Jaime’s KCLS Jaunt #39, #40, and #41: Boulevard Park, White Center, and Greenbridge

I’m on the home stretch! Boulevard Park, White Center, and Greenbridge represented the second to last “far out adventure” of libraries (still have to jaunt out to Skykomish. . .). I’m fairly certain that this was my first time in these three areas in southwest Seattle.  While Mother Nature wasn’t smiling too often Saturday, at least the traffic fairies were working their magic and Lorin and I made quick work of the drive out to our first stop, Boulevard Park.

We were so quick in fact, that we arrived about 10 minutes before the library opened!  And of course, we weren’t the only ones waiting for the library to open.  While we waited, we wandered the block the library is located on and were promptly a bit startled when the first landing commercial jet passed overhead.  The Boulevard Park branch is directly over the landing path and they are close enough that their landing gear is already down!  As best as we could tell, the larger jets were descending over the library and the smaller jets were landing at the runway just to the west.  However, once the library opened and we stepped inside, you would have never known we were that close to the airport, we heard absolutely nothing!  From its design in the late 70s, the library was built to be soundproof.  We had a very pleasant chat with the librarian about Boulevard Park. As a resident of the area, she gave us the inside scoop on the equestrian crossing sign right next to the branch sign and the papier-mâché dragon that the children of Boulevard decorated over the course of one summer (including hers!).  I was also able to leave with a copy of “The History of the Boulevard Park Library” written in 1976 to coincide with the newly built building that is still in use today.

Our next stop was the White Center branch.  We took as much of a scenic route as we could, mostly through residential neighborhoods before arriving at the more commercial area that the branch is located in.  As we’ve come to expect, we walked in to crowded computers and friendly staff!  The children’s librarian was kind enough to let us interrupt her set up for a State Training and Registry tem (STARS) workshop happening later on that day to talk to us about her work with the library and the community.  From visiting schools to scheduling the new Library2Go, outreach is a big part of her job!  After a few more photographs, I was definitely ready for lunch.

So, here’s where I fell down a little on the planning part.  I had read quite a bit about Proletariat Pizza in White Center, and it seemed like a perfect fit for our trip as it is between the White Center and Greenbridge branches.  We park, walk to the restaurant. . .and they are totally closed.  It didn’t even occur to me to check their hours!  I had also read quite a bit about Full Tilt Ice Cream, but was a little hungrier than just having ice cream for lunch.  We decide to walk down the street to see if we could find another spot and I’m so glad we did!  We peeked down a side street a few blocks away and happened upon Café Rozella.  I had the best Mexican Mocha I’ve ever had!  We chowed on tamales and homemade pastries for dessert in this cozy café while the rain came and went. (However, for the record, I don’t eat pizza very often, and I still want pizza!)

Satiated, we headed out to our final destination for the day, Greenbridge.  Open for just about 2 years, this branch utilizes more of the retail concept similarly seen at Crossroads and Southcenter.  The library is in leased space in the YWCA Learning Center and is one of the community services components of the King County Housing Authority’s Greenbridge project. After visiting the library, we noticed an interesting curved structure a block or so away and headed up to see what it was. It turned out to be a picnic shelter in a park with a great view of the area below!  The playground equipment was also of a different design than I had seen before.  After taking a short stroll through the park, we headed back home. 

Another successful library jaunt!

The Life and Times of Picasso: A KCLS Presentation

On October 8th, the Seattle Art Museum opened a major exhibit, Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musée National Picasso, Paris, which includes works from every phase of Picasso’s life. The exhibition features more than 150 extraordinary paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints and photographs.

Join art historian Susan Olds at for a slide presentation on Picasso’s life and art at the following KCLS libraries:

	Oct 27	Mercer Island Library 7:00-8:45  (more info)
	Nov 10	Sammamish Library 7:00-9:00  (more info)

Beginning with the artist’s early years in Paris, the lecture covers Picasso’s Blue Period, Rose Period, and Classical Period; the development of Analytical and Synthetic Cubism; Picasso’s 1930s experimentation with Surrealism, his playful ceramics and bronzes of the 1950s, and the artist’s passionate, life-long pursuit of abstraction.

