The Sport with No Season

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. 

A Ruddy Good Writer

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.

Your Family Tree

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.

We've Come a Long Way Baby - In Women's Sports

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.

Happy Moving Day!

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.

Now You're Playing with Power

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...

Caw-Caw-Caw-Caw-Coodle-Yah!

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.

The Anti Beach Read

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.

Chicken Chat

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.

The Glass-Blowers

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 19^th, 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.

Bells Will Be Ringing

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.

Cause for Celebration?

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.

Frida Kahlo - Constructing a Life

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.

Secrets and Lies in Silicon Valley

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 saga of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos, her revolutionary (but failed) blood testing company, is a captivating one. While you may have read about it on the Internet, or in news reports last summer, you should read the exposé, Bad Blood by John Carreyrou and published last fall. It is rich with the full account as it was revealed. Carreyrou was (and is) a reporter for the Wall Street Journal. He was hungry for his next new journalistic journey, and a tip about Theranos was just the ticket.

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.

Borrow a Karaoke Kit or a Companion Cat

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.”