drugging the cat

Katushka (my four year old cat) has more than a bit of a problem. She has bouts of walking around the house meowing constantly, clawing at walls and doors expressing general discontent. I have no idea what is causing her agitation--she always seems to act like this in the spring or fall--if i didn't know better i'd think she was in heat (she HAS been spayed). She has always been an inside cat.

The vet has prescribed megestrol acetate which she has been on for five days now and i'm not sure that's it's doing any good--in fact she seems to be more agitated than ever and tonight my cat decides to go on a two and a half hour walkabout (causing her normally neurotic owner to go a bit over the top) oh well--que sera sera.

what makes an artist?

Now there's a loaded question (worth years of pondering...) I've been on a Hitchcock binge of late. Alfred Hitchcock was an incredibly prolific director, just in case you didn't know. (and as i was watching Suspicion my mom came to visit and, distractable as she is, got involved with it for about twenty minutes when i mentioned it was a Hitchcock film she suddenly had to flee my house because she's so afraid of his films--even though she'd been watching it for twenty minutes with no incident--now most of Hitch's films were more suspense than horror but don't try to tell her that) anyway, when i was in college i did a research paper on Hitchcock's work for one of my film history classes and read a couple of biographies of him and didn't find much exciting about his life (at least he was someone i didn't think i would want to spend much time with--even as a fly on the wall), tho i love his films--and i have found that to be a rather common theme in many of the artist's lives i most admire (Margaret Atwood and Nabokov are the first to spring to mind).

I used to have a theory that you had to be a little "off" in one way or another (be it depressed crazy whatever you want to call it) to be a great/good artist because you would have to have a slightly different perspective on the world to be able to see it in a new, unique, exciting, artistic (or whatever you want to call it) way. And although there are quite a few artists who have led rather intriguing lives there are quite a few others were i'm just not feeling it (do they just save it all for their work or keep it well hidden?)

Thoughts to ponder for the night/day.

"i don't remember the title or the author but i think it had a green cover..."

How many times have we librarians heard a question somewhat like that? Now i think it would be somewhat ridiculous to start organizing ALL the books by colour--we COULD make some kind of search engine to allow for it could we not (or is that just encouraging the stupid questions we all so abhor/adore?)

*thanks to Morten for this lovely photo

The psychology of loss--the pain of an orphan from an unknown world; or where the hell is my continuity, damnit?!?

okay, i am really not into comics (aside from the obligatory collection of Buffy comics) *and in the spirit of full disclosure i must admit i read Richie Rich, Little Lulu, and Archie as a kid but, as you may or may not have noticed, i have been taking a closer look at them of late--somehow, not being a visual person, the whole comic thing is lost on me, though i'm loving reading the history, mythos, and analysis of it all--call me weird--it won't be the first time. But, when The Man from Krypton: a closer look at Superman (completely unauthorized)--and doesn't that just make it all the more interesting??? edited by Glenn Yefeth showed up on our new releases cart i must admit it peaked my interest (as WAAAAAAYYY too many books do--such is the nature of addiction) so i checked it out--at least i haven't bought it YET! This is a collection of essays that gives me what i hunger for. It covers the comics, the radio shows, the animated series, the movies and the T.V. series (those what got me curious about back story to begin with--series like Lois and Clark--almost ashamed to admit that i loved it--own the DVDs and Smallville (a boyfriend's friend who WAS into the comics recommended it and got me hooked--tho i haven't watched all of them--have those DVDs too--and now i'm terribly curious as to how closely it follows the rest of the Superman canon.)

here are the essays and a brief synopsis of my take on them:

Previous Issues by Lawrence Watt-Evans—discusses the fact that Superman essentially wears his security blanket
A History of Violence by David Hopkins—discusses whether or not Superman holds back his power and whether he is a violent individual

You Will Believe a Man Can Walk by Sarah Zettel--Christopher Reeve IS Superman

Jewel Mountains and Fire Falls: The Lost World of Krypton by Chris Roberson--the world-building and eventual writing-out of Krypton

Man of Steel Woman of Kleenex by Larry Niven (reprinted from All the Myriad Ways) --a rather silly essay speculating reproductive possibilities between a kryptonite and a human

Actor and Superactor by Keith R.A. DeCandido--the different actors who have played Superman on the radio, animated series, television series, and movies

