Leopoldo the Frog

A comic opera for Pre-K to Grade 3

Saturday, September 10
10:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Southside Branch Library
6599 Jaguar Drive
955-2828

The Hall Ensemble will perform an hour-long, interactive, bilingual performance of the story of Leopoldo the Frog.

The recognized musical legend of his local swamp, Leopoldo has his world turned upside down when a new frog with a booming voice shows up on the scene. His personal journey that follows results in the growth of his own self-worth, motivation, and friendships.

This comic opera-style program will introduce children to a whimsical new fairy tale through bilingual narration, music, and Ellen Murray's original illustrations.

This is a free event open to the public.

Sponsored by the Santa Fe Concert Association

Labor Day and Fiestas Closings

All Branches of the Santa Fe Public Library will be closed on Monday, September 5 for Labor Day.

All libraries will be open regular hours, 10 am - 6 pm, on Saturday, September 3.

The Main Library will be open regular hours, 1 pm - 5 pm, on Sunday, September 4.

The Santa Fe Public Library will have the following hours for Fiestas:

Thursday, September 8:
All libraries Closed at 6:00 pm

Friday, September 9:
All libraries Closed at 1:00 pm

Saturday, September 10:
Main Library Closed
La Farge and Southside Open: 10:00 am - 6:00 pm

Sunday, September 11:
All libraries Closed.

¡Qué Viva La Fiesta!

Paper Bag Piñata Craft

for National Hispanic Heritage Month

Main Library
Monday, September 12
3:30 - 4:30 pm

Southside Library
Tuesday, September 13
3:30 - 4:30 pm

La Farge Library
Thursday, September 15
3:30 - 4:30 pm

Join us in celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month this September by making a piñata out of things you already have at home. Everyone will be ready for their own fiesta at the end of this project.

This program is for 5 - 12 year olds and registration is open two weeks before the event.

Call your local branch to register:
Main: 955-6783
Southside: 955-2828
La Farge: 955-4863

Keeping Score

The moment you've been waiting for all year has arrived! We've updated our Facts & Statistics page with the numbers from the most recent fiscal year ending on June 30, 2011.

Some highlights:

Over half-a-million visitors to Main Library, with almost a million visitors among the three branches

726,408 items checked out!

About 20,000 people attended our programs

173,592 used our public computers, and that doesn't count the popular wireless access

83,397 folks have a Santa Fe Public Library card

Our website had 304,343 hits and 84,573 visitors

Icarus had 21,538 hits and 15,994 visitors

Are you dying to know more? Check out the Facts & Statistics page today!

E-Waste Recycling Drop Off Day

One Day Only
Saturday, August 27
9:00 am - 1:00 pm
1142 Siler Road
955-2215

Sponsors:
Keep Santa Fe Beautiful, the City of Santa Fe, and Albuquerque Recycling Inc.

You can bring:

• TVs ($10 disposal fee: cash only)


• CRT computer monitors ($5 disposal fee: cash only)


• Computers, servers and laptops


• Flat screen monitors


• Printers and scanners


• Fax machines


• Telephones and cell phones


• Palm Pilots and other hand-held electronic devices


• Lead acid batteries, computer back-up batteries, UPS batteries


• TV satellite equipment


• VCRs and CD players


• Stereo equipment


• Computer and TV game assemblies


• Cameras and video cameras

Not accepted:

• Coffee makers


• Alkaline batteries


• Hair dryers


• Bread machines


• Light bulbs of any kind


• Cardboard or paper


• Appliances including microwave ovens


• Household hazardous waste

Yup, the economy

It seems as if, besides the weather, it's all anyone talks about anymore! While we can't do much to affect either, we can minimize how they affect us. We can carry an umbrella during monsoon season, and we can make use of money-saving opportunities.

In 2008, public libraries in the US spent $36.36 per capita to serve you and your community. To find out what a bargain we are, try our Library Value Calculator. Compare how much money you save each month by using us! I'll bet you that just the resources you use each month are worth more than what you pay.

Libraries are a great investment, and a great way to save money. Get your money's worth today!

Dollar symbol by Svilen.milev, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Fall PreSchool Storytime

Bring your kids ages 2-5 to PreSchool Story Time, where they'll enjoy stories, songs, finger games, puppets, and crafts. Best of all, it's free and no registration is required!

