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Library Topics
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Address: 301 N.
Pennsylvania |
Welcome to the New Millennium and January 2000! January brings with it Bread Machine Baking Month, Celebration of Life Month, Fat Free Living Month, International "Get Over It" Month, International Quality of Life Month, January Diet Month, Love Yourself Month, National Be On-Purpose Month, National Book Month, National High-Tech Month, National Hot Tea Month, National Reaching Your Potential Month, and Oatmeal Month.
This week is "Someday We'll Laugh About This" Week, which encourages us not to wait until "someday" to laugh at ourselves. You can also celebrate National Lose Weight/Feel Great Week and New Year's Resolutions Week. Be forewarned, though; it usually takes fewer than seven days for people to violate 90 percent of their New Year's resolutions.
Today is Trivia Day, in celebration of those who know all sorts of facts and/or have doctorates in "uselessology." Thursday is National Smith Day, which recognizes the most common surname in the English-speaking world. An estimated 2,382,500 people in the United States are named Smith. Saturday is National Joygerm Day, dedicated to ridding society of doom and gloom, sneers and jeers, put-downs, and frowns, by flaunting an undaunting smile and a pile of perennial positive perks! Monday is National Clean-Off-Your-Desk Day, to provide one day early each year for every desk worker to see the top of the desk and prepare for the current year's paperwork!
WHAT'S HAPPENING?
At Wednesday's 10:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. storytimes, children will observe National Bath Safety Month by listening to stories, blowing bubbles, and making a ducky. Saturday morning's 10:00 storytime features letters and miniature mail and mailbox crafts.
BOOK TALK
Librarian Loretta Clark provides this week's book information. America2000 is the Year of the Multi-cultural Child. In 1907, the year when most immigrants came to the United States, there were 70 immigration stations, but 90 percent passed through Ellis Island. Ellis Island opened on January 1, 1892, and became known as the "Gateway to America" or "The Island of Tears," depending on whether the US government allowed people to stay in America or sent them back to their homelands. Between 1892 and 1954, about 15 million immigrants were processed at Ellis Island, including Golda Meir, who emigrated from Russia at the age of 8 and later called the experience of coming to the unknown land "almost like going to the moon!"
"Ellis Island," a three-volume set of videos produced by The History Channel, shows how immigration changed America through rare film footage and photographs to offer a touching look at the faces of those who came to define the American Dream. If you prefer books to videos, you can check out "Ellis Island Interviews: In their Own Words" or "Ellis Island: Gateway of Hope." Children will enjoy "Memory Coat," a story of one family and Ellis Island.
Those who wish they knew the recipes for the foods they remember from their mothers and grandmothers can check out Jeff Smith's "The Frugal Gourmet On Our Immigrant Ancestors: Recipes You Should Have Gotten From Your Grandmother," which includes recipes from 35 countries.
DID YOU KNOW?
Year 2000 is a leap year in both the Gregorian and Julian calendars. How are leap years determined? Every year divisible by 4 is a leap year, but every year divisible by 100 is not - unless it is also divisible by 400. Therefore, the year 2000 is a leap year, just as 2400 and 2800 will be, but years divisible by 100 only, like 1800, 1900, 2100, 2200, and 2500, are not leap years.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Clifton Fadiman once said: "When you re-read a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in you than there was before."
JUDY ARMSTRONG, 624-7276
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Address: 301 N.
Pennsylvania |
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