A Tale of Two Orphans:the Man of Steel vs. the Caped Crusader by Lou Anders--the ever-changing relationship between Superman and Batman

God, Communism, and the WB by Gustav Peebles (reprinted from The Believer)--very interesting essay about the threat of Big City Capitalism on SMALLVILLE

Supermyth! by Steven Harper--Superman as heroic legend

Six Things that Plain Don't Make any Sense about Superman by Adam-Troy Castro--entertaining piece about how even when one suspends every other disbelief there are still a few things one just can't let go of

Is Superman a Superman? by Adam Roberts--we're talking Nietzsche here folks!

The Mirror of Gilgamesh: the Foe Superman fears the Most and the Ally he can't do Without by John G. Henry--Clark Kent as absolutely necessary to Superman's survival

The Golden Shield: Image as Superman's Greatest Power by Paul Lytle--(image is everything BAAAYBY) without Superman would crumble--or at least run and hide!

Superman by Moonlight: Can Clark and Lois break the Curse? by Evelyn Vaughn--can we stand to see our favorite characters live happily ever after?

Speeding Bullets and Changing Lanes by Joseph McCabe--how Lois has been represented throughout the decades and different medium (medias?)

A Word of Warning for Brandon Routh by Lou Anders--is there a Superman curse?

Superman's Moral Evolution by Peter B. Lloyd--Superman does exactly What He Wants regardless of Terran rules (but Batman hold a ring of green kryptonite--Just In Case...)

Brains versus Brawn: the Many Lives (and Minds) of Lex Luthor, the World's Greatest Villain by Bob Batchelor--the ever evolving character of Lex Luthor

Superman, Patriotism, and Doing the Ultimate Good: Why the Man of Steel did so Little to Stop Hitler and Tojo by Paul Levinson--this all seems a little obvious to me, non-comic-book-reader that i am, but it does make some very interesting points (mainly that the comics live side by side on the newsstand with the real world!)

This is a Job for... by Larry Dixon--we should all act like superheroes (blah, blah, blah...)

i'm still somehow hungry for more--more of the mythology, more of the back-story, and mostly more continuity--damnit all!!!

Speaking of missing continuity--here's a confession of a guilty pleasure: Days of Our Lives, which i've been watching for the last twenty-five years (gasp)--with a few gaps here and there--and at one point i thought i wanted, needed to be their continuity editor to keep them on track with all their story-lines (i'm sure they don't really care--tho i Really Do!)

i sometimes wonder if my need for continuity comes from the fact that i'm adopted as is, of course, Superman...

horror movies and dark chocolate, what could be better?

The other day i saw a commercial for m&ms that had orange & BLACK m&ms for Halloween which i thought was pretty cool but today i saw this site which has fifty dark (read horror actually, after solving a few, i'm not so sure i'd call ALL of them horror per se) movies hidden in a painting which i also think is mighty dec--check it out! I could only get 33 so far (with a little help from my friends--but then i am not a big visual person and i have a raging migraine--i know excuses, excuses) have fun--and let me know how you do...

i also kinda dig the music--nice ambient tone.

on second thought when it didn't turn off...

not terribly necessary

So i went and bought this book: The Rational Guide to Google Blogger (Rational Guides) by Wei-meng Lee.
A not so bright move right? Right, you are. I was thinking somehow that it would give me some tips and tricks that i was missing out on...no such luck. Mostly screen shots and things that already seem (at least to me) pretty basic. This is what the synopsis says about it:

With this book, you will learn how to use Blogger's Post Editor and Dashboard to create sophisticated postings that include images and hyperlinks, and how to change the look and feel of your blog templates. Other topics include making money using Google's AdSense and Amazon.com's Associates program, using photo blogging services, adding a site counter so that you can track your readership, using Blogger Mobile for mobile blogging, and how to archive your blog. For those of you who have your own Web hosting, you will learn how to publish your blog to your own server. this book takes a rational, no-nonsense approach in a compact guide. The book is written to give you the basics fast! Technical accuracy is assured by Biz Stone, Former Senior Specialist on the Google Blogger Team.

but it seems to me that if you're here and blogging that you pretty much already know most of the things this book has to say. I will give it a little credit--i did pick up a few things here and there--but not quite enough to justify the (discounted even) expense.

hey--here's a thought: check it out from your library ;)

trauma bonding...

