The trip to the Walker Art Center was fabulous, only regret was that we didn't have enough time. Next time we will plan to spend the entire day. It seemed like everyone in our group was inspired to come home and create.
The Quang was delicious, and Daniel the owner is the kindest most generous person ever. If you are in Minneapolis please consider eating at the Quang.
Our bus driver was Steve Holte from Key Ministries and he too is top notch. What a great man and fabulous service. Steve's bus company is based out of Glenwood, if you are looking for a charter bus please consider steve.
Check out the library's web page or facebook book fan page for more information and photos. www.walkerart.org
www.quangrestaurant.com
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Friday, August 13, 2010
Walker Art Center and the Quang Restaurant
Monday, August 9, 2010
Walker Art Museum
Next Tuesday the Zingleberry book group, which is for children grades three through six, will be taking a field trip the the Walker Art Museum in Minneapolis. We will also be eating at the Quang restaurant.
Here's the scoop; after reading "Julia Gilian and the Art of Knowing" by Alison McGhee the book group made paper mache masks (you'd have to read the book to know why). Then we were fortunate enough to have Alsion McGhee visit our library and spend some time with members of the Zingleberry book group, we also got to show her our paper mache projects. In the book "Julia Gilian and the Art of Knowing" the Quang restaurant is mentioned often along with their famous bubble tea so we decided we really needed to pay a visit. As luck would have it the Quang is normally closed on Tuesdays but will be opening that day just for our group.
We are visiting the Walker because our group is incredibly creative and wants to spend some time delving into assemblage art.
We will be using the book "How to be an Explorer of the World" next year as a part of our program so that we can be better observers of all that is around us.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
"Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" Shakespear
Last month, the library's book club read was "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, at least that was what we were suppose to read. I was surprised by the number of people who wrinkled up their nose at the book or seemed taken a back at having to read it again. Seems many of us have read that little gem while in junior high and it must of scared a good lot of us to pieces, because some were unwilling to venture there again. I am not being totally fair here, over 30 copies of the book checked out to book club members and probably most people read the book or at least give it their best shot.
The thing about Shakespeare is; he's brilliant. I use the term the term "he" loosely here because let's face it Shakespeare may not have written all of those plays and sonnets alone, at least that's what some of the experts say. Where was I? Oh yes, Shakespeare was a genius, witty, deep, humerus, romantic, insightful, a great observer of the human condition. I would guess that most people who claim to, "Not like Shakespeare." have most likely not given the writings a fair shake or had the chance to really understand what was being said. When you get it, you really get it.
For all of those people who didn't finish or start "Romeo and Juliet" don't feel too terribly bad I didn't finish either. I did after all read it in the 9th grade.
What I really wanted to write about was the movie we watched last night for film club.
It was of course "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet" directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes and in my humble opinion a master piece. The cinematography is breath taking, keep in mind Baz Lurhmann also brought us "Moulin Rouge" (need I say more). In this film you can feel the angst, the heat, the sun beating down, the dirt in wounds. And, this young love is brilliantly conveyed by these two immensely talented actors. When they first meet eyes, through a fish aquarium, my heart skipped a beat (we are talking Leonardo here). Baz Luhrmann did a magnificent job moving "Romeo and Juliet" into a modern urban setting and masterfully keeping the original language. trust me it works.
The cinematographer,Donald McAlpine is clearly a genius and how often do we talk about cinematographers? Not often enough.
But here is my point, I watched this movie about four or five years ago with my kids and I thought it was a great movie then, but last night something hit me.
"Romeo and Juliet" isn't a love story it's a tragedy and while we all supposedly know that; a jolt of lightening hit me and I thought, this is an anti violence or anti hate story. This is a parable of sorts about the tragedy of hate and violence. It is the tale of the tragic loss of innocence in which no one gains a thing. While that has always been perfectly articulated in the text, it never totally hit me until last night.
You might want to watch this movie or maybe even read the book.
The thing about Shakespeare is; he's brilliant. I use the term the term "he" loosely here because let's face it Shakespeare may not have written all of those plays and sonnets alone, at least that's what some of the experts say. Where was I? Oh yes, Shakespeare was a genius, witty, deep, humerus, romantic, insightful, a great observer of the human condition. I would guess that most people who claim to, "Not like Shakespeare." have most likely not given the writings a fair shake or had the chance to really understand what was being said. When you get it, you really get it.
