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Reading, Wellington, and whatever else – teenblog@wcl.govt.nz

Month: February 2009 Page 1 of 2

Rainbow Playlist

One of the only good things about rainy days (like this one) is the possibility of seeing a rainbow. Today I’ve put together the perfect soundtrack for rainbow watching because I can’t go outside.  Each colour is represented by a song (apart from pesky old indigo which has a band name instead). Enjoy!

rainbow

Transformers

There’s a new trailer out for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – you can view it in HD at the official site. It’s about two minutes long and full of robots blowing things up. Cars, bridges, buildings, and even an aircraft carrier; it’s just that fantastic!

We have the first Transformers film on DVD as well, if you need to catch up before the sequel’s release. We also have Transformers : Beast Wars series one and series three.

Online Gaming

Free Realms is an MMO (massive multiplayer online game) that is due out later in the year. It’s free in that you don’t need to pay to play it (like you would with World of Warcraft, Warhammer Online, and others) and that you are free to do just about anything you want; you can race cars, raise pets, be a wizard, or whatever. It’s kid-friendly and intended for all ages.

Open beta begins in April, and you can sign up for it now.

Another MMO on its way is Star Wars : The Old Republic; an online webcomic set in the Old Republic, with new issues popping up twice a month, is available here.

Answer some questions, win some stuff.

The Library is running a Waitangi Day quiz! Answer the questions and you could win an MP3 player. Enter it here, but be quick as it closes on Saturday.

Run, lol, run

Mirror’s Edge is a new console game that uses the sport of free-running, or parkour. You can play a 2-dimensional platform Flash version of the game – Mirror’s Edge 2D – for free! It’s pretty addictive. I freely admit to playing it all morning.

Almost Amazing Video Part II

Due either to popular demand, or just the fact that I like playing with iMovie, here is the second ad for The Almost Amazing Race. This one gives away a few more details (possibly about locations) and once again stars Adrienne who is such a good sport for running everywhere I told her to on a very hot day.

Registrations will be opening very soon. We’ll let you know when on this blog and if you become our fan on facebook, we’ll let you know even sooner.

Everyone likes parades

We’ve a lot of photos from last weekend’s Cuba Street Carnival. The library has a stall set up to promote the Cuba Street Memories Project, which aims to build a history of the street. My great-great-grandfather used to own a part of it; if only he hadn’t sold it in 1860 or thereabouts, I could be rich! Ah well.

If you’re in any of these photos and wish you weren’t, email us!

Justified and Ancient

Has the lost city of Atlantis been found? No, probably not, but it’s still pretty cool and allows me to link to this remotely related Google Map image of New Zealand perched atop a tectonic plate.

Do you want to upsize? *fwip*

You may have heard that there’s a global recession on. What can that mean? It’s quite complex, but there are simpler ways of viewing it. However, what’s perhaps more immediately relevant is how it’s affecting comics; apparently Peter Parker lost his job and is now working at McDonalds.

New CDs and a list you can play

We have new music. Yay!

allmusic.com describes Basshunter as a Swedish computer nerd and his first album called LOL <(^^,)> would seem to indicate that this is accurate. He’s back with Now You’re Gone: The Album for another round of homemade Euro-Dance silliness.

British pop trio Sugababes have just released a sixth album which must make them one of the most enduring girl groups ever. It’s called Catfights and Spotlights and easily ranks among their best.

Friendly Fires scored a big hit in the blogosphere last year when their song Paris was remixed by Aeroplane. Now comes their debut album Friendly Fires with more of the same fun dance-rock that shot them to prominence.

If you’ve turned on a TV at all in the last few weeks you’ll have realised that Fall Out Boy are touring. They’ll be here to support their latest, entitiled Folie a Deux. Fans will love it.

And lastly, if you need to chill out during these troublesome back to school days, pick up Chillout Sessions XI. Stress relief is practically guaranteed.

20/02/2009

 

Show me the Monet!

During the 19th century, a group of French artists decided to rebel.  Instead of faithfully re-creating their subject matter (portrait, landscape, still life) these impressionist painters focused on the overall effects of colour and movement, using unmixed colour and broken strokes.  Their fascination with capturing the momentary and transient effects of sunlight lead them to break with the rigid, studio-based painting traditions and do their paintings en plein air (outdoors, “in the open air”).

Claude Monet was a founder of the French Impressionist painting movement and its most prolific practitioner.  In fact, the movement derives its name from Monet’s painting, Impression, Sunrise.

