Happy Birthday, Andy!

Today is Andrew Carnegie’s 178th birthday!

Andrew Carnegie …by Pittsburgh’s other Andy.

Carnegie, Carnegie, Carnegie – you see this guy’s name everywhere… what’s up with that???  Well, for starters, his life was like something out of an old Hollywood movie – born into a poor family that moved to Pittsburgh from Scotland after he was born, he worked his way up to eventually become the wealthiest man of his day.  Then he retired and gave his money away – like LOTS of it – so it would benefit everybody.  In short, pretty radical dude.

Teen-Made Carnegie Documentary (*Note: Theodore Roosevelt did not sign the Sherman Antitrust Act, as stated.  Benjamin Harrison signed it into law.  Roosevelt, however, was the first president to seriously enforce the law)…

The American Experience (Hosted by Pittsburgh’s David McCullough – who gives a shout-out to CLP!)…

The first library Carnegie built was in his hometown of Dunfermline, Scotland in 1883.  He then built his first library in the U.S., the Carnegie Free Library of Braddock, before moving on to establish CLP!  All in all, Carnegie built over 2,000 libraries throughout the U.S. and across the world.

Carnegie Library in Suva, Fiji

FUN FACT:  Did you know that Andrew Carnegie is buried in Sleepy Hollow???  Yes, that Sleepy Hollow!

Jon : Carrick

What are YOU Doing This Summer?

Sun is shining. Weather is sweet. Make you wanna move your dancing feet.” Bob Marley

Only a few days left of school.  The clock is ticking down the minutes until you can rush out those doors; jump on the bus, and say, “Its SUMMER!”  No more school, no more homework, no more nagging voices telling you to stop fooling around and pay attention!

I don’t know about you, but this summer looks like it is jammed packed with so many cool things to do.  Don’t have any money? No special vacations out of the beautiful city of Pittsburgh?  If I were you I wouldn’t worry too much about either one.  Your local Carnegie libraries have been planning round the clock to set up an awesome summer vacation just for you.  Check out this list of things to do for the month of June!

June Events

• Summer Reading Extravaganza |  June 10th, 2012 | 12:00 – 5:00pm
  Did someone say iPad?  Sign up for Teen Summer Reading and find out how you could win an iPad!
• Hip-Hop on L.O.C.K. Music | Starting June 16th, 2012 | 1:00 – 4:00pm
  Sign up fast!  Space is limited!
• QuickFlix Media Arts | Starting June 25th, 2012 | 1:00 – 4:00pm
  Want a chance to make a winning video?  Grand prize $100 iTunes gift card!
• Riddikulus Wizard Rock Concert | June 20th, 2012 | 5:00 – 7:30pm
  Featuring The Whomping Willows, Lauren Fairweather, Tonks and the Aurors, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Snidget, and I Speak Tree

Also check out the Teen events at your local library this month as they will include:  Gaming, Anime clubs, Teen Advisory, Musical workshops, Art clubs, Creative writing, and so much more!  Check out what is happening at your library so you don’t miss out!

Yeah, this is just for the month of June… Come back to check out the month of July and August too!

Tell me, what do you’ve got planned for your awesome summer break????

Great Irish Stories for St. Patrick’s Day

 

March to me means two things- NCAA March Madness and Saint Patrick’s Day.  I’ve always loved Saint Patrick’s Day and my family always had a huge party to celebrate.  Of course my grandparents last names were Murphy, Mulligan, McGillicuddy, and Carney.  So, yeah we’re pretty Irish!  We still have a while to go until the actual Saint Patrick’s Day, so I thought instead of focusing on the holiday I would talk about some of my favorite Irish writers and stories.  I may be a bit biased in favor of Irish writers, but anyone will have to admit that such a small country has produced some of the greatest writers and storytellers of all time.  This tiny island nation has produced literary giants like James Joyce, Sean O’Casey, and William Butler Yeats to contemporary writers like Frank McCourt and Cecelia Ahern.  I’ve picked a few of my favorite books by Irish authors.  Hopefully, you will pick one up to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day!  Enjoy!

 White Horse Trick by Kate Thompson– The third in a series that started with The New Policeman, but it can be read without having read the others.  It’s set in the future when the climate has become disasterous and everyone is struggling to get food and water in order to survive.  However, a group in Ireland has found a way to transport people to the land of the fairies where there are no such problems.  The only problem is the fairies don’t want more people in their land, so they must be tricked into letting more humans into their homeland.   




 A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, inspired by an idea by Siobhan Dowd– Dowd was a fantastic writer who had just started publishing before her untimely death from cancer at age 47 in 2007.  This book is based on an idea she had about a young boy named Connor who is already dealing with his mother’s cancer and bullies at school when has a monster begin to appear to him every night at 12:07.  The monster tells Connor that he will tell three stories and then Connor must tell the monster the TRUE story of his life.  It doesn’t sound that scary, but it shows how sometimes our worst nightmares are nothing compared to the reality of life.  Definitely one of the best books I have read in a long time. 

