Science

August 13th – August 19th

The Valley Nerd Watch!

 

Nerd Nite! Tomorrow! Be there and be square! It’ll be fun, we’re talking comic books and mafia history in the Valley. It’s at the World War 2 Club in Northampton, 50 Conz St., 7pm – 9pm. Hang out, meet new people, have fun. $5 at the door to pay our speakers and organizers, and a charity bake sale!

Also! Check out Wednesday Games at the Brass Cat in Easthampton at 7pm – 11:30pm this week to win a free copy of excellent game (edited by the Valley’s own Josh Yearsley) Root! It’s very good and fun and it comes with a full walkthrough!

And for the love of everything good in the world REGISTER TO VOTE! Do it NOW. Vote in all of your local elections for candidates whose policy proposals involve NOT harming you and your fellow Valley citizens. It’s extremely important to do this. The deadline is August 15th!

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Monday, August 13th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Forbes Library Zine Club Presents: Queer & Feminist Zine Memoir
“Come check out a reading of local & traveling zinesters, putting a queer twist on memoir, history, and creative storytelling. Jordan Alam (Letters to Self), Mae Allard (Giving It Up: Relations of a Celibate Slut), and Elvis Wolf (Homos in Herstory) will present their tales, images, and words – on the topics of personal memory, radical celibacy, and the ghostly, continuing presence of the past. “
Thursday, August 16th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Jones Library Stichin’ Group
Stich! We assume like… cross-stich? But who knows maybe this is about wound care.
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Bucket Drumming with Mr. Dan
“Due to the popularity of this program on July 12th, we are happy to offer a second program. Learn how to make music and keep rhythm using buckets and sticks. This program will be taught by Mr. Dan, a music education student at Westfield State University. Ages 8-12 years old. Registration required and space is limited. Buckets are generously being donated by Rocky’s Ace Hardware, Free Street, Westfield, MA”
Friday, August 17th
Gandara Youth Development Center [306 Race St., Holyoke, MA] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Radioplasma Recording Studio Sessions
Meet in the Teen Room to walk as a group to the Radioplasma Recording Studio to get some hands on experience with journalism, storytelling, and sound mixing! SOUNDS cool! Get it? See that? Nice.

Board Games:

Wednesday, August 15th
Brass Cat [65 Cottage St, Easthampton, MA 01027] at 7:00 PM to 11:30 PM
Wednesday Games – Root Giveaway!
“Well folks, it’s finally happened! Root, which you all had a hand in shaping, is officially released upon the world! Let’s celebrate! I’ll get my hands on as many copies as I can so as many folks as possible can get to play. And anyone who plays will be entered for a chance to win their own copy plus the Riverfolk Expansion!” Root’s a great game! What a good idea for a featured game.

Books:

Tuesday, August 14th
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Bikes and Books
The library and the Urban Bike School are teaming up! Discuss a book, take a bike ride after! We were much more in the discuss a book, play a videogame after crowd but this seems like it’d have more benefits overall.
Wednesday, August 15th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) Writing Critique Group
Writers of picture books, middle grade, and YA books meet to read and get some feedback! The group is facilitated by following SCBWI guidelines but you don’t have to be a member to participate. Learn to write better and also meet some colleagues!

Community:

Wednesday, August 15th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM
Western Massachusetts Mathematics Partnership
“The Western Massachusetts Mathematics Partnership strives to bring PreK-16 math educators in Western Massachusetts together to learn from each other in order to improve student learning. We do this by facilitating opportunities to explore and appreciate mathematics and math teaching practices with a growth mindset. We believe this enables educators to support diverse learners who believe in themselves. During our monthly meetings, we plan events and discuss long-term projects.” Get tips on how to teach mathematics from fellow educators!
Saturday, August 18th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Interview with Confidence
Preparation is key to a good job interview! You’ll learn how to prepare in this class, and find out how to deal with phone and skype interviews as well!

Entertainment:

Monday, August 13th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Muggle Quidditch at Hillside Park
“Muggle Quidditch, the popular wizard’s game, will be played on Mondays starting July 9 @ 6pm at Hillside Park. The Recreation Department will be sponsoring this program and you will need to register through the Rec Department http://www.greenfieldrecreation.com/youthandteens.html by July 3. Be sure to reserve your place on the teams!” All the excitement of Quidditch, none of the excitement of the flying part of it!
World War 2 Club [50 Conz St, Northampton] at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Nerd Nite NoHo
This month! See Justin Casico (like the watch) talk about how the mafia came to Springfield, and Ellie Hillis discuss her feminist comics agenda! Comics! The Mafia! They go together like… actually wait those go together alright. Best comics mobster? Not even a content, Hammerhead. $5 cover at the door, give any amount to charity to get a baked good!
Wednesday, August 15th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 7:45 PM
Lawn Concert by Tim Eriksen and Friends
“Original and traditional Americana music from New England, southern Appalachia and the Balkans. ” Free, bring a blanket and a low chair to hang out and listen!
Thursday, August 16th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Anime Club
Watch anime! Watch one about robots! Or witches! We heard good stuff about Little Witch Academia! That’s an option!
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Ultimate Fandom Trivia/Summer Reading Celebration
“How well do you remember the Avenger movies? Think you know everything about Harry Potter? Or is Stranger Things more your cup of tea? Then come give your best guesses. You will be in groups, so if Marvel isn’t your thing you’ll have someone else to help you out. We will also be celebrating the end of Summer Reading with pizza and ice cream! The raffle prizes will also be drawn. However you do not need to attend to win! For students going into grades 6-12. Please register!”

Kids:

Tuesday, August 14th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
LEGO! For Kids ages 5 and up!
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Engineering Boot Camp
“Make your own hand-held game console! International Engineering Firm L3KOE is hosting a 3-day STEAM boot camp exploring design, coding, and 3D printing with a team of engineers. Participants must be able to attend all 3 sessions. Pre-register in the Kids’ Room, or by contacting us at 413-259 -3091//teens@joneslibrary.org. Registration closes 24 hours in advance. “
Wednesday, August 15th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Snackbeard Concert
Snackbeard the pirate takes time off from we presume snacking upon the remains of his victims to bring music to kids 4-10 at the library!
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Engineering Boot Camp
Day 2 of the camp!
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Youth Leadership Program
A hands-on series during which the youth will have the opportunity to develop leadership skills and interact with their community through games, conversations, field trips, and other activities! You’re going to want to pay attention to how to lead, the youth, we really need you to tell us to stop being horrible.
Thursday, August 16th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:15 PM
Comics Club
Join Callie in the Children’s + YA Department for a meeting to make your own comics and talk with other comic fans! Intended for elementary and tween readers. Have you read Squirrel Girl? It’s great read that one. Ms Marvel is also really good!
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Engineering Boot Camp
Day 3 of the camp!
Saturday, August 18th
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art [125 West Bay Rd., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Happier Family Comedy Show
Happier Valley Comedy is the heart of improv comedy in Western Mass! Let your family’s creativity flourish in an accepting improv atmosphere! Geared for kids aged 5-12, call 413-559-6336 to get tickets!
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Raina Telgemeir Fan Club
Grades 4-7 are welcome to come hang out and talk about the extremely excellent work of graphic novelist Raina Telgemeier! She’s so good. Discuss your favorites with fellow fans, and make a craft! Just drop by, no registration necessary!

Movies:

Monday, August 13th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Movie Monday
A movie! Snacks! Drinks! No registration required. The current movie is Coco, which is a pretty good movie!
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 3:30 PM to 6:00 PM
Teen Movie: Howl’s Moving Castle
A new Teen Film! One of those films that are invisible to the eyes of non-teens, and indeed leave the memory as a mist once you hit 20. But we’ve heard good things about Howl’s Moving Castle, you should check it out!
Friday, August 17th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Outdoor Film Series: A Wrinkle In Time
Watch A Wrinkle In Time outdoors! It’s a classic story, translated into a filme we’ve heard more mixed things about but heck it’ll be fun, always a good time to watch movies outdoors!
Saturday, August 18th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Hot Summer Saturday Movie Matinee: Dreamgirls
“This 2006 film is an adaptation of the Broadway hit about the ups and downs of a 1960s girl group, starring Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé Knowles, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, and Jennifer Hudson, who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role. This film is rated PG-13. Free & open to the public. “
Sunday, August 19th
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Film | “L’Antiquaire” (“The Art Dealer”)
“This drama from renowned French director François Margolin (The Flight of the Red Balloon) follows a Jewish woman who embarks on a journey to recover family paintings stolen by the Nazis. During her investigation, she discovers some family secrets are best kept hidden.”

RPGs:

Tuesday, August 14th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Dungeons and Dragons
Contact Tristin Anderson at a mysterious pub by the name of trisdragon2@gmail.com to begin your wonderous adventure in the Boys and Girls Library Activity Room! SHAZAM!
Thursday, August 16th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
RPG Club
RPGs are great! Play Noirlandia, or Questlandia, or Dread, or Monsterhearts, or Apocalypse World, or Dogs in the Vineyard, or One Thousand and One Nights, or any of a lot of amazing games created right here in this Valley! They’re all very good!

Technology:

Tuesday, August 14th
Common Media [84 Russell St., Hadley, MA] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Hack for Western Mass
“After quick updates on our ongoing projects, we’ll discuss upcoming projects and then get hacking to make a difference in our communities. We’ll be meeting from 6:00 – 8:30pm on the second Tuesday of the month. Dinner and drinks are on us!”

Teens:

Monday, August 13th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Teens Only: Make a Sharpie Tie-Dye T-Shirt
Teens! Steal a shirt from your least favorite parent and turn it into a sharpie tie-dye shirt! Then when you have the hang of it make your own! Bring a t-shirt to decorate!
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August 6th – August 12th

The Valley Nerd Watch!

You should check out Nerd Nite! It’s happening Monday the 13th, at the World War 2 Club in Northampton!