For all of those people who didn't finish or start "Romeo and Juliet" don't feel too terribly bad I didn't finish either. I did after all read it in the 9th grade.
What I really wanted to write about was the movie we watched last night for film club.
It was of course "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet" directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes and in my humble opinion a master piece. The cinematography is breath taking, keep in mind Baz Lurhmann also brought us "Moulin Rouge" (need I say more). In this film you can feel the angst, the heat, the sun beating down, the dirt in wounds. And, this young love is brilliantly conveyed by these two immensely talented actors. When they first meet eyes, through a fish aquarium, my heart skipped a beat (we are talking Leonardo here). Baz Luhrmann did a magnificent job moving "Romeo and Juliet" into a modern urban setting and masterfully keeping the original language. trust me it works.
The cinematographer,Donald McAlpine is clearly a genius and how often do we talk about cinematographers? Not often enough.
But here is my point, I watched this movie about four or five years ago with my kids and I thought it was a great movie then, but last night something hit me.
"Romeo and Juliet" isn't a love story it's a tragedy and while we all supposedly know that; a jolt of lightening hit me and I thought, this is an anti violence or anti hate story. This is a parable of sorts about the tragedy of hate and violence. It is the tale of the tragic loss of innocence in which no one gains a thing. While that has always been perfectly articulated in the text, it never totally hit me until last night.
You might want to watch this movie or maybe even read the book.
Friday, July 30, 2010
It's not just for the kids
Children's picture books are not really just for children and they certainly aren't just for pre-readers or new readers. Truth be told many picture books are filled with beautiful though provoking stories; some that make you smile or laugh and others that make you cry. Picture books are also great exposure to art, for most people it is their first exposure to art.
A picture book read aloud at the breakfast or dinner table or as a night time story can encourage meaningful discussion with your children as well as an inspiration to their imagination.
Often times as adults or parents we push our kids to advance from picture books to chapter books too soon, like it's some kind of contest. While we do need to continue to advance in our reading skills often the traditional picture book may contain complex words, sentences and ideas. It is a total boost to a child's self-esteem to finish a book so I really encourage a mixture a chapter book or two along with a few picture books just to keep things fresh.
As an adult who works in a library I need to read some of these picture books to have a feel for what's out there, what kids like, what experts are recommending and what would make a good read aloud. I have come across some children's picture books that are so fabulous that I have to go out and purchase a copy to have on hand at home for young visitors. I have learned a great deal from reading picture books and I have also been mesmerized by beautiful illustrations, sometimes I just can't wait to share those beautiful pictures with someone else.
Here is a list of some new and some old picture books that should be read by young and old alike:
"The Curious Garden" by Peter Brown
"My People" by Langston Hughes
"Red Sings from Treetops: a Year in Colors" by Joyce Sidman & illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski ~ a personal favorite.
"Farm" by Elisha Cooper
"Make Way for Ducklings" by Robert Mccloskey
"The Paper bag Princess" by Robert Munsch
"Yertel the Turtle" by Dr. Seuss
"The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss
"Mike Mulligan and his steam shovel" by Virgina Lee Burton
"Odd Velvet" by Mary E. Witcomb
"Blueberries for Sal" By Robert Mccloskey
"Horton Hatches the Egg" by Dr. Seuss
"Our Tree Named Steve" by Alan Zweibel
"Pink and Say" by Patricia Polacco
I could go on but half the fun of reading a good book is finding it first.
A picture book read aloud at the breakfast or dinner table or as a night time story can encourage meaningful discussion with your children as well as an inspiration to their imagination.
Often times as adults or parents we push our kids to advance from picture books to chapter books too soon, like it's some kind of contest. While we do need to continue to advance in our reading skills often the traditional picture book may contain complex words, sentences and ideas. It is a total boost to a child's self-esteem to finish a book so I really encourage a mixture a chapter book or two along with a few picture books just to keep things fresh.
As an adult who works in a library I need to read some of these picture books to have a feel for what's out there, what kids like, what experts are recommending and what would make a good read aloud. I have come across some children's picture books that are so fabulous that I have to go out and purchase a copy to have on hand at home for young visitors. I have learned a great deal from reading picture books and I have also been mesmerized by beautiful illustrations, sometimes I just can't wait to share those beautiful pictures with someone else.
