Simple songs.. Serenade..

Isn't is interesting that such simple songs are so effective at communicating and encouraging that most complex of human emotions. Love... Singing is sharing my soul. Singing a simple song, allows me to share more, not less of myself. So the secret sauce is to love others and share that love through my singing. How about you?

Laws of Simplicity

Perhaps the solution to our economic problems today is to simply love and care for one another. One person at a time, one song at a time, one opportunity at a time. We can let God save the world, while we just care about our colleagues, family, neighbors, friends and the people we interact with each day. Love and beauty are true! Simple things are what matter from melody to money.

Cezanne "Bathers at Rest" at Barnes

Each time I go to the Barnes Foundation, as I did yesterday, I am almost overwhelmed by the Cezanne paintings (also by the Renoirs, the Matisses, the Picassos, the Rousseaus, the Van Goghs, the El Grecos, even the Glackens', etc.). There are so many Cezannes, and they span his career so there are different styles, that I come away awestruck again. Deja vu as they say.

Cezanne painted many subjects, landscapes, still life, portraits, and nudes (often bathers). Each type of subject has its own charms and contribution to his style. Today I am featuring a fairly well-known painting from 1875-1876 called Bathers at Rest. The male bathers lounging around a pond with Mont Sainte-Victoire, a frequent subject of Cezanne's landscapes, in the background, was groundbreaking in composition, color, and paint-handling when it was shown at the Third Impressionist Exhibition in 1877. It's one to be seen in person.

You can see some of my 3-D mixed media paintings on my website at www.jayrolfe.com/.

Got anything good to eat?

You're home from school and you are one hungry person, aren't you? What to eat? Chips? Candy bar? No. If you're going to eat something, make it at least a little healthy. How about a fast, fried burrito? Here's the easy recipe:

Take a flour tortilla and a can of refried beans. Smear a few tablespoons of beans on the tortilla. Then sprinkle some shredded cheese over the top - doesn't matter what kind.

Now add any of these that sound good to you:

chopped onions
black olives
chopped green chilis
picante sauce
sour cream
corn

Or if you want to get wild, try any of one these:

chopped pickles
tuna fish
leftover stir-fry rice
french fries
spaghetti sauce

scrambled eggs

Hey, be bold, you never know what kind of a great dish you'll be inventing!

Now fold the sides over about an inch, and roll them up length-wise.

Repeat once or twice more until you think you'll have enough burritos to get rid of that growling belly.

The best part is next. Get a frying pan and melt a little butter or oil or both - about one tablespoon coating the bottom of the pan - and add the rolled up, stuffed tortillas to the pan. Fry over medium-low heat until the bottom is lightly browned, then flip and brown that side. Frying them makes all the difference in yummy factor.

You can slice these up as snacks to dip in picante sauce or sour cream. Or you can just wrap them up in a paper towel and munch on them whole while you're reading that great new ebook you just got. Nom nom. Have a glass of milk with that, and maybe an apple to munch on after and you're good for a few hours.

Don't worry if you make too many burritos to eat in one sitting. They're pretty filling. Just save the leftovers and take one to school tomorrow.

What's your favorite tasty, easy-to-make, and healthy after-school favorite? Leave us a comment. We just might just put together a little Teen Foods recipe book if we get lots of great ideas to share.

Daily Thoughts

The Erythraean Sibyl Michelangelo 16th Century

Daily Thoughts

Another book came in for me today, The Last Wish by Andrew Sapkowski. It is a game based on a video game, The Witcher. This is the second book I am reading based on a video game, the other is Halo, The Cole Protocol by Tobias Buckell. Both of these are standalone titles, not parts of longer series. I am not a huge fan of serial game novels.

A lot of people like them, there is Warhammer 40,000, Forgotten Realms, and many other series. In fact, when I go to my local library, I find most of the paperbacks in the science fiction and fantasy section to be fantasy series based on games. Serials can be fun occassionally, but I often think an excessive focus on series saps creativity. I much prefer to read original series or novels.

In science fiction, there are the Star Wars paperbacks and Star Trek paperbacks. I like the new Romulan Empire novels and the Klingon Empire novels which have been coming out recently. They are a little bit different than the stories of the federation which I find rather bland. I even like a few of the authors. Peter David is my favorite of the novelists who wrote for star trek. I like the Timothy Zahn books in the Star Wars series. My favorite Star Wars novel was Splinter of the Minds Eye by Alan Dean Foster. Still, I like original novels better.

I shifted some New York Law annuals downstairs. They are government documents. In order to discard books if you are depository library, you have to prepare a list of the items you are discarding and send it to the government to get permission to discard the items. Sometimes, they don't give permission. We are a partial government depository. I also discarded some law books.

We have had to buy a computer database Westlaw Patron Access Terminal recently to replace our cd-rom databases. Like most libraries with a law collection we have a very large amount of books. This is because law is based on precedent, everything that has come before it.

