January Is Puzzle Month At The Library

During the last month of 2007, we banged our heads around and decided to create some excitement at the library during 2008. Boy, did we come up with some goodies for all year! To begin the New Year, we made January our Puzzle Month at the Moultrie-Colquitt County Library.
Today we started putting together a 1,000-piece puzzle on a round table in the reading area. It is a dynamic landscape of mountains, a stream, pine trees, snow, Indians, horses and tepees; a painting by Hermon Adams called "Coming Home." The colors are dark in the foreground and bright across the mountain range. We are working on the outer edge of it right now to pull it together. So, remember to check it out and add a few pieces when you come into the library. We're going to see how long it takes the public to finish the puzzle. (Of course, every time one of our staff members walk by, they have to drop in a couple of pieces, too.) And the Doerun Branch will have a puzzle for its patrons to work, also.
We'll continue the puzzle theme on Tuesday, January 22nd, when we're going to have a genealogy puzzle. As part of our Technology Lunch Bunch program, Irene Godwin, who has been with the Odom Genealogy Library for almost 18 years, will walk us through researching an individual using the Library Edition of Ancestry.com. It will be like putting together the pieces of an individual's life to solve that person's puzzle. Irene will cover such topics as: surname searching of multiple databases in one location, searching by Soundex or exact surname spellings, finding digital images available for some original documents, and using a newly added U.S. map collection. The event will be held in the Willcoxon Auditorium at noon and no reservations are required. However, it would be nice if you'd let us know you're going to attend, so we can have a chair for you. You can do that by calling 985-6540.
The big puzzle event will be held Tuesday, January 29th, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Willcoxon Auditorium. There will be a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle titled "Dragon Storm," 19 inches by 27 inches, that we will need help in completing. There will also be 200-piece puzzles for ages 10 through adult, as well as word searches and crossword puzzles. Puzzles for the little tikes will be available too, including a floor puzzle that is 2 feet by 3 feet, called "The Policeman is on the Job." And we'll have dominoes (regular and Dora, the Explorer), checkers, and Scrabble for non-puzzle enthusiasts.
As if that weren't enough, we'll have books about puzzles for you to read. Here's just a few:

• A Clue for the Puzzle Lady by Parnell Hall
• Mathamusements by Raymond Blum
• Too Hot to Hoot: The Palindrome Puzzle Book by Raymond Stuart
• Perplexing Puzzles and Tantalizing Teasers by Martin Gardner
• Super Strategies for Puzzles and Games by Saul X. Levmore and Elizabeth Early Cook
• The Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, and
• I Spy Extreme Challenger! A Book of Picture Riddles (a Scholastic book).

We hope you'll join us during the month for all our puzzle shenanigans. These events are for singles as well as families. We're going to have fun. And it will be a lot more fun if you show up.

Technology Lunch Bunch Will Meet Tuesday, November 13

I was going to tell you about this tomorrow, but, you know, time marches on. And sometimes too fast. So, I need to tell you now!
The Technology Lunch Bunch, sponsored by the Moultrie-Colquitt County Library, will meet on Tuesday, November 13, in the Willcoxon Auditorium at the library. The meeting will be held from noon to 1 p.m. and is open to the public.
Presenter Aileen McNair, Library Information Specialist, will talk about safe Internet sites for children and parents. She said: "Since we can't always cover our kids' eyes, we have to teach them how to see."
The 45-minute session will explore ways to help our kids become Internet savvy. Discussion will be held about how to keep our kids safe online and review sites concerned with child safety. We'll also talk about how we can help them and ourselves make wise choices as the Internet becomes a part of our everyday life.
If you're a parent with a computer in your home, this is one meeting you are encouraged to attend. But remember this, kids use computers elsewhere also. So, it's up to all of us. . .parents and educators alike. . .to "teach them how to see."

