Valentine’s Day is Coming!

Yes, that time of year is coming sooner than you think!  January has only a few days left, then whoosh here comes February the month of romance and Valentines.

No one knows for sure where Valentine’s Day comes from, but there are a couple of popular theories. Some believe that Valentine’s Day started in ancient Rome with the celebration of Lupercalia, a day which honored Lupercus and Faunus and the founders of Rome. It was celebrated on February 15.  Another theory is that there were two saints and a priest named Valentine.  One saint was executed on February 14th and 227 years later, Pope Gelasius named February 14, Valentine’s Day for him. The priest named Valentine disobeyed the Emperor and secretly married couples.

According to web sources, the modern day celebration of Love began in England and France.The first Valentine was sent in 1415 on February 14 when a French Duke was in jail and sent a Valentine to his wife.  Valentine’s candy was first given in the late 1800′s.  Valentine’s Day is now celebrated in many countries around the world. In addition to the United States, England, France, Australia, Canada and Mexico celebrate this special day. In the United States alone, over a billion cards are sent to mark the day. Roses are the traditional flower to give on Valentine’s Day and over 100 million roses are usually sold in the three-day period around Valentine’s Day.

How did Cupid get involved?  He is the son of Venus, the Roman god of love and beauty.  Cupid often appears on Valentine cards with his bow and arrow, which when shot at someone inspire magical feelings of love. So there you have a very brief history of Valentine’s Day.

Check the eventkeeper listings and you’ll find that Fremont Main, Niles and Irvington are all celebrating Valentine’s Day with special programs.  So enjoy Valentine’s Day whether you have a special sweetie or not.  Celebrate the love in your life from family and friends.  And have a very Happy Valentine’s Day!

 

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FUSD Got Talent!!

Come and watch FUSD students compete for $1000 and the FUSS (Fremont Unified Student Store) trophy for their school!  You and your families are invited to attend the 1st Annual FUSD’s Got Talent Show.  This show is hosted by FUSS to raise money for homeless FUSD students and their families for the holidays.  All proceeds will be given to homeless FUSD students to help with the holidays.

 Location: Fremont Adult School Multi-Purpose Room, 4700 Calaveras Avenue

Date:  November 17, 2012, Saturday

Time: 12 pm – 5:00 pm

Register Online:  http://www.fuss4schools.org/activities/registration/ 

Ticket: $2 online, or $5 at the door (*Deadline to buy tickets by credit card is November 14)

Purchase Video: $20 online (* No pictures or videotaping will be allowed)

Here are the schools who have registered.  Elementary, junior high and high schools will compete separately.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Ardenwood
Azevada
Blacow
Brier
Forest Park
Green
Grimmer
Leitch
Mattos
Mission San Jose
Nile

Parkmont

Warm Springs
Weibel

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOLS

Centerville
Hopkins
Horner
Thornton

HIGH SCHOOLS

Irvington
Kennedy
Mission San Jose High School
Washing

To learn more about FUSS, please click here.   

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Summertime Fun at Niles and Irvington Libraries

Ah, summer!  Time to rest, relax and recharge! There’s only one thing.  The kids are out of school! How to fill in those long summer days?  Take them to your library, where both you and your kids can play the Summer Reading Game, and see some wonderful family entertainment all free of charge to  you.  Sound like a great deal? Well it is.  All our libraries will be looking to keep you busy this summer. 

Our Summer Reading Game this year is entitled “Reading is So Delicious!.  You can start signing up and playing beginning June 11.  We will have games for preschoolers right through adults this year.  The games will last until August 11, so you will have plenty of time to have fun reading and playing.

In addition, all libraries will be having wonderful programs.  At Niles and Irvington, we have a wonderful line-up of programs and performers planned for you.  We will will have educational programs about growing your own food, and easy make a snack ideas for kids (don’t tell the kids, though, they’ll be having so much fun they won’t notice).  We are having a clown, puppets, music and magic too!  Even Science Magic.  So log on to aclibrary.org, click on events and go to either Niles or Irvingon events.  Then come check out our wonderful entertainment.  You’ll be glad  you did.  See you this summer!

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MANGA for Tweens!

If you haven’t heard yet, we have a really fun Manga program for kids ages 10-12!  Manga are Japanese comic books that are characterized by very distinctive and highly stylized illustrations.  If you enjoy comic books and graphic novels and are interested in improving your drawing skills, come join us!  Karen Luk, a professional illustrator and comic artist, will be teaching you the secrets of drawing Manga faces, expressions and characters.  Karen’s work was on display just a few short months ago at the Cartoon Art Museum.  I was lucky enough to get a glimpse of her art and I’m definitely looking forward to this program at my library branch.  Here are the upcoming dates and locations.