‘How the Mafia Came to Springfield’ – Justin Cascio

Pasqualina Albano and Carlo Siniscalchi were local royalty on Water Street in Springfield’s Little Italy at the start of Prohibition. But in his first year as the self proclaimed Bootleg King, Carlo was killed, leaving Pasqualina to rule in his stead. She forged a bond with New York’s Genovese crime family, and continued her family’s business, a legacy that endures to this day.

‘Ask Me About My Feminist Comics Agenda’ – Ellie Hillis

Women are the future of comics. From the success of Kickstarters like Check, Please! to the fact that women are over 50% of the active floppy comics readership, big publishers may be missing out on the true core demographic of comics.

This week you should go to the Forbes Library Zine Club, it’s full of good people and good zines, and you can contribute to both of those!

Also, make sure to register to vote! You can do so here: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ovr/! You want to make sure to vote this year so that you can contribute to making our state better. Speaking of: https://www.freedommassachusetts.org/, vote Yes on 3! It will make the state safer for people who are trans and that’s extremely important.

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Wednesday, August 8th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Forbes Library Zine Club
Talk about zines! Create Zines! Those two things mostly, but we guess you could probably get in some yoga as well.
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Artists’ Reception for Karen Evans, Leni Gaudet, and Jenny Tibbetts
“Shared Visions is an exhibit showcasing the work of three local women artists whose paintings explore the world around them. Karen Evans finds inspiration in the landscape, from farmland to the townships of Western Massachusetts. Leni Gaudet captures the reflections and light in still life and nature. Jenny Tibbetts explores light and color in urban and rural themes.” Eat cheese while you think about this excellent artwork!
Friday, August 10th
Smith College Museum of Art [20 Elm St, Northampton, MA 01063] at 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Free Second Friday
Free art! At a great museum! But still donate if you can! It’s important to support the museum. Get there early to experience Painting in Reverse, painting on plexiglass with quick-drying permanent markers inspired by the exhibition 体 Modern Images of the Body from East Asia!
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Landscapes/Dreamscapes, Opening Reception and Print Fair & Arts Night Out
“Join us for an Arts Night Out reception for the exhibition Landscapes/Dreamscapes, an exhibition of contemporary prints from Zea Mays Printmaking with objects and images from Historic Northampton’s collection. The August Print Fair will feature printmakers: ​Dan Chiaccio, Jennifer Gover, Nick Osetek & Sheryl Jaffe.” Prints are always fun, we did printmaking in art class as kids and dang if they were not very poorly constructed. Presumably these are GOOD prints though.
Saturday, August 11th
Zea Mays Printmaking (320 Riverside Drive, Florence, MA 01062) at 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
BIG INK at Zea Mays Printmaking
“Large scale woodblock printing on the BIG TUNA traveling press in the courtyard of Zea Mays Printmaking. Ongoing throughout the day. The public is welcome to come watch as six artists print giant woodblocks.”
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Paper-Making
Recycle to make your own paper! Drop in, open to all ages, but if you’re 10 or younger you should bring an adult! Note that the program is outdoors and will need to be cancelled if the weather takes a turn for the worse!
Sunday, August 12th
Zea Mays Printmaking (320 Riverside Drive, Florence, MA 01062) at 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
BIG INK at Zea Mays Printmaking
“Large scale woodblock printing on the BIG TUNA traveling press in the courtyard of Zea Mays Printmaking. Ongoing throughout the day. The public is welcome to come watch as six artists print giant woodblocks.”

Board Games:

Friday, August 10th
Burger King Community Room [344 King St., Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 10:30 PM
Tabletop Game Night
“Join us for another day of tabletop board/card game playing. Bring a game that you’d like to share, if you have one. Beginners are welcome. We most often play Euro strategy games, but you are welcome to bring any game you’d like to share. Some of the games we’ve played in the past include: Pandemic, 7 Wonders, Star Trek: Five-Year Mission, King of Tokyo, Dominion. The Community Room is all the way in the back. If you come in the side entrance, the room is directly to your right. If you come in the front entrance, just head to your right, then straight back.” Board games with friendly people! Try new stuff! Everyone loves Azul at the moment!

Books:

Tuesday, August 7th
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
T. Greenwood, Rust & Stardust
“Based on the experiences of real-life kidnapping victim Sally Horner and her captor, whose story shocked the nation and inspired Vladimir Nabokov to write his controversial and iconic Lolita, this heart-pounding story by award-winning author T. Greenwood at last gives a voice to Sally herself.” Register for free here: https://www.odysseybks.com/event-rsvp

Community:

Tuesday, August 7th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Town Hall with Josh Zakim for Secretary of State
“Come hear from the Democratic candidates for Secretary of State and learn about the important role this office plays from the state archives to securities to corporations to elections and it is one of the few contested statewide races this year. Free and open to the public.”
Saturday, August 11th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Resume Writing 101
Up-to-date resume writing techniques for you to learn! Tailor a resume using keywords and learn how to format it effectively for online submissions! You’ll also learn how to write an effective cover letter. The whole package!

Computers:

Tuesday, August 7th
The Foundry [24 Main St., Northampton, MA] at 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Northampton Webdive – After Work
“Join a community of web professionals and gain experience in public speaking, leadership, event planning, and networking with peers and leaders in the tech industry.” Talk about work, then once you’ve gotten comfortable enough talk about anything but work because for real you need to take some time off.
Wednesday, August 8th
Last Call Media [136 West St., Suite 01, Northampton, MA] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Agile Methods Meetup
This week at the Agile meetup: “Let’s talk about the terms used (Epics, Stories, Tasks, Subtasks) in breaking down our work into actionable pieces and discuss how they fit into our tooling.” Plus free pizza!

Entertainment:

Monday, August 6th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Muggle Quidditch at Hillside Park
“Muggle Quidditch, the popular wizard’s game, will be played on Mondays starting July 9 @ 6pm at Hillside Park. The Recreation Department will be sponsoring this program and you will need to register through the Rec Department http://www.greenfieldrecreation.com/youthandteens.html by July 3. Be sure to reserve your place on the teams!” All the excitement of Quidditch, none of the excitement of the flying part of it!
Tuesday, August 7th
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
From Northampton to the Boundary Waters
“For the third consecutive year, Historic Northampton is teaming up with Paradise City Dragon Boat for a trip on the Connecticut. Betsy Powell, Head Coach of Paradise City Dragon Boat, will begin the outing with a paddling lesson. Once we’re a ways up river, Laurie Sanders, naturalist & Co-Director of Historic Northampton, will explain about the rich human and natural history in this stretch between Elwell Island and the Hatfield boundary. ​Registration Required |$25-$35 | Ages 18+” We had no idea Historic Northampton was powerful enough to fell dragons and turn them into boats but it is pretty cool.
Thursday, August 9th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 12:30 PM to 3:30 PM
CON-ANON: 5th Annual Fan Convention
A fan convention! Snacks, games, a cosplay contest, and a panel! And more! We presume! Probably other people will be there!

Kids:

Monday, August 6th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Makerspace
Explore “cool technology” learning how to use 3D software to create and print objects, experiment with robotics and virtual reality. This program is for kids! 7-12 only. Registration is required and space is limited.
Tuesday, August 7th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
Kids! Play with LEGO! It’s fun!
Wednesday, August 8th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM
Library Building Blocks Club
Kids! Play with LEGO! It’s fun!
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Battle of the Bands: Rock Band!
Rock Band! Dang if that’s not one of the most fun games ever. Worth it despite the terrible cost in plastic specialty single-purpose instruments. Give it a go while it’s set up in the library! Just whatever you do don’t try Tangled Up In Blue on drums. Open to kids in grades 6-12!
Friday, August 10th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Archaeology Rocks!
“Prepare to be amazed and fascinated as you learn about ancient history and archaeology in this hands-on-program. Hold and examine stone tools and other artifacts crafted by people thousands of years ago. Engage in a dialogue with presenter J.K. Quackenbush about the tools and people of ancient times. Ages 6 and up. Registration is required and space is limited.” Quackenbush, just an amazing last name. We hope it’s one of those ones that’s based on what you were up to in town. The town quacker, hiding in bushes to add a bit of scenic audio to any perambulation.
Saturday, August 11th
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art [125 West Bay Rd., Amherst, MA 01002] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Special Storytime: Vanessa Brantley Newton
“Join author/illustrator Vanessa Brantley Newtown as she reads from her new book, Grandma’s Purse, an adorable, energetic ode to visits from grandma that shows how an ordinary day can become extraordinary.” Our own grandmother’s purses were filled with silt and pliers for the most part.
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Jurassic Roadshow
“The fantastic Jurassic Roadshow is coming to town. Featured will be interactive stations with exciting information and hands on learning about fossil and dinosaurs.”

Movies:

Tuesday, August 7th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Summer Reading Movie: Forever My Girl
Watch Forever My Girl, a movie about what we assume is an immortal girl. Maybe a vampire? Impossible to tell.
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Sing Along Movie Night
“Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down- get ready to sing along with Bert, Mary Poppins and the whole gang! Bring the whole family for our special sing along movie nights. Wear costumes, bring props and be ready to sing, sing, sing!”
Wednesday, August 8th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 8:00 PM to 10:15 PM
Coco on the Lawn – Rain Date
Bring a blanket and a picnic basket for your dinner, then watch a good movie on the lawn, the way it was meant to be seen!
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Film: Conviction
“Conviction is a documentary film about three Dominican nuns who took the proliferation of nuclear arms in the country personally. These women saw it a their duty, their mission, their religious calling, to break into a missile silo in Colorado, chant, pour their own blood and get jailed for their beliefs. They were convicted and sentenced to Federal Prison for their non-violent protest at a Minuteman III missile site in Northern Colorado. This 48-minute film evokes important conversations about the role of religion in politics, the role of nuclear weapons in national defense and the role of International Law in the Federal Courts.”
Saturday, August 11th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Hot Summer Saturday Movie Matinee: Hairspray
Another family-friendly classic from John Waters! It’s a very cute film!

