Jul 19

Take a Book, Leave a Book ~ From our Local Paper, Again

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Take a Book, Leave a Book
by Angela D. Glascock, Editorial Writer
There has been a delightful bloom of Little Free Libraries in Greenbriar.

What is a Little Free Library, you ask? A Little Free Library is just what it sounds like: a small structure that houses books to borrow or trade. Books are provided by citizens, creating a continuous, all-hours book exchange.

The aim of Little Free Libraries, according to LittleFreeLibrary.org, is “To promote literacy and the love of reading by building free book exchanges worldwide and to build a sense of community as we share skills, creativity and wisdom across generations.”

Sounds like a wonderful idea to me.

Todd Bol, who wished to honor his mother, a teacher who loved to read, created the first Little Free Library in Wisconsin in 2009. This original library looks like a little red schoolhouse. Bol built it, painted it, attached it to a post in his front yard, filled it with books, and put up a sign that read “Free Books.”

It was an immediate success.

The idea of Little Free Libraries in communities has caught on and spread quickly throughout the world. By June 2016, there were an estimated 40,000 registered Little Free Libraries — but that figure does not include thousands of unregistered little libraries, like three of those in Greenbriar. It is a brilliant way to share and find an eclectic variety of books while promoting literacy and community.

An internet search for “Little Free Library” brings up hundreds of photos of libraries in an amazing array of designs. The most common design is of a house, but these little house shaped libraries are far from common: there are wee cottages, Victorians, lighthouses, even a motorhome. People have recycled phone booths, newspaper dispensers and wooden barrels to make libraries. Some designs are simple, some are complex, but they are all remarkable.

In Greenbriar, the Little Free Libraries look like small houses with glass doors, but again, they are far from plain.

So where are these delightful structures located? You’ve probably seen the one by the pool, at the intersection of Point Pleasant and Middle Ridge. That was the first one I noticed. It’s called the “Tiny Free Library,” and a sign invites you to “Take a book * leave a book.”

At Point Pleasant and Maylock is the “Scrapwood Library,” so named because it was built from recycled wood: “scraps from our new kitchen …,” according to the sign, which also invites you to “take a book, leave a book.”

Toward Stringfellow at the intersection of Point Pleasant and Peekskill is a cheerful, bright yellow and blue library; this is the Greenbriar Little Free Library #33664.

Finally, at the Cale Community Center, there is a white library accented with green trefoils, compliments of Girl Scout Troop
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When I visited each library, I found that they were full of an assortment of books.

The Tiny Free Library contained a lot of popular fiction, such as Charlaine Harris, James Patterson, Janet Evanovich and David Baldacci. This one is likely the most visited because of its central location.

The Scrapwood Library housed a mix of popular fiction, classics (such as Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn), non-fiction, anthologies, textbooks, well-loved books, old books, new books and cookbooks. There were also audiobooks on CD.

The Greenbriar Little Free Library #33664, owned by Mary and Tom O’Connor, contained mostly children’s books, which, Tom said cheerfully when I interrupted his mowing to inquire, was their aim.

The Girl Scout library at the Cale Community Center was chock full of picture books, chapter books and young adult selections. Perfect for kids.

So, Greenbriar, whether you take a book, leave a book, or borrow a book and return it later, the four little libraries in Greenbriar offer bountiful choices for reading this summer.

To everyone who installed little libraries, and to everyone who supports them, thank you for supporting literacy in our community!

Little Free Library information and the locations of registered libraries can be found at www.LittleFreeLibrary.org.

Download this newspaper here: Greenbriar_flyer_2016_07

 

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Jul 10

From My Email

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This week’s Library of Distinction is charter #39388 in Rush, New York!

Find it on the world map.

The story: “I absolutely loved the idea of Little Free Libraries but unfortunately had no skills to actually build one!

After much searching, I found a giant used mailbox at a yard sale that I thought would make a great base for a Library.

A school bus seemed to be the perfect choice. I attached a plastic kid’s toolbox to the front so there would be a place for a notebook and some bookmarks, then I spray painted the entire thing yellow. All of the other details just fell into place…wheels, sign, license plate etc. I decided to put it on a cart so the whole thing would be mobile. The kids seem to love it and nothing makes me happier!” – Steward Karen Tabor

Jul 01

The Little Free Library Locator has Moved

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Find us or a nearby library here: https://lfl.openwichita.com/

Jun 26

New Children’s Books

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We have a huge box of children’s books ready for the Greenbriar Little Free Library #33664.  Many thanks to Beth!

 

Children’s books are currently the most popular.  We just got this adorable thank you note over the weekend:

 

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Also, check us out at https://www.facebook.com/GreenbriarLittleFreeLibrary/

Jun 23

Take a book. Leave a book. Remake a book.

