HAMPSTEAD — Well, February 12 is a couple of days early, but the Friends of the Hampstead Public Library are celebrating Valentine’s Day anyhow. First up is the February raffle basket that is now on display at the front desk of the library. It’s a Valentine treat donated by TD Bank. Take your sweetie out to dinner with the $25.00 Visa card that you can use anywhere. Then come home to enjoy the DVD of Jennifer Lopez in “The Back Up Plan” along with the bottle of wine and the chocolates. Nestle together under the Valentine throw and listen to the CD “The Soul of the 80’s” in your home that is decorated with all the special Valentine items in the basket. Prepare for this special evening with the book “All We Need is Love” and make some cookies using the cutters and sprinkles from the basket. All of this could be yours with a raffle ticket that costs only $1.00 or six for $5.00 available at the front desk of the library. The winner will be drawn just before the February 12 program featuring Pat Spalding with “Tales of Romance and Adventure”.
If you don’t know who Pat Spalding is, come to the program and find out what this delightful monologist/majorette has to offer. Let’s start with the “majorette” part. Why is a proudly middle aged woman doing being a majorette? How did this come about? What band would have a twirler of her years? She’ll tell all, along with many other amusing tales featuring such topics as internet dating, fashion tips for age inappropriate dress, and how to age with outrageous aplomb.
For twenty-five years Pat used her creative talent as a puppeteer, a career that involved a lot of traveling and equipment handling. Both puppetry and Pat were getting old and tired so she turned her hand to her secondary love of writing and telling stories to adult audiences. As a “recovering puppeteer” Pat has created a whole new life as she tells original tales based on first person experiences. She not only presents her hilarious stories at libraries and similar venues around the state but she has also appeared at the WEST Theater in Portsmouth during the ACT ONE Festival of Fun during the summer and fall. She’s been featured on NH Public Radio and has been part of the NH State Council of the Arts and in two Portsmouth Poet Laureate programs.
Join Pat Spalding and the Friends of the Library at 7:00 p.m. on Tues., February 12, and celebrate Valentine’s Day together. The program is free and open to the public. There will be refreshments after the show. Members of the Friends are asked to remain afterwards for the regular monthly meeting of the organization.
