Last Friday marked the 14th installment of Ignite Phoenix, a global event that is organized locally here in the Valley. Held at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts, Ignite Phoenix is a way to showcase members of the community. After a selection process, 18 presenters are chosen to speak on their passion, which could be anything from Sun Tzu to ballroom dancing. Each presenter gets 20 slides and exactly 5 minutes with each slide appearing only for 15 seconds. The pressure is high for speakers to get their point across quickly, engage with the audience and make it exciting. The objective is to create an information exchange that inspires provocation of thought in the Phoenix community. I caught up with Rob Rynders, one of Ignite Phoenix 14's presenters, to hear about his experience first hand.

* By Denise at Bookmans Grant

It's a Saturday morning and I'm about to do Escape The Walkers, a 5k mud run where runners get chased by zombies. I am psyched! So, I'm disappointed when there is a long wait to get in. I've never done a zombie mud run. Maybe they're usually like this. My 9:30 a.m. flight time comes and goes and I'm still in line. Eventually it's time to go. I'm running solo -- no teammates in matching T-shirts to help me out. I'm a little nervous. Since there is a good chance my shoes will be ruined, I wear my beat up Adidas.

Love was in the air at Burton Barr Central Library. Love of reading, that is. Bookmans Entertainment Exchange, Phoenix Public Library and Friends of the Phoenix Public Library sponsored the annual Love to Read A-Z event. In its fourth year, Love to Read A-Z brought community partners together to promote literacy for children and families. Special guests, Mayor Greg Stanton and Councilman Michael Nowakowski were present to interact with those in attendance. Councilman Nowakowski even visited the Bookmans Photo Booth with his own children, nieces and nephews -- such a gracious family! Face painting with Dawn Wentzell, live music with Chuck Cheesman and the Great Arizona Puppet Theater were also hits with the crowd. Curious George stopped by to show support for storybooks and turned out to be as adorable as his illustrations.

Curious George greets one of the first guests of the day.

I have loved comedy my entire life but my first memory is watching The Three Stooges with my dad when I was just a little guy. As I grew into double digits, I fell in love with movies like Spaceballs and The Naked Gun, and would go on to watch anything by Mel Brooks or starring Leslie Nielson, who were two of my favorite creators of comedy. Now I am trying my hand at a few of the local open mic stand-up comedy nights.

The move to Portland Parkway in Downtown Phoenix for the annual Certified Local Fall Festival was a smart move for the folks at Local First Arizona. Thousands of Phoenicians bundled up to enjoy a day of georgous weather, food, drinks, live music and a plethora of local businesses to get a jump on their holiday shopping. We cannot thank the staff of Local First Arizona enough for pouring their hearts and souls into creating a place where we can share our love for all things Arizona.

Ignite Phoenix #13 has come and gone and like many other Ignites I have attended, I am still thinking about the presentations days later. Eighteen speakers walked onto a stage in front of 850 people along with their 20 slides and 5 minutes and made us laugh, cry and think. Whether they were seasoned public speakers or speaking in public for the first time, eighteen people had one thing in common, sharing their stories. As one of 850 in the audience we only had a few responsibilities: listen, learn and support.

Like all words, the definition of "keen" depends upon usage. In the case of the event, Keen Haloween, we'll go with adjective. Eager or enthusiastic; fond of or devoted to. Keen Halloween was all of the above. Most Halloween related events happen in October, but Keen Halloween's first hugely anticipated event came at the tail end of September because Halloween aficionados, Daniel and Dawna Davis, want to share with the community the big how-tos for a successful spooky season with plenty of advance planning.

When you walk into the newly renovated National Comedy Theater in Mesa, you enter a space that is as fun and inviting as the people who work there. A recent update to their comedy home, The Lounge is a completely revamped area of the old consessions area. When I walked up to the new front desk and lobby area I was greeted by friendly staff and guided to where I needed to go. Fans of comedy and film united for the Mesa debut of Bookmans Spoof'n Cinema. In the past the National Comedy Theater has taken their "Movie Mashterpiece Theater" on the road at various venues in town but with the new partnership with Bookmans Mesa we fused our funny together on our home turf.

What do you get when you combine a beautiful new library and the world's greatest Wizard Rock band? A night of wicked awesome music and dancing with other Hogwarts fans that you won't soon forget!

I can't get the songs out of my head. I continue to unconsciously mutter, “Ease on down the road!” These are the welcomed results from having the privilege to see Valley Youth Theater's stunning performance of The Wiz at the Herberger Theatre. The last show of the season, The Wiz turns L. Frank Baum's beloved book The Wizard of Oz into an ultra-hip musical filled with soulful sounds, costumes and dance moves of the '70s.

The largest fundraiser at Phoenix Comicon is the Kids Need to Read (KNTR) Geek Prom and Bookmans supported this Geektacular event for the third year in a row. We believe in KNTR's mission to provide inspiring books to underfunded schools, libraries and literacy programs across the United States, especially those serving disadvantaged children. We feel at home from start to finish at the Geek Prom because everyone fits in. Attendees are encouraged to get beyond "cool" by wearing out-of-style formal wear, costumes and jet-setting space ensembles and dancing 'til the sun comes up. That was a direct order from our Intergalactic Overlords who watched us throughout the prom.

