grandCENTRAL

Rincón Latino: Despedidas Tristes

2010-04-16T07:30:00.000-07:00

Las despedidas son para los que tienen temor. Entonces por eso digo que mejor nos vemos en otro sitios, en otros recintos y con otros amigos. Mejor ampliar nuestro séquito y vivir más momentos de felicidad. Pero recuerden que todo trastorno conlleva un equilibrio.

Gracias por leer nuestras notas y crear nuevas enlaces de amistad y propagar nuestra bellísima cultura hispana. Las bibliotecas en los Estados Unideos sirven como un gran depósito de una memoria colectiva. Por eso deberíamos apoyar y engendrar la enseñanza y la cultura en nuestros hogares. Y sobretodo apoyar las bibliotecas para así no arrojar nuestras vidas al olvido. Todo cambia incluso nosotros mismos.

Por favor síganos en Twitter y en Facebook.

The Last Post on GrandCentral: Thanks For the Memories, Until We Meet Again on Facebook, Twitter

2010-04-15T12:00:00.000-07:00

We didn't quite make 500 posts - 478 to be exact - but the GrandCentral Blog resulted from the dedication and diligence of library employees who truly cared and care about what YOU know about the library and the world around you. Because we still care, we are migrating our content from GrandCentral to both twitter and facebook - same wine, different bottles. Our address at twitter is http://twitter.com/saclib_Central, while our Facebook content can also be found at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/saclibrary.

Not only did GrandCentral benefit from a variance of library talents, it was seasoned by the talents of YOU, the reader and the mindful comments that you've been posting on GrandCentral since 2007. So...thanks for the memories, dear friends, until we meet again at Facebook and Twitter. We're never more than a click away.

Signing Off,

Danskabeaver

Rincón Latino: ¡Sonrisas: Libros Para Niños!

2010-04-08T10:05:00.000-07:00

,,Bella Luna = Beautiful Moon" por Dawn Jeffers

Con la ayuda de la luz de la luna, una pequeñita desea que no termine un día espectacular. La pequeñita juega hasta que termine exhausta y desea el regreso de la noche para finalmente descansar.

¡Un libro verdaderamente encantador!

Facts on Funerals

2010-04-05T11:49:00.000-07:00

Funerals are like weddings. They last a few hours, yet you can end up still paying for them a decade later.

I honestly don’t get the expensive funeral thing. A while back a high school acquaintance with one child and another on its way told me how financially difficult it was to bury his mother. “There was hardly any money left.” I couldn’t scream at him, “You have kids and you put all your money in the ground! Are you nuts?” Instead I settled for, “Sorry about your loss. I have a coupon for a #7, no mayo, diet Pepsi.”

Seriously, I don’t agree with the costly funeral = love equation. I feel your loved ones wouldn’t want you to become a ramen noodle eating studio apartment dweller because you picked the metal casket over direct cremation. Or, better yet, they’d rather you’d have spent the money on them when they were alive to enjoy it. Imagine if you gave everyone a choice between the following:

a) 10 seven-day cruises
b) Trips to the Super Bowl, Final Four, NBA championship and World Series
c) 100 “Kat’s Meows” specials---foot and hand rescues with a full body massage
d) Enjoying a bathroom makeover for 2 years+
e) A $10,000 funeral

Can you really see anyone saying, “Forget cruising to Greece, I’d much rather have a pricy funeral!” Of course not. So why do we often get caught in the expensive funeral trap?

Sure, it’s hard to digest that few of us will have the Michael Jackson service complete with a gold casket in the Staples Center, Jennifer Hudson singing, and the productivity level in California dropping to negative 3 because everyone views your memorial as a free concert in the middle of the work week. (Planners, why didn’t you put it on Furlough Friday?) But spending a huge chunk of your savings on someone’s funeral doesn’t tell the world, “I really loved this person.” Instead, it says, “Guess the kids won’t be going to college after all.”