Niles Library - Tuesday, May 15^th @ 3:15 p.m.

San Lorenzo Library - Wednesday, May 16^th @ 3:30 p.m.

Centerville Library – Thursday, May 17^th @ 3:30 p.m.

Fremont Main Library – Tuesday, May 22^nd @ 4 p.m.

Irvington Library – Wednesday, May 23^rd @ 3:15 p.m.

Call your library branch for registration information.

Check out Karen Luk in action below:

 

If you are unable to come to one of our manga programs you might want to take a look at the manga drawing books the library has here.

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Join us at the Library to be informed and get ready.

                                                     A bright FUTURE is waiting for you ! !

 

The Alameda County Library has a lot to offer and we want you to get as much as you want to ensure the best future you can have.

With your free membership and Alameda Library Card you will have access to things like our extensive databases including 1700 periodicals, 4700 magazines, 89 wire services many of which are updated daily so you can get up to date data on current events before the books could even come to our shelves.

 We have an online Literary Criticism site, and an Opposing Viewpoint site that help you understand the pros and cons of some of the most controversial topics out there right now. You can even take practice tests for such careers as Firefighter, Paramedic, Nursing,  Teaching, and so many more.

One of my favorite things is the free Museum passes you can print from the comfort of your home. And if you have some spare time why not learn a new language with our Mango Language sites.

Students ready for college can get a “plan your future  pathway” guide to help select your future career complete with testing that help pinpoint your strengths and interests. Practice  GED,  PSAT, SAT,  ACT and  CHSPE tests online are always available.

We have links to self-help and managed hotlines to help you deal with issues you may be experiencing or may need as a   referral for  a friend, or just to talk with someone about whats currently going on with you.

For our younger visitors, primary and secondary students can log on and communicate with a live tutor on our “Homework Help” website, this is available until 10 pm for those last minute problems you just can’t solve yourself.

If you’re not taking advantage of your Library you are truly missing out on a lot of fun and learning.

Come experience us at any of our great  local locations throughout Alameda County, we’re here and eager to help  you.

Our Webite is listed on your Alameda Library Card and is www.aclibrary.org

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National Volunteer Week

Did you know that this week (April 15th – April 21st) is National Volunteer Week. It is a chance for organizations to say thank you to their volunteers in appreciation for all of the hard work volunteers do for our community. We would like to take the time to say thank you to all of our wonderful library volunteers here at the Fremont Library (and all of our Alameda County Libraries) for your tireless efforts to keep the library running smoothly. Thank you to our shelvers, our Bookleggers, our computer help, our Homework Center volunteers and coordinator, our storytime readers and everyone else that I’ve left off of this list. We truly do appreciate each and every one of you and your dedication to the library. Without your assistance, the library and it’s programs would not run as smoothly (or in many cases even be possible).

THANK YOU! 

(click here for a note from the President about the volunteers in America: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/04/09/presidential-proclamation-national-volunteer-week-2012)

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Duck Tape or Duct Tape? No Matter How You Spell It, It’s Fun!

Starting in March, and continuing into April, the Library is having Duct Tape Programs.  Tweens age 10-12 will be able to make a wallet or something else fun for themselves ,or for a gift, completely made of duct tape!  Check our Eventkeeper schedule for the program nearest you, and make sure to register your tween.

I know making things out of duct tape has been around for a while, and has become  a craze, especially for tweens and teens.  I’ve even seen “how to do it” lessons on You Tube, so I know it’s big. I started wondering who invented  duct tape and why. 

So, I  turned to the internet and did some research.  According to Duck Brand’s website www.duckbrand.com, duct tape was invented  by Johnson & Johnson’s Permacel Division during World War II to meet the need for a tape that could seal canisters, be used on trucks, repair guns, and windows, etc., and remain strong, flexible and waterproof.  Starting with medical tape as a base,  polycoat adhesives were added along with a polyethylene coating that enabled them to  laminate the  tape to cloth backing.  The result: a three-layer tape that was strong, durable, flexible and could repel water! Thus the product was named “Duck tape“, and it was originally green.  

