The Mission Branch's Cinco de Mayo and Open House Event

Once again a great time was had at our annual Cinco de Mayo and Open House celebration on Saturday, May 7. If you missed it, well, our sympathies to you ;) But here are some photos from the event to cheer you up...

Local youth jazz band Futuro Picante playing Latin rhythms old and new...


Traditional Mayan embroidery demonstration and workshop...


Francisco Herrera playing songs and rhymes for all ages...

Manga Drawing Workshop!

Become a manga artist!! Professional teaching artist Karen Luk will help you get there in this FREE drawing class.

For anyone ages 12-18 who loves manga and anime!

Sunday, May 15th, 2-3:30p.m.

For more information contact Nicole at (415) 355-5738 or ntermini@sfpl.org

What is a Poet Laureate?

Each year, when National Poetry Month arrives, we see news about the Poets Laureate of California and San Francisco. The appointing of a laureate is a tradition that many people have heard of, but perhaps you're interested in how it all started?

The concept of a Poet Laureate originated in England in the 1600s. The laureate description refers to the ancient Greek tradition of placing a laurel wreath or crown as recognition for significant achievements, from military accomplishments to literary triumphs.

Early lawmakers in California recognized the importance of a statewide Poet Laureate at the beginning of the twentieth century. Ina Donna Coolbrith was appointed the first honorary California Poet Laureate by Governor Hiram Johnson in 1915 and served until her death in 1928.

The position was an honorary lifetime appointment until 2001, when it was made into an official government appointment. The California Arts Council is designated to recommend individuals to the Governor for the position, the governor chooses the Poet Laureate, and Senate approves the appointment. The state Poet Laureate serves a two-year term and is limited to two terms. Quincy T. Troupe was appointed California's first official Poet Laureate in 2002. The current appointee is Carol Muskie Dukes who will serve until 2012. Many California poets have received notable honors including such awards as the Nobel Prize, the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize. A few have served as United States' Poet Laureate, like Robert Haas, a San Francisco native. Which leads us now, of course, to the Poet Laureate of San Francisco...

The San Francisco program was initiated by former Mayor of San Francisco Willie Brown. He was on a visit to Seoul, Korea, when he gave the surprise announcement that he would like San Francisco to have a poet laureate. He stated: "More than any historical facts or empirical data, literature is where we truly gain an understanding of other human beings."

Lawrence Ferlinghetti was San Francisco’s first Poet Laureate (1998-2000). He was chosen by a committee including notable authors, teachers, a representive from the Mayor's office and the City Librarian. Many think of Ferlinghetti as one of the fathers of modern poetry in the city. During his tenure he wrote a newspaper column, Poetry as News, in the San Francisco Chronicle. As publisher of City Lights Books he initiated a series of commemorative books of poems by successive SF Poets Laureate including Janice Mirikitani, devorah major, and Jack Hirschman.

The current Poet Laureate of San Francisco, Diane di Prima, was appointed in 2009, by former Mayor Gavin Newsom and City Librarian Luis Herrera. Ms. Di Prima has done a variety of programs with city youth and the public library. Her book, Recollections of My Life as a Woman: the New York Years: a Memoir, was the Jan. 2010 selection of San Francisco's Bi-monthly Book Club On the Same Page. Her works (and the efforts of all the city's laureates) embody the spirit that Mayor Brown was envisioning -- they aim to "broaden the world's appreciation of literature and its crucial function in society."

Notes:
Historical information located at the California Arts Council website: California Poet Laureate http://www.cac.ca.gov/poetlaureate/main.php

"Brown Wants Poet Laureate For S.F.'s Soul / Surprise announcement at University of Seoul," October 25, 1997By Edward Epstein, Chronicle Staff Writer http://articles.sfgate.com/1997-10-25/news/17759561_1_poet-laureate-lawrence-ferlinghetti-unofficial-poet

Press release: "Mayor Newsom Names Diane Di Prima as 5th Poet Laureate."
http://sfmayor.org/ftp/archive/209.126.225.7/archives/PressRoom_NewsReleases_2009_104403/index.html

Check the SFPL calendar for poetry events year 'round: http://sfpl.org/index.php?pg=1006262301

The Friends of the San Franciso Public Library hosts a weekly series at the Readers Cafe: http://www.readerscafe.org/thursdays-at-readers

Origami-O-Rama! Monday, April 11, from 4-6pm

Wanna pick up a new skill and have tons of fun in the process? Join us in this hands-on workshop and learn how to fold paper into just about anything, including boxes, decorations, you name it! Celebrate spring with Origami! Ages 12-18 Monday, April 11 from 4-6pm For more information contact Nicole at (415) 355-5738 or ntermini@sfpl.org

Staff recommended reading: Indian Givers: how the Indians of the Americas transformed the world

Here the Western Hemisphere natives, usually treated as a footnote to world history, take center stage as anthropologist Jack Weatherford draws connections showing how nation-making and -breaking shifts in worldwide patterns of wealth, power, trade, population, health, and thought resulted from the gifts or theft of American indigenous knowledge, resources, and labor. Minerals; foods; medicines; technologies of agriculture, architecture, and transportation; templates of democracy and revolution – the fruits of contact, to non-Indians, were further-reaching than most people imagine, making the injustices of cultural and physical genocide perpetrated on the givers that much more heinous. Having done his spadework in the myriad relevant geographic and academic areas, Weatherford lays these effects out, from the obvious to the highly extrapolative, engaging our sympathy, gratitude, indignation, and awe with a network of revelatory anecdotes, facts, and causalities.

See if Mission Branch's copy of Indian Givers is available.

Judy

Jewelry-Making with Chelsee Robinson!

In this fun, free, hands-on workshop, local designer and entrepreneur Chelsee Robinson will guide you in creating your own beautiful bracelet, necklace, or earrings. Come for the fun, leave with a skill! Materials provided. Ages 12-18.
Monday, March 21st
4:30-6p

                         For more information or to register contact
                         Nicole at (415)355-5738 or ntermini@sfpl.org.

Question of the week: "Do you have tax forms?"

Every year around tax time, we get lots of questions about filing income taxes, most of which are in regards to whether we have the forms and instruction booklets for people to take home with them. The quick answer to this is, yes, here at the Mission Branch we do have some of the forms. However, our stockpile is dwindling.

Now here is the long answer: Every year we request the federal 1040, 1040A, and 1040EZ forms and instruction booklets from the IRS, and the state 540 EZ and 540 2EZ booklets (which contain the forms) from the California Franchise Tax Board. As mentioned, we currently still have most of the forms and booklets, but they're going fast. Once they're gone we always keep some reference copies which you can use to make your own copies. (We do have a copy machine here at the branch).

Additionally, you can download all the federal forms and instructions from the IRS Web site and state forms and instructions from the California Franchise Tax Board Web site. Here are some direct links to those Web pages...

Federal Income Tax forms and instructions:
IRS home page
IRS forms and publications
Have IRS forms and publications sent to you

State Income Tax forms and instructions:
California Franchise Tax Board (CFTB) home page
CFTB forms and publications
Have CFTB forms sent to you

For more tax information, please have a look at the Web page set up by the staff at SFPL's Government Information Center. Here you will find information about where to pick up free tax booklets, where to file your returns and where you can get free help preparing your income tax returns. Our reference librarians can also help find the answers to some of those questions and help you locate the nearest post office.

Don't forget: Federal and state forms are no longer mailed to most residents --- except by request. And remember, this year Tax Day is April 17, 2011!