If you really love your family, show them by fully planning your funeral and estate. Yes, it sounds horrible. Not quite as horrible as having the DMV place our real weight on our licenses, but horrible none the less. Still, the alternative is your family being forced to sell the house because the funeral director convinced your spouse a marble headstone is, “What Casey would have really wanted,” and shushing the person who says, “I think Casey would have really wanted to still be alive!”

For information on how to plan a funeral, come to Central’s Facts on Funerals program on Wednesday, April 7th at 12 noon.

Rincón Latino: ¡Películas en Español!

2010-04-01T15:46:00.000-07:00

,,Mataharis" de Icíar Bollaín

,,Inés, Eva y Carmen trabajan en una agencia de detectives en Madrid. Inés (María Vázquez), infiltrada entre los empleados de una compañía multinacional, investiga a Manuel (Diego Martín), un directivo de la empresa. La investigación la coloca ante un dilema ético. Eva (Najwa Nimri), que acaba de reincorporarse a la agencia después de una baja maternal, descubre que su pareja Iñaki (Tristán Ulloa) le oculta algo importante. Carmen (Nuria González), la más experimentada de las tres y con un gris matrimonio, observa y graba el naufragio conyugal de Sergio (Antonio de la Torre). Desde la agencia de Valbuena, para quien trabajan, estas tres profesionales de la vigilancia traspasan a menudo las fronteras de la intimidad ajena, pero nadie les ha preparado para enfrentarse a sus propios secretos.Y también interpreto esta película Carlos Santos."

Tax Time

2010-03-29T16:44:00.000-07:00

Doing my taxes is not high on my list of fun things to do during my lunch hour, but I always remind myself of the following:

---Taxes pay for things.
---When my street light goes out, I don’t have to pick up a bulb from Lowes and shimmy up a pole.
---When the fire department comes out for a fire, you don’t have to cut them a check.
---Clean water comes out of my tap without me having to tell anyone, “Hey, I want clean water!”
---The police have yet to charge me for when I call them on the neighbors and they have to bring out 5 squad cars and a helicopter. (On a related note, does anyone have a house in a nice neighborhood I can buy? Or a nice guy I can marry who lives in said house? It’s okay if he’s on his death bed…)
---$10,000 per year for private school ($130,000 for K-12 education) vs. $0 for public school. (Top that!)
---When something goes wrong in the government I can actually reach a representative. (Or, as one put it, "It's you again!")
---Amtrak’s Capital Corridor is the best trip ever!
---Cal Grant and Pell Grant were very good to me.
---While UPS and Fed Ex wanted $66 and $72 to ship my box to Hawaii, USPS only wanted $20. (No wonder they’re going broke!)

Plus:
---Taxes support libraries.
---I like having a job.
---Libraries are warm in the winter and cool in the summer. (Or, in Kids’ Place, it’s sweater weather in the summer and bikini season in the winter.)
---Having a job and healthcare is a good thing.
---We have DVDs you can borrow for free.
---Having a paycheck means I can pay for incidentals such as food, clothes and a roof over my head.

Remember, there are a few things you don’t want to mess with in life, and IRS is at the top of the list. If you haven’t filed your taxes yet and you made under $58,000 last year, you can file both your state and federal taxes for free!!! Go to the Beehive to do so.

Tax time, too, shall pass.

Technology Festival

2010-03-25T08:14:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday, March 24, Sacramento Public Library staged a Digital Technology street festival on 9th Street, just outside the Central Library. Overdrive's Digital Bookmobile was the anchor, and staff from all branches set up tables showcasing all the digital and electronic materials and services the library offers.

Staff with bright orange laptops sat at tables in tents and demonstrated our array of databases, which patrons can use at home even when the library is closed. Using our newly-revised database page, it's even easier to find them and select just the right one, whether it be homework, Do-it-Yourself, business research, or browsing newspapers.

