Category Archives: More Connections

The Holly and the Ivy (and we mean that quite literally)!

Posted on by

It’s time to deck the halls, and this historical house pulled out all the stops, compliments of the talented individuals in the West Trenton Garden Club! In today’s post, we’re visiting the holiday display inside the library at Drumthwacket, the official residence of the Governor of New Jersey. This year, the theme was children’s literature, and the exhibit featured ten different tables with innovative and gorgeous takes on holiday classics! Katie’s been a docent at Drumthwacket for over a decade, and she is going to do her docent duty and drop in cool little facts as we meander through this delightful tour. Her parts will be in italics!

The library was added to Drumthwacket by the second private owner, Moses Taylor Pyne. Pyne graduated from Princeton in 1877 and never missed a meeting during his 37 year tenure on the University Board of Trustees.

Here’s another glimpse at the arrangement that started this post – a table for Jan Brett’s fantastic books, including The Mitten and The Hat. Did you notice the little pine cone owl in the mitten? Adorable.

Another cozy classic is Nutcracker, written by E.T.A. Hoffman, and illustrated by Maurice Sendak (and here’s a little Sendak special collections gem for you to enjoy as well).

Nearby was a Nutcracker-inspired tree festooned with sweet little ballet ornaments:

At the next display, the West Trenton Garden Club stole my heart with this innovative white carnation snowman, aptly paired with Raymond Brigg’s classic The Snowman. Look that snowman’s little baby carrot nose. Perfection!

The fireplace is one large block of Caen stone from France, which was brought to Drumthwacket and carved onsite by stonemasons. Can you see the Princeton University shield hidden in the middle of the fireplace?

Up next we have none other than Charlie Brown and his little tree that could…

And a Mexican holiday legend retold and illustrated by Tomie dePaola. If you’re a fan of dePaola’s work, don’t miss this original Strega Nona gingerbread cottage. Its massively talented architect, Jen Carson, would return to our blog eleven years later with her own bakery and children’s book!

Caldecott Medal winner The Polar Express made an appearance. My son would have absolutely loved this display for the trains – it’s simply not the holidays without trains!:

The Polar Express rests on Moses Taylor Pyne’s partner desk, which is original to the room. The desk has two complete working sets of drawers on each side, allowing two people to easily work across from each other.

Rudolph flew in for a visit to Drumthwacket as well. See the books on the shelf behind him? That’s just one small section of a massive floor to ceiling bookcase stuffed with children’s books exclusively authored by New Jersey writers, including Sayantani DasGupta, who we interview here!

This next table is one of our absolutely favorites. Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch, which boasted a delightful sled bouquet in a decorated sack.

And to the person who created a Grinch out of evergreen branches and a painted vase? You made our hearts grow three sizes larger. You deserve a gold medal for creativity, and I hope you don’t mind if I replicate this idea for my front porch next year? Incredible!

The library’s diamond shape leaded glass windows are adorned with different images, including a sailboat, the fleur de lis, a bow and arrow, and the anchor and serpent. East Pyne Hall, which used to be Princeton University’s main library and is named after Pyne, has the very same style of leaded glass windows.

Finally we come to the grand finale, and this was just so touching and innovative. A table featuring Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. The three ghosts are represented with delicate custom bouquets. I don’t know when or how, but we are going to do something with this idea in the future. It’s absolutely wonderful.

Many thanks to Drumthwacket for allowing us to photograph their display, and a hearty round of applause to the West Trenton Garden Club for their masterful creations. Thank you too, Docent Katie for your awesome historical facts. Happy holidays, one and all!

There and Back Again: Katie’s Journey

Posted on by

It’s been a long journey, but Katie and Finley finally completed their quest!

You might recall that two years ago, Katie and her trusty dog Finley decided to test THE LORD OF THE RINGS Virtual Challenge series, offered by Conqueror Virtual Challenges. It’s an app that invites individuals to virtually hike famous trails, parks, and fantasy locations! Katie chose to traverse Middle Earth, carrying the One Ring all the way from the The Shire to Mordor. Katie and Finley started on June 2, 2022. After every dog walk, she logged her hours and watched her progress on the app’s neat-o map. She finished October 26, 2024. The grand total? 660 miles.

There were five stops along the journey, and at each stop earned Katie a medal that was mailed to her house. As you can see, they are unique, intricate, surprisingly large, and super cool. One of them glows in the dark!

