Two free audiobooks every week available starting April 27

Free Summer Listening

Aimed at Teens 13+, SYNC 2017 will give away 32 titles — two paired audiobook downloads a week, starting April 27th and ending August 16th! Check out the complete list of exciting audiobook titles from award-winning authors such as Daniel José Older, M.T. Anderson, Franz Kafka, Ruta Sepetys, and Nikki Grimes. The SYNC program is a project of AudioFile Magazine in partnership with OverDrive and audiobook publishers.

Aimed at teen readers - but open to everyone - all ages.  I read teen books - so can you. And maybe you will discover a whole new genre to read.

Teen readers to text syncya to 25827 to receive text alerts about all the featured titles. Visit audiobooksync.com and sign up for title alerts by email. Be sure to download the OverDrive app in advance of the program.

SYNC Program Questions

For questions about the program, titles, and how to use the toolkit to connect with students, patrons, and other listeners, please contact the SYNC Manager, Michele Cobb, at sync@audiofilemagazine.com.

SYNC • SPREAD THE WORD

       

Creative Aging Friday, April 21 @ 10am

Please review the attached flyer and plan to attend our next monthly meeting, Friday, April 21. It will start at 10am and will go to 12 noon with three different subjects and speakers, room 115.
Come early, socialize and enjoy the refreshments.

The theme of the meeting is knowledge is power.

1. Our first speaker is Karen Rounds, financial advisor. She will address the subject of "basing life on what you can afford".

2. Following this will be a presentation on becoming computer/phone literate by our two computer tutors, Silas Laspada and Dan Jones.
 At the break we will take a tour of the computer lab so all of us can know where to find these brave souls on Thursday mornings and Thursday afternoons.

3. Finally, we have our lead speaker driving down from Santa Fe and representing the ADRC, the Aging and Disability Resource Center run by the State Department  of Aging and Long-Term Services. 

Remember "who you gonna call?" They are the guys and gals and can  answer your questions on aging issues and will work closely with our own local Creative Aging Resource Center.

Thank you for your support and I look forward to seeing you..

Clara Farah, Ph.D.

P.O. Box 737

Alto, NM 88312-0737   

Cell  :  575-973-7835

e-mail: clrfarah@gmail.com

Serenity in Solitude--solo sojourns seeking silent, soulful spaces

(With permission to reprint from the Desert Exposures Publisher’s Notebook of Richard Coltharp)

Serenity in Solitude

Solo sojourns seeking silent, soulful spaces

 “I’m not alone in being alone.”  — The Police, Message in a Bottle, 1979

There is a big difference between solitude and loneliness.

Where loneliness can be painful and heartbreaking, solitude can be renewing and

enlightening.

No matter how much of a people person you are, there can be peace and comfort in your alone time.

Southern New Mexico seems created ideally for optimum solitude. The big skies, the majestic peaks, the forests and deserts each have their way of communicating

awe and humility.

You don’t want to have a candlelight dinner alone, or ride a bicycle built for two by

yourself, but have you ever spent time all by yourself in an empty church?  There can 

be a spiritual healing, regardless of your religious persuasion. If the church is a 

300-plus-year-old adobe sanctuary, such as the San Miguel Mission in Socorro, 

even better.

Outdoor activities require a measure of caution if you’re going it alone, but the

rewards routinely outweigh any risk.   When visiting the Gila Cliff Dwellings by

yourself, you can sense a communion with the  peoples who inhabited them

so long ago. 

One autumn, I hiked a mile or so into White Sounds National Monument and 

encountered a cottonwood tree with its leaves changing from green  to gold. 

Its trunk, and probably half its height, were buried in a white gypsum dune.

As I walked among the top 15-20 feet of this beautiful tree, I realized its leaves were

shading me from a hot afternoon sun. Why not take a nap? So I lay down and enjoyed

the quiet, with the gypsum sucking out all of the stress.

