The Beej!

Bijou is lounging on top of the stereo and seems to be listening along with me as I play an audiobook!

The Play List

Here is the play list we came up with and it flows pretty well. Thanks to Mark for all of his help.
Artist & Title
1 The Police; Don’t Stand So Close to Me
2 The Beatles; Paperback Writer
3 Kate Bush; Wuthering Heights
4 Elvis Costello; Everyday I Write the Book
5 Barenaked Ladies; One Week
6 Old 97s; Rollerskate Skinny
7 The Smiths; Cemetery Gates
8 Bruce Springsteen; The Ghost of Tom Joad
9 They Might be Giants; Birdhouse in your Soul
10 Michael Penn; No Myth
11 Dire Straits; Romeo and Juliet
12 The Sundays; Here’s Where the Story Ends

Too Exciting!

I wanted to make a CD of songs that reference literature as a Christmas present for friends. I was at a loss of where to start and then I found this very cool thread on Library Thing. Yippee! I have, at the very least, 25 songs to choose from. Cool!
link is here

My sisters @ GRANT PARK last night!

I was with them in spirit. I am so proud of America right now! Let's keep the momentum going for positive change!

Two Lightbulb moments!

1--An article in the Nov. 2008 Oprah, "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Scram" describes our marriage perfectly. It is so affirming because lots of people think it is strange how much time Mark & I spend apart. It works for us! :) We are growing & maturing in all of our work and activities and then we converge to make meaning of it all. We wouldn't want it any other way!
2--This link, although humorous, starkly reveals the gaps in capabilities that technology can create. It made me say "hmmm". It is good to learn through humor. And makes me reexamine how I look at my patrons. (Thanks, Dymphna, for sharing.)

Fall is here!

My drive to work is breathtaking these days. I'd like to stop my car and take some photos but I think that would be hazardous! The morning light shines in such a way that the leaves look like they are painted. The colors are vibrant, lush, beautiful. I find myself slowing down to take it all in. I hope you have time to do the same!

Getting my foot stuck in the happy wheel!

Today, a patron helped me with this great description. I was mentioning how last Wed. night I had a great book group where my friend showed us her garden which will be on a garden walk and then we read the book "Garden Voices". We discussed it until 11:00 at night and we all had to go to work the next day! Then Thursday night, I went down to Summerfest to see Stevie Wonder and got home at 1:00 in the morning and had to go to work Friday. Friday night was an expedition to Chicago and up early Saturday for a trip to Elizabeth, Illinois. 4 of us went to participate in the "Gathering of Elizabeths". There were over 400 Elizabeths gathered! We were trying to make a Guinness Book of World's Records record! Then get back in the car Saturday night--drive up to Chicago. Drive back up here on Sunday. Yesterday, was our first day of summer reading at the library--much excitement and activity! This patron said to me today, "It sounds like your foot got stuck in the happy wheel." Perfect! Summer is just that way for me. I love every minute of it and live it to the hilt. Here's hoping your foot is stuck in the happy wheel, too!

The Library @ Night

I am enjoying this book very much: The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel. Some of the chapter headings are: The Library as Order; The Library as Power; The Library as Chance; The Library as Island; The Library as Oblivion; The Library as Imagination. Librarians and book lovers will love this book! :)

Patience & Perseverance

They work!

The North Wind and the Sun--an Aesop Fable

This version is from the book by Jerry Pinkney:
"Of everything in the sky--the sun and the stars, the rain and the snow--the North Wind boasted that he was the strongest. "There is nothing that can resist me! the North Wind cried, blowing such a blast that the roofs lost their shingles and streams turned to ice.
'Are you sure?' asked the Sun. 'The sky and the land are full of strong things. Why, it might even be that I am stronger than you!'
'You?' roared the North Wind, and laughed an icy laugh.
'Yes, why not? Let's put it to the test!' answered the Sun. 'Do you see that traveler down below us? I'm sure I can make him take off his cloak. Are you strong enough to do the same?'
'Of course!' blustered the North Wind. He sent howling blasts of frigid air to tear the cloak away from the traveler. But the man, shivering in the cold, only wrapped the cloak tighter around himself. No gust that the North Wind blew could rip it from his grasp.
'Now it is my turn,' said the Sun. And he sent warm beams of light down to where the traveler was walking. The man sighed with relief and pushed his cloak back off his shoulders. Steadily the Sun shone, until the traveler pulled off his hat, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and at last took the cloak and lay down to rest in the shade of a nearby tree."
"Gentle persuasion succeeds where force fails." I love this story! It holds such wisdom. It reminds me of the Yiddish proverb, "You can catch more flies with honey, than with vinegar."
This is my philosophy. Kindness will get us further than meanness.