...refers to the relationship formed between perpetrator and victim in violent attacks. I have been working on reading this book forever--not sure why its taken me so long--because it Really IS an interesting read--maybe just takes a lot of contemplation: Strange Piece of Paradise: A Return to the American West to Investigate my Attempted Murder--and Solve the Riddle of Myself by Terri Jentz.

here's the blurb from the front flap:

In the summer of 1977 Terri Jentz and her Yale roommate, Shayna Weiss, are on a cross-country bike trip, they pitch a tent in the desert of central Oregon. As they sleep, a man in a pickup truck deliberately runs over the tent. He then attacks them with an axe. The horrific crime is reported in newspapers across the country. Robert Pinsky describes it it in his book length poem, An Explanation of America. No one is ever arrested. Both women survive, But Shayna suffers from amnesia, while Terri is left alone with the memories of the attack.

Fifteen years later, Terri returns to the small town where she was nearly murdered, on the first of many visits "to solve the crime that would solve me." She makes an extraordinary discovery: the violence of that night is as present for the community as it is for her. And slowly her extensive interviews with the townspeople yield a terrifying revelation: many say they know who did it--and he is living freely in their midst. Terri then sets out to discover the truth about the crime and its aftermath, and to come to terms with the wounds that broke her life into a before and an after. Ultimately, she finds herself face with the suspected axeman.

Absorbing and eloquent, and paced like the most riveting of thrillers. Strange Piece of Paradise is the electrifying account of Terri's investigation into the mystery of her near murder. A startling profile of a psychopath, a vivid portrait of a small town, a sweeping reflection on violence and its acceptance in our culture, and a moving record of a brave inner journey from violence to hope, this searing, powerfully written book is certain to be unforgettable.

Some reviews have mentioned that Jentz talks about every thought she has, does too much "navel gazing" while she goes through her process of investigation, but for me that is part of its appeal. It is an examination of our culture's fascination with violence of the workings (or perhaps disfunctionality) of our justice system, of the many varied ways that we can react to traumatic events--both those that happen to us personally, or just impact our community. This book really had me thinking about the nature of violence, the nature of justice, and perhaps most of all--our almost hypnotic, consumptive thirst for blood and gore (the 364s as they are called in my world--although that is not where this book is shelved--and i'm not sure it would really appeal to the "true crime" audience per se--and it doesn't seem to be marketed as such). I wouldn't call it fast-paced (nor exactly "riveting") but it is fascinating and i would highly recommend it--as i said-a contemplative work.

Driving in your Car

You stare straight ahead

My hand brushes your knee

You do nothing to acknowledge my touch

my hand hangs lifeless

My mind chants

I will not be crushed by this

I am the same person

without you

as I am with you

I never saw Forever

in your eyes

We do not have to Be

But

I sense the weight of the sky

and the spin of the ground

And

I know

I fear

I just Don't know

How Much

Of cliches and mid life crises

i've decided that a midlife crisis happens when you finally come to terms with who you are and your body suddenly decides that that is no longer who you are. For instance, i've always had MAJORLY Naturally Curly Hair that has always been at least a little bit moody (slightly like its owner)--when i was young i used to finish my bath and wrap the towel around my head and pretend the towel was my long, strait hair and flip it around and around because my hair was always too curly and too frizzy to flip! Now i come out of the shower and i have this stuff hanging from my head that acts nothing like MY hair--it just hangs there like the towel used to do. "Be careful what you wish for, Right? Which brings us to the matter of cliches--ever wonder how they got to be cliches? Because they're so Damn True!!!

I'm hoping this whole tragic thing is just a hormonal fluctuation, that all natural hair dye i tried out which was a big mistake, or some other temporary trauma and is in no way connected to this whole turning-forty thing!

It's so strange to have something that you hated for so long (or thought you did) be so wrapped up with your identity after you have lived with it all your live!

where were we again?

So it's the middle of the night and i'm sleeping (not terribly soundly, as the case may be) all three cats are rampaging (where could they possibly get that from???) through the house; i hear the racing paws, various hisses and growls, small bodies running into furniture and walls, the bells ringing on their collars, etc. (the usual nighttime feline antic sounds) and say, in my best authoritative tone "Please remember that you're in the library," suddenly i am fully awake and realize, that, actually, no, i am not in the library. Of course none of it had any effect on the cats...