Staff also highlighted our online text and chat services: AskNow and Homework Help Now, where you can get your questions answered via the web, JobNow, where you can get help with your resume and practice for a successful interview.

Our newest service, Info Quest: Txt4Nswrs had its own table. When you're on the go and don't have access to your computer or the Internet, just text your question to 309-222-7740 and a librarian will text the answer back to your cell phone.

Digital storytelling is growing in importance as people age and less emphasis is placed on print preservation. Who writes in diaries any more? and how many of us blog regularly to tell the stories of our daily lives? And even if we did, how long will blogs last, before the Next Big Thing? (Does Twitter count?) The library is creating and preserving digitally the stories of Sacramento residents. These stories, told in their own words and enhanced by photographs, increase our appreciation for the people who helped Sacramento become the great place it is.

Rincón Latino: ¡Libros en Español!

2010-03-15T15:03:00.000-07:00

,,Caín" de José Saramago

,, ...En Caín, regresa a los primeros libros de la Biblia. En un itinerario heterodoxo, recorre ciudades decadentes y establos, palacios de tiranos y campos de batalla de la mano de los principales protagonistas del Antiguo Testamento, imprimiéndole la música y el humor refinado que caracteriza su obra..."

2010-03-04T08:06:00.000-08:00

,,Gigante" de Adrian Biniez

,,Gigante" es una película uruguaya y se trata de Jara, un tímido y solitario guardián de un supermercado en la ciudad de Montevideo. Cuando la gerencia del super decide instalar cámaras de vigilancia por todo el edificio, Jara se encarga de mantener las cámaras pero lo malo de este oficio es que el turno de Jara es durante la medianoche. Solo, aburrido y frustrado con su fabuloso trabajo, de repente se entera de Julia, una bella limpiadora y se enamora. De ahí, la vida de Jara toma un cambio enorme. ¿Qué pasará después de este cambio? ¿Quién sabe? Tendrán que ver la película

Rincón Latino: ¡Libros en Español!

2010-02-16T11:56:00.000-08:00

Las fantásticas : las mujeres de el Cartel : un viaje al extraordinario mundo de las mujeres de los narcos de Andrés López López y Juan Camilo Ferrand.

"Tras la exitosa serie de televisión 'El Cartel' llegan Las Fantásticas, las hermosas y voluptuosas mujeres oficiales de los narcos. Hasta ahora nadie había contado cómo es la vida de la mujeres de los narcos, ni hasta dónde llegan aquellas sencillas jovencitas para lograr convertirse en compañeras de reconocidos delicuentes. He aquí los testimonios de las seis mujeres Fantásticas que inspiraron la serie de televisión."

¡Rincón Latino: Música en Spanglish!

2010-02-01T14:41:00.001-08:00

,,I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" de Pitbull

"I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" es una canción del rapero Pitbull, lanzado como segundo sencillo de su álbum Rebelution. La canción está basada en "75, calle Brasil", de Nicola Fasano vs Pat Rich, que a su vez muestra "Street Player" por Chicago. El título es una referencia a la calle de Miami Calle Ocho.

Search the SPL Catalog from Your Preferred Webpage

2010-01-23T17:15:00.000-08:00

I just stumbled upon this little widget to embed a search box to the Library's catalog on your preferred web page. I use Facebook, Blogger and Google. Now, if I get a tip about a good book or dvd from a friend on Facebook, I can immediately search for it without having to leave Facebook. Try it out!

I embeded the code here within the blog post, but you can actually place it in your tool bar so that it shows up on all your pages. The widget comes with code for other applications too, so if you tweet or use a different blogging service, check out the link to see if there is one for your preferred online space.

Rincón Latino:Telenovela: El Refugio

2010-01-22T19:47:00.000-08:00

A Pome

2010-01-20T16:39:00.000-08:00

A Pome

When I was small I had a book
My mom would read, called Mother Goose.
She read and sang and clapped and rhymed.
I always begged, "Just one more time!"

