Media from the West Grey Public Library
Mayor Eccles presents a congratulatory certificate to West Grey Library Board Chair, Tim Dyck (centre) and Vice-Chair Malcolm Beddoe.
Library to Receive Grant from
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The West Grey Public Library is receiving a grant from Community Foundation Grey Bruce through a donation from the Eva Leflar Donor Advised Endowed Fund. The funding is earmarked for programs and resources to benefit young children and families.
Article for West Grey Spotlight - April 12, 2017
Going for Power
“No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.” Robin Williams
I have been fascinated by words all my life. I love the feel of certain words as I say them, the effect they can bring when carefully chosen, the thrill they convey when they are used in exactly the right way and the satisfaction of efficiently using one perfect word instead of four sloppily selected ones.
As a kid, I liked long words, sure, but I also loved onomatopoeia. Graze, sizzle, cuckoo - words created from an associated sound. So expressive. And some words were just delightful to say: slither, fervent, aspersion. So satisfying.
It meant a decent vocabulary pretty early on… and perhaps a little impatience at the pedestrian overuse of words and phrases.
So whenever I come across new words, I feel a little frisson of delight. Today, a patron visited the library and, when asked for her favourite word, promptly replied, “suborbulous”. Turns out it isn’t in any dictionary – but she said her family has used it for years. Means fantastic, awesome. Great word. One of our volunteers went on a Scottish term rampage with me, bringing up great words like “muckle”, which just means big but sounds so much more interesting. Or ‘stoatin’, which means bouncing, as in ‘stoatin off the ground’.
Checking with co-workers, I got a few juicy favourites: ‘sasquatch” and “sesquicentennial” came out pretty quickly. In my family, ‘cozy’ is a favourite. “Gobsmacked” is another favourite, although the librarian bemoaned how rarely she was able to use it. Some favour words from their children’s vocabularies: “stunk’ for skunk and “belbow” for elbow.
Then there are the weird and wonderful words like “absquatulate”, to leave somewhere abruptly. Or one of my absolute favourites, borborygumus, those awful gurgling noises your stomach makes when you’re hungry. How can you not love those words? Satisfying to say, eminently useful. And words derived from
If you check in with experts, like the lexicographers at Oxford, you’ll see such delightful choices include quiffler, quagmire, numpty and penultimate.
And with an estimate of between 250,000 and 750,000 words in the English language, and (as quoted on the website Quora of an Economist study), that most adult vocabularies range from 20,000–35,000 words, there is plenty of “scope for the imagination”, as Anne Shirley has it in Anne of Green Gables… to write, to express ideas, to change the world.
Word nerds, unite!
Going for Power
“No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.” Robin Williams
I have been fascinated by words all my life. I love the feel of certain words as I say them, the effect they can bring when carefully chosen, the thrill they convey when they are used in exactly the right way and the satisfaction of efficiently using one perfect word instead of four sloppily selected ones.
As a kid, I liked long words, sure, but I also loved onomatopoeia. Graze, sizzle, cuckoo - words created from an associated sound. So expressive. And some words were just delightful to say: slither, fervent, aspersion. So satisfying.
It meant a decent vocabulary pretty early on… and perhaps a little impatience at the pedestrian overuse of words and phrases.
So whenever I come across new words, I feel a little frisson of delight. Today, a patron visited the library and, when asked for her favourite word, promptly replied, “suborbulous”. Turns out it isn’t in any dictionary – but she said her family has used it for years. Means fantastic, awesome. Great word. One of our volunteers went on a Scottish term rampage with me, bringing up great words like “muckle”, which just means big but sounds so much more interesting. Or ‘stoatin’, which means bouncing, as in ‘stoatin off the ground’.
Checking with co-workers, I got a few juicy favourites: ‘sasquatch” and “sesquicentennial” came out pretty quickly. In my family, ‘cozy’ is a favourite. “Gobsmacked” is another favourite, although the librarian bemoaned how rarely she was able to use it. Some favour words from their children’s vocabularies: “stunk’ for skunk and “belbow” for elbow.
Then there are the weird and wonderful words like “absquatulate”, to leave somewhere abruptly. Or one of my absolute favourites, borborygumus, those awful gurgling noises your stomach makes when you’re hungry. How can you not love those words? Satisfying to say, eminently useful. And words derived from
If you check in with experts, like the lexicographers at Oxford, you’ll see such delightful choices include quiffler, quagmire, numpty and penultimate.
And with an estimate of between 250,000 and 750,000 words in the English language, and (as quoted on the website Quora of an Economist study), that most adult vocabularies range from 20,000–35,000 words, there is plenty of “scope for the imagination”, as Anne Shirley has it in Anne of Green Gables… to write, to express ideas, to change the world.
Word nerds, unite!
