Exciting Happenings!

Mark your calendars! The next two months the Friends of the Library will be sponsoring some not-to-miss free events! It starts this Monday, March 25th at 6:30 pm when Maureen Stanton will talk about her book, “Killer Stuff and Tons of Money: An Insider’s Look at the World of Flea Markets, Antiques & Collecting”.  Yes, spring is here – and that means it’s time to cruise those flea markets! Find out how you can turn a profit from your weekend finds.  After all, everyone could use a little extra cash.

On Monday, April 8th at 6:30 pm, we are proud to have the author of “Three Junes“, “The Whole World Over“, “I See You Everywhere“, and “The Widower’s Tale“.  Get your book group and friends together to meet and hear Julia Glass!! A resident of Marblehead, Massachusetts, she is a past winner of the National Book Award for her debut novel, “Three Junes”.  She has described her characters as being her “alter egos”, and her favorite word is “widdershins” – she is a fascinating person that you have to meet!

Two days later, on Wednesday, April 10th at 6:30 pm, Richard Howe and Chaim Rosenberg will be talking about their new book, “Legendary Locals of Lowell“.  This is sure to be a fun evening! You may recognize some of these legendary locals – perhaps it will be a walk down memory lane! Either way, come and meet Richard Howe, a great friend of the Dracut Library!

Are you interested in the Whitey Bulger case? Sure, you can read the papers, but why not hear first hand from Kevin Cullen and Shelley Murphy, authors of  ”Whitey Bulger: America’s Most Wanted Gangster and the Manhunt That Brought Him to Justice”? Make plans now to be here Wednesday, May 22nd at 6:30 pm – their insights are sure to be a hit!

All events are sponsored by the Friends of Dracut Library. They are free and open to the public.

Watts new?

Through a generous gift from the Friends of the Dracut Library, we are now able to make available electricity usage monitors and infrared themometers. Use them to evaluate your home electricity usage by plugging in an appliance. Or use the infrared themometer to see where your home is leaking heat or cold air! Ask for them at the circulation desk and check them out!

Home Zoo

Looking for something to do on a rainy day? How about checking out the animals at the National Zoo in Washington, DC with their animal cams! Observe how the pandas, gorillas, sloth bears, cheetahs, tigers and a whole host of other animals are spending their day. Find facts about the animals and even ‘adopt’ one! When you are ready for a real zoo experience, reserve passes from the library for the Stone & Franklin Park Zoos. The passes are free and available to Dracut residents with a valid library card (card must be presented when passes are picked up). To reserve a pass click HERE. Remember, vacation weeks and weekends are busy times for our passes. Please book ahead!

Letters from Santa!

The Friends of Dracut Library are offering a special gift for your child at this holiday season: a personalized letter from Santa Claus to your child! It’s very simple: Fill out the form neatly (links to the form are below) and drop it off at the Circulation Desk or in the Children’s Room along with a donation of $3.00 per letter. Checks can be written to the “Friends of the Dracut Library.” Forms need to be received by December 10, 2010. Don’t wait late requests will only be processed based on time and availability.

Children 0-5 years old

Children 6 years and older

Museum Passes

Did you know, that as a resident of Dracut, you can check out passes to a wide assortment of local museums? Explore the treasures of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston or the underwater world of the New England Aquarium. Discover the Children’s Museum in Boston or the Discovery Museum in Acton, MA. How about a day at the beach? Did you know you could visit Massachusetts State Parks for free? How about the Zoo? You could visit there too! We have passes for both the Franklin and Stoneham Zoo! Don’t let the summer months pass you by – Discover. Explore. Have Fun!

You must be a Dracut resident with a Dracut Library card in good standing. For more information visit our website. To Reserve passes click here.

4th of July Fun

The library is closed for the 4th of July weekend and reopens July 6th – but we know you need to know that Holiday Trivia for your weekend BBQ’s! From our friends at Chiff here goes:

30
Number of places nationwide with “liberty” in their name. The most populous one is Liberty, Missouri (26,232). Iowa has more of these places than any other state: four (Libertyville, New Liberty, North Liberty and West Liberty).

66 million
Number of visits in a recent year to our national parks — a particularly scenic locale for a July 4th picnic. There were 766 million visits in a recent year to another popular picnic venue — state parks or recreation areas. Those in California (80 million), Ohio (59 million), New York (56 million), Washington (48 million) and Illinois (44 million) recorded the highest number of visits. DID YOU REMEMBER TO RESERVE THE MASSACHUSETTS STATE PARKS PASS FROM THE LIBRARY??

And then there are the Holiday mishaps…but we have you covered (no pun intended! Though I do warn you, we’ve never tried these treatments so use good judgement!) Poison Ivy Treatments, Sun burns, and those often dreaded Family Reunions! We hope you have a wonderful, safe 4th of July!!

Think Blue and Green!

It’s the 40th anniversary of Earth Day! Taste the water, see the sky and feel the lush green earth under your feet! Using your library is not only good for your head but it can be good for the earth too. Do you have books you no longer want or need? Donate them anytime for the Friends of the Dracut Library Booksale (but please no encyclopedias or textbooks). Or check out these 80 uses for old and unwanted books. Help rid the world of those nasty plastic bags: bring your own cloth bag with you when you come to the library.  Do you want more library green ideas? Visit the wonderful blog Going Green @ Your Library