Tuesdays
La Farge Library
September 6 - December 13
10:30 am to 11:15 am

Wednesdays
Southside Library
September 7 - December 14
10:30 am to 11:15 am

Fridays
Main Library
September 9 - December 16
11:00 am to 11:45 am

For more information, call:
La Farge Children's: 955-4863
Southside Children's: 955-2828
Main Children's: 955-6783

Progressive Arts Fair Appeal

Santa Fe is renowned for its incredible arts community and events. Canyon Road, Spanish Market, Indian Market, and more galleries per capita than any other city in the US, make this place a mecca for artists and art-lovers. However, sometimes this high profile means that lesser-known or younger artists need a little boost to get their work seen.

Enter the After Hours Alliance and the first-ever Progressive Arts Fair. On September 18, the Railyard will be turned into a showcase for artists and musicians who are the future incarnate of creativity in the City Different. 35 artists have been selected through an application process that reached out to less established artists whose work is gallery quality. The fair will also feature a dozen live local music acts that represent the future of Santa Fe’s music scene.

Like many start-ups, the Progressive Arts Fair needs community support ahead of time. Enter the Kickstarter campaign. If you're familiar with Kiva or Vittana, Kickstarter is a similar resource for creative and experimental endeavors. You can donate money to a project and become a backer, and different projects yield varying types of dividends. Many projects allow you to donate as little as one dollar, so you can contribute even if you're pinching pennies.

If you contribute to the Progressive Art Fair's Kickstarter campaign this week until August 27, an anonymous donor will match your dollars. So keep the arts alive and vibrant in Santa Fe by supporting the next generation of creators. And don't forget to check out the Railyard on September 18!

Special Indian Market Rate at Railyard Parking Garage

This weekend:

The August 20th and 21st SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market is bringing scores of visitors and locals to the downtown area. In order to alleviate parking challenges, the City of Santa Fe is offering a special Indian Market rate of $5.00 at the Railyard parking garage. The cost at all other city parking garages and lots is $10.00.

Park at the Railyard garage for only $5, and catch the free Santa Fe Pickup shuttle near the garage entrance on Camino la Familia. The Santa Fe Pickup shuttles will run every 15 minutes (depending on traffic) from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday, August 20 and 21.

The Santa Fe Pickup shuttles will drop off on Cathedral Place, on Marcy Street near the Main downtown Library, and on South Federal near the entrance to the Santa Fe Community Convention Center Parking garage.

The Santa Fe Indian Market hosts over 1100 artists from 100 tribes and is the largest cultural event in New Mexico, attracting 100,000 visitors per year.

It's that season again

The new season of the Lannan Foundation's Readings & Conversations series is out. This series features world-class writers discussing their craft with other world-class writers, and at six dollars, the ticket prices are practically free. This year's highlights include Tariq Ali, John Sayles, Michael Ondaatje, and Ann Beattie. Also this year, some of the events are at The Lensic, but others are at the James A. Little Theater at the New Mexico School for the Deaf. The events often sell out, so make sure to check the schedule and get your tickets early!

Rebroadcasts of Readings & Conversations events can be heard on KSFR 101.1 FM at 2:00 pm on the Sunday immediately after each event. Audio and video of most programs is available on the site generally within a week of the event and also in our podcast feed.

Please Use Us

Over the past few years, we've added a bunch of online resources that can help enrich and improve your life. For example, we now have One-Click Downloadable Audiobooks, Mango Languages, Research Pro, Grzimek's Animal Life, and Britannica Online. While we're all busy, and all the information out there can be overwhelming, we need to know that we're spending your money wisely on these products.

Two resources that we feel a need to remind you about are the LearningExpress Library and the Literature Resource Center:


LearningExpress has over 800 online courses, tests and e-books. It includes GED, AP, SAT, and ACT test prep, as well as modules for different jobs and careers. You can create your own account and help track your progress as you take practice tests and skill-building modules. There are modules for Elementary, Middle, and High School students to improve their math, reading, and writing. There's also a section to help you with a job search, résumés, cover letters, and interviews.


With the Literature Resource Center, you'll be able to find biographies, criticism, overviews, reviews and primary sources for many of your favorite writers. Students of any age who need to do a report on an author will love this, and many author biographies have photos!

All these resources are available both inside the library and from home with a SFPL library card. If you have any questions about using them, please ask a reference librarian, on the phone, in person, or by email at library@santafenm.gov.

So please, if you need them, use them!

