TIP: Save on video rentals at your library

TIP: Check out videos at your library, save $8-10 each week...or $416-520 per year! If you're a movie fan, you must check out your library. I love the library. This weekend I checked out four movies that I can keep until Sept. 5 - that's seven days. And it cost me nothing!

It would've cost me about $8-10 at Blockbuster. But I didn't spend one dollar, not even a penny. Sure, they don't have the new releases, but there are plenty of movies I haven't seen but have been on my list to see, including, "Along Came Polly" with Jennifer Anniston, "Little Miss Sunshine" with Steve Carrell, and "Tea with Mussolini" with Cher. I also checked out an educational DVD and a bunch of books. While I was there I put holds on 5 books I'd like to read. The library sends me an email when they come in and holds them for me.


Besides not costing anything, I love that if I don't like these movies or the books don't interest me, I just give them back. No risk. No money spent.


A couple days before my items are due, I get an email reminder (I love Email Notices, like the ones we offer!) I can renew items several times without even going to the library - they have online renewal. It doesn't get better than that!



And the Naperville Public Library is giving us another reason to love the library. The month of September is "Show Us Your Library Card" month. At retailers around the town, if you show your library card you get special deals. At Hawthorne, we're giving library cardholders free coin counting. So bring your coin jar this month and Show Us Your Library Card!

TIP: Save $2 per person to see "Public Enemies"

TIP: You can save $2 per ticket to AMC Theaters by buying your tickets at Hawthorne branches. Tickets for first run movies, like "Public Enemies" are $10 at AMC Theaters and only $8 at Hawthorne. We also $6.50 tickets for movies that have been out for a couple weeks.

So if your holiday plans include a trip to the theater to catch one of the big summer blockbusters, take a quick trip to Hawthorne first. We'll be open on Friday until 6 PM but closed on Saturday for Independence Day.

Summer Movie Time! Save Money at the Theatre!

Summer movies have officially arrived with the Wolverine movie last week. Today, Star Trek opens and coming soon are Angels & Demons, Terminator Salvation and the new Night at the Museum movie. I'm planning to see Star Trek today using a movie pass...I'll let you know what I think!

Will you be going to the theatre to see one or all of these? Do you cringe at the cost? $10+ for a movie, plus popcorn, candy and a drink.

Save some money! Little known is that you can get discount movie tickets that are good the FIRST day!! No waiting 2 weeks to see it with a pass.

Stop in at Hawthorne to pick up passes for your Summer movies!

$8 for Gold Passes (good the first day!)

or

$6.50 for Silver Passes (good after the 2nd weekend)

Join in the water cooler talk by seeing movies the first weekend without paying a huge price!!

TIP: Free Movies

This week I borrowed "Gone With the Wind" from the Saint Charles Public Library. My 13-year-old daughter hadn't seen it. The only reason she knew of it was the Great Movie Ride at Walt Disney World. She is now on a quest to see all the movies in the Great Movie Ride, but the classics are hard to find at Blockbuster; they tend to carry more current stuff.

But, I found "Gone With the Wind" at the library - so I borrowed it for FREE (!) and I got to keep it for a week. I just renewed it for another week. (It's 3 hours long! So it's taking us a couple days to get through it.) It's a great movie - I forgot how rich the characters are.

So check out the library - it's a great way to save money on books, music and movies.