Thursday, June 18, 2009

Get yourself organized.

For me it's a neverending task, and for others it just comes naturally. We used to use a thing called a Rolodex (R) that helped organize names, birthdays, account numbers etc. There's a new bit of software out called AZZ Cardfile. WOW. Major league handy and well worth at least an investigation. With Windows 3.1 we had a simple cardfile.exe and it was good, but indeed had limitations. AZZ Cardfile has so much more and requires minimal system resources. It can even (following the directions of course) open your old Windows Cardfile files.

General information for the program is here: http://www.azzcardfile.com/

Download etc. from here: http://www.azzcardfile.com/download.html

Certainly let me know what you think and I'll begin to share tons of information about other very useful programs we use here at NCPL, many are free!

Friday, March 20, 2009

Severe Weather prepardness

It's pointless for me to retype what I've already found, so I'll just include the links and you can follow them. Be prepared, not scared.

http://www.ncpl.info/publicity/tornado%20safety.pdf

http://www.ncpl.info/publicity/tornado_preparedness_student_guidelines.pdf

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

HOOK AND NEEDLE LADIES AT HOMETOWN DAYS




Watch for our Hook and Needle Ladies at the Library Booth during Hometown Days on July 25 - 27. The celebration takes place in Memorial Park just west of the Downtown!

FOOD FOR FINES


JUNE is "FOOD FOR FINES" month at the Library. Bring in one (1) non-perishable food item and receive $1.00 credit for each overdue item. Out-dated food items cannot be accepted. This special does not apply to lost book fees, but if you return lost books during June, the fine will be forgiven depending on the amount of food given. If you have any questions call the library at (574) 654-3046 or e-mail the Director at sboggs@ncpl.lib.in.us

FOOD FOR FINES


JUNE is "FOOD FOR FINES" month at the Library. Bring in one (1) non-parishable food item and receive $1.00 credit for each overdue item. Out-dated food items cannot be accepted. This special does not apply to lost book fees, but if you return lost books during June, the fine will be forgiven depending on the amount of food given. If you have any questions call the library at (574) 654-3046 or e-mail the Director at sboggs@ncpl.lib.in.us

Summer Reading Program 2008


CATCH THE READING BUG

New Carlisle Public Library's Summer Reading Program is for all Elementary school age children. SIGN-UP AS SOON AS SCHOOL IS OUT! You can earn prizes, trophies and food certificates from Meyer's Ice Cream Shop. Special activities include cooking, crafts and nature shows every Wednesday from 1:00-2:00 p.m. (Town Time).

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Disaster prepardness -- earthquakes

I realize we are, sometimes, in "Tornado Alley", but with the shaking in southern Illinois a month or so back I though a bit of preparedness might be in order.

DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON are the key points to remember.

Following is what is posted on the American Red Cross site under "Earthquake."

Earthquake Versión en Español

(PDF File)

Prepare a Home Earthquake Plan

* Choose a safe place in every room--under a sturdy table or desk or against an inside wall where nothing can fall on you.
* Practice DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON at least twice a year. Drop under a sturdy desk or table, hold on, and protect your eyes by pressing your face against your arm. If there's no table or desk nearby, sit on the floor against an interior wall away from windows, bookcases, or tall furniture that could fall on you. Teach children to DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON!
* Choose an out-of-town family contact.
* Consult a professional to find out additional ways you can protect your home, such as bolting the house to its foundation and other structural mitigation techniques.
* Take a first aid class from your local Red Cross chapter. Keep your training current.
* Get training in how to use a fire extinguisher from your local fire department.
* Inform babysitters and caregivers of your plan.

Eliminate Hazards, Including--

* Bolting bookcases, china cabinets, and other tall furniture to wall studs.
* Installing strong latches on cupboards.
* Strapping the water heater to wall studs.

Prepare a Disaster Supplies Kit For Home and Car, Including--

* First aid kit and essential medications.
* Canned food and can opener.
* At least three gallons of water per person.
* Protective clothing, rainwear, and bedding or sleeping bags.
* Battery-powered radio, flashlight, and extra batteries.
* Special items for infant, elderly, or disabled family members.
* Written instructions for how to turn off gas, electricity, and water if authorities advise you to do so. (Remember, you'll need a professional to turn natural gas service back on.)
* Keeping essentials, such as a flashlight and sturdy shoes, by your bedside.

Know What to Do When the Shaking Begins

* DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON! Move only a few steps to a nearby safe place. Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you're sure it's safe to exit. Stay away from windows. In a high-rise building, expect the fire alarms and sprinklers to go off during a quake.
* If you are in bed, hold on and stay there, protecting your head with a pillow.
* If you are outdoors, find a clear spot away from buildings, trees, and power lines. Drop to the ground.
* If you are in a car, slow down and drive to a clear place (as described above). Stay in the car until the shaking stops.

Identify What to Do After the Shaking Stops

* Check yourself for injuries. Protect yourself from further danger by putting on long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, sturdy shoes, and work gloves.
* Check others for injuries. Give first aid for serious injuries.
* Look for and extinguish small fires. Eliminate fire hazards. Turn off the gas if you smell gas or think it's leaking. (Remember, only a professional should turn it back on.)
* Listen to the radio for instructions.
* Expect aftershocks. Each time you feel one, DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON!
* Inspect your home for damage. Get everyone out if your home is unsafe.
* Use the telephone only to report life-threatening emergencies.

