Revisiting the Monkees. Remembering Peter Tork

Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the February 28,  2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.

Just days after learning that Monkees were on a national tour this past week, I heard the news about Peter Tork’s death.  I questioned how a national Monkees tour could occur without Davy Jones, who passed away nearly seven years ago. Apparently, it wasn’t happening without Peter Tork, either, who had been ill and fighting cancer for the past ten years, but most specifically since 2018.

Tork was diagnosed with a slow-growing cancer of the head and neck in 2009. After surgery and during radiation treatment, Peter continued to play music on tour. For nearly a decade, he documented his struggle with adenoid cystic carcinoma on his Facebook page. In an interview with the Washington Post: Voices, Peter Tork’s Cancer, In His Own Words, published in July 2009, Tork described the scary words of his diagnosis, the harsh radiation treatment, and his commitment to continuing to perform.

Lessons Learned from Gluten-Free Baking

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 February 21, 2019 issue of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

After struggling with GI issues for many years, I recently have decided to take my diet in hand.  I had previously gone “Dairy-Free” for the same reason and experienced some success, but I still wasn’t where I wanted to be, gastrointestinal-ly speaking.  Gluten, a storage protein in wheat that gives baked goods that elasticity and lightness, has long been touted as a contributor to aforesaid GI issues.  My sister had already gone gluten-free for the same reason.  There was only one thing standing in my way:  my undying and uncompromising love for baked goods.  I didn’t see how I could ever give them up and experience a satisfied diet.  So, I went in search of gluten-free alternatives.

A Fierce Kind of Love

Kirstie David is a Literacy and Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her article in the February 14, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript & Bulletin.

I was running errands at some point around the holidays when I happened to tune in to a radio segment about tarantulas. This is not a subject I’ve ever had any interest in, and I would normally have changed the station at once, but the topic wasn’t immediately clear to me. A woman was describing a furry creature with delicate, pink-tipped feet. I tried to guess the animal, factoring in her obvious admiration. I was hindered by the detail of her holding it in her palm. When one of the hosts of the show expressed his disbelief that a tarantula could be charming, I actually recoiled. My hand, which had been hovering near the radio buttons, yanked back as if a huge spider might suddenly appear there. Who was this lunatic? In short order, I learned that the woman speaking was naturalist and author Sy Montgomery, who has been described by The Boston Globe as, “Part Indiana Jones and part Emily Dickinson.”

Where Are All The Ladies At

Nicole Guerra-Coon is the Assistant Children’s Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, MA. Look for her column in the February 7, 2019 edition of the Norwood Transcript.

One day, while I was at home working on a painting, I decided to try to learn through osmosis and put a documentary on. I usually listen to music or have the TV on while I paint or draw, and I don’t really pay close attention since I am focused on my work.  But instead of absentmindedly trying to figure out who the real murderer was on some British mystery, I thought - maybe I could learn something! I always mean to watch more documentaries or read more about the topics I am interested in, but there just aren’t enough hours in the day.  So I picked a topic, Female artists, and selected a documentary on someone I’d never heard of.