Next time I have the feeling-like-an-outcast-blues, I'll recall the wonderful performance of Freckleface Strawberry to turn my frown upside down. The April 2012 show brought the famous Julianne Moore kid's book and Broadway performance, Frecklefrace Strawberry, off the page and from New York and onto the Phoenix stage in a whirlwind of color, lessons and song all performed by the overwhelmingly talented cast at the Valley Youth Theater. Beyond the colorful costumes, well-rehearsed actors and streamline set design were heartfelt lessons that even a grownup could love.

Super Moms and Dads, Super Boys and Girls, and their Super Dogs were out in force for the First Annual KA-POW! Superhero Adventure Run at Freestone Park in Gilbert. Everyone was up early for a cool breeze and sunshine. We hung out in "Gotham City" with other cool kids waiting for everyone to finish the race. The Game Truck, My Child's Ready, Valley METRO, Phoenix Comicon and other super awesome community partners had booths to provide fun and entertainment to our Super Families! Even The Justice League of Arizona and The Arizona Avengers showed up to mingle with everyone. At the Bookmans booth we played Super Hero and Super Villain carnival games to win prizes like $10 gift certificates, superhero gliders and wristbands. To win heros tossed the Super Villain rubber duck at the Toxic Waste barrels using a scoop. It's harder than you think and everyone wanted to try again. It was even harder to toss the Bat-arang into the brick boxes! Adults and kids had fun trying over and over again.

Congratulations to those who discovered where we hid our treasure during the last months of Phoenix Spring. In February the Sherlock in you followed the clues to Revera Beauty on Roosevelt Row. In March the treasure crossed freeways into ASU territory at Candy Addict on Mill Ave. April's treasure hunt led followers to BrandX also on Mill Ave (next door to Candy Addict).

February: Revera Beauty on Roosevelt Row has only been open since late winter but is already making a name and home for itself in the historic downtown district. Owners and creators Violet and Susan have taken combined years of expertise and knowledge to breathe new scent into Phoenix. Revera offers natural beauty products created from the freshest and rarest ingredients found all over the globe. They offer essential oils, perfumes, bath salts, lip balms, crèmes, masks and lotions that can be customized to your body's needs. We fell in love with the luxurious Milk Bath ($5 and up) and Vanilla and Peppermint Lip Balm ($10). Violent and Susan can help you spend an entire afternoon savoring rich scents and textures and figuring out what works best for your mind, body and lifestyle. If you decide on a particular product, they can customize the scent to ensure that it truly is your own. The bottles the products call home are fancy! Each container is designed to make your products last longer without icky preservatives and can be traded in through their bottle recycling program, making your carbon footprint smaller and smell better than ever! Stop by Revera Tues-Saturday from 11am-7pm and every third and first Fridays.

...And it was spectacular! We saw close to 2,000 people make their way to the Phoenix Library's Burton Barr Central Library for our second go at the largest reading celebration in Phoenix!

Education should be everyone's priority and although it seems as though some have pushed it to the back burner, Bookmans strives to do our part in support of education in Arizona. With our Project: Educate, Kids Club, 1317 and Read 10 programs, we hope to give students and teachers easier access to materials, resources and just plain old Bookmans fun.

For the past few years we partnered with a national non-profit that helped us bring music lessons into our instrument section. Thanks to a Bookmans sponsorship, Guitars in the Classroom provides free guitar lessons to Valley educators in the hopes that they will bring music into their classrooms. After the past 16 weeks of Saturday morning classes, we awarded a special group of teachers a celebratory graduation.

If you start telling me about A. Hitchchock related anything, I'll drop what I'm doing and be all ears. From The Ring to The Birds, I adore almost everything he's associated with. When I found out that the Arizona Theater Company got their hands on The 39 Steps and would be bringing it to Phoenix, I knew that I could not be a true fan without seeing what the great local theater made of the story. I've heard about the Arizona Theater Company and the wonderful shows they put on at the beautiful Herberger Theater in Downtown Phoenix so I was giddy that my first show is associated with Hitchcock.

Memorial Day 2012 Phoenix Comicon will celebrate its 10th Anniversary. 2012 also marks the 25th Anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Imagine the excitement of several hundred Phoenix Comicon attendees as we hungrily awaited the big announcements of 2012. Yes, we waited through the comic book, author and anime guest announcements but what everyone was really after were the celebrity announcements. Jaime Paglia, Gigi Edgley, Casper Van Dien and John Bernthal were announced to everyone's delight. However, you couldn't imagine the tension as Phoenix Comicon Director Matt Solberg began to list Levar Burton, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis and Brent Spiner. Everyone was on the edge of his or her seats as Solberg hinted at the last guest that would be attending. Then he made it so. All our dreams came true as Patrick Stewart was announced. I've not experienced screams so loud since attending a Twilight panel at San Diego Comicon.