Later, duck tape started to be used for household purposes like repairing duct pipes, and was changed into the familiar gray “duct” tape we usually think of to match.   In the 1970′s, Manco, Inc. changed the name back to Duck Tape and put Manco P.  Duck on their logo giving something ordinary some personality. They also put the duct tape in shrink wrap which made it easier to stack for retailers.  As they say, the rest is history. The make it-out-of-duct tape craze was born.

Some 70 years after it’s invention the uses for duck tape seem to be endless.  On Duck Brand’s website you can join a duck tape club, and find many step by step duck tape projects ranging from wallets to tote bags to a baseball cap! Duck tape now comes in more than 20 colors and designs. There are even places that will make duck tape to your specifications, thus giving lots of possibilities.  The library has some books on the practical and fun ways you can use duck tape.  In addition to You Tube demonstrations on the internet, you can  see pictures of  duck tape  art.  The Internet’s Duct  Tape Art Gallery, http://www.octanecreative.com/ducttape/dtgallery.html, has some fun and funky, sublime and extreme examples of  duck tape art.  Check it out if you have some time, there are many pages,  and parents may want to check it first to make sure if it is suitable for children.  Don’t forget to register your Tweens for our library programs, and if you are intrigued, learn about duct tape for yourself.  Go! Make something useful or just plain fun out of duck tape!

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Spring is Coming and So are Storytimes!

          This week we’ve had beautiful, clear, warm days.  It almost seems like Spring is already here.  Don’t be fooled, we have some chilly weather, and hopefully rain, coming our way.  But don’t  worry, it will officially be spring come March 20! With that comes Spring showers, and Spring flowers, and also some fun preschool storytimes at two of your local Fremont libraries.  

We are offering  storytimes this Spring beginning Tuesday, March 27 at the historic Niles Library, which is in the heart of the beautiful Niles district of Fremont. Storytime will be weekly at 11:00 AM , and will last approximately 30 minutes.  We read books, we dance to the music, and enjoy the Hokey Pokey! This program will run through June 5.  Bring your 2-5 year old and join the fun. You don’t need to register and there is no fee,  so just drop in.  If you have any questions,  call Sally any Tuesday at the Niles Library (510)795-2626.

We are also offering storytimes for 2-5 year olds at our busy Irvington Library.  We are located in the  park near the Community Center which is across the street from Irvington High School. Storytimes there will be weekly, every Wednesday beginning March 28  and concluding June 6.  Our storytimes there are from 11:30 AM to 12 PM.  We offer the same program as Niles Library, so pick which is best for you and your child. Please call Sally any Wednesday at (510) 795-2631 if you have questions regarding this program.

This is a great opportunity to get acquainted with your smaller local libraries.  We may not have as big a selection of materials as the larger libraries, but we are able to offer more personalized service.  Come check us out!  You just might be pleasantly surprised.

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Holiday Food Drive at Alameda County Libraries

As you go about shopping and thinking of gifts to give to your loved ones and friends, please don’t forget those who are less fortunate than you, especially those who are hungry.

You can drop off your food at any of the County libraries: Fremont, Newark, Union City, Irvington, Centerville, Niles, San Lorenzo, Castor Valley, Dublin, and Albany.

You can give food 3 ways:

• In Library food donations until January 31^st – by dropping off the food into food barrels in our libraries
• Virtual food drive – the link on our website to the Alameda County Community Food Bank for e-donations until January 31st. This is a first time the Alameda County Library System is offering a Virtual Food Drive
• Food for Fines until December 31st

 If you have any questions as to how this works, please consult our Question and Answer Guide. Food 4 Fines Q & A

Happy Holidays!

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FUSD iPhone application is great

 

Two MSJHS students made the news at the last School Board meeting.  Sumukh Sridhara and Andrew Han have developed an iPhone app for FUSD.  Called iFUSD, it allows users to more easily access the FUSD website.  This app is free through your Apple apps store.

 

The article  from the TriCity Voice can be read with these links:

 

http://www.tricityvoice.com/displayPages.php?issue=2011-08-30&page=1

http://www.tricityvoice.com/displayPages.php?issue=2011-08-30&page=30

 

This app will have on-going maintenance and is on the FUSD server to ensure proper messages and information. I feel this is a great tool for anyone having to deal with the ocean of information that is the FUSD website. Truly a great idea and so very easy to navigate. You can call the school with the push of a button, get directions and a map all the schools,  go to I-parent for a quick update of your students grades,  and there are even  links to parent and student resources. Thanks so much from your fans (the overwhelmed parents).

 

Check it out for yourself you’ll love it.

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