RPGs:

Tuesday, August 7th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 5:45 PM to 7:45 PM
Dungeons and Dragons
The big old standard one! The RPG with swords and shields and dragons and dungeons! It’s fun and you can play it with pals!

Teens:

Monday, August 6th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Bath Bombs Teens Only
Only teens could be so anarchically carefree as to desire the knowledge offered in this hour-long course. Only a teen would want to take the humble bathtub and turn it into a weapon! Are they making a statement about the idle comforts of the bourgeois by turning what was a source of pleasure into a terrifying oh we’ve been told they’re like bubble bath capsules sorry
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Makerspace
Explore “cool technology” learning how to use 3D software to create and print objects, experiment with robotics and virtual reality. This program is for teens! 13-18 only. Registration is required and space is limited.

Video Games:

Tuesday, August 7th
Prodigy Minigolf & Gameroom [Eastworks, 116 Pleasant St, Easthampton MA] at 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Tuesday Night Smash League – Super Smash Bros Melee
Ah, the best Smash Bros we assume because it’s the one we hear most about! Signup starts at 7pm, matches start at 8pm, double-elimination bracket and it’s $10 to enter. You can win money! Spectators also have to pay $10 so frankly it seems like you should not be a spectator, because why not just play the danged game maybe you’ll find out you’re a natural. Ages 13+!

 

July 23rd – 29th

 

The Valley Nerd Watch!

Check out the new fun thing in the hottest town in the Valley, Easthampton! It’s Prodigy, a mini-golf/games place open Wed – Sun for folks 13 and up, 13-15 accompanied by parents! There’s kind of a long story there but basically it’s got a complex mini-golf course handmade by a person who’d like fewer 6 year-old kids to destroy it. What is it with Eastworks attracting people who accidentally make business that are basically designed for small children to annihilate?

There are foods! There are drinks! You can play games and mini-golf! Costs about $10 for a full day of admission, which is pretty nifty! Really, just go check it out already local businesses need your cash and it costs less than a movie.

ALSO! We have job news for you! Are you looking for work? Why not be a physics technician at Mount Holyoke College? You’d be responsible for:  “1) supporting and maintaining classroom demonstrations, 2) supporting research labs (minor repairs and maintenance), and 3) advising students on technical aspects of research projects when appropriate. ”

You should apply if it sounds fun!

“The ideal candidate will have some training in machining and CAD design, can execute minor electronic repairs, and has a bachelors in physics or a related field. However, we will also consider candidates who have extensive technical experience regardless of degree, OR who have substantial physics/engineering expertise and are eager to develop technical skills. (An enthusiastic recent graduate may be qualified.)

We especially encourage women and people from underrepresented groups to apply. ”

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Wednesday, July 25th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Forbes Library Zine Club
Talk about zines! Create Zines! Those two things mostly, but we guess you could probably get in some light cardio as well.
Thursday, July 26th
Gandara Youth Development Center [306 Race St., Holyoke, MA] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Radioplasma Recording Studio Sessions
Meet in the Teen Room to walk as a group to the Radioplasma Recording Studio to get some hands on experience with journalism, storytelling, and sound mixing! SOUNDS cool! Get it? See that? Nice.
Sunday, July 29th
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Factual and Fictitious Geography in the Nuremburg Chronicles
A double-feature! Lecture by New York artist Tate Klacsmann, followed by a live wood-cut demonstration by local artist Nancy Haver! Both arts are currently exhibiting in Historic Northampton!

Board Games:

Monday, July 23rd
Greenfield Games [238 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Tanks from GF9
All day on Monday, and possibly future Mondays, the Tanks crew is around to teach people a fun and accessible new miniatures game! It’s about home-care workers oddly enough. To be fair it’s about home-care workers who are represented in-game by highly detailed little models of tanks, and helping an elderly client is represented as a sort of combat tactics game.
Saturday, July 28th
Greenfield Games [238 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Greenfield Games Summer Auction
Summer auction! The silent auction part is already happening, so check out Greenfield Games for a chance to get some great games. Then, on the 28th there’s the live auction! Come in any time to register for a number early and bid if you can’t make it! This is the biggest shopping day of the year if you’re into board games!

Books:

Tuesday, July 24th
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Lauren Groff, Florida in conversation with Judith Frank
“In her thrilling new book, Lauren Groff brings the reader into a physical world that is at once domestic and wild–a place where the hazards of the natural world lie waiting to pounce, yet the greatest threats and mysteries are still of an emotional, psychological nature. A family retreat can be derailed by a prowling panther, or by a sexual secret. Among those navigating this place are a resourceful pair of abandoned sisters; a lonely boy, grown up; a restless, childless couple, a searching, homeless woman; and an unforgettable, recurring character–a steely and conflicted wife and mother.”
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Bikes and Books
The library and the Urban Bike School are teaming up! Discuss a book, take a bike ride after! We were much more in the discuss a book, play a videogame after crowd but this seems like it’d have more benefits overall.
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Author Talk — Eric Rieseberg and Helen Noble
“Rieseberg’s “Heroes Alongside Us” is a tribute to the men who were the key to his and many others success in life. The book defines what success is, how to achieve it, and the rewards of that achievement.” We define success as having twenty cookies. “Noble’s “25,000 Seeds: Where Love Grows” follows Claire Patterson takes a consulting project in an Ohio farming community. She can handle this; it’s business as usual. Stepping way out of her comfort zone, she finds that fewer distractions in the rural region leaves her with more free time than she’s had in years”… to pursue romance!
Friday, July 27th
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Ottessa Moshfegh, My Year of Rest and Relaxation
“From one of our boldest, most celebrated new literary voices, a novel about a young woman’s efforts to duck the ills of the world by embarking on an extended hibernation with the help of one of the worst psychiatrists in the annals of literature and the battery of medicines she prescribes”

Card Games:

Friday, July 27th
Greenfield Games [238 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Friday Night Magic
Friday Night Magic! This is one of the best opportunities you have to competitively play a wonderful game that also maybe keep a diary of how much you spend on it. Two tournaments starting at 6pm, $5 for each, one’s going to be Standard Format, one’s Modern! Win packs and promo cards!

Community:

Tuesday, July 24th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Free Lunch at the Library
“All children under the age of 18 are welcome to a free hot lunch at the Jones Library. Join us for a fun library program before, or come just for lunch. Adults over the age of 18 are welcome to purchase a meal for $3.50. ” Libraries: useful for the community!
Thursday, July 26th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM
Creating Community for Women with Chronic Illness
From the site: “We hold a monthly support group for women living with a variety of chronic illnesses (e.g. autoimmune disorder, MS, arthritis, Crohn’s and colitis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Lyme disease, etc.). It is free and open to the public. http://www.joneslibrary.org/calendar.aspx?EID=4913“
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
The Thursday Morning Club: Buz Eisenberg on the First Amendment
“The New England First Amendment Coalition will present a discussion on the First Amendment from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. on July 26 at the Greenfield Public Library as part of the library’s Thursday Morning Club at the Greenfield Public Library.The program will feature Buz Eisenberg, an attorney and First Amendment expert. The event is free and open to the public.”

Entertainment:

Monday, July 23rd
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Muggle Quidditch at Hillside Park
“Muggle Quidditch, the popular wizard’s game, will be played on Mondays starting July 9 @ 6pm at Hillside Park. The Recreation Department will be sponsoring this program and you will need to register through the Rec Department http://www.greenfieldrecreation.com/youthandteens.html by July 3. Be sure to reserve your place on the teams!” All the excitement of Quidditch, none of the excitement of the flying part of it!
Wednesday, July 25th
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM
Dances and Rhythms of Puerto Rico with Brendaliz Cepeda y Las Mujeres de Bomba Group
“Brendaliz Cepeda and her folklore group provide traditional music from Puerto Rico. Brenda y las Mujeres de Bomba has been working in the community teaching youth and adults about drumming, dancing and the history of Bomba y Plena. For more information,or registration 413-420-8101 or library@holyoke.org”
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
The Music of Star Wars: A Celebration of John Williams’ Film Scores
“GPL is pleased to welcome back Aaron Krerowicz with a new program: The Music of Star Wars: A Celebration of John Williams’ Film Scores. Often called a “space opera”, one aspect of the Star Wars films that helped make them such a pop culture phenomenon was composer John Williams’ iconic music. This 60-minute multimedia presentation showcases music from all eight episodes.”
Thursday, July 26th
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art [125 West Bay Rd., Amherst, MA 01002] at 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM
Lyra Music Festival and Workshop: Young Artist Program Special Concert
Classical music for kids that’s “just right”! Then, an Instrument Petting Zoo where kids can hold and play with some instruments that are presumably worth very little money.
Friday, July 27th
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Full Moon Group Sing
Sing in a group to welcome the full moon, as you do!
Saturday, July 28th
Cummington Fairgrounds [97 Fairgrounds Road, Cummington MA] at 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM
Massachusetts Renaissance Faire: Time-Travelers Weekend
Isn’t this every weekend at a Ren Faire?
Sunday, July 29th
Prodigy Minigolf & Gameroom [Eastworks, 116 Pleasant St, Easthampton MA] at 12:00 AM to 4:00 AM
Prodigy Late-Night Decathlon
Ten events covering the range from physical games like shuffleboard to classic arcade games like Ms Pac-Man to toys like Simon! You can purchase a ticket to the Decathlon and get all-day access Saturday! NO REFUNDS they want to make clear so be ready to be up late. The most points gets $100 + a medal, 2nd most gets $50 and a medal, third gets a month of free membership plus a medal!

