Parking Alert! Swim Center Event this weekend

The 43rd Swimnetwork.com Santa Clara International Invitational Swim Event will begin this Thursday, June 17, 2010 and conclude Sunday, June 20. Because of the big demand on parking for the swim meet, parking in the library's underground parking garage will be limited to library card holders. Read more about the event here.

If you are coming to the library, feel free to park in the underground garage, just have your library card ready to show to the parking garage attendant before entering.

posted by mb

Shrink Your Lawn

Join Master Gardener Angie Chiappa, for a program on adding beautiful low-water native plants or Mediterranean plants to reduce your lawn and save you water expenses. Want to get year-round bloom or find plants that attract birds or butterflies? Angie can help.

Tuesday, June 29, 2010, 6:00 - 7:30 pm in the Redwood Room at Central Park Library

Sign up by calling (408) 615-2900

Tuesday, July 27 at 6:30 p.m., learn even more about California Native Gardening from Alrie Middlebrook of the California Native Gardening Foundation and Middlebrook Gardens. More details to come.

In the meantime, try these books:

Success with water-saving gardens by Graham Clarke 635.9525 C59

Gardening the Mediterranean way by Heidi Gildmeister 635.9525 W42

Designing California native gardens by Glenn Keator and Alrie Middlebrook 635.951 K25

Butterfly gardening: creating summer magic in your garden created by the Xerces Society 635.967 B98

Attracting Birds, Butterflies & other winged wonders to your backyard by Kris Wetherbee 639.978 W53

posted by mb

Here, Kitty, Kitty, Kitty, Kitty!

Calling all cat lovers: Did you know that June is "Adopt-A-Cat Month"? The American Humane Association wants to see as many cats as possible get a loving home. In addition to watching the TV show "Cats 101" on Animal Planet, use the library to learn the facts, read stories with cats in them, and borrow movies to watch on your DVD player. Titles marked with an * can be found in the adult section of the library:

Cat Breeds

Calico's Cousins: Cats from Around the World by Phyllis Tildes

The Ultimate Cat Book by David Taylor

We're Having a Kitten!: From the Big Decision through the Crucial First Year by Eric Swanson

General Cat Facts

*The Cat Encyclopedia

*The Cat Fanciers' Association Complete Cat Book edited by Mordechai Siegal

*The Cat Owner's Problem Solver by John Bower

*Catalog by Bruce Fogle

Cats: How to Choose and Care for a Cat by Laura Jeffrey

Do Cats Hear with Their Feet?: Where Cats Come From, What We Know about Them, and What They Think about Us by Jake Page

Cat Fiction for Older Kids

Fashion Kitty and the Unlikely Hero by Charise Mericle Harper

Fat Cat of Underwhere by Bruce Hale

Polo's Mother by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Shadow World by Jane Johnson

Warriors series by Erin Hunter

Cat Picture and Easy Reader Books

Alex and Lulu: Two of a Kind by Lorena Siminovich

Cat by Matthew Van Fleet

Cat the Cat, Who Is That? by Mo Willems

Chester's Masterpiece by Mélanie Watt

Chicken the Cat Clean Up by Sara Varon

If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Joffe Numeroff

Frankie Works the Night Shift by Lisa Westberg Peters

Mr. Pusskins: A Love Story by Sam Lloyd

Posy by Linda Newbery

What's That, Mittens? by Lola M. Schaefer

Media - Facts (DVDs)

*Big Cats

*The Ideal Companion: A Guide to Choosing the Perfect Cat

*Understanding Cats with Roger Tabor

Media (Fun)

Have fun watching some of these cat-centric DVDs at home.

The Adventures of Milo and Otis [DVD]

The Aristocats [DVD]

Cats & Dogs [DVD]

Garfield [DVD]

Lolcats - If you haven't heard of this yet, it's a website where you'll find lots of cute pictures of cats. The best part? The captions. Try writing your own or amuse yourself by seeing what others thought up.

Youtube

Iggy investigates an iPad - Technology is fun for cats, too.

Nora plays the piano! - Do a search on Youtube for "cat" and "piano," and you'll be surprised what's out there.

Other Community, California, and Worldwide Cat-Friendly Resources

The Cat Fanciers' Association - A non-profit organization that has the largest registry of pedigreed cats in the world.

Humane Society of Silicon Valley - Visit the Humane Society to find a new best friend (with your parents' permission, of course!). The organization also accepts food, time, and money donations to support their effort to adopt rescued animals.

Petfinder.com - Looking to adopt a pet? Ask your parents, and maybe you can find a new friend through Petfinder.

Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority - Their mission is to "ensure the well-being of both animals and residents in our communities by delivering high-quality, responsive and cost-effective animal control services."

Please visit the Youth Services desk and ask a librarian if you want help finding any resources about cats!

Posted by wk

The Sierra Nevada in the words of famous authors

Join us Wednesday, June 16, 2010, 7:00-8:30 p.m. in the Redwood Room for a discussion with the editors of The Illuminated Landscape, a new collection of essays, poetry, and stories by well-known writers such as Henry David Thoreau, Mark Twain, Mary Austin, Wallace Stegner, Gary Snyder, T. Coraghessan Boyle, and Ishmael Reed. Readers will also find original works from local authors which reveal how important the Sierra has become to our cultural psyche.

Called a "book that belongs on the best-of-the-best of Californiana," by W.R. Swagerty, Director of the John Muir Center at the University of the Pacific, The Illuminated Landscape will be available for purchase and signing.

Editors Gary Noy, history professor and Director of the Sierra College Center for Sierra Nevada Studies and Rick Heide, a member of the San Francisco Bay area publishing community, will discuss how they selected authors and they will read favorite passages.

This program is co-sponsored by publisher Heyday Books, Santa Clara University's California Legacy Project, and the Foundation & Friends of Santa Clara City Library.

Sign up by calling (408) 615-2900 or stop by the Reference Desk on the 2nd floor of Central Park Library.

posted by mb

The Patience of Patients

After spending a little time in the emergency room the other day, I've learned a few things:

1) The order in which one gets seen by a doctor seems to be decided by the same formula as what becomes a top story on cable news. The guy who has a superficial, yet dramatic looking cut on his forehead gets seen quickly. As for Mr. Three-Day-Long-Unexplainable-Chest-Pain, he's waited this long to see a doctor, a little bit more won't hurt (in the metaphorical sense of course).

2) Despite what TV shows like to portray, the only thing "exciting" about an emergency room is trying not to catch whatever the person sitting to the left or right of you has. (I generally try to sit next to the person with the most obvious and non-communicable aliment. Heavy bandaging is usually a good sign. Though considering point #1, the turnover at those seats is far higher than the ones by the guy sniffling in the corner.)

3) Would it kill someone to design a waiting room that isn't depressing to be in? Sorry... poor choice of terms. But really, if you are going to be there for ages (please see point #4 to prove that this is a literal statement), the room you sit in should not be oddly dark at all hours with a paint color best described as pea green gross. It's already bad enough your body hurts; your eyes shouldn't have to as well (unless, of course, it was your eyes that landed you there in the first place) .

4) Time becomes plastic in a waiting room. Quantum physicists should study the mutations of time while sitting in an uncomfortable, hard plastic chair. I'm pretty sure its "fabric" is getting stretched a bit.

5) Being slightly of the hypochondriac variety gives you many opportunities to relearn these lessons. Many, many opportunities.
posted by jw

Be SAFE this Summer!

Did you know that June is National Safety Month? National Safety Month is the National Safety Council's effort to reach their goal of saving an "additional 10,000 lives and prevent 1 million injuries" by 2014. [source] Visit the display in the Youth Services section of the library for more information.

Some things to keep in mind so that you stay safe this summer:

• When riding your bike, know and follow all trafic rules! Learn hand signals for turning left and right, ride with traffic, and wear reflective clothing and a helmet.
• Always supervise children near water. In 2005, there were 3,582 fatal unintentional downings in the United States, averaging ten deaths per day. [source]
• Limit time in the sun. Too much sun can mean sunstroke. If you need to be outside in the heat, wear a hat and sunscreen and reapply frequently. Drink lots of water!
• Next month, July 4th brings fun things like fireworks and sparklers. Parents, please supervise all children!
  

Check out a book or visit these websites to learn more about summer and year-round safety:

• Centers for Disease Control - Home and Recreational Safety
• KidsHealth
• Santa Clara Police Department
• National Safety Month
  

“On the Path to Good Health” is supported by Kaiser Permanente and the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends.

Posted by wk

Come to the party Saturday!

Water Your Mind Read is the theme of this year's Adult Summer Reading Program. Join us for the launch party this Saturday, June 5 from 1-4p.m.

How does it work?

Sign up (between June 5 and July 17), read 5 books, turn in your reading log (between August 2 and August 28) and get a prize! All finishers will be entered in a drawing for a gift certificate from Orchard Supply Hardware and Barnes and Noble bookstore.

Check the Summer Reading web page for up to date information on programs and speakers and prizes. June 29th from 6:00-7:30 p.m. Angie Chiappa, a Santa Clara County Master Gardener will present "Shrink Your Lawn."

posted by mb