It looks like we can expect great weather for Eureka’s City-wide Garage Sales tomorrow! I didn’t take time to look at all the ads in the local papers, but I know from what we hear as people come through the library there will be many, many places to spend money on great deals here in Eureka. This once-a-year event provides a wonderful opportunity to take the morning, or all day and shop for bargains of all shapes, sizes and styles.. AND don’t forget to come past the Library Book Sale!
We have got a great summer reading theme to work with this year, “Reading is So Delicious!”. Our biggest problem has been figuring out what we can actually find the time and space to do, as we keep thinking of fun ideas that work so well with a food theme! One great idea we have already started on is a community cookbook.
Woodford County is a great place to live. My family has benefited from good school districts, strong community involvement and great neighbors. We have a friend that often compares living in Woodford County to living in Mayberry with Andy Griffith. And just like Andy had to occasionally face an unpleasant situation, we in Woodford County have unpleasant realities to recognize as well. Monday evening at 6:30 p.m., Woodford County Deputy Angela Holocker is providing information on one of those realities, the presence of synthetic drugs in Woodford County.
The weather is leaning toward summer, the college kids are heading home. Lawns need mowing, garages need cleaning, and if you grew up like I did, spring cleaning has begun.
If you happen to be one of those very few people that have extra money piled around, our program on Monday, May 7 might not be for you. But for those of you (and me) who wish there was a bit more of the green to go around at the end of the month, Monday night’s program will be a must-attend. Kathy Sweedler, who works with the University of Illinois Extension, plans to share some great ways to save your green by creating your own home energy saving plan.
I came into work a few minutes early this morning, but I wasn't the first one at the Library. Workers from Lone Wolf Concrete were already busy this misty Monday morning, unloading equipment and laying out orange cones. Our second concrete project of the season was about to begin!
There are very few things that frustrate me the way losing something important frustrates me. I admire people who are on top of their game and know to put everything where it belongs, so they always know where to find it. I am not an overly organized person, but I can usually remember the important things, like what day the house payment needs to be sent or if we are about out of toilet paper. There are things that throw me off, but typically not too far off. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule…
We live in a very giving community. About three weeks ago our Yahoo group (which is comprised of middle-school aged boys and girls), came up with an idea of a service project they wanted to complete before the end of the school year. They decided to make fleece blankets and donate them to Project Linus. The patterns are online and easy enough for a grade school student to work with, as long as they have a bit of help cutting the fleece. Oh, and paying for the fleece, that was the other side of the project they would need help with…any ideas, anyone?
On a weekly basis we have people who come to the Eureka Public Library on their quest to find out more about their family history. It is interesting to hear the stories that have brought them to Eureka, and to the library. Sometimes we know the people who are looking; sometimes we have visitors who have come a great distance, hoping to follow a faint trail that often ends on a tombstone in a cemetery. The stories documented or not, are then left to be recorded as, “To the best of my recollection…”
If you have tried to enter the Library from the west alley, you already know our parking lot project has begun. We love the way it looks, and can’t wait until we can drive on it!
Our Woodford County Master Gardeners are back, providing monthly programs, Plant Help Desks and helping with the telenets offered by the University of Illinois Extension at the Library. We are grateful for this cheerful group who come to the library filled with a wealth of horticulture knowledge they so willingly share!
I had a schoolteacher drop by the Library today, looking for some help setting up her ebook reader. In the course of the conversation we began to talk about the weather and how kids today dress for comfort at school. No matter what the weather it seems like casual is always in, and for young people that often refers to t-shirts, shorts and sandals. I didn’t think to tell her about our t-shirt quilting class coming up next Saturday (April 14) morning, but it would have fit in perfectly with the conversation.
In today’s fast and busy world, my cell phone beeps on a regular basis…offering tidbits of information. Information that keeps me connected with others, like when one of my kids in college needs money in his account…my husband isn’t going to make it home to let the dog out at lunch…my library books are almost overdue. Oops, hang onto that last thought for a moment! Did you know that EPLD offers a text messaging service to cardholders, making it easy to keep in touch with your library account?
“Most Common Mistakes Sellers Make When Preparing Their Homes For Sale” will be Tracy Molendi’s topic when she comes to Eureka Public Library on Monday, April 2. Molendi is more than qualified on the subject, being she is a certified home staging expert, professional organizer, and owner of her own business, Simply Organized & Staged. Her presentation begins at 6:30 p.m. and the cost per person is $3.00.
I was in Wal-Mart last Thursday, purchasing supplies for a library program we were holding later that day. As usual when you need something in that short of a time-frame, what I knew I wanted wasn’t available and I was pondering….wondering what would work just as well as the idea I had in my head. I wasn’t paying too much attention to the young mom wandering through the craft section with me, or to her young daughter in the cart. But apparently she was paying attention to me!
YAHOOS is our middle school group of kids that meet here at the Library on Wednesday afternoons. They come in after school, full of energy and in need of snacks. We try and harness the energy while supplying enough food to keep them alive and well until they head home at 5. YAHOOS is new at EPLD this school year, and we are all learning as we go. One thing we are learning is they love to help others.
The weather lately has made winter less of an issue in my mind, but I can still be excited about the official approach of spring. Watching the buds open on the trees and the grass "green up" always reminds us of the new season. Come spring, cleaning up (as in spring cleaning!) and coming up with ways to “refresh” and “renew” around the house becomes important to many of us. If that resonates with you, Thursday evening’s program might be something you would enjoy.
EPLD Director Nancy Scott and I are currently at the 2012 PLA Conference in Philadelphia. The PLA Conference is designed for public libraries of all sizes and happens every other year. Two years ago the conference was in Portland, Oregon and the weather was wonderful. Today Philadelphia boasted a high in the mid 70's with plenty of sun, so I guess it would be fair to say we are feeling pretty privileged again this trip.
We had a really great week last week at the Library. It was wonderful weather for the most part which makes it hard on some of us to come to work…something about 65 degrees in March I guess. But it was a really encouraging week to be at work because we were busy with events, and busy with people coming in and out of the library!
We don’t schedule many programs on Fridays at the Library, but this week is a noteworthy exception. One of Eureka’s own is returning to town, and we are happy to be one of the places he has chosen to spend some time. Brock, the son of Dave and Diane Eastman will be at the Library on Friday, 3:30-6 p.m., promoting the young adult books he has written. Brock is contracted to write 10 books releasing through 2013 and will be speaking about his journey into the world of writing.
Ann Reeves has lived in Woodford County most of her life, and in the city of Eureka for the past 27 years. She works as Associate Director at the Eureka Public Library and a large part of her workday involves planning and promoting library activities for young adults and adults in the community.