Article for West Grey Spotlight - March 22, 2017
GARDENING HELP FOR THE BLACK OF THUMB
It’s tough living in an area renowned for its agricultural productivity and excellence when all your attempts to grow things from the earth meet with failure – and ridicule.
I’ve always pined to be the one who grows things – who only has to caress its little leaves to have a faltering seedling spring back to life, stretching gracefully toward the sun as it makes its tiny photosynthesis process practically visible to the naked eye.
Alas.
As a child, I watered plants til they drowned. As a young adult, I attempted corn in a backyard Vancouver plot – and I say “attempted because “grow” in the very loosest of senses. In the city, I grew herbs and then neglected to harvest them until they became woody, overgrown and very petulant.
So I am all for self-help gardening books, even in this land of 4th-generation farmers. There is something inspirational about looking at beautiful pictures captioned by the assurances that you, too, can create beauty out of a neglected corner, a couple of seeds and a half-cup of water.
There are some dandy books at the West Grey Public Library on just such optimistic events. One that recently caught my eye is Gardening on a Shoestring by Alex Mitchell, which not only holds the promise of growing food for “peanuts”, but has a whole chapter on ways to avoid spending money on gardening supplies. Music to my thrifty little ears.
Or, for those with shorter attention spans, there are a number of lush gardening magazines. My current favourite is The Gardener, which is Canadian so its advice is relevant for this region. Their Spring 2017 edition includes articles on the “Canada 150” tulip, the gray jay (Canada’s new national bird) and the new Canadian Shield rose. It even sports the Canada 150 logo (very snappy) on its cover.
If you get more confident – or just enjoy daydreams – Small Farm Canada is another great magazine. Its articles tend to be more technical and include items on, for example, variety trials (this month: peas), poultry record keeping and bulk water storage. and this month has a letter to the editor defending peat moss, which I find mystifying but heart-warming. I’ve always been a fan of peat moss.
Now – off to hide my black thumbs with green gloves and hope I can dupe the seedlings.
For more reading ideas, contact your local West Grey, branch: Durham or Elmwood (519-369-2107), Ayton (519-665-2342) or Neustadt (519-799-5830).
GARDENING HELP FOR THE BLACK OF THUMB
It’s tough living in an area renowned for its agricultural productivity and excellence when all your attempts to grow things from the earth meet with failure – and ridicule.
I’ve always pined to be the one who grows things – who only has to caress its little leaves to have a faltering seedling spring back to life, stretching gracefully toward the sun as it makes its tiny photosynthesis process practically visible to the naked eye.
Alas.
As a child, I watered plants til they drowned. As a young adult, I attempted corn in a backyard Vancouver plot – and I say “attempted because “grow” in the very loosest of senses. In the city, I grew herbs and then neglected to harvest them until they became woody, overgrown and very petulant.
So I am all for self-help gardening books, even in this land of 4th-generation farmers. There is something inspirational about looking at beautiful pictures captioned by the assurances that you, too, can create beauty out of a neglected corner, a couple of seeds and a half-cup of water.
There are some dandy books at the West Grey Public Library on just such optimistic events. One that recently caught my eye is Gardening on a Shoestring by Alex Mitchell, which not only holds the promise of growing food for “peanuts”, but has a whole chapter on ways to avoid spending money on gardening supplies. Music to my thrifty little ears.
Or, for those with shorter attention spans, there are a number of lush gardening magazines. My current favourite is The Gardener, which is Canadian so its advice is relevant for this region. Their Spring 2017 edition includes articles on the “Canada 150” tulip, the gray jay (Canada’s new national bird) and the new Canadian Shield rose. It even sports the Canada 150 logo (very snappy) on its cover.
If you get more confident – or just enjoy daydreams – Small Farm Canada is another great magazine. Its articles tend to be more technical and include items on, for example, variety trials (this month: peas), poultry record keeping and bulk water storage. and this month has a letter to the editor defending peat moss, which I find mystifying but heart-warming. I’ve always been a fan of peat moss.
Now – off to hide my black thumbs with green gloves and hope I can dupe the seedlings.
For more reading ideas, contact your local West Grey, branch: Durham or Elmwood (519-369-2107), Ayton (519-665-2342) or Neustadt (519-799-5830).
Article for Hanover Post - February 22, 2017
Get Set for a Year of Celebrations for Canada’s 150!
By now, many of us have heard that Parks Canada is making available a free Discovery Pass for all Parks Canada places from coast to coast to coast. They add to the joy by offering Visitor Guides by region through the Parks Canada website.
Once you start exploring, there is an amazing variety of events, celebrations and activities marking our sesquicentennial. The Government of Canada website shows listings for Innovation 150 that include events across the country, including a high-school student robotics challenge, with volunteer professional mentors, billed as “the ultimate Sport for the Mind”.
