Excelsior Branch - San Francisco Public Library: 2010

First Monday Movies - The Asphalt Jungle

Welcome to the 2011 Season of First Monday Movies at Excelsior Branch. The year's theme is Film Noir Part 2, continuing our most popular theme yet.

The Asphalt Jungle (1950, 112 min.)
Directed by John Huston

Criminal mastermind Doc Erwin Riedenschneider (Sam Jaffe) blows into town with a caper that the local hoods can't resist. He sets up the deal with big-time lawyer Alonzo D. Emmerich (Louis Calhern) and chooses Dix Handley (Sterling Hayden) as the muscle for the job. Unfortunately, Emmerich is hatching a doublecross and plans to take the loot and skip with his mistress Angela Phinlay (Marilyn Monroe). The dark urban world of The Asphalt Jungle is one of the essential destinations in film noir.

Monday, January 3 @ 6:30 p.m.

LIBRARY CLOSED - Christmas

The Excelsior Branch and all SFPL branches will close at 5:00pm on Friday December 24 and will be closed Saturday, December 25 for Christmas.

Parking Enforcement

MUNI information

BART holiday schedule

Have a great Holiday!

First Monday Movies - The Long Goodbye - December 6th

A thoroughly eccentric version of author Raymond Chandler’s novel bearing the indelible stamp of maverick director Robert Altman. Smart-aleck, cat-loving private eye Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould) is certain that his friend Terry Lennox isn't a wife-killer, even after the cops throw Marlowe in jail for not cooperating with their investigation. Marlowe starts his own search for the missing Lennox when he discovers that the mysterious Eileen Wade (Nina Van Pallandt), who hired him to find her alcoholic novelist husband Roger (Sterling Hayden), coincidently lives on the same Malibu street as Lennox. (1973/112 mins)

Monday, December 6th @ 6:30 p.m.

LIBRARY CLOSED - Thanksgiving

The Excelsior Branch and all SFPL branches will be closed Wednesday through Friday, November 24-25-26 for Thanksgiving.

Parking Enforcement

MUNI information

BART holiday schedule

Have a great Holiday!

Excelsior Salon - Vincent Van Gogh - November 17th

Vincent Van Gogh and the Post-Impressionist Movement

Marlene Aron presents the life and art of Vincent Van Gogh, whose intense passion for people and the land drove him to create some of the most beautiful, vibrant, and deeply-felt art ever seen. He, along with Paul Cézanne, Emile Bernard, Toulouse-Lautrec and Paul Gauguin, responded, through their art, to the world in ways that had never been done before and journeyed into a realm of personal expression that was to become the Post-Impressionist Movement. This event coincides with the de Young Museum exhibition: Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne and Beyond: Post-Impressionist Masterpieces from the Musée d’Orsay.

Wednesday, November 17th @ 7 p.m.

LIBRARY CLOSED - November 11th - Veterans Day

The Excelsior Branch and all SFPL branches will be closed on Thursday, November 11, 2010 in observance of Veterans Day.

Parking Enforcement
MUNI information
BART holiday schedule

Edwardo Madril Storytelling

The program features stories from various tribes and regions, including costumed theater, dancing, audience participation, and sign language. Every song, dance, and gesture illustrates a part of Native American heritage as a people with roots in the distant past.

Wednesday, November 10, 11:00 - 11:30 am

Parkside Grand Reopening Celebration

Welcome back to a beloved neighborhood treasure, the newly renovated Parkside Branch Library.

Saturday, November , 1-6pm

Shakespeare on Tour

Shakespeare on Tour will be coming to the Excelsior Library on November 3rd at 3:15pm. Come experience the drama and excitement of a live Shakespeare performance of "The Tempest".

Wednesday, November 3rd, 3:15 pm

Giants Pride Week – Excelsior Branch

Even though we are not able to light our building orange like City Hall or Coit Tower, Excelsior Branch Library is showing our Giants Pride with displays of Giants memorabilia from the collections of Branch staffers.

Here at the Excelsior Branch we have many Giants fans (long-suffering and bandwagon-ers alike) on the staff and out in the stacks and chairs. Patrons keep the staff up to date with the scores from GameCast or the latest from KNBR when they hustle in to return a book. But, when the Giants win, we know within seconds: the nearby watering holes erupt with cheers, followed soon after by the parade of cars down Mission Street.

So, when you’re not glued to your TV or radio, stop by Excelsior Branch to see our display of memorabilia from the personal collections of staff members. You can pick out books about the Giants or look for old newspaper articles. You can also see a fine collection of Giants and Seals images from the Library’s Historical Photograph Collection.

If something historic happens, be sure to check out the Newseum’s collection of front pages.

Go Giants! ¡Viva Gigantes!

