I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. Groucho Marx
The Water Bar & Public Studio celebrates the reopening of their great gathering place Friday, January 26, with a Winter Social and Exhibition Party. Theme of the evening, marking the Water Bar’s first exhibition, is River Relationships: Portraits of a River and Its People. It’s 6:00-9:00 PM at the Water Bar, 2518 Central Avenue NE. Details here: https://www.water-bar.org/events/2018/1/26/winter-social.
The Super Bowl inspires different strokes for different folks. Take a Knee Nation tackles themes of “sports, social justice, labor and race” at the Take a Knee Nation conference set for February 3-4. Learn more about the origins of the event here: https://www.thenation.com/article/colin-kaepernick-was-mocked-and-threatened-for-taking-a-knee-hes-also-winning/ The East Side Freedom Library offers a preliminary kickoff to the conference with a free and open discussion on Wednesday, January 24 – details here: https://www.thenation.com/article/colin-kaepernick-was-mocked-and-threatened-for-taking-a-knee-hes-also-winning/
Also opening this weekend at the ESFL is Nidoto Nai Yoni, John Matsunaga’s exhibit of photographs from the remains of WWII: Forgetting and Remembering the Wartime Incarceration of Japanese Americans. The project, supported by the Minnesota Japanese American Citizens League and the Council on American Islamic Relations-Minnesota, portrays the experiences of immigrants confined in camps in Thailand, Kenya, Laos and other sites. The exhibit opens Friday, January 26, 6:30 PM. On Saturday, February 17, 1:00 PM there will be a discussion of the roles of artists as observers and resisters. http://eastsidefreedomlibrary.org/events/representing-and-resisting-historical-injustices-through-art/
MN Writes MN Reads is a digital age program offered by Minnesota libraries. It’s for writers interested in easy-to-use, free resources for publishing and sharing e-books, and for readers interested in reading e-books by local writers. Learn more at https://www.mnwritesmnreads.org/ or at your local public library.
Mizna is meeting the challenge of anti-Muslim, anti-Arab and anti-immigrant sentiments by taking the renowned Arab Film Festival on tour. Mizna will tour independent Arab cinema to six Minnesota college campuses and their neighbors. Campuses include Macalester, Hamline, St. Catherine’s, Concordia (TC’s), Metro State and St Benedict’/St. John’s. The tour begins this week and continue through April. Details here: http://mizna.org/articles/events/183.shtml
You might also want to check out yet another timely event at the ESFL here: http://eastsidefreedomlibrary.org/events/mooz-lum-black-history-month-film-screening-discussion/
Poken Sword offers a unique and “luminous evening dedicated to the love of language” on the regular fourth Friday evening of the month, i.e.7:00 PM on January 26 at 2001: A Space, 2001 5th Street NE in Minneapolis. Local emerging and established writers will read on works related to this month’s theme, “torment.” The evening will begin with bluegrass ensemble Pants on a Chair and their songs of heartache and murder: https://www.pokensword.com
The Minnesota Independent Scholars Forum takes a look at an earlier time when the press was cast as the “enemy of the people.” Independent scholar Beth Johanneck will speak about a time in the 1930’s when the Minneapolis underworld was ruled by not-so-Minnesota-Nice gangs that failed to appreciate journalists’ efforts to clean up the city. The MISF meeting, open to all, is at 9:30, speaker at 10:00, at the Washburn Library, 5244 Lyndale Ave S, Minneapolis. http://www.mnindependentscholars.org/node/60
The Minnesota Genealogical Society, and several of its affiliates, have moved from their South St. Paul site to Mendota Heights. New address: 1385 Mendota Heights Road, Mendota Heights, MN. As more MGS library and other resources come online MGS can offer ready access to the unique resources of a host of organizations — here’s a good starting point: https://mngs.org/cpage.php?pt=25
In case you missed the headlines, be sure to check out the new documentary, premiered at Sundance, celebrating the life and times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. “RBG” will restore your faith in the rule of law and the wisdom of this stellar jurist. Check it out here: http://ew.com/movies/2018/01/22/sundance-ruth-bader-ginsburg-rbg-documentary-premiere/. More about the filmmakers here:https://www.democracynow.org/2018/1/22/rbg_new_documentary_celebrates_life_of and a fun SNL spoof on RBG’s not retiring here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDXxsRB4s7Y&et=&bu=&cn=&src=&pt=
Whistling Shade, the literary journal and small press, has issued a fun call for submissions for their Spring/Summer issue. They’re looking for poetry, stories, essays, whatever the format on the topic “Food and Drink”. Sounds like a creative way to spend a few snowbound evenings – and to justify some good eats. http://www.whistlingshade.com/submissions.html
Fun read for a winter’s eve: Unique libraries share information about their “oldest holdings.” https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/oldest-library-books-small-specific-libraries-manuscripts
Should you prefer maps you might want to explore the Civil War Maps series recently digitized and available online from the National Archives. https://unwritten-record.blogs.archives.gov/2017/10/17/rg-109-confederate-maps-series-now-digitized-and-available-online/
Winter in Minneapolis brings out the best in Northeasters – The next Winter Market at the NE Farmers Market is Sunday, February 18, 10 AM-2 PM. Chowgirls Killer Catering will be there with tacos: scrambled eggs, carnitas or mole seitan, white rice and black beans with cilantro and lime spices. DJ theme of the February Market is funk/soul/disco/blues! http://www.facebook.com/NortheastFarmersMarket.
