LisaF's blog

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The Texas native wasn't just a country singer; he was a country song.  He grew up in a small town, joined the Marines, got married at the age of 19, and divorced at 20.  He was married 4 times, and divorced 3.  He was notoriously unreliable, and earned the nickname "No-Show Jones".  He was also an alcoholic and when his wives hid his car keys, he went so far as to take the riding lawn mower to liquor stores and bars.  He was frequently broke, and spent some time in a mental hospital in Alabama. He also founded a sausage company.

Are you two stacks away from an episode of Hoarders?  You don't have to be.  But you don't have to embrace minimalism, either.  You can have a clean organized home, as long as you accept that it will take some work and that it won't happen overnight.  It may even take some outside help, perhaps from a friend, or a professional organizer, or a cleaning service.  

Nothing makes good food taste better than fresh herbs and spices.  And it doesn't get much fresher than just outside your back door.

If you've ever wanted to learn how to do a new craft, or sit around with other people while you craft, the Library is your place, especially during the month of March. And you don't have to come to just one branch; we have crafting events all over the place.

To say that I am neither a sports fan nor an athlete would be an understatement.

Join us at 6:30 pm on January 3rd in the Foundation Room at Headquarters to make perpetual joy memory calendars.

So.  You have a long drive/flight ahead of you.  At the end are your nearest and dearest.  The ones that you love more than anything, but also the ones that really know how to drive you crazy.  The economy is tanking and you've lost your job, or you're worried about losing your job.  And gifts are so expensive and people expect so much.  And if you are staying home, then you have to decorate the house and put up the lights outside and probaby cook for people that you really are not in any mood to hang out with because all you would really like to do is have some time off for yourself.

Lola Haskins, poet and author of the brilliant Solutions Beginning with A, will be featured at two separate Alachua County Library District events.

According to the Library of Congress,

Despite the fact that Florida has long hot summers, it has fairly nice long autumns, too.  And winters are short, and mostly mild.  And spring!  How beautiful spring is here in Alachua County!  That means there's a lot of time you can spend outdoors, working in your yard, napping in your hammock, or sitting on the porch, drinking iced tea.

Julia Child was 6'2", and big-boned. However, her stature was befitting her great joie de vivre.  Julia brought French cooking to the American housewife.  She empowered them by providing detailed instructions and she inspired them with her fearless enthusiasm.  She transformed the mundane task of daily meal provision into a major player in, of all things, the entertainment industry. 

Her legacy lives on in comedy, movies, and cookbooks.

Happy Birthday, Julia.  And bon appetit!

It is in our nature to acquire and to collect.  Even animals have collections:  dogs bury bones and squirrels hide nuts and magpies keep shiny things.

But maybe you are a little tired of your collection, and are trying to find a way to revive your interest in it, and to better appreciate the effort you've put into creating it.  Or maybe you are really proud of your collection, and would like an opportunity to show it off.  Either way, we have a great opportunity for you.  You can show it off in our beautiful glass display case at Library Headquarters downtown.  Call Sylvia or Lisa at 352-334-3939 to make arrangements.

In the meantime, think about checking out one of these great books on collecting!

Nora Ephron said of herself "I try to write parts for women that are as complicated and interesting as women actually are."

She wrote stories about intelligent, funny women, much like herself. Her work appealed to women, and to older men, which she defined as "over the age of 25".

Why do people plant gardens and raise chickens when there is perfectly good food at the grocery store? Some people like ingredients that they can pronounce.  Some people like to save money.  Others like to connect with nature.  Still others want to prepare for a zombie apocalypse. 

If you are interested in getting your hands dirty, you could start with one of these excellent titles:

Farm City: The Education of An Urban Farmer

This breezy, cloudy morning reminds me of when my grandmother used to take me and my brother fishing.  She said that the fish were more likely to come out when it wasn't so hot.  And wouldn't today would be a lovely day to go sit under a shade tree and stick a line in the water?  Oh!  and here's a neat tip - if you don't bait the hook, then you can just drift off and take a nap, and the fish won't bother you.