First Monday Movies - They Live By Night - November 1st

Bowie Bowers (Farley Granger) escapes from jail with two hardened criminals and holes up at Mobley's filling station to recover from a wound. He's nursed by Mobley's daughter Keechie (Cathy O'Donnell). Despite the fact that neither has known anything but hardship and distrust in their short lives, Bowie and Keechie begin to fall in love. The older cons involve Bowie in a bank heist where a man gets killed, and the couple go on the run. Bowie and Keechie are hopelessly naïve, fabricating their own idyllic dream world as the authorities close in. Based on Edward Anderson's Depression-era novel Thieves Like Us. Directed by Nicholas Ray (1948/95 mins)

Monday, November 1st @ 6:30 p.m.

Excelsior Knitters

Knitters & Crocheters - come chat, knit, purl, and spin! Have fun comparing patterns, sharing techniques and trading tips. Make new friends in the neighborhood!

Intermediate and advanced, please come and share your experience and ideas. The room is cozy, private and comfortable. Beginners are welcome to look at patterns and get acquainted. Please bring your own materials. We welcome all. Excelsior Knitters usually meet at the Library on the second Monday each month.

Monday, October 18th - 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Monday, November 8th - 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Magic Dan - October 20th

Magic Dan brings his magic show to Excelsior just in time for Halloween! Enjoy magic tricks, juggling and themed games. Ages 3 and older. Space is limited. Please call (415) 355-2868 for reservations.

Clinic by the Bay

Clinic by the Bay, a free health clinic, has opened at 4877 Mission Street in the Excelsior District.

A volunteer-powered, non-profit organization that will serve the primary medical needs of the uninsured in San Francisco and San Mateo Counties, the Clinic's goal is to provide a caring medical home for their patients so they can work, attend school, adequately care for their families and be productive members of their community.

Clinic by the Bay is a Volunteers in Medicine (VIM) clinic. VIM is a national model of health care that was founded by Dr. Jack McConnell in 1992 and opened in Hilton Head, South Carolina, in 1994. (See www.volunteersinmedicine.org.) There are currently 78 VIM clinics operating in 24 states in the United States, the majority of which are located east of the Mississippi.

Clinic by the Bay's Mission: To understand and serve, with dignity and respect, the health and wellness needs of the medically underserved in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Additionally, their goal is to enhance the lives of the volunteers who contribute to the care and wellness of our community as a whole.

For more information, contact the Clinic at 415.405.0222.

Excelsior Salon - Maid as Muse - October 27th

In Maid as Muse, Aife Murray explodes the myth of the isolated genius and presents an intimate, densely realized story of joined lives between Emily Dickinson and her domestic servants. Part scholarly study, part detective story, part personal journey, Murray's book uncovers a world previously unknown: an influential world of Irish immigrant servants and an ethnically rich one of Yankee, English-immigrant, Native American, and African American maids and laborers, seamstresses and stablemen. Murray reveals how Irish immigrant Margaret Maher and the other servants influenced the cultural outlook, fashion, artistic subject, and even poetic style of Emily Dickinson.

Local scholar and author Aife Murray says Maid as Muse came about because of a visit to the Library. She recalls "I was standing in this reading room of the main library in San Francisco one afternoon wondering how Emily Dickinson – prize-winning baker and astonishing poet – managed to turn out so many poems (and breads and cakes). 'Did she have help?' I asked myself. I pulled a popular Dickinson biography from the shelves situated in the far back of the reading room. The book naturally opened at a photographic plate labeled 'the Dickinson domestics, circa 1870.' Three Irish faces stared out just as the photographer depressed the bulb. He let a little light leak into the studio so that a side of Margaret Maher’s beautiful face is bleached out. The man in the center looked a lot like my grandfather.... Seeing that image changed my life."

Join us for an exciting reading and discussion of this below-stairs, bottom-up portrait of the artist and her family. The kitchen pantry where Dickinson spent a good portion of each day was headquarters for people mostly lost from the public record - and it was her interactions with them that changed and helped define who Emily Dickinson was as a person and a poet.

Wednesday, October 27th @ 7 p.m.

LIBRARY CLOSED - October 11th - Columbus Day

The Excelsior Branch and all SFPL branches will be closed on Monday October 11, 2010 in observance of Columbus Day.

Parking Enforcement

MUNI information

BART holiday schedule

Have a great holiday!

"What We Like"

Guji Guji by Chih-Yuan Chen

I love Guji! Guji! by Zhiyuan Chen. It's sort of The Ugly Duckling with a twist. One evening a huge egg rolls down a hill and into Mama Duck's nest. She doesn't notice. She's too busy reading. She sits on all of the eggs until that fateful day when....a water loving-creature cracks its way out of the huge egg. It's first sound is "Guji! Guji!" so that's what Mama Duck names it. And it really thinks it is a duck! But it's not.

To find out what Guji!Guji! really is, and how he saves his duck family from being eaten, you will just have to reserve this fun book.

K Smoak

P.S. I love the illustrations so much, I would decorate the library with them.

"What We Like" features weekly recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

TUESDAY TIPS

TODAY'S TIP - Using OpenOffice at the Library

OpenOffice – an open source software – is now installed on all Internet Public Computers as of July 9, 2010. OpenOffice Writer replaces Microsoft Word, and OpenOffice Calc replaces Microsoft Excel. The presentation software application OpenOffice Impress is also installed.

