Gifts for Book Lovers

The holidays are almost here!  Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa (or Chrismahanukwanzikah, as I like to call it) are just around the corner!  Still don't know what to get for that book lover on your list (besides books, of course)?  Well, here is your friendly neighborhood perch librarian to the rescue! Ta da!

Believe it or not, some bigger library systems have online stores that sell all kinds of things for bibliophiles that you can't find anywhere else.  There are date due socks and banned books bags.  There are various mugs, stickers, and of course, bookmarks displaying the logo of a particular library.  I know I love my New York Public Library magnet and my Seattle Public Library rubber duckie!

So, here are some places you can shop for the book lover in your life:

• Library of Congress
• Los Angeles Public Library
• New York Public Library 
• San Diego Public Library  
• Seattle Public Library   

Still not sure what to get?  Then try these websites with all kinds of good bookish things:

• 22 Affordable Gifts for Readers
• 24 Insanely Clever Gifts for Book Lovers
• 50 Best Literary Gifts for a Modern Day Book Lover
• 2016 Holiday Gift Guide for Librarians and Book Lovers
• The Best Non-Book Gifts for Bookworms
• Unique Gifts for Readers 

Hopefully, these websites will give you some good ideas on what to get your bibliophile, perch librarian, or yourself for the holidays.

Readings greetings from the perch!

Turn to the Spiritual Side

The most wonderful time of the year?  How about the most stressful time of the year?  Turn on the radio...there's holiday music.  Go online...there's holiday sales.  Drive to town...there's holiday traffic.  Everything is holiday, holiday, holiday.  It's enough to make anyone anxious...unless you make time for some self-care.

By that I mean meditation, and not necessarily the kind that makes you sit crossed-leg on the floor and chant "om" (unless, of course, that's the kind you prefer).  Meditation is all about taking a short break to calm yourself and your mind.  It's about putting a little time aside for yourself to feel peaceful and able to handle the different things that pop up in your life.

I don't know about you, but my mind is usually all over the place like a caffeinated squirrel, and during this time of year my mind goes into overdrive.  I feel I barely have enough time or energy to do all the things I need to get done.  Five minutes, however, isn't a lot of time.  So, every morning I set the timer on my phone for 5 minutes, I sit down comfortably on a cushion, close my eyes, and focus on my breathing.  I breathe in; I breathe out.  That's basically it.  I give myself permission not to think and stay in the moment.  And guess what--it works!

Perhaps sitting down for 5 minutes by yourself in silence is too daunting?  Maybe you need a little more guidance?  Not to worry.  We have meditation CDs at the library that can take you through a guided meditation, and we have books that can offer advice on meditating and starting your own personal practice.

Experts say that besides reducing stress, meditating can strengthen your immune system, help you sleep better, and make you happier in general, among many other benefits.  That's a pretty fruitful five minutes a day, don't you think?

Wishing you peace and a stress-free Holiday Season from the perch.

Attitude of Gratitude

Gulp.  It's here again--the holiday season.  I know some of us are real holiday people.  You probably know some of them.  The ones who start playing Christmas music after Halloween, put up the tree before Thanksgiving, and have their cards sent out by Black Friday.

Then there are those of us who dread the holidays.  The ones who are afraid to go anywhere near the mall beginning the week of Thanksgiving, do all their Christmas shopping online, and try to hibernate in bed or on the sofa until after New Year's.

Whether you're holiday-centric or holiday-phobic, there's one thing everyone can do around the holidays to make them feel better--have an attitude of gratitude.  That's right.  Rather than thinking about all the things to do, pause for a moment and reflect on the things for which you're grateful, the things you already have.

Keeping a gratitude journal is great for stopping and thinking of the things that make you feel grateful.  Get a notebook and simply list the things you're grateful about.  And don't list material things.  List the things money can't buy, like a beautiful sunset, a stranger's smile, or a friend calling to say hello.  You can do this daily, weekly, monthly, or whenever you want.  Experts say that taking the time for gratitude actually helps your physical and psychological health, among having other benefits.

