Reinventing the Librarian of Congress

Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the May 26, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. 

            I visited the Library of Congress on a trip to Washington, DC in 1999 and I applied for my first LOC library card. During that first trip to the Library of Congress I was awed that I, merely a citizen of the United States, could get a library card from such an iconic American institution. I remember registration as quick and, while I managed to visit a few of the library’s research collections, I admit that I really just loved returning home with the card in my wallet.

The Bravest Character I Know

Nancy Ling is an Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read the published version of Nancy Ling's column in the May 19, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

I thought I would take this opportunity to let someone else’s words speak to our library readers. This year the topic for our annual essay contest was “The Bravest Character I know.” We had over 100 entries and while the decision to choose winners from the various age groups is never easy, the best writing seems to rise to the top.

Saying Goodbye to Big Blue

Librarian April Cushing is head of Adult and Information Services at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read her column published in the May 12, 2016 issue of the Norwood Transcript Bulletin.

I paced the mini-mart attached to the former Mobil station on Nahatan Street, anxious why it was taking so long. My recent inspection had resulted in a big red rejection sticker, so this was the last hurrah. The door to the garage finally opened. The verdict was in.

Player Piano

Sam Simas is a Technology Assistant at the Morrill Memorial Library this winter and spring. Read Sam's column in the May 5, 2016 issue of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

           Alice cleans up when people move, or leave, or need to cut the clutter of their never-organized closets.  And she finds, between the discarded lamps, yellow curtains, creaking bed frames, rusted bicycles, and cracked tile floors, the remnants of family holidays, birthdays, and many, many, abandoned pianos.

The Library Without Walls - Kids on the Move

Read Jean Todesca's column in the April 28, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. Jean is the Head of Children's Services at the Morrill Memorial Library.

            We’re so excited!  The MBLC Preschool STEAM Grant has given the Children’s Department the chance to flex its creative muscles.  STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics.  Since November, we have provided many opportunities to examine these subjects.  Now nature is our upcoming point of interest!

            Our next adventure is three storytimes to be held at Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary in Sharon.  We are taking our programming outside the library walls!  On Wednesday, May 11, 18 and 25, our young patrons ages 3-6 will have the opportunity to learn about frogs, butterflies, and songbirds.  Patti Austin will guide through the activity. 

            “Touch & Feel” of specimens, stories, and a nature walk will round out the programs.  We are hoping to see some frogs!  The sanctuary provides natural items for the children to examine.  We ask the adults to expand the child’s experience by using the K-W-L Strategy.  Before you arrive, ask the child-“What do you know about frogs?”  After they respond, ask-“What do you want to learn about frogs?”  Finally, after the event, ask-“What did you learn about frogs?’  These conversations will enhance the child’s observation skills as well as create a fun family discussion and shared experience. 

            Our Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary programs will illustrate that reading and learning can expand outside of the brick and mortar buildings.  The library isn’t just for books anymore!

            If you and your preschooler would like to join us, email norchild@minlib.net.  Space is limited and you must provide your own transportation.  We are planning on beautiful weather, but as New Englanders we never know.  So, dress for the weather. 

            The Children’s Department is happy to provide these unique experiences.  So, see you there!

A Writing Life

Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the April 21, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

I started writing newspaper columns in 2001when I was a librarian at the Peterborough Town Library in New Hampshire. All four professional librarians on staff there shared the writing task and I was assigned every third week of the month. I joyfully wrote about children’s books and programs that we offered to the youth of Peterborough. Sometimes, I volunteered for an additional week because it was the part of my job that I loved best.

The Etymologist by Night

Liz Reed is the Adult and Information Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Liz's column in the April 14, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

    The library building may be open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, but being a librarian involves a set of skills that aren’t always easy to switch off. When I’m not being a librarian in the workplace, I find that I’m most often engaged as an etymologist for friends and family. In other words, I’m the go-to person when someone wants to know the history of a word beyond the simple definition. Luckily for them, I find etymology, or the history of words, fascinating.

Beyond My Job Description

Samuel Simas is the technology assistant at the Morrill Memorial library; he is a graduate student at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Library and Information Studies. Read Sam's column in the April 7, 2016 issue of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

When I worked at the Washanuck Library there was a wasp-nest humming in its eaves; a football sized wasp-nest that discharged angry bullets (or were they wasps?), which, if they could have spoken, would have said, “Stay away from our hive.”

