Too Hot to Garden...

What do you do when it is too hot to garden...play sports...walk the dog...paint the house? My favorite chore when it gets really, really hot outside is to stay inside and organize. Yes you read that correctly...organize! Crank up the air conditioner, listen to your favorite tunes (TV is too distracting) and dump the contents of the junk drawer onto the floor. Go through your closets and pull out and pack up everything you haven't worn in the past two years. Goodwill, the Salvation Army or your local church bazaar will thank you for your donations. You can even get a tax deduction! Buy some colorful boxes and labels at your local office supply shop and organize your recipes, your photos, your tax returns (yuck) or your kid's artwork.

A lot of people like to do their organizing right after the new year and that is a great idea. But it is now six months later and I bet the junk drawer is once again overflowing with miscellaneous "stuff" and the mail basket is stuffed with bank statements, insurance policies, appliance warranties and instruction manuals.

Getting organized is all the rage right now and there are a lot of books with great advice on how to get started. Here are a few suggested titles:

• "Organizing From the Inside Out: the Foolproof System for Organizing Your Home, Your Office, and Your Life" by Julie Morgenstern 640 MOR

• "Good Things for Organizing" Martha Stewart Living 648.8 GOO

• "When Organizing Isn't Enough: Shed Your Stuff, Change Your Life" by Julie Morgenstern 648 MOR

• "Organizing & Preserving Your Heirloom Documents" by Katherine S Sturdevant 929.1 STU

• "Getting Organized in the Google Era" by Douglas C Merrill 650.1 MER

Have fun!

TIME TO VOTE!

We have received 53 entries so far for the 2010 Ligonier Valley Library Pet Photo Contest. We have pictures of cats and dogs and bunnies and turtles of all ages and sizes. Some photos are regal and dignified, others just plain silly and fun! Many pets are dressed in their best "haute couture" outfits.

Now it is time to vote for your favorite(s). Each vote is only 25¢. You can vote as many times as you wish. Purchase your ballots at the Ligonier Valley Library. The grand prize is $50.00. Second and third place prizes will also be awarded. Entries will be accepted through Saturday, July 3rd.

CHILDHOOD MEMORIES

As a child my parents would take me to my hometown library every Saturday morning. The main room of the children's area was brightly decorated with posters and a painted mural of popular storybook characters. There were tables and chairs that were just my size. What drew my attention, however, was the seemingly endless maze of shelves filled with books of all colors, sizes and shapes. It was a wonderful place to discover the joy of reading.

One of my favorite summer activities was belonging to Summer Reading Club. There was a different theme every year. My favorite summer was the year that we had a cowboy theme because I loved horses. The children’s librarian would hand out a sticker printed with a different breed of horse for each book read. We would stick them on a cardboard corral that we received when we registered. At the end of the summer the child with the most horses in their corral won the grand prize. The prizes were always books, most of them written by popular authors of the time-- Marguerite Henry, Beverly Cleary, and Carolyn Keene. The year that I won, in fifth grade, I received a copy of “Oliver Twist” by Charles Dickens. I was very disappointed. I had been hoping for the latest horse story by Walter Farley or maybe “Big Red” by Jim Kjelgaard. But I still had fun and will always look back with fond memories of my summers at the library.

Libraries today have changed in a number of ways to meet the demands of our modern society, but one of their most important underlying purposes is still to help children discover the joy of reading. Summer reading programs keep children enthusiastic about reading.

Find the Value of Your Antiques

Go to Ligonier Valley Library's web page at www.ligonierlibrary.org to use our new Antiques Database.

The p4a Antiques Reference database is where you can find the answers to those questions – What is it? and How Much is it Worth? This easily searchable online database edits information about collectibles, antiques and fine art provided by over 140 major U.S. auction companies. Updated daily, each record has at least one color picture, a description, the sale price and date, and auction house name and contact information. Added biographical and historical reference notes enhance many of the records.

Click on the Online Databases button on the left side of our web site. All you need to do to log on to any of the library's free databases from your home computer is type in the 14 digit bar code on the back of your WLN library card. Need a library card? Stop in the library today to register for one. It's free if you live in Westmoreland County! Just bring current identification with you.

Westmoreland Conservation District Display

Visit the Pennsylvania Room this month and view the panel display celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Westmoreland Conservation District.

Sand Bucket Raffle Winners

Ligonier Valley Library’s beach bucket basket raffle was a huge success. The raffle raised $1,464.00 for library operations.

The winners are: Debbie Rhodes, Annie Urban, Ellie Davis (shown in photo), John Landi, Pam McKay, Marilyn Siemering, Lois Menzie, Dawn Higgins, Mary Boyd and Julie Knupp.

The buckets and their contents were donated by Cathy Klinchock, Bill Stablein, Paul Fry, Polly Artuso, Virginia Alexander, Carolyn Shafer, Sandra Svilar, Jennifer Welty, Peggy McDonald, Donna McDowell and the staff of the Ligonier Valley Library.

Closed for Memorial Day

The Ligonier Valley Library will be closed on Monday, May 31st for Memorial Day.


Don't forget... Saturday, May 29, is your last day to purchase tickets for the Sand Bucket Raffle! Winners will be chosen on Tuesday, June 1.


Although no sculptured marble should rise to their memory, nor engraved stone bear record of their deeds, yet will their remembrance be as lasting as the land they honored. ~Daniel Webster