All posts by Abby

Library events

Michael LaFosse, part II

Yesterday’s origami program with Michael LaFosse was fantastic.  Truly fantastic.  Michael is an excellent teacher and a really nice person.  With his status and credentials, he could have been forgiven for being overly full of himself, but Michael’s not like that.  When he and I went up to the hall where the program was going to be held, and I had set the room up completely incorrectly (I hadn’t put out any tables, and had arranged the seats as I would for a movie night – duh, what was I thinking??), he didn’t blink an eye, but immediately mucked in with me and worked harder than I did to totally rearrange the room.  Michael hauled tables and chairs around to set up 50 chairs around tables, and never once did he complain.

So that impressed me right off the bat, but his teaching style was even more impressive.  We had 63 adults and children in the room for the first session that he taught, the session for ages 6 to 12.  It could have been chaos, but somehow Michael is able to explain folding techniques and walk around the room offering help where needed while maintaining a calm and controlled atmosphere.  Every child in that room left with a completed 8-piece puzzle box, a sailboat, and an owl.  Some of the children in the room were able to fold multiples of these pieces.  No one was bored, and everyone felt satisfied with their finished projects. 

For the final touch on this program, Michael brought out some of his origami works of art to show the group:  a squirrel, folded from a large single sheet of paper, no cuts; a cardinal; a gargoyle, folded by one of his students, once again from a single sheet of paper.  Showing these pieces at the conclusion of the first session is pure genius, since by that point everyone in the room had developed enough origami confidence that no one was intimidated by these masterworks.  Instead, I could see that a lot of kids were inspired by them, and I’m guessing that these kids will go on to try more difficult origami projects.

By contrast, for the adult and teen session, Michael began by showing his masterworks.  Once again, genius: any adults who might have been skeptical were immediately convinced that they were in the presence of an origami master.  From that point on, there was a wonderfully congenial feeling in the room, as we all helped each other with our projects.  We made a three-piece puzzle box, two foxes, and a butterfly.  And then the sweet lady sitting next to me asked Michael for advice on folding a paper airplane for her grandson.  He first suggested that she could look up directions online, if she had internet access, but as soon as she said that she didn’t even know how to turn on the computer, Michael rose to the challenge and said that he’d be happy to extend the program over-time if anyone wanted to learn how to fold his own design for a paper airplane.  Almost all of us stayed for an extra 25 minutes, and added one more project to our collection: a really great-flying airplane. 

Sadly for those of us in Massachusetts, Michael is literally on the verge of moving to Hawaii, so it’s doubtful that we’ll ever be able to have him visit the library again.  Selfishly, I kind of hope that Hawaii doesn’t measure up to Massachusetts, and that Michael moves back this way.  I can guarantee that we’d have a full capacity crowd waiting for him!

Library events

Michael LaFosse at the library

Last call for today’s terrific program at the library:  Michael LaFosse of the Origamido Studio will be running two programs on origami at the library.  The first, at 4 PM, is for ages 6 to 12, and the second program, at 5 PM, is for ages 13 to adult.

For those of you who don’t know Michael LaFosse’s work, here is how he is described on the Origamido website:  “Author and artist Michael LaFosse is one of the most seasoned and respected presenters of the paper arts.  He and Richard Alexander have authored 32 books on origami, and produced over a dozen DVDs.  They have also built major origami exhibits for the Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA; the Louvre, Paris; the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson; and the Morikami Japanese Museum, Delray Beach, FL.”

I am thrilled that we were able to have Michael come to the library before his move to Hawaii, and I can’t wait to pick up tips on both how to teach origami, and how to fold some new origami projects.

There’s still room in each section, so do join us if you wish!

Book groups, Children's literature, Spare time - Culture

Books of the month

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Here is what I will be reading (or have already read) this month:

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, for last week’s teen book group.  (Loved it!  Tried to buy the sequels yesterday at the book store, but they were sold out.  This is the first time in MY life that I’ve actually wanted to buy a science fiction book.)

Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve.  Just purchased yesterday, and started it last night.  I love that Reeve dedicated the book to Geraldine McCaughrean, one of my favorite authors.  (Reeve is another of my favorite authors.)  I’m toying with the idea of suggesting it for the teen book group, though historically they haven’t loved my suggestions…

More Fast Food My Way by Jacques Pepin.  Jacques is one of my heroes, and I wanted to be sure to add this to our collection of his books.

A Dog’s Life: The Autobiography of a Stray by Ann Martin, for next week’s fifth grade book group.  We had a great discussion of this book two years ago, so I was eager to bring the book back for another group of fifth graders.  Some worry that the book is too sad, especially for animal lovers, but I would argue that the happy, settled ending balances out any sadness – not to mention that life IS sad, and stray animals have it very, very tough.  How much should we protect our children from the sadness of the world?  Are we doing them any favors by hiding these things from them?  Or is it better to admit that, yes, there are sad parts, tough parts, in life, and then talk with children about what kind of positive difference each of us can make in the world?

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey by Trenton Lee Stewart, for this month’s sixth grade book group.  Loved the first book, and am looking forward to reading and discussing this second book.