There are also books that promote gratitude (hey, you know I have to plug some library items).  Oliver Sack's aptly named book, Gratitude, is comprised of four essays in which the author expresses his gratitude.  David J. Pelzer's Help Yourself focuses on the rewards gratitude can bring.  Even Julie Andrews and her daughter introduce the concept of gratitude to younger readers in The Very Fairy Princess: Attitude of Gratitude through a school Gratitude Day.

So, no matter which side of the holiday fence you're on, make some time for a little gratitude.  You'll be grateful you did.

Ever gratefully yours from the perch.

Social Cataloguing

A lot of people come up to the perch asking me if I can tell them which books they've checked out in the past.  The simple answer is no.  There are a couple of reasons why.  First, our program for checking out books deletes a library patron's record once items are returned.  Second, and most importantly, the library doesn't keep a record of what a patron has checked out in the past to protect his or her privacy.  The library only has a record of current checkouts.

Although the library doesn't keep lists of books previously borrowed, that doesn't mean you can't.  There are social cataloguing websites to help you keep track of what you've read, rate books, and write reviews.  You can also see what other people are reading and recommending, or you can join a virtual book club discussing a selection you liked (or disliked).

LibraryThing and Goodreads are probably the most popular and well known social cataloguing websites.  I've had an account with LibraryThing for years (as perchlibrarian, naturally), and it's personally enriched my reading experience.  My list of books includes those I've finished reading and those I'm currently reading.  Sometimes I like looking through my list to see what I've read before (because I can't remember everything I've read) and to see how many books I usually read in a year.  Other times I like seeing recommended books and occasionally find a few new reads.

Social cataloguing websites are just one way to enhance your reading experience.  For more ideas on how to add to your reading enjoyment, stop by the library--it won't cost you much!

Ever yours in reading from the perch.

"Fall" Into a Book

The leaves are changing color, the days are getting shorter, and the nights are turning cool.  No doubt about it, fall is here.  I don't know about the rest of you, but this time of year makes me want to cuddle in a blanket on the sofa with a cup of tea and a good book.  And if you're looking for some books for those long nights, allow me to make some suggestions:

• The Walk (Richard Paul Evans)  A man loses everything--his wife, his business, his house--and copes by walking from Seattle to Key West, meeting different people along the way while he gets back on his feet, literally.
• Eat, Pray, Love (Elizabeth Gilbert)  A woman reboots herself by eating in Italy, praying in India, and finding love in Indonesia.
• The Hearts of Horses (Molly Gloss)  During the winter of 1917, a young woman horse whisperer connects with horses and a small community in Eastern Oregon.
• The Cider House Rules (John Irving)  The story of a doctor and orphanage director along with his favorite orphan in rural Maine.
• The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Washington Irving)  The classic tale of a headless horseman chasing a lanky schoolteacher.
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling)  An orphaned boy discovers he's a wizard and learns all about the magical world at a special school in the British countryside. 
• Farmer Boy (Laura Ingalls Wilder)  The farm is both a place of hard work and comfort for a young boy in Upstate New York.

Of course, there are many more books you can find in the library that are great fall reads.  Maybe you have a favorite fall book?  If you do, share it with the rest of us!

Wishing you a fabulous fall from the perch.

Honor and Respect

I don't know about you, but the 15th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks hit me pretty hard last week.  I didn't want to put on the TV because of the programs and news shows commemorating the anniversary.  It's not that I didn't care about what happened.  Quite the opposite.  As a New Yorker and as a human being, I remembered and relived the intense emotions of that day--fear, uncertainty, shock, sadness, grief.

This past April, I went to Ground Zero in New York City.  I stood by the two reflecting pools, and around the perimeters, I looked at the names of those who perished.  I saw flowers left behind by loved ones who visited.  I stood under the Survivor's Tree, the tree that somehow withstood the collapse of the Twin Towers, and I cried.  I simply broke down at the reality of what happened, at the many lives that ended so violently.

And at that place where such tragedy occurred, at that somber memorial, I saw a young girl of about 12 or 13 smile happily for a photo.  What she did struck me as out of place.  She was obviously too young to have lived through that fateful day, and her memories of it are all secondhand from parents, teachers, TV, and the Internet.  I didn't blame her for her youth and innocence, but I had a difficult time grasping how anyone could show such cheerfulness in a place of such sorrow.  It was similar to another young woman sometime back who took a selfie happily posing by the infamous gates of Auschwitz.