The United Way is sponsoring the Eastside High School Spring Beautification Day on Saturday, March 24th from 9 a.m. until noon.  This is a great opportunity for you to enjoy the fresh spring air and to do something good for your community. 

In order to volunteer, you need to sign up. 

During the past year, local teens have been raising animals, making clothes, and perfecting their favorite recipes.  Why? To exhibit them at the Alachua County Youth Fair & Livestock Show, which takes places March 2 - 6 at the Alachua County Fairgrounds. 

The cowboy has always been part of the mystique of the American West.  Self-reliant, and answering to no one, the cowboy has developed a bit of a reputation as a daredevil.  And no wonder - they are frequently called upon to be brave and reckless at a moment's notice.  A calm herd of cattle can turn into a stampede in a matter of seconds, and if the herd isn't contained, then the cattle may be rustled, or go over into a deep gully or into a river that they cannot swim.  If any of these things happen, the rancher doesn't get paid, and the cowboy who contracts out to him doesn'

Black History Month got its start in 1926, when Dr. Carter G. Woodson began commemorating the second week of February as "Negro History Week".  This was to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.  The efforts of Dr. Woodson, one of the first academically trained African-American historians in the United States, are largely responsible for the observation of Black History Month.

Everyone has a story.  This includes you.  Liz Coursen believes that yours is worth documenting in the shape of an autobiography.  Not only that, she's also convinced that it is entirely possible for a regular person to not only write an autobiography, but to also have a successful book tour.  She will speak about these two subjects on Saturday, January 21st at District Headquarters.

The Matheson Museum is hosting an Urban Forestry Workshop at 3:30 pm on December 7, 2011. 

Did you know that the Alachua County Library District offers free access to Foundation Center Directory Online AND to the Foundation Grants to Individuals Online?  These are available exclusively at the Headquarters library in downtown Gainesville.

Was walking by the new books area here at Library Headquarters the other day and came across The Mindset Lists of American History by Tom McBride & Ron Nief.  Now, I'm from Texas, where high school football is the state religion and practically every high school history teacher is a football coach.  Suffice to say that my grasp on American history is, um, limited. 

But this book is really cool - it takes a number of seemingly random years from 1880 through 2026 and tells what historical facts were true for that year's graduating class.

Here are a few examples:

1898

Why can't you visit Payne's Prairie after dark?  Well, as the sign near the Sink succinctly puts it, "After dark, if it moves, it's food."  Presumably the folks at the Florida State Parks don't want to fill out paperwork every time somebody gets bitten/eaten by an alligator.  Whatever.

Neither did I.  But according to the American Bar Association Journal, there are at least 10.  And you might have actually heard of some of them.

Does Daredevil ring a bell?  There was a movie made starring Ben Affleck back in 2003.

And who could forget She-Hulk? 

I just read on CNN that there is a new product that is essentially a caffeine inhaler.  As one who has been known to eat instant coffee because she was so sleepy that she couldn't wait long enough to drink a hot cup of coffee and let the caffeine kick in gradually, this girl is super-excited to see how this product works.

Jim Miller of NewsOK has a Savvy Seniors column wherein he offers tips for senior adults who are caught in house fires. 

Did you know that individuals who are older than 65 are more than twice as likely to die in a house fire as someone younger?  Further, individuals who are over the age of 84 are more than 4 times as likely, according to the U.S. Fire Administration.

Yes, technically you could go to the Halloween store or to a big box store and drop as much money as you wanted on the perfect costume for your young'un.   But where's the fun in that?  Plus, they won't be able to wear it again next year AND do you really want your kid wearing cheap plastic?

Here's an easy one:

The Alachua County Genealogical Society exists to bring together individuals who are interested in exploring the histories of their families.  And if you go back far enough, there is a good chance that you will find somebody interesting.  And if you come across somebody on your family tree who is extremely difficult to research, there is a chance that somebody back then was trying to hide something.