By Sue Hotz

A haunting good time can be found this October at the San Carlos Branch Library. At this month’s special event, kids will decorate their very own “Haunted Gingerbread House” on Wednesday, Oct. 21, (replaces the after school special), and on Saturday, Oct. 24. Registration for either day is almost full and a must for this super fun event.

Adults: Have you ever thought that your home was haunted by spirits –– friendly or otherwise? No need to call “Ghostbusters”! Wednesday, Oct. 28, from 6 to 8 p.m., join our own Tim Mountain and the team from Pacific Paranormal Investigations to learn about “Science and The Beyond,” as they enlighten us on the science behind 21st-century paranormal investigations. See the modern tools they use to gather data at allegedly haunted locations.

Annual meeting of the SCFOL membership

Nov. 18 from 4 to 5:30 p.m., all SCFOL members are invited to attend the annual meeting of the general membership. We are currently 304 members strong; 91 are Life Members. The agenda includes the presentation of our new 2014-2015 Life Members (applications received before Oct. 30). Their names will be added to the Honor Wall in the Winer Family Community Room & Art Gallery. Life Memberships are only $250. General membership applications received after Oct. 1, will expire Dec. 31, 2016, and all members can get in on our monthly, SCFOL members-only, Friday pre-used book sales. The slate of SCFOL Board Members for 2016 will be submitted for approval by the membership.

A tearful announcement

Our beloved friend and managing librarian extraordinaire, Rita Glick, has announced her early November retirement. It won’t be the same without her! She and her husband Bill are moving to Kansas to be closer to family. Join us in wishing them a fond adieu and joy in this new chapter of their lives. Plans for her goodbye party will be announced on the website.

Art at the library

Our featured artist in October through Dec. 3, is internationally known painter and San Carlos resident, Larry Groff. On display will be his paintings of the San Carlos/Cowles Mountain area. His reception is Oct. 17 from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Meet this delightful man, and maybe purchase a painting in which he captured your own home’s view of the Mission Trails area. What a delightful holiday gift for yourself or a special neighbor. A percentage of artist sales is donated to matching funds via SCFOL.

Youth programs

Luke, our volunteer instructor, will continue giving chess lessons for ages 18 and under every second and fourth Tuesday from 5 to 7 p.m. Don’t miss the after-school special programs every Wednesday from 2 to 2:45 p.m. (replaced by “Haunted Gingerbread House” activity on Oct. 21). October’s STEAM2 will study botany and entomology — including those pesky Halloween spiders, and in November it’s all about the animals.

Process art classes continues on Thursdays at 4 p.m. with Ms. Megan; yoga instruction on Tuesdays at 4 p.m.; and preschool story time on Fridays at 10 a.m. Kids in grades K-8 can do their homework at the library on Mondays and Thursdays from 3 to 6 p.m., and on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 3 to 7 p.m., assisted by a learning coordinator.

Books

Our next used book sale is Nov. 7, from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the SCFOL member’s preview sale is Friday, Nov. 6, from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Community Room. Membership applications will be available. On Nov. 12 at 12:30 p.m., the Librarian’s Book Club is reading “Americanah” by Chimamanda Adichie.

On Oct. 23 at 2 p.m., Laura Riley, the author of “Tell Me of Brave Women,” will discuss her novel about three very different women who become victims of life-threatening violence. Annually, thousands of women are victims of abuse –– sexual, physical and verbal.

OASIS

Nov. 20, from 1 to 3 p.m., Mark Carlson discusses how our ancestors built the world’s great monuments that are still “Standing the Test of Time.”

Adult programs

Exercise your mind and body with Tai Chi classes on Mondays at 9:30 a.m.; chair yoga classes on Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m.; and meditation classes on Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. (except on Saturdays that host book sales). The “Stretch & Tone” class has been discontinued.

Thursdays from 2 to 4 p.m., join adults with limited English language skills in the English Conversation Café. Presently, there are five non-English languages represented by our Café participants.

Every Monday from 10 to 11 a.m. we offer an eReader clinic; and the craft circle meets from 1 to 5 p.m.

The free “Resourceful Baby Boomer” class series on Oct. 17, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. will feature elder law attorney Phillip Lindsley Esq. presenting a lecture on how to legally preserve your assets against the high cost of long-term care. On Oct. 20 from 6 to 8 p.m. and Nov. 21 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., learn how trusts, health care directives and conservatorships can protect you in a presentation by Kelley James, Esq., and Cristinha Furtado. On Nov. 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. and Nov. 14 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Furtado will present a lecture on the essentials for elder housing options. Go to our website for more details.

The library would also like to remind patrons that the Jackson and Golfcrest corner lot will have very limited parking available until Nov. 9 due to continued lot mitigation. Also, all libraries will be closed on Wednesday, Nov. 11, in observance of Veterans Day. A monthly calendar of events and complete details for all new and continuing programs can be found at sancarlosfriendsofthelibrary.org.

––Sue Hotz is publicity chair and on the board of the San Carlos Friends of the Library.