Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Machu Picchu

A creative video that combines Peruvian imagery with 3-D animation.

Machu Picchu Post from Machu Picchu Post Team on Vimeo.

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Dance Around the World

Check out dancing around the world at the Big Picture.

Cloverfield Monster Creates Power Outage!

The Oak Lawn Public Library was without power on Monday, June 22. That forced us to cancel this week's Monday Night Movie Club. The club will meet on June 29 with our regularly scheduled film, Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Our first movie, Cloverfield, has been pushed back to Monday, July 13. Club members will still help decide what types of movies we see on July 20 and 27.

In the meantime, if you can't wait to get your fill of giant creatures and lots of property destruction, may we suggest:

• Transformers
• King Kong (1933, 1976, or 2005)
• Godzilla
• King Kong vs. Godzilla
• Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla
• Them! (giant ants)
• Jurassic Park

Can you put together the puzzle?

http://www.thekidzpage.com/onlinejigsawpuzzles/index.htm

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Creative Businesspeople

Can you make a living being creative? Read about the 100 most creative people in business at Fast Company.

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Improv Everywhere

Speaking of weddings, the pranksters at Improv Everywhere recently held a surprise wedding reception for one random couple who had just been married at the city clerk's office in Manhattan:




Enjoy the story, but whatever you do, don't read about any of their other missions, which are full of irresponsible and disruptive ideas that sometimes involve the police.

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Stop-Motion Wedding Invitation

The summer wedding season is here, and people all over the country are going to the weddings of family and friends. Here one groom with too much time on his hands created an amazing video invitation, complete with directions for how to get to the church.

Be Creative/Expresss Yourself Link of the Day: The Giant Puppet

Last Friday the residents of Nantes, France (birthplace of Jules Verne) were treated to an unusual sight: a giant marionette of a deep-sea diver walking their streets. This is the latest of several giant creations presented by Royale de Luxe, a marionette street theater company.

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Cluster Ballooning

By now you may have seen the new movie Up, in which a man uses thousands of balloons to lift his house into the sky. You may have wondered whether it's possible to do that in real life. We don't know about a house, but a person? Possible, yes. A good idea? Probably not. Here's a look at the daredevil sport of cluster ballooning.

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Oktapodi

Here's one of the 2009 Academy Award Nominees for Best Short Film (Animated)... Oktapodi:

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Giant Keyboard Music

Be Creative/Express Yourself Link of the Day: Food Art

Today's piece of creativity: food art (via Now That's Nifty).

The Next Big Thing? Controller-free Gaming

At the big E3 electronic gaming conference, held each year, companies such as Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony unveil new games and new technology you can use to play games. One highlight at E3 2009 was Microsoft's announcement of Project Natal. It's similar to the Wii's motion-control system, but it doesn't require anything like the "Wii-mote." It's a camera pointed at you, that recognizes your body movements, you face, even your voice.

Gamers, what do you think? Is it an improvement on the Wii-mote? Or does having to do all the work take the fun out of video games? What kind of games would this work best for? Is being watched by your game system okay, or intrusive?

Be Creative/Express Yourself: Artcyclopedia

Website of the Week: Artcyclopedia -- a web site devoted to resources on artists, artworks, and artistic movements.

And don't forget: The High School Summer Reading Program offers you a chance to show off your artistic side by submitting your own creative project.

Also available to grades 6 to 10:

• Window Cling Decorations - Wednesday, June 24, 7 to 7:30 OR 7:30 to 8 p.m.
• Photo Contest - turn in up to 4 photos 4x6 or larger at Youth Services between June 15 and July 25. Winners will be on display in the Library in August.

Summer Reading Starts Today!

Registration for Summer Reading begins today! Read and win prizes!

Students going into grades 6-8 may register for "Express Yourself" at the Youth Services desk.

Those going into grades 9-12 will register for "Be Creative" at the Help Desk. 9th and 10th graders may also participate in programs offered in Youth Services.

Your library card is required, so if you don't have one, bring a parent to the Circulation Desk to get one. If you're 18 or older, you can get one for yourself with proof that you live in Oak Lawn.

See you soon, and have a great summer!