Barnes Foundation - Picasso, Renoir, Matisse, and Cezanne

Today I'm at the Barnes Foundation in Merion PA. It's a great way to celebrate my birthday! I love being at the Barnes. I feel so good, and inspired too. In case you don't know, the collection included the largest number of Matisse paintings in any collection in the world, 59. I believe it also has the largest number of Cezanne paintings in any collection in the world at 69. The Barnes also has by far the largest number of Renoir paintings in any collection in the world at an astounding 181.

Almost missed in the excitement over Renoir, Cezanne, and Matisse is the large number of significant Picasso paintings, 46. That's a huge number by any standard. There are also paintings by El Greco, Titian, Rubens, Degas, Van Gogh, Rousseau, Seurat, Soutine, Modigliani, Manet, Monet, and American Horace Pippin of West Chester PA. Here is the Barnes Foundation website: http://www.barnesfoundation.org/

I've featured one of my favorites, Matisse's Le Bonheur de Vivre (The Joy of Life) several times in the past, so today I'll show Modigliani's Reclining Nude From The Back, painted in 1917.

You can view some of my 3-D paintings on my website at www.jayrolfe.com/.

Pixie Preview

It's Friday and I'm happy to jump back into Teen-Seen! Fridays were important to me during high school. As the marching band drum major, it meant a pep rally and a football game in the fall - preferably a home game where we could march the halftime show - and then getting goofy after the game while not getting caught doing anything too troublesome. In the winter, we took a pep band to the basketball games - lots of fun! - followed by more goofiness. This Friday is great because I'm leaving for the beach to relax and brainstorm with a writing buddy. I don't plan on swimming at this time of year, but we'll have fun walking and watching the waves for dolphins.

What's your favorite way to spend a Friday?

Since Pixie Chicks is a short story (and a heck of a value at only $2!) I chose an excerpt from page 5 rather than page 59:

While Austin confirmed the evening's details once more, Brie opened the instrument locker they shared, reaching past the flutes, piccolo, and text books to find her brush. Checking the small mirror, she tucked away the platinum blonde wisps already working free of her barrette. When the first bell sounded, the four girls walked as a unit from the band room, toward their respective homerooms. Brie sighed, relieved she'd dodged an inquisition when Claire asked, "Where's your necklace?"

"Oh!" She patted herself where the pendant should've been. "Must've forgotten it." The second bell sounded, momentarily saving her from the slew of questions dancing in Claire's vivid green eyes. "Later," she mouthed.

The pendant she'd won for outstanding service to the band program in junior high had been around her neck every day since. Until that chilling moment today, when she'd found a cut and paste 'ransom' note stuck to her dresser where she always placed her necklace at bedtime.

There are four girls in the group, Brianna (Brie), Claire, Lana, and Austin. They've been friends practically forever and know each other inside and out. Platinum-headed Brie is the plotter of the team – a responsible kid but she's got a gift for organizing and a way of turning everything into an adventure. Trust me, all the girls noticed the absence of the ever-important necklace and you'll enjoy the journey she makes to recover it.

Just for fun, here are some answers to FAQ about the Pixie Chicks:

Ms. Black, did you have a pack of friends like the Pixie Chicks in high school?

Well, you have to realize dinosaurs roamed the earth during my teen years. The pterodactyl patrol made it especially difficult for us band geeks to sneak into our Hobbitville.

Do any of the Pixie Chicks have a greyhound?

Not yet, but stay tuned for an unforgettable appearance of a 'greyt' dog. You can read about the many real dogs in my life at my website.

Who is your favorite Pixie?

Oh, not fair! I'd happily count any of them as a friend – or even a daughter. Although, when you factor in Lana's insomnia...

Happy Friday!

Regan

Pixies are shaking things up at Quake!

Daily Thoughts

Felix Henry Giacomotti Inappropriate Reading Time Oil on canvas, 1886

Daily Thoughts

I interviewed for a Librarian III Collection Development position this morning at my job. I was not expecting it. I got the call for my resume last night. I spent about three hours going over the pieces of my resume last night. I was not completely prepared for the interview. I think I flubbed a few things, but you don't know until later what really happened. The interview lasted a little over an hour. It was very interesting.

Something I realize coming out from the interview is that I should not ignore the questions posed to me in the interview. I am going to start weeding the law collection tomorrow. I have been putting it off for a while. I dread the idea in a way. But, unless I do it, I will probably not get where I want to go. I am also going to arrange a day to go to the county supreme court law library this month as well. I need to act on some of the things which I discussed.

Two more books came in for me to read today, Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams. This is the authors first book. The second book is Halo, The Cole Protocol by Tobias Buckell. Tobias Buckell is a very enjoyable author to read. He is a caribbean writer which adds some nice flavor and tone to the book. I liked his other books Ragamuffin, Crystal Rain, and Sly Mongoose.

I am still reading Building Hope by John Bateson. I like some of his ideas, the acronym SMART (Specific, Memorable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timebound) for setting goals appleals to me. It