Friday Grab Bag, January 24, 2020

The Friday Grab Bag is a weekly series that highlights fun, unique, and interesting happenings in Colorado libraries, and includes news from the Colorado State Library.

Let’s open the Friday Grab Bag!

Self Improvement

Now is the time to start thinking about your goals and dreams for the new year! Join Arapahoe Libraries on January 27 from 6:00-7:30 pm for Goals at a Glance: Design a Vision Board. Create a personalized collage of images, symbols and ideas that visually represent your aspirations for 2020. This introduction to vision boards will help you stay focused on your goals, and is intended for adults.

Practice mindfulness through art with Denver Public Library’s A Mindful Moment with Monoprints on January 30 from 1:00-2:00 pm.  Learn about Chagall, Matisse, Picasso and several other Nineteenth Century artists and create your very own print on canvas. No experience necessary… just enjoy the process and community experience.  Funded by the NextFifty Initiative.

Do you need a little extra assistance sticking to your New Years’ Resolutions? Join Bemis Public Library for Apps for Fitness and Health on January 27 at 9:30 am. You’ll learn about popular apps  for diet tracking, exercising, and more. Apple and Android users are welcome, but you do need a smartphone to participate.

Write Now

The Englewood Public Library, in partnership with award-winning local author Jason Heller, will host its 3rd Annual Writer’s Retreat on January 25 from 9:30 am – 5:30 pm. Each one-hour track will comprise an opening mini-lecture of 15 minutes; guided, interactive exercises and/or QA for 40 minutes,; and a closing statement for 5 minutes. Click here to register, or call 303-762-2560 for assistance or any questions.

Have a story to tell? Get yourself to Write Your Story Writing Class at Boulder Public Library on the first Friday of the month at 10:00 am. Using guided writing exercises, Lisa Jones (author of the award-winning memoir, Broken: A Love Story) will help you get your story — whether it’s fictional or autobiographical — down on the page. No writing experience is required; all you need to bring are your writing instrument of choice, your open heart and mind and a willingness to write! One-time or repeat students welcome; Lisa will provide fresh prompts for repeaters.

Virtual Reality

Geek out with Anythink Commerce City and Get Lost with Oculus Go on January 28 at 5:00 pm. Climb a mountain, explore the ocean, or take a ride on a roller coaster. Appropriate for tweens and teens ages 11-18. No registration is required.

See things a brand new way – through Virtual Reality with Grand County Library District on January 29! VR is fun for gaming, creating music or traveling to new worlds – all without leaving your library.  Sign up for a 30 minute slot to complete a basic Virtual Reality tutorial and try an application or two.  This program is designed for those new to VR. All equipment and instruction is provided. 6th grade and older only.

Vail Public Library makes an Oculus Rift (VR headset) available to patrons 13 and old. The Oculus Rift is available during designated Tech Studio Hours for 30 minute sessions and can be reserved ahead of time.

Want to try out Virtual Reality at your library, but don’t have the funds or expertise?  We’ve got you covered! The Colorado State Library has Virtual Reality Kits that include an Oculus Go headset, peripherals, and lots of information on how to get started.

Commemorating Women’s Suffrage

Celebrate 100 years of the Women’s Suffrage Movement and the passing of women’s rights to vote with Pikes Peak Library District on January 25 from 3:00-4:00 pm by making Women’s Suffrage Brooches.  Low-sew option and a pendant option will be offered.  Patrons 16 and up can click HERE to register.

Join High Plains Library District January 27 at 12:30 pm  for a Brown Bag Luncheon Series kick-off event Beyond Suffrage: 100 Years of Progress, supporting the traveling exhibit on display through January and History Colorado’s Women’s Vote Centennial. Rosalie Martinez will present on her experiences as a teacher and principal in Fort Lupton and the challenges she faced.

Curious about how Women’s Suffrage was covered in the Colorado press 100 years ago? Check out Topics in History: Women’s Suffrage, which rounds up some of the coverage found in the Colorado Historic Newspaper Collection.

Courtesy Littleton Independent, July 3, 1908. Accessed via the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection.

Learning for All

Avoiding the Activity Trap: Achieving Goals and Results | February11 @ 8:30-9:30 am MT
Did you ever work very hard on a project and still feel like you were running in place? The Activity Trap happens when we become so focused on the short-term tasks at hand–the HOW we are getting something done–that we forgot to check in concerning WHAT goals we are working for and WHY.

Embedding Evaluation in Libraries | January 29 @ 12:00-1:00 pm MT
Are you considering applying for Embedded Evaluation in Libraries? During this webinar, you’ll learn more about the program, a 9-month team-based learning experience designed to help Colorado public library staff gain evaluation skills. You will also have the opportunity to hear from a public library staff member who is currently participating in this project in California.

Museums & Libraries in the News

Modern libraries are much more than books | Centennial Citizen
Want to record a song? Learn to sew? Try virtual reality? Head to the library!

Art Services Network Announces Commencement of US Olympics Museum  | Digital Journal
Art Services Network starts work on the prestigious US Olympics Museum project in Colorado Springs.

Artworks bring color to library in winter | Littleton Independent
Longtime Littleton painter Rita Derjue has an exhibit of colorful recent works at Bemis Library through January 30.

Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum 2020 Scholar Series lectures focus on regional history | Woodmen Edition
The first installment of the Scholar Series at the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum featured a look at films shot in Colorado Springs over the past 120 years.

What’s New at the Colorado State Library

The Decade That Was…

Throughout the month of January, we are looking back at the trends, activities, and shifts that defined the 2010s in Colorado libraries.

Learning Opportunities

The School Library Crisis: Harnessing Your Power to Survive and Thrive!

  • February 8  @ 9:30-12:30 pm MT
  • Cost: $10
  • Click HERE to register.

Colorado Virtual Library

Trustee Corner – January 2020
The January 2020 edition of Trustee Corner is available and features resources for policy development, and much more!

Alt Text – Website Accessibility – part 3
Do you use Alt Text to describe images on your website? Not sure what Alt Text is? Find out how you can use it to make your website more accessible.

State Publications Library

Library Related Employment:

Are you thinking of making a change in your job?

Montrose Regional Library is looking for an Adult Services Librarian and a Teen Services Librarian that are passionate about providing exceptional service to the community. If this sounds like you, contact Lindsay Beckman, Head of Adult Services, with your resume and cover letter.
Email:lbeckman@montroselibrary.org
Phone: 970-964-2558

Check out Library Jobline for more hot new library employment opportunities.

This post is part of the Spotlight on Sharing initiative, which aims to increase the visibility of resource sharing in Colorado libraries. Do you have a story from your library to share? Email Marisa Wood, mwood@coloradovirtuallibrary.org. Also, be sure to follow Colorado State Library on Twitter and Facebook.

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