Pluto's a dog not a planet; or poor, poor Percival Lowell

This week i had to go through all our solar system books and place stickers on them explaining the August 8, 2006 decision of the International Astronomical Union to redefine the status of Pluto as a "dwarf planet" and not a "planet". In the process i came across a few books i just had to read (you know how it is) including Ten Worlds: Everything that Orbits the Sun by Ken Croswell. Not quite sure why this particular juvenile title perked my interest except like many juvenile books it gives you just the right amount of interesting introductory information without boring you beyond belief. It covers the solar system; the sun; Mercury; Venus; the earth; the Moon; Mars; asteroids; Jupiter; Saturn; Uranus; Neptune; Pluto; the tenth Planet; comets; meteors; the solar systems birth; the ten planets; the seven big moons; the first four asteroids; and extreme planets (yes i just gave you the table of contents--good thing i'm not doing a school report here right?) But it does have some beautiful pictures and did tell me some interesting things i did not know (so much for that college astronomy class).
And about Percival Lowell: the poor guy kept trying and he kept failing. First he thought he saw canals on Mars--waterways the Martians had built--other astronomers made fun of him. To prove he was a good astronomer he wanted to discover a new planet, studying the motion of Uranus he believed the gravity of a ninth planet was pulling it--he searched and searched but never found it--he died in 1916. When a new planet was discovered by Clyde Tombaugh at Lowell Observatory on February 18, 1930 it was named Pluto at the suggestion of a little girl (for the god of the underworld--because he lives in darkness as does the planet being so far from the sun) and because the first two letters were P L for Percival Lowell. Now with this downgrade poor Percival is foiled yet again.

how to hide a map

I came across this great picture book on one of our displays the other day: Show Way by Jacquelyn Woodson (Newberry Honor book)

"Soonie's great-grandma was only seven when she was sold away from her parents in Virginia and sent to South Carolina. All she had was a piece of muslin from her mother, two needles, and bright red thread. She was raised by Big Mama, who cared for the plantation children and at night whispered stories of freedom. Big Mama taught great-grandma how to sew messages and directions into quilt patterns, a "Show Way" The quilt-making tradition is passed down through successive generations of women in the family. Finally, readers meet the narrator, who grew up to become a writer and tell the stories of many people's Show Ways. A poignant trail at the end of the book shows eight generations of women and the author's baby painted against the background of quilt patterns. Show Way is a sophisticated book that introduces readers to the passage of time, family traditions, and the significance of quilts and their patterns in African-American history. The gorgeous, multimedia art includes chalk, watercolors, and muslin. An outstanding tribute, perfectly executed in terms of text, design, and illustration."–Mary N. Oluonye, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

love the art, love the story--check it out if you get the chance

just thought i'd share :)

memories of forever

So
pieces of you came back.
And they're just pieces.
broken pieces.

Somehow fate crashes in again

that you would call
now
My life is no different now
but it feels so different

We have nothing to say
to each other
now

You don't know who i am
i don't know who you are
Who you used to be
and it doesn't matter
Really

Why does it hurt so much?

Will it always?

what's going on?

I've been a bad, bad girl (well not really--but i have not been keeping up with this blog or anything or anyone else really) can't really say for sure what i've been doing, other than migraining--being in pain--and dragging myself to work--when possible. I've been reading some, watching movies--and i have a number of drafts started, i'm sure those will pop up here and there--not that it matters if anyone IS reading this but i like to have a record of what i've read for my own sake.

ANYWAY... what do you say when someone asks YOU what's going on, how you are?

Life goes on...and on...and on...

whether you're paying any attention or not... and it seems that i've not been

so i'm here

in a way

and apparently people have noticed that i've not been (here) because they've said--you' haven't written in your blog for over a month--i know, i know.... but what to say, what to say?

By the by, i was at a book talk given by Mary Doria Russell--great author by the by--highly recommended--and she was talking about one of the differences between Americans and Italians (in reference to her book A Thread of Grace) was that when you ask an American how they're doing we always say fine and when you ask the Italians they'll tell you--well i'll almost always tell you too--that is

if i know how to.

