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Romantic poet Percy Bysse Shelley was born on August 4, 1792. An advocate of justice for the lower classes, nonviolence and vegetarianism, he was married twice, the second time to Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, the author of Frankenstein. In honor of Shelley, who drowned at the age of 29, here is "Ozymandias," one of his best known poems.

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

The staff of the Milwaukee County Zoo and the Milwaukee Zoological Society presents this free animal program for children at the Capitol Library on August 4 at 10:30 a.m. Sing animal songs, move like animals and learn all about the long and short of animal's bodies. See large animal artifacts you can touch. Compare your hand to a gorilla's, and check your foot size against an elephant's. Small animals will be brought in for the children to observe. The Zablocki branch will host this program on August 5, and Martin Luther King branch will host this program on August 10. Seating is limited, so be sure to show up early!

After a lifetime of trips to the Milwaukee County Zoo (first at Washington Park and now on Blue Mound Road), I doubted anything could ever refresh the experience for me. The onslaught of careening double-wide strollers, the 'signature fragrance' of the Small Mammals Building, overhearing parents trying to explain just what those two monkeys are doing, the possibility of a guano shower in the Aviary, the relentless white noise of a thousand excited children...ah, memories.

So it was a revelation to visit the Zoo with a friend to check out the poetry installed throughout the grounds by The Language of Conservation program funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Milwaukee County Zoo and the Milwaukee Public Library with help from Poets House. With map and list of poem titles in hand, we embarked on a quest to seek out and savor selections from a menagerie of poets. There are poems etched on exhibit glass, hanging in trees, carved into stone or wood, on curving metal scrolls, or lettered on mobiles and banners. Like trying to spot a well camouflaged animal, the poetry will suddenly reveal itself to the attentive hunter. Standing silently amid the swirling throng and having a poem perfectly connect to creature or place is a revelation.

Alison Apotheker's "Why I Said Jellyfish", Michael Glaser's "The Presence of Trees" and Jorge Luis Borges' "The Other Tiger" were three favorites. To read the timeless words of May Swenson's Motherhood, then watch the baby orangutan Mahal cuddled in his adoptive mother's lap is delightful, even for someone as cynical as I. I know we missed finding some of the poems during our three hour visit, so we will definitely be planning another trip soon - by then I hope someone develops a GPS (Global Poetry Sensor)!

Submitted by Christine @ MPL Central

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is offering a free seminar for inventors, entrepreneurs, educators and legal professionals at Centennial Hall, 733 N. Eighth Street, on Wednesday, September 8 from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. The day's events will include:

*An overview of patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets
*How to make the best use of the USPTO website
*Conducting a patent search, step by step
*Asking the right questions of invention promotion firms
*Conducting a trademark search, step by step

A prepaid box lunch will be available for $7.50 with your choice of turkey or hummus wrap, chips and a beverage, or you may opt to go out to eat.

To register, contact Judy Pinger, the MPL Business & Technology Coordinator, by phone at 414 - 286 - 3247 or by email at jeping@milwaukee.gov. The deadline for registration is Tuesday, August 31.

This program is presented in connection with Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World on exhibit at the Central Library from September 8 to October 22, 2010.

The 159th Wisconsin State Fair is on now through August 15. It is the perfect opportunity to experience the sights, sounds, and tastes of Wisconsin.

To learn more about the fair, check out the book 150 Years of the Wisconsin State Fair: an illustrated history, 1851-2001.

Or you can read up on our great state by perusing:

On August 9, 1945 a B-29 Superfortress named Bockscar dropped an atomic bomb codenamed "Fat Man" on the city of Nagasaki. Three days earlier, on August 6, the atomic bomb codenamed "Little Boy" was dropped on the city of Hiroshima. It is estimated that 60,000 to 80,000 people died in Nagazaki from the atomic bomb, while 90,000 to 160,000 died in Hiroshima. Several of those who died were unintended victims, including U.S. POW's and foreign students studying in Japan.
These events ushered in a new era of warfare that changed the geopolitical landscape of the 20th and 21st century. You can learn more about these events by either reading documents available at the Harry S. Truman library, browsing Milwaukee Public Library's collection of books on the topic, or watching the award winning White Light/Black Rain.

Join MPL on Tuesday, September 7, 2010 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. to hear author Megan Daniels speak about her new book, Milwaukee's Early Architecture. The program will be held in Central Library's Richard E. and Lucile Krug Rare Books Room.

