Jay L.

  • Entrepreneurs and Nonprofits – Library to Business Will Assist You during the COVID-19 Closure

    Are you pivoting your business and looking for market data to support the viability of your plan? Are you a self-employed small business owner, gig worker, or contractor who is trying to figure out which of the COVID-19 financial relief programs will work for you? Over the past few weeks, new details on the different… Continue reading

  • What do GMO labels, petition signatures and excise taxes have in common?

    They are all initiative measures on the 2013 ballot. If you are a registered Washington State voter, you will be asked to weigh in on each of these soon. The election is only three weeks away, do you feel informed and ready? The Washington Secretary of State’s Online Voters’ Guide is a great official source… Continue reading

  • Money Smart Week: Learn to invest

    Investing information is notoriously steeped in jargon and the underlying concepts themselves aren’t exactly the most user-friendly. Whether you are planning to start investing on your own, or just want to be more informed when you talk to your broker, there are many different tools you can use to get up to speed. Of course,… Continue reading

  • Happy Money Smart Week!

    This week Shelf Talk is highlighting financial literacy topics for Money Smart Week! Money Smart Week is a national campaign to help increase consumer awareness about all things money. Hundreds of different organizations participate, including libraries. The campaign started in Chicago in 2002 and has quickly spread across the country. There are a myriad of… Continue reading

  • Start-up at the library – what do you need to launch your business?

    Do you have a fantastic business idea? Are you planning give it a go, but don’t have a lot of formal business training? The library has some tools to help you out. In addition to our collection of general startup guides, below are some other useful resources. Continue reading

  • Crash: Bank Failures and Other Economic Catastrophes

    You don’t have to look far to find news that illustrates how we are still struggling to dig our way out of a severe economic crisis. How did we get in this mess again? As it was happening, there were lots of articles about housing market bubbles, bank failures, subprime lending, bailouts, securities scandals and… Continue reading

  • Don’t forget the sunscreen – or the rain gear!

    Here’s hoping you’ll need the sunscreen. Whether it is a destination lake, a stroll along a creek or an adventurous climb, there are lots of places nearby where you can let the city noise fall to the trailside and sleep in your own bed by nightfall. How do you locate the day hike that fits… Continue reading

  • A Couple Fun Recipes

    When I put on the apron I am truly at the mercy of the cookbook. I’m no chef, but I can follow a recipe reasonably well and I do enjoy the process. Here are a few recipes that helped me keep dinner at home and made me look good.  Spaghetti alla Carbonara – The New Best Recipe (p. 251-252). Gotta’… Continue reading

  • Sotero Photograph Collection

    The Seattle Public Library has a number of interesting visual collections. One example is the Sotero photograph collection, which offers a window into the world of African Americans in uniform during the World War II era. Marjorie Sotero collected these photographs during her time as a director of the African American Servicemen’s Clubs at Seattle’s… Continue reading

  • LINK to the Library: A Spring Tour

    Looking for an indoor/outdoor adventure on a spring afternoon?  How about a tour of libraries that are walkable from light rail stations?  Check out the smooth ride on the LINK light rail, step outside to take in some spring greenery, and then retreat into some engaging library spaces to explore the collections.  Depending on the… Continue reading

  • What’s in the Aviation Room?

    When you think of Seattle as the birthplace of the Boeing Company, it might not come as a huge surprise that the Central Library has a Special Collection of historical materials on aviation.  In fact, the Aviation Room originated with a startup gift from the Boeing Company in 1928. Items in this room range from… Continue reading

  • All Your Bass Are Belong To Us, Part II

    To continue our electronic odyssey began in Part I here are some artists you might find at SPL to plug in to and up the amperage of your playlist. Bombay Dub Orchestra – Take a fully orchestrated Bollywood soundtrack, chop it up, chill it down and this is what you get: a 2-disc set, the second… Continue reading

  • All Your Bass Are Belong To Us, Pt. I

    Back in 1919, when the world was in black and white (I’ve always wondered how they knew the sky was blue and the grass was green but every time I ask a librarian about it they get a funny look, mumble something, and wander away. But I digress … ) Leon Theremin was working for… Continue reading