National Chicken Month

Did you know September is National Chicken Month? So, try some chicken recipes or just learn more about our favorite fowl.

Or, if you want to see something very odd, check this out.

Enjoy!

Well, That Won't Work

Ever thought of some invention that couldn't possibly work? Perhaps you've got an entry in The Museum of Unworkable Devices. I especially enjoy the gallery of 3-D images.

Enjoy!

Ramadan

The Islamic holiday Ramadan began September 13 and continues through October 11. A month of fasting and prayer, Ramadan is celebrated annually.

For more information, visit the sites for the Islamic Society of Greater Houston and the Masjid El-Farouq.

¡Bienvenidos a la mes de Hispanic Heritage!

September 15 kicked off National Hispanic Heritage Month. An estimated 44 million people in United States identify themselves as Hispanic, including these famous people. About 8 million Hispanics live in Texas.

The library has lots of books featuring Hispanic characters or based on Hispanic folktales. And if you want to read award-winning books by Hispanic authors and illustrators, we have those, too!

¡Adios!

Arrr! It Be a Pirate's Day

Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. So, it's a good day to study your pirate lingo and learn your pirate name (mine? Captain Mary Bonney). You could even listen to some pirate music to get yourself in the spirit.



Arrr! What are ye waitin' fer?

How Bionic Are You?

NBC has launched a site to determine how bionic you are. I only got 40% and, therefore, failed miserably. Oh, well.

How did you do?

HSM 2

High School Musical 2 premiered Friday night. How many of you watched it? What did you think?

More Goofy Fun

This just makes me giggle.

Enjoy!

30th Anniversary

Today is the 30th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, or not. The King of Rock 'n' Roll died in 1977 at Graceland, his home in Memphis. Fans are gathered in over 100-degree heat to mourn the singer.

Elvis is an icon, and so is Graceland. His mansion is now a National Historic Site.

Don't Try This At Home

I mentioned in a previous post that you could find some weird stuff online. Well, here's another site that is both weird and wonderful. I love this site. I love the music, the artsy camera angle (inside the microwave!). And I love what they decided to try. I think my favorite is the marshmallows - take that Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man!

Enjoy! But please don't try this at home.

Duran Duran

Today, amazingly enough, is National Duran Duran Appreciation Day. For more information on one of the top groups of the 1980s, check out their entry in Wikipedia or visit the official fan site. You can listen to their music and see the video for "Hungry Like the Wolf."

Enjoy!

Hiroshima & Nagasaki

Today is the 62nd anniversary of the atomic bomb being dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. On August 9, 1945, another bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.

Both cities have been involved in peace movements since their bombings.

You can see old newsreel footage of the bombing of Hiroshima. The Library of Congress has a letter from FDR to Robert Oppenheimer thanking him for his secret atomic research that led to the creation of the atomic bomb.

Tonight, HBO will air the documentary White Light, Black Rain: The Destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at 6:30 p.m.

Did you know ...

Computers can read your mind? Can you figure out how this site works?

Coast Guard Day

Saturday was Coast Guard Day for the 217-year-old organization. The Coast Guard has volunteers who help, and of course, you can join or attend the academy.

This video is of Coast Guard rescues in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. And this video is a commercial, but it's funny and shows up when you do a YouTube search for coast guard.

When I Snap My Fingers

Today is Hypnosis Day. You can find out about hypnosis here or at the library. And, this site explains how hypnosis works.

Enjoy!

Games and More Games

If you like playing online games, here are some you might try.

Presidential Pong - it's like the original Pong game, only you and your computer opponent are current presidential hopefuls
Darfur Is Dying - a game that allows you to put yourself in the place of a Darfur refugee and forage for water or survive in the refugee camp. While it seems kind of trite to be sitting at a computer playing a game about genocide, you are reminded of just what a nightmare life in Darfur is.

There are more games available at Persuasive Games.

Learn Japanese

Konnichi wa! August is Learn Japanese Month, and we've got a few sites for you to do just that.

Free Japanese Lessons
Nihongo o Narau Learn Japanese
Learn to Speak Japanese Online
Japanese Language

The library also has books and sound recordings to help you learn Japanese.

Happy learning! Sayonara!

You Can Find Some Strange Stuff Online

Proof that the web hosts some odd sites: there's Ian's Shoelace Site. It teaches you various ways to tie your shoes including how to get your shoelace bows straight. There's even a shoelace photo of the week!

All Consuming

All Consuming is a site that allows people to talk about books, movies, music, even food that they have consumed, are consuming, plan to consume. Check out their Huh? section for more info. This is their entry for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - watch out for spoilers in the comments section if you haven't read the book yet! It's a pretty great site, and you could get sucked in pretty quickly and easily.

Enjoy!

Teen Read Week

Teen Read Week, a week in which we librarians like to emphasize reading for teens (as if we don't do that all the time), is in October. This year it's October 14-20 and the theme is LOL @ your library. So, to help us prepare for that week (and any other time, really), tell us what your favorite funny books are. They don't have to be for teens - just books that make you laugh.

Some of my favorites are:
The Giggler Treatment - Roddy Doyle
The Princess Diaries series - Meg Cabot (her blog is funny, too)
Invincible: Family Matters - Robert Kirkman
Wizard at Work - Vivian Vande Velde
the Amelia Rules comics - Jimmy Gownley
the Bone comics - Jeff Smith
George Speaks - Dick King-Smith
Howie Monroe and the Doghouse of Doom - James Howe (a parody of Harry Potter)
the Pagan series - Catherine Jinks
Son of the Mob - Gordon Korman
Scrib - David Ives