So that's all i have to say for the moment--how about you?

think economics is boring? think again, and again, and again, and again...

I picked up The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcom Gladwell after reading an argument in Book Club between Mel and Colleen about Freakonomics and The Tipping Point (can i be any more self-referential?) since i had really liked Freakonomics i decided to read The Tipping Point.

I didn't find Gladwell's ideas to be quite as new and thought-provoking as Levitt's nor did i find them to be quite as opposed to Levitt's as the Unshelved strip would have you believe. I did find The Tipping Point to be very interesting however and would highly recommend it along with Freakonomics as they both provide their own food for thought and make nice counter-points for one another.

my forever love (or what once was believed to be so)

i'm losing pieces of you
i can't remember
the name of your arrogant friend,
or that guy we dropped acid with, or
Brock's real name, or Bailey's last
name, or even {Kelby}~the only one i really jived with~
other things i'm losing i can't even
remember because
they're lost
i miss what i can't remember
i fought so hard to hang on to
what we had
to hold on to the
pain of losing you
and now i am letting go
and i don't want
to let go
and i can't stop

maybe it's those nanos eating my brain...

Pretties by Scott Westerfield FINALLY came in to the library for me (the sequel to Uglies that i have been waiting for FOREVER) so, the for the last two nights i have been reading that, and Specials (the final book in the trilogy), and, i have to say, they are pretty damn good!

They continue the story of Tally, who lives in a society about three hundred years after a human spread bacterial plague has destroyed the oil supply, and thus human civilization as we know it. Tally's society is very controlled, and at sixteen all citizens undergo plastic surgery to become "pretty" so that no one has to undergo the trauma of being ugly--or of looking TOO different (unbeknownst to many citizens the surgery also inflicts lesions on their brains which makes them much more affable, happy, and overall, not so smart, basically "pretty-headed".

Of course there is a rebellion going on~(isn't there always a rebellion going on~doesn't there almost have to be a rebellion going on?) to escape civilization, get back to basics, take the pill that "cures" the surgery (also has nanos that eat away your brain causing stupidity and migraines...hmm. . . this is what gives me cause to wonder . . . perhaps something to ask the neurologist about...perhaps not) anyway...

i don't want to give away TOO much but they are some pretty good books (ha, ha, ha,) and they have the added bonus of introducing you to a brand new vocabulary (and i just love new vocab words, like don't i look ICY {from Specials} in this oh-so-old photo)? -->

so check this trilogy out if you feel so inclined...

Excesses of youth

been wanting to disappear, liquify,
watching Havoc and wanting to do the whole youth thing all over again so i can waste it all over again–wanting to liquify
because it feels so good
to feel so bad
so dangerous
in your stomach
the drugs
that mess up your head
instead of just having your head messed up
now i just swim and drown in my dreams
and i can’t find my way
nightmares
i want to live them again
so tired of this life

i can almost taste it now...

For a couple of years i lived about 1/2 a block away from the world famous Zingerman's Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Michigan (coincidentally but entirely unrelated there is also the world famous Michigan Head Pain & Neurological Institute located in Ann Arbor and it was while i was living in Ann Arbor that my then under-control migraines became chronic and intractable--so much so that i did not qualify for a study at said clinic--interesting, huh?) Anyway, this was at one of the poorer points of my life (not that i have ever been rolling in the funds, mind you) heading down to Zing's for a sandwich and/or desert and coffee/mocha was a real treat. They also housed a great market with many exotic goods (usually a bit expensive for my tastes) tho they did make great bread. If you're ever in Ann Arbor (or the Detroit area for that matter) you must stop by Zingerman's. The Ann Arbor area boast some great restaurants in general in case your wondering--i really miss it (i have really been obsessing about food lately since my diet has become so restricted--funny how that happens.)

As an outlet for my obsession i have been trying to come up with new ways to work with the foods i can eat--and come up with new varieties of those foods. Luckily i haven't to look much further than my own bookshelves--i have a plethora many still packed but many not. One unpacked is a Zingerman's guide, if you aspire to be any kind of connoisseur this is a great book to have: Zingerman's guide to good eating: how to choose the best bread, cheeses, olive oil, pasta, chocolate, and much more by Ari Weinzweig. "It's got solid research on topics like what makes one rice different than another, or how good vinegar

is made. (There are recipes, too, but the info takes precedence.)" Pick it up, read it, learn it, live it--or not, whatever...