Appliance Drop Off Day

Saturday, August 20
9:00 am to 1:00 pm
1142 Siler Road

Santa Fe residents can drop off refrigerators, freezers, ovens, dishwashers, water heaters, washers and dryers at Siler Road free of charge. Other appliances, including scrap metal rims (without the tires please) and metal construction debris will all be accepted. Vacuums and carpet cleaners will not be accepted.
After 1 pm, items can be taken to Capitol Scrap Metal at 1162 Cooks Lane.

Appliance Drop-Off Day is co-sponsored by Keep Santa Fe Beautiful (KSFB), the City of Santa Fe and Santa Fe County.

For more information, contact Montaño at 955-2215, or by email at Sfbeautiful@santafenm.gov. Visit Keep Santa Fe Beautiful on Facebook or online at http://www.keepsantafebeautiful.org/.

HALF PRICE SALE

Books with large orange dots on spines about Religion, Spirituality, and New Age
In the store and on the carts: HALF PRICE

SOUTHSIDE LIBRARY BOOKSTORE
6599 Jaguar Drive at Country Club Rd.
Entrance on Valentine Way
Store hours: 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Free Parking

From Monday, August 22 through Saturday, August 27.

Call for Artists

The Southside Branch Library, at 6599 Jaguar Drive, is accepting applications from artists interested in displaying their work for one month. Applicants must live in the City of Santa Fe or Santa Fe County and be eligible for a Santa Fe Public Library card.

Please pick up and return applications at the Southside Library reference desk. The Art Committee will meet with artists to select and schedule art displays to begin in October of 2011. Applicants should be prepared to present their work on Friday, September 9, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in the café meeting room at Southside.

For more information, call John Pinkston at 955-2824.

Mango To Go!

If you've ever tried our Mango Languages Database, you know that it's an awesome, easy-to-use way to learn a foreign language. Now it's gotten even better by offering the program as a free app for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch! So now you can login and work on your lessons from anywhere. Once installed, the program does not require Internet access, you can just download what you need when you need it.

To get this for your mobile device, search the app store for Mango. The full name of the application is Mango Languages Library Edition. You'll need to have your library card handy to login, but it's easy to download and use from there. The only hard part will be learning that language!

Languages include English as a second language, Spanish, French, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, German, Mandarin Chinese, Greek, Italian, and Russian. Try it out!

Where's the Data?

With all apologies to New Mexico Magazine's popular feature, One of Our Fifty is Missing, a reference librarian at Main noticed a glaring omission in the latest US Census data:



Our feelings should probably be hurt, but first we need to stop laughing.

Santa Fe 400 and Still Counting

A Presentation By
City of Santa Fe Historian José Garcia

Thursday, August 25
6:30 - 7:30 pm
Main Library Community Room
145 Washington Ave.

Santa Fe has recently finished the formal commemoration of its founding and, to continue the theme of the Culture, History and Traditions, Santa Fe's first ever City Historian will present a special approach to these three elements that make the City Different a choice destination for visitors from all over.

José Garcia will mention persons that were active during the Colonial, Territorial and present era along with events that helped form the character of today's Santa Fe.

As a Northern New Mexico historian and genealogist, Mr. Garcia has researched the history of New Mexico extensively. He is particularly well-versed in the history of Santa Fe from the colonial era to the present and has completed research in local archives as well as archives in Spain.

This program is free and open to the public.

Southside Summer Reading Party

Summer reading program 2011 was out of this world! We had record number of sign ups, and tons of kids who wanted to read cool books and plenty of them wanted to win a bike!

1079 children signed up this year, more than ever recorded in the past! Special programs and crafts were held every month for the Summer Reading participants and their families.

Bicycles were a real draw to encourage children to read. Three bicycles were donated at every branch. The Friends of the Library sponsor all of Summer Reading, from printing, to programs to prizes. This year the Police and ASCME3999 also donated a bicycle each and two staff people donated a bicycle.

At Southside, last year twin siblings won the girls and boys bike, this year two five-year-olds won the boys and girls bikes! Wiley won the boys bike and is very excited to grow into his new wheels. Wiley loves to read and two of the books he enjoyed were The story of Darth Vader and The Berenstain Bears and The Spooky Old Tree. His auntie would bring him in to turn in his reading log that showed he had to read at least six books a week!

Madison’s name was picked out of the box by our performer Andy Mason for the Summer Reading Program party. This five-year-old girl comes in with her mom and her sister at least once a week to check out books. She was so surprised when she came in to get books and found out she had won the bike! Her big sister was so happy for her, and mom says Madison is enjoying reading “SpongeBob” and “Arthur” books these days! What a great summer!