I know I'm a fuddy-duddy.  I know I strongly hold on to old-fashioned values--respect, honor, decency, humility--in a time when those values are ignored by so many.  However, those values do not and should not pertain to any particular time and place.  They are human, universal values that transcend the ages and national boundaries.  When we go to memorials and cemeteries, we should pause and reflect.  Give some thought to our predecessors.  Honor and respect them.

For the record, I did have my picture taken at Ground Zero as a personal keepsake of my visit, but I didn't smile.  My heart was full of emotion and my head full of thoughts of the roughly 3,000 people who died in that spot.  There was nothing for me to smile about.

Respectfully yours from the perch.

 

Ubuntu

Are you tired and frustrated with Microsoft Windows?  Is it clogging up your computer and making it run slow?  Are you fed up with all the updates and security patches?  Do you want to break away from the crowd and use a different operating system that's faster, more secure, and potentially better?  Well, there are different operating systems that are gaining popularity, and one that's getting more users these days is a Linux-based system called Ubuntu.

After spending close to 20 years using some version of Windows on my own desktops or laptops, I recently made the big switch to Ubuntu because 1) I wasn't pleased with Windows 10, 2) my laptop seemed to be more annoying than useful, 3) my hard drive eventually crashed, and 4) my techno-savvy husband rebuilt my laptop and installed Ubuntu on it.  Although I've gone through a brief period of adjustment to Ubuntu, it hasn't been all that difficult.

Amazingly, Ubuntu works similar to Microsoft Windows.  You have a desktop and folders into which you can save your personal files, photos, or whatever else.  If you're into taking pictures like I am, Shotwell Photo Manager allows you to crop, straighten, resize, and do other things to your photos to make them more professional looking just like Microsoft Office Picture Manager.

I pretty much do the same things with Ubuntu as I did with Windows.  You can download a Microsoft Office alternative like LibreOffice for free, but there are also free online programs through Google (i.e., Docs, Sheets, Slides) and Zoho (i.e., Writer, Sheet, Show) that compensate for Microsoft programs.  Additionally, I can use web browsers like Firefox or Google Chrome just like I did with Windows.

To get Ubuntu, you can download it for free (yes, FREE) from the Internet.  It's more secure because computer hackers are targeting Microsoft Windows, the system that about 90% of the world is using.  Compare that with Ubuntu users who make up about 2% of the world's computer market.  Nevertheless, Ubuntu is slowly catching on with private users and with public libraries, which are switching to it for the greater security and privacy it offers patrons, not to mention the price.

So, if you're looking to try a different operating system, consider Ubuntu.  You may be pleasantly surprised by it.

Ever helpfully yours from the perch.

Library Anxiety!

As your friendly neighborhood perch librarian, I've always found the library to be a place of comfort--I can lose myself in the many worlds of books, find a cozy chair to curl into, and have plenty of peace and quiet.  I realize, though, that not everyone may share my views of the library and may even regard it as a forbidding place.  Washington State University has identified the most common symptoms of library anxiety:

• Fear of space in the library.
• Fear of approaching a librarian.
• Fear of not knowing how to use the library.
• Fear of doing research.

Hopefully, for those of you who have library anxiety, I can alleviate your fears.

The library space is YOUR space.  You can move about it wherever you want, you can come and go as you please.  You don't have to ask us permission to use the bathroom, go to your car, come back later, etc.  We try to make the library environment as comfortable as possible with soft, cushy chairs to read (or sleep) in, crafts you can make on the tables, and puzzles you can piece together.

Don't be afraid of approaching your perch librarian or anyone else at the desk.  Sometimes we look like we're busy, but we're doing odds and ends (like writing posts on this blog) while we wait for you to come to us with your questions and concerns.  PLEASE BOTHER US!  We're here for you and want to help.

Don't worry about not knowing how to use the library.  We don't expect you to know everything.  If you did, you'd be the librarian and we'd be out of our jobs!  Don't feel stupid or think your question is stupid.  Believe me, we've heard all kinds of questions and there really is no such thing as a stupid question.  The only thing stupid is not asking your question, so please ASK!