The Everything Learning Italian Book by Michael P. San Filippo, and a newly purchased Italian/English dictionary.  Because, of course, I’m taking an Italian class!

And a stack of books that I purchased over the summer, with every intention of reading this summer.  Haven’t gotten to them yet, but…wait ’till the woodstove is cranking and the cats are purring. 

Storytime

Really? Are you sure???

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I just had the oddest comment from a kindergarten teacher who had come to observe the preschool class that attended my infant storytime this morning.  This teacher and I had talked ahead of time about how it might be a bit interesting, having a group of preschoolers joining in with a storytime that’s intended for babies; we were wondering how well it would work out. 

And after it was all over, the teacher came up to me and said, “You know, that worked out incredibly well!  They were very attentive!  And, of course, it really helps that you have a lovely singing voice!”

Wait a second.  Did she just say that I have a “lovely singing voice”???

She did.

I’m in shock.

Etc.

Frustrations

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I’m feeling frustrated this morning.

Frustrated because we still have dial-up internet access, and AOL is beyond slow this morning.  I’ve logged on numerous times, and the connection is still slower than molasses.  More like the honey in the jar in our kitchen, which is almost solidified and sticks to a spoon like glue.

Frustrated because I didn’t set this blog up to be a political blog.

What a frustration that is.  Because, if I had set up this blog to be political, then I could talk about how frightened am about our country’s future.  If this blog were political, then I could talk about last night’s vice presidential debate, and about how terrified I am by the prospect of Sarah Palin being second in command.  If my focus here were political, I could talk about how scary it is that intelligence is viewed as a flaw in our country these days, whereas dropping your g’s and using colloquialisms like “doggone it” while spewing anti-facts are greeted with fondness.  If I were to discuss politics on this blog, I would talk about how fervently I hope that our country will choose the man for president who is intelligent, has a plan to bring our country back from the brink of financial ruin, and who can inspire us all to work together and rise from the ashes left behind by the current administration.

What a shame it is that my blog isn’t political.

Librarianship, Storytime

It’s tough

It’s hard to be peppy and fun and sing with abandon when you’re exhausted.

The babies are arriving, and I’m trying really, really hard to get psyched up for their arrival.  Wake up, Abby, wake up.  Time to be perky!  Time to lead a group of babies in raucous fun!  Time to bang the drum and ring the bells and wave the scarves!

(and my little voice inside, underneath it all, says, “Time to take a nap.  zzzzzzz.”)

Children, Children's literature, Librarianship

No better feeling

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Five minutes before closing yesterday, a young man (4th grade) came up to me and asked, “Do you have any recommendations for me for realistic fiction that’s not depressing?  I really liked the last book you recommended to me, The Golly-Whopper Games [by Jody Feldman].”

I pulled the first Phineas MacGuire book for him, Phineas L. MacGuire Erupts!: The First Experiment by Frances O’Roark Dowell, told him that another boy his age had loved it, and sent him on his way.

And then this afternoon he came bouncing up to my desk, “You know that book you got for me?  I’m almost done with it – can you get me the next book in the series?”  And luckily we had the next two books on the shelf, and I sent him home with both.

Less than 24 hours, with a school day in the middle of those 24 hours, and he’s already almost finished the book and is ready for more.  That’s incredibly satisfying to me, the children’s librarian: I managed to put the right book in this child’s hand at the right time.  Really, truly, there’s no better feeling.

Etc.

Chipmunks and chickadees

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The cats and I observed the weirdest thing this morning:  a chipmunk was sitting happily on one of the semi-rotted fence posts by our living room, just minding his own business, cleaning his face, being generally chipmunk-mellow.

And then the chickadee came along.  This chickadee was enraged by the chipmunk’s presence, and kept dive-bombing the chipmunk, going directly for the head each time.

Finally the chipmunk had enough and ran away.  And the chickadee disappeared, too.  Weird.

Blog administration

Sick

Just when I’d gotten back into the blogging groove, I got slammed with a nasty cold that laid me out for a few days.

I’ll try to post an entry of substance tomorrow.  There’s certainly plenty to share!

Storytime

Nerves, part II

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Storytime went ok – not great, just ok.  The thing about being nervous is that it can wreak an otherwise great storytime:  I’m not having as much fun, I’m doubting myself…and then everyone else doesn’t have as much fun, and they start to look at me a bit funny, as if they’re thinking, “She’s not all that.  Hmmmm.”

And, there are the stupid errors.  At the end of the storytime, I said, “Ok, let’s sing our closing song now!!  The song we always sing at the end of storytime!  [I inserted the name of the song here, and I’m honestly not sure whether I said “The More We Get Together” or “If You’re Happy and You Know It.”]  Here we go!!”  And then I started to sing “The More We Get Together,” which is our opening song, not our closing song.  I caught myself halfway, finished the song, and admitted that it was the first storytime of the year and I’d made a mistake.  And then we sang the correct song, “If You’re Happy and You Know It.”  Sigh.

Let’s hope I’m not nervous again tomorrow morning, for my first Mother Goose on the Loose program in a while.  Sigh.  (And hopefully I’ll sleep tonight, too.  That would be good.)