January Bookmans Treasure Hunt: The Search For Local Business Booty led our @bookmansphoenix followers to Drawn to Comics. Congrats to those Twitter followers who used their noggin to decipher the clues, find the animal oasis and exclaim with joy, “I Love Bookmans!” to the Drawn to Comics staff. Those clever detectives won prize packs that included tickets to see 39 Steps at the Arizona Theater Company, special goods for your pets from Noble Beast, movies from Bookmans and gift cards for Bookmans Own Brand (B.O.B.) merchandise.

When I decided to check out The Amazing Arizona Comicon to see what it was all about I grabbed Yvette, my geek partner in crime, from Phoenix and headed to the Mesa Convention Center. We were ready for a day of The Walking Dead, local artists, national artists, comic-related vendors and lots of fans.

It has been quite the holiday ride this month as we spent two weekends at the always sparkly Glendale Glitters. Thanks to the City of Glendale we hosted three large tents filled with fun and free crafts for the whole family. Our tent was located directly in front of the amphitheater so not only did we get front row seats to all of the great bands and shows performing, we were also right under our favorite tree dripping with moving icicle lights.

The Mesa Arts Center is Arizona's largest art center and home to four theaters, fourteen art studios, five art galleries and the annual Mesa Arts Festival. This visually stunning campus is a work of art with its design and is enchanting for all ages.

We brought out the Bookmans Mesa staff to partner with volunteers of The Mesa Arts Center and BookPALS to bring you the Bookmans Family Creativity Area. All weekend long we invited families to show their artistic side. Hand-painted ceramic ornaments now adorn the tree in valley residents' homes. Our favorite part was the pinecone decorating. With nothing more than endless options of art scraps, family members used their imaginations to create unique and one-of-a-kind pinecone sculptures. We saw snowmen, peacocks, reindeer, penguins and more! While the children waited for their newly created pieces of holiday art to dry they were invited to listen to a holiday-inspired story performed by our good friends the Arizona BookPALS.

There are only three or so months in southern Arizona where the sun doesn't chase after you with its fiery pitchfork of heatstroke. From mid November until the beginning of February it's safe to venture outside, which is why all the most exciting activity filled festivals has to be crammed into that tiny three-month window. During December it seems like there is a festival every single day whether it be a musical festival, craft festival, holiday or beer fest. If you live in Phoenix you know that now is your time to take advantage. With so many events to choose from it can be hard to decide to which to go.

Nothing gives me warm fuzzies like a cup of hot chocolate and the companionship of a dog. On Saturday, Nov. 5 Bookmans Mesa participated in the annual Arizona Adopt a Greyhound Picnic, a fundraiser that assists one of the nation's largest Greyhound Adoption Agencies with much needed funding.

My brother Nick is in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico celebrating Dia de Los Muertos with his girlfriend, local friends and family who live there. Three Novembers ago when Nick was last in Mexico, he came close to death himself. Nick lived in San Miguel for three years and on this visit he found himself suddenly unable to breathe. Like Flagstaff San Miguel is at about 7000 feet and the elevation forced his cancer diagnosis. His friends rushed him to the hospital where they discovered his lungs were riddled with tumors.

When I was in college I joined thousands of activists for the first World Trade Organization (WTO) protest in Seattle in 1999. It was a huge event in the burgeoning global justice movement and I was was proud to be a small part of it. Two things triggered my memory of those few days and my mostly armchair activism: The occupation of Wall Street and a recent acquisition of gas masks in the Flagstaff store.

“They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself,” said Andy Warhol.

Thousands of Phoenicians indulged in tasty foods, fun booths and live entertainment during the 10th annual Rainbows Festival at the historic Heritage Square Park. The day was filled with an overwhelming sense of love, support and education. We support positive change for equality and so Rainbows Festival's celebration of the freedom to live and love in whatever way we choose was a must-attend for us.

Among the many reasons why it's important to promote literacy in our communities are that it helps children to succeed in school, have a higher sense of self esteem and develop positive social skills. The Storybook Express that we helped host this past weekend was a huge step in that direction. We worked together closely with our partners at the Phoenix Public Library, First Things First, PBS, Friends of the Phoenix Public Library and many more to bring the Agave Library a reading celebration like no other!

My family will be tappin’ our toes to some badass bluegrass at Pickin’ in the Pines September 16, 17 and 18! I don’t know what I like most about Pickin’ in the Pines: the great music, beautiful grassy amphitheater, cool pines, fun folks, family friendly fun, kids’ parade, musical workshops, local beer or yummy treats.

Bookmans Mesa celebrated Movie Madness Month in community style. We partnered with our friends at The Royale Cinema with a screening of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The best part is that all proceeds directly benefit Kids Need to Read. The screening sold out one hour before the film even started, but we didn’t turn anyone away. All were invited to participate in our pre-show events.

“What a super incredible day for Kids Need to Read and the families who packed the house! It was great to watch the kids and 'big' kids smiling and having fun. Thanks to all who came to support KNTR, as well as to Bookmans and The Royale Cinema! The funds raised will help Kids Need to Read to provide reading resources and inspiration to disadvantaged kids,” said Denise Gary, Executive Director of Kids Need to Read.