Research doesn't have to be a difficult or scary thing.  If you're not sure how to do it or where to start, COME SEE US!  We're trained to know about different resources online and in print.  We can use our knowledge to help you find what you need quickly.  There's no need for you to suffer alone.  We're here to help and make your life a little easier.

Bottom line--the library is YOUR place and librarians, including your perch librarian, are here to help you.  We won't bite--I promise!  Come stop by, even if it's only to say hello.

Ever helpfully yours from the perch.

Armchair Travel

Maybe you haven't had the time or the resources to do some literary traveling this summer.  Well, that doesn't mean you can't have fun wandering about somewhere you've never been before.  When you can't physically travel to a place, you can always mentally travel there through those wonderful things called books!

Armchair travel is the way to go if you have to stay where you are and can't get away.  And if you're looking for some interesting places to mentally visit, I've got a few book suggestions:

• American Fuji by Sara Backer (Japan)  An American expat in Japan relates her sometimes strange and funny experiences as a gaijin ("foreigner") in the Land of the Rising Sun.
• The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown (Washington, DC)  See the American capital as you've never seen it before, from the basement of the Capitol Building to the top of the Washington Monument and beyond.
• Last Bus to Wisdom by Ivan Doig (Montana, Wisconsin)  Go on a cross-country summer trip from Montana to Wisconsin and back with a young boy in the 1950s.
• The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George (France)  A broken-hearted bookseller takes his book barge from Paris to southern France to find answers about his long lost love.
• Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Italy, India, Indonesia)  Eat pasta in Italy, pray at an ashram in India, and find new love in Indonesia with Elizabeth Gilbert.
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (Sweden)  Travel from Stockholm to the Swedish countryside in this suspenseful page-turner.
• Wild by Cheryl Strayed (California, Oregon)  Hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert to the Columbia River Gorge without leaving the comfort of your home.

Still haven't found the right book for armchair traveling?  Then check out these websites for more suggestions:

• 10 Great Reads for Armchair Travel
• Armchair Traveling: 10 Books to Take You Places
• The Best Books for the Armchair Traveler
• Books for Armchair Travel and Adventure
• Popular Armchair Travel Books
• Top 10 Funny Travel Books for Armchair Travel

Yours truly, currently armchair traveling through Istanbul (No Baggage by Clara Bensen) from the perch.

Literary Travel

The summer is now in full swing, and perhaps you're thinking of where to go on vacation.  Relaxing by the lake?  Hiking up a mountain?  Camping in the forest?  These are your traditional outdoor summer vacations, but maybe you're into something non-traditional, something different, something...bookish.

Should you be looking for literary spots to visit this summer in the Northwest, allow your friendly neighborhood perch librarian to make several suggestions:

Auntie's Bookstore (Spokane, WA)--This one's local, so you don't need anything other than gas in your car or a bus ride to get downtown.  It's located in a historic building at the corner of Main and Washington, so it has that old time feel to it--wooden floors, retro lighting, columns, and high ceilings. When you step inside, you just want to lose yourself in a good book.  This independent bookstore is an institution in Spokane, and it stocks a number of books by local authors.  Time flies too quickly whenever I go there.

Powell's City of Books (Portland, OR)--If you're a book lover and you happen to be in Portland, then you MUST go to Powell's City of Books.  Here you can get lost not only in a book, but also in the bookstore, which claims itself to be the largest independent bookstore in the world.  Make no mistake about it--this place is GIGANTIC!  It takes up a whole city block and has more than an acre and a half of retail space.  There's floor upon floor of books, and there's even a rare books room where you can get first editions (I once saw a first edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone for $500).  Go and experience walking in one of the largest bookstores around.

Seattle Public Library (Seattle, WA)--Sure, when you're in Seattle you have to see the Space Needle and Pike Place, but in my ever so humble opinion, you also have to see the main branch of the Seattle Public Library.  It's nothing short of a Mecca for book lovers.  The architecture is simply stunning, and there are great views of the main floor (and the street outside) from 10 floors up.  There's artwork on the walls made from old card catalogs, and there's a cool red corridor on the 4th floor.  What I really envy, though, is that magical conveyor belt on the 1st floor that transports books from the book drop outside, up across the ceiling, and down to the circulation desk.  One word--awesome!