Kids:

Monday, July 23rd
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Cooking Class
Cook at the library! Learn how to cook new things, learn about nutrition, and eat tasty food after you prepare it!
Tuesday, July 24th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
Kids! Play with LEGO! It’s fun!
Thursday, July 26th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Build-a-Beat (Ages 7 & up)
Learn how to use Beat Lab and Chrome Music Lab to create your own beats to share with friends! Pre-Register at kids@joneslibrary.org!
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Young Adult Cupcake Wars
Decorate a cupcake! Win a prize! Open to ages 10 and up, register at the Youth Services Desk!
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM
Crazy Crafternoon & Tech Tinkering
Craft a masterpiece with craft supplies! Make circuits! Play with cool things! Register by calling 413-562-6158! Ages 5 and up welcome.
Friday, July 27th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM
Moana Sing & Dance Along
Sing and dance along to Moana! A movie that probably required like 10,000 hair animators. Families with kids 3 and up are welcome, enjoy a craft and snacks while you’re singing and dancing! Well. Not WHILE.
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Harry Potter Afternoon
Celebrate a slighty early birthday for Harry Potter by making a wand, drinking some butterbeer, and playing would you rather! For students going into grades 6-12, register with oeberli@westath.org because space is limited!

Movies:

Wednesday, July 25th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 8:00 PM to 10:15 PM
Coco on the Lawn
A free screening of Pixar’s great new movie “Coco”! Bring a blanket and some food, wait until dark and then leave, stunning the crowd as they try to figure out what sort of person leaves before the film starts! Or just watch a fun movie, should start around 8:30pm.
Sunday, July 29th
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
FILMS | “Iom Romi” (“A Day in Rome”) & “Cuba’s Forgotten Jewels: A Haven in Havana”
“Iom Romì chronicles a day in the life of the contemporary Jewish community of Rome. From dawn to dusk, through the voices of several characters living and working in the historic Ghetto quarter, Iom Romì tells the story of a community both fiercely independent and distinctly Roman. | Cuba’s Forgotten Jewels was born of the tales that Marion Kreith told her daughter, co-director Judy Kreith, about her escape from Nazi-occupied Belgium and her teenage years in 1940s Havana. Marion and other refugees interviewed in the film recall their lives in wartime Havana: the draw of Cuban food, music and dance, its language and people, and the challenges they faced in this unfamiliar land. The film features an original soundtrack of Cuban and Jewish music. “

RPGs:

Tuesday, July 24th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 5:45 PM to 7:45 PM
Dungeons and Dragons
Dungeons? We have dungeons. Dragons? Eeeeessssh. Hmm. HMmHmHMMMph. Dragons. Real dragons? The big kind? Fire ones? We don’t have fire ones… Ice? No no no ice dragons. What’s that? Like a dead dragon? We could get you a dead dragon! Wait, but still moving? Oh UN-dead, no no none of those. SSsssss sss s s hm. Hm. We can do gerblins! Will those do?

Science:

Monday, July 23rd
The Harp Irish Pub [163 Sunderland Road, Amherst MA] at 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM
OEB Science Cafe: Sleep on It: The Neuroscience of Sleep and Dreams
Why do we sleep? Weirdly difficult to answer question. Dr. Rebecca Spencer will give you the whole buzz, along with trivia and appetizers!
Tuesday, July 24th
Amherst College, Merrill Science Center [220 South Pleasant St, Amherst MA] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Soccer Robot Presentation
“Disappointed that the USA wasn’t in the World Cup? Come watch the Team Amherst soccer robot win against itself on Tuesday, July 24 in the Merrill Atrium! A formal presentation will be given at 2 p.m. and the rest of the hour will be a demonstration of the robot’s skills.” That sounds spectacular. What if it’s good? That’d be weird. It can’t be like a robot person, it has to be a little battlebot type thing or something right?

Technology:

Wednesday, July 25th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Python Coding Club
Meet with people interested in learning to code and work on some projects and exchange tips! Participants should bring computers and of course download Python and something to code with. We like Atom a lot, it’s got nice integrations and such.

Teens:

Friday, July 27th
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
It’s LIT: Summer Sex and Relationship Series at the Library
In partnership with the River Valley Counselling Center, youth will have a chance to talk about sex, relationships, sexuality, and how to stay safe happy and healthy. Frankly these sorts of workshops should be attended by everyone every year in our experience. This stuff remains confusing forever. Snacks are provided, and there’s a $50 gift card you can earn for completing the whole series!

Video Games:

Tuesday, July 24th
Prodigy Minigolf & Gameroom [Eastworks, 116 Pleasant St, Easthampton MA] at 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Tuesday Night Smash League – Super Smash Bros Melee
Ah, the best Smash Bros we assume because it’s the one we hear most about! Signup starts at 7pm, matches start at 8pm, double-elimination bracket and it’s $10 to enter. You can win money! Spectators also have to pay $10 so frankly it seems like you should not be a spectator, because why not just play the danged game maybe you’ll find out you’re a natural. Ages 13+!

 

July 16th – July 22nd

The Valley Nerd Watch!

Into the Breach is really, really good. Spectacular, even. Give it a shot if you’re at all interested in games in which you move around robots on a map and try to destroy gigantic bugs! It’s fun in part because so much of it is just like improvising a solution to a push-pull puzzle.

This week we highly recommend you hit up the Greenfield Games events and tell them – at length – how much you appreciate the fact that they have started posting events to a dedicated website instead of Facebook, the least fun website to visit!

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Monday, July 16th
Greenfield Games [238 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Monthly Painting Workshop
Painting workshops with Andrew! All you need to do is show up ready to paint! All materials are provided. Though wait, that seems implausible. Do they mean all paints? All we know about miniatures is that they’re wildly expensive. Maybe they’ve got like extras or plastic ones that are cheaper. Anyway, these are questions you can most easily resolve by attending the event!
Tuesday, July 17th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Children’s Book Writers Group
Adults who write for kids, talk to other adults who do the same! Facilitated by Nell Wright, it’s a chance to share tips, discuss skills, and get input about stories!
Wednesday, July 18th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Rock Painting
Bring a rock! Paint the rock! Bring as many rocks as you like, really. A few practice rocks can’t hurt.
Thursday, July 19th
Gandara Youth Development Center [306 Race St., Holyoke, MA] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Radioplasma Recording Studio Sessions
Meet in the Teen Room to walk as a group to the Radioplasma Recording Studio to get some hands on experience with journalism, storytelling, and sound mixing! SOUNDS cool! Get it? See that? Nice.
Friday, July 20th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM
Stitch Camp (2)
Sew and embroider a cute mini animal out of felt! Be careful not to allow your hubris to overwhelm you, causing you to create a felt animal so real that it comes to life. That’s too much responsibility! Lead by Heather Wynne, a local designer who specializes in textile products! Pre-registration required! Call 413-665-2642!

Board Games:

Monday, July 16th
Greenfield Games [238 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Tanks from GF9
All day on Monday, and possibly future Mondays, the Tanks crew is around to teach people a fun and accessible new miniatures game! It’s about librarians oddly enough. To be fair it’s about librarians who are represented in-game by highly detailed little models of tanks, and re-shelving books is represented as a sort of combat tactics game.
Wednesday, July 18th
Brass Cat [65 Cottage St, Easthampton, MA 01027] at 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Wednesday Games – Sagrada
Sagrada is great! Kind of a dice-based solitaire you play against several other people that’s about building a nice stained-glass window. Give it a shot at the next delightful Wednesday Games!

Books:

Tuesday, July 17th
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Bikes and Books
The library and the Urban Bike School are teaming up! Discuss a book, take a bike ride after! We were much more in the discuss a book, play a videogame after crowd but this seems like it’d have more benefits overall.
Wednesday, July 18th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) Writing Critique Group
Writers of picture books, middle grade, and YA books meet to read and get some feedback! The group is facilitated by following SCBWI guidelines but you don’t have to be a member to participate. Learn to write better and also meet some colleagues!
Thursday, July 19th
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Ben Goldfarb, Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter
Oh that makes a ton of sense: a book about how what we think is a reasonable natural environment is actually the consequence of massive amounts of beaver-hunting for the fur trade. And since beavers literally terraform things in a visible manner even in small groups, it stands to reason that having basically none of them around makes for a damaged environment. Learn more from actual expert Ben Goldfarb at this talk! Register here: https://www.odysseybks.com/event-rsvp
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Local Author Talk – Norman Schell and the Ballade of Mary Reede
“On Thursday, July 19, at 7pm Norman Schell will speak about his new novel, The Ballad of Mary Reede at LeVanway Meeting Room of the Greenfield Public Library. The reading and a video presentation will be followed by a discussion of Piracy, past and present, and Slavery past and present. The program is free and open to the public. Copies of the novel will be available for those interested.”

Card Games:

Friday, July 20th
Greenfield Games [238 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Friday Night Magic
Friday Night Magic! This is one of the best opportunities you have to competitively play a wonderful game that also maybe keep a diary of how much you spend on it. Two tournaments starting at 6pm, $5 for each, one’s going to be Standard Format, one’s Modern! Win packs and promo cards!

Community:

Saturday, July 21st
Building Autistic Community, Inc. [8 Washington St, Westfield MA] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Saturday Autism and Asperger’s support group
“This group is an opportunity for support and discussion for people on the autism spectrum. This group is a “safe space” for adults in our community and is not intended as a parenting group; family members are encouraged to get in touch with us for relevant resources for their needs. Adults 18+ who identify with autism, Asperger’s, or other murky labels. For a number of reasons, including the difficulty of getting a diagnosis as an adult, a formal clinical diagnosis is not required.”

