What makes you happy? How often do you spend time really thinking about the answer to this question?”

Belic, a documentary filmmaker, spent six years searching for answers to that question – not just for himself, but for the entire world. He wondered how a dirt poor man in India who pulls a rickshaw to earn just enough to feed his family could feel perfectly happy, when Roko’s millionaire friends in LA with their mansions and parties and good looks are rarely so. He wondered how America could be one of the richest countries in the world, but nowhere near the happiest. He set out to travel the world and learn all the things that make people happy.

His film HAPPY is the product of his pursuit. It tells the stories of people Roko met on his journey who are truly happy – and some who are not so happy, and weaves in research from the growing field focused on happiness.

The Science of Happiness

According to happiness research, happy people are healthier and live longer. They are more likely to care for the environment and less likely to commit crimes or go to war.

How does volunteering fit into all of this? According to the research, happy people help others more often. Scientists have identified something called “intrinsic values” – compassion, cooperation, and generally wanting to make the world a better place. People who have these intrinsic values are more likely to be happy than those who prioritize “extrinsic values” such as social status, good looks or money.

When we did our own study with UnitedHealth Group, we found that people who volunteer tend to be healthier and happier, as well – another strong support for the importance of intrinsic values.

Interesting isn’t it? The film will be shown all around the world at selected theaters on February 11th, 2012, as part of World Happy Day. The closest screening to Monrovia will be at the Pasadena Laemmle, at 11 a.m. on February 11.  Tickets are $8.  If you want to learn more about the film and more about volunteering, then we recommend you to check out the Volunteer Match blog (http://blogs.volunteermatch.org/engagingvolunteers/)  where you can find amazing posts and articles about the value of volunteering, or the film’s blog at www.worldhappyday.com. 

Check out World Book Night’s website for all the details!  I’ve applied to give out Suzanne Collins’ blockbuster The Hunger Games–a perfect fit for teens and adults who are reluctant readers, and soon to be a major motion picture release.

(Photo from San Gabriel Valley Tribune)

Our weekly Culture and Conversation class was recently visited by Brittany Wong, a reporter from the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.  Please click here to read her article about our program!

And best wishes from all of us at the library for a happy and healthy new year!

But the people of Monrovia are not alone in their community spirit.  I couldn’t help but be struck by a recently published article in the Los Angeles Times (see link below) about the overall state of charitable giving and volunteering in the United States.  According to an annual poll conducted by the international Charities Aid Foundation,  the people of the United States ranked as the most generous in the world in terms of time and money in 2011, up from fifth place in 2010.  Nearly two-thirds of Americans said they had donated money to charity, more than 40% volunteered their time, and close to three-fourths said they had helped a stranger.   The “World Giving Index” is based on interviews with 150,000 people around the globe.   Charities Aid Foundation Director of Research Richard Harrison said:  This research confirms that when we look at giving in a rounded way, including the extent to which we volunteer and help strangers, America is the most generous country in the world.  America is the only country that ranks in the top 10 globally on each of these three perspectives and this first place ranking should be seen as a source of real pride for people across America.” 

For more on this topic, please see http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-charity-20111221,0,7950612.story

If you were not able to attend the festivities, please stop by the Volunteer/Literacy office to pick up your gift.  If the office is closed, the circulation desk will have some as well for volunteers to pick up.

This coming Saturday, December 10, the Volunteer Management Team will be hosting an open house from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Community Room here at the Monrovia Public Library.

We will provide holiday music in the Library Lobby by the Sterling Flute Choir, the Cal State Northridge Flute Quartet, Le Petit Duo, and others. We will also have delicious cookies and lots of holiday Cheer so come and join us for this cozy get-together. And since Christmas is the season of giving, drop-by to pick up a special thank-you gift! If you are unable to attend the open house, just stop by the Volunteer Office before December 30 to pick up your gift.

So now you know, mark your calendars and we hope to see you here at the Library this Saturday.                                                                                               

*This event will be sponsored by the Friends of the Monrovia Public Library.

What a windy week we had last week. Fallen trees, power outages, closed schools, the Foothills looked more like Florida over the summer! Many houses suffered damage caused by the strong winds and the Monrovia Public Library Park was no different; probably one of the first things you noticed when coming to the library park after the “hurricane” was the fallen pine tree near the fountain which was our yearly Christmas tree. I could not believe that California winds had knocked out such a big tree, and that this was not the only one; Colorado Street looked like a war zone with small to large trees lining up the street.

The second thing people probably noticed was the fact the library closed its doors from Thursday to Saturday due to the power outage; from Monrovia to Pasadena to San Bernardino, many people realized how vital electricity has become after being left without power for hours, others even for days! Children had a second Thanksgiving weekend while many banks, small businesses, and big companies, such as 3M Unitek and  24 Fitness, closed their doors until they regained power.