The company also mails postcards when you reach certain milestones, and they physically plant a tree for every 20% that you walk. For Katie and Finley, that translated to 25 trees! The medal set also included the One Ring. It fits inside the Shire medal and the Mordor medal. But Katie very prudently cast it into the fires of Mordor, thus saving Middle Earth forever. Go Katie!

In case you are wondering where Katie is warming her little hobbit feet, it’s by the massive fireplace in the Yankee Doodle Tap Room. It’s located inside the Nassau Inn in Princeton, New Jersey. It was the perfect location for a restful fireside tankard.

With it’s stone, brick, wood floors, and ceiling beams, The Tap Room really does look like it could belong in the Shire. We just need a house band and a few dozen jolly hobbits.

The Tap Room has plenty of Princeton University touches as well, from a photo wall of famous alumni, to a carved tiger guarding an exit door.

But the most famous feature of the Tap Room is “Yankee Doodle,” an original Norman Rockwell painting that hangs over the bar. One of his largest canvases, it was commissioned in the mid 1930s by Edgar Palmer. Rockwell painted in right onto the wall of the Tap Room. Today, it’s carefully protected by glass.

Congratulations to Katie and Finley on their fantastic achievement! And, if you’re still in hobbit party mode, why not check out this post on Bilbo Baggins’ recent birthday bash?

R is for Rhino Reader

Posted on by

Grab a book, cuddle up, and let the reading begin! This is Rey the Rhino Reader, an original robotics project designed and programmed by Princeton University graduate Aneekah Uddin. Rey was part of a larger “Art & Robotics” exhibit on campus last spring.

As you can see from the set up below, Rey wears a camera on his head, which is in turn connected to a laptop. When you place a book in front of Rey’s nose, the program will scan the page and read the book aloud to you! Flip the page, and the story continues at your pace.

While the concept appears very simple, it turns out that programming a robot to read can get rather…complicated. I caught up with Aneekah to ask about her inspirations for this adorable project.

Hi Aneekah! Tell us a little about yourself!

Hi! I was born and raised in Montclair, NJ, and I recently graduated from Princeton (Class of 2024) with a degree in Computer Science and Theater. I love exploring new places, performing arts, and crafting—particularly metalworking and upcycling clothes. One of my favorite childhood book series was Cam Jansen!

How did this project begin?

In my final semester at Princeton, I participated in an Independent Work Seminar titled “Reimagining Robotics Through Art,” taught by Professor Radhika Nagpal. At the beginning of the semester, we explored how the origins of robotics have been influenced by colonialist and patriarchal frameworks, as highlighted by Professor Ruha Benjamin in her book “Race After Technology.” Inspired by these discussions, Professor Nagpal encouraged us to reimagine a future of robotics that challenges these frameworks by centering arts and creativity. As an actress, scriptwriter, and dancer, storytelling is fundamental to my understanding of art. For my project, I aimed to create something both functional and subversive of colonialist and patriarchal norms, while celebrating my love for storytelling. This led to the creation of Rhino Reader!

Tell us a little bit about your philosophy on early literacy for kids!

Eighty-two percent of students eligible for free or reduced lunches do not read at or above proficient levels by fourth grade. I was among the fortunate 18 percent who did, thanks largely to my upbringing. My mother instilled in me the importance of reading from an early age. She read to me daily and, as I grew older, helped me practice reading, sounding out words, and tackling more challenging books. Her dedication was instrumental in my development of English skills and my eventual acceptance into a leading university. However, not every child has the privilege of having a parent who can read, who has time to spend, or who has access to resources. Studies have shown that this kind of support can significantly transform a child’s trajectory. All children should have access to the opportunities and resources they need to develop strong literacy skills from a young age.

What was the most difficult or unexpected part of this venture?

Reading children’s books is challenging! It’s even more difficult for a robot because there’s often no clear “order” to the text. Words can be arranged across pages in unconventional shapes, various fonts, and conflicting orientations. Distinguishing between line breaks and sentence endings isn’t always straightforward, and there’s the added complexity of onomatopoeia. For a robot, learning to read a children’s book is a significantly harder task than understanding a legal contract or research paper.

If you were a kid again, what book would you like the rhino to read to you and why?

Elephant and Piggy! These Mo Willems books are among my favorites, and I spent countless hours reading them to my younger siblings, who are five and six years younger than me. They hold a special place in my heart.