The weather is getting hotter and so are our prizes! It has not stopped our amazingly cool Twitter followers from using their noggins to find local business booty via @bookmansphoenix on Twitter! This month's prizes included gift cards to Smeeks, Harkins Theaters and Souvia Tea! What better ways to beat the heat in the hot Phoenix weather and to support a local business?

Bookmans Flagstaff enjoyed our small part of the ever-popular Flagstaff Fourth of July Parade. We got lots of whoops and cheers as we pushed our strollers and pulled our Burley trailers up the hills of downtown. As always we had a green entry and used only our own kinetic energy to propel ourselves through the streets. Book Man gave the kids high fives and our Bookmans troupe of teenagers handed out Smarties while our music and book supervisors led us in cheers of "Who Loves Books? We do!" One of the Bookmans kiddos led the crowd in the wave. In short we had a party and were happy for all the support and familiar faces.

I hope you’ve heard of our awesome new Twitter Treasure Hunt where you can win great prizes for using your noggin! All of our markets host one, so no matter where you be follow your local Bookmans tweep (@bookmansflag in my case) and we’ll lead you to local business booty. This month the Flagstaff hunt featured the wonderful Babbitt’s Backcountry Outfitters!

It seemed as though Harry Potter fans in the greater Tucson area came to the wizarding world we created at Hotel Congress. The 4-hour, all-ages event sandwiched a free Harry and the Potters concert. This event exceeded everyone's expectations with over 2,000 people in attendance from all levels of fandom. We gave away temporary tattoos of the famous scar, house ties, buttons and pictures from our Bookmans photo booth that included a magnet frame. We partnered with Pima County Public Library who also have a Harry Potter addiction and worked with a variety of local businesses to bring you the largest Harry Potter event Tucson has seen. We were over capacity in the first 30 minutes!

The weather is getting hotter and so are our prizes! The heat has not stopped our amazingly cool Twitter followers from using their noggins to find local business booty via @bookmansphoenix. June prizes included ice cream for a family of four at Papa Ed's Ice Cream in Glendale, Harkins Theaters and Souvia Tea. What better ways to beat the heat in the hot Phoenix weather and to support a local business?

It's over? Already? Phoenix Comicon 2011 attracted people en mass over an extended four-day Memorial Day weekend. We were impressed with its growth in 2010 but were blown away this year. The convention extended over five floors in the Phoenix Convention Center along with additional programming at the Hyatt Regency in Downtown Phoenix. Phoenix Comicon Director Matt Solberg says that 24,000 memberships were sold, not including free youth admissions. That's 10,000 more than last year! You can find a letter thanking the attendees and exhibitors for their time and ideas for 2012 on the Phoenix Comicon website.

While it was missed by many, we retired our prize wheel this year to try something new. Thousands welcomed our Bookmans Photo Booth where we encouraged everyone to geek out with the Bookmans Crew. Geeking out is more than half the fun as many put on our silly props and word bubbles to show off in picture form. Everyone went home with an exclusive Bookmans "Geeking Out Is Half The Fun" photo magnet to show off their souvenir. Many of you purchased our Geeking Out T-shirts, which made their debut in our booth, and politely reminded us that Geeking Out is ALL the fun! We wholeheartedly agree. You may have seen guest appearances in our booth by Silk Spectre and Mario. Big thanks to Max Brooks, Wil Wheaton and P.J. Haarsma who also stopped by and showed support.

Shiver me timbers to our super successful April Hunt Edition of the Bookmans Treasure Hunt -- The Search For Local Business Booty had us skipping down the aisles. Many thanks to the Local First Arizona business that hid the prize package including movie theater tickets, a BOB coupon, a stuffed sheep, a $25 local business gift certificate and Tucson Roller Derby Tickets to our devoted fans who used their noggins and the clues to find the booty (you sprogs brought tears to our eyes). Though we distributed no doubloons each prize package was worth $85 and in this economy we could all use some awesomely free stuff.

We were excited to help the Phoenix Film Festival celebrate their 11th year in production at their annual Kids Day. Valley kids enjoyed a hands on experience that mimicked the film production processes. They started their journey at the Bookmans booth where they decorated a fight censorship souvenir bag to hold the rest of the goodies they’d make throughout the day.

You Twitter folks are some clue savvy, smart cookies! Another successful Bookmans Treasure Hunt: The Search for Local Booty Phoenix Edition has come to an end. A huge round of applause for the Local First Arizona business that hid the prize package including tickets to the amazing Harkins Theaters! You used your noggin and the clues to find the local treasure, we hope you were as excited about it as we are. Each prize package was worth over $50.

The friendliest pharmacy in Phoenix Melrose Pharmacy was where the April prizes were hidden!

With over 1,000 in attendance (not counting the Alpacas, chicks or compost worms) GreenFest 2011 bested their attendance over last year. We had it all in the name of going green at this year's GreenFest brought to you by Bookmans, Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona and Tucson Village Farm. In case you missed it, though we're not sure how you could miss our giant inflatable rooster, GreenFest saw over 30 vendors, delicious food, bike valets, Planet of the Crepes, solar powered music and a recycled art exhibit. As if that weren't enough there was also an electronic cow, baby ducks, Sparky's Cantina and raffle prizes.