The Summer Reading Program is over 70 years old and continues to encourage children to read. Every child who read this summer received a special Summer Reading Program certificate. Children who finished the eight-week program also got to choose a book as a reward.

by TT@SS

Cut Down on Catalogs

I just signed up for Catalog Choice, a program supported by the Santa Fe Solid Waste Management Agency and the City of Santa Fe to cut down on unwanted mail. While the junk mail is merely a nuisance to me and my mouse-sized post office box, it adds up in the community, costing the City thousands of dollars each year, about $10 per household, in waste disposal. Signing up for this service is free, and you can add several addresses to ensure that [business name redacted] stops sending you unsolicited ads or the annual phone books.

The one drawback to Catalog Choice is, unlike the National Do Not Call Registry that blocks phone calls from telemarketers across the board, you need to actually know the names of the businesses and organizations that are sending you unwanted mail and request for each one to be blocked individually. This part of the service is free. Also, not all companies can be "blocked" in this manner. If you want to be across-the-board "unlisted", meaning that some of the biggest marketers will not have access to your mailing address, that type of membership costs a minimum of $20 per year.

So while it's a step in the right direction, staving off the onslaught of commercial mail still requires an investment of time and/or money. Perhaps I'm just spoiled by over a decade of clicking a button that reads "Spam" to keep this sort of thing out of my e-mail. But even if we just cut down on some of the unwanted mail that take up a lot of time, attention, and taxpayer resources, the savings in money and environment will help us all.

Pop Quiz!

Did you know?

• One third of the American public, an estimated 77 million people over the age of 14, used a library computer in 2009.


• Young people between 14-19 were most likely to be using computers for educational purposes, users between the ages 25-54 were focused on employment and training, and older adults focused on health information.


• The majority of library public access computer users (86 percent) reported they had “regular access to a computer and the Internet for your personal use” at home.


• People who lacked home access were frequent users, with 65 percent reporting that they used computers and the internet in the library at least once a week or daily.


• Between 2000 and 2007 alone the availability of Internet terminals in public libraries increased by 90 percent on a per capita basis.

Where have we found all these fun facts? The results of the U.S. Impact Study by the University of Washington have come in. We invited you to participate in this study, and we're appreciative of those of you who did! The results definitely put to rest many of the myths about public library computer use. It's not going away anytime soon, and is becoming a core service to our communities.

Want to know the full story? Check it out here.

Almost Frivolous Reading

The best things about summer are the long days outside, in a yard, in a park, by a pool, on a patio, in a hammock, or someplace naturific, and having all the daylight in the world to get lost in a good book. The term "summer reading" takes on a vastly different meaning once you're done with school and reading lists, and tends to be synonymous with guilty pleasures. I usually take advantage of the long days and cool nights to tear through the teen novels that more productive seasons push aside.

Another nice thing about summer reading is the "dipping". Sometimes you don't want the sustained attention of a novel or non-fiction title, but you just want to dip into something until the sun lulls you into a nap-like existence. That's where poetry can come in handy. The volumes tend to be slim, the stanzas or passages short, and if you let a book fall open at any old page you're on the right track.

For several years, Leaves of Grass has been my favorite book to pack for camping trips or day hikes. I'm still not sure if I've read the entire thing cover to cover, but it's a great companion in the great outdoors. If smoke or heat or fingers-crossed monsoons are keeping you mostly town-bound this summer, check out The Walt Whitman Archive, which links to six American editions of this tome, as well as a scanned reproduction of Walt's own 1860 copy. Dip in as needed, and let the language lull you into the long summer days.

A Bright Sunshiny Day!

No, this isn't referring to long glorious summer weather. As budgets, personal and municipal, around the country get tighter, it helps to see where every dollar goes. Both the State of New Mexico and Santa Fe County have come up with Sunshine Portals, to encourage transparency and accountability in governance. Such portals supply information about public employee salaries, contracts with outside businesses, and how much money various programs are allotted. It's great to be able to access all this information in one place for each government agency.

However, as an information user, having these portals as separate sites can sometimes be a disadvantage. Several months ago I spent some time looking for salary information on the state site, before finding the separate link to the Sunshine Portal. The County has improved the design by including this data within the site itself, but the link to it is a sun icon. I'm used to that icon telling me that it's going to be good hiking or gardening weather. It's also possible that many citizens won't know to check a separate site for essential budget information.

But, it's still a good step forward that this information is readily available to anyone with computer and internet access. It's an improvement on the time and expense of public records requests. In addition to the links on their respective homepages, the State's Sunshine Portal can be found here, and the County's Sunshine Portal can be found here. Bookmark these links, and remember to check them the next time you have questions about how your tax dollars are spent.