Sylvia Beach Hotel (Newport, OR)--I hope Santa or the Birthday Fairy will be good to me one of these years because this is the ultimate bed and breakfast for book lovers.  Located right on the ocean on the Oregon Coast, this hotel has rooms named after famous authors and decorated according to the time periods of those authors or their books (I'd go for the Herman Melville room--a room on the sea for a writer of the sea).  There's no Wi-Fi (after all, you're there to read books), there's a library open around the clock (bliss!), and a restaurant called the Tables of Content (don't you love it?).  For peace, quiet, and a whole lot of book-loving, this place is truly a treat.

Wishing you a book-filled summer from the perch.

(Semi) Local Fiction

You know, Spokane and the Inland Northwest are home to a number of writers.  Some are known locally while others are known nationally.  Take Sherman Alexie, for example.  He grew up in Wellpinit on the Spokane Indian Reservation and went to school in Reardan, but he's known across the country as an important writer of Native American issues.  He still comes to Auntie's Bookstore in Downtown Spokane to sign books.  So do David Shannon and Jess Walter, writers from Spokane who have both been on The New York Times Best Seller List.

Here's a list of local authors from Spokane (and a little beyond) along with their books (in case you're still looking for some good summer reads):

• Sherman Alexie (The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian, Reservation Blues)
• Chelsea Bolan (The Good Sister)
• Amanda Coplin (The Orchardist)
• Ivan Doig (Mountain Time, The Last Bus to Wisdom) 
• David Shannon (A Bad Case of Stripes, No, David!) 
• Shawn Vestal (Daredevils)
• Jess Walter (Beautiful Ruins, The Financial Lives of the Poets)

Of course, there are many other writers in the Northwest outside the Inland Northwest.  Come into the library and we'll help you find some good books to while the summer away!

Yours truly happily tweeting summer reads from the perch.

The Summer Reading Program Top 10

Here's my completely unbiased Top 10 List for doing the library's Summer Reading Program:

1.  Kids retain and enhance their reading skills.
2.  Adults enhance their reading skills, too.
3.  The library has a lot of good books.
4.  There are creative crafts to make.
5.  You'll look smart with a book on the beach.
6.  You can see where Fil the Frog is hiding each week
7.  Books never run out of batteries.
8.  You get prizes!
9.  There are parties! 
10.  It's fun!

So, what are you waiting for?  Come on in, get signed up, and start reading!  It's going on until August 31st!

Yours truly cheering on summer reading from the perch.

Good News

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm getting tired hearing of all the bad things that happen in the world.  Plane crashes, religious extremists, and let's not get started with the presidential election.  It seems like practically everything you hear on the news is bad and keeps getting worse.  I've even reached the point that after reading the main headlines on the Internet, I make a conscious effort to stay away from the news, which gets repeated over and over again.

It's probably no surprise, but the news stories broadcast are usually negative.  Journalists often abide by the "if it bleeds, it leads" motto.  Sure, some feel good stories pop up every so now and then, but there aren't many, and they're usually put at the end of a news broadcast or at the bottom of a webpage where they get little notice.

I'm glad, though, that there's a rise of websites focusing on positive news.  At a time when so many bad things are happening, there are actually a lot of good things happening as well.  For instance, there's the story of a college prep school in Maryland that raised money for one student's mother to fly from Nigeria to see her son graduate.  Or the one about the flight attendant who soothed an infant by carrying and walking with him in the aisle.  Then there's the one about the dog who got bitten by a snake while he was protecting a young girl.

If you're like me and need to hear some good things going on in the world, check out the following websites for a dose of positive:

• The Good News Network  http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/
• Huffpost Good News   http://www.huffingtonpost.com/good-news/
• Leon Logothetis  http://www.leonlogothetis.com/blog/
• Reddit Uplifting News  https://www.reddit.com/r/UpliftingNews/
• Sunny Skyz   http://www.sunnyskyz.com/good-news

Just because the news bombards you with doom and gloom doesn't mean that the world doesn't have some good things.  The good things are there, but you may have to dig a little bit deeper for them.

Trying to stay positively yours from the perch.

Celebrate the National Parks!

