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[FEB. 15, 2002]  ^"Owls, the Silent Hunters," a pictorial exhibit from the Illinois Audubon Society, is on display now in the Annex of the Lincoln Public Library.

The exhibit shows the eight types of owls, both common and uncommon, that may be seen in Illinois and tells something about the habits of these nocturnal birds of prey.

Owls are silent hunters because they have very soft feathers that make no noise as they fly, so they can easily sneak up on their prey. They also have excellent hearing, binocular vision, strong feet and talons for capturing prey, and hooked beaks for tearing it into bite-size piece pieces.

[Photos by Joan Crabb]

They see quite well in the dark, and because of their binocular vision (like ours) they can judge distance and movement very well. Because they cannot move their eyes, they turn their heads from side to side just as we do.

Owls are beneficial to man because they eat mostly mice, rats and harmful insects. They can swallow small prey at one gulp and then regurgitate the bones and fur in small pellets. These pellets can be found on the ground under the places where owls roost.

They are attentive parents and take good care of their young owlets.

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The most common owls in Illinois are the great horned owl, a large owl that can be as much as 25 inches tall and has ear tufts that resemble horns; the barred owl, also a large owl but without ear tufts; and the screech owl, 7 to 10 inches long, with small ear tufts. The screech owl is the one most often seen and heard near our homes.

Barn owls, with their distinctive pale heart-shaped faces, are becoming rare. Like short-eared owls, they favor open farmlands and prairies. Snowy owls are occasional winter visitors from the Arctic, and long-eared and saw-whet owls are also more likely to found in Illinois during the winter.

Other exhibits from the Illinois Audubon Society will be on display at the Lincoln Public Library in the coming months.

The Illinois Audubon Society is the oldest conservation organization in Illinois, founded in1897. It works to preserve habitat, especially for threatened and endangered species, and sponsors educational programs, such as field trips and workshops, for both young people and adults. It is not part of the National Audubon Society.

For more information about the Illinois Audubon Society, write to P.O. Box 2418, Danville, IL 61834-2418; phone (217) 446-5085; or visit the website at www.illinoisaudubon.org.

[Joan Crabb]

[JAN. 18, 2002]  Bored with winter? Lincoln Public Library presents "Board Games Rodeo" from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. every Saturday through March 23 in the Pegram Community Room.

If you are high school age through adult, you are invited to come and compete against your fellow "boardmeisters" in games of Monopoly, Risk, Scrabble, chess, checkers, Chinese checkers, backgammon, Trivial Pursuit and Yatzee. Remember to bring your gameboard so everyone can participate.

Tri-County AmeriCorps volunteers serve as referees.

Light snacks are served.

For more information about this program, visit the library at 725 Pekin St. or call (217) 732-8878 or 732-5732.

[MARCH 13, 2002]  ^"Narcissus in Chains," by Laurell K. Hamilton. Berkley Pub. Group. 432 pages.

Laurell Hamilton does not disappoint her followers in this, her 10th book in the "Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter" series. For those who are fans of Hamilton, you will find all of the usual lycanthropes (werewolves, wereleopard and even weredogs, to name a few), zombies and vampires lurking throughout the pages of her book.

Anita faces the usual moral dilemma associated with dating a vampire and a werewolf at the same time. She experiences the legal problems to be expected when you are a vampire hunter and necromancer at a time when vampires’ rights are protected by law. She struggles with being the lupa (leader) of a clan of weak, victimized wereleopards who always seem to be in need of something, and she is the main part of a triumvate (triangle of power) whose other two members happen to be a vampire and a werewolf. Unfortunately for Anita, the vampire and the werewolf are also her on-again, off-again love interests.

In her latest adventure, we find Anita trying in the midst of trying to sort out her relationship with Jean-Claude (the vampire) and Richard (the werewolf), when a member of "her" pack of wereleopards is kidnapped. He is taken to Narcissus, the shape-changing owner of the nightclub Narcissus In Chains.

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In an attempt to rescue her charge, she becomes injured by him … and if you are injured by a were-beast, you risk the chance of becoming one yourself. While waiting for the next full moon to see if this change will take place, Richard accuses her charge of purposely injuring her so that she will become a wereleopard as well and kidnaps him.

In the usual Laurell Hamilton style, the plot sees many twists and turns from this point on and makes for yet another great Anita Blake adventure.