 The Alchemyst by Michael Scott– The first in a series about Josh and Sophie Newman, two normal teenagers living in San Francisco.  Atleast they think everything is normal until they find out their bosses are really Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel, the famous alchemist and his wife.  The Flamels are hundreds of years old and have been waiting for a set of twins prophesied to save the world.  The Flamels think that Josh and Sophie are those very twins and their lives are never the same.  Scott uses mythology from Ireland (a almost every other culture) in this exciting series. 

 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne– Bruno is a nine year old whose father has a job working for the German government.  This is the story of how he deals with the problems he encounters when his father gets a new job.  This sounds pretty normal except for the fact that it is 1942 and the German government is controlled by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis.

Winter Break Boredom.

Happy Winter Break!

It is now December 23rd and winter break has just begun. Once all the eating and gift giving subsides you will definitely be looking for some free or low-cost fun! Here are my top five suggestions!

1. Visit your local library for a free program! You can make a winter bracelet at Hazelwood or a party hat at Main on Wednesday. And all week long you can get your game on at you nearest library: East Liberty, Hill District, Allegheny, Hazelwood, Main, and Downtown.

2. Go ice skating! At Schenley Skating Rink, one session and skate rental is only $5.50 for those age 17 and under! The Rink at PPG Place in downtown Pittsburgh or the brand new “Penguins Pond” in the South Side Works will each run you $9.00 with skate rental.

3. Bowling. It might sound lame but bowling with a group of friends are some of my fondest memories. At Forward Lanes in Squirrel Hill there are all you can bowl deals for $10.00 a person including shoes! Check out teen friendly Rock ‘n Bowl and Pizza, Pop & Bowling at Arsenal Lanes on Butler St. in Lawrenceville.

4. Trip to the movies. Many local movie theaters have weekday discounts. Check out $5.00 Mondays or no 3D surcharge Wednesdays at the SouthSide Works Cinema. Shows before 6:00PM Monday through Thursday at the AMC Loews Waterfront are also discounted to $5.00.

 5. Last but not least… FIREWORKS on New Years Eve! Check out the website for the Cultural District’s First Night 2012 Celebration for information about the best places to view the fireworks! Hint: There are shows at 6:00 PM and Midnight.

Please have a safe and happy Winter Break! If you have anything to add please feel free to comment!

-Michael (CLP Hazelwood)

Tell us what you want!

We’re asking teens all over the city of Pittsburgh

 what you want from your library.

Please take a few minutes and fill out this survey HERE.

Give us your honest opinion, and we’ll look to your answers when creating future library programs!

Thanks!

~LeeAnn Anna

Saying Good-bye

Something that I learned when I was a teenager is that saying good-bye is not easy but it is an inevitable part of life. People come into our lives sometimes briefly, sometimes forever. We move from place to place. We graduate high school and then college and later grad school saying good-bye to the friends we made along the way. Life moves fast and it is full of good-byes. 

Good-byes are never easy.

This month is my last month at CLP-Carrick and now I must say good bye. And it will not be easy. I have seen kids grow up here from toddlers to 3rd graders; from 12 year olds to high school graduates.  It has been a wonderful six years but now it is time to say good-bye.

Good-bye to all the families that have brought your children to my storytimes, Easter Egg Hunts, Halloween Haunted Houses and various other programs. I’ve enjoyed singing and playing with your children and scaring them on Halloween!

Good-bye to all the teens that have joined our TAG group along the way. Most of you have moved on already and wish you the best of luck in all you do.

Good-bye to the staff that I have worked with at Carrick over the years. I will miss you all so much!

Good-bye to all my fellow children’s librarian and teen specialists. I’ve learned so much from you. You’ll probably see me chasing my kids threw your library doors some day soon!

Good-bye to the community members, teachers and customers of the Carrick library. Thank you for your continued support for the library!

Good-bye blog readers. Thank you for reading!

I had the time of my life!

Julie, CLP-Carrick

Design challenged? This is the post for you!

I recently moved into a new apartment and am super duper excited about it.  This is not my apartment, but an example of what I would like it to look like after I decorate:

It’s sunnier, bigger, and just all around better than my last place.  I spent this Monday and Tuesday unpacking boxes, jammin’ to Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill (an album I recently re-discovered, and still remember every word to – just like my 13 year old self did) and other such albums that I can only listen to when my husband is not around.

As my possessions have piled up around me, blissfully free of boxes but still without a place to call their own, I’m realizing two things:

1.  I need to seriously scout out some local thrift stores for some additional furniture.

2.  I really don’t have any interior design skills, at all.

Luckily, I have a friend who’s a designer.  Unluckily, she’s on tour right now, wrocking out to The Whomping Willows and friends:

(who, BTW, will be playing in front of the Main Library on July 29th).

So, where’s a librarian to turn?  You saw this coming…..THE LIBRARY!