In April, my husband and I traveled to the East Coast to visit family in New York and Pennsylvania.  While we were there, we went to a number of historic sites, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt's home in Hyde Park, Eleanor Roosevelt's Val-Kill, Vanderbilt Mansion, and the battlefield at Gettysburg.  We were lucky that the week we visited was National Park Week and admission costs were waived, but even if we did pay, the National Parks are truly one of the greatest gems of the United States and well worth the cost of admission.

This year, the National Park Service (NPS) marks its 100th birthday.  That's right--the National Parks have been around for 100 years since President Woodrow Wilson signed on August 25, 1916 the act that allows the federal government to preserve scenic areas, parks, and monuments so that present and future generations can enjoy the wonders of this country.  I'm sure you've probably heard of the more well known places managed by the National Park Service.  Besides the places I've already mentioned, there's the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, and the Statue of Liberty, among many others.

In the Inland Northwest, we're fortunate to live within driving distance of some of the nicest National Parks.  In Washington State, we have Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic, in addition to historic sites like Fort Vancouver and the Whitman Mission.  In other nearby states there's Glacier (MT), Grand Teton (WY), and Crater Lake (OR), not to mention Yellowstone (ID, MT, WY).

Summer is just around the corner, and perhaps you're thinking about where to go with your sweetie or your family.  If I may make a suggestion, why not consider going to a National Park or another historic site managed by the NPS?  You'll have lots of fun, and you'll have memories to cherish for a lifetime.

Wishing you a great National Park Service experience from the perch.

Mortality Literature

I don't know if you've noticed, but lately it seems like books written about death and dying have become rather popular.  I haven't heard of an official term for this growing genre, but I like to call it "mortality literature."

There isn't really anything new about mortality literature.  It's probably been around as long as people have taken a moment to contemplate death.  Despite what you may think, however, not all the readings are doom and gloom about facing the big D.  Some are positive, discussing gratitude for the things experienced in life or trying to live life to the fullest.

Two of the more recent books were written by doctors--one at the end of his career, the other at the beginning.  Both had a diagnosis of cancer, but while one was able to look back, the other was unable to look forward.  Oliver Sacks wrote Gratitude, a compilation of four essays, in which he reflected on his past and the gratitude he had for a life well lived.  Meanwhile, Paul Kalanithi wrote When Breath Becomes Air, in which he pondered how to live a meaningful life when he realized his time no longer stretched out years before him.

Death has long been a taboo subject in Western culture, but mortality literature is helping to open a conversation about death, to make it less daunting and more understandable.  Authors who have been courageous enough to share their experiences with death have important lessons to teach us about life.  They raise questions within us.  Are we living the best lives that we can?  What are the things that really matter to us?  What are the things that really make us happy?  What are the things that really make us grateful?

I realize that mortality literature may not be the kind of reading people want to take to the beach.  Even I have to read it when I'm of a mind to read it.  But when you are of a certain mind, allow me to make the following suggestions:

• Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom
• Smoke Gets in Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty
• Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
• When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
• The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
• Gratitude by Oliver Sacks
• The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe

Pensively yours from the perch.

Fool 'Em!

Are you a prankster?  Do you like a good joke?  Then your day is right around the corner--April 1st, a.k.a. April Fools' Day!

Believe it or not, the day on which we fool others has been around for centuries.  Some say it began in the 16th century when the Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian calendar, making January 1 the start of the year rather than April 1, which closely followed the spring equinox.  Those who still believed that April 1 was the start of the year were seen as "fools" and pranks were played on them.

Since then, people have been rather creative in their ways of fooling others.  For instance, there was the Swiss spaghetti harvest as reported by the BBC, the multicolor gondolas in Venice, and the Liberty Bell bought by Taco Bell and renamed the Taco Liberty Bell.  For more information on big, publicized April Fools' Day jokes and hoaxes, check out the following websites:

• 8 Zany April Fools' Day Hoaxes
• 15 Best April Fools' Day Hoaxes
• The Most Epic April Fools' Day Pranks of All Time
• Top 100 April Fools' Day Hoaxes of All Time

And should you be interested in pranking others on April Fools' Day, take a look at the following websites for some inspiration:

• 15 Easy April Fools' Day Pranks to Try at Home and Work
• 22 Free or Cheap April Fools' Day Pranks
• April Fools' Day Pranks and Practical Jokes
• Family-Friendly April Fools' Day Pranks

Whatever you do, have a happy (and safe) April Fools' Day!