Have you ever walked past a Little Free Library, those house-shaped boxes along sidewalks filled with books? If so, did you look inside?

They’re often filled with books, and if you look at enough of them, you’ll see some of the same kinds of books start to repeat: romance novels, detective fiction, used children’s books, an odd cookbook. The libraries seem to fill with surplus. And most people walk right by.

But Steven McCarthy, a graphic design professor at the University of Minnesota who lives in Falcon Heights, rarely lets a Little Free Library go un-inspected.

For the last year, McCarthy has been working on a project of turning miscellaneous Little Free Library books into works of art. He calls it the Wee Go Library, and it’s his mobile collection of bizarre and whimsical books where pages have been turned upside-down or rearranged, bindings unbound and re-bound, and illustrations displaced and replaced into new and fantastical collages.

The project is housed in a beautiful mobile display case, and poring through its drawers and pages you find a “library” of creativity that seems to reveal the potential of the book itself.

Read more at http://www.parkbugle.org/take-a-book-leave-a-book-remake-a-book/

Jun 15

Happy Palindrome Week!

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You should feel very balanced this week. Why? Because it’s palindrome week!

A palindrome exists when letters, numbers, or phrases are the same forward and backward. For example, the words “racecar” and “kayak” are palindromes along with the phrase “Was it a car or a cat I saw?”

The dates this week are all five-digit palindromes. Today is 6-15-16; it’s the same if you read it forward and backward.

Palindrome week will take place in July next year.

From last year:

 

May 30

Bill

Tom’s youngest brother, Bill, died, which was a major shock to all of us.  He’d had Polycystic Kidney Disease and decided to go for a kidney transplant.

 

William T. O’Connor
(January 19, 1949 – May 29, 2016)

Send Sympathy Gifts
Guest Book | Sign Guest Book | Send Private Condolences | Send Sympathy Card

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O’CONNOR, William T. of Burlington, formerly of Everett, entered into rest on Sunday, May 29, 2016 in the Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston. Born in Boston, Bill lived in Everett for many years before moving to Burlington. Bill had a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and a MBA. He worked for Walsh Brothers as a construction superintendent before his retirement. Beloved husband of Sandra (Fusco) for over 45 years. Dear and devoted father of Thomas O’Connor and his wife, Janet of Peabody and Erin Simione and her husband, Kurt of Windham, NH. Brother of Mary O’Connor of Quincy, Tom O’Connor and his wife, Mary of VA, James O’Connor of Everett, John O’Connor of Revere and Robert O’Connor of London, England. Loving grandfather of Olivia and Matthew O’Connor and Mason, Dante, and Slater Simione. Uncle of Michael O’Connor of NYC. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend Bill’s visiting hours in the Cafasso & Sons Funeral Home, 65 Clark St. (Corner of Main St.) EVERETT, Saturday, June 4 from 8-10:30 a.m. followed by a funeral Mass in St. Anthony’s Church, 38 Oakes St., Everett, at 11 a.m. Interment private. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Bill’s memory to the National Kidney Foundation, 85 Astor Ave., Ste. 2, Norwood, MA 02062, www.kidney.org would be sincerely appreciated. Parking with attendants on duty.

From the funeral:

 

and

 

 

 

 

There will be more about the funeral on my Travel blog

May 30

Memorial Day 2016

Thanks, Grandpa…  You weren’t American, but you fought valiantly for the cause overseas.

 

I never met my grandfather.  He had died in Peshawar, India, fighting for the Black Watch during World War l.  Peshawar was on the northern frontier of British India, near the Khyber Pass.

In 1947, Peshawar became part of the newly independent state of Pakistan after politicians approved merger into the state that had just been carved from British India.

peshawar

We have a trunk of his belongings, though, and it’s very interesting to recreate his life.

My dad was born in Scotland in 1913.

In 1914, my grandfather was involved in this:

On the outbreak of war there were seven Black Watch battalions – for in addition to the Regular 1st and 2nd Battalions and 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion there were a further four Territorial ones which had become part of the Regiment in 1908. They were the 4th Dundee [Mary O’Note: I’m pretty sure this was his, since that’s where my dad was born], 5th Angus, 6th Perthshire and the 7th Battalion from Fife. The 1st Battalion was in action at the very start of the war taking part in the Retreat from Mons before turning on the Germans at the River Marne and the subsequent advance to the Aisne. Trench warfare then set in and the 2nd Battalion arrived from India, both battalions taking part in the Battle of Givenchy. Meanwhile the Territorial battalions had been mobilised at the start of the war but only the 5th was in action in 1914.

From http://www.theblackwatch.co.uk/index/first-world-war

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I guess this is why I love the Pipes and Drums of the Black Watch so much.

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Thanks, Grandpa!