Hiking in the Lincoln National Forest, traipsing across the Sacramento Mountains, 

you can receive mixed signals. Particularly in the summer, when the aspens are full,

the wind can blow in such a way the leaves mimic exactly the sound of ocean waves.

It’s a great sensation with or without company, but alone, it feels like the wind and

waves envelop and surround your soul.

Riding a bicycle, whether mountain biking or on the road, can be a cathartic individual 

exercise, especially with our diverse scenery.

And while it distances you further from nature’s realm, there’s nothing like a good solo 

drive to calm your nerves and give you some think time.  My friend and former colleague

Darrell Pehr, who used to commute from Artesia to Alamogordo, and now commutes

from Alamogordo to Las Cruces, often found striking images in rock and mountain

formations,  the way many people look for them in the clouds. The Land of

Enchantment, of course,  is also great for finding cloud creatures, too.

Our part of the world blessed with small towns and friendly communities, as well as
 lots of great “third places.”  If your first place of comfort is your home, and your 

second place is where you work, third places are where you feel home away from 

home, those comfortable spots where “everybody knows your name,” and you’re
 equally at peace by yourself or in a group.

Places like COAS Books in Las Cruces, Little Toad Creek Brewery in Silver City, Plateau

Espresso  coffee shop in Alamogordo, or any of our local libraries can be great third

places. You may show up alone, but unless you want to, you won’t be by yourself

very long.

Richard Coltharp is publisher of Desert Exposure and the Las Cruces Bulletin. 

He can eat a green chile cheeseburger all by himself. 

He can be reached at richard@lascrucesbulletin.com.

Let's be busy bees & make a beehive on Sunday - April 23 @ 2pm

Mason bees are one of nature's great pollinators.  These bees do not produce honey.  Instead, the females gather pollen for their larvae.  To attract these pollinators, on Sunday, April 23 @ 2 pm, we are going to create a special bee hive out of rolled cardboard tubes place in a can.

Supplies will be provide.  Please call ahead of time and sign up for the Mason Beehive class at 575-354-3035. We just want to know how many to expect - but last minute drop-ins won't be turned away!



 Imelda Horne with  Lincoln County Garden Club will be guiding us in this hive construction and telling us about these special bees. Horn has been a Master Gardener for over 10 years. She served as President and other positions in the Lincoln County Garden Club, which is a part of the New Mexico Garden Club, Inc.

After you have made your bee hive, your next step will be to place it near pollen-rich blossoming plants and trees. AND near a place with mud for the bees to use to build cells within their nest.  Mason bees especially like flowers from fruit trees, but will also visit native plants and garden plants. (HINT: CPL Plant Sale is May 6!)

LEARN more about Mason bees as pollinators at:
 http://www.ecolandscaping.org/03/beneficials/attract-mason-bees-no-protective-gear-needed/

More about the Lincoln County Garden Club: The club presently have 35+ members and meet on the third Tuesday of the month at 9:45 in the conference room at 1st Christian Church-1211 Hull Rd. They invite speakers, do tours, and a plant sale in June . Club members plant and upkeep the Ruidoso Public Library front garden,  Lincoln County Medical Hospital atrium, Capitan Public library planter, provide some funding to "Keep Ruidoso Beautiful" and plant trees on Arbor Day.

At the program we will have refreshments.   Please feel free to bring one of your favorite snacks to share with the other beehive makers.  This will be a fun social Sunday at CPL!

Be sure to stop by library to see new artwork: Deja Vu

Deja Vu art by Marcia Chase

Don't forget this Friday for 1st Friday program at 7pm

CPL's First Friday goes deep

Ruidoso News Report 4:33 p.m. MT April 4, 2017

(Photo: Courtesy from Thompson's website: parkrangerdoug.com.)

At Capitan Public Library's First Friday program on April 7, Doug Thompson relates some of his many stories of being a park ranger for the past 33 years.

He will discuss his book, “Underground Ranger: Adventures in Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Other Remarkable Places,” published by University of New Mexico Press.