Entertainment:

Monday, July 16th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Muggle Quidditch at Hillside Park
“Muggle Quidditch, the popular wizard’s game, will be played on Mondays starting July 9 @ 6pm at Hillside Park. The Recreation Department will be sponsoring this program and you will need to register through the Rec Department http://www.greenfieldrecreation.com/youthandteens.html by July 3. Be sure to reserve your place on the teams!” All the excitement of Quidditch, none of the excitement of the flying part of it!
Tuesday, July 17th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
I Was (And Still Am) a Teenage Metal Head
Local rock musician and Academy of Rock instructor and founder Matt kim will share his coming of age story through his love of electric guitar!
Wednesday, July 18th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Summer Reading Event – Johnson Organs: Westfield’s Famous Organ Builder
Johnson Sophia Lorenzo Organs, the famous organ builder of Westfield. Who made a new liver for the Queen of England in 1987? Johson Sophia Lorenzo Organs. Who invented a new organ that’s capable of seeing time as color? Why of course, it was none other than Johnson Organs! Spectacular.
Thursday, July 19th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Anime Club
Anime! We’ve heard great things about My Hero Academia or as it’s known in Japan “[My Hero Academia]* *translated from Japanese”
Saturday, July 21st
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Developing a Podcast
Do you want to make a podcast? Good news! You actually already have one it’s 2018 we’re all currently interviewing someone on or being interviewed by someone for a podcast. But we could all use two! Talk to this local entertainment and pop culture reporter who’s thinking about starting a podcast and wants to collaborate with someone else in town! Bring your lap top and see what comes out of this brainstorming session!
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art [125 West Bay Rd., Amherst, MA 01002] at 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
13th Annual Children’s Book Festival: Four Seasons, Five Senses
A day celebrating the seasons! An exhibition, book signings, storytimes and art projects with artists from the Western Massachusetts Illustrators’ Guild. Drawing demonstrations! Films! Journaling workshops! The Happier Family Comedy Show! It’s going to be a packed day.
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Magic Show with Robert Clarke
A magician who has managed to not be destroyed by the crowds of Boston is a magician who has honed their craft to a fine edge. See the magic in person! Also juggling, which is impressive as well though not breaking any laws of physics.
Cummington Fairgrounds [97 Fairgrounds Road, Cummington MA] at 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM
Massachusetts Renaissance Faire: Pirate Weekend!
Pirates! Though not as much of a pop cultural phenomenon as they once were they are still a fun thing to dress up as! You can have a fun time and either eat a big turkey leg because it’s kind of fun or NOT do that because they’re really actually bad as heck. You should hit up one of the actually delicous foods on offer! Turkey legs at these things usually taste like someone brined a sponge.

History:

Thursday, July 19th
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Summer Lecture Series: Uncovering Hidden Histories through the Portrait of a Woman in Silk
Zara Anishanslin, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Delaware, will help you understand how you can use the Portrait of a Woman in Silk to uncover hidden histories of this world too terrifying and portentious to commit to mundane works. But beware, the Woman in Silk is known to be as devious as she is wise, delve neither too deep nor too greedily into the knowledge she holds!

Kids:

Monday, July 16th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Minecraft Club
Children! Play some Minecraft with friends!
Tuesday, July 17th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
Kids! Play with LEGO! It’s fun!
Wednesday, July 18th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Forest Park Zoo on the Go!
Meet some delightful animals and learn about how they’re adapted to survive in the wild! Touch and observe these crazy critters, and ask questions of your own!
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Family Night: The LEGO Lady
Apparently she’s always a big hit! What does she do, though? Juggling? Maybe dressage. Hm.
Thursday, July 19th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Escape from the Wizard’s Tower
Can you solve the puzzles, find the keys, and escape the room? If you can’t, you’re going to be eaten by a dragon! Children… we wish you the best of luck. Open to ages 10 and up, pre-register at Youth Services Desk or by calling 413-283-3330!
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Escape from the Wizard’s Tower
Did you solve the 2pm puzzle? Did your parents look oddly distraught? Well… here’s to another success story!
Saturday, July 21st
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Raina Telgemeir Fan Club
Grades 4-7 are welcome to come hang out and talk about the extremely excellent work of graphic novelist Raina Telgemeier! She’s so good. Discuss your favorites with fellow fans, and make a craft! Just drop by, no registration necessary!

Movies:

Monday, July 16th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 2:00 PM to 3:45 PM
Movie Monday: The Wizard of Oz
A movie! Snacks! Drinks! Probably non-alcoholic drinks because it’s all-ages, no registration required. The current movie is Wizard of Oz, which is a pretty good movie!
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 3:30 PM to 6:00 PM
Teen Movie: Princess Mononoke
This is one of our favorites! It’s just… very intense, and subtle in a way that we needed as a younger gestalt entity representing the myriad entites writing for this site. Plus we saw it in theaters once and it was really neat as heck, highly recommend seeing it on as big a screen as possible.
Tuesday, July 17th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Movie: Wonderstruck
Two kids from different eras set out on their respective journies of discovery that if we know anything about narrative conventions will in no way wind up being related. Also, as far as we can tell from the poster they’re being pursued by spectral wolves.
Wednesday, July 18th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 8:30 PM to 10:30 PM
Casablanca on the Lawn
A classic movie on the library lawn! It’s a great night that you’ll love, particularly if you bring a blanket and some snacks! Free to all, film rolls once it’s dark.
Friday, July 20th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM
“Walk-In Theater” Outdoor Film Series
Matilda is like Carrie, but for kids! Also a great way to convince any smart kids in your life that they should keep reading so that they can eventually manipulate objects with their minds!
Saturday, July 21st
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 2:30 PM to 5:00 PM
Hot Summer Saturday Movie Matinee: La Bamba
This is a biography of Ritchie Valens, a young rocker who made it big and died in a plane crash with Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper. The tagline is “Born in Poverty, Destined for Stardom, He Lived the American Dream”, which is kind of eliding over the whole “died in a plane crash tragically young” part.

RPGs:

Tuesday, July 17th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 5:45 PM to 7:45 PM
Dungeons and Dragons
Dungeons? We have dungeons. Dragons? Eeeeessssh. Hmm. HMmHmHMMMph. Dragons. Real dragons? The big kind? Fire ones? We don’t have fire ones… Ice? No no no ice dragons. What’s that? Like a dead dragon? We could get you a dead dragon! Wait, but still moving? Oh UN-dead, no no none of those. SSsssss sss s s hm. Hm. We can do displacer beasts! Will those do?
Thursday, July 19th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
RPG Club
Play a game where you pretend to be another person! That covers a pretty wide range, so we don’t know exactly what’ll be up here but for some reason most of these games involves swords and dragons at some point. Even if someone tells you you’re going to be playing an RPG about minding a small convenience store, take a few levels in Longswords just in case.

Technology:

Monday, July 16th
Click Workspace [9.5 Market St., Northampton MA] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Monitoring with Prometheus – Monthly Full Stack Meetup
Alberto Castro will come to talk about Prometheus! The man we all love, who gave us the fire-gift that stays the wolf and makes meat so tasty and delicious. We don’t understand how that relates to oh it’s a monitoring toolkit that’s open-source that is neat, Alberto will give you a rundown of when and where it might be a good idea to use Prometheus! Door code for the event and slots left are at the Meetup site! https://www.meetup.com/wmasswebdev/events/250097838/

Teens:

Thursday, July 19th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:15 PM to 4:15 PM
Workshop for Young Sound Artists and Podcasters
Learn how to record and edit audio, and make a piece of sound art of start a podcast! Intended for all teens who haven’t somehow already become internationally successful artists/podcasters. Sign up at the YA Desk!

 

July 9th – July 15th

The Valley Nerd Watch!

We had a bunch of fun walking around doing the Pokemon Go community day! It’s weird to be playing something that we didn’t touch for like a year and a half but it’s a neat excuse for a walk. Also we got cute Squirtles with sunglasses! Can’t say no to that.

Speaking of games, check out Echo! It’s a very solid sci-fi sneaky/puzzle/thriller/horrorish game that manages to not be quite like anything we’ve played recently. It does a spectacular job of milking the inherent limitations of a game for story and tension purposes, too. The developers did a great job of turning what might have been a bit of a same-y level layout into an asset.

Also! This week is Yidstock at the Yiddish Book Center! There are too many events to actually list, literally. So check out their page and find one you love!

And come to Nerd Nite! It’s a fun time, and you will enjoy it, and we’ll be raising some money for charity assuming we can find some dang time to bake. But we will, because we’re heroes like that!

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Monday, July 9th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Tween and Teen Graphic Novel Series
“Join library assistant and published graphic novel author Steve Murphy for this 3 part series:
Class 1 (July 9) — attendees will make a mini-comic book story out of a single sheet of paper; they will also design the main characters to their story.
Class 2 (July 31) — the mini-comics will be enlarged and expanded into a lengthier comic book format; character design and development will finish up. Class 3 (August 21) — time to draw and write your comic book! Each session will include free drawing and GN discussion time:”
Wednesday, July 11th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Forbes Library Zine Club
Careen from zine to zine on your zine machine! It’s a fun group where you get to hang out and create zines with folks!
Thursday, July 12th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Metalworking Workshop
Meatlworkingshop! Customize a copper bookmark and make reading feel even more magical! It’s also good if you need to defeat one of the many supernatural beings with a weakness to copper! Pre-register at the Youth Services Desk, or call 413-283-3330 ext 102, open to ages 10 and up!
Friday, July 13th
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Landscapes/Dreamscapes, Opening Reception and Print Fair & Arts Night Out
“Join us for the opening reception of the exhibition, Landscapes/Dreamscapes on Northampton’s Arts Night Out. The Print Fair features 8 artists showing and selling their original hand-pulled prints. A new group of artists will appear at the Print Fair at the August and September Arts Nights.” Art! Wonder! Delight! Everyone loves art receptions!
Smith College Museum of Art [20 Elm St, Northampton, MA 01063] at 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Free Second Friday
Hands on art making from 4pm-7pm! “Viola Frey’s Man in Abstract Suit is a colorful guest every month during our drop-in artmaking program. Paint your own version as a “minifigure” to bring the big blue guy home with you!” You can also get a guided tour starting at 6pm and some free refreshments! Go hang out in your great local museum!

Board Games:

Wednesday, July 11th
Brass Cat [65 Cottage St, Easthampton, MA 01027] at 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Wednesday Games at the Brass Cat
Wednesday Games! It’s a fun time for you and for all of your pals! Don’t have pals? Meet some at Wednesday games! Don’t have board games? There’s a bunch there for you to play! It’s great. You’ll get to learn about the Featured Game Orleans as well!