James Schuyler, from Hymn to Life, May, 2008 Oprah Magazine

Unhibernate. Let the rain soak your hair, run down your
Face...
Then another day brings back the sun and
Violets in the grass. The pear tree thickens all its boughs and
Twigs into silver-white,a dimmed brilliance, and already at
Its base a circle of petals on the unmowed grass. Far away
Bust out into their dog mouth pink. Visitors gasp...
Thank you, May, for these warm stirrings.

Food for Thought from Seth Godin

I chuckle because my life is chock full of serendipitous moments! I was first introduced to Seth Godin by Mr. Billy! of all people. He turned me on to Seth's book, "All Marketers are Liars." I thought t/his video about curiosity was just great. These words stick with me, "The riskiest thing you can do is play it safe." Also, "How much of the mediocre 'stuff' of life have you led yourself to believe is great?" I think by nature I am curious but sometimes I stifle my own curiosity because I am tired or craving stability or I feel strange! I liked that he said that curiosity is about searching and he inferred that curiosity is about openness and awareness. I feel like much of my life I am in a high state of alertness (not calm) and by Godin's definition of curiosity that is probably okay! Sometimes I wish that I wasn't as "wired" as I am. I am still learning to be comfortable in my own skin! Ha!

Random thoughts about Playing More, Learning More & Fearing Less!

Another semester accomplished--that's amazing. This has been a wonderful time and I am gratified to see that you are contemplating ways to continue the Project on a less intense schedule. I would really be happy with that idea. Let's keep this powerful momentum going! You (the instructors) have done a fabulous job!
Thank you for the link to "yes and". I really liked this in juxtaposition to "no but". I think when we examine the words we habitually use in communication, we can tell what our outlook is and tweak it to make it more hopeful. This reminded me of a book that I return to time and again: "The Power of a Positive No" by William Ury. The basic premise of the book is to sandwich your no between two yeses. I have been practicing this and it really works(!) for your own integrity and keeping relationships in tact and in balance.
I have bookmarked Pew Research. I think that we definitely cannot work in a vacuum and we need to know what is happening en masse.
I will definitely continue on blogging and I want to practice tagging as part of blogging because I think that is a great "librarian" habit to have!
Finally, being aware of the habits of our patrons is critical. I thought it was so wonderful when Gerri pointed out at the AAC meeting that Infosoup is NOT Netflicks. What an "a-ha" moment for me. And what great self-knowledge for when we are encountering a patron who is also a Netflicks fan. The more we know, the more we can compare & contrast it to what else we know!

Thinking about Mashups

Yes, very interesting. I liked the Chicago one because I am familiar with the neighborhoods. It was interesting to "poke around" and see what is going on. And I liked the Jackie Chan movie one that was mentioned in the comments. It was just fun to goof around with that! I really like all of this because there is so much POTENTIAL--people can use their talents and it seems to me that elitism is being removed more and more. I also am still loving the cooperative spirit. Like our playground. I think it is great that people can share information with each other and make contributions and that we also learn about being respectful of other points of view and other posts, etc. It is cool.
Of course there will be an explosion of experimentation. But that is okay! People will whittle down what actually works for them.
My favorite mash up (so far) is still "Spell with Flickr."
I have been racking my brain since week #10 about a neat mash up application for libraries. I haven't come up with anything solid. But in light of the cool things that Infosoup does for our public and how participatory Infosoup is, I am always trying to think of ways for patrons to have more ownership of their libraries. I was thinking, really big, about the arduous task that the Caldecott and Newbery committees face when choosing winners. I think it would be so wonderful if there was some way, electronically, for children to root for their favorite contenders for those awards. And maybe there is already something like this in place--how would I know? But it just seems to me that this would be a perfect example of sharing the enjoyment of making these decisions with the audience that actually embraces the books. And using the power & rapidity of technology to make it happen!

The past month

Holy Cow! The past month flew. St. Patrick's Day, Spring Break, & Easter came and went. My sister Christina came to retreat at our house. Mark had a gig. It is time to "THINK SPRING"!

