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The library will close early at 5 p.m. on Nov. 27 and all day Nov. 28 & 29 in observance of Thanksgiving. More Info

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Paws to Read Comes to Cherrydale!

For Reluctant Readers, and Kids who Love Dogs

Join us Saturday, Nov. 10 at 3 p.m. for the Cherrydale Branch Library’s first Paws-to-Read. 

Mascot Paws von Barky and friends will be available for 15 minute reading sessions.

To register a kindergarten – 5th grade student:

  • Call 703-228-6330
  • Stop by the Cherrydale Branch circulation desk

Paws-to-Read will be at Cherrydale one Saturday each month. Future dates:

  • Saturday, Dec. 15
  • Saturday, Jan. 19

 

Learn more about Paws-to-Read at the Arlington Public Library.

 

New: Tech Tutoring at Aurora Hills

Questions about eBooks or Skype? Internet skills need polishing?

We can help!

Call the Aurora Hills Branch Library to schedule a 45-minute appointment with one of our staff members.  You choose the technology topic and the staff will provide the tutoring.

Appointments Monday, Nov. 5:

  • 6:00 p.m.
  • 7:00 p.m
  • 8:00 p.m.
  • Space is limited, so schedule promptly at 703-228-5715.

The deadline to make an appointment is Wednesday, Oct. 31.

 

 

 

 

Autumnfest at Glencarlyn

Thanks for Supporting the Glencarlyn Library Garden!

Paul Nuhn, hardworking Master Gardener and one of the Glencarlyn  Library Community Garden caretakers, shared the following after Autumnfest on Sunday,  Sept. 30:

Our sincere thanks and gratitude go out to all those wonderful neighbors, friends, and the general public that came out to support your Library Garden. Your help will help us grow, and give us seed (ha ha) money to bring new ideas, designs and gardens to the Garden.

Over 200 people came to enjoy the gardens, take in the speakers and demonstrations, eat and drink wonderful treats made from the plants found in the gardens. Over 100 children also joined their parents buying up small pumpkins, gourds, and generally having a blast.

 

And our huge thanks go out to Paul and the rest of the Master Gardeners who do so much to make the Glencarlyn Branch Library Community Garden so wonderful!

 

Calling All Dreamers!

Just what are Arlington kids’ biggest dreams?

Our 2012 Summer Reading Program theme this year was Dream Big–Read!

So we asked Arlington kids to draw, write, or talk in front of a camera about what their big dreams are. See some of their drawings  here:

Learn more about Kids Events at the Library.

 

 

Answers to (Almost) Anything

Meet the Public (through the Press)

I had the pleasure of taking part last week in a new feature at the ArlNow.com local news site.

The “Ask Me (Almost) Anything” feature invited readers to post questions about Arlington Public Library and I spent about two hours answering in real time. It was great fun to tackle such a wide range of topics.

If you missed the chat, thanks for taking a look now.

And of course if you have any questions for the Library, the best place to start is our Help page.

Guest Blog: Garden Signs Tell a Story

“Arlingwoman” is a local gardener who volunteers with Plot Against Hunger. She blogs about AFAC,  the Central Library vegetable garden and Garden Talks at arlingwords.wordpress.com.

Signage. 

It isn’t something most people think much about unless it’s lacking or intrusive. I have been thinking about it lately because I often see people at the Central Library garden walking along reading the signs. Sometimes they go from the garden close to the building all along by the tennis court reading the signs and looking at the plants.

That’s part of an educational space, and I hadn’t thought much about it until I was talking with a neighbor about Plot Against Hunger and mentioned that the Library garden was part of our efforts.

She smiled and exclaimed “Oh that’s yours? I love the signs. It’s like reading a story.”

You can start here reading the signs, or over in the parking lot by the tennis courts.

Our signage maven is Don Weber, of USDA. And he has, in fact, made a story of many of the signs. Earlier this year, a rabbit was eating the pole beans as they came up, causing many people to ask where the beans were.

Don added a sign “What’s with the Pole Beans?” explaining that the pesky lagomorph was eating them and that we were fencing to keep it out:

Info on the bean tipi, plus why there are no bean plants…

 

Signs also tell plant history and lore, such as that of the eggplant, member of the nightshade and native to south Asia.

Eggplants

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you recognize Bok Choi?

In some cases, the signs tell when crops were planted, so people will know what they look like through various stages.

They also give information on type of crop and nutritional content. This way, when people see a new plant, they can identify it and learn how it is prepared.

 

And you just thought these were some kind of vine, didn’t you?

 

And then there are crops people may be very familiar with, such as sweet potatoes, but not know what they look like when they are growing.

These are signs where you see people saying “Wow. I had no idea…”

 

 

 

 

 

Part of the purpose of the library garden is also to let people know what they can do in particular spaces—in Arlington, that’s mostly small. So we have labeled our square foot garden and our self watering containers from Rooftop Roots.

What’s a Square Foot Garden?

 

Someone interested in starting a garden could peruse the Library garden’s signs, then head into the Library for the right reference books to guide them. At least that’s one of our hopes.