Well, now I'm grown, with grown-up kids;
I read them Mother Goose a bunch!
Now it's YOUR turn: pack your best pomes
To read at Central tomorrow at lunch!

Brown-bag poetry-sharing begins at noon at Central Library tomorrow, Thursday, January 21, in the West Meeting Room on the first floor. Hope to see you there!

Rincón Latino: ¡Libros en Español!

2010-01-19T05:41:00.000-08:00

,,El Símbolo Perdido" por Dan Brown

"¿Existe un secreto tan poderoso que, de salir a la luz, sea capaz de cambiar el mundo? El experto en simbología Robert Langdon es convocado inesperadamente por Peter Solomon, masón, filántropo y su antiguo mentor, para dar una conferencia en el Capitolio. Pero el secuestro de Peter y el hallazgo de una mano tatuada con cinco enigmáticos símbolos cambian drásticamente el curso de los acontecimientos. Atrapado entre las exigencias de una mente perturbada y la investigación oficial, Langdon se ve inmerso en un mundo clandestino de secretos masónicos, historia oculta y escenarios nunca antes vistos, que parecen arrastrarlo hacia una sencilla pero inconcebible verdad."

Teddy Pendergrass, 1950-2010

2010-01-14T20:00:00.000-08:00

When I was a child I did not listen to traditional children’s music, meaning my mother didn’t lose her sanity and I learned that “real” music didn’t revolve around the wheels on the bus, giant yellow animals or purple dinosaurs. Most of the time I’d listen to the Staple Singers, The Pointer Sisters, Bob James, David Sanborn (you must buy their Double Vision album!) Luther Vandross, Tina Turner, Diana Ross, Kenny G, Sam Cooke, Stevie Wonder, and a whole host of other artist, which, of course, included Teddy Pendergrass.

Pendergrass began singing at the age of 2, which makes everyone else look like slackers, now doesn't it? He was originally part of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. Surely no one forget If You Don’t Know Me By Now. His career was altered drastically following a car accident in 1982 that paralyzed him from the waist down. This accident spurred him to create the Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, an organization that assists individuals with spinal cord injuries “to achieve their maximum potential in areas of education, employment, housing, productivity and overall independence.” He’d continue to perform, releasing new material into the late 1990s, and received a Grammy nomination in 1989 for his song "Joy," yet it was his early music that still resounds with people today. My favorite song of his happens to be Love TKO. Please take a moment to enjoy and remember Pendegrass's life.

Make it a Day ON, not at day off!

2010-01-14T00:00:00.000-08:00

"If you want to be important- wonderful. If you want to be recognized- wonderful. If you want to be great- wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That is the new definition of greatness... it means that everybody can be great. Because everybody can serve."

Martin Luther King Jr Day, observed this year on Monday, January 18th is a federal holiday, however, many are using the day to serve rather than relax. It is a day to "transform Dr. King, Jr's life and teachings into community service that helps solve social problems. Service that meets either a tangible need, or a need of the spirit, such as building a sense of cummunity or mutual responsibility."

This year, Central Library is hosting an afternoon of service on the Sunday prior to the day off. We have a few spots open to volunteers, but there are several opportunities out there where one can go to build a sense of community. Contact the City of Sacramento Volunteers Department or the Volunteer Center of Sacramento for more ideas of how you can help.

Rincón Latino: ¡Música en Español!