Books:

Tuesday, July 10th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Books with Barry
“Join our favorite book maven, Barry McColgan, to discuss John Valliant’s non- fiction gem, The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness and Greed. Copies of the book are available at the library.”

Entertainment:

Monday, July 9th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Muggle Quidditch at Hillside Park
“Muggle Quidditch, the popular wizard’s game, will be played on Mondays starting July 9 @ 6pm at Hillside Park. The Recreation Department will be sponsoring this program and you will need to register through the Rec Department http://www.greenfieldrecreation.com/youthandteens.html by July 3. Be sure to reserve your place on the teams!” All the excitement of Quidditch, none of the excitement of the flying part of it!
World War 2 Club [50 Conz St, Northampton] at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Nerd Nite NoHo
Nerd Nite! The Nite during which the skies grow dark, because all the stars are at the World War 2 Club explaining fun things to you! This week we’ll learn about permaculture from Ashley Schenk of Broadfork Permaculture which seems appropriate it would honestly be odd to focus on other things and also Tim McLaughlin Jr will explain the relationship between the theory of the Luminerferous Aether and the Force from the famous series Battlestar Galactica (has anyone done this joke before just checking)
Tuesday, July 10th
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 1:30 PM to 2:00 PM
Cardboard Explosion!
““Cardboard Explosion!” brings four original stories to life using nothing but cardboard and the power of your imagination. With help from the audience, puppeteer Brad Shur transforms simple cardboard shapes into elaborate puppet characters, then brings them to life right before your eyes. Get ready to outsmart dragons, choose-your-own superpower, and train adorable animal sidekicks in this fun, energetic, participatory show.”
Wednesday, July 11th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM
Through the Door: A Journey Through Fairytales by the Brothers Grimm
Stories! Theater! Characters from a bunch of fairytales reimagined and hilarious! Fast paced and good for kids, no registration needed!
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM
The Tale of Juan Bobo
“Meet Juan Bobo! He always tries to do the right thing, but often makes mistakes. For Juan even the smallest task can lead to the silliest of result, but can Juan Bobo’s seemingly foolish actions end up saving the day? Join CactusHead Puppets as they bring this classic Puerto Rican folktale to life and decide for yourself.”
Thursday, July 12th
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 2:00 PM to 9:30 PM
Yidstock!
Concerts! Talks! All the best sort of Yiddish-based community and fun, all for you! It’s a good danged time. Check out The Essential Klezmer, with Seth Rogovoy at 2pm!
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 10:30 AM to 11:00 AM
Bilingual Polish Music and Dance Storytime
“Join Marcin for a bilingual storytime in English and Polish. He will be sharing stories about music and dance. This program is open to all ages!”
Friday, July 13th
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 11:00 AM to 9:30 PM
Yidstock!
Concerts! Talks! All the best sort of Yiddish-based community and fun, all for you! It’s a good danged time. Check out Exploring Yiddish Art Music, with Hankus Netsky at 11am!
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Down by the River: Steve D’Agostino’s Swingin’ Big Band
Free music! At the library! What more could you possibly want, fool!? Bring lawn chairs or blankets or frankly no one is stopping you from bringing both!
Saturday, July 14th
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 11:00 AM to 9:30 PM
Yidstock!
Concerts! Talks! All the best sort of Yiddish-based community and fun, all for you! It’s a good danged time! Check out A Journey to LadinoLand, with Sarah Aroeste at 1pm!
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
MakerSpace Event
Make things at the MakerSpace!
Sunday, July 15th
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 10:30 AM to 9:30 PM
Yidstock!
Concerts! Talks! All the best sort of Yiddish-based community and fun, all for you! It’s a good danged time. Yiddish Songs, with Asya Vaisman Schulman and Brian Bender at 10:30am!

History:

Thursday, July 12th
Deerfield Community Center [16 Memorial St., Deerfield MA] at 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Summer Lecture Series: The OTHER Home of Washington: Recovering the General’s Revolutionary War Field Headquarters
Scott Stephenson, Director of Collections and Interpretation, Museum of the American Revolution, will talk about… welll, that! Some good old northeastern archaeology!
Saturday, July 14th
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Franco-America in the Making: A book talk and reading with Jonathan Gosnell of Smith College
“There are twenty million French speakers and people of francophone descent in North America. Although they are the fifth-largest ethnic group in the United States, their cultural legacy has remained nearly invisible. Gosnell will describe his 10 years of research, share excerpts from the book, and discuss his findings.” For more about the book: http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/university-of-nebraska-press/9780803285279/

Kids:

Tuesday, July 10th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
Ages 5 and up can enjoy an afternoon playing with LEGOs!
Wednesday, July 11th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Music Makers with the Eric Carle Museum!
Led by a museum educator from the Carle, children will make everyday material into musical instruments! Registration required, call 413-665-2642!
Thursday, July 12th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Bucket Drumming with Mr. Dan
“Learn how to make music and keep rhythm using buckets and sticks. This program will be taught by Mr. Dan, a music education student at Westfield State University. Ages 6-12 years old Registration required and space is limited.”
Friday, July 13th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM
Rube Goldberg Machine Workshop
Hands-on fun! Artist/educator Jay Mankita guides and inspires participants to construct delightfully complex contraptions to accomplish simple tasks! It’ll be a blast! Best for kids ages 5+!
Saturday, July 14th
Emily Dickinson Museum [280 Main St, Amherst, MA 01002] at 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Creatures of Bliss and Mystery: A Children’s Circus
“Especially perfect for children ages 3 to 10 (accompanied by adults), this event is open to the public and $5 for families and FREE for Friends of the Museum. The origin of the Museum’s annual Circus comes from recollections of a home-grown circus produced by Emily Dickinson’s niece and nephews” Dance a story! Listen to readings! See special performances! Do a parade around the grounds!
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM
Kids Craft Event! Paper Monsters!
“Assemble your very own paper monster! Feeling adventurous? Write a story about your monster and their mission. We’ll provide the templates and the glue – just bring your creativity! The craft table will be open from 10:30am-2:00pm so stop by at your leisure! Suggested for ages 4-9.” Delightful!

Movies:

Monday, July 9th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Movie Monday
Watch “A Wrinkle in Time (2018)” for free at the Atheneum! It was a good book and a movie that we have not seen!
Tuesday, July 10th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Sherlock Gnomes
It’s not a good movie, but on the other hand at least it’s a bad movie. It’s a movie your kid will probably have an okay time with!
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Summer Reading Movie: Mamma Mia
… wait, what do you READ for this one? ABBA song lyrics? We’re pretty sure the movie’s cute at least.
Wednesday, July 11th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Film: Fire at Sea
“Fire at Sea is a 2016 Italian documentary film that won the Golden Bear at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 89th Academy Awards. The film was shot on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa during the European migrant crisis, and sets the migrants’ dangerous Mediterranean crossing against a background of the ordinary life of the islanders. The main characters are a twelve-year-old boy from a local fishing family and a doctor who treats the migrants on their arrival. ” Free and accessible to all!

Science:

Friday, July 13th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Tales from Mount Washington – Home of the World’s Worst Weather
“Bitter cold, dense fog, heavy snow, and record winds: Mount Washington is known worldwide for its unpredictable and dangerous weather. For a mountain its size, why is Mt. Washington called the “Home of the World’s Worst Weather”? Join Mount Washington Observatory’s Will Broussard for an investigation into the unique life and work of weather observers stationed at the observatory year-round. We will explore how the mountain’s weather works and what it can tell us about New England’s own weather patterns. This program will include interactive demonstrations, weather instruments, stunning photography, and video footage from the summit. All ages welcome!”

Technology:

Monday, July 9th
Merril Science Center [Amherst College] at 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Interactive Data Visualization on the Web
“In this example-based course you’ll learn about: • Enough Web plumbing (HTML, CSS, SVG) to write your own web pages; • A programming language to manipulate your web pages (JavaScript); • A visualization library (D3) that will make your data sparkle. This workshop is in three parts: Monday through Wednesday, July 9–11, 6–9 p.m.; light dinner provided at 5:30 p.m. (additional meetings may be arranged if there is interest). Please register in advance: https://www.amherst.edu/library/services/students/summer/response“
Tuesday, July 10th
Common Media [84 Russell St., Hadley, MA] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Hack for Western Mass
“After quick updates on our ongoing projects, we’ll discuss upcoming projects and then get hacking to make a difference in our communities. Who is Hack for Western Mass? We are developers, UX designers, design thinkers, graphic designers, data scientists, project managers, NGO leaders, hackers, and others who want to be active in our community.” Go do something useful with all that computer tinkering besides (pause for SEO maximization…) FREE EXCLUSIVE TWITCH PRIME CONTENT

 

June 25th – July 1st

The Valley Nerd Watch!

Go to a protest on June 30th if you are able to do so. If you show up, it will make a difference. People just want to know that their neighbors also realize kidnapping the children of asylum-seekers in order to torture them is wrong. It’s not a high bar.

In less distressing news, let’s talk about a Valley Creator doing a neat thing!

Have you been watching folks on Twitch? Maybe some actual-play RPG sessions? Well, so have the people writing the RPGs being played! They’re frankly giddy that there’s a sudden like participatory-watch community centered around the art form they’ve been working within for so long.

Epidiah Ravachol of Dread and more importantly at the moment Swords Without Master, has been doing “Speed Runs” of Swords Without Master! Full play-throughs with folks in less than an hour! It’s both a fun Actual Play viewing experience and a powerful example of how Swords Without Master is a great indie RPG for folks who want to have fun without devoting a lifetime to every game.

You should check it out here! https://www.twitch.tv/videos/270880758. There are a bunch of them and that’s one.

Also join the Discord to find other players! And while you watch new episodes play along using the new rules for Scrying!

It’s all very fun and neat. Buy Swords Without Master now to see what folks are getting excited about!