Here's a first-hand look at a small part of the activities thanks to Bookmans Media Producer Harrison.

This shindig was an opportunity to learn about simple things you can do to go green (in giant leaps or baby steps), support local businssess and enjoy family fun under the sun. We found our inner farmer (including the tan) that day and gave ya'll something to look forward to next year.

Recently, we asked ourselves: How can we support local businesses and have fun at the same time? How can we use social networking, in this case, Twitter, to do something that will benefit a local business we love? The answer: a treasure hunt! Everyone loves a mystery, so, each month in Tucson, Phoenix and Flagstaff, we choose one local business where we hide great prizes. Then we tweet the clues to our twitter followers, and the first folks to walk into that local business and say “I love Bookmans” walk away with the loot. This month in Flagstaff one of our clues was: “What local business rhymes with biz?” The answer? Fizz Bath Shop of course! How do we love Fizz? Let us count the ways.

Bookmans had a booth at the first annual Tucson Wild Wild West Convention at Old Tucson Studios. I never knew about Steampunk before this convention asked us to be sponsors and like any good Community Relations Manager I checked out the event to see what we were getting into. Anytime I hear "convention" I think of storm trooper suits and nerds to the tenth degree, but I was surprised by the amount of creativity and ingenuity assembled when referencing Steampunk.

Tonight I’m doing something like my one-hundredth public poetry reading, which shows what a masochist I really am. Every time I step up to read, I picture the scene from the movie I Heart Huckabees where one of my favorite actors Jason Schwartzman gets up to read poetry in front of his environmental group. He starts something like, “Nobody sits like a rock sits...” before an audience members shouts “BORING!” and throws an empty 7-11 cup at him.

I am often asked what I love the most about working at Bookmans. Being someone who always has something to say, it is hard to narrow it down to just one thing. From the awesome stuff coming in over the counter (see my previous post about the joys of the Signed Gary Coleman Baseball Card) or the co-worker who can tell you a really bad chicken joke after a long day and still make you laugh or the opportunity to venture into our community and meet a diversity of people or attend events you may not otherwise do.

Last Saturday we spent another chilly evening with gorgeous twinkling lights at a rocking block party! The 2011 Glitter and Glow Block Party was the perfect way to say goodbye to the holiday season. We watched as over two dozen hot air balloons inflated and glowed in the setting of the sun. We enjoyed live music as over thirty thousand people flooded the streets of downtown Glendale to say goodbye to their favorite holiday event of the year.

Despite the fact that we had to close for the big snowstorm last Thursday, the other four days of the Bookmans Free Kids' Winter Film Festival was great fun! Many Flagstaff families came to enjoy the free show and popcorn. When I asked a toddler what she liked best about the festival, she yelled “NEMO!” and then preceded to tell me that it was all going to be okay since he made it home to his daddy. What a relief!

Here are some of our satisfied attendees enjoying a girls morning out:

You know, just another typical day of glass blowing. Heck no, it was awesome! It all started a month or so ago with a daily Groupon deal of "Blow your own Christmas Ornament" for $25 at The Sonoran Glass Art Academy.

Glendale Glitters lit up the town with a fantastic opening, amazing weather and the scent of gingerbread filling the air. Every weekend in the month of December we will celebrate the spirit of winter with over thirty-thousand people (that's 30,000 people, people!) as they walk along the streets of Murphy Park in Historic Downtown Glendale.

It may be early in the game for most, but for us pop-culture junkies the 2011 Phoenix Comicon Kick-Off Event was exactly what we needed! I was still riding the high from this past May, but now I'm even more jazzed with all of the announcements I witnessed this evening. It's amazing that with just nine events under its belt The Phoenix Comicon has gone from 400 estimated attendees in 2002, to almost 14,000 in 2010! It's rumored that expectations for 2011 attendance are for 20,000 fans.

When I think about all of the great times I've had at the Arizona State Fair, I get goose bumps. I am not kidding, I love the fair! When I walk into the entrance and see all of the people, rides and the coliseum the rest of the world fades away for a few hours. Whether it is hearing the screams of adrenaline junkies on a ride or inhaling the scent of all the unhealthy food, I get goose bumps.

Blog by Chuck Cheesman, instructor for Bookmans Music in the Classroom program

Inspired by Todd Crowley's Musical Petting Zoo, I’ve been trying to introduce the children to as many different kinds of musical instruments as I can find. So, after the children did such a beautiful job singing along with “Biddy Bum” the other day, I put down my guitar and pulled out my mandolin.

I asked, “What is this thing?” “A little guitar?” they replied. “Good guess. Sort of…”

And then I told them my sad story. “This instrument got really, really dirty. So I threw it in with the laundry, but then I accidentally left it in the clothes dryer too long. And it shrunk!”