In Underground Ranger, Thompson  passes along the essence of what he learned on his job at Carlsbad Caverns National Park, much of the time spent underground.

“My six years at Carlsbad Caverns were so extraordinary and exciting that I knew from the very beginning I’d have to write about my experiences.” Thompson said. “As an interpretive ranger who handled guided tours and other programs, I had to learn the story of the caves, from the chemistry of gypsum to the history of cave exploration and the hunting behavior of bats."

Thompson came to Carlsbad Caverns National Park from being the site manager at Gila Cliff  Dwellings National Monument.  But he enjoyed interpretation and felt instead the calling to be a front-line ranger working directly with visitors.  This change in his park ranger career landed him at Carlsbad Caverns.

He will also share with the audience his related adventures exploring the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert while at Carlsbad Caverns.

“I love deserts, all of New Mexico and Arizona,” Thompson said.

Author Doug Thompson will discuss his book, “Underground Ranger: Adventures in Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Other Remarkable Places,” published by University of New Mexico Press. (Photo: Courtesy)

After Carlsbad, Thompson worked as a front-line interpreter at Big Bend National Park.  He retired after 33 years in the park service to Capitan.  He remains an active caver and hiker. Check out his website for more details at parkrangerdoug.com.

Refreshments will be served after the presentation.

For more information call Capitan Public Library at 575-354-3035.  The library is located at 101 E. 2nd Street, Capitan, NM.  Library hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Thursday; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday and Saturday and is closed Sunday and Monday. Visit online at capitanlibrary.org or capitanlibrary.blogspot.com.

Artist Marcia Chase now showing at CPL April - June

"Gratitude" The meaning of the Raven signifies that danger has passed and good luck will follow. Tree symbolizes strong roots, growth and stability and water brings in the element of cleansing purity and reflection.

Marcia Chase has been interested in photography for 25 years. "One of my favorite ways to spend the day is out in nature with my camera. If I am creating something, anything at all, then I am happy. I have channeled that creativity into painting and I love to try new things. I paint in watercolor, acrylic, encaustic and oil."

(FYI- Encaustic painting, also known as hot wax painting, involves using heated beeswax to which colored pigments are added. The liquid or paste is then applied to a surface.)

Marcia has original paintings, watercolor painting as Giclee prints and greeting cards, and photographs available.  Go to the imagekind link in the blog section of her website at: www.dejavubymarciachase.com

Moving to Capitan from Colorado a year ago, Marcia has found the change of scenery refreshing and is happy there is not much snow.  At the end of 2016, she launched into doing craft fairs to sell her Deja Vu artwork.

"Eternal Falls" In Feng Shui, water is related to money and abundance. Images of waterfalls can helps us connect with and increase the flow of universal abundance.

The flower symbolism of "Iris" is faith, wisdom, friendship, hope and promise in love. 

"Harmony" Feng shui means “wind and water" the elemental forces which shape the landscape. The harmony of the natural world is a model for dealing with reality.

$5 tickets for Spencer Theater kids' shows available

From: Spencer Theater Box Office <boxoffice@spencertheater.com>
Date: Thu, Mar 30, 2017 at 3:48 PM
Subject: Spencer Theater 2017 Class Acts ticket availability

Spencer Theater currently have availability in these final performances for the Class Act 2017 season for $5.00 tickets.  Home schooled children and adults are welcomed:

               Johnny Peers & the Muttville Comix 12:30pm Tuesday, April 4, 2017.  (40 seats available)

               Ballet Folklorico 10:30AM Tuesday, May 9, 2017. (40 seats available)

               Ballet Folklorico 12:30PM Tuesday, May 9, 2017. (300 seats available)

Martha Heimann Box Office
Spencer Theater for the Performing Arts
108 Spencer Rd, Airport Highway 220
Alto, NM 88312-9559
Direct 575-336-4800
Fax 575-336-0055
Toll Free 888-818-7872

a 501 (c)(3) non-profit public charity organization
www.spencertheater.com

April means Amnesty

Amnesty of library fines ALWAYS happens in April.  The library's main purpose for this is because we just want to see the return of items so others may enjoy the book, CD or DVD.  What do you say?  How about bringing back that overdue item in April and we will waive all your fines & fees.  Sweet.