"stories are light"

I think i have a new favorite kids' author in Kate Dicamillo. I just read her Newberry Award winning The Tale of Despereaux (being the story of a mouse, a princess, some soup, and a spool of thread) and i loved it! Now i don't always go along with all Newberry picks put i was recommended this book by a friend and i loved The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane as i have already confessed. So i lost myself to yet another juvenile fiction title and i am so glad i did.

This is tale models itself after classical fairy tales but it definitely has a taste of modern sensibilities. It is about an unlikely hero--a mouse with excessively large ears--who dreams of being a knight. I like the fact that Dicamillo addresses the reader as an active participant in the story. Read Despereaux--i think you'll be you'll be glad you did. (not that i would want to tell you what to do or anything--just a suggestion :)

political intrigue, trickery, treachery, betrayal, religion, war, magic, romance & slime; who could ask for anything more?

Elantris by Brandon Sanderson is an epic fantasy wrapped up in a nice little 615 page package. Now i'm not a big fan of fantasy but i did enjoy this one:

"Elantris was beautiful once. It was called the city of the gods: a place of power, radiance, and magic. Visitors say that the very stones glowed with an inner light, and that the city contained wondrous arcane marvels. At night, Elantris shone like a great silvery fire, visible even from a great distance.

Yet, as magnificent as Elantris was, its inhabitants were more so . Their hair a brilliant white, their skin an almost metallic silver, the Elantrians seemed to shine like the city itself. Legends claim that they were immortal, or at least nearly so. Their bodies healed quickly, and they were blessed with great strength, insight, and speed. They could perform miracles with a bare wave of the hand; men visited Elantris from all across Opelon to receive Elantrian healings, food, or wisdom. They were divinities.

And anyone could become one.

The Shaod, it was called. The Transformation. It struck randomly--usually at night, during the mysterious hours when life slowed to rest. The Shaod could take beggar, craftsman, nobleman, or warrior. When it came, the fortunate person's life ended and began anew; he would discard his old mundane existence, and move to Elantris.
Elantris, where he could live in bliss, rule in wisdom, and be worshiped for Eternity.

Eternity ended ten years ago."

~prologue.

I pasted the prologue here because i believe, besides being so well written, that it is all you really need to get you interested in reading this novel (if you are to be interested). Many of the rave reviews on Amazon say that Elantris avoid many of the cliches of the genre--not being a fantasy aficionado i wouldn't know--but i do know that it doesn't drag; has very strong characterizations and keeps track of its plot line--good enough for me!

perhaps it's better to rampage?

I was not able to sleep at all last night. Had an 8:00 am meeting this morning. Needless to say i am tired. It's probably also needless to say i have a migraine. It has been a VERY long day. The minutes are growing even longer. I am alone at the reference desk. Not much going on. Kind of slumped over, my head rested in my hand, elbow on the desk (image of the perfect reference librarian right?) There's a twelve year old whose been waiting for his mom for an hour now; he's looking for scary movies, he searches the titles on our shelves, when he can't find what he's looking for there he comes and asks me if we have the same title in (everything we have is on the shelf) i try to remain patient--my nerves are fraying.

A barefooted little girl is gleefully running through the stacks. I hear her giggles and see her pop out each time she reaches the end of an aisle. She is having a grand old time. After a while i detachedly observe that this is inappropriate behaviour for a library. After a while longer it slowly dawns on me that I should be the one to do something about it. I drag myself out of my seat and slowly amble over to the aisle she is about to turn down, i lean myself against the bookcase and wait as she comes charging toward me.

"Hi," i greet her, cheerfully.

"Hi" she says, delighted with the possibility of a new friend.

"Do you have shoes?" i inquire, liltingly.

"yeah," a few clouds of confusion beginning to cross her face.

"Well, you should probably wear your shoes while you are in the library." i struggle to keep the brightness and the lightness in my voice.

"oh"

"And you really shouldn't run while you're in the library"

At this point the cute little girl's face crinkles up into such a look, and i can just see her thinking, "you're not a very nice lady, it seemed like you were going to be nice, when you were just out to spoil my fun all along!"

