Lunch in a Foreign Language adds Russian and Chinese

Lunch in a Foreign Language at the Library

We've added two new languages on Monday to this very popular daily program! On Mondays, we will open the Hayes Room to those wanting to practice Chinese and Russian. If you'd like brush up on your foreign language skills in these or other languages, come to the Kellogg-Hubbard Library with a bag lunch and a dictionary. We open the Hayes Room to a different language group each day, from 12 noon to 1 p.m. Tell your friends!
Mondays : New! Russian and Chinese
Tuesdays: Italian
Wednesdays: Spanish
Thursdays: French
Fridays: German

Food in Rural China

FIRST WEDNESDAYS PROGRAMS
FEBRUARY 6, 2008 at 7pm ~ The Culture of Food in Rural China. Drawing on her own fieldwork, Middlebury College Professor Ellen Oxfeld explores the social and cultural importance of local foodways in rural China. Despite the fact that globalization has brought "fast food" and other western food habits to urban China, local foodways still flourish in rural China. Food in rural China is used not only for nourishment, but also to create and sustain social relations, and as a token laden with symbolic meanings.
A Single Pebble of Burlington is a sponsor of this program. Chef Steve Bogart will be in the library, too!
Dr. Oxfeld is a Professor of Anthropology at Middlebury College. She is a graduate of Williams College and holds a Master’s Degree and a Ph.D. from Harvard University.
Dr. Oxfeld recently returned from a sabbatical year in rural China.
First Wednesdays is a program of the Vermont Humanities Council hosted by the Kellogg-Hubbard Library.

Philip Baruth

Author Philip Baruth attended legislative day for Vermont's public libraries. His remarks can be found on his blog, or you can listen to them at VPR. An excerpt:

When I was a kid, there was always one job that had to be done before you could string the lights on the Christmas tree: you had to check every single bulb individually because if one was bad, the circuit wouldn't close, and the whole string would remain dark. It was a hassle but it prevented an even worse hassle — getting the lights all wound into the evergreen branches, plugging it in, and then having no idea which one of a hundred bulbs needed to be pulled.

I applaud the Legislature's attempts to wire up the state of Vermont, and it's going to be a beautiful thing when the job is done. For God's sake, though, don't skimp on the State's libraries as you do so, because they are already set-up institutionally to fill the digital gap; they're in place, they've rethought their mission, and they're performing the job admirably as we speak. But unless we support them financially in that role, this vast string of fiber-optic Christmas lights we're working on isn't going anywhere, not really, not in any ethical or moral sense. In that sense, the system will remain dark until everyone has access to the light.

And we're not here today to kid ourselves. Bringing the light to those without it costs money: 1.6 million dollars, and an absolutely spectacular bargain at that price.

State aid news article

The Times Argus ran a front-page article on state aid for libraries on Saturday January 12.

Legislative Day for Vermont’s Public Libraries

Friday January 18, 2008, 8:30 am – 11:30 am

Statehouse in Montpelier

Come to the Statehouse on January 18th for an important kick-off to our state funding initiative! We will meet in the Card Room, on the second floor. (The Card "Room" is really the hallway before you enter the cafeteria.)

Arrange to meet with your lawmakers and ask them to support state funding for public libraries and the statute that enhances library patron confidentiality. The best way to do this is to contact your lawmakers in advance and set up a time to meet them in the cafeteria. The VLA government relations committee has prepared a three-page case statement for state aid. Copies will be available on January 18; e-mail Martin Hahn (see below) if you would like a copy in advance. Follow this link to obtain contact information for your senators and representatives: http://www.leg.state.vt.us/legdir/legdir2.htm.

Bring as many people as possible – patrons, trustees, friends, and supporters.

Schedule

8:30 – 10:30 Meet with your legislators.

8:30 – 11:30 Come to the card room and distribute flyers and stickers. Meet and greet legislators.

10:30-11:00 Brief remarks, card room.

Wear Red!

Parking – Take exit 8 from I89; take second left to Green Mountain Drive. A shuttle runs frequently to the statehouse from behind the Department of Labor building. Follow this link for map: http://www.leg.state.vt.us/sthouse/locate4.htm.

See you on January 18^th!

For more information, contact either of the co-chairs of VLA's government relations committee:

Martin Hahn, mhahn[at]kellogghubbard.org

Lisa von Kann, lvkann[at]stjathenaeum.org