All Posts
Gifts For the Young (and young at heart)
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You, kids, Parents and Teachers on December 3, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Sheri Boggs Buying books for young people is as stressful as it is fun. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had my heart crushed by my nephew’s bemused face the year I bought him the boxed set of The Chronicles of Narnia. I’ve watched kids turn over books and then flip them open […]
Tags: children's books, gift ideas, kids
Coffee Is Good For Me (I Knew It)
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on December 2, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Gwendolyn Haley The other day, I bought my usual morning coffee from a local coffee stand, and the familiar blue lid had a message for me. It said “I’m here to help.” And I wondered—is that true? Is my daily coffee habit more than a socially acceptable vice? Is all this coffee actually doing […]
Holiday Gift Guide for Tinkerers, Makers, and DIYers
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You, Parents and Teachers on November 26, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Brian Vander Veen When people hear that I’m a librarian, they frequently assume that I’m a big reader. And I love a good novel, no doubt, but I can be easily distracted, lucky to finish a book in a month’s time, and my genre tastes are largely confined to some combination of wizards and […]
Tags: DIY, gift ideas
The Romance and Rewards of NaNoWriMo
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You, Prime Time, Teens on November 25, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Cara Strickland Confession: I’ve always secretly wanted to do NaNoWriMo. For those who might be unfamiliar with this concept, NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is an attempt to write a 50,000 word novel between November 1 and November 30 (at 11:59pm). I went to college to write fiction, gave up writing for a while […]
Like A (Culinary) Boss
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on November 20, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Kim Harshberger As with anything challenging, sometimes we just need a win to keep us going. It’s true with work, sports, parenting, and even hobbies. Sometimes those wins are hard earned, but the ones that come easy can be the most satisfying and invigorating. Do you remember that commercial with the mom in the […]
Classic Tales with a Modern Twist
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on November 19, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Kelsey Hudson As a kid, I can remember being curiously obstinate about reading the “classics.” I would read just about anything from cover to cover, from a TV guide to a doctor’s office pamphlet, unless it was written by some dead old guy and labeled a classic. My absolute favorite thing to read, though, was […]
Tags: classics, fairy tales
Game On! Games to Give and Receive
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You, kids, Parents and Teachers, Prime Time, Teens on November 18, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Rachel Edmondson My love of strategy games began a long, long time ago, in the days before kids…OK, it wasn’t that long ago, but having game nights with friends was much easier, and happened a lot more frequently, before kids entered the picture. It all began with a group of friends that got together […]
Tags: board games, card games, games, games for kids, gifts, party games
Supporting Your Local NaNoWriMo Writer
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on November 13, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Gwendolyn Haley Every year, I dread the arrival of November, because it means I have to say goodbye to my husband for a month while he participates in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), by attempting to write a novel of 50,000 words in one month. Sure, he’s still at home, but when your loved […]
Library Hack: Whose Library Is It Anyway?
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on November 12, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Jane Baker When I first came to work at the library nearly three years ago, many of my friends thought I was crazy. “Libraries are dead,” some said, or, “they have no funding.” “I didn’t know the County had a library,” said others. Several community members commented, “the library is Spokane’ […]
Tags: library hacks
Dealing With Creative Block
Posted in Explore and Discover, For You on November 6, 2014 at 6:00 am
By Cara Strickland It happens to all of us: the blank screen, the empty studio, the silent singing voice. Occasionally, we’re all visited by block of one kind or another. What’s a creative person to do? Although some blocks just take time to lift and lessen, there are a few things I’ve found to help […]
Tags: art, creative block, creativity, writer's block, writing
