The Library Community

Perhaps you've already heard of Park(ing) Day, but just in case you haven't, the scoop is as follows:

PARK(ing) Day is an annual worldwide event where artists, designers and citizens transform metered parking spots into temporary public parks.

The mission of PARK(ing) Day is to call attention to the need for more urban open space, to generate critical debate around how public space is created and allocated, and to improve the quality of urban human habitat … at least until the meter runs out!

So, what does this have to do with the Oakland Public Library?  I'm so glad you asked!  This year, for the first time ever, the Main Library will be participating in Park(ing) Day with a park of our own -

If there's one thing this librarian loves, it's a good nerd, so imagine my excitement when I learned there was an opportunity to partner with Nerd Nite East Bay.  A dream come true!  A whole night, once a month, for nerds that we, the Oakland Public Library, can be part of?  Count me in!

So, you may be wondering what Nerd Nite is exactly.  It is an event that takes place on the last Monday of each month at the New Parkway and includes three talks from three speakers on three diverse topics, each one, of course, interesting and engaging.  Last month I attended as an audience member and loved it.  This month, I'll attend as an interested audience member and in official librarian capacity repping OPL.  

The Details:  

Monday, August 26th, doors 7:00pm, start 8:00pm at the New Parkway

The Theme:

Materials, Monotremes, & MMMMM...Mollusks

Tonight (8/6/13) is National Night Out and all over the country people will gather with neighbors to promote community.  Just here in Oakland there will be over 100 block parties tonight, and 6 of them are taking place outside of Oakland Public Library branches!  Stop by and say hi to your friendly library staff and your fellow library lovers.  Turn your neighbors into friends!

The 81st Avenue Branch's party will be happening between 6 and 8:30pm and features food, fun and live music.

At the Dimond Branch, the party starts at 7pm and includes a performance by Dan Chan Magic Man.

Snacks, games, an outdoor storytime and lots of sidewalk chalk will be found at the

Our amazing Tool Lending Library has gotten a little bit of well-deserved attention lately.  The Washington Post published a great article about libraries across the country lending things other than books, and included Oakland Public Library. 

From the article:

“We can’t be everything to everyone, but we can provide a lot of opportunities to people to try out new things,” Choate said.

That’s exactly what happened at the Oakland library following a 1991 firestorm that ravaged the Oakland Hills section of the San Francisco Bay area, destroying 3,000 homes and killing 25 people.

The library’s Temescal