Your Local Red Cross Chapter Can Provide Additional Materials in English and Spanish:

* "Are You Ready for a Fire?" (ARC 4456)
* "Your Family Disaster Plan" (ARC 4466)
* "Your Family Disaster Supplies Kit" (ARC 4463)

Materials for Children:

* "Be Ready 1-2-3" involves puppets who give important safety information to children ages 3-8 about residential fire safety, winter storms, and earthquakes.
* "Disaster Preparedness Coloring Book" (PDF File) (ARC 2200, English, or ARC 2200S, Spanish (PDF File)) for children ages 3-10.
* "Adventures of the Disaster Dudes" (ARC 5024) video and Presenter's Guide for use by an adult with children in grades 4-6.
* "After the Quake" Coloring Book (ARC 2201, English, or ARC 2201S, Spanish)

And remember . . . when an earthquake, tornado, flood, fire, or other emergency happens in your community, you can count on your local American Red Cross chapter to be there to help you and your family. Your Red Cross is not a government agency and depends on contributions of your time, money, and blood. For more information, please contact your local American Red Cross chapter or emergency management office.

If you would like permission to use the information about earthquakes on this page in a newsletter or other publication, or on your Website, please click here.

Monday, May 12, 2008

Consolidation article from The Farmer's Exchange

Appeared on page 4, of the Friday, April 25, 2008 issue.

Click here to view article

Public Forum on Property Tax "reform"

Direct Link to Article

Article published May 12, 2008
If you go
The Common Council's public meeting on House Bill 1001 will be at 4 p.m. Thursday in the Recital Hall of Century Center, 120 S. St. Joseph St., South Bend.
For more information, contact the city clerk's office at (574) 235-9221.



Public forum on Indiana property tax reform scheduled
Ripple effects of House Bill 1001 starting to show.

JAMIE LOO
Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- Property tax bills may be lower and sales tax is up, but those aren't the only things that will change in the future because of the Indiana General Assembly.

On Thursday, the public will have a chance to find out the full effects of House Bill 1001 and talk to government officials about the impact. House Bill 1001 is the property tax relief legislation passed by the General Assembly during the last session.

South Bend Common Council will host the meeting at Century Center, and the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns will give the presentation. A question-and-answer period will follow. Officials from South Bend, St. Joseph County, Mishawaka and the county townships have been invited.

The ripple effects of House Bill 1001 are starting to show, as local officials look for ways to trim budgets and comply with the roughly 550-page law. Here are a few ways the law has affected the community so far:

# The state sales tax increased 1 percent at the beginning of April. The money from the increase is meant to be used for property tax relief.
# The St. Joseph County Public Library is closing all of its branches on Saturdays this summer. The library board also has approved a $300,000 reduction in purchases of new books and other materials in its 2008-2009 budget.

# The St. Joseph County assessor's office has been busy preparing to take on township assessing duties. Most of the township assessors in St. Joseph County will be eliminated by July 1. Voters will get to decide whether to keep the Portage and Penn assessors in a referendum in November, because both townships have at least 15,000 parcels.

Local officials say that House Bill 1001 will severely affect services such as public safety, schools and libraries. All of the taxing units combined in St. Joseph County could lose an estimated $34.6 million over the next two years.

Staff writer Jamie Loo:
jloo@sbtinfo.com
(574) 235-6337

Friday, May 02, 2008

Victory against high food prices


Well...so much for this year's budget. After going through Aldi's and Nic's I've noticed that the balance of the monthly budget isn't in too good a shape. Later in the evening I was doing my normal wanderings about the Net and stumbled upon this quote: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

Who knows why, or how, but this lead me to remember the Liberty Gardens of World War I and the Victory Gardens of World War II

As usual we in the States have very short memories (some of us anyway) and have not remembered or listened to those who went through times of food and fuel rationing. My point is we have tons of resources at our disposal for small plot gardens, container gardens etc. Who knows...maybe we'll have a Victory Garden here at the Library in the near future.

Following are links of interest:

http://www.earthlypursuits.com/VictoryGardHandbook/VGHv.htm

http://www.victoryseeds.com/TheVictoryGarden/


http://sidewalksprouts.wordpress.com/history/wwii/


Excellent Flickr.com site
http://www.flickr.com/photos/asparagirl/12282607/in/set-299772/

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf001081.tip.html

http://www.lightwatcher.com/peace_gardens/peace_gardens.html


http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2007/11/victory_garden_kits.html

http://www.homestead.org/

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Indiana Libraries are not alone in the fight against consolidation

I am preparing to meet with State Senators and Representatives regarding my opinion about library consolidation.

It seems that a few of our friends in New York are also gearing up to retain local control of their public libraries. In my research I have found that they have some excellent ideas about inter-library cooperation that deserve serious investigation.

http://www.nassaulibrary.org/baldwin/consolidation.htm

http://www.nassaulibrary.org/pobblog/2007/11/library_consolidation.html