Want to start using Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, but don’t know where to start? Let the library teach you the quick-n-nifty basics at one of our “Mini” basics courses. Space is still available for both classes! Basic computer and internet skills are required, and you must register for the class by stopping into the library, giving us a call (475-8732 x219), or registering online.
Word 2007 Basic – MINI
Sunday, August 1st | 1:30pm | Learning Lab Click here to register
PowerPoint 2007 Basic – MINI
Sunday, August 8th | 1:30pm | Learning Lab Click here to register
~Megan, your friendly neighborhood Adult Services Librarian
With generous support from the community and our partners, a pergola is going in the Library’s Reading Garden to provide a shady space for outdoor activities. It’s also an opportunity for a community art project! The pergola columns will be lined with ceramic tiles created by students through a partnership with the schools and familes and individuals will be invited to make tiles at future library events. The tiles will be embedded in the columns as a lasting record of community involvement.
Construction has begun already and next week the structure will begin to be put into place and should be nearing completion by mid-August. Stop by and check out the progress!
Many thanks to those that made this project possible:
Partner Organizations: Chelsea Center for the Arts, River Gallery, Gerald E. Eddy Discovery Center and Chelsea School District
Design and Construction: Dangerous Architects and Riemco Building Company
Library Art Committee: Lynn Fox, Aubrey Martinson, Patti Schwarz, Scott McElrath, Rick DeTroyer, Meg Gower and Janet Alford
Donors: Dangerous Architects, Riemco Building Company, Friends of the Chelsea District Library and Rotary Club
The Washtenaw County Historical Society just opened a new exhibit: MoMS Quilts, which started on July 17 and will run until September 5th. The Museum is open from noon until 4pm on Saturdays and Sundays, although you can make arrangements with museum docents in advance if you would like a tour at a different time. All the quilts are part of the Washtenaw County Historical Society’s collection, some dating as far back as the 19th century. To learn more about the Museum on Main Street other upcoming events with the Washtenaw County Historical Society, please visit their website here: http://washtenawhistory.org/index.php.
Log Cabin quilty pattern, accessed 26 July 2010 from http://washtenawhistory.org
~Rachael, Adult Services Librarian and historic textiles geek
Read about the most devastating storms of the last 50 years…
“A well-known meteorologist and founder of WeatherData, Smith takes readers on a fast-paced account of the biggest storms in recent years and how weather forecasting has developed into a true science since the 1950s. Part memoir, part science account, Smith’s tale begins in the late 1940s, when weathermen were actually forbidden to broadcast tornado warnings. The U.S. Weather Bureau blocked storm forecasting for fear of getting it wrong, just as today, according to Smith, the FAA has banned weather radios from airport control towers. He delivers a moment-by-moment account of the monster tornado that leveled Greensburg, Kans., in 2007 as well as a damning account of governmental incompetence in the leadup to Hurricane Katrina. But as Smith shows, scientists themselves can be close-minded and prevent their field from progressing: Smith recounts the struggle by Theodore Fujita, creator of the tornado severity scale, to see his findings on microbursts-which have killed hundreds of people in airline crashes-accepted by other scientists. This account of people who do something about the weather should appeal to just about anyone who enjoys talking about it.”
Henning Mankell’s most recent book takes a detour from his Kurt Wallander series, spinning a mystery of global proportions. In The Man from Beijing, we are introduced to Birgitta Roslin, a well-respected judge in the Swedish legal system. A gruesome mass murder attracts her attention as a private citizen; she is related (but not by blood) to two of the 19 victims. She takes it upon herself to solve the horrific crime, a task that takes her to Beijing and London.
Rather than spoil the plot by giving away details that you’ll have more fun unveiling for yourself, I’ll just say that the mystery takes on a historical aspect. You’re introduced to the killer before Roslin is and you’ll question Roslin’s what this reader thought were absolutely air-headed decisions. However, the action does move along at a decent pace and readers will push through the brusque dialogue (do Swedes really interact like that or just in Mankell’s world? Or did our translator not do the work full justice?) towards the end. Final verdict? Most readers won’t have an problem putting this down before bed, but an enjoyable summer read nonetheless.
The Chelsea District Library and the Chelsea Center for the Arts are pleased to announce cartoonist Jerzy Drozd as the 2010-2011 Chelsea Artist-in-Residence.
Jerzy has published graphic novels and worked as an illustrator, but his greatest passion is sharing the power of images to tell a story. In his upcoming Mini-Comics Workshop for adults this fall, Jerzy will guide participants through the process of visual storytelling using simple stick figures, with lots of discussion and examples of some of the primary concepts. This workshop is a fascinating way to give any story new life and meaning by harnessing the power of pictures.
You can see examples of Jerzy’s work and learn more about his teaching background at his website: www.jdrozd.com. We’ll be hosting an Artist-in-Residence reception to bid farewell to our outgoing Artists-in-Residence Nancy Seligmann and Saleem Peeradina and to welcome Jerzy to the community at the River Gallery on Sunday, September 26 at 2 p.m. Please join us!
Detroit-area Channel 4 news is running a poll to determine the best of the best in the Detroit area – from Best Restaurant to Best Park to Best Festival. Currently, the Chelsea Community Fair is ranked #3 on the Best Festival and it deserves to be #1! Click here to cast your vote!
Voting runs through September 6, so there’s plenty of time to spread the word and support the Chelsea Community Fair, which takes place August 24-28, 2010. Mark your calendar!
The Adult Learner’s Institute of Chelsea has just released their fall course listings in advance of their Registration Kickoff on Tuesday, August 10th at Silver Maples. A few of this fall’s offerings include:
Appreciating Music (Even the Weird Kind) by Ken Kozora
The Fascinating Life of Sandhill Cranes by Tom Hodgson
Journeys Through Western Civilization: Proto-Renaissance and Renaissance Art in Italy by Nancy Nilsson
You know what they say, when you live someplace you never make it to the local attractions! For all of us living in and near Chelsea, how many can say they’ve done the Jiffy Mix factory tour? (Pssst, you know, you can join the Historic Chelsea Interest Group on July 29th if you’d like to make the tour! Click here to register!)
Well, another one of these local gems, according to a recent review in the Ann Arbor Observer, is Stivers Restaurant, just off I-94 at Fletcher.
I’ve passed it many times, but never stopped in. I’m going to have to change that! Just reading about their dinner specials and dessert selection (fresh, house-made pies!) is making me hungry. And it’s not even noon yet!