These programs work in much the same way as the programs previously installed on library computers, with most of the same features and many of the same shortcuts that have become standard in office software. In fact, you may not even have noticed the recent change.

The Library has created guides for using Writer and Calc, with more information available on the SFPL website. Additional information is available on the web from OpenOffice on their support site.

The library continues to teach computer classes at the Main any many branches. You can find out about the classes by checking the calendar, or other publications. And, as always, we have plenty of resources in the Library's collection that can help you learn more about computers. Just ask a Librarian for assistance.

More about the change to open source software can be found in this press release from the Mayor's office.

Excelsior Librarians and Staff share tips & tricks to help you make the most of the San Francisco Public Library catalog, databases and website. New tips posted Tuesdays on the Excelsior Blog. Watch this space!

Read for the Record - October 7th

Join the Excelsior Branch and the rest of SFPL for this annual program which features stories and activities for children ages 3-5. This year, the book we will be reading is The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats.

At 11:00 a.m. on October 7, Excelsior Branch is co-sponsoring a reading of The Snowy Day with Excelsior Family Connections here at the Branch.

Jumpstart's Read for the Record brings national attention to the importance of early education by organizing the world's largest celebration of reading. Each year, the campaign sets a new world record for the most number of children reading the same book on the same day.

Excelsior Festival - October 3rd

The annual Excelsior Festival will be held Sunday, October 3, from 11am until 5pm at Mission Street and Ocean Avenue in the heart of the Excelsior District.
There will be international food, craft vendors, activities for kids, and the Excelsior's Got Talent competition. Live music will include Los Chiles Verdes, Carne Cruda, City College Jazz Band and Gabriel Fuentes.

Excelsior Branch will have a prize wheel for children and literature table at the event. On the half hour (or, as the schedule allows) our Children's Librarians will be offering storytimes with a Green theme. Please stop by and visit us!

Festival proceeds benefit Excelsior Action Group and their efforts to strengthen the Excelsior neighborhood. For more information, contact EAG at 415.585.0110.

"What We Like"

Hunger Games Trilogy
Hunger Games (2008)
Catching Fire (2009)
Mockingjay (2010)

In a dystopian future, the country of Panem is under the grip of a repressive security state after a destructive civil war. All of the numbered districts (1-12) live in abject poverty and struggle to survive and to serve the Capital, a decadent, all-powerful central authority. This authority, and a reminder to the districts that the civil war has not been forgotten or forgiven, is manifested in the Hunger Games, a brutal reality show where each of the twelve districts submits two teenage tributes in a televised battle to the death.

Part gripping action, part ironic love story, part caustic warning against the authoritarian reaction to civil disobedience, this trilogy has just concluded with the much-anticipated release of Mockingjay.

The Hunger Games is an extremely popular and in-demand series at the SFPL. Do not be discouraged by the long holds list! The wait is worth it! Request it NOW! Before the Panem government catches you at it and punishes your family!!

JJ

"What We Like" features weekly recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

TUESDAY TIPS

TODAY'S TIP - Election information on the web

Election day this year is Tuesday, November 2nd. This week's tip is a round-up of election information for California and the City and Country of San Francisco.

Important dates for San Francisco: October 18 is the last day to register. October 26 is the last day to request a vote-by-mail ballot.

The Secretary of State's office manages elections in California. In addition to general information about campaigns and elections in California, you can find historical results back to 1990. The November 2, 2010 General Election information includes the list of qualified ballot measures, certified candidates, and the Official Voter Information Guide.

The San Francisco Department of Elections website has a wealth of information on the November 2, 2010 election. Additionally, you can look up your voter registration status, find your polling place, and check the status of your vote-by-mail ballot.

To find your Congressional District, check out this US House of Representatives website, which requires your zip+4 information. If you don't know your zip+4, you can look it up at the US Postal Service. You can also look up your California Assembly and Senate representatives with just your just your zipcode.

Excelsior Librarians and Staff share tips & tricks to help you make the most of the San Francisco Public Library catalog, databases and website. New tips posted Tuesdays on the Excelsior Blog. Watch this space!

A Fond Farewell

Excelsior librarian Mary Hones retired in August after 15 years with the San Francisco Public Library System. Employing her excellent professional library skills and strong commitment to service, Mary helped develop and maintain the Branch’s book, CD, and DVD collections for adults, hosted the popular First Monday Movies @ Excelsior and taught many of the much-in-demand computer classes. It was Mary who arranged the annual appearance of San Francisco Poet Laureate Diane di Prima at the Excelsior Arts & Culture Salon. She also nurtured a working relationship with beloved Excelsior Branch benefactress Dolorous Knight. Mary conceived and, working with the Teen Services Librarian, co-designed and updated this Excelsior Library Blog.

In 2009, Mary was presented with a well-deserved Staff Recognition Award.

Patrons and staff were fortunate to have Mary as one of our librarians. Everyone will miss her. We wish her all the best as she begins her new life.

"What We Like"

Essentially Odd is a catalog of the products available at the 826 Stores nationwide.