I carried overdue books, a backpack, and a water-bottle up to the front door where I didn’t notice the yellow fiend, dart side pointed skyward, who had positioned itself on the door-handle.  The eaves weren’t enough; the hive wanted the whole building, the books and their vanilla scented pages, the crisp air-conditioning, the new computers and DVDs.  I imagined the queen sitting in her glob of honey, rubbing her prickly feelers, humming,

Coming to Light

Nancy Ling is an Outreach Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library. Read the published version of Nancy Ling's column in the March 31, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

As a mother raising two teenage girls, I find myself thinking about role models quite a bit. These days who do our girls have to admire? I’m grateful for the fact that strong women are out there inventing technologies, running companies, and changing the world. While there are still fences to be climbed and boundaries to be pushed, my daughters’ generation has a growing confidence that they can do anything they put their minds to.

Exploring Mortality with Atul Gawande

Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the March 24, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

In 1967 when the Beatles released the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club album, I was finishing my freshman year in high school. That historic album included the hit song written by Beatle Paul McCartney that most of us know all the words to sing along: When I’m Sixty-Four.

Ziggy Played Guitar .. And Read A Lot, Too

Read Kate Tigue's column in the March 17, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin. Kate is a Children's Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library.

It’s been over two months since legendary rock star David Bowie passed away at the early age of sixty-nine after a near two year battle with cancer. Fans around the world were devastated and shocked as the notoriously private musician didn’t share much about his personal life with the media and his death proved to be no exception. Bowie was so reclusive that it is not even known what type of cancer he had. We do know one thing for sure from Bowie’s public statements and interviews: his love of music was only paralleled by his love of reading. Yup, the world’s biggest rock star was also an obsessive bibliophile. In 1998, Vanity Fair magazine published Bowie’s answers to the infamous Proust Questionnaire. The first question asks “What is your idea of perfect happiness?” Bowie responded simply, “Reading”.

A Librarian’s Approach to Marathon Training

Meredith Ruhl is an intern at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. She is currently in her last semester in the Simmons College Graduate School of Library Science. Read Meredith's column in the March 10, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

If you drive along Commonwealth Ave. in Newton on a weekend morning in the late winter or early spring, you will likely see hundreds, if not thousands, of people running in the carriage lane next to the main road. Often braving not only the steep terrain of Heartbreak Hill but also subzero temperatures, snow, and ice, these intrepid runners are training for the Boston Marathon. Many are tackling their very first marathon and doing so to raise money for local charities, as I am this year.

Just One Bite, or the Mantra of a Mother of a Picky Eater

Diane Phillips is the Technical Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library.  Read Diane's  column in the March 3, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

I've been thinking a lot about food lately.  It's not due to any diet plans or anything fun like planning for a party.  I’m finding that I'm becoming obsessed with food choices, calorie counts, nutritional values and meal plans because I live with a "picky eater.

Dealing with Canasta

Charlotte Canelli is the library director of the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Read Charlotte's column in the February 25, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Weather everywhere can be unpredictable, and Florida is no exception. Freezing temperatures in the winter have killed orange crops as far south as Miami. Oppressive heat in the summer scares off most tourists all over the southernmost state.

Our recent vacation on the Floridian west coast last month was planned with only relaxation in mind. Oh, yes, of course we hoped to leave the frigid temperatures behind. However, we longed to visit with friends even more. They had recently moved to the Cape after living in Norwood for more than 40 years. As retired New Englanders often do, our friends now “snowbird” in Florida for the winter months.

New Technology Comes to the Library

Bonnie Wyler is a Literacy/Outreach Librarian at the library. Read Bonnie's column in the February 18, 2016 edition of the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

In early January, the power-adjusted table arrived at the library.  Within a week, it had been assembled and placed in the Reference Department, awaiting the remaining hardware and software that will make it a dedicated accessible workstation.   When the workstation is complete, it will provide the most up-to-date assistive technology available for library patrons who have vision loss or other disabilities.  Because we know that age-related eye diseases are a leading cause of vision impairment, meeting the needs of older patrons and others with vision loss is a growing priority for the library.