Technology Lunch Bunch Meets Tuesday, October 23rd

Did you get to go to the first meeting of the Technology Lunch Bunch? If you didn't, you missed some important information about how to check on your children's school work. But you're going to have another chance to join us and this time it's for genealogy.
The Technology Lunch Bunch, sponsored by the library, will hold its second meeting on Tuesday, October 23rd, in the library's Willcoxon Auditorium. And this program is really user-friendly. It will be held two times on the 23rd; one meeting from noon to 1 p.m. and the second meeting from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. So, you have no excuse about not being able to attend. Besides, you really don't want to miss this one!
Aileen McNair will present the 30 to 40 minute program, Free Online Genealogy Databases. She is a DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) Field Genealogist and a Library Information Specialist at the Moultrie-Colquitt County Library.
The program will explore several FREE online genealogy databases that anyone with a computer and Internet access can use. (If you don't have a computer at home, you can use one of the library's computers by just showing your library card at the circulation desk.) Participants will preview the Odom Genealogy Library website, as well as the websites of World Connect, GenForum, and Family Search. They will also discuss how to use search engines as an aid to genealogical research.
After the presentation session, participants will be able to spend 20 to 30 minutes online with the presenter available to help explore the resources previously introduced.
If you're BIG into genealogy and want to know more about research, or if you're just starting your genealogy tracking, this is the meeting for you. Aileen's got loads of neat ideas to help you!!! And a major bonus of this meeting is that it's FREE! Another service provided by your local library. See you there!

October Is A NATIONAL Month

Often we find several National Something-or-Anothers in a month, but during this month we have four really great national events to celebrate.
October is National Book Month. The National Book Foundation, sponsor of this annual event, invites everyone to embark on the journey of a lifetime, travel to exotic places, mythical lands and experience adventure beyond imagination. Or escape to another era altogether. All without luggage, tickets, a passport or leaving home. All you need is an open mind. And an open book. With just a library card, you and your children can travel around the world. This is the month to get on the reading bus!
We are also celebrating National Crime Prevention Month. For the past 23 years National Crime Prevention Month has been observed in the month of October to help teach how to prevent crimes that are committed in the home and community. Since its inception in 1984, overall crime is down, and education and awareness is the key to crime prevention. When I hear things like 60% of residential burglaries occur during daylight hours or 65% of all burglaries are by forcible entry, that makes me want to learn anything I can about preventing crimes and join my local crime watch team.
Then there is National Family History Month. Each of us belongs to a family with traditions and a heritage that reflects who we are and where we come from. Family history research is among the most popular hobbies across the nation, with tens of millions of our fellow citizens actively researching their family histories and sharing family stories. The libraries, archives and museums of each state have a rich repository of information about our ancestors and their lives. Since October is National Family History Month, with celebrations and special programs planned throughout the nation, all citizens are encouraged to actively research and share their unique family histories and participate in Family History Month activities. Just remember, the Odom Genealogy Library is here for your use and has expanded its services. And I'll say more about Family History Month later. . .
National Stamp Collecting Month is also October. The annual event began in 1981 as a joint venture of the Council of Philatelic Organizations and the United States Postal Service. For the first National Stamp Collecting Month, then-postmaster general William F. Bolger called stamp collecting "the world's most popular hobby," and urged "employees and customers alike to discover the joy of stamp collecting - a hobby of a lifetime." The Postal Service has continued to promote the event by issuing special pictorial stamps intended to stimulate public interest in the hobby. And the United States isn't the only country to celebrate stamp collecting at a specific time. Germany and the Philippines also celebrate
the event.
Now back to National Family History Month. I'll celebrate it when our library hosts the Technology Lunch Bunch on Tuesday, October 23, with the program "Free Online Genealogy Databases." There will be two meetings held in the library's Willcoxon Auditorium; one at noon to 1 p.m. and the other at 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Pick one of the times and come join us. It's a great learning opportunity. . .
Happy National Something-or-Another month! Learn all you can!
(Source: http://childrensbooks.about.com/, http://www.prweb.com/, http://www.michigan.gov/, http://www.linns.com/)

Technology Lunch Bunch Meets Sept. 25

There used to be a comedian who said, "Have I got a deal for you!" That's what I'm going to say to you now! If you want to find out more about how your child is doing in school, then this meeting is for you. On Tuesday, September 25, a new group called the Technology Lunch Bunch will meet at noon in the Willcoxen Auditorium here at the library. These informal monthly meetings are aimed at expanding the library's free technology training for patrons. The first program, "Parent Connect," will be presented by Emily Nichols, director of information and instructional technology for the Colquitt County Board of Education. "Parent Connect" is an online application that is used by the Colquitt County schools to allow parents to track their child's grades, discipline and attendance. Participants need to contact their child's school in advance to get a password for the "Parent Connect" secure website so that they can explore the program while at the library. The presentation will be 45 minutes and computers will be available with help for 30 minutes after the program. Reservations can be made by calling the library at 985-6540. Bring a lunch and join us. And you might want to put these upcoming Technology Lunch Bunch programs on your calendar: October 23, Family History; November 13, Online Sites for Children and Parents. Plan ahead now for an hour or so of useful information. . .courtesy of your local library.