Does The Post (the movie) leave you craving more movies about journalism? Ever aware of readers’ needs the (real) Washington Post has published a list of the ten best movies about journalism – complete with reviews by noted journalists. Seems like another winter project for an enterprising library or other seeker of truth organization. http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/style/2017/12/14/the-10-best-journalism-movies/?utm_term=.92733ffdd1f0
The Blue Ox Review (I love the name!) is a new blog, curated by Lisa Von Drasek, Curator of the Kerlan Collection at the University of Minnesota – who explains the title of her blog as “a nod to independence.” Lisa, a veteran reviewer, is somehow finding time – and “itch – to share her reviewing skills on her own blog: https://www.continuum.umn.edu/kerlan/
The University of Minnesota-Duluth Kathryn A. Martin Library and Friends of the Duluth Public Library are now accepting nominations for the Thirtieth Annual Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards. The awards ceremony is set for May 24 –Deadline for entries is soon – February 1! Find all of the details about NEMBA here: https://lib.d.umn.du/about/nemba.
Conversation with Books is a tradition at St. Catherine University. Professors and avid reader graduates will discuss the selected books on Saturday, February 2, 1:00 pm at Coeur de Catherine center on campus. Details, including the list of books to be discussed, are online at https://www.stkate.edu/news-and-events/events/conversation-with-books-2018
First Fridays sponsored by the U of M Archives and Special Collections continues in the new year. First Fridays are free and open to the public; light refreshments served at 11 with presentations beginning at Noon. All are in the Elmer L. Andersen Library. For a full schedule of winter/spring 2018 offerings click here: https://www.continuum.umn.edu/event/first-fridays-february-2018/
CraftBOWL is another timely winter event sponsored by the American Swedish Institute. Focus of CraftBOWL is “The Handmade” – a broad look at what “handmade” means in traditional and contemporary, local and global terms. It features the work by three internationally acclaimed craft artists from Sweden: Jogge Sundqvist (wood), Ingegard Raman (ceramics) and Bertil Vallien (glass). https://www.asimn.org/about-us/press-room/craftbowl-exhibition-launches-american-swedish-institutes-2018-year-handmade
Club Book announces the line-up for the Winter/Spring 2018 season. Writers on this winter/spring roster include Omar El Akkad, Peter Geye, William Kent Krueger, Laura Lippman, Ariel Lawhon, Anita Shreve, Patricia Hampl, Emily Fridlund, and Samantha Irby. Fortunately for the homebound and many others Club Book extends the reach of the writers by podcasting the discussions soon after the presentations. The series is funded by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. Events are free and open to the public. Details about writers and their books, dates, locations and more about Club Book here: http://clubbook.org
The Friends of the St Paul Public Library is the monthly sponsor of Books & Bars, a long-running series of book discussions moderated by Jeff Kamin every Tuesday of the month. The February 6 book discussion is on Yaa Gyasi’s novel Homecoming. It’s at the Amsterdam Bar & Hall, 5:00 for happy hour social, discussion at 6:15. No registration required. Enjoy Jeff Kamin’s description of the Why of Books & Bars here: https://thefriends.org/2017/06/28/jeff-kamin-on-books-bars-reading-and-why-libraries-are-better-than-netflix/
So much to do, so little time.
Poking Around with Mary 