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Tuesday, June 26th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Greenfield Rocks! Kindness Rock Painting
Paint a rock! Teach the rock to love! Teach the rock to understand compassion! Warning: do not throw a friendship rock at another person, it makes the friendship rock sad.
Wednesday, June 27th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Rock Painting
Paint a rock! Make a new best friend is literally what they say here which seems kind of like an insult? Is Forbes saying we don’t have a best friend?! Bring your own rock! Or like… go outside before the event for a minute.
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Reception for Artists Pamela Acosta and Dara Herman Zierlein
Good artists! Good reception! Possibly cheese? That’s what makes or breaks a reception.
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Forbes Library Zine Club
ZINE! ZINE! ZINE! ZINE! ZINE! ZINE! ZINE! MAKE A ZINE! AT THE CLUB! A ZINE ABOUT CLUB…. SANDWICHES!
Thursday, June 28th
Gandara Youth Development Center [306 Race St., Holyoke, MA] at 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Radioplasma Recording Studio Sessions
Meet in the Teen Room to walk as a group to the Radioplasma Recording Studio to get some hands on experience with journalism, storytelling, and sound mixing! SOUNDS cool! Get it? See that? Nice.
Saturday, June 30th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 2:00 PM to 2:30 PM
Make a CD Mandala
Using colored sharpies and other decorative elements, turn some old CDs into beautiful artwork! If you’ve got some old CDs, we think the last CD we can remember having was like a decade and a half ago.
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM
Greenfield Rocks! Kindness Rock Painting
Paint a rock! Teach the rock to love! Teach the rock to understand compassion! Warning: do not insult a friendship rock, because it makes the rock feel bad. Be kind to rocks!

Books:

Wednesday, June 27th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Sunderland Short Story Series
Short stories by British mystery writers! Featuring some dramatic readings by excellent actors to really bring them to life. Linda Tardif will be reading Mr Millcroft’s Birthday by P.D. James, and Kermit Dunkelberg will be reading The Reigate Puzzle by Arthur Conan Doyle, who famous wrote the series of Conan the Detective stories.
Thursday, June 28th
Packards [14 Masonic Street, Northampton MA] at 6:30 PM to 10:00 PM
Welcome to Night Vale Boook Discussion And Dinner
Meet to talk about a book from a fun podcast! Meet, talk, eat, hang out in a nice pub. What’s not to like?

Community:

Saturday, June 30th
Millside Park [Easthampton MA] at 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Families Belong Together Stamp Out
“Join us on June 30 at 3pm at the Nashawannuck pond to peacefuly protest the separation of children from their parents on the US-Mexico border, while seeking asylum. This is a cruel policy that rips families apart.” Interested in protesting the ripping apart of families, abuse of asylum-seekers, and general deep-down evil? Check out this event or find another event near you at: https://act.moveon.org/event/families-belong-together/. Not interested in protesting? Donate! https://www.raicestexas.org/coll-page-section/donate/. Can’t donate? Talk to everyone you can and call your congresspeople! 5calls.org is a good start!

Entertainment:

Monday, June 25th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Great American Songbokk with Skylarkz
Kick off summer reading with a musical duo! Let’s Face the Music and Dance is some music that inspired dancers of the 30’s, 40’s, and inexplicably the 2060’s.
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Far Out Film Discussion: Spring Breakers
Spring Breakers by Harmony Korine has been called “A Movie” and also “…. huuuh.” You can get copies of it in the library, and then talk about the film in this group!
Tuesday, June 26th
Mead Art Museum [41 Quadrangle Dr, Amherst, MA 01002] at 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
HOUSE Closing Cookout
Activities, a DJ, food, beer (for people who can drink beer and also want to drink beer) and a last chance to see HOUSE before it closes in July! Free and open to all! Though probably you need to pay for food and beer?
Wednesday, June 27th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Libraries Rock Family Night Kick-Off
“”Libraries Rock” Kickoff Event for Kids and Families: Magician, Fran Ferry, will entertain a family audience with magical storytelling, doing fancy tricks with ordinary newspaper, and bringing kids into the act with his well-known flair for child-friendly silliness and amazing magic! Free and open to the public thanks to The Friends of the Greenfield Public Library, this is the first in the summer series of Wednesday Family Night entertainment.” Wholesome as heck, yeah?
Thursday, June 28th
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Mini Golf in the Library!
Mobile MiniGolf brings a fun MiniGolf course to the library! There are a ton of interesting holes for you to try putting into, and it’s suitable for kids and adults, a few holes might even be outside! Golf and the library, a match made in heaven, yeah?
Friday, June 29th
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
The Firebird presented by The Puppet People
“Join us for this spectacular marionette show inspired by the Russian folktale and popular ballet The Firebird. Watch as even the impossible is possible as the mythical firebird comes to life and Ivan and Princess Yelena team up to break the enchantment placed over their kingdom. This 50 minute long puppet fantasy features beautifully handcrafted marionettes, lavish costumes, and vivid sets accompanied by Stravinsky’s musical score.” Wow, dang. That sounds awesome! Register at sscott@westath.org! There’s a waiting list already!

Kids:

Tuesday, June 26th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
LEGO! FOR CHILDREN! WE CAN’T STOP YELLING WHERE’S THE CAPS LOCK
Thursday, June 28th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 4:30 PM to 5:15 PM
Story and Craft Time @ Munson Memorial Library
Hear stories! Or well, have your kids hear stories we suppose, we’re assuming preschoolers don’t read this. Then make a craft!
Friday, June 29th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Family Concert with Roger Tincknell
A good danged family concert with a local musician! Children will sing, dance, move, pretend to be animals, play instruments, sing in Spanish and other languages, and explore cultures around the world! Edify your children through wholesome musical stuff!
Saturday, June 30th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Musical Petting Zoo with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra
The Musical Petting Zoo is the special event where animals are transformed into musical instruments for you to gently pet. Get a chance to give some weird instruments a try! Or not-weird ones, really just fool around with some instruments in a setting where no one is nervous you’re going to break something.

Movies:

Tuesday, June 26th
Sunderland Public Library [20 School St., Sunderland, MA 01375] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Paddington 2
Paddington has been recommended to us as a real gem of a family film by multiple people, and so has the sequel! It seems like a really good one to take a look at if you’re interested in some friendly, low-key entertainment.
Westfield Atheneum [6 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Summer Reading Movie: The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom! A film that we’ve never really heard GOOD things about, but it’s definitely like, it’s a thing to experience. It’s odd and probably worth taking a look at and maybe making fun of if you’ve got a friend to josh about it with.
Wednesday, June 27th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Film: Censored Voices
“Censored Voices is an Israeli film drawn from censored audio tapes made within weeks of soldiers returning from the 1967 Six Day War. The film project was the initiative of Israel’s best known anti-war author and activist Amos Oz to be shown in advance of the current 70th anniversary of the Israeli state and the Palestinian Nakba. These men were appalled at what they were required to in the 1967 war and nearly 50 years later gather to discuss the tapes in a 2015 film made by Israeli filmmaker Mor Loushy complete with raw, real military footage. Oz and his friends are seen a half-century later listening to those tapes of their younger selves and discussing how they see the impact of that war on current Israel/Palestine, and the Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Free and accessible. The Resistance Film series is co-sponsored by The Resistance Center of Western MA and the Northampton Committee to Stop the Wars.
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 5:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Casablanca at the Library!
This one starts early because the lovely Bistro Les Gras has a special menu for the night and expanded outdoor dining for you, and you can check out art in the Forbes Hosmer Gallery from 6pm-8pm, followed by the main event later at night! After it’s dark enough to project. We’ve heard Casablanca is pretty good, but we tend to only like really good movies like Citizen Kane so… Also there’s a prize for best-dressed in a 1940 style!
Thursday, June 28th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Family Movie: Coco and Musical Craft
Watch CoCo, widely regarded as a realy triumph of recent animation work, and make your own cardboard guitar! Cardboard guitar is an entry-level instrument, usually something you play for a while before moving on to a zinc guitar.
Sunday, July 1st
Yiddish Book Center [1021 West St., Amherst MA 01002] at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
FILM | Song of the Lodz Ghetto
“Song of the Lodz Ghetto, a documentary by David Kaufman, is a moving account of the history of Poland’s “first and last” Jewish ghetto. The film is based on a haunting program of songs performed by the renowned Jewish music group, Brave Old World. Many of those songs were written by the ghetto’s beloved street singer, Yankele Herszkowicz, whose life story is recounted in the film through interviews and historic photographs. ” Student $4, Member $6, General Admission $8

Technology:

Monday, June 25th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Python Coding Club
Meet with interested coders to talk Python! Bring your computer and a copy of Python, which can be downloaded for free online! https://www.python.org/!
Thursday, June 28th
Merrill 215 at Amherst College at 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Debugging and Version Control for Programming
“Want your computer code to be perfect? Start by realizing that you will make mistakes when writing it! In this class you’ll learn how to discover and fix your errors. We will cover basic principles of debugging applicable to any programming language, though examples will use the Python language and its standard debugger pdb. Sometimes you’ll also want to try out new ideas without ruining the code that’s already working.” Learn to code well! This sounds really useful, and we love the fact that there’s a light dinner at 5:30pm. Register in advance at: https://www.amherst.edu/library/services/students/summer/response
Sunday, July 1st
Another Castle [30 Olive St, Greenfield MA] at 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM
MAKE TALK PLAY | Pitch & Interest Meeting
“In celebration of the upcoming Canada Day, we’re holding our first game Pitch & Interest event at Another Castle on July 1st! If you’re interested in pitching or collaborating on a project, we encourage you to fill out this quick survey by June 30th. It’s not required, but it will help us facilitate the event better. It’s also kind of a karma thing. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdOxSCV2GJrfxqcK-cN3khGIDbhUl1NXo51DecZa0nNjqfDtw/viewform?usp=sf_link Here’s how this works: 1) Think of a pitch for a game idea. 2) Show up and present a 3-5 minute pitch of your idea and then talk to other devs about your idea. 3) Listen to other game developers pitch their ideas and think of ways you may want to contribute to help others make their ideas happen. 4) Profit (or at least have fun). During the event, we’ll help facilitate introductions and help hone in on your idea. After the event is over, we’ll make all pitches accessible to the group so people can follow up.”