This summer, we’ll be going to the Edinburgh Tattoo for the second time. This had been on my bucket list for a long time since my grandfather was in the Black Watch and I just love to hear bagpipes. Even my cellphone ringtone is Scotland, the Brave.

 

My mom says that my Grandfather’s name is inscribed as a war hero in Edinburgh Castle, where the Tattoo is held.

When we were there last time, I didn’t quite make it to the top of the hill but this year, maybe…

You know, I’ll find that, sooner or later.

Thanks again for your service, Grandpa – and everyone who who served!

May 24

That TV Show

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When I was a young woman, I just loved That Girl.  I’d rush home from school to watch.  Later, several of us would watch in the common room of our dorm at college.

Over the years, I’ve owned video tapes, DVDs.  My mom bought me an episode guide for Christmas one year – which I still have.

I was absolutely excited last week when I found Season 1 is available on Amazon Prime – for free.  Just the perfect way to spend these rainy afternoons we’ve been having.

Each episode begins with a pre-credits teaser in which an odd incident occurs or a discussion foreshadows the episode’s story. The scene almost always ends with someone exclaiming “…that girl!”, just as Ann wanders into the shot or the character notices her. The words “That Girl” would appear over the freeze-frame shot of Ann. The opening credits during the first season featured Thomas, in character, strolling the streets of New York.

 

 

Here’s the very first episode:

 

That Girl starred Marlo Thomas as the title character Ann Marie, an aspiring (but only sporadically employed) actress, who moves from her hometown of Brewster, New York to try to make it big in New York City. Ann has to take a number of offbeat “temp” jobs to support herself in between her various auditions and bit parts.

 

Ted Bessell played her boyfriend Donald Hollinger.  Many times during the show, Ann would say “Oh, Donald”.  It’s become a catchphrase in our family.

I was so sorry when he died in 1996.  It seemed like we were losing a family member.

 

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 8, 1996— Ted Bessell, the actor who starred with Marlo Thomas in the television comedy series ”That Girl” and was a director of the ”Tracey Ullman Show,” died on Sunday at the University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center. He was 57.

The cause was an aortic aneurysm, his family doctor said.

Mr. Bessell’s acting career spanned three decades, with appearances in at least 30 television productions including ”Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.,” ”Breaking Up is Hard to Do” and ”Don’t Drink the Water.” Perhaps his best-known role was as Donald Hollinger, the steady but suffering boyfriend of Ms. Thomas’s character in ”That Girl,” from 1966 to 1971.

”To this day when I’m walking in the street, people stop and ask me, ‘How is Donald?’ ” Ms. Thomas said today.

Ms. Thomas said Mr. Bessell was discussing a feature film remake of the series in which the two main characters, now 25 years older, would meet again and fall in love. ”That Girl,” set in New York City, was one of the first on television to focus on the life of a single woman.

From http://www.nytimes.com/1996/10/09/arts/ted-bessel-57-dies-pursued-that-girl-in-television-sitcom.html

 

That Girl also included a wonderful array of guest stars including Bernie Kopell, Ruth Buzzi, Dabney Coleman, Rob Reiner, Richard Dreyfuss, Carroll O’Connor, Teri Garr, Ethel Merman, Rob Reiner, Bill Bixby, Dick Shawn, Gary Marshall, Sid Caesar, Barry Williams, Vic Tayback, Larry Storch, Danny Thomas, McLean Stevenson, Avery Schreiber, Monty Hall, Jack Cassidy, Carl Reiner, Pat Boone, Russell Johnson, Cloris Leachman, Kenneth Mars, Regis Philbin, Joe Flynn, James Gregory, Reva Rose and Dick Van Patten.

Back to my show and my youth…

 

May 23

See A Penny, Pick It Up…

Lucky-Penny-Day

 

 
See a penny, pick it up… All day long you’ll have good luck.

When you are out and about today, look on the ground for pennies. It just might be your lucky day!

My mom is forever picking up pennies – or anything that’s cash-looking.  She’s made a record over the years of how much money she’s found on the street and the total amount is pretty staggering.

Finding a penny has long been considered a good omen, suggesting something good will happen in the life of the finder. Some superstitious people believe that you should only pick up a penny that’s lying face up.

Some believe we should no longer mint pennies because they cost more to make than they are worth.

Years ago a penny was able to buy something – like penny candy. Today, due to inflation, the penny does not buy much of anything. The metal value and cost of minting pennies exceed their face value. Many nations have stopped minting equivalent value coins and efforts are being made to end the routine use of pennies in several countries including the United States.

The U.S. minted 8 billion pennies in 2014, spending almost $132 million for currency worth less than $50 million, according to Citizens to Retire the Penny, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to educating the public on why the U.S. should ditch the penny.

1793 – The first pennies in the United States were made of copper.

National Lucky Penny Day is observed each year on May 23rd.

A commercial but cute, nonetheless:

 

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