Guest blog by Chuck Cheesman

We are five weeks into our second year of the MIC program, and I’d like to thank Bookmans Entertainment Exchange for sponsoring music in our Flagstaff Head Start classrooms. I’d also like to thank Kate Beles for her work coordinating the program. I’ve been doing music education for over a decade, and the MIC program has been a dream come true. It’s very difficult to get funding for arts and music in our schools. Bookmans’ support is huge!

Yesterday, my whole family slept in until eight in the morning as the rain pitter-pattered away on our roof. It was a miracle, and despite the mad dash to school and work, I was happy for the cold weather, the rain, the thunder, a chance to sport my new orange-red wool sweater. Since I'm from western Washington state, I feel very at home in the rain. I like how the clouds envelop the town and make the sky seem closer. I like how the mist settles between the mountains. I like how the light is gentle on my eyes. I like the excuse to stay in, bundle-up, drink cocoa and read books. Between five and seven-thirty last evening, I must have read my daughter almost every book by Dr. Seuss, and more. We took a hot bath, ate a crock pot dinner, put on fuzzy slippers.

This past Sunday, Tucson Pima Arts Council and Hotel Congress partnered to co-produce the 2010 Hoco Family Arts Festival. Bookmans was proud to be part of this free family-friendly local celebration of arts, culture and innovation! The festival took place at Hotel Congress and Maynard's Market, animating the streets and experience of downtown Tucson with live music, performances, crafts, food, and lots more.

Bookmans was inside Hotel Congress all day providing a fabulous recycled instrument craft for kids of all ages and a special performance of the hugely popular Music Hour with Nature on the Club Congress stage!

Thanks to everyone who came out for our special Cult Classics screening of Naked Lunch on Saturday night at The Loft Cinema. The first 50 folks to arrive received a FREE pass to the movie and we gave away t-shirts, magnets, and other Bookmans' goodies galore!! Right before the start of the show we raffled off three amazing $100 Bookmans' gift bags that were a huge hit with everyone - especially the three winners! If you missed this celebration of movie madness, don't despair! We have one more fabulous Fight Censorship screening of CLOCKWORK ORANGE  September 24th & 25th at The Loft. Bookmans will be at the September 25th screening with more free passes, great giveaways, and several of those lovely $100 gift bags!

Thanks to everyone who came down to Hotel Congress this weekend for the 2010 Vinyl Revival record festival!! Tons of local dealers and businesses were set-up to offer an amazing variety of vinyl, and Bookmans was proud to be a part again this year. We had a great time meeting fellow vinyl lovers and enjoying the celebration. Check out some pics for this year's event here.

The August 9 Queens Academy was a huge success attracting over 30 women and girls of all ages to the Bookmans Low Lounge in the Sahuaro Girl Scout Resource Center. Participants broke off into three groups: beginner, intermediate and advanced. While beginners went over the rules and played pawn games with Jean, the intermediate and advanced groups were hard at work studying tactics in preparation for the upcoming 2nd Annual All Queens Chess Day this October.

One of our favorite children's book authors, Erin Saelens, creator of Bot Tots, has a great new YouTube video out of her book Cog Corner Goes Green! Join the Botbergs and the O’Gearys on their first adventure of many as they rally their Tiny Bot friends to join a recycling crew. Can Tiny Bots motivate Big Bots to go green? Will Cog Corner ever be sparkling clean? Check out the video:

A couple of months ago, a young woman who was working to complete her Girl Scout Gold Award (the highest honor a Girl Scout can receive) approached me about a book donation.  For her Gold Award project, she had been working for the last year to create an on-site library for the women and children staying with New Beginnings.  Since 1987, New Beginnings for Women & Children has provided homeless women in Tucson the support they need to become financially self-sufficient and to be able to keep their housing and their families secure.  The program offers a family shelter, as well as transitional housing, an aftercare program, and a special children’s program that addresses the emotional and educational needs of children who have lived through the stress of homelessness.

Today Bookmans in Flagstaff completed our final free summer kids event with our annual “Back to School Party” featuring Chuck Cheesman's kids' show, Wild West Entertainment's face painting and balloon sculpting, free massage with Raquel Rotnes and more. Check out the awesome pictures here. We are going to miss all the wonderful families and day camps that joined us each week at the Orpheum Theater. Today we hosted 150 people, and it was a blast! Please stay tuned for more details about our upcoming free kids events at the downtown public library, including Fandango puppet making at 10:30 a.m. August 30, and banned books story time to honor Banned Book Week at 10:30 a.m. on October 1! Also, please come see us at Pickin' in the Pines September 17, 18 and 19.

Thanks again for making our summer so much fun!

My friends and I are often discussing what we think is hot. By hot we mean attractive, sexy, appealing. A few recent topics: septum piercing (not), leggings (sometimes), men who care for their children without calling it babysitting (always). I was thinking about Bookmans sponsorship of the Northern Arizona Highland Celtic Festival this coming weekend, and found myself claiming that Celtic festivals are hot.