Teens:

Monday, June 25th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM
Teens Only Movie: Back to the Future
Teens only! Teens exclusively! 12? Too young! 20? Too old! 19? That’s pushing it… but we’ll allow it. Watch a classic that your parents have already bugged you about a bunch, Back to the Future!
Friday, June 29th
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Teen Zine Workshop (Ages 12 – 17)
Madeline Dye, a local graphic artist, will help you learn how to create a zine! Learn how zines are used at cons and how they can be used to market your art! You’re going to get 10 of your danged zine to keep, too! Pre-register in advance! teens [at] joneslibrary [dot] org!
Holyoke Public Library [250 Chestnut St, Holyoke, MA 01040] at 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
It’s LIT: Summer Sex and Relationship Series at the Library
In partnership with the River Valley Counselling Center, youth will have a chance to talk about sex, relationships, sexuality, and how to stay safe happy and healthy. Frankly these sorts of workshops should be attended by everyone every year in our experience. This stuff remains confusing forever. Snacks are provided, and there’s a $50 gift card you can earn for completing the whole series!

 

June 18th – June 24th

The Valley Nerd Watch!

This week we want to let you know that the game Cultist Simulator is a lot of fun. Highly recommended to anyone who liked Fallen London/Sunless Sea, which the creators worked on previously, or who likes weird RPGs in general.

It’s a kind of combination of a clicker game and a text RPG, with some neat obfuscated systems in there to keep you feeling like you’re groping around in the proverbial dark for mysterious and dangerous powers. It’s a bit of a roguelike in that you constantly die after trying to do a thing that you can’t completely understand. It also has cards, which are fun to fiddle with and sort.

We can’t say a whole ton about how it shakes out in the endgame because our average character spends about three weeks telling all their pals about how they’re pretty sure they’ve uncovered the mysteries at the heart of reality, hosts a few very nice parties, and then succumbs to existential despair after sending all their new friends off to die searching for occult treasure.

Speaking of good things, have you got your Planetary Travel poster from local artist Aaron Wood? They’re neat! They remind us of the card art in Cultist Simulator.

Dang that’s a neat game.

Go check out the Valley Creators page! As always, be sure to check out our Patreon and the Weekly Events page! There are a lot of fun things happening this and every week! And don’t forget to check out the updated Book Clubs List!

THIS WEEK

Art:

Tuesday, June 19th
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Children’s Book Writers Group
Adults who write for kids, talk to other adults who do the same! Facilitated by Nell Wright, it’s a chance to share tips, discuss skills, and get input about stories!
Friday, June 22nd
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM
Care Center, Nautilus II
“On Friday, June 22, 2018, The Care Center will celebrate the release of Nautilus II, an annual journal of poetry and visual art created by young mothers, with a reading at the Odyssey Bookshop from 10:30-11:30 a.m. Please join us to hear work from the latest issue and to honor the efforts of the student-led editorial board. The event is free and open to the public.”
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Teen Cartooning Crash Course (Ages 12-17)
Teens! Learn to cartoon! Create worlds with your mind and a pen! Breathe life into an imaginary world!

Board Games:

Wednesday, June 20th
Brass Cat [65 Cottage St, Easthampton, MA 01027] at 7:00 PM to 11:30 PM
Wednesday Games Two-Year Anniversary Extravaganza!
Wednesday Games is two years old! Spectacular! Celebrate by playing a bunch of games with a bunch of kind and friendly folks! There will be pizza too! This is the best of all possible worlds.

Books:

Wednesday, June 20th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) Writing Critique Group
Writers of picture books, middle grade, and YA books meet to read and get some feedback! The group is facilitated by following SCBWI guidelines but you don’t have to be a member to participate. Learn to write better and also meet some colleagues!
Thursday, June 21st
Greenfield Public Library [402 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301] at 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM
The Thursday Morning Club
A new series featuring a bunch of free speakers! The inaugural event will feature Hazel Dawkins talking about her books! She was paid to read by publishers, editing books! She’s spectacularly broadly read thanks to basically chewing through everything HarperCollins published, and well-read people are fun to hear from!
Odyssey Bookshop [9 College St, South Hadley, MA 01075] at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Fatima Farheen Mirza, A Place for Us
A Place for Us focuses on an Indian Muslim family as they prepare for the marriage of their eldest daughter, but everyone’s worried about her estranged younger brother and whether he’ll be a jackass at the wedding. It’s a family drama that has been described by no less than Sarah Jessica Parker as really good! And other folks, we assume, but that’s the quote up top here.

Community:

Thursday, June 21st
Jones Library [43 Amity St., Amherst, MA 01002] at 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Jewish Voices for Peace Discussion Group
Reading and facilitated discussion, free and open to the public! Get together with folks to figure out how to make the world less terrible.

Entertainment:

Thursday, June 21st
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Anime Club
Anime is an art form that we have scattered experience with but a lot of people wicked like. We just started watching the Netflix one “Children of the Whales” and it seems pretty neat and neatly pretty so far, though quite sad!
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Exploring Northampton: Foraging for Wild Edibles
Northampton resident and wild edibles expert Blanche Cybele Derby will take you on a foray into the wild to identify some of her favorite wild edibles and their historical uses. Also, recipes! Which are important. Most wild edibles kind of taste like a leaf if you just chow down. Costs $8 for members, $12 for non-members.
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
2018 Massachusetts Walking Tour Concert
A free concert that’s also a walking tour! THat’s awesome! You’re going to hike AND paddle AND listen to great music! That’s wild. Check out more at www.masswalkingtour.org!
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Vernon Valiquette & Liam Hurley
Music! Free! Glam-a-billy! That about covers it. Remakes of songs from Johnny Cash to David Bowie, all at a kid-friendly volume! Fun for all ages!
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Cookies with a Curator
Informal conversations and a show-and-tell! This month, talk about the Imperial Bakery! Guest curator Richard Szlosek will reminisce about growing up in Northampton and his family-owned bakery! From everything we’ve heard about bakeries it’ll involve a lot early mornings and accidental maiming.
Saturday, June 23rd
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art [125 West Bay Rd., Amherst, MA 01002] at 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Bobbie’s Meadow: A Celebration and Dedication
Celebrate the opening of Bobbie’s Meadow! Named in memory of Barbara Carle, Eric Carle’s wife, Bobbie’s Meadow is a place to learn from and be inspired by nature. The dedication day will have story-times, animal friends to meet, art to look at, and exploration to do! What a great time for the whole family!
Sunday, June 24th
Historic Northampton [46 Bridge Street, Northampton, MA 01060-2406] at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
Tour of Zea Mays Printmaking
See how original hand-pulled prints are made! Printing presses, ink rollers, artists, work, Zea Mays is a hive of activity in the heart of the Valley! It’s going to include a walk through the huge studio as well as a look at the prints in the Flat File Project and in the on-site gallery and a short print-making demonstration! $10 per person, limited to just 12 people so register with Historic Northampton! https://www.historicnorthampton.org/tour-of-zea-mays-rsvp-page.html

History:

Wednesday, June 20th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Western Mass Jewish Genealogy Society Research Night
Come research your Jewish roots with a one-on-one appointment with a mentor or translator! You should really pre-register by contacting wmjgs2 [at] gmail [dot] com, or 413-268-2147! Learn about your family, maybe it turns out you’re related to someone cool!

Kids:

Monday, June 18th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Minecraft Club
Children! Play some Minecraft with friends!
Tuesday, June 19th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
LEGO Club
Ages 5 and up can enjoy an afternoon playing with LEGOs!
Wednesday, June 20th
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Music Storytime with Mr. Liam
He’s going to play music and tell stories! You can attend to listen to both, and perhaps attempt to steal his power by acquiring his clown nose.

Movies:

Saturday, June 23rd
Forbes Library [20 West St, Northampton, MA 01060] at 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Now and Again Film Screening & Discussion
“In 1945, two teenagers, George and Mel went on an an adventure they’d remember for the rest of their lives—until Mel lost his memory to Alzheimer’s. Now, over seventy years later, Mel’s grandsons are traveling the same 100-mile journey to explore the legacy of their grandfather, telling a cross-generational story of love, conflict, and life. Followed by discussion with Filmmaker and Alzheimer’s support leaders”

RPGs:

Thursday, June 21st
Palmer Public Library [1455 N Main St, Palmer, MA 01069] at 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM
RPG Club
Play a game where you pretend to be another person! That covers a pretty wide range, so we don’t know exactly what’ll be up here but for some reason most of these games involves swords and dragons at some point. Even if someone tells you you’re going to be playing an RPG about minding a small convenience store, take a few levels in Longswords just in case.

Technology:

Tuesday, June 19th
Click Workspace [9.5 Market St., Northampton MA] at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Data-Driven Dashboards with React – Monthly Full Stack Meetup
Jochen Rau is going to take a deep dive into modular single-page applications using React. There’s going to be a bunch of new content even if you saw his NERD talk! Component state management, life-cycles, all the good stuff will be covered as Jochen and you put together a dashboard for streaming weather data! The full-stack meetup is a lot of fun, but you may want to join up and RSVP quickly! The room can be a bit small, so there aren’t unlimited spaces.
Thursday, June 21st
Northampton Community TV [380 Elm St., Northampton, MA] at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
WordPress Developers and Admins
Get together to talk about WordPress! Introduce yourself, bring some problems to the group or offer some solutions, and then get into some more specific topics! There will be some brief updates about new privacy features post-GDPR, and a round-table about how to host your sites! We like using WordPress pretty well, in general. Although we can also say it seems really satisfying to find something more obscure and passionately argue about why it’s definitely a better option.