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Lifestyle Columns

A Bicentennial Year

2026 marks two hundred fifty years since the drafting and signing of the Declaration of Independence. As countries go, we’re relatively young in culture and identity. On the bright side, our form of government has endured for two and a half centuries – much longer than many other modern ...

Putting a price on a memory (jug)

Can you put a price on memories? This memory jug sold for $1,125 at Slotin Folk Art Auction. Memory jugs like this one, with decorative items embedded into the surface, are a famous African American art form. They are believed to have originated in Central and West African traditions, where ...

Winter fun at the Library

Looking for fun activities this winter? The Library of Things (LOT) is an excellent starting point. Whether you want your children to learn new skills or are looking to boost family physical activity, many LOT items—available to check out with your library card—can help you achieve your ...

Color combinations make for fashionable vases

Two-toned glass where one color shades into the other was fashionable in the late 19th to early 20th century. It started with amberina, which shades from red to amber and was made by reheating part of a piece of amber glass. Many companies made it, but usually under different names, since ...

Music for All

If you want to know the rest of the story about some of your favorite musicians, please consider the following titles from our new nonfiction shelf. Don’t Stop: Why We (Still) Love Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours by Alan Light (782.42 Light). The Rumours album became one of the most popular ...

Famed English pottery traces history to 1775

John Aynsley founded his pottery in Staffordshire, England, in 1775 and initially made earthenware. Like many pottery makers, his son and, later, his grandson joined the business; its name changed to John Aynsley & Sons in the 1860s. About that time, the company began making bone ...