Some of you may know the 826 Stores from seeing the Pirate Supply Store at 826 Valencia. If you do, and even if you don't, this book will tell you all about the seven locations of the 826 Stores. You can get a Secret Identity Kit at the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co or Caveman Candy at the Echo Park Time Travel Mart.

Nearly as much fun as being there in person, the kid in you will delight in the "neato-ness" of the products as much as the adult in you appreciates the humor.

Brainchild of the Dave Eggers and the folks at 826 Valencia, the 826 Stores are part of 826 National, a nonprofit tutoring, writing, and publishing organization with locations in eight cities across the country. Their goal is to assist students ages six to eighteen with their writing skills, and to help teachers get their classes excited about writing.

Kit

Dark Water Rising - Excelsior Salon on September 22

Over 50,000 dogs and cats were left behind in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. This forced separation created America’s first-ever major animal rescue. A dedicated and compassionate group of volunteer rescuers and animal welfare groups from around the world risked their lives to sledgehammer down doors and brave toxic floodwaters in a truly heroic effort to save nearly 10,000 animals. This film tells uplifting stories of hope and survival as pets are reunited with their owners while other lucky animals find loving new homes. It will renew your faith in the American spirit.

Wednesday, September 22, 7:00 pm

First Monday Movies - The Killing - October 4th

Sterling Hayden plays veteran criminal Johnny Clay, planning one last big job before settling down to a respectable life with Fay (Colleen Gray). Teaming with several ex-cons, Johnny masterminds a $2 million racetrack robbery to be carried out with military precision. Unfortunately, all the crooks involved are losers and small-timers who find themselves in way over their heads. Director Stanley Kubrick's first major film clearly shows his vision of characters who seem to control their environment but actually are controlled by it. (1956/85 mins)

Monday, October 4th @ 6:30 p.m.

In the Neighborhood - Library Intern Cristina Mitra

Cristina Mitra is a library school student at San Jose State. Earlier this year she did an internship at Excelsior Branch. She employed her Spanish language skills and interest in Filipino materials in doing assessments of our Spanish and Filipino collections. Cristina also developed and taught a computer class on searching the internet in Spanish. When she completes her master's degree in Library Science next year, she would like to work in a public library as a teen or Spanish outreach librarian.

Cristina was born and raised in the Excelsior District. She left San Francisco to attend college on the East Coast. When she told people she grew up in the Excelsior, she heard over and over again "where's that?" It made her start thinking about what being from this neighborhood meant to her.

After graduation, Cristina returned to SF. She was selected to participate in a film production class offered to queer women of color to teach them how to make their own films. Cristina took the opportunity to go out into the neighborhood and find out how other people felt about the Excelsior. Her film, Off the Map, is the result.

Good luck Cristina wherever your journey takes you!

In the Neighborhood features information about people and places in the Excelsior neighborhood that you may already know and love, or that might be new to you. Watch this space!

First Monday Movies - Gilda - September 13th

Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) is a rough-edged gambler who goes to work for Ballin Mundson, owner of an illegal gampling casino in Buenos Aires, after Ballin saves his life. He quickly becomes Ballin's right-hand man, but their close bond is fractured when Ballin unexpectedly marries. Johnny is assigned to guard Gilda (Rita Hayworth), the new Mrs. Mundson, a woman from Johnny's past. Though Farrell is unwavering in his loyalty to his employer, and he and Gilda treat each other with contempt, Mundson realizes that the torch never died for either of the former lovers. Directed by Charles Vidor (1946/110 mins)

Monday, September 13th - 6:30 p.m.

"What We Like"

La Pell Freda (Cold Skin) is the original work of a contemporary Catalan writer.

Albert Sánchez Piñol takes us to a journey to the pit of hell – the hell of our existential loneliness, our inherited resentment and hatred, our fear-born compulsion to destroy everything we do not understand – and back into an acceptance of our darkness and projections, through a redemption attained by means of a decision to accept those very different others beyond any attempt at comprehension, reaching into our need to live and honor the life of others.

The book grabbed me violently and mercilessly from its very first sentence : "Mai no som infinitament lluny d’aquells a qui odiem. Per la mateixa raó, doncs, podríem dir que mai no serem absolutament a prop d’aquells a qui estimem." (We are never infinitely far away from those we hate. For this same reason, therefore, we could believe we will never be absolutely near those we love.)

-Angelina Llongueras

"What We Like" features weekly recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

Adult Summer Reading Party - August 25th

On August 25th, come celebrate the first Adult Summer Reading Program at the Excelsior Branch and meet fellow bibliophiles. Everyone who registered for the Adult Summer Reading Club at the Excelsior Library is invited to a wrap party and discussion at the Branch. Light refreshments will be served and prizes will be raffled.

Wednesday, August 25th - 7 - 8:30 p.m.

"What We Like"

Everyday Food: Fresh Flavor Fast

If you have ever read Everyday Food, the magazine or watched the PBS show, then you know how fresh, simple and healthy these recipes are. A follow up to the very popular Everyday Food: Great Food Fast, this cookbook was worth the wait.