To the right is Piscasso's portrait of Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, which was painted in 1910.

To the left is a portrait of the Russian composer, Igor Stravinsky, which was drawn in 1920.

The SAM exhibit runs through January 17, 2011. For more info, see picassoinseattle.org. To preview works in this exhibit, see The Art. To view the SAM exhibit trailer, click Watch the Trailer.

 

Caspar Babypants: A Declaration of Kindiependence

Caspar Babypants (aka Chris Ballew) will perform at 12 KCLS libraries during November and December 2010. Chris and his band play piano, guitar, and percussion, and sing simple songs — their audience is children ages 2 to 5. For library performance and schedule info, see Caspar Babypants Presents – More Please!

BTW, Chris is better know as the lead singer of the Seattle-based rock band, The Presidents of the United States of America.

Gaspar Babypants Videos
googly eyes is from the album, This is Fun!

ramshackle is from the album, More Please!

The Seattle Kindiependent Movement
Kindiependent is a group of musicians who are passionate about creating a vibrant kids’ and family music scene in the Pacific Northwest. Through collaborations and community events, Kindiependent’s mission is to develop a network of family-friendly artists and organizations that supports cultural innovation. Kindiependent is comprised of six diverse performers:
   Recess Monkey
   The Not Its! 
   Caspar Babypants
   Johnny Bregar
   The Board of Education
   The Harmonica Pocket

Jaime’s KCLS Jaunt #37 and #38: Valley View and Skyway Libraries

I think the Pacific Northwest’s best kept secret is our gloriously sunny days.  We might not have a lot of them, but I think that might be because one can only appreciate so much natural beauty!  Needless to say, it was another gorgeously clear, though chilly, Fall day as I headed into southwestern-ish King County to visit Valley View and Skyway libraries. 

Despite a wrong turn off I-5, I quickly found Valley View in Seatac. This had to be one of the most well-signed libraries I’ve visited so far!  Plenty of signage to guide me was helpful on this solo jaunt, it’s hard to be the navigator and the driver at the same time in an unfamiliar area.  The branch name of “Valley View” is also made abundantly clear as you drive the residential area near the library, there are beautiful views down the streets on the approach from the south. As I arrived on a Saturday afternoon, I wasn’t surprised to see that I snagged one of the very few open parking spots. 

And of course, inside, the library was a happening place!  All the computers were in use and patrons were being helped at both the check out and information desk.  In a break from assisting patrons, Bruce, the Managing Librarian, was kind enough to tell me all the wonderful things about Valley View.  Like Tukwila, the area served by Valley View is incredibly diverse. They have a World Map near the information desk that invites patrons to pinpoint their global hometowns. It’s quite colorful and only took a week to be quite populated!  The Community Study also provides an excellent synopsis of the history and current state of the service area.  And if you haven’t had a chance to listen to The Book Bench, now is a great time to listen to what the Valley View library means to its patrons!

My next stop was a short drive a little bit north to the Skyway library.  Skyway is a cozy building with a courtyard style entrance near the parking area that was busy with patrons coming and going.  The librarian at the desk was kind enough to let me page through the very, very recently completed Community Study!  While visiting Valley View, I (finally) managed to finish Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and at Skyway I had brought my book club reading (a second pass through Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie) so that I could spend time in each library just listening to the sounds of the afternoon!

 

 

Once I finished my reading, I headed back into the sunshine to explore the area a little bit more.  I had originally planned two potential activities: watching planes land at Boeing Field near the Museum of Flight and visiting Kubota Garden. Unfortunately, it took me longer to finish the reading than I had planned, so I had to choose between them.  Since it was a beautiful day, I took the opportunity to enjoy natural beauty over mechanical beauty!. Many, many, many other people had the same idea. . .professional and amateur photographers and artists alike.  A brisk walk through the Garden in the setting sun was a great way to finish the day and be re-invigorated for the evening!