Chrysna Jean-Paul helps her daughter, Jena, make pebble rocks using water and nail polish at the Monroe Township library, while brothers Liam and Ryker showed off their finished pebbles.
Between youngsters making marbled pebbles and adults playing Pathfinder – an offshoot of Dungeons & Dragons – there was a flurry of activity in the halls and meeting rooms of the Monroe Township library on the evening of July 8.
“We are hydro-dipping rocks using water and nail polish,” said children’s librarian Katrina Hauserman as she taught the children and their parents how to create the colorful stones. Starting with a bowl of water, they mixed various colors of the nail polish to create a pattern, and using adhesive putty dipped the stones gently into the bowl for just two seconds to let the water drip off.
The nail polish floats in the water but does not dissolve, as the two substances are unmixable, explained Hauserman, adding that it has film-forming molecules which create a protective film around the pebble.
Chrysna Jean-Paul helped her daughter, Jena, dip the stones into the water while brothers Liam and Ryker proudly showed off their finished pebbles to their parents during the library program, which drew more than 30 participants.
“There is a lot of fun stuff to do at the library,” noted volunteer Lily Laboy, the daughter of Hauserman who has been coming to events for years at the modern library building on Marsha Avenue in Williamstown, behind the farmer’s market on the Black Horse Pike.
Meanwhile, at the big meeting room down the library hall, adults in the Dungeons & Dragons Club were playing the board game Pathfinder, where participants each play a character in a problem-solving situation dictated by Dungeon master Randy Hallam.
Alberto Martinez claims to be a wood elf ranger that is “chaotically good,” while Brandon Alexander plays a 3-foot kobald ninja that looks like a lizard.
“I enjoy all the fun stuff about the game,” Alexander enthused, “like storms, murder and being in the sewer.”
“Everyone continues to play their character every Tuesday,” said Gnome sorcerer Maddax Carney. “The game could take years to finish.”
“We come up with creative ways to solve different problems,” offered Shane Alexander, who plays Asimar Inquisitor, a “half angel.”
The game board is a map with boxes that players navigate by moving the little figures representing their characters. Martinez, known as the “keeper of the people,” showed off the craftsmanship of the figurines.
“It is a night to get out and have some fun,” he observed, adding that the library club meets year-round every Tuesday at 6 p.m.
“Pathfinder morphed from Dungeons & Dragons. It is a community-oriented game for all ages,” said Hallam, pointing out that D&D was created in 1974 by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson and published by Tactical Studies Rules. Pathfinder was designed by Jason Bulmahn and published by Paizo in 2009.
The players noted how they enjoy a night out and playing games in person with other people, along with the opportunity to socialize.
“I enjoy the camaraderie and making new friends,” Scott Simpkins said. “I am re-connecting with something I played as a kid.”
For more information on events and programs every day during the summer, visit https://monroetpl.org.