Organized into familiar categories, it is easy to use and is everything you’d expect from the Martha Stewart kitchens. The recipes focus on healthier versions of old favorites, tips for making use of one recipe for multiple meals, and ideas for making the most from your food dollar. These are the kind of recipes that you can make from what’s in your pantry and fridge and have on the table in under an hour.
KW

"What We Like" offers recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

"What We Like"

Truth, by Peter Temple

The mean streets of Melbourne. Drugs are rampant, life is cheap and there’s a stink of corporate and police corruption. Or is that the smell of the encroaching wildfires? Homicide chief Villani is a Marlowe with a back story, mainly a cold and superior father whom he can’t please. Peter Temple turns a phrase beautifully. Even when the slang was indecipherable, I kept on reading, happy with the rhythm and flow. A word to the wise – don’t wait until page 350 to discover the Glossary of Australian Terms on page 380.

MH

"What We Like" features recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

In the Neighborhood - Excelsior District Improvement Association (EDIA)

The Excelsior District Improvement Association (EDIA) is a community organization that has been dedicated to improving the quality of everyday life in the Excelsior District since 1942.

I recently had the opportunity to sit down with EDIA President Jackie Cash, Secretary May Wong, and Board Member Robert Katz. They told me a little about their personal histories in the neighborhood – May Wong was born and raised here – her family had a laundry in the same block as the Library. They also explained EDIA’s goals and how they accomplish them.

EDIA’s current involvement in neighborhood concerns can be traced back to their response to a threat in 1959 to demolish 88 Excelsior district homes to provide off street parking. Former EDIA President John Consiglieri spearheaded the fight against this plan of mayoral candidate George Christopher. Consiglieri met with friends and neighbors to organize the opposition to the removal of homes. A petition to stop the demolition with more than 8000 signatures was taken to City Hall by EDIA and neighborhood organizations from West Portal, Sunset and Richmond (rumored to be "next" if Christopher's plan worked in the Excelsior District). The plan was defeated, and the Excelsior District Neighborhood Association was revitalized. John Consiglieri, at age 93, is the Sergeant at Arms, still leading the Pledge of Allegiance at EDIA's monthly meetings.

EDIA tries to be the voice for those with no voice, including victims of crimes. Sometimes EDIA is made aware of concerns when community members come to them. Sometimes they work on issues with other organizations, like EAG.

In 2008 there was a triple homicide in the neighborhood. EDIA members were dismayed by the inadequacy of the official response. They put together a forum with police and community leaders to discuss what was being done. EDIA printed up leaflets and distributed them throughout the neighborhood and more than 400 people came to Monroe School to share their concerns.

More recently, EDIA has been working on a program they call “Light Up the Night.” The beautiful trees which line Persia Street also make it very dark and susceptible to criminal activity. EDIA asked the police what they would do to address the problem, and they suggested improving the lighting.

EDIA identified a simple, short term solution while they worked toward something more permanent. They knocked on every door on Persia Street and asked the inhabitants to turn on their porch lights at night. They took Chinese and Spanish translators with them. PG&E donated lightbulbs which EDIA members gave to the homeowners. PG&E has agreed to ramp up the wattage on the streetlights and add cobra lights to the poles without lights. In the most recent monthly report from the Ingleside police captain, there was NO crime on Persia Street.

Next up – Russia Street!

In addition to crime, EDIA has worked on economic development issues, parking and pedestrian safety. Due to their efforts, a light was finally installed in the dangerous crosswalk on Santa Rosa Avenue near Central Drug.

EDIA welcomes new members. I can vouch for the fact that they are a fun group. They meet on the fourth Tuesday every month at 45 Santa Rosa Avenue at 7 p.m. There are volunteer opportunities for adults and teens, and teens with an interest in journalism, art or writing are especially encouraged to get in touch. Contact EDIA at:

Excelsior District Improvement Association (EDIA)
P.O. Box 12005
San Francisco, CA 94112-0005
(415) 294-0503
ediasf-info@yahoo.com

Check out this great Excelsior community organization!

In the Neighborhood features information about people and places in the Excelsior neighborhood that you may already know and love, or that might be new to you. Watch this space!

"What We Like"

The Talented Miss Highsmith by Joan Schenkar

"Nothing is more pleasurable than falling back into the arms of someone who is bad for us,” wrote Patricia Highsmith, in her journals, borrowing from Proust. Get lost in “Highsmith Country” as laid out in this imaginative biography by Joan Schenkar. Highsmith, author of Strangers on a Train and the The Talented Mr. Ripley was seductive, dark and complicated and saw suspicious motives everywhere.

Nora F.

TUESDAY TIPS

TODAY'S TIP - Jobs & Careers - The Career Transitions database

Career Transitions employs a step-by-step approach to help people explore new career possibilities by assessing their interests and experience and identifying ways to improve their prospects. These include advice for networking and education, preparing for a job search (including a resume-building tool), and searching and applying for jobs.

