Browsing for something to download from the Digital Media Catalog? Log in first - at the beginning of your browsing session - instead of when you’re ready to check out.

The Minuteman Library Network offers many titles for all library users to access. And, individual libraries can also add titles just for the residents of their city or town, called Advantage titles. The Digital Media Catalog only shows titles that you, the browser, can access, so logging in opens up all those residents-only Advantage titles!

Bottom line: log in at the beginning of your search for the best selection!

Happy Downloading!

Deb

May is National Pet Month and National Bike Month. We will be celebrating both of these with the crafts we are making during the next children’s drop-in craft program on Saturday 5/18 from 10:30am-11:15am. We will be making license plates for bikes as well as mounting pictures of cute animals on construction paper. Feel free to join us!

The library has books on caring for pets in the 636 to 639 adult nonfiction sections, the j636 to j639 children’s nonfiction sections, and the beginning nonfiction section. You can also select from our children’s and adult books about bikes.

posted by Lisa

In case you haven’t heard of the Teaching Company, it’s a publisher of courses with the world’s most engaging professors and their profound insights. You can learn from these professors’ audio or video courses where you want to, when you want to, and how you want to. The extensive collection contains more than 390 Great Courses in diverse subjects and fields including history, science, philosophy, mathematics, literature, economics, and the arts.

posted by Lisa

The Candidates

Democrats

• Stephen F. Lynch; Boston; Current U.S. Congressman
• Edward J Markey; Malden; Current U.S. Congressman

Republicans

• Gabriel E. Gomez; Cohasset; Former Naval Special Warfare Lieutenant Commander
• Michael J. Sullivan; Abington; Plymouth District Attorney
• Daniel B. Winslow; Norfolk; Current State Representative

Where Do I Vote?

• Don’t know your ward and precinct? Type in your address on the Secretary of the Commonwealth website to get information about your precinct and polling place.
• Know your ward and precinct? Look up your polling place on the Waltham City Clerk website or call the city clerk at 781-314-3420

Register to Vote

• If you are not registered to vote, it is too late to register for today’s election. If you are not registered and want to be eligible to vote in the June 25 election, you must register by June 5.
• Register to Vote at your town or city clerk’s office. The Waltham City Clerk is located on the second floor of City Hall at 610 Main Street. They are open Monday - Friday, 8:30 am - 4:30 pm.
• Pick up a mail-in voter registration form at the reference desk at our library.
• Register to Vote at the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles when renewing your driver’s license.
• Download a mail-in voter registration form from the Secretary of the Commonwealth website. You can download a form in English, Spanish (Español), or Chinese (中国的).

Looking to try out digital books? eBooks and eAudiobooks are super versatile and completely portable. Check out a few of these guides for getting started!

How to Enjoy eBooks on your Smartphone or Tablet and on your eReader

How to Enjoy eBooks on Kindle devices Free Kindle Apps and Kindle Fire

Getting Started with Android

Getting started with iOS (iPad, iPhone & iPod touch)

Once you’ve got the one-time set-up stuff done, visit the Digital Media Catalog over and over for new books any time!

Deb
4/29/2013

Our thoughts at the Waltham Public Library are with all of those who were affected by the attack in Copley Square, yesterday. For those of you who need some help or who would like to lend a hand, here is some useful information for you.