History, ethnic roots and architectural trends all played a role in developing the variety of architecture in Milwaukee. Daniels tracks this development through the use of photographs from the collections of the Milwaukee Historic Preservation Commission and the Milwaukee Public Library.

Books will be available for purchase and the author will autograph copies. Sponsored by the Friends of the Milwaukee Public Library and Boswell Book Company.

Show off your Wii gaming skills and join us for some snacks during these waning days of summer.

Zablocki Thursday, August 12, 2-3 p.m.

Washington Park Monday, August 23, 6-7 p.m.

Looking for health insurance?
Confused about the U.S. health care reform act President Obama signed into law in March?
Wondering what the new health care law means for you and your family?
Curious about what changes are in store for Medicare?

If you answered yes to any of these questions or if you're simply interested in learning more about the new health care law help is here.

Last month the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services launched HealthCare.gov. The new health care law called for this website, which can help you find insurance options, learn how to stay healthy, compare care quality of hospitals, understand the new law, and more.

Highlights include a timeline that describes exactly what is changing and when, fact sheets that summarize important parts of the law, a blog that focuses on how the new law affects you, and easy access to the full law if you're interested in reading all 955 pages of it.

You can also receive updates via Twitter and email and President Obama explains how some of the website features work in this YouTube video. -- Submitted by Amy S. @ Central

On August 16, 1888, Thomas Edward Lawrence, also known as T.E. Lawrence or Lawrence of Arabia, was born in Tremadog, North Wales. Lieutenant Colonel T.E. Lawrence was a British army officer that served as a liason during the Arab revolt against the Ottoman rulers. He was a prolific letter writer, and he also wrote an autobiographical account of his time in the Middle East called The Seven Pillars of Wisdom. You can learn more about the amazing life of T.E. Lawrence by reading his collections of letters, reading one of his biographies, or checking out any of the movies detailing his life.

August 16 - 20, 2010 is Milwaukee Child Health Week!

Several Back-to-School Health Fairs will be held throughout the city and will offer a variety of services including:

• Immunizations (please bring your child's shot records)
• Wisconsin Immunization Registry (WIR) Checks
• Lead tests
• BadgerCare Plus and FoodShare enrollment
• Free and reduced-price school meal applications
• Other screenings such as vision, dental, blood pressure, hearing, health checks
• Information about health topics including asthma, diabetes, dental care, and lead poisoning prevention

Mini Health Fairs (only immunizations & dental fluoride varnishes offered)
Tuesday, August 17th: 10 am - 2 pm
Midtown Pick 'n Save Parking Lot
5700 W. Capitol Dr.

Thursday, August 19th: 10 am - 2 pm
Clarke Square Pick 'n Save Parking Lot
1818 W. National Ave.

Back-to-School Health Fair (free backpacks with school supplies!)
Friday, August 20th: 10 am - 3 pm
North Division Campus
1011 W. Center St.

August 25, 1939 marked the release of the Hollywood classic The Wizard of Oz. The film was based on L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, first published in 1900. There are many differences between page and screen, including the fact that the Wicked Witch, portrayed with such malevolent aplomb by actress Margaret Hamilton, has a much larger part in the movie than in the book. Interestingly, her character inspired Gregory Maguire's Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which, in turn, has been adapted into the Broadway musical Wicked.

At the start of each new school year Beloit College (located in Beloit, Wisconsin) releases its Beloit College Mindset List. Originally created in 1998 to remind Beloit faculty that the cultural references they make in class may not be understood by their students, the list serves as a look at the influential events and experiences of many incoming college freshmen.

This year's Beloit College Mindset List is for the Class of 2014 and the list has 75 items on it.

Examples of things the list says are true for this class include:
#7 - "Caramel macchiato" and "venti half-caf vanilla latte" have always been street lingo.
#12 - Clint Eastwood is better known as a sensitive director than Dirty Harry.
#27 - Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.
#62 - Having hundreds of cable channels, but nothing to watch has always been routine.