To use Career Transitions, you need to create an account using your email address. Once you have an account, you can keep track of where you are in the process and save your work. The interest assessment takes about 20 minutes to complete. In the assessment, you answer whether you would like or dislike doing certain kinds of work tasks. After completing the assessment, you can use it to complete the next section, exploring careers by industry and job.

The next steps include a resume builder, in which you answer a series of questions to complete a resume that can be saved in a variety of formats and made available online. Also available is job search and interview preparation advice. There are sections to help you find courses to improve your skills. Finally, you can use Career Transitions to search for available jobs.

To get to Career Transitions and the other jobs and career databases from the homepage, click on the eLibrary tab, then choose Articles & Databases, and select Jobs & Careers from the Category menu. You will see other jobs and career resources offered by San Francisco Public Library including offerings from Learning Express Library and Tutor.com.

In the Career Center, from Tutor.com, you can chat live with a certified tutor who will assist you in reviewing your resume, and with job searching tips and interview preparation. There are also thousands of worksheets, tutorials and study guides on cover letters, resume writing, resume templates and sample resumes.

Learning Express Library offers 1) Search & Workplace Skills where you can find online tutorials on business writing, job search and networking skills, resume and cover letter writing, interviewing and tips on how to succeed at work. 2) Jobs & Careers, which is a collection of online test preparation materials for occupations requiring licensing, certification, aptitude tests and other career preparation. 3) Skill-Building for Adults, a collection of tests and courses for math, reasoning, reading, writing, and grammar. Also try the searchable eBooks (the link is on the right side of the homepage) for over 150 career topics and study aids.

In addition to these databases, there are periodical and newspaper indexes as well as extensive collections of career books in all branch libraries. Many branches and the Main offer jobs and career classes as well. Be sure to ask a Librarian for more information.

First Monday Movies - Crime of Passion - August 2nd

Hardboiled newspaper columnist Kathy Ferguson (Barbara Stanwyck) abandons her career to become a housewife when she marries L.A. police detective Bill Doyle (Sterling Hayden). She’s miserable in the stifling suburban milieu, and she funnels all her energy into trying to advance her husband's career – using her wiles to get close to Bill’s boss, Chief of Detectives Tony Pope (Raymond Burr). Crime of Passion dissects the murderous female from a 50s perspective. Directed by Gerd Oswald (1957/84 mins)

Monday, August 2nd @6:30 p.m.

Exhibit - Growing Up Asian in America

Growing Up Asian in America is the largest celebration of Asian heritage in the nation and is a signature program of the Asian Pacific Fund. The program began in January 2010 with an essay and art competition for students in grades kindergarten through 12. This year, 1,400 contest entries were received. The winning entries are featured in this exhibit.

The exhibit will be displayed at the Excelsior Branch from August 2 - August 31, 2010. The Asian Pacific Fund created this program to promote understanding throughout the Bay Area among people of all backgrounds.

"What We Like"

Luminous Emptiness, understanding the Tibetan book of the dead - by Francesca Fremantle

This commentary on the Tibetan Book of the Dead is remarkable for the clearness and concision with which Fremantle explains the complex philosophy and doctrines of Tibetan Buddhism. An excellent introduction with its exposition of the true meaning of life, how to accept death, and how to help the dying, and the dead.

-AF

"What We Like" features recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

TUESDAY TIPS

TODAY'S TIP: Language Learning - UPDATE

A while ago we published a Tuesday Tip about learning a new language with resources made available by San Francisco Public Library. We have recently added two new resources to help you accomplish your goal.

From the homepage, click on the eLibrary tab, then choose Articles & Databases, and select Language Learning from the Category menu. You will be given the option to choose Mango Languages, PowerSpeak or Rosetta Stone. For all courses you need to have a Library card and pin number, and you will be asked to register. You will also need to have certain add-ons installed on your computer, including JavaScript and Flash. Here's a breakdown of what these databases have to offer:

PowerSpeak - PowerSpeak simulates gradual immersion through a series of stories, activities, videos, interactive quizzes and more. The language courses available are Spanish, French, Mandarin, German and ESL for Spanish speakers. To use PowerSpeak, create an account and start with the introduction video, or just dive right into your first lesson.

Mango Languages - Mango uses real-life situations and actual conversations to more effectively teach a new language. While listening to and practicing the language, you can mouse over the text in western characters to reveal the word in the original characters.

Mango offers Basic Courses for Arabic (Levantine), Dari, Farsi, Hebrew, Hindi, Irish, Korean, Pashto, Tagolog, Thai, Turkish, Urdu, and Vietnamese. Full Course offerings are for Chinese (Mandarin), French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish (Latin America).

Mango also offers Basic ESL courses for speakers of Spanish, French, Polish, Portuguese, German, Japanese, Vietnamese, Cantonese, Mandarin, Arabic (Egyptian), Turkish, Italian, Russian, Korean. And Full ESL Courses for Polish, Spanish and Portuguese speakers.

To start using Mango, fill out the registration form and follow the instructions in the confirmation email. With Mango Languages, you can choose to use it without creating a profile, but you won’t be able to track your progress and easily pick up where you left off.