For the last couple of years, I've lead the charge (with our Assistant Store Manager, Desiree) to assemble and decorate a Bookmans bike-powered float for the Flagstaff 4th of July parade. This year, our kids' books expert Professor Pepe did the building and our visual merchandiser Regina, the sweetest girl ever, did the decorating, but I'm still proud to be involved. I did my part by surviving the American Legion meeting where all parade participants suddenly feel like we've been sent to the principal's office (or joined the armed forces) while we get yelled at to never ever throw things from our float. After all, it could take an eye out!

Bookmans Flagstaff is hosting our FREE summer kids events every Wednesday morning at the Orpheum Theater from 10-11am, and, so far they have been a blast! We've had a hoe-down with Tony Norris, made tree collages with Raquel Rotnes, and decorated “Handmade at Bookmans” tee-shirts for Father's Day. Next week, we have Michael Steele's Magic Show. It's nice and cool inside the Orpheum on a hot summer day, and we provide snacks, drinks, and other free stuff. See here for some pictures of our latest event.

There's almost nothing I love more than watching my toddler dance. My daughter will get down to anything, ranging from her father's classic rock vinyl to the techno music on a car insurance commercial. Last week, we had her first “parent-teacher conference” and learned that she's doing just fine learning how to use a spoon, drinking out of her own sippy cup and peeing in the potty. However, I also learned that she has a nickname among the Montessori school teachers and it's “Flashdance.” Apparently, she will break out into a wild improv dance anytime, including when the school hosts classical music in the courtyard or someone drives by thumping their bass.

Since 2005, The Arizona Derby Dames (AZDD) have been the fastest growing all-girl roller derby in the state of Arizona. The AZDD was founded by four women, Suzy Homewrecker (XXX), Joan Threat (50), All The Way Mae (213) and Prima Donna (32), who were all originally players in the Arizona Roller Derby League. That first season, I remember watching only three teams bout against one another--The Coffin Draggers, The Brutal Beauties, and The Bombshells. Over the next few years, The School Yard Scrappers and The Runaway Brides were added to the roster.

The weather could not have been more inviting last week at Margaret T. Hance Park in Central Phoenix where we celebrated the 2010 El Dia De Los Ninos. This event has been celebrated since 1925, El Dia De Los Ninos translates to Day of the Child. The day recognizes children, pays homage to their importance in society, celebrates diversity, and teaches the children about how to become a strong community member. I never grow tired of book bag decorating with kids, it is so much fun to watch their spirit come alive and their creativity flow. Check out our Flickr photos here.

I love the smell of sunscreen and sweat. There’s something about human smells mixed with the chemical coconut smell that makes me happy. Maybe it’s the familiarity of the smells, like a doorway into simpler childhood times. Saturday, at the Flagstaff Earth Day Festival, we had sunscreen and sweat in abundance. There was also a familiar sight to go along with the olfactory memories, the return of the Flagstaff Trade Counter. It didn’t look exactly the same, but standing on one side going through boxes, bags and handing out trade was great. We got to open a new pack of deal cards, the first we’ve used since the roof collapse, and tell people “Give us about 15 to 20 minutes to go thru this.” Everything was so familiar, like when you camp out. You’re still cooking, but outside.

Everyone knows that April 22 is widely celebrated as the official Earth Day. All year 'round we are celebrating our love of the Earth and our environment. According to the ticker on this website, Bookmans has purchased over 22 million pieces of merchandise! That means that every single piece was re-used and we kept it from being thrown away.

Rain or shine, thousands of Phoenicians came out to visit the 2010 M7 Street Fair! Awarded with the honor of “Best Neighborhood Street Festival” by the Phoenix New Times in 2009, the 9th Annual Melrose on 7th Street Fair was full of fun, family, and community! Starting on 7th Avenue and Indian School everyone walked down the street filled with a local market of artists, food, children's activities, live music, street performers, and a collectible car show. Walking down the street I spotted Kimber Lanning of Local First Arizona, Kathy Cano-Marillo, the “Crafty Chica” and local celebrity Brad Perry performing live music in front of Two Hippies Breakfast Joint. I tried so hard to resist the mouth watering smell of kettle corn, lemonade, and pulled pork sandwiches.

BOOKMAN (the word-loving superhero of all things Bookmans) was out in the Tucson community recently to share with students the source of his superpowers - BOOKS!! The kids gathered around BOOKMAN to enjoy a special story time and then received a fabulous Bookmans t-shirt. Students each took a turn hugging and high-fiving the superhero before settling into a morning of reading. BOOKMAN will continue to make special appearances at schools throughout February in celebration of Love of Reading month. So keep an eye to the sky - he might be visiting your school next! Check out our Flickr page for more photos!

The Annual Winter Visitors Expo greeted the city of Mesa and visitors from across the country (and some from Canada!) on Wednesday morning. Exhibitors of all types and services were set up at the Arizona Wing of the Commemorative Air Force Museum to show off what our beautiful city has to offer. Bookmans was on hand providing attendees with free Bookmans Cafe House Blend coffee samples and delectable pastries, just a small sample of what we offer at our new Cafe at our Mesa store! Not only did attendees have a quick pick me up and breakfast, but everyone was able to take home a free book and brand new Bookmans tote bag. Who could resist free coffee, pastries, and a book? I know I couldn't!