NO FOOLING - Saturday, April 1st is the awesome "$1 for a bag-of-books sale"

If you don't have books- we do!

AND THEN........
EVERY Saturday in April
 is $1 for a bag of books.

              WOW!

 Saturday library hours: 10 am to 2 pm

Mark your calendar for First Friday on April 7th

Creative Aging - Veteran Information this Friday, March 24

Creative Aging, Inc. is sponsoring a Veterans Forum on Friday 24 March 2017 at ENMU-Ruidoso.

9:00 social hour with treats, come early and enjoy.
10:00 general meeting with Veteran Speakers from Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Roswell and Lincoln County.
11:00 continued discussion in smaller informal groups with opportunities to ask more questions pertinent to each individual's needs.  

We will have representatives from various groups including Congressman Pearce's office, Fort Stanton Burial details, The Choice Card, State benefits, healthcare benefits, Fox Holes for homeless Veterans, Patriot Guard motorcyclists that provide escorts at Veteran funerals, For Veteran's Sake an organization that provides free dogs for PTSD survivors (they train them), also they help those suffering with PTSD without medications, etc.  Please pass this along to those who have served, their spouses, and their friends.

This Friday's meeting will focus on Veteran Issues that particularly effect our Lincoln County Veterans. There are approximately 2,300 Vets living in Lincoln County.

Please remember that a goal of Creative Aging is to ensure that seniors  living in LC are aware of what services are available to them so that they can experience a good quality of life and can continue to live here. Dave Tomlin's recent article on this  Veteran Meeting is also helpful to read in advance about the purpose of this meeting. (Ruidoso News,3.15.17)

Whether you are a veteran or not, please join us to learn more about what our veterans need and how we can become better friends and helpers to them.

Please email or call Clara Farah for further details on specific speakers and subject areas if you would like more information. Barbara Deck and Cecile Kinnan  and I will be on hand to help you navigate this important informational session

Clara Farah, Ph.D.

P.O. Box 737

Alto, NM 88312-0737

On Sunday, March 26 @ 2 pm

Sign up for CPL Beginning Genealogy classes

Since the April 30th Beginning Genealogy workshop got totally booked super fast (before it could be posted ANYWHERE), Kris Shearer has another class lined up.

Sign up for the new workshop on
 Saturday, April 8 at 2:00.pm. 
 Sign up at the library or call in to sign up. Only ten computers, so class limited to ten.

There are some blank tree forms with the sign up sheet for those who would like to get a head start.

Still a couple of weeks left to come to CPL to view " Oodles of Doodles" artwork

Ruidoso resident, Catherine Alred, is the current artist on display at the Capitan Library till end of March.
Catherine has been doodling as far back as she can 

remember. As a child she always was 

coloring and drawing. Recalling one of her

 earliest works,  she described a piece she created 

when she was 10 years old.  “I just decided to try to

 doodle an actual ‘thing’ and spent hours and

 hours drawing a large  abstract bird. It’s very interesting to study it now and realize how much my doodling has evolved over the decades." 

Catherine’s doodles, however, are not quite the kind of doodles one would

expect when observing someone idly drawing. Catherine’s doodles are

very detailed and intricate. She further illustrates by saying, “My doodles are just a result of me taking a pen or pencil for a walk. 

I don’t plan the design; it just evolves.”

People seeing her work for the first time are

 often in disbelief and ask,

 “Did you really do that?”  

The fanciful lines, dots, and curls are executed

 in such  precision that people often wonder if a  computer produced them.

The vast majority of her work is free form. 

“Just doodling in a random,  free form way is my

 favorite way of doodling, but I’ve also doodled 

initials, butterflies, paisleys, initials, birds, etc.” 