Here is a list of some new and some old picture books that should be read by young and old alike:
"The Curious Garden" by Peter Brown
"My People" by Langston Hughes
"Red Sings from Treetops: a Year in Colors" by Joyce Sidman & illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski ~ a personal favorite.
"Farm" by Elisha Cooper
"Make Way for Ducklings" by Robert Mccloskey
"The Paper bag Princess" by Robert Munsch
"Yertel the Turtle" by Dr. Seuss
"The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss
"Mike Mulligan and his steam shovel" by Virgina Lee Burton
"Odd Velvet" by Mary E. Witcomb
"Blueberries for Sal" By Robert Mccloskey
"Horton Hatches the Egg" by Dr. Seuss
"Our Tree Named Steve" by Alan Zweibel
"Pink and Say" by Patricia Polacco
I could go on but half the fun of reading a good book is finding it first.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
The Marketing Obession
I have an attraction to marketing books that I can't really explain. On some levels I find marketing the kind of thing I might be against, I mean when you think about encouraging people to purchase things that they don't really need or maybe even want. Let's face it, marketing isn't all about making sales; it's also about recognition, being heard, getting your message out there.
Most marketing books have some tidbit to garner, you may not want to swallow everything hook line and sinker but their is value from learning about other people's experiences.
Here are some things I found of value from books I have read and I will list the books at the end of this post.
Keep your web page clean and simple, don't list things below the fold. "Homepage Usability: 50 Websites Deconstructed" by Jakob Nielsen. I may have taken this advice a bit serious, our web page has become very minimal.
Include not only your businesses address but also it's location; for example across the street from the court house. ~ This is great advice I just can't remember which of the books I found it in so you might want to read them all.
Tell your story ~ don't make up a fake story ~ tell real story or maybe even the back story. "Baked In: Creating Products and Businesses That Market Themselves" by Alex Bogusky.
Encourage creativity, embrace mistakes, create chaos, work in cramped quarters to encourage collaboration and idea sharing ~ "Bang! : "getting your message heard in a noisy world" Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval, with Delia Marshall.
"The next evolution of marketing : connect with your customers by marketing with meaning" Bob Gilbreath.
"The new rules of marketing and PR : how to use social media, blogs, news releases, online video, & viral marketing to reach buyers directly" David Meerman Scott.
"Guerrilla marketing for nonprofits" by Jay Conrad Levinson, Frank Adkins, and Chris Forbes.
"Marketing without advertising" by Michael Phillips & Salli Rasberry ; edited by Catherine Caputo.
"Guerrilla marketing : easy and inexpensive strategies for making big profits from your small business" Jay Conrad Levinson ; with Jeannie Levinson and Amy Levinson.
"The new rules of marketing and PR : how to use news releases, blogs, podcasting, viral marketing, and online media to reach your buyers directly" by David Meerman Scott.
One book suggested pretty much only advertising in the Yellow pages, which I didn't think would fly in my neck of the woods.
The end story here is that you probably need to pull information from as many places as possible to see what works best for you and your business or organization.
Most marketing books have some tidbit to garner, you may not want to swallow everything hook line and sinker but their is value from learning about other people's experiences.
Here are some things I found of value from books I have read and I will list the books at the end of this post.
Keep your web page clean and simple, don't list things below the fold. "Homepage Usability: 50 Websites Deconstructed" by Jakob Nielsen. I may have taken this advice a bit serious, our web page has become very minimal.
Include not only your businesses address but also it's location; for example across the street from the court house. ~ This is great advice I just can't remember which of the books I found it in so you might want to read them all.
Tell your story ~ don't make up a fake story ~ tell real story or maybe even the back story. "Baked In: Creating Products and Businesses That Market Themselves" by Alex Bogusky.
Encourage creativity, embrace mistakes, create chaos, work in cramped quarters to encourage collaboration and idea sharing ~ "Bang! : "getting your message heard in a noisy world" Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval, with Delia Marshall.
"The next evolution of marketing : connect with your customers by marketing with meaning" Bob Gilbreath.
"The new rules of marketing and PR : how to use social media, blogs, news releases, online video, & viral marketing to reach buyers directly" David Meerman Scott.
"Guerrilla marketing for nonprofits" by Jay Conrad Levinson, Frank Adkins, and Chris Forbes.