Today we celebrate the 142nd anniversary of Edgar Lee Masters' birth. Masters was a writer best known for his pithy book of poems, Spoon River Anthology describing the lives of those interred in a Midwestern cemetery. He was born in Garnett, Kansas and lived most of his life in the Midwest. His friendship with Harriet Monroe, editor of Poetry brought him into the Chicago group with Carl Sandberg and Vachel Lindsay. Though none of his other works brought him the same level of acclaim as the Spoon River Anthology, Masters continued to write thirty-nine other works including essays, novels, plays, and biographies of other famous poets.

This Saturday, September 11th, join Professor Chris Szczesny-Adams in a discussion about Wisconsin native Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright was a controversial and influential architect whose legacy is found both in the built environment and in his myriad of books, portfolios, and articles. Learn about his life and revolutionary aesthetic through the library's rare materials such as The Wasmuth Portfolio and the Taliesin Collection of Paints, Wallpapers and Textiles. Presented by Chris Szczesny-Adams.

Click here for the Frank Lloyd Wright program poster.

Architectural historian Chris Szczesny-Adams, Associate Professor at MIAD, received her doctorate from the University of Virginia where she also attained a master's degree in architectural history and historic preservation. She also has a master's degree in art history from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her interests include 19th and 20th century architecture, art, and material culture.

Seating is limited. Please call the Art, Music & Recreation Department at (414) 286-3071 to register.

Date: 9/11/2010
Start Time: 2:00 p.m.
End Time: 4:00 p.m.
Library: Central
Location: Krug Rare Books Room

Join us at the Central Library for the dedication of the Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World Traveling Exhibition. Mordecai Lee, Professor of Governmental Affairs at UWM will make brief opening remarks and invite the audience to view the exhibit.The dedication will begin at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, September 13th in Meeting Room One. This program is presented in connection with Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World on exhibit at the Central Library from September 8th to October 22nd, 2010.

Thanks to the Credit CARD Act of 2009 the following changes for gift cards went into effect this past Sunday, August 22:

Store gift cards and gift cards with a Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover brand logo sold on or after August 22, 2010 will be good for at least five years from the date the card is purchased. You can still be charged inactivity fees, but only if you haven't used your card for at least one year. Additionally, if the physical card expires before the five years is up you can get the balance transferred to a replacement card for free. For more details see the complete list of new rules for gift cards from the Federal Reserve Website.

New credit card rules also went into effect this week and in case you missed it, in February of this year there was another set of new credit card rules.

On Thursday, September 16th at 7:00p.m. in Central Library's Centennial Hall, join MPL and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for the UWM Libraries' Archives Department 9th Annual Revisiting Our Past Local History Lecture.

Jack Dougherty, prize winning author of More than One Struggle: The Evolution of Black School Reform in Milwaukee, will present "When Milwaukee's Civil Rights History Meets the Digital Era." Local civil rights activists Peggy Rozga and Vel Phillips will share remarks as well.

This event is also the launch of UWM's March on Milwaukee Civil Rights History Project.

This event is free and open to the public. Street parking is free after 6 p.m. For more information or to arrange for special needs, please call (414) 286-3021.

The sounds of my September Vogue and W magazines thudding through the mail slot reminded me of the terrific documentary about editor Anna Wintour and artistic director Grace Coddington's struggle to publish the biggest issue of Vogue ever - The September Issue in 2007. The contrast between these two powerful women is fascinating as their personalities and visions clash and deadlines loom. Andre Leon Talley and designers John Galliano, Vera Wang, Thakoon and Karl Lagerfeld are interviewed about their fall collections and the power Wintour wields.

The clean and sober, physically fit Marc Jacobs of today bears little resemblance to the skinny, chain smoking obsessive seen in Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton. The notoriously secretive designer gave what seems to be near total access to the film maker who follows him through the creation of his own collection and the work he does for Louis Vuitton. The contrast between his vision and the needs of the international corporate giant is often poignant, but Jacobs never compromises.

Valentino is the king overthrown by market forces as seen in Valentino: the last emperor. This incredible documentary traces history of The House of Valentino and the two years before its final runway shows. Most intriguing are the hundreds of women and men behind the scenes who actually realize his fashion vision and allow him to enjoy a lifestyle lavish beyond belief. From hand stitching gowns to arranging hundreds of vases of flowers or herding Valentino's pugs and dyeing his lawn - these are the people who 'made it work'. His business partner of more than fifty years, Giancarlo Giammetti is especially insightful as he reflects on the cutthroat, high stakes world of haute couture today and his own long, often unappreciated role in Valentino's success.

Submitted by Christine P.