2010-01-09T07:42:00.000-08:00

,,Arde el Cielo" de Maná

El 29 de abril de 2008 Maná saca un CD - DVD llamado Arde el cielo. Está grabado en vivo en su última gira mundial "Amar es combatir" que presenciaron más de 2 millones de personas en América y Europa. El grupo escogió para la grabación del álbum dos de sus cuatro actuaciones en el Coliseo de Puerto Rico en marzo de 2007.
El CD contiene 12 temas en directo y dos temas inéditos grabados en estudio. El primero de estos temas inéditos es "Si no te hubieras ido", una canción de Marco Antonio Solís ya versionada por otros artistas pero en la que Maná ha sabido poner su peculiar sello. El segundo tema inédito del CD es "Arde el Cielo" un tema compuesto y producido por Fher Olvera y Álex González. Ambos temas aspiran a ser Hits en 2008.
El DVD contiene 12 temas en directo que representan y repasan la historia de Maná, desde "Rayando el Sol" a "Labios compartidos", pasando por una roquera versión de la ranchera "El Rey" y canciones tan conocidas como "En el muelle de San Blas" o "Vivir sin Aire".
El grupo, en entrevistas a medios latinos, indica que cuando programaron la gira y vieron la repercusión que tenía fue cuando decidieron hacer este CD+DVD como regalo y recuerdo para todos sus seguidores.

Rincón Latino: ¡Libros en Español!

2010-01-05T14:47:00.000-08:00

,,La Pasión Según Carmela" de Marcos Aguinis

,,La Pasión Según Carmela" narra con un realismo impresionante la historia de un médico argentino que se enamora de una médica cubana. Juntos viven en Cuba algunos de los años clave de la revolución de Castro. Poco antes del advenimiento de la democracia en la Argentina, él vuelve; ella, en cambio, queda en Cuba, libre, pero de alguna manera convertida en rehén.

Sometimes the library writes Its own books; In this case, about one of Sacramento's great neighborhoods: Meet Alkali Flat

2010-01-01T07:41:00.000-08:00

The Images of America series from Arcadia Publishing has availed Americans, coast-to-coast, to the imagery and lore that makes our neighborhoods so great and so rich in history. Recently, the Sacramento Room of the Sacramento Public Library put pen to paper, publishing an ode to the oldest residential neighborhood in the city: Sacramento's Alkali Flat.

The Alkali rests near a busy downtown Sacramento and is bordered by the rail yard, river, and thoroughfares that helped form its identity over a century ago. Named for the crusted alkali deposits that were left by seasonal flooding, the neighborhood has, over time, attracted governors, legislators, artists, and pioneering physicians to take up residence in some of the most exquisitely crafted homes in the American West. Neighborhood lore includes the gradual conquest of the odiferous China Slough and Federal troops billeting there during 1894's Pullman Strike, while the haunting story of little May Woolsey and a tragic tale of crime are the stories spoken of today. Boasting mills, dairies, railroads, and media as well as schools, hospitals, multiethnic churches, and local businesses in its heyday, Alkali Flat's history is characterized by contrasts-old landmarks have fallen or adapted to other uses, but the future holds promise for one of Sacramento's most unique neighborhoods.

The Sacramento Room is happy to have produced its second book in three years (see also Historic Photos of Sacramento). The best part is that partial proceeds from the book will go back to the library. Copies will appear in bookstores and other businesses around the Alkali and the greater Sacramento area starting on January 11 of 2010, with a price of $21.99. Isn't it good to know that picking up a copy will not only expand your knowledge of this great city's history, but also put much needed funding into the hands of your public library.

Resolutions 2.010

2010-01-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

Practically speaking, the most wonderful time of the year is not Christmas: it’s December 26-31. Christmas is over, the relatives have (thankfully) left, the after Christmas clearance bliss has begun , and New Years is right around the corner. New Year’s Day requires no planning whatsoever. You either go to some sort of religious ceremony which involves candle lighting (nothing says Happy New Year quite like accidentally setting something on fire!) or you buy alcohol and order pizza/Chinese food.

I prefer Chinese.

But somewhere around your 80th chicken pot sticker/12th slice of pizza, you remember something. Something nagging at the back of your brain…

It’s time for your resolutions.

Didn’t you say something about losing weight last year? And weren’t you supposed to stop smoking years ago when they made it practically illegal to smoke unless it was in your closet, and that was only if you owned your home outright?

How depressing.