"Marketing without advertising" by Michael Phillips & Salli Rasberry ; edited by Catherine Caputo.
"Guerrilla marketing : easy and inexpensive strategies for making big profits from your small business" Jay Conrad Levinson ; with Jeannie Levinson and Amy Levinson.
"The new rules of marketing and PR : how to use news releases, blogs, podcasting, viral marketing, and online media to reach your buyers directly" by David Meerman Scott.
One book suggested pretty much only advertising in the Yellow pages, which I didn't think would fly in my neck of the woods.
The end story here is that you probably need to pull information from as many places as possible to see what works best for you and your business or organization.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Gail's recent books, movies and music...
I just finished reading "If This was Happiness: A Biography of Rita Hayworth" by Barbara Leaming. I have been interested in Rita Hayworth for about 25 years, ever since a former employer made an interesting comment about her. After all this time I finally picked up a book about her and truthfully I could hardly put it down. You can always tell when a book has an impact on me because I talk and talk about; it's like every day I have to give my family, friends and co-workers the update.
Rita Hayworth lived a Hollywood life that really mirrors so much of what we read in the headlines about celebrities today. A tragic childhood, a string of unhealthy relationships and failed marriages, the paparazzi it just goes on and on.
I was surprised to learn that Rita Hayworth had been married to Orson Wells and that she had loaned him large sums of money. While I've always known that Grace Kelly was married to a Prince I didn't know that Rita Hayworth wayworth was married to prince.
Rita was first and foremost known for for dancing with her beginnings going to back to a dance routine she did with her father, a Spanish native and dancer back to vaudeville days. I really don't want to say too much but I assure this book is a trip down memory lane and ties famous people together in surprising ways.
I was really shocked at how many peole used Rita for her beauty, talent and earning power.
Sadly Rita fell victim to early onset Alzheimer's and died in her 60's, it also broke my heart that diagnoses came late and those early onset symptoms were thought to be the result of a drinking problem damaging Rita's reputation.
This book gave me a whole new respect for this legendary beauty.
So what do you suppose I have been watching? Nothing other than Rita Hayworth movies of course. For my viewing enjoyment I selected "Gilda" one of Rita's most famous performances and her performance of "Blame It On Mame" is fabulous. The movie had a "Casablanca" kind of feel to it, yet it stands on its own as a good film. The movie will leave no doubt in your mind that Rita was one of America's most beautiful actress of all times.
What did I add to my ipod after this Rita book and film fetish? Well of course Rita Hayworth. The album is "The Heat Is On." I did hear somewhere that she didn't actually sing, it was lip synching in her movies and I'm not sure who is singing on record ~ After a brief Internet search I cannot confirm who is really singing but I will let you know if I find out.
Rita Hayworth lived a Hollywood life that really mirrors so much of what we read in the headlines about celebrities today. A tragic childhood, a string of unhealthy relationships and failed marriages, the paparazzi it just goes on and on.
I was surprised to learn that Rita Hayworth had been married to Orson Wells and that she had loaned him large sums of money. While I've always known that Grace Kelly was married to a Prince I didn't know that Rita Hayworth wayworth was married to prince.
Rita was first and foremost known for for dancing with her beginnings going to back to a dance routine she did with her father, a Spanish native and dancer back to vaudeville days. I really don't want to say too much but I assure this book is a trip down memory lane and ties famous people together in surprising ways.
I was really shocked at how many peole used Rita for her beauty, talent and earning power.
Sadly Rita fell victim to early onset Alzheimer's and died in her 60's, it also broke my heart that diagnoses came late and those early onset symptoms were thought to be the result of a drinking problem damaging Rita's reputation.
This book gave me a whole new respect for this legendary beauty.
So what do you suppose I have been watching? Nothing other than Rita Hayworth movies of course. For my viewing enjoyment I selected "Gilda" one of Rita's most famous performances and her performance of "Blame It On Mame" is fabulous. The movie had a "Casablanca" kind of feel to it, yet it stands on its own as a good film. The movie will leave no doubt in your mind that Rita was one of America's most beautiful actress of all times.
What did I add to my ipod after this Rita book and film fetish? Well of course Rita Hayworth. The album is "The Heat Is On." I did hear somewhere that she didn't actually sing, it was lip synching in her movies and I'm not sure who is singing on record ~ After a brief Internet search I cannot confirm who is really singing but I will let you know if I find out.
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