So, whether you’re moving to a new dorm in the fall or just need to revamp your space for the summer, check out one of these terrific books to get an expert opinion.




Undecorate: The No Rules Approach to Interior Design

Tradition get you down?  Check out this book for some   real out of the box imaginative design ideas!










I Wanna Re-Do My Room

Only have the supplies in your craft cupboard to work with?  It’s cool, check out this title for some funky ideas on a low budget!










Essential Color: The Back to Basics Home Design, Decoration & Furnishing

Have issues with color choice?  This is the guide for you!




LeeAnn Anna

Coffee – A Loaded Cup, Even Without Cream and Sugar.

I’m almost positive that you are like me in that it’s been pretty hard to hold your eyes open over the last week or so, due to the sleep-inducing weather we’ve been having lately.  How do I combat this lethargy, you ask?

COFFEE



Oh, the brown sludgy delicious nectar of the awake and ready for Monday morning!  And I’m not the only one – in 2009, the average American drank 416 8-ounce cups of coffee!

Luckily, science has found some other health benefits to drinking coffee, other than the fact that it keeps you going.  For instance, coffee contains a large amount of antioxidants, which help protect the body from free radicals, which mess with cells, causing them to react abnormally, which can lead to cancer and blood vessel disease.

Now, don’t get me wrong – I’m not endorsing you to go out and become a coffee addict or anything, because coffee does have some negative health effects, such as:

• raising blood pressure
• contains acids that can make heart burn worse

Not to mention the fact that, according to this Pittsburgh Post Gazette article, the price of a pound of coffee has more than doubled, because of rising transportation costs (oil and gas) and more and more people all over the world wanting more and more this most loved good.  The demand has grown so high that reports have been made about people stealing coffee beans at incoming ports, and stripping coffee trees of their beans illegally.  Coffee pirates!  Can you imagine?!?

Some of the poorest areas in the world are the largest producers of coffee beans, like Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.  Who fights for those farmers to get their fair share of the coffee profits?  It’s a tricky situation for sure, one that the Fair Trade Movement attempts to address.

I sure hope this post hasn’t hindered your enjoyment of your next cup o’ joe, but did give you pause.  If you’d like more information, take a look at one of these titles from the library!
















Sources Cited

(All Available in the internet or through a library database!)

“Health Benefits of Coffee – WebMD.” WebMD – Better Information. Better Health. Web. 20 May 2011. <http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/coffee-new-health-food?page=2&gt;.

Shannon, Seth W. “Economic stimulation: the history and hope of coffee in development.” Transnational Law & Contemporary Problems 18.1 (Wntr 2009): 169(28). Academic OneFile. Gale. CARNEGIE LIBRARY OF PITTSBURGH-EIN. 20 May 2011

Use Gale Academic OneFile!

The Hear Me Project

Have you ever had something super interesting/exciting/massively sad/overwhelming to say?  Have you put it up on your Facebook wall, tweeted it, told your BFF, blogged about it, told your cat, shouted from the rooftops, and yet….still…you aren’t satisfied?

Well.  Have we got a venue for you and your raves, vents, chatters, and stories: The Hear Me project.

It all started at Carnegie Mellon University‘s CREATE (Community Robotics, Education and Technology Empowerment) Lab with an idea: Give Young People a Voice.  Give them an opportunity to say how they feel, what they want, who they are going to be, and then post it for the world to see!  Anonymously, of course.

And where’s a great place to find those young people, who have really fantastic ideas to voice (or just want to rant?  Or maybe just write or draw something you want to share?  You guessed it….The Library!  So, we’ve hired a very special person – named Lisa – to rove from branch library to branch library and hang out at Main-Teen with a high-tech audio recording device, poised and ready to record teens’ stories.  YOUR STORIES.

Hear what Tim thinks about music, Olivia reflecting on her most embarrassing junior high moment, or Angelique talking about getting jumped in the school bathroom, all at tell-port.net.

Not only can venting like this make YOU feel better about yourself, about your place in our world, but it just might make a difference in someone else’s life.

If you want to get involved with the Hear Me project, please tell your local Teen Librarian!

International Manga Library!

photo by flickr user Telstar Logistics

Last month Meiji University in Tokyo opened the International Manga Library on its Surugadai campus.   According to this article from the Japan Times Online, the library has over 2 million volumes of manga, and if you’re ever in Tokyo, you could become a one-day member.

The Carnegie Library system doesn’t have a manga collection that’s quite that big, but ours isn’t too shabby.  Our librarians have put together a booklist of recommendations over on the Books and More section of our teen page, or you can browse our holdings by clicking here.  That’s 678 records, and some of those records are for series with 20+ volumes, so it would take someone a while to work through them all. 

Other Resources:

• If you are getting a gift of money for the holidays and need some fun Japanese swag to use it on, there’s a shop in Pittsburgh called Kawaii that might be able to help.
• Shonen Jump and Shojo Beat will give you previews of new manga on their websites.