Each course has its own strengths for different styles of learners. With three different choices of online courses and all the other options SFPL offers, you can find a style that works for you.

Diane di Prima - Excelsior Salon on July 21st

So, you've been writing, painting, dancing. You've got a band, or a performance piece. How do you reach out to others? Find folks of like mind? Get the work out there? How do you create a community of artists & friends who will support each other?

In this informal reading/talk, Diane di Prima, San Francisco's Poet Laureate, will talk about making your art and getting it into the world "by any means necessary"—whatever comes to hand—in good times and bad. She will also address the importance of creating a sense of community.

Diane will speak from her own life experiences on the practicalities of survival as an artist during the red-baiting and repressed 1950s. She will tell us how she self-published her first book, and distributed it around New York from the back of a baby stroller. She will trace how some of the artists of the 50s became activists in the 1960s: how a sense of community led to the early communes.

Diane’s presentation will be a rare opportunity to glimpse an important and seldom-acknowledged part of Bay Area cultural history through the eyes of someone who lived it. Dialogue with the audience will be invited and encouraged throughout the presentation.

Wednesday, July 21st - 7 - 8:30 p.m.

Excelsior 5th Anniversary Party - July 17th!

Come celebrate the 5th anniversary of the Excelsior Branch renovation. Fun for families and children of all ages! Entertainment and light refreshments will be provided. Enjoy performances by the talented singers of Musicality, Roving Clown Mahsa Matin of Circus Finelli, and Juggler Extraordinaire Dana Smith. Excelsior was the first Branch completed in the Branch Library Improvement Program, a voter initiative passed in November 2000. We’re building better libraries for stronger communities. Happy Anniversary Excelsior!

Saturday, July 17th from 1 - 3 p.m.

"What We Like"

Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer, by Novella Carpenter

Do you ever look into your backyard or a vacant lot and think about what could grow there? Around the City, lots of people are trying their hand at urban farming.

Farm City is Novella Carpenter's story of transforming a vacant lot in downtown Oakland into a small farm. She begins with vegetables and chickens but progresses quickly to ducks, rabbits and even pigs. The book may inspire you to try a farming project of your own, and/or serve as a cautionary tale about what can happen when you push your project a little too far.

Farm City is a fun read - even if you never pick up a shovel yourself.

Teri D

"What We Like" is a weekly feature on the Excelsior Blog, with recommendations from Excelsior staff and patrons for Library books, music, movies and audiobooks that we think you might like. If you have something you want to recommend, drop by and let us know!

TUESDAY TIPS

TODAY'S TIP: Audiobooks from Librivox

Looking for a book to listen to while you lay on beach, blot out the engine noise in an airport or try to ignore the 37th verse of 99 Bottles of Beer on your road trip this summer?

We’ve already introduced you to the many audio resources San Francisco Public Library offers, from books on CD to those available to download to your ipod or mp3 player from NetLibrary and Overdrive. Today’s tip is all about a favorite resource of some of us here at Excelsior Branch: LibriVox.

LibriVox is a volunteer-driven digital library of over 3000 ready-to-download books in the public domain. The variety of the available files is tremendous, from histories to short stories to classics of literature. You can read an account of the death of Lord Nelson by a surgeon who tended to him, finally make it through all of the Canterbury Tales, or hunt the white whale in Moby Dick. Librivox recordings are available in many languages, from Afrikaans to Yiddish.

Volunteer readers record books in the public domain and post the audio files to Librivox. Texts of the works are taken from the fine folks at Project Gutenberg. The goal of the volunteers at LibriVox is to make all public domain books available as free audiobooks. Audiobooks are available as mp3 files or ogg (an open-source file format) and ready to play on your computer or transfer to your favorite portable device. Instructions for downloading are available here.

If you’d like to volunteer your time for the “acoustical liberation of books in the public domain,” it’s very easy. LibriVox volunteers do not need any prior experience, nor do they need to audition or send in samples. All you need is your voice, free software, your computer, and maybe an inexpensive microphone.

Excelsior Librarians and Staff share tips & tricks to help you make the most of the San Francisco Public Library catalog, databases and website. New tips posted Tuesdays on the Excelsior Blog. Watch this space!

Excelsior Knitters - July 19th

Knitters & Crocheters - come chat, knit, purl, and spin! Have fun comparing patterns, sharing techniques and trading tips. Make new friends in the neighborhood!

Intermediate and advanced, please come and share your experience and ideas. The room is cozy, private and comfortable. Beginners are welcome to look at patterns and get acquainted. Please bring your own materials. We welcome all. Excelsior Knitters usually meet at the Library on the second Monday each month.

Monday, July 19th - 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Monday, August 9th - 6:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.

"What We Like"

Spiritual Midwifery, by Ina Gaskin

In the early ‘70s a caravan of buses traveled from California to Tennessee. En route several women gave birth, with their friends and fellow travelers assisting them. Thus began the journey to “The Farm” a commune they created in rural Tennessee. The amazing stories of these “sister-assisted” births are told in Spiritual Midwifery by world famous midwife and natural childbirth advocate Ina Mae Gaskin. A must read for anyone who has ever been born.
Karen H.