Although she always keeps a sketchpad nearby, at times no piece of paper 

is safe from her pen. Her doodling can be found on magazine pages, 

calendars, concert programs, and even grocery lists.  Noting that she 

often cannot restrain herself from picking up a pen and starting a new piece, she added, “Doodling is very relaxing to me. I go into a calm,

 meditative state.”

Doodling is more than just an artistic endeavor. 

“It helps me concentrate.

I’ve always doodled in meetings and lectures. 

Doodling helps me be a good listener.” 

 She noted the findings of a British psychologist: Doodling or scribbling during meetings or 
class can improve content memory by 29%.” 

“That definitely applies to me. Doodles are in the margins 

of practically  every set of class notes I ever took in college. Give me a handout or an 

agenda at a meeting and I will doodle all over it.”

Catherine particularly enjoys sharing her work with others.  "I've incorporated my doodles into all sorts of items: bookmarks, note cards, decoupage boxes, framed pieces, even mugs and coasters," she says.  At her recent class at CPL, she shared her love, enthusiasm and trade secrets for her art with attendees.
   

 Her emphasis on art has always 
been prominent in her positions.
“I found it such a  pleasure to 
  teach the art of doodling to a large
 group of kindergarten children. 
It was amazing to see how young 
children quickly caught on
 and produced amazing drawings.”

(the above article is paraphrased from a 2012 article in the Ruidoso News)

More to know about doodling

The Value of the Doodle

Barbara Lane, Ruidoso News 1:06 p.m. MDT August 5, 2015

Sunni Brown, author of The Doodle Revolution, writes, "Our culture is so intensely focused on verbal communications, that we're almost blinded to the value of doodling. Doodling has a profound impact on the way that we can process information and the way that we can solve problems." Doodling facilitates learning.

An article published in TIME magazine some years ago lauded the value of doodling. It recalled an experiment in which forty individuals were asked to listen to a monologue. The speaker talked about a number of seemingly random things, but included lists of places and names. Half of the study participants were asked to doodle as they listened. The other half simply listened. Afterward, participants were asked to recall the names and places named in the recording. The results? The doodlers remembered almost 30 percent more of the requested information than the non-doodlers did.

Below is a list of Catherine Alred's things to know about doodling.  (Copies available at library while Oodles of Doodles is still on display)

What does YOUR doodling say about you?

Giving thanks for a wonderful donation

 In December, the Community Foundation of Lincoln County awarded CPL $250 for the after-school snack program.  On Sunday before her doodle class, Catherine Alred, representing CFOLC, took the opportunity to have a photo op moment of awarding the check to Debbie Myers, children programs director at CPL.
Thank you, Community Foundation of Lincoln County!

Catherine Alred and Debbie Myers

 The Community Foundation of Lincoln County states:  Our mission is to support, promote and encourage charitable giving that improves the quality of life within our communities.

It is the vision of the Community Foundation of Lincoln County to support efforts which help the citizens of Lincoln County reach their full human potential. The Foundation will recognize its donors through the awarding of grants with the potential to enrich the general quality of life in Lincoln County and make a significant impact on its people.

Funding is primarily for the benefit of Lincoln County. Preference is given to organizations that operate programs targeted for community based, community driven projects.
https://www.cfolc.org/

Fun at Doodle Class

Catherine Alred. Passionate about her art & willing to share all her secrets 

of the craft.

23 people attended the Sunday afternoon class

Catherine made the class fun with door prizes of doodle bookmarks & doodle cards, a guessing game to win candy with Pentel pens (the better to doodle with) and an original mounted doodle.