I almost feel bad.

But she does stop running.

But i think MAYBE playing the stereotypical, mean-old-shushing-NO-NO-NO-spinster librarian might be the better approach after all. At least then the kids know what they're getting.

people in glass houses...

Our Internet computers have not been running smoothly of late to say the least--frankly they've been an absolute nightmare--we have to reboot the server and the computers about five times per day (not that it helps much). Today, this teenaged girl came up to the desk and complained that the computer was saying that her password was invalid. I was ready for another big problem and i start the regular flowchart of questions. I asked her the next logical question which was if she was sure she was putting in the correct password. She responded with a massive sigh and a giant eyeroll and a look on her face that let me know that i was so incredibly stupid she could not believe she was wasting HER PRECIOUS time with me. In an exasperated, patronizing tone of voice she spews "The computer WON'T LET me put in a password, it won't LET me TYPE anything!"

"Well if it won't let you put in you password how can it be telling you your pass word is wrong?" seems like a reasonable question to me (but of course i am an IDIOT) So i get up and follow her as she stamps to her computer which she promptly stands beside, waiting for me to magically fix whatever the problem may be. "Well are we both going to stand here and watch the computer do nothing, or are you going to insert your card and show me what the problem is?" i ask (strangely enough i am not in the best of moods at this point--being treated rudely does not always make me want to cheerfully deliver)

She slumps into the chair, shoves her card into the slot, and starts pounding on the keyboard--surely enough her numerical password does not enter in. I lean over her shoulder and point to the NUM LOCK light, softly saying "Do you see this little NUM LOCK light? If this light isn't on isn't on the NUM LOCK key is not on and your numerical keyboard will not work, you can either turn this on (like this) or use the regular keyboard." Needless to say that particular issue was solved and i went back to my little reference desk. Moral for this story (and oh so many others.) Before you insult the intelligence of others you really should be sure that you operating from a place of brilliance yourself.

don't it make you feel good?

working at the reference desk tonight

alone

(of course)

two women come up and ask for a list of area N.A. meetings which i promptly print up for them.

They thank me and i say "No problem" (with a smile--naturally)

And i hear them exclaim (well not really exclaim but it just seems to fit here--almost like a Clement Moore poem) as they walk out the door,

"Aren't libraries wonderful?"

"Yes, they really are, you can just go in and get exactly what you want, just like that. We should come here more often."

...you know they really should.

"how can a story end happily if there is no love?"

Somehow i seem to be reading more juvenile literature of late than i usually do--not that i'm complaining, mind you, because i'm quite enjoying it. My latest discovery (highly recommended by my co-librarians) was The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline.

It is the story of a beautiful china rabbit (with real rabbit fur for his ears and tail). He was always dressed in only the best of clothes and he was highly enamoured of himself. He is also loved and owned by ten-year old Abilene who took very good care of him.

I'm sure you've guessed by now that change is coming for Edward--he is separated from his dear mistress and tho i'm not sure his could be called a hero's journey he does learn the lessons he most needs to learn and it is a truly beautiful story--quite moving really--colour me impressed.

Now this is one of those books that i must own for myself as it is a beautiful tale (wasn't i just talking about how i need to stop buying books)--oh well some things just MUST be HAD--highly, highly recommended.

in case you needed to be told...

This morning (after being awakened by an amazing rainstorm--and the cats telling me that i had better get out of bed RIGHT NOW and do something about whatever was happening outside) i finished reading The Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life by Steve Leveen.

Leveen gives basic tips like making a list of books that you want to read (what he calls your "List of Candidates") buy them (he suggests)--preferably in hardcover-- (instead of checking them out from them out from the library--advice i REALLY DON"T NEED TO HEAR--thank you very much)--his philosophy seems to be: BUY, BUY, BUY--buy those books you read in the past that you liked as well as those you MIGHT read in the future-- so that you can always have them at hand whenever you are in the mood for reading; take time to ponder a book after you're done with it (now THAT IS good advice--as is his suggestion that you take advantage of your librarian's vast and helpful knowledge in Reader's Advisory Service;); listen to books on audio; join a reading group; and don't waste your time on books that don't grab your interest.

My opinion? Don't waste your time on this one. Although i did get a FEW ideas for new books i want to read--but of course ALL books curse me with that!