Well, after such a chaotic weekend, power is back here at the Library which opened its doors this Monday morning; while crews are still working in the library park to remove fallen trees and waste, the library in itself is untouched, with its power back, and up-and-running just for you.

Courtesy of Gourmet.com

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I know many of you are already thinking about pumpkin pie; this recipe, along with turkey, cannot be missing from the menu this Thursday. However, this year why don’t you try something different, something surprising and more exotic? I did a little research on my own because I wanted to surprise my family with a variation of this classic recipe; as you might be aware, here at the library we have a vast selection of cooking books, but the one that caught my attention was the “Gourmet Today” volume. In this book I found out exactly what I was looking for; a pumpkin dessert recipe that was anything but conventional. Let me share this recipe with you and I hope you find it as interesting and delicious as it seems.

Pumpkin Flan with Spiced Pumpkin Seeds ( serves 8 )

Ingredients for Caramel and Flan:

~2 cups sugar ~ 1 1/2 cups heavy cream ~ 1 cup whole milk ~ 5 whole large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk   ~ 1 (15-oz) can solid-pack pumpkin (1 3/4 cups; not pie filling) ~   1 teaspoon vanilla ~ 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon ~ 1 teaspoon ground ginger ~ 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg ~ 1/4 teaspoon salt

Ingredients for Pumpkin Seeds:

~ 1 cup green (hulled) pumpkin seeds (1/4 lb; not toasted) ~ 1 teaspoon vegetable oil ~ 1/2 teaspoon salt ~ 1/8 teaspoon cayenne                                                                                                                                                         *You will need a 2-quart soufflé dish or round ceramic casserole dish

To Make the Caramel:

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Heat soufflé dish in oven while making caramel.

2. Cook 1 cup sugar in a dry 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, undisturbed, until it begins to melt. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a fork, until sugar melts into a deep golden caramel. Wearing oven mitts, remove hot dish from oven and immediately pour caramel into dish, tilting it to cover bottom and side. (Leave oven on.) Keep tilting as caramel cools and thickens enough to coat, then let harden.

To Make Flan:

1. Bring cream and milk to a bare simmer in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, then remove from heat. Whisk together whole eggs, yolk, and remaining cup sugar in a large bowl until combined well, then whisk in pumpkin, vanilla, spices, and salt until combined well. Add hot cream mixture in a slow stream, whisking.

2. Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, scraping with a rubber spatula to force through, and stir to combine well. Pour custard over caramel in dish, then bake in a water bath until flan is golden brown on top and a knife inserted in center comes out clean, about 1 1/4 hours. Remove dish from water bath and transfer to a rack to cool. Chill flan, covered, until cold, at least 6 hours.

To Make Spiced Pumpkin Seeds while Flan Chills:

1. Toast pumpkin seeds in oil in a 10- to 12-inch heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron) over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until puffed and golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Toss with salt and cayenne until coated.

For Serving:

1. Run a thin knife between flan and side of dish to loosen. Shake dish gently from side to side and, when flan moves freely in dish, invert a large platter with a lip over dish. Holding dish and platter securely together, quickly invert and turn out flan onto platter. (Caramel will pour out over and around flan.) Sprinkle flan with spiced pumpkin seeds just before serving.

Although this recipe is a little time-consuming, give it a try, and if you want to find more Holiday recipes, come to the library to check out one of our many cooking and baking books or visit the gourmet website.

Remember the Monrovia Public Library will be closed for the Holiday and will reopen on Monday, November 28^th.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

There are many kinds of literacy, and not all of them are focused exclusively on reading.  Nowadays schools focus their teaching lessons on areas like Mathematics, English, and History, but what about Civics? Students might know who the candidates for each party are, but aside from that they have little information about the process behind elections. According to Education Week, “Ten papers released by the American Enterprise Institute last week make the case that civics education is as critical as literacy and mathematics. They also explore what civics education should look like, how teachers can be prepared to create educated citizens, and future challenges and opportunities in the field.”                

To help students (and adults) become more interested in civics and politics, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor created a website that makes learning Civics fun and entertaining. On the icivics website, middle,elementary, and high school students (or their parents!) can play various games where they can put their skills to the test.

In the “Win the White House” game, players choose an avatar and a party before they start to compete in the presidency elections. Then, “candidates” choose five issues important to them and start the primaries. The point of the game is to win the elections by getting as many electoral votes from each state as possible. As I mentioned before, the game is really entertaining and even I, a university graduate, found it hard to quit the game and start work.

If your children, or even yourself, have problems understanding politics, then make sure to check out this website and remember to have fun.