Ruidoso News article shares library history

Historical Potpourri: Feed an appetite for history at the library

Polly E. Chavez, Guest columnist 8:21 a.m. MT March 8, 2017 Ruidoso News

(Photo: Courtesy/Polly E. Chavez)

Weather kept me away from Marlene Siepel’s program at Capitan Public Library (CPL). Siepel spoke of an idea that grew into a five-year display of historical quilts and into an actual book. I later traveled to Capitan to visit CPL and checked out her book, “Ladies of the Boot Heel – Their Stories with Their Quilts.”
The Hildalgo County Heritage Quilt Show Committee produced the book.
Seipel, now from Alto, was the library director at Lordsburg Hildalgo Library in 2007. She thought that the idea for a quilt show in a library would show women’s contribution to the settling and homesteading of Hildalgo County.

From a few books on a residential porch to a full-service public library today... that is the history of Capitan Public Library.
A dedicated group of volunteers keep this non-profit library active. It has become a vital, growing resource, serving not only Capitan but also many areas of Lincoln County.
In 1996 Judy Newman and a group of people began a mini library on Newman’s front porch at her residence on 2nd Street. In 1998 a building on Lincoln Avenue was turned into a regular library.
CPL acquired the present building in 2000. Built in 1924, it originally served as a Nazarene Church. Prior to CPL use it was a private residence.
Pat Garrett, library director, joined in the library effort in 1998, beginning as a four-hour volunteer and later also serving on the board.
The library is governed by a seven-member board of directors and is staffed entirely by volunteers, who number between 25 and 30 people. The board consists of Bill Jeffery (president), Kris Shearer (secretary), Sadie Mann (treasurer), Ronnie Sanchez, Gene Chewning, Sue Burke and Debbie Myers, who also serves as assistant director.
Stop at the library sometime to register and to get a card. They provide physical or digital access to material. Adult and children readers will enjoy browsing through the large areas of books, magazines, audiobooks and more. They have a discount book area. There are public computers with free Internet, as well as free Wifi. They have a book club, First Friday Lecture Series, an after school program and a summer reading program.
If you are in Capitan after library hours, a book drop for books checked out and due, is located in front of the library. While you are in Capitan visit the Not 2 Shabby Shop, the library’s resale shop across the street from the library, where you will find economic shopping.

Don't forget to take the NM FamilyPass on your next road trip

New Mexico FamilyPass

The New Mexico State Library, in partnership with local public libraries in New Mexico and the museums and historic sites of the Department of Cultural Affairs is excited to offer the New Mexico FamilyPass to library card holders throughout the state.
The FamilyPass provides free admission for up to six people to any of the Department of Cultural Affairs museums and historic sites.  Patrons borrow the pass, which circulates like other library materials. The sites are:

• 7 New Mexico Historic Sites, Statewide
• New Mexico History Museum/Palace of the Governors, Santa Fe
• New Mexico Museum of Art, Santa Fe
• Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe
• Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, Santa Fe
• New Mexico Museum of Space History, Alamogordo
• New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque
• National Hispanic Cultural Center, Albuquerque
• New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum, Las Cruces

How to get and use the FamilyPass

• Passes are available at any of the 120+ public libraries and their branches in New Mexico.   
• The FamilyPass will circulate to library cardholders in good standing with the library.
• Each pass will admit up to six people.
• Passes may be used by community groups such as senior centers, after school clubs, summer camps, arts councils, and more!

People came to learn about the Orphan Train and were enlightened & entertained!

Class for Ruidoso Library FREE eBook & eAudiobook borrowing

Overdrive 101 for all your eBook & eAudiobook borrowing

                                 Come to the Ruidoso Public Library on Friday March 31st at 1:30 pm for Overdrive 101!  Bring your e-readers and learn to navigate the Overdrive "New Mexico Library to Go" Website!

 ANYONE can go to Ruidoso Library, to request a library card and then be able to check out eBooks & eAudiobooks. Just be sure you take the necessary items to get a card. Visit the Ruidoso Public Library and have with you a photo ID and a piece of information that contains your physical address (insurance bill/card, utility bill, vehicle registration, etc).  You will receive a patron card from the Ruidoso Public Library, and, when you give them a pin number, you will be able to download your book selections online – no need to physically visit the library anytime thereafter.

Riders of the Orphan Train - reminder