Bookmans has long been a supporter of the Orpheum Theater, but now we’re sponsoring great movies on a monthly basis! The Orpheum Theater, a local landmark in historic downtown Flagstaff, Arizona, was built by John Weatherford, who owned of the Weatherford Hotel just up the street in the early 1900s.

The most magical moments happen when you least expect it. I attended a Family Literacy Night last month at a local school in Phoenix. I was there to share information with the students and their parents about our Read 10, Get 1 Free Book Program and the Kids Club. Never did I imagine that I would meet one of the most enigmatic and engaging community partners! Ellen Dean is the Arizona Coordinator for BookPALS, an all-volunteer literacy program sponsored by the Screen Actors Guild Foundation. Performing arts and trained community volunteers invest their time in disadvantaged schools and read to classes of children every single week. That small investment in time makes a huge impact on the lives of these children.

Bookmans is a longtime advocate and the principal corporate sponsor of Literacy Volunteers of Tucson, a non-profit organization that works to improve the reading, writing and English-speaking skills of adults in our community. We are also proud to underwrite the annual 'lovetoread' breakfast, which helps collect support and raise awareness of the important work being done in our community. Check out our video that showcases Literacy Volunteers of Tucson and our relationship with this extraordinary organization!

To see the video, click here!

To see some of the other things we are doing in the community, visit our YouTube page!

We had amazing weather in Phoenix on Saturday as the Certified Local Fall Festival was celebrated for its fifth year running. Plenty of free food, drinks, prizes and of course celebrating all things local, brought people from all over the valley to the Duck & Decanter on 16th St. & Camelback. 

Whether you missed this fantastic event, or you just want to relive the fun, be sure to check out the All Queens Chess Day Video now on our YouTube page! At Bookmans, we know that we are part of a vital community and we're proud to sponsor and host events like the All Queens Chess Day that help support and enrich the lives of our community members.  If you've never been to a community event at Bookmans, come take a look and see what you've been missing!

We had a wonderful turnout this Saturday at the 2009 Pride in the Desert festival at Reid Park.  Everyone had a great time playing our "Bookmans' Rubber Duckie Grab" and winning some fabulous Bookmans giveaways!

Bookmans had a blast at the HoCo Festival this past Memorial Day weekend! Thanks to everyone who came by the Kids Crafting Area at Family Fun Fest and decorated bags with us, and thanks to Hotel Congress for pulling together another fantastic schedule of music and fun. You can see more photos in our Flickr.

Thank you to all of the customers and employees who donated to the St. Mary's Food Bank Food Drive at our Phoenix and Mesa locations during the month of July. Due to your kindness and generosity we were able to donate 702 pounds of food! That  equates to 702 meals placed on the tables of families in our community.

Bookmans employees created their own "critical mass" in the Flagstaff 4th of July Parade last Saturday. Lucky for them, the streets were already closed, since the many decorated bikes, folks wearing animal hats, little ones handing-out coupons, and Pepe, the kids books expert on a unicycle, would surely have caused a crash! Despite sweaty scalps and Pepe's bloodied knees, everyone had a wonderful time and felt that the Flagstaff crowd greeted them like local heroes. They were especially grateful for the cheers as they pedaled their way up that final hill. Go patriotic green power at Bookmans!

What is Ignite Phoenix? The concept is simple: 18 people have 5 minutes and 20 slides to talk about their passion. If audience members want to find out more, the very last slide is chock full of contact information! 20 slides, 5 minutes, and 18 presenters… Why? It’s a challenge to the presenters to be engaging and, to the point, a perfect concept in simplicity.

Pride in the Pines 2009 was a huge success in Flagstaff and Bookmans was proud to be a sponsor! The line to get in to the event wrapped around the block much of the day, and everyone seemed to be having a great time eating, drinking (lemonade and beer), listening to great music, and generally being fabulous.

One down, two to go! Today we gave the first $5,000 Bookmans' Reading Challenge prize money to Sonoran Science Academy-Broadway in Tucson. I don't know what it is, but you get a room full of happy and excited kids and my eyes start to well up. You can just feel the positive energy and it becomes overwhelming, or maybe I'm just hormonal!

Bookmans hosted the Bike 2 Work Downtown Breakfast this past Friday, part of this year's Clean Air Days and Bike Fest. Between 200 and 250 participants stopped by Jácome Plaza during their bike ride commute to partake in complementary pastries and fruit, all in the spirit of doing right by the environment.

From Friday, March 20th through Sunday, March 22nd, you can help support the Valley's only independent art house theater by putting your money where your fun is. Chandler Cinemas is celebrating its second year in operations with a three-day spectacle of live music, zombies, a Saw movie marathon, a Repo! The Genetic Opera event featuring Alexa Vega, Terrance Zdunich, and Darren Smith, a Saw and Repo! prop auction, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and numerous screenings of cult and grindhouse classics.

Mel Mason, host of KXCI's The Road Show, passed along a reminder that the station's membership drive is currently in full swing.