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The INDEPENDENT, January 18, 2012
Between the Bookends
by Nancy Burch, Librarian
Vernonia Public Library
A Japanese proverb
quoted in Country Extra
this month says, “One
kind word can warm
three winter months.”
This seems so appropri-
ate as we experience the
current wintry weather,
but the library also has
some activities and ma-
terials that might be of help in lifting your spirits
through these somewhat dreary months.
Columbia County libraries recognize that pa-
trons might need a “pick me up” at this time of
year and have joined in offering the first annual
“Columbia County Reads”. A Western theme
was chosen with activities relevant to this topic
taking place during the months of January and
February. Along with encouraging county resi-
dents to read the chosen books (Hearts of Hors-
es by Molly Gloss, The Devil’s Paintbox by Vic-
toria McKernan, and The Captain’s Dog by
Roland Smith), activities such as singalongs,
leather carving, an antique quilt show, and west-
ern movies will be offered at the various li-
braries. The culmination of this year’s events in
Vernonia will take place February 27, with au-
thor Molly Gloss visiting with community mem-
bers to discuss her book, Hearts of Horses.
It’s quite exciting to hear that at least one
class in Washington Grade School will be read-
ing The Captain’s Dog as a novel study, and that
a couple of other teachers are planning to read
the book aloud to their classes. It’s also exciting
to know that county libraries, schools, and VPC
will be cooperating to make these events suc-
cessful. Brochures listing all of these county-
wide events are now available in the library as
well as copies of the selected books.
Join your friends and neighbors in Columbia
County as they enjoy these books and events.
After reading the books, visit the online “Our
Community Reads” blogs to join discussions of
the books at http://thedevilspaintboxdiscussi
on.blogspotcom/ and http://theheartsofhorses
discussion.blogspot.com/
To warm your stomach, be sure and check
out current magazines for hearty winter meals
including tangy bean soup, wintertime braised
beef stew, and curried sweet potato soup, in cur-
rent issues of Family Circle and Country Extra
magazines. Cozy up to a glowing fire with a light
mystery such as Maggie Sefton’s A Killer Stitch,
Spencer Quinn’s Thereby Hangs a Tail, or Josie
Kilpack’s Lemon Tart. If you are looking for a
touch of inspiration, the Chicken Soup books
might be worth re-reading. How about Huck, a
remarkable true story of how one lost puppy
taught a family and a whole town about hope
and happy endings? Movie lovers looking for in-
spirational stories cannot go wrong with Re-
member the Titans, The Perfect Game, or Rudy.
If you are looking for a place that is warm in
both temperature and in ambiance, the library is
here for you. If you would like to sit and read,
use a computer, visit with other patrons, take
part in a book discussion, or watch a movie with
friends, check out your library and see if that
doesn’t make you feel warmer AND don’t forget
the warmth that a few kind words will bring to
those around you.
January’s events include movie night on
Thursday, January 26 at 6:30, and book discus-
sion on Monday, January 30 at 5:30. The movie
will be a western—chosen by those in atten-
dance and the book to be discussed will be Ad-
dition, by Toni Jordan.
Vernonia Public Library: 701 Weed Avenue
Hours: Mon., Wed., Fri. 10 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Tues., Thu. 1:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Sat. 10 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Preschool Story Time: Mondays, 10:30 a.m
when school is in session.
Phone: 503-429-1818
Multi-tasking can be dangerous
503-901-1705
Older adults may put them-
selves at risk by talking on cell
phones while crossing the
street, researchers report in a
new study. They found that
adults aged 59 to 81 took sig-
nificantly longer than college
students to cross a simulated
street while talking on a mobile
phone, and their heightened
cautiousness in initiating cross-
ing did nothing to improve their
safety. Older adults on cell
phones also were more likely to
fail to cross in the time allotted
for the task.
In the study, 18 undergradu-
ate students (aged 18 to 26
years) and 18 older adults
crossed simulated streets of
varying difficulty while either
undistracted, listening to music
or conversing on a hands-free
cell phone. The older adults
were significantly impaired on
the most challenging street-
crossing tasks while also en-
gaged in a second activity.
They showed the most pro-
nounced impairment during cell
phone conversations.
The young adults showed
no impairment on dual-task
performance. It should be not-
ed that we have previously
found that younger adults show
similar performance decre-
ments, but under much more
challenging crossing condi-
tions.
The current findings suggest
that while all pedestrians
should exercise caution when
attempting to cross a street
while conversing on a cell
phone, older adults should be
particularly careful.
Source: Mark Neider, University of
Illinois, Psychology and Aging
Five Wildlife Areas now
require a parking permit
As of Jan. 1, anglers, wildlife
viewers and others headed for
any of five ODFW Wildlife Ar-
eas must have a parking permit
displayed on their vehicle’s
dashboard. Daily permits cost
$7 and annual permits are $22.
They may be purchased online,
at one of the ODFW offices that
sells licenses, or at a local li-
cense sales agent. Wildlife Ar-
eas in the parking permit pro-
gram are: Denman, Central
Point; E.E. Wilson, Monmouth;
Ladd Marsh, La Grande; Sum-
mer Lake, Summer Lake;
Sauvie Island, Portland. Park-
ing permits cannot be pur-
chased at Wildlife Areas.
Parking permits are trans-
ferrable between cars, but
each vehicle must have a per-
mit while parked at the wildlife
area.
A free Parking Permit will be
included with an annual Ore-
gon hunting license; combina-
tion fishing and hunting license;
and Sports Pac. This is be-
cause operation and mainte-
nance of ODFW wildlife areas
are funded primarily by
hunters, through federal excise
taxes on sporting arms and
ammunition, and hunting li-
cense fees.
Revenue from the Parking
Permit program will be used to
improve habitat and infrastruc-
ture and to enhance wildlife
viewing opportunities at wildlife
areas.
For more information visit
ODFW’s website, http://www.
d f w. s t a t e . o r. u s / o n l i n e _ l i
cense_sales/parking.asp .
Columbia County
Mental Health
Domestic Abuse
800-294-5211
-----------------
Suicide Hotline
1-800-
784-2433
or
503-397-6161
1-800-273-
TALK(8255)
Hotline
or
866-397-6161
-----------------
Military Helpline
888-HLP-4-VET
(888-457-4838)