Danbury Library Blog

Researched that song we sing and mangle every New Year's Eve--because no one knows the words. Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote Auld Lang Syne (translation "long ago") in 1788. Bandleader Guy Lombardo made it a New Year's Eve tradition beginning in 1929 on radio and later on television. Impress friends and family by knowing the words:

SHOULD auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to min'?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And days o' lang syne?

We twa hae rin about the braes,
And pu'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd monie a weary fit
Sin' auld lang syne.

We twa hae paidl't i' the burn,
Frae mornin' sun till dine; 10
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.

And here 's a hand, my trusty fiere,
And gie's a hand o' thine;
And we'll tak a right guid-willie waught
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll be your pint-stowp,
And surely I'll be mine;
And we'll tak a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne! 20

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne.

GLOSS: gowans] daisies. fit] foot. dine] dinner-time. fiere] partner. guid-willie waught] friendly draught.

Posted by Mary at 08:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Many people associate model trains with Christmas. A set of model trains running around the Christmas tree is a cherished Christmas memory for many of us. Connecticut has played a large part in the history of model railroading. The Merriam Manufacturing Company of Durham, CT was one of the first to manufacture painted tin trains around the 1830s. George Brown of Forrestville, CT introduced the clockwork mechanism to American toy trains in 1856. Edward Riley Ives (a distant cousin of Danbury's composer, Charles Ives) founded the Ives Manufacuring Company in Plymouth, CT (it later moved to Bridgeport). The Ives Manufacturing Co. was the premier toy train manufacturer in the early 20th Century with its brilliant marketing campaign using the "Ives Railway Line" and telling its young customers that the success of their railroad depended on their management skills. Their slogan "Ives Toys Make Happy Boys" was a key component of their success. And don't forget to visit the Danbury Railway Museum.

Posted by John O'Donnell at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Since I'm old enough to remember when "Merry Christmas" was the common greeting of the season, before the supposedly more politically correct and generic "happy holidays" became the common phrase, I'm going to extend a wish for a Merry Christmas to one and all today. (People who didn't celebrate Christmas would generally just tell me that fact and wish me a good one anyway, and even non-Christians still frequently celebrate the secular aspects of the holiday.) You can, of course, choose your favorite from the following list if you'd rather: Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy New Year, Bah humbug! I certainly hope no one chooses the last item and that everyone at least chooses the next-to-last. In any case, everyone here at the Danbury Library hopes you have a wonderful holiday season. May it be filled with health, happiness, hope and good cheer!

Posted by Mark at 11:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

'Tis the season! The holidays are upon us once more. It's a time for gatherings, parties and celebrations. It's a perfect time to share joy, cheer, presents, and, let us not forget, germs. With the cold, wintery season upon us, and stores, homes and libraries filled with more people, it's easy to spread - and catch - colds, viruses and germs. I myself had a run of conjunctivitis this week. It has since subsided, although I had hoped I'd be able to spread my own personal style of holiday cheer to my friends and family. Alas, perhaps next year. Here's just a couple of tips on how you can protect yourself from germs, and to ensure that you have a very happy, and healthy, holiday season and new year:

• Carry around a small bottle of hand sanitizer. Use it liberally!
• Use anti-bacterial wipes and clean your keys, desk, computer keyboard, door handles.
• Bleach and vinegar are potent germ killers - use cleansers with one of these ingredients, or adding a small amount to a spray bottle filled with water can do the job as well.
• Wash your hands with warm soap and water early and often, for 15 seconds.

Click here for some more tips and tricks on staying healthy, from The Nurses' Notebook.

Posted by Merry at 04:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We all think we're better drivers than we are--so points out author Tom Vanderbilt in Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do. The increasing narcissism of the average driver and the anonymity of driving are much more responsible for accidents than bad roads, poor signage. In other words, cars don't cause accidents, people do.

Traffic engineers around the world work hard to come up with plans to keep that daily commute moving. Something as simple as keeping the highways free of roadside debris --an abandoned couch alongside the highway will slow traffic to a crawl--folks will gawk at anything.

Hans Monderman of the Netherlands, a traffic engineer famous for his innovative ideas, has been instrumental in getting rid of traffic signs which he views as superfluous. In one Dutch town, Monderman's solution to congestion was to get rid of the traffic lights. It works, Monderman says, because people now have to pay attention--another important aspect of driving.

Read this book--you'll become a better driver and you will be amused.

Posted by Mary at 01:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Charles D. Parks was born on August 15, 1869 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He was orphaned in 1872 and sent to live with relatives in Danbury. At the age of 9 (1878) he was sent as an indentured servant to work on a farm in Iowa. He returned to Danbury in 1888 and in 1889 married Eleanor Parks. He went into business immediately and was a hard worker with superior business skills. He was so successful that he was able to purchase several other businesses which he made even more successful. One of his companies was the American Hatters & Furriers Corp. which converted rabbit skins into filler for hats. He also went into the real estate business and was as successful in that venture as well. One of his purchases was the Tarrywile Mansion (in 1910) which he proceeded to make an extremely profitable venture of its farm. He died on September 14, 1929 and was lauded as one of the pillars of the Danbury business community.

Posted by John O'Donnell at 03:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It was 28 years ago yesterday, on December 8, 1980, that John Lennon , former Beatle, solo artist, writer and political activist, was killed by Mark David Chapman, a crazed fan, outside the Dakota apartment building in New York City. In October, a new, expansive (864 pages) biography by Philip Norman, John Lennon: The Life, was added to the library's collection. Since I own more than 160 books on the Beatles, my test of a new Beatles book is whether I learn anything new by reading it. Norman's book passed that test, and he narrates John's Liverpool childhood in greater detail than any other book I've read. He also covers the familiar story of the Beatles' rise to fame, their break-up and John's solo career in detail. A nice touch is the book's afterward, a rare interview with Sean Lennon, John and second wife Yoko Ono's son. One final test of a good Beatles book is whether it makes me want to listen to their music, and in this case I grabbed my Lennon CD box set as soon as I finished it.

Posted by Mark at 01:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The holiday season is upon us once more. Even though we're all watching our wallets more closely this year, you can still have a great holiday season for less.

For some cheap and fun entertaining ideas, visit this suggested list from Kiplinger's, with some great get-together ideas that includes pot luck, open house, and more.

For hands-on, crafty, do-it-yourself decorating ideas for Christmas, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah, try HGTV's decorating guide.

Finally, it's the season for giving - and giving doesn't have to be expensive. Here's a list of 63 Gift Ideas for $10. Also, don't forget, this Saturday is our "Nearly New" Holiday Book Sale at the library - do some gift shopping and pick up some great books, videos and CDs for $5 or less!

Happy Holidays!

Posted by Merry at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Good news! You don't have to read all 20 volumes of the OED (Oxford English Dictionary). Ammon Shea has done this and written a little gem: Reading the OED which he calls the "Cliffs Notes" for the OED.

Often hilarious, always interesting --for example the word postvide means to plan for an event after it has occurred. Say what? Sounds like something only politicians can pull off.

FYI obligurate means to spend time feasting and happify, no surprise, means to make happy. Be careful not to 'fornale' this holiday season--"spending one's money before it has been earned" is never a good strategy.

Posted by Mary at 01:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)