Five Things: Joanne Chang To Speak at South End Library

1. Partly sunny skies today with scattered showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 80s and wind gusts up to 25 mph.

2. Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m., head to the for a talk by local culinary celebrity Joanne Chang of and . Chang will talk about writing her first cookbook Flour: A Baker’s Collection of Spectacular Recipes, and answer questions from the audience. Copies of the book will be available for sale at the , which is part of the South End Writes series.

3. Speaking of... is on Facebook! Click here to 'like' your local branch and get updates on news and upcoming events.

4. Today is National Running Day! Competitor Group, an active lifestyle media company, is encouraging runners across the country to log their miles online at Competitor.com, with the goal of reaching 500,000 miles in one day. Today only, they're also offering registration discounts for the popular Rock 'n' Roll Marathon (there's one coming up in Providence on Aug. 9), the TriRock and Muddy Buddy event series.

5. Gilt City Boston is hosting a special deal for 46 percent off the Mimosa Brunch (that's $16 for $30 worth of food) or Chef's Tasting for Two (for $70) at 94 Mass Ave., a tapas restaurant with rave reviews. Details here.