Remember those happy moments

With all the doom and gloom in the news, now might be a nice time to pause and ponder those happy moments when we discovered a great movie, book or musical artist. Here is a partial list of my favorite movies.

The English Patient. When this movie came out, people either loved or hated it. I loved it. And it won an Academy Award for director Anthony Minghella (It was also nominated for Best Picture but Fargo won that year).

English Patient Details

Place a hold on The English Patient

Citizen Kane. Again, a controversial movie, most probably because it mirrored the life of newspaper magnate, William Randolph Hearst, too closely. The film is marked by very innovative camera work and a very slim Orson Welles.

Citizen Kane details

Place a hold on Citizen Kane

Gone with the Wind. Yes, it's over the top, but when the camera first finds Rhett (Clark Gable) at the bottom of the stairs looking up at Scarlet, swoon...And could Vivien Leigh be any more beautiful? And the costumes alone made me want to become an actress.

Gone with the Wind details

Place a hold on Gone with the Wind

Atonement. A recent favorite, I hadn't read the book so I didn't see the ending coming. Sniff.

Atonement details

Place a hold on Atonement

The Party. I know, I know, this is a very eclectic list, but I have eclectic taste. When I first saw this film, I thought it was the funniest thing I had ever seen. Hey, it was the 60's. Seeing it in later life, it doesn't hold up well and is probably not politically correct, but Sellars is still very funny. IMHO, all early Peter Sellers films were hilarious. I Love you Alice B. Toklas and What's New Pussycat? were other great ones (and Woody Allen, another favorite, was so funny in Pussycat). But hey, I even liked The Bobo!

The Party details

Place a hold on The Party




So those are my current top five movies. I could have gone on and on, as I am a big movie buff. I would enjoy any comments about my favorites, and I and the readers of this blog, would also be interested in your picks. Stay tuned for favorite books and music.

The Financial Crisis - What does it mean for us?

If you are anything like me, it is difficult to understand how this whole financial crisis came about and what it will mean to each of us. And when we don't understand something, it becomes that much more frightening. To understand something like this, it is important to read different points of view and gather information to help you understand the world around you. What better place to help you do that than your local library where you can get help finding information such as
questions and answers about the Wall Street Crisis and
the basics of the financial crisis. We provide a wealth of books, newspaper articles and magazines to help you stay informed and they can be accessed from the library or at home for free.

Has the current economic situation impacted your life? If so, how?

Traditionally, in tough times, people have turned to their libraries, and they are doing it again as these examples show:
How libraries help in tough times
Services Libraries Provide in Tough Times

And it is not surprising. Your local library provides a wealth of free services. Why buy a CD or book or rent a DVD when you can get them free at the library?

Andrea Bocelli Books & CDs
I Love Lucy Books & DVDs




And libraries are not just about books, CDs and DVDs. Libraries also offer free high speed Internet, free classes (watch for free computer classes at the Mountlake Terrace Library starting in November) and free entertainment. We offer preschool and family story times, Teen Wednesdays, a book discussion group and our Saturdays@the Library Series ("There's always something going on!") begins in October. If you have investments you are worried about, the library has up-to-date stock market information such as ValueLine and Morningstar. If you need employment information, we can help with that too. From our website, you can download ebooks and eaudio (now to your IPod!), play streaming music and videos, get free homework help, chat with a librarian, read newspapers from other countries and so much more.

And best of all, the library is part of your community. We are a community gathering place. We are the community. Times are tough. Join us.

As Henry David Thoreau observed, "Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries."

You can depend on the library

Poodles vs. Pit Bulls

Because of a recent attack on a 71-year-old woman in SeaTac, there has been much talk about banning the Pit Bull breed from the Seattle area. Denver has already done so and several other cities have neutering laws.

Article about the attack

Many editorials and comments have appeared pro and con. Some say the breed is to blame, some counter that it's not the dog, but the owner.

Push to ban breed

Popularity of breed

In defense of the breed

But certainly there are sweet pit bulls, just as there are "bad" dogs in other breeds, right?





What do you think? Should certain breeds be banned? Are Pit Bulls unfairly stereotyped?

Speaking of poodles, we all seem to fall victim to stereotyping. I know I do. I do have a certain fear of pit bulls. I have even attributed some pit bull-like tendencies to my new toy poodle, Tarquin, who likes to gnaw on me.



But poodles also fall prey to stereotyping, though in an almost polar opposite way to that of pit bulls. I am a poodle lover and over the years have owned and loved four miniature poodles and two toys, and yet whenever I talk about my love and admiration for this breed, I see people sticking up their noses and commenting, "They are yappy little dogs that piddle all over." This couldn't be further from the truth. Poodles are one of the smartest breeds and make wonderful companions. I have never had a yapping, piddling poodle. In fact, my Frederick is "all man."



Er, OK, they are fun to dress up.

To make an informed decision about both pit bulls and poodles, read more about them. Here are some library resources you might be interested in.

Read about Pit Bulls

Read about Poodles

Where were you on September 11?

Today marks the seventh anniversary of that terrible day in 2001 when terrorists flew two planes into the World Trade Center resulting in its collapse, another plane into the Pentagon and a fourth into a field in Pennsylvania. Many say that was the day everything changed for America. Most of us remember what we were doing when we heard the news. I was living in Pacific Grove, California at the time and didn't have to be at work until noon. It was late morning, and I had just turned the television on and saw footage of one of the planes hitting the World Trade Center. I wasn't sure what it was, but I instinctively knew something was very wrong. My son was in the other room and I said, "Something's happening. Turn on your TV." I couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing. As I headed to work, I noticed how quiet everything seemed. No one was around. It reminded me of right after the 1989 earthquake. All was eerily quiet. When I arrived at work someone had turned on a television, and it was all we could talk about. And yet we didn't really understand it. As the days unfolded after that tragic day, we would find out about Al Quada, about Afghanistan, Osama Bin Laden, radical Islam -- subjects few Americans knew much about. We would try to make sense of what happened. Can we ever make sense of an event like that? Share your stories of September 11, 2001. And read more about it so we can try to understand and never forget.

View items about Sept 11 available at your library

Summer's End

With Labor Day behind us and school starting up again, even though it's not yet official, the end of summer is here. We had a busy summer at the Mountlake Terrace Library. We marched in the Tour de Terrace Parade, had a booth at the National Night Out and offered Summer Reading Programs for all ages. "Catch the Reading Bug" was the theme and 240 children caught it and participated. We hosted weekly family programs with "critter" themes. Our last program was a special one starring Charlie Williams, the "noise guy" sponsored by the Friends of the Mountlake Terrace Library.
Charlie Williams website

Did you attend any of our summer programs? If so, what did you think?

Teen and Adult Reading Programs were also offered. Throughout the Sno-Isle System, over 5000 reviews were posted online by teens. Congratulations to Ryan W. who won our Teen Summer Reading Grand Prize.


Adults read books and won weekly prizes.

Did you read any good books this summer? Your friends and neighbors would love to hear about them. Post the titles and some juicy tidbits about the books you enjoyed this summer.

We hope you will join us next summer. But stay tuned for our Saturdays@the Library Series ("There's always something going on!) which begins October 3.