Monet is a pretty big cheese in the art world so it’s truly amazing to be able to get up close and personal with his art without visiting an overseas gallery or art museum. Don’t miss out!  Visit Monet and the Impressionists at Te Papa.  Exhibition ends 17 May.

Top 10 Music Videos

Lately we’ve been talking about our favourite music videos a lot. Much time has been spent/wasted on the subject, all so we can share with you our top ten, Here they are …

10. First up are cooler than cool French duo Justice with the video for D.A.N.C.E. Check out the album here

Read More

Quizzing In Kilbirnie

Just a quick note …

Bring your family to the Ruth Gotlieb Library on Thursday 26th February at 6:30pm for an exciting quiz night. There will be a special kids’ round and prizes. A fun night out for the entire family. Teams of 8 or less.

Poetry is for listening to

Classic Poetry Aloud is a “podcast series for some of the greatest poetry in English.” So says it. Now you can listen to ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ (Tennyson) or ‘Because I could not stop for death’ by Emily Dickinson (incidentally, you can sing this to the tune of ‘The Yellow Rose of Texas’). If you neglected your beloved on cough Valentine’s Day cough you could make up for it by playing some love poems perhaps.

Facebook again

If you use Facebook but are a bit worried about your privacy, or people tagging unfortunate photos with your name, check out this; 10 privacy settings every Facebook user should know. Facebook is complex: the website the article is hosted on, Allfacebook.com, has loads of useful Facebook news, applications and tips.

Take your valentine to the skatepark

This Saturday, 14 Februrary, is important for two reasons: romance and pro skating!  Yeah, we all know it’s Valentines Day –  the chocolates, the roses, the cards and sickly sweet P.D.A. (Public Displays of Affection) – but did you know that this Saturday a whole bunch of professional skaters will be competing at Waitangi Skatepark for the biggest prize purse in NZ skating history?  So make a date, take a date, to see the thrills’n spills of Bowl-o-Rama 2009.

(9am – 6pm, Waitangi Skatepark, Waitangi Park.   Postponement date: 15 February )

Googlewhack: An Idle Google Game Part 2

An oldie but a goodie for wasting time.

Googlewhack is a game where you type two words into a Google search to yield only one result (it even has its own website). It’s pretty difficult but infinitely rewarding (as all time wasters are). In a few minutes of trying the best I got was two results for “shwar aardvark”. You have to spell things correctly of course or else you’re cheating (even with spelling errors it’s still hard since lots of people can’t spell).

The first rule of Googlewhack: don’t brag about your Googlewhack find on the internet; you’ll unGooglewhack yourself. So if you get one we’ll just have to take your word for it.

More New Music Y’all

A whopping eight new CDs this week. Here they are …

Fleet Foxes are here with their self-titled debut album, Fleet Foxes. Pitchfork loved it so much it was their album of 2008. Delightful indie-pop for fans of The Shins and their ilk.

Lady Gaga is making a splash with The Fame. She says she is influenced by Madonna and Michael Jackson, it shows because she makes dance-pop in a similar vein.

One of my favorites, Ladyhawke, has made it into the YA collection with her debut Ladyhawke. She’s from New Zealand and has generated quite a lot of buzz overseas with her Blondie-esque pop. Highly recommended.

We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things by Jason Mraz is also in. Mraz is one of those singer-songwriter types with an acoustic guitar, this, his third album is considered my many his best work to date.

Jennifer Hudson was a contestant on the third season of American Idol and also had a role in the 2006 film Dreamgirls. Quite the star. Another self-titled debut called (duh) Jennifer Hudson.

Bic Runga has released a rarities collection called Try To Remember Everything: Rare And Unreleased.  Fans of this local lass will surely be pleased with this compilation of her harder to find work.

Art-Rockers Franz Ferdinand are back with Tonight… Franz Ferdinand. Another effortlessly cool collection of songs from the Glaswegian quartet.

Duffy’s Rockferry has gotten a deluxe re-release. It now comes with seven extra bonus tracks housed on a second CD. <3 bonuses <3

11/02/2009

We can haz teh facebooks?

The Wellington City Library Teen Page has gone all 2.0 with its new facebook profile. You can use it to keep up to date with all our happenings – things like upcoming events, new books and CDs will be posted. Become a fan of us (we know you are already …) and receive invitations and alerts first!

Waitangi Day Quiz. Win something!

Waitangi Day was last weekend, and the library is running a quiz about it! Answer the questions and you could win an MP3 player. Enter it here.

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