• MBTA: The green line is up and running, though Copley Square is still closed. There may be other disruptions, so please continue to monitor the MBTA site or call 617-222-3200. Riders should expect to go through security.
• Connecting with Loved Ones and Runners:
  • Call the Boston Police Help Line at 617-635-4500 to get information about a loved one.
  • Check for your loved one at the American Red Cross “Safe and Well” site. Likewise, if you know people are looking for you, please register yourself at that site.
  • You can track runners at the Boston Marathon page.
  • Mayor Menino’s Hotline: 617-635-4500
• Help with a Place to Stay:
  • If you are in the area for the marathon and are unable to get home, right away, please fill out this form, supplied by Boston.com
  • If you are able to provide housing for those who are delayed in getting home, please fill out this form, from Boston.com
  • The Salem Waterfront Hotel in Salem, Massachusetts is offering free housing to marathon runners as long as they show their bib numbers.
• Donating Blood: The American Red Cross and area hospitals have said that they have enough blood for this particular tragedy, however there is always a need for blood donations.
  • Massachusetts General Hospital Blood Donor Center, 617-726-8177
  • Brigham and Women’s Hospital Blood Donor Center, 617-732-6620 or 888-LETSGIV
  • Boston Children’s Hospital Half Pints Blood Donor Program, 617-355-6677
  • The American Red Cross, 1-800-REDCROSS
• Financial Donations:
  • American Red Cross Disaster Relief, 1-800-RED CROSS
  • Donate to one of the charities highlighted by several of the marathon runners.
  • The One Fund, a fund created by Governor Deval Patrick and Mayor Tom Menino
  • New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, the Kraft family has offered to match donations to the victims
  • Boston First Responders Fund, 857-220-0133
  • Avoid Charity Scams: Sadly, there are always charity scams during events like this. Read the attached article on how to avoid them here. A scam for this particular incident has involved a fake Twitter account, @_BostonMarathon (note the underscore) claiming that it will donate money for every retweet.
• Income Taxes:
  • The Massachusetts Department of Revenue (state income taxes) has announced on its website that taxpayers who live in the Boston area or who have been personally affected by the attack have their filing deadline extended until April 23. Call 617-887-MDOR to find out if you are eligible.
  • The Internal Revenue Service has announced on its website that it is providing a three month filing extensions for those affected by the explosions. Those who are eligible for the extension must either live in Suffolk County, be a victim of the bombings, a family member, or a first responder. For more information or to find out if you are eligible call the Local IRS number: 617-316-2850

Chinese New Year begins on Sunday February 10th in 2013. It is a 15 day celebration to mark the beginning of the spring season. Check out our books about Chinese New Year. 2013 is the year of the snake.

Generally, people don’t think of snakes as friendly sorts of creatures. If you wanted to give a friend a gift, a snake probably wouldn’t be your first choice. If you do like snakes, we have books about them at j597.96.

If you wanted to celebrate your friendship with someone on Valentine’s Day you might give them a friendship bracelet. You could also read a book about Valentine’s Day together.

On February 9th our drop-in craft from 10:30am-11:15am will feature snake crafts and a heart jewelery craft.

posted by Lisa

Visit any gym in January and you will see that many adults have made getting healthier their New Year’s resolution. Let the Children’s Room help you get your young family members on the right path to a lifetime of healthy habits. You can find books for those just learning about health and nutrition in our E Nonfiction section. Located in Row 12 under our display area, this section is separated into different categories appealing to the very young. The books about food, nutrition, and the body have a brown star. The books about sports have a white star.  There is also a Health section in our Parent/Teacher Corner.

Older readers will find books on health and the body in Row 3 at j612 and books about sports and activities in Row 5 at j796. You can also select from our list of recommended children’s books on food and nutrition.

On Saturday, January 19th our drop-in craft session from 10:30am-11:15am will feature two healthy foods crafts.

posted by Lisa

When I recently babysat my nephew and niece there was just enough snow for them to make snow angels.  They were so proud of what they made.  One of the reasons I enjoy doing the drop-in crafts is because the kids often have a similar reaction with their artistic creations.

In the winter, the weather often makes kids need to make things inside.  Several areas of the nonfiction section provide instruction for activities to meets kids’ various interests.  At j507 you can find books on science projects.  Children who like to cook can find simple books on that topic at j641.5.   The books on Lego creations are at j688.72.   We also have a bunch of books about arts and crafts in the j740s.

Our next drop-in craft will take place on Saturday, December 15th from 10:30am-11:15am.  We will be making various winter crafts.  Click here to find books about winter.

posted by Lisa

This is actually just the first stage of the library’s involvement in Digital Commonwealth, a cooperative effort to digitize and make readily available collections from Massachusetts libraries of all types. Over time we will also be contributing historic Waltham maps, high school yearbooks, voter listings and other items. Stay tuned!

posted by Jan