We also hope that people simply enjoy the fact it’s there.

 

Read more on Arlingwords.com.

 

 

Read for the Record

Celebrate Literacy with Jumpstart and Ladybug Girl

Jumpstart is a national early education organization that recruits and trains college students and community members to serve preschool children in low-income neighborhoods – including in Washington, D.C.

This week you can contribute to Jumpstart’s efforts by reading Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad on Thursday, Oct. 4 for Read for the Record, with the goal of breaking last year’s record of 2.2 million participating readers (and listeners)!

 

How to Participate:

Enter your Pledge to Read Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad.

Then get a copy of Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad from the Library or your favorite book store to read on Thursday.

Or – read it online at WeGiveBooks.org!

 

 

 

 

 

Origami at Aurora Hills Kids Club

Folding origami with Ms. Cho!

On Wednesday, Sept. 26, Ms. Cho returned to the Aurora Hills Branch Library to teach 35 Kids Club attendees to make origami.

Ms. Cho was last with us in June and is still a huge hit with Kids Club! This time we learned how to fold elephants, boxes, and hearts:

 

October Kids Club Schedule at Aurora Hills:

  • Wednesday, Oct. 17 – Buttons Gluttons – Join us to make fun and exciting buttons for yourself and for friends!
  • Wednesday, Oct. 24 – WUSHU Chinese Martial Arts – US Wushu Academy Students from Falls Church, VA, will be performing and demonstrating martial arts.
  • Wednesday, Oct. 31 – Halloween Piñatas – Join us to make decorative Halloween mini-Piñatas.

Note: Kids Club is for elementary children in kindergarten and up

 

Learn more about Kids Events at the Library.

 

Do You Read Banned Books?

What Do These Books Have in Common?

They – and many more – have been challenged, banned and sometimes even burned, by communities or governments who were uncomfortable with the ideas, events or language they contained.

Banned Books Week, held annually at the end of September, celebrates the importance of the First Amendment and our freedom to read. These videos, and our corresponding Library displays, are designed to draw attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

At the Arlington Public Library, you’re free to read everything – and to decide for yourself.

 

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX4jWZwYw_A&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTrxRZYDglI&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

1984 by George Orwell

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcJ5ztqG4OU&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UomX9w2gADQ&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6cnW7yO0lE&feature=share&list=UUoncRB-soHmPObgt1XsIZlQ[/youtube]

 

The Call of the Wild by Jack London

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY3n-DjKQo8&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ON1ocKck2u4&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

The Giver by Lois Lowry

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu-uMNDA-BQ&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c41Dq8Eo58Y&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZdSDnRcHio&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_1v1NFQg28&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4wsLK-XcVg&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsh8Xb4U7lc&feature=share&list=SPF4F4F9295D8FDF42[/youtube]

 

From Marching Bands to Indie Rock: The Story of Gerald Lewis Recording

1979 Arlington County All-County Elementary Orchestra and Chorus album cover

In today’s music scene, it isn’t uncommon for those involved to wear many hats.

Artists crossover from performing to producing, find parallel careers in film, literature, and the visual arts with regularity. In earlier times, this phenomenon was less prevalent, excepting well-known performers such as Elvis and Frank Sinatra. Arlington’s own Gerald M. Lewis had a rich and varied career, being involved in many different aspects of music including performing, instruction, production, and recording.

From 1954-1979, Mr. Lewis served as a band director for Gunston and Stratford Junior High Schools, and Wakefield and Washington-Lee High Schools. At his home on 216 S. Pershing Drive, Lewis also owned and operated Gerald Lewis Recording. Housed in a mobile home adjacent to his residence, Gerald Lewis Recording was a mobile recording unit that offered him the ability to record performers and public events on location.

Operating from 1964-1991, a remarkably diverse customer base utilized Mr. Lewis’ recording service. Local Virginia and Maryland schools and churches recorded public events and concerts, including performances from high school marching bands and public speakers.

Local recording artists also took advantage of Lewis’ expertise. In 1985, Teen-Beat Records artists Unrest used the mobile studio to master their debut 7” single “So You Want To Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star”/ “Zelda” (Side A) – “The Hill” (Side B), which was also the first Teen-Beat vinyl release. Unrest band member and Teen-Beat impresario Mark Robinson recalls, “He [Lewis] essentially was the broker for Teen-Beat to press our first record. He put the master tape together, sent it to the pressing plant, etc. I paid him, and he paid the pressing plant. I found his number in the Yellow Pages. He also recorded and pressed up the Arlington All-County Orchestra record that I was on back in 4th or 5th grade, so I knew that this guy knew how to make a record.”

In 1996, Mr. Lewis and his wife Elizabeth, a music teacher at Wakefield High School, moved to Tennessee where he continued to be involved in music, directing, arranging, and playing trombone for the Pleasant Hill Ensemble until his passing in March of 2008, at the age of 82.

What about you?

Do you have any memories of Mr. Lewis or his recording services?



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