Up for a road trip? Maison Charron is the oldest house in the Hull sector of Gatineau and in 2017 will be home to the Authors Paviliion, featuring cultural and literacy programs from May to November, one of ten Confederation pavilions in the Ottawa/Hull area.
Nearby Jacques-Cartier Park is offering the MOSAÏCANADA 150 exhibit as part of 150 years of history, values, culture and arts in Canada. Mosaiculture is a blending of several disciplines, including painting, sculpture and horticulture. Access to the site is free from July 1 to October 15, 2017.
If you’re interested in history, of course there are plenty of sites/sights to see, from Lower Fort Henry to the Plains of Abraham. But there are also some great books on Canadian history, both fictionalized and non-fiction. Jane Urquhart has produced a wonderful history of the country told through 50 objects called A Number of Things. If you like to learn through biography, Charlotte Gray writes about Canadian figures like immigrant Alexander Graham Bell (Reluctant Genius) and famous sisters, settlers and writers Susannah Moodie and Catherine Parr Traill (Sisters in the Wilderness) or Charles Massey – of the Massey Ferguson, Massey Hall and Massey College Masseys (The Massey Murder). She’s even written about Charlotte King, daughter of William Lyon Mackenzie King and mother to 10th Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King (Mrs. King: The Life and Times of Isabel Mackenzie King).
The more you look at what Canada has, is and does, the more reason there is to celebrate!
For more ideas for celebrating Canada’s sesquicentennial, contact your local West Grey, branch: Durham or Elmwood (519-369-2107), Ayton (519-665-2342) or Neustadt (519-799-5830).
Get Set for a Year of Celebrations for Canada’s 150!
By now, many of us have heard that Parks Canada is making available a free Discovery Pass for all Parks Canada places from coast to coast to coast. They add to the joy by offering Visitor Guides by region through the Parks Canada website.
Once you start exploring, there is an amazing variety of events, celebrations and activities marking our sesquicentennial. The Government of Canada website shows listings for Innovation 150 that include events across the country, including a high-school student robotics challenge, with volunteer professional mentors, billed as “the ultimate Sport for the Mind”.
Up for a road trip? Maison Charron is the oldest house in the Hull sector of Gatineau and in 2017 will be home to the Authors Paviliion, featuring cultural and literacy programs from May to November, one of ten Confederation pavilions in the Ottawa/Hull area.
Nearby Jacques-Cartier Park is offering the MOSAÏCANADA 150 exhibit as part of 150 years of history, values, culture and arts in Canada. Mosaiculture is a blending of several disciplines, including painting, sculpture and horticulture. Access to the site is free from July 1 to October 15, 2017.
If you’re interested in history, of course there are plenty of sites/sights to see, from Lower Fort Henry to the Plains of Abraham. But there are also some great books on Canadian history, both fictionalized and non-fiction. Jane Urquhart has produced a wonderful history of the country told through 50 objects called A Number of Things. If you like to learn through biography, Charlotte Gray writes about Canadian figures like immigrant Alexander Graham Bell (Reluctant Genius) and famous sisters, settlers and writers Susannah Moodie and Catherine Parr Traill (Sisters in the Wilderness) or Charles Massey – of the Massey Ferguson, Massey Hall and Massey College Masseys (The Massey Murder). She’s even written about Charlotte King, daughter of William Lyon Mackenzie King and mother to 10th Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King (Mrs. King: The Life and Times of Isabel Mackenzie King).
The more you look at what Canada has, is and does, the more reason there is to celebrate!
For more ideas for celebrating Canada’s sesquicentennial, contact your local West Grey, branch: Durham or Elmwood (519-369-2107), Ayton (519-665-2342) or Neustadt (519-799-5830).
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January 18, 2017
I am pleased to announce that the West Grey Public Library Board is this year’s recipient of the Ontario Library Association’s Joyce Cunningham Award. The Joyce Cunningham Award is presented to a “high performance Public Library Board that is tight knit, focused on their goal, and have supportive processes that enable any board member to surmount barriers to achieving the board’s goals. Within the team, individual board members are highly skilled and are able to interchange their roles. Also, leadership within the team is not vested in a single individual; instead the leadership role is taken up by the various team members, according to the need at the time.” The Joyce Cunningham Award will be presented during the 2017 OLA Super Conference in Toronto at the beginning of February. Our Board members are invested in our library and are always seeking ways to improve its visibility within the Municipality. They support staff and volunteers in accomplishing excellent customer service and community involvement. Kim Storz CEO/Chief Librarian |
2016 Board members: (front) Bonnie MacIntyre, Tim Dyck (Board Chair), Denise Edwards, (back) Dyan Jones, Malcolm Beddoe (Vice Chair), Don Marshall (Council Rep), absent Gerri Grant.
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