YouTube! & Eddie Izzard's Encore on Computers

I love YouTube! It is a riot and I like the democracy of it. Everyone can get a chance to be out there! I would never have thought of using it as a reference tool--thanks for that great idea! I have had some slow download issues in the past but my husband says that when you have opened a video once, if you return to it you won't have trouble playing it. True or false?
I can see promoting libraries on YouTube--I thought the Infosoup contest was brilliant and got amazing results! :) I liked some of the example links. I enjoyed, "Now your Library is open late" and I thought that " iACPL 4.0" was excellent. I like video as a format that can be educational, funny and clever. I am really glad that there is so much already on YouTube about libraries. It is exciting that people are being humorous & affirming about the library profession!
The following video made me laugh so hard that I cried!! Enjoy! I'd like to know what you think!
Beware: Rated R for language.

Screencast

The screencast re: how to create a screencast was very informative. I like the idea of showing people around through a screencast. I can see using one about Infosoup and/or even about our website. Another fun opportunity and tool!
Here is my humble attempt at one.

POD CASTING FUN!

Oh my gosh, this was so much fun! I can totally see the potential for this on our library websites. What a hoot! Once again I am pleasantly flabbergasted that this (Gabcast) is a free service we can utilize for creating podcasts. Who knew?! All the shareware available on the Internet is astounding. It puts my faith back into humanity that people are sharing their talents and brain power for the greater good. Yippee! I LOVE it that we are going to meet the needs of auditory learners--so cool! This was just so exciting to practice and reflect on the possibilities of.

Peanut Butter Cookies--yummy!

We were stuck inside today, due to the storm. I wanted to bake but we didn't have any butter in the house. I found this easy recipe on the Internet:
1 cup sugar (I used brown sugar)
1 cup peanut butter (crunchy--yum!)
1 egg
*I added chocolate chips
Mix it all together. Drop spoonfuls of dough on cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Great with milk!

Something's Gotta Give!

Well, I watched the youtube video about social networking and I enjoyed how it said that social networking offers hidden opportunities. I think this is true!
I read the articles by Meredith Farkas and Judi Sohn. There is SO MUCH to consider here. If Facebook is a private social network and MySpace is a public social network, as a public library we would want to utilize MySpace. The words of Meredith seem almost ominous: "Just putting up a profile does not make the library seem cool, nor does it make the library more visible."
I liked the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County MySpace page because it was promoting programming. We are looking for new ways to promote our programs, too.
Why did I entitle this "Something's Gotta Give!"? The hard lesson is that anything you add to your plate you must be prepared to nurture, evaluate and maintain. I don't see me fitting MySpace maintenance into this already brimming schedule. And I wouldn't want to just throw something up out there as Meredith said.
I think our library website can be promoted more. And now that I am accustomed to blogging, just about weekly, I feel that I could easily incorporate a blog into the existing website. The website is a natural place, also, to promote programming and keep a calendar of events. (I would want all the same things on a MySpace page--that would be a lot of replication!) My opinion as of today, then, is to do better with what exists, namely our website and not create something new at this time.

Playing More, Learning More, Fearing Less

So this is where I am today! I made an avatar on the site "Doppel Me" because I didn't want any restrictions. I wanted to be able to save the avatar to my desktop and use it as I liked. So here she is. Isn't she cute?! I added her to my "Linked In" profile. I joined the "Linked In" Social Network by invitation of a 20-something. I think it will be a productive place to be because people could do informational interviews with me re: library work.
I already have an account with Facebook. Visit me here. I have been playing Scrabulous with Holly L. @ OWLS for at least a couple of weeks. We are having fun and yes, it is addictive! I have been restricting my visits to Facebook because it sucks you in and you can be on there for hours!

Happy Valentine's Day!

The very chilly days are great for baking! This Raspberry Crumble recipe from "Family Fun" is perfect for Valentine's Day! Yummy and easy!

I am too funny! I make myself laugh!

