly, however, science was required to work.
Detractors
have declared that the science was never there to begin with. That it was an absurd quest. Others question
if more years and engineering may develop the product that Elizabeth promised - a piece of medical equipment that can deliver
accurate results of over 1000 separate tests using only a fingerprick and one
drop of blood. Theranos bombed miserably, but not before duping investors and
the public.
Lydia Sampson is the Technical Services department head at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her column in the May 2, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
When people think of the public library, I’m
fairly certain that books come to mind before all else. Of course libraries
have lots of programs and events, and lend a multitude of other materials such
as movies, museum passes, and even video games. Nowadays tech-savvy folks also take
advantage of “virtual” collections of e-books, audiobooks and streaming video.
Over the years the Morrill Memorial Library started thinking outside the box
and lending puzzles, knitting needles, cake pans and electronics including
Wi-Fi hotspots and GoPro video cameras. Whether we realized it or not at the
time, we created, in library parlance, a “Library of Things.”
Librarian April Cushing is head of Adult and Information Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column published in the April 25, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript Bulletin.
What sounds like the title of a Nancy Drew novel is actually my most recent
fascination. In Britain they call them stones but they’re really rocks—big
ones. I’m referring to the roughly 1300 Neolithic monuments found throughout the
U.K. known as stone circles and standing stones.
Nancy Ling is the Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Nancy’s column in the April 18, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
Annette Webber's Books
In many ways the 21st century public library and its role have been reimagined. In this digital age the library has become much more than a repository for great books. Libraries are promoters of community as well. Take a look at the Morrill Memorial Library events happening in the month of April alone. We have everything from Musical Sundays to talks on Stone Carvers of Old, from Beginning Yoga to The Secret Lives of Owls.
Part of our shifting role includes providing information on the run. As mentioned by the Brookings Institute, “This “go-to” role has influenced library programming and events, with libraries providing advice and connections to health, housing, literacy, and other areas.” Or, in author Neil Gaiman’s words, the library is “a community space. It’s a place of safety, a haven from the world.”
And yes, I could not agree more. In this digital world the library serves as a connector, providing access to information through workshops and speakers and more. At the heart of it all though, the library returns to two essential ingredients 1) free access to information and 2) our beloved readers.
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the April 11, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
In the 1986
film "The Breakfast Club," Andrew Clark and four odd rebels are
restricted to the high school library in an all-day Saturday detention. 23-year old actor Emilio Estevez performs the
part of clean-cut Andrew, the state wrestling champion. Estevez’ character
feels out of place in detention; he is the jock in his letter jacket, confined
with what he considers as misfits. He begins this long day annoyed that he is
punished for a cruel prank that his father made him do.
The day in detention is spent with bad
behavior, rude pranks, bitter tears and heartless insults, and, finally, with
sincere confessions and friendship. While "The Breakfast Club" is a
story of civil disobedience against what might seem ridiculous and unfair
rules, it is, most of all, a lesson about the bonding and relationships that
can arise when social barriers are broken down amid tension and emotional
honesty.
Liz Reed is an Adult and Information Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Liz’s column in the April 4, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
The sound of me
learning to ski, just a few weeks ago at the end of the ski season at
Killington Vermont. Even though I grew up in the frozen north, I never learned
to downhill ski. My mother had me on ice skates almost as soon as I could walk,
and we had weeks of snowshoe and cross-country ski units in gym class. But the
downhill skiing never took.
I recall one
school trip as a young child to Ski Big Tupper. I don’t remember now what
prompted them to take us on a skiing field trip over an hour away, but I do
remember that I didn’t like it. Not one bit. I fell over, got cold and wet,
couldn’t get back up, and the other kids laughed at me. I tried something new,
probably under duress, failed immediately and vowed never to ski again.
Cut to winter
2019, and someone has convinced me that although I had a bad experience trying
to ski as a child, maybe I should try it again as an adult who is not under
duress to learn, and who at the very least could enjoy the benefits of apres
ski. It would also help to use better equipment (I don’t even think we had ski
poles or real ski boots in Tupper, let alone goggles) and take an actual
instruction class for adult novice skiers.
Kate Tigue is the Head of Youth Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column in the March 28, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.
If you’re reading this, you can definitely read! Congratulations! So why do you need advice on how to be a good reader? Reading aloud, especially to children, is skill that looks deceptively easy but requires a great deal of finesse to do well. We are in the age of the “guest” or “mystery” reader. It’s quite common now for relatives to be invited into a classroom setting to read aloud. In the Children’s Room, I field many questions from terrified grown-ups about what books they should read to their child’s or grandchild’s class.
Recent studies show strong evidence that reading aloud to children of all ages is critical to maintain literacy skills, even for children who are independent readers. Many adults forget the joy of being read to and stop reading aloud to children once they can read themselves. As parents,we are all crunched for time but making time for bedtime stories is important for several reasons. Reading provides a wonderful bonding time between parents and children that older children still crave.
Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the March 21, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
When Alice fell down the rabbit
hole in her Adventures in Wonderland, she was chasing the White Rabbit. When I
fall down into a rabbit hole, it, too, means that my own White Rabbit, or
curiosity, has gotten the best of me. I’ve been known to lose significant
chunks of time only to reappear to meet my demands in life. As a college
student, this happened in the library - either in the drawers of extensive card
catalogs or in the endless mazes of the book stacks. Sometimes, I surrounded
myself with so many massive volumes of the Reader’s Guide(s) to Periodical
Literature that I was not only figuratively, but literally, lost among them.
Brian DeFelice is the Technology Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood. Read his column in the March 14, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
The sparring gear I was wearing made my body feel twenty times hotter than the dojang that I was sparring in. I was fighting a guy who was slightly older than me in terms of age, but light years ahead of me in terms of skill. I wasn’t just sweating because of the heat; adrenaline was pumping through my veins, my mind was in high alert, and sparring is nothing like doing drills. With drills, you are kicking pads or punching into the air at your reflection in the mirror or at some phantom opponent in your mind. In sparring, you are simulating a real fight, with a real person, who can really hurt you, which is simultaneously exciting and nerve wracking.
I remember trying to get in a few roundhouse kicks to to his chest, and at one point even tried to land a crescent kick to his head, but he was FAST, and was using the best weapons in his arsenal to combat me: his mind and his experience. It seems as if he could read my every move before I even made it. I kept trying to land blows, but it was to no avail, until I saw an opening! I had dodged one of his back kicks, which I thought was a mistake on his part, which left his back exposed for a moment so I went in with a front kick to land a blow.
Lydia Sampson is the Technical Services department head at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read her column in the March 7, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.
It was the summer of 2010 - one of my all-time favorite travel
memories. A small rowboat carried me and my friend to a pristine beach cove, as
beautiful as any postcard from a tropical paradise anywhere in the world. We
had the entire palm-lined shore to ourselves, to sunbathe, look for shells, and
swim in calm tepid water. At some point a man with a sack of fresh mangos rowed
up to the cove and sold some to us for about ten cents each, then rowed along
to his next stop. The day couldn’t have been more perfect after an exhausting week
of hard work and heartbreak. I should mention, we were in Haiti, six months
after the devastating earthquake of 2010.