For those of you who need a little push in the right direction, check out our display in Central Express. Need to get organized? (I’ve been told shoving everything into a sack and tossing it into a closet doesn’t count, but that's never stopped me from getting out the Glad bags.) Pick up a book on straightening up your house for good. Want to burn off some extra calories? Grab an exercise video. Or maybe you just need to pick up a good book because you swore you would read a book in 2010 that didn’t feature vampires.

Believe it or not, we do have such books on the shelf. So feel free to borrow a few.

Happy New Year!

Rincón Latino: ¡Libros en Español!

2009-12-31T14:26:00.000-08:00

,,Nada" de Carmen Laforet

,,Nada es una novela escrita por Carmen Laforet en 1944, que ganó el Premio Nadal el 6 de enero de 1945 Luego, en 1948 obtuvo el Premio Fastenrath de la Real Academia Española. Llamó la atención no solamente por la juventud de la escritora, que por aquel entonces tenía 23 años, sino también porque mostraba la sociedad de aquella época. Hay quien dice que la novela es autobiográfica. Aunque la novela contiene elementos biográficos, la autora misma escribe en su introducción al cuento dentro de la compilación llamada Novelas (Primera edición 1957 Barcelona, Editorial Planeta) lo siguiente: "No es, como ninguna de mis novelas, autobiográfica, aunque el relato de una chica estudiante, como yo fui en Barcelona, e incluso la circunstancia de haberla colocado viviendo en una calle de esta ciudad donde yo misma he vivido, haya planteado esta cuestión más de una vez".
Es una novela de carácter existencialista en la que Carmen Laforet refleja el estancamiento y la pobreza en la que se encontraba la España de la época de la posguerra. La escritora supo transmitir con esta obra, escrita con un estilo literario que supuso una renovación en la prosa de la época, la lenta desaparición de la pequeña burguesía tras la Guerra Civil."

Blue Moons

2009-12-31T08:56:00.000-08:00

Last night as I got home from work, the moon was rising. The sky was clear, the air was cold, and the moon was THAT BIG and brilliant! If the sky is clear tonight, we'll be able to see it again. Everyone's calling it a "blue moon" - but is it, really?

Almost everyone will tell you that a "blue moon" is the second full moon in a calendar month. But it hasn't always had that meaning. An earlier agricultural definition states that a blue moon is the third full moon in a season that has four full moons instead of the usual three. ABC News and Associated Press have written similar stories explaining the different meanings of the phrase. The About.com Astronomy site also has a page of links to facts, trivia, and legends about blue moons. Infoplease provides blue moon facts and myths, including an old proverb the Oxford English Dictionary says was first recorded in 1528:

If they say the moon is blue

We must believe that it is true.

What I found missing this year is the story that "Blue Moon" actually was the name of a Dutch trading vessel that returned to port so seldom that the folks named the intervals between port visits "Blue moons". Did I imagine it? Or does that story surface only once in a blue moon?

Just for fun, here's a list of Blue moon reading from the library's catalog - both fact and fiction.

jpstanley's moon photo used with permission

Thoughts from Customer Appreciation Day

2009-12-29T12:58:00.000-08:00

Customer Appreciation Day(s) were earlier in the month of December. At Central Library we celebrated with the staff sharing their thoughts of why we love our patrons and greeted our patrons with a cookie and an invitation to share their thoughts about why they loved this library. Below are a few thoughts from each.

Why We Love Our Patrons:

Hearing kids singing during story time makes my day.
They ask interesting questions for us to answer at the Reference Desk!
Sometimes they wear colorful socks.

Why Our Patrons Love the Library:

Free WiFi&Easy access.
There are so many art classes.

I can read free comics.
The staff is always nice and helpful. We find new resources every time.

Thank you Central Library Patrons!

Christmas in Holis

2009-12-25T00:00:00.000-08:00

I was hoping I could all the staff together to sing this song. However, that didn’t happen. So I guess I’ll have to settle for the Run D.M.C. original.

There's always next year...