The first book in the series is titled "Guilty Pleasures," and it typifies the entire series. The horror genre does not appeal to everyone, and among those who do find it appealing there are even fewer who enjoy the subject of vampires. Mix in werewolves, lycanthropes (shape changers), necromancers and the like; add a bit of romance and a protagonist who literally dances with death, and does so with such attitude and style; and you have an exciting, exhilarating, sexy and thrilling series.

Laurell K. Hamilton is a full-time writer and mother. Her best-selling "Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter" novels include "Obsidian Butterfly," "Blue Moon," "Burnt Offerings," "The Killing Dance," "Bloody Bones," "The Lunatic Café," "Circus of the Damned," "The Laughing Corpse" and "Guilty Pleasures." She is also the author of "A Kiss of Shadows." She lives in a suburb of St. Louis with her family. (Author information taken from book jacket.)

[Bobbi Reddix, Lincoln Public Library]

• Lincoln Community Theatre

• Logan County Arts Association

[MARCH 14, 2002]  Boston Brass is, as they sound, a quintet of brass instrument players. The brass instruments themselves were numerous. They include a French horn, a trombone, a tuba and various trumpets (such as the tiny piccolo trumpet). The players’ costumes — bright purple suit jackets — seem to be their signature.

The members of the group include Richard Kelly, trumpet player from Juilliard School of Music; Jeff Conner, trumpet player from Boston University and Boston Conservatory; J.D. Shaw, French horn player from the Eastman School of Music; Ed Clough, trombone player from Boston University; and Andrew Hitz, tuba player from Northwestern University and Arizona State University.

Many of their musical numbers were originally written for other instruments but were arranged by J.D. Shaw, their talented French horn player. This includes their opening piece, "Tournament Gallop," by the first American piano virtuoso, Louis Moreau Gottschalk. When asked why it took five instruments to play the one-instrument piece, Shaw explained that Gottschalk had 10 fingers, and between the five of them, they have 10 lips.

Other Shaw arrangements included Dmitri Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8, Op. 110 (also in the first half) and Duke Ellington’s "Caravan."

The rest of the first half consisted of "Danza Finale" from Alberto Ginastera’s nationalistic ballet "Estancia," Franz Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 (made famous by Bugs Bunny) and Henry Fillmore’s "Circus Bee."

The mood was light and classical. The pieces were fun but inspired reverence, as most classical pieces will.

The second half, however, the mood shifted. The purple jackets and black shirts were replaced with black jackets and purple shirts. The music moved from the strong, stuffy sounds of the first act’s classical pieces to the darker, toe-tapping sound of a jazz nightclub.

The group led off with Joe Garland’s "In the Mood," followed by Josef Kosma’s "Autumn Leaves." They also played the haunting theme from David Raksin’s film noir "Laura."

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Arts association adopts membership structure, schedules membership drive

[MARCH 6, 2002]  Meeting on Tuesday night, the Logan County Arts Association board adopted a membership schedule ranging from $30 for individuals to $350 for corporate sponsorships.

Although a number of members are already on the books, the association plans to have its first official membership drive during October 2002. Board president Marshall Jacobs said membership benefits begin immediately upon enrollment.

All membership levels represent support for the young organization, which aims to promote a wide variety of arts in Logan County. The basic membership level costs $30 for an individual or $50 for a couple and includes a membership newsletter or mailings.

For $130, a patron membership also includes a 20 percent discount on the price of two tickets bought in advance to any or all of the 10 classic movie nights, which run January through October on the second Thursday of the month.

The classic movie for March 14, to be shown at GKC Cinemas at 7 p.m., is "On the Waterfront," starring Marlon Brando in his 1954 Oscar-winning performance. There will be a door prize of GKC Cinemas tickets. Cecil B. De Mille’s 1956 blockbuster "The Ten Commandments" will be shown on April 11.

A $200 patron plus membership in the Logan County Arts Association adds to the patron benefits discounts on advance tickets for other events besides classic movies and reserved seating at all functions for which tickets are purchased in advance. Other events to date have included a clown performance by Mr. Tone and a Christmas concert by classic guitarist Christian Culleton.

The highest level of support for the association, corporate sponsorship, includes all the preceding benefits with the provision that the classic movie discounts can be applied to four tickets instead of two. In addition the individual, firm or organization will be named as sponsor of one event. This fact will be publicized on the tickets and with a banner and introduction at the event. The cost of a corporate membership is $350.

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Lincoln Community Theatre’s website is at www.geocities.com/lincolncommunitytheatre/index.html. Pictures from past productions are included.  The LCT mailing address is Lincoln Community Theatre, P.O. Box 374, Lincoln, IL  62656.  E-mail: lincolncommunitytheatre@yahoo.com.

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