Sun in Celestia with Addon by Runar Thorvaldsen, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Comics & Manga:

Creating a Character
with FACT—Fine Arts for Children & Teens

A free teen program for ages 13-18

Southside Branch Library
Thursday August 4
3:30-5:30 p.m.

These classes fill up quickly. Registration begins on July 21. Call 955-2820 to register.

Explore the art of illustration in the style of Manga and graphic novels! Learn how to develop different characters focusing on facial expression, gestures, and fashion. All illustration materials including nib pens, ink, and colored pencils will be provided. The class will be taught by FACT instructor Melinda Baker.

The Southside Library is located at 6599 Jaguar Dr. off of Country Club Rd.


The Teen Programs are sponsored by the Friends of the Santa Fe Public Library.

Honor Parading Past our Front Door

Congratulations to Sgt. 1st Class Leroy A. Petry, Santa Fe’s Medal of Honor winner! This past Monday, the parade came down Washington Street right in front of the Main Library, so some of us were able to run out to whoop and cheer and show our enthusiasm for our hometown hero. It was a good day to feel proud to be a New Mexican, especially a Santa Fean!










by AA @Main

Speaking of school supplies...

From Santa Fe Public Schools:

This week, our community lost “Faith At Work” — a non-profit that provided school clothing and school supplies, among many other necessities. They annually filled backpacks for approximately 200 students in the public schools. Our school district statistics tell us that 74% of Santa Fe's children need free or reduced price lunch — this is dramatic increase from last year. So more families than ever are needing this assistance. Thankfully, ¡Youthworks! has volunteered to sponsor a school supply drive for needy families. Please take any donations of school supplies to the new location of ¡Youthworks! for sorting and distribution. Its entrance is next to KSWV (Que Suave) Radio Station parking lot on Taos Street.

The most needed supplies:

· 3-inch binders, 1 ½-inch binders
· Sturdy backpacks
· Packages of 10 thick markers
· Packages of 10 thin markers
· Glue and glue sticks
· Wide lined notebook paper
· Wide lined spiral notebooks
· Composition books
· Colored pencils
· Rulers
· Two-pocket folders
· Compass and protractor

AND more:

Santa Fe Public Schools and Boys and Girls Clubs of Santa Fe have partnered in a Back to School Clothing Drive. Beginning Monday, August 1st, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Santa Fe will accept your donation of all clothing, including clothes that meet the uniform code. Donations may be dropped off at the Alto Street location of the Boys and Girls Clubs. The clothing distribution to families will begin on Monday, August 8th at 8:00 a.m. at the same Alto Street location. With strong community support, we hope to continue the drive throughout the school year. If you have any questions, please call the Boys and Girls Clubs at 983-6632. There is also a link on the Santa Fe Public Schools website for further information. Thank you for helping the children of Santa Fe. All contributions are tax deductible.

Santa Fe Escuelas Públicas y Boys and Girls Clubs de Santa Fe se han unido en un disco Volver a la Escuela de ropa. A partir del lunes 1 de agosto, el Boys and Girls Club de Santa Fe aceptará la donación de ropa, incluyendo ropa que cumplan con el código de uniforme. Las donaciones pueden ser dejados en el lugar de la calle Alto de los Boys and Girls Clubs. La distribución de ropa a las familias comenzarán el lunes, 8 de agosto a las 8:00 am en la misma ubicación Alto Street. Con un fuerte apoyo comunitario, esperamos mantener este impulso durante el año escolar. Si usted tiene alguna pregunta, por favor llame al Boys and Girls Clubs en 983-6632. También hay un enlace en la página web de la Escuela Pública de Santa Fe para más información. Gracias por ayudar a los niños de Santa Fe. Todas las contribuciones son deducibles de impuestos.

Back-to-School Supplies!

When you're doing your back-to-school shopping, please don't forget that your favorite nighborhood library can always use your cast-off or excess writing utensils. You can bring in last year's fashions, or if you happen to get a few new ones for us, great!

We'll ♥ you forever!

Pencil photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

August Art in the Library Galleries

Southside Library
Bosque Birds/Kids Read
Prints on Glass / Framed Prints
by Peter Norby

Main Library
Paintings, prints and jewelry
by David Sloan

La Farge Library
Horse Photography
by Lisa Dines

For more information, check our Art page.

For upcoming events, check our Calendar and Children's pages.