Friday, June 17, 2011

Yet Another Surprise at the Library...

I get laughed at by friends and family whenever they sit in my car. Why? Because they have to be careful not to knock the fishing rod stowed between the seats and they lose valuable leg room to my stuffed tackle bag. Yup, fishing is definitely one of my favourite summer past times. I'm lucky enough to have inherited most of my dad's cast-off and no longer needed tackle and rods, however I know not everyone has an outdoorsman with a surplus of fishing gear in their family.

For those of you without fishing gear, we've got you covered.

How, you may ask, could a library possibly help someone without fishing gear? The answer is simple. We'll lend you fishing gear just as easier as we lend out books, and movies! You can borrow a fishing rod already equipped with line, and a tackle box as well. The tackle box contains bobbers (a lot of bobbers), leaders, various jigs and hooks, sinkers, and a couple of lures. Besides the cost of your fishing licence, you can fish for free!


If you have grand kids in town for their summer vacation, are cottaging in the area, or just want to test your luck with the fish in the Hydro Pond, come check out or rods and tackle. With every rod and tackle box lent out, I personally guarantee you a memorable day... however, I can't guarantee you'll catch the big one!


You never know what you'll find when you set foot in the library!

Friday, June 10, 2011

Top 5 Friday - Databases

We subscribe to a variety of databases and resources, all of which are made available to our patrons through our website. Because there are so many different resources, people often overlook them and miss out on the information these databases can offer. These are the Top 5 Databases/Resources in my opinion in no particular order. Enjoy!

1) Overdrive - Overdrive provides thousands of titles, in audio book and ebook format - which can be lent to any patron for a 7 or 14 day period... all free of cost for you. This is awesome, since books in these formats can be costly. All you have to do is find a book you wish to borrow, sign it out, and download it to your computer or device. If you haven't checked out Overdrive yet, and think it might be something you're interested in, call the library to sign up for our class next Thursday, June 16th at 6:30 pm.

2) Pebble Go - This service is better suited for a younger audience. I use it all the time in my Cybercamps because it is a fun and easy way for kids to learn new things about animals and science. I find that they actually like using this website to learn because of the colourful, child-friendly layout. It is so easy to use, and gives great information. Check it out! Don't forget to enter the username and password, which are listed beneath the icon on our reference database page.

3) Novelist - Novelist is one of the newer services we offer. It gives you a summary, and other information on pretty much any novel you can think of. I like Novelist best because it gives recommendations based on which books or authors you enjoy. It always helps me out when I have a nine-year-old boy come up to me and ask me to find him something cool to read. Novelist also tells you the next book in a series, which can always be handy. If you're a book lover, take advantage of this resource.

4) Ancestry - I, for one, wish I knew more about my ancestry. I plan on delving into a search for my roots... eventually. If you're currently engrossed in a search to find out who your great-great-grandparents or uncover your family history, try Ancestry. It's super easy to use, and the information you can discover on this site is amazing. If you're going to try this out, I suggest coming into the library on a Thursday night at the end of the month when Mary Heasman can help you with your research and show you the tips and tricks of Ancestry.

5) Chilton - I recently became a car owner and I'm sure this database will come in handy at some point in the future. It contains repair and maintenance instructions for all types of vehicles. I think the best thing about this particular resource is that it is readily available on our website and much easier than hunting down a repair manual elsewhere!

This has been another Top 5 Friday. Tune in next week.