Jokingly yours from the perch.

Shakespeare--400 Years Later

Did you know that 2016 is the 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare?  One of the greatest poet-playwrights in the world ever died in 1616.  And to celebrate this milestone, The Folger Shakespeare Library is touring the First Folio around all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the American Virgin Islands.

What's so special about this First Folio and why is everyone making such a big deal about it?  Well, if it wasn't for the First Folio, we never would have known Hamlet, Macbeth, and The Taming of the Shrew, among other plays.  Just think, so many lines that have made their way into our common consciousness would be non-existent:

• "To be, or not to be--that is the question" (Hamlet)
• "the play's the thing" (Hamlet)
• "Double, double toil and trouble" (Macbeth)
• "Out, damned spot" (Macbeth)
• "All the world's a stage" (As You Like It)
• "A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!" (King Richard III)
• "O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" (Romeo and Juliet) 
• "Parting is such sweet sorrow" (Romeo and Juliet)
• "Beware the Ides of March" (Julius Caesar)
• "Et tu, Brute?" (Julius Caesar)

Chances are you probably heard these lines well before you heard of Shakespeare.  I can recall in my youth hearing some of these lines in Bugs Bunny and Smurfs cartoons on Saturday mornings.

Whether or not we realize it, Shakespeare's work has influenced society and other artistic works over the centuries.  For instance, there would be no West Side Story without Romeo and Juliet, no 10 Things I Hate About You without The Taming of the Shrew, and no A Thousand Acres without King Lear.  Not to mention the many songs that borrow from Shakespeare, such as "Just Like Romeo and Juliet" by The Reflections, "Speak Low" by Cole Porter, and "I Am the Walrus" by The Beatles.

The First Folio will be coming to the Seattle Public Library and the University of Montana in Missoula soon.  It will probably be a once in a lifetime event, so it might be worth taking a trip to check it out.  And the venues displaying the First Folio will have performances, lectures, and other events related to the works printed in it.

Shakespeareanly yours from this e'er so humble perch.

Goodbye, Downtown Abbey

If you happen to be a Downtown Abbey fan, then you know there are only 2 episodes left.  That's it.  No more.  The end.  After 6 seasons, the amazingly popular British series that offers a window to aristocratic life of the 1910s and 1920s will conclude.  It's been a surprisingly huge hit in both the UK and the US, keeping viewers glued to their TVs to see the latest developments in the Crawley family and the loyal staff running the great house.

With such a notable drama soon reaching its finale, I couldn't help wondering about the appeal of Downtown Abbey to so many people (including your very own perch librarian).  There have been a number of period dramas (Death Comes to Pemberley, Mad Men, and Turn being among the more recent ones), but none have gotten quite the devoted following as Downton Abbey.  Why?

Firstly, you just can't beat the setting.  The drama's fictional Downton Abbey is in reality the grand Highclere Castle.  That ornate, imposing edifice planted in the middle of the verdant English countryside with no other buildings to be seen for miles around.  Those sumptuous rooms with historic decor and furnishings, the high ceilings and large windows, the rich colors and fabrics.  Highclere is a place from another age.

Then there are all those gorgeous outfits.  Even someone like me who's not a fashionista can't help ogling those classic dresses and suits.  During a time when people go to the store in pajama pants, it's refreshing to see both men and women elegantly dressed, whether they're going into town or staying home for dinner.  There's something to be said about being smartly attired and having the proper manners to go with your look.

Most importantly, though, I think the main appeal of Downton Abbey lies with the characters.  From Lord Grantham and Lady Mary to Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Bates, we are drawn to these human characters with real, multiple layers.  None of them live fairy tale lives and must deal with various problems that arise as they go through difficult and changing times.  We want to see them overcome their obstacles and come out on top.  It gives us hope that no matter what is your station in life, privileged or not, there's hope that things will work out well in the end.

So, prepare the tea and get ready for the end of Downton Abbey.  Savor what's left, and enjoy the conclusion.  Should you experience any withdrawal symptoms, you can always stop by the library to borrow the DVDs and re-watch the series.

With best wishes for a good Downton ending from the perch.

