Collins Unbound

Bringing your laptop to the library? Protect your laptop from theft by checking out a lock at the Circulation Desk on the main floor. It’s as easy to use as a bicycle lock. The cable loops around any secure object, such as a table leg, and the other end is inserted into a slot on your laptop.

Don’t leave your laptop unattended, even for a short time—it takes only seconds for someone to steal it!

Library Laptop Lock Policy

• Locks can be checked out for 6 hours, with one renewal for 6 additional hours or at library closing (whichever is less).
• Users will be issued one key to secure the lock. A spare key is kept at the Circulation Desk.
• Fines are 50 cents per hour with a maximum charge of $12 if the lock is returned.
• If the key is lost, the user will be charged $35, which includes a $30 replacement cost plus a $5 processing fee. The user will be given the duplicate key to keep, as they have “purchased” the lock.
• Locks must be returned to a Circulation assistant. Do not place them in the book drop.
• In the event the lock is broken and the laptop is stolen, the Library is not responsible for loss of personal property.

April is National Poetry Month! Publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, schools and poets around the country band together to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. Businesses and non-profit organizations participate through readings, festivals, book displays, workshops, and other events.

Please join us for “Printer & Poet: In Collaborative Spirit”, Thursday, April 7, 2011, 7-9 p.m. in Collins Library 020 for a poetry reading and artist talk with May Day Press proprietor Catherine Alice Michaelis & local poet Anne Spiers.

Stop by the Collins Library and say hello to those employees whose work keeps your library up and running with the quality and level of service you have come to expect!
Some library  fun facts:

• 35, 480 library visitors came in March
• 33,602 online visitors came to our site in March
• 8,161 checkouts occurred in March
• 2,335 streaming videos were added this past Fall
• 425,000 volumes of books, bound journals and more, fill our library!

It’s also  Library Snapshot Day! (April 12, 2011) Hundreds of libraries throughout Washington are compiling a glimpse of a day in the life of a library!  On this day, we will gathering memorable snapshots,  your comments, and statistics of library activity!   Be on the lookout for a slideshow soon…

April is National Poetry Month!  Publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, schools and poets around the country band together to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. Businesses and non-profit organizations participate through readings, festivals, book displays, workshops, and other events.

Please join us for “Printer & Poet: In Collaborative Spirit”, Thursday, April 7, 2011, 7-9 p.m. in Collins Library 020 for a poetry reading and artist talk with May Day Press proprietor Catherine Alice Michaelis & local poet Anne Spiers.

Collins library celebrates Pierce County READS 2011 (March 5 – April 30, 2011), the largest community reading event in Pierce County! This year, the public voted best READ’S pick as best-seller “The Big Burn” by Pulitzer Prize winner Timothy Egan. The captivating story chronicles the epic story of the largest fire in America — August 1910, and the tragedy that became Theodore Roosevelt’s legacy.

Participate in Pierce County READS! Discuss and connect as a community by joining some of the 40 free events. History lovers, outdoors enthusiasts, conservationists, and more will love it.  Next time you step into the library, be sure and view “The Big Burn” display!

Today March 3, is UNESCO’s World Book Day! Share a favorite book that matters to you, whether intellectually, personally, or any other way at all!

Monday, February 21, 2011, at 3:30 p.m. — Wheelock Student Center, Murray Boardroom.

University of Washington Pre-Doc. Beth Patin gave a lecture about her incredible experiences living and working in Louisiana when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, including her work to rebuild area libraries in Katrina’s aftermath. Also included were recent experiences and work in Chile following the earthquake last February.

(Co-sponsored by Collins Library and the Office of Spirituality, Service and Social Justice.)

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, dedicated to the memory of our nation’s 35th president, has opened a new presidential archive online! Now you can enjoy the convenience of historic items from Kennedy’s famous speech drafts and letters, to phone calls and more. Read more about this in the Huffington Post’s article “JFK Library Opens First Online Presidential Archive“.

You can also visit our Collins Unbound blog article: the Anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s historic visit to Tacoma!

Photo Credit: University Archives

President Kennedy and Puget Sound President R. Franklin Thompson

R. Franklin Thompson introducing President Kennedy