Thanksgiving Closure

This week, I just want to remind you that the Arkansas State Library, along with all the other state agencies, will be closed Thursday and Friday in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday. Any reference questions submitted via the web form or voice mail will not be answered before Monday, November 28th.

Enjoy the holiday! If you are looking for some way to help those less fortunate during the holiday season, visit the Arkansas Foodbank or locally headquartered Heifer International. Be sure to do some research on any charity you may choose to donate to at sites such as Charity Navigator.

Ask a Librarian

Time for your semi-regular reminder about the reference services available at the Arkansas State Library.  While our primary mission is to serve state agencies and state employees, we are ready and willing to answer questions from the general public, public librarians, school teachers, college students, high school students, and everyone in between. If we can't find the answer in our databases and collections, we will do our best to find someone who does have the answer.  You can contact us by phone during office hours at (501) 682-2053, or any time by using our handy Ask a Librarian form, or by writing us at:

Arkansas State Library, Attn. Reference
900 West Capitol, Suite 100
Little Rock, AR 72201

Please include a reliable way to reach you; if you have email but only check it once a month, make sure we also have a phone number and/or mailing address.

If you prefer, you can also come to the library and speak to us in person.  Our hours are Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 4:30 PM. 

We generally answer questions within 24 hours, except during weekends and holidays.

Speaking of holidays, we will be closed Thursday and Friday of next week for Thanksgiving.

Veterans Day

This Friday is when the United States celebrates Veterans Day. For a history of the celebration, visit the Department of Veterans Affairs.

If you are looking for ways to remember and/or thank veterans this year, the American Red Cross is co-sponsoring the Holiday Mail for Heroes program, where they "collect holiday cards from regular citizens all across the country and distribute them to service members, veterans, and their families." Holiday cards can be sent to the program at the following address, and must be postmarked before December 9th in order to reach recipients in time:

Holiday Mail For Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

For more information about Holiday Mail for Heroes, visit the Red Cross webpage.

The Arkansas State Library will be closed on Friday, November 11th in honor of Veterans Day. Normal hours will resume on Monday.

Daylight Saving Time

This next weekend marks the end of Daylight Saving Time (DST) in North America. On Saturday night, be sure to set your clock back an hour before you go to sleep, especially if you have anywhere to be on Sunday morning! Remember, it is fall back, spring forward - if you don't get an extra hour of sleep (or TV watching or partying) you did it wrong.

For information about Daylight Saving Time is, its history, and why it is observed some places and not others, check out this page at Timeanddate.com. For a fun interactive look at DST, check out this page at Web Exhibits. If you need to check that you went the right direction when you reset your clock, or if you ever want to make sure your clocks are set at the appropriate time, check out the Official US Time at time.gov and click on your time zone.

See you next week - enjoy your extra hour!