TUESDAY TIPS

TODAY'S TIP: Citizenship Resources

Are you or someone you know seeking naturalization as a US citizen?

San Francisco Public Library offers a variety of resources on our website as well as books, videos and CDs. On the Internet, you will find a multitude of links. In this Tuesday Tip, we’ll share some of the best citizenship resources.

Over the past ten years, there have been many changes in US immigration law and procedure. One major change for the prospective citizen is the introduction of an entirely new test for Naturalization in October 2008. It is very important to check the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website for the most recent information.

USCIS has a wealth of information on their site, including materials for educators and volunteers, humanitarian resources, and guides to avoid being a victim of fraudulent offers of assistance. USCIS provides text and mp3 files of the test questions in English and Spanish. In addition to English, the questions are available in Chinese, Tagalog and Vietnamese.

CLINIC, the Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. offers translations of the citizenship questions done by community organizations in many other languages, including Arabic, Farsi, French and more. Many other services are offered to help organizatons that serve immigrant communities.

You can prepare for the USCIS naturalization interview with these helpful resources from SFPL, including a guide to naturalization, detailed practice materials for the new citizenship exam, and a list of local organizations that can help you with the naturalization process. Watch short videos to learn more about citizenship resources. Available in: Chinese, English, Filipino, Korean, Russian, and Spanish.

Through our library catalog, we offer links to a variety of online government resources, including printable flash cards for the test questions as well as reading and writing vocabulary cards. And you can always ask a librarian for information on guides for naturalization, immigration information and more.

Water, The Problem and the Opportunity - July 14th

One of the largest and most pressing problems facing humanity - 1 billion people, one out of six, lack safe drinking water. 1.8 million children die annually due to a lack of safe drinking water. Half the hospital beds in the world are filled with people with water-borne illnesses. Proven, affordable solutions exist today that can provide a lifetime of sustainable safe drinking water. Safe water sends children back to school, empowers women, improves community health and fosters economic development. Lisa Nash, the CEO of the Blue Planet Network, discusses how these goals can be achieved.

Wednesday, July 14th @ 7 p.m.

First Monday Movies - The Big Sleep - July 12th

Philip Marlowe (Humphrey Bogart) is hired by dying millionaire General Sternwood to "take care" of the blackmailer who's got the goods on Sternwood's wild, nymphomaniac daughter Carmen (Martha Vickers). However, Marlowe suspects that Sternwood's primary motive is to learn the whereabouts of Rusty Regan, an adventurer who married Sternwood's older daughter, Vivian (Lauren Bacall), before disappearing into thin air. Before the night is over Marlowe stumbles onto a fresh murder. Directed by Howard Hawks (1946/114 mins)

Monday, July 12th @ 6:30 p.m.

In the Neighborhood - Greg Pabst and the Excelsior Stroll

Greg Pabst has been conducting the Excelsior Stroll for 16 years. The Stroll is a walking tour of the Excelsior District that is offered twice a year in May and October through the San Francisco City Guides program. Greg is a specialist in Land Grant law, and the idea for offering tours of the Excelsior District came about over a dinner with Dennis Roselli, whose father owned Dino’s Pharmacy on Mission and Brazil. Greg’s expertise in early San Francisco history was complemented by Dennis’ extensive knowledge of the neighborhood from being born and raised here in the mid-twentieth century.

The Excelsior Stroll provides participants with a wealth of information, beginning with the history of the Bernal Family Land Grant from Mexico that delineated the boundaries of the district, to the murals of the present day which show the vibrant, multicultural Excelsior District we love.

On the Excelsior Stroll you can learn about the Italian farmers who inhabited the area and worshipped at Corpus Christi – which was an offshoot of Sts. Peter & Paul Church in North Beach. You’ll see the house on Harrington Street where Jerry Garcia was raised. And did you ever wonder (as I have) about the street names here? The Excelsior Development Company of the 1860s was made up of men involved in international trade so they named the streets after countries and capital cities - Persia, Italy, Russia, etc. Anti-Asian feelings that led to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 created pressure to change some street names. India, China and Japan Streets were changed to Peru, Avalon and Excelsior Streets.

Greg Pabst uses the Library’s SF History Center, including the Italian-American archives, to research the Excelsior District. You can read Greg’s history of the San Francisco Bernal Family on his website. Often people who take the tour contribute their own knowledge of neighborhood history which then becomes part of the tour. An old timer from the neighborhood told Greg that in times of drought in the past, well water was dispensed from the basement of Ferrera Hardware (where Kragen Auto is now). It was one of the last freshwater wells in San Francisco.

If you have knowledge about, interest in, and/or enthusiasm for the Excelsior District and would like to be trained to conduct tours of the neighborhood, please contact Greg at pabst@usfca.edu. Or see him at the next Excelsior Stroll this October.

In the Neighborhood features information about people and places in the Excelsior neighborhood that you may already know and love, or that might be new to you. Watch this space!

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