V-Day--It's Here Again

Whether you love it or hate it, Valentine's Day is here again.  No matter where you go, there are hearts, roses, chocolates, and teddy bears all around.  You may even start to think something's wrong with your vision because the only colors you see are red and pink.

I probably don't have to offer suggestions on gifts or things to do since we're bombarded with advertisements everywhere, but I thought it would be interesting to go outside the box and see how Valentine's Day is celebrated in other parts of the world.  Some traditions are a bit different from those in the U.S., and if you're thinking of doing something new with your sweetie, you might get a few ideas.  For example:

• Austria--Men give their loved ones bouquets of flowers. 
• Denmark--Pressed white snowdrop flowers are exchanged.
• Italy--Romantic dinners and an exchange of gifts are the norm.
• Philippines--Mass wedding ceremonies are performed.
• South Africa--Women pin the names of their loved ones on their sleeves.
• South Korea--Women give men chocolates, candies, and flowers (men reciprocate on March 14).
• Taiwan--Men give women chocolates, candies, and flowers (women reciprocate on March 14).

If you want to learn more about how other countries celebrate V-Day, check out the following websites:

10 Strange and Wonderful Valentine's Day Traditions from Around the World

10 Valentine's Day Traditions All Around the World

Valentine's Day Around the World

Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day from the perch.

Hula in the Coola!

It's gloomy and cold, so why not be bold?  Don't worry about moolah.  Come Hula in the Coola!

What is Hula in the Coola, you ask?  It's a holiday at the beginning of February to make us think of warmer weather when we're getting tired of winter.  Traditionally, people living in northern states ditch their coats, put on grass skirts, and go outside to hula.  Crazy, but fun.

We're going to celebrate Hula in the Coola in the library this coming February 2 for anyone interested (and I hope that will be many of you!).  Don't worry, we'll stay nice and toasty warm indoors, but we WILL be doing the hula...with a hula hoop!  If you can hula hoop for 2 minutes straight, we'll give you a free book bag.  You read that right--a FREE book bag!  And you can even ask to see your very own perch librarian hula hoop on demand.  I'm not joking.

We're doing Hula in the Coola not only to have some fun in the library, but also to promote Family Fitness Month on the base.  And in case you didn't know, hooping (as hula hooping is more commonly known) is a legitimate exercise that can burn 7 calories a minute.  That's 420 calories an hour!  Who would have thought that doing something we loved as kids is actually good for us as adults?  Even celebrities like Kelly Osbourne, Zooey Deschanel, and Michelle Obama hoop.

So, come on over to the library on Tuesday, February 2 to Hula in the Coola for Family Fitness!  Do some hooping, get a book bag, and have fun!

Your truly hooping it up at the perch.

Let's Get Personal

Now that the holidays are over, it's time to breathe a collective sigh of relief.  Even though they're a time of happiness, they're also a time of stress.  We anticipate them, plan for them, and put so much effort into them...or do we?

Christmas cards are an inevitable part of the merrymaking experience, but I was disappointed to receive a number that had not one ink mark made by a human hand.  Not a stray dot.  What I got were mass-produced photo cards--friends and relatives wearing frozen smiles with generic, non-personal greetings.  Even the return addresses on the envelopes were printed on stickers along with the recipient's address.  Sadly, the practice of sending Christmas cards has been reduced to stuffing envelopes and slapping on stickers.

In my opinion, a non-personalized Christmas card is just a step better than sending no card at all.  The message I get is, "I don't have time to send Christmas cards and I don't really have time for you."  I understand that everyone's life is busy, but in an age when Christmas is often the only time we connect with some people, shouldn't we take a moment to make that connection count?

I had roughly 40 Christmas cards to send, and I handwrote wishes in each one of them.  I also handwrote the addresses and my return address on every envelope.  I wanted the receivers of my cards to know that I took a few minutes of my time to think about them and to give them a small piece of myself.  I may not have sent all my cards out at once (I wrote them throughout the course of a week), but I gave each person something that no printer can create.

Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but if you want to make next year's Christmas cards personal and magical, take out a pen and start writing them.  Plan ahead and start early.  I'll bet the people receiving them will stop to take a look and appreciate the treasure in their hands.  Never underestimate the power of the pen and a human touch.

Personally yours from the perch.