My longtime fascination with Holsteins (Chicago girl that I am) makes Remember the Milk attractive! I ran into Stef @ Legislative Day and she asked if I was a list maker. I said "YES!" and she told me how much I would enjoy this week's exercises! Poor thing. She didn't realize that I am a NARRATIVE list maker! So sorry! I really messed up the Sandbox. This was what I sent:
Elizabeth M. Timmins
T.I.T.F.D.O.T.R.O.Y.L.
game plan for the weekend to include birthday celebration of Mark's birthday & do pick up of camera for Charley; begin Valentines; decide dessert to prepare for Sue G's birthday Monday; Fat Tuesday; Ash Wednesday; C coming up to stay weekend mid-Feb?
_Board Reports_--already did agenda and director's report. Need to work on financial spreadsheet(new Excel spreadsheet and 2008 budget numbers)/when paying bills there are several projects interfiled most notably children's station/ and activities report (have already updated this report for 2008.) Need to type up remarks from yesterday. More publicity for visiting author is in order. Need to have license signed by FMPL members for 3.17 event. write Times-Press article for next week topic: ? prepare story times for next week theme: ?
_Time Permitting_--Correspondence folder--work; correspondence folder--home. Follow-ups: Dec 11 (gathering of contacts and ideas imperative) leads into follow-ups: January 22. I had a homework assignment from HOTH, also.
This is how I operate! This is what my note looks like that I write myself over breakfast each day! So I am thinking that Remember the Milk will not be effective for me.

I do love getting my thoughts down because it does organize my thinking--like Stef said in her opening remarks, there are ways to get the stuff down so it is not moving around in your brain (& weighing you down, I say). Sometimes for me, getting the to do list written down is a huge accomplishment in itself! I am a paper and pen woman though! I had the opportunity to have a Palm Pilot a few years ago--and I just couldn't adopt it.

I was smiling about Jot because when I was a teacher I used to carry around a tape recorder with me and say tasks to myself and then scribe them later. Now, I very frequently will call my own voice mail and leave myself a message. I also still fully believe in the power of Post-it notes. I use the paper ones and the electronic ones on my Desktop. So I have measures in place and though they be low-tech they are still working very successfully for me. At the age of 42, I really feel like I am living on a cusp between new and old. I am giving myself permission to reject some innovations and adopt others. Project Play is giving me the opportunity to do just that--thank you! :)

Terrific quote from yesterday's workshop!

Yesterday we heard an LOL quote from Warren Graham, The Blackbelt Librarian, at the Security Workshop sponsored by OWLS. Here it is: "The library is a field day for Freud." So true!

Flowers for the weary!

Mark knew I was sad from the gloomy days so these appeared in my bathroom last week! What a man, what a very good man!

Google Docs

Google Docs are cool! This is a terrific way to give patrons & librarians more options! a) leading patrons to this resource at our Internet stations will be great! b) I could post documents on line for my board members especially when I am asking them to revise/edit a piece. I am definitely stoked about the possibilities. Highly distractable as I am, I "ate dessert first" and got up to level 6 in excit. I feel like I have a new lease on life! I've been playing more games this year (on-line) than I ever did as a teenager! Ha! (Facebook is nutty!) Okay, here is a document I've been practicing with.

p.s.

So, I now have Windows Live Messenger and that was easy enough to set up--and it is fun to find out others are on-line at the same time that you are! I have set up a Meebo account and a widget on this blog. That was easy, too. I am rethinking my "control" issue vented in the previous post. I see there is control here, too. If you are offline you just catch up later when you are online. That is a good way for me to set up boundaries for myself that I feel necessary for sanity! I like to chunk similar tasks together and do all my on line work in a set amount of designated time. It is too simple to become addicted to this medium! I have to watch it!

Project Play is Back!--Instant Messaging

Yeah, this is cool and fun but I don't think this is my thing, personally. I am discovering about myself that I like time delays! I like time to think things through. I embrace voice mail & texting & e.mail because they give me the control of responding when I feel like it. I am already totally distracted when a phone rings or that little window flashes up saying that I have e.mail. It's worse now because the e.mail itself actually is open as it flashes up! Sometimes I have to close e.mail or I would be off on tangents all day. (I guess I'm saying that e.mail and instant messaging are almost the same in my mind) I'm not very disciplined so it takes all my willpower to stick with my to-do list! However, the times when I think it would be beneficial for the library: A) As described, for doing reference work--yes, perfect. B)If I was working on a project with a friend elsewhere and I didn't want to commandeer the phone (which I hate doing at our library because we only have one line) I think IMing would be effective. Similar to a conference call from the past? Are there are others of you out there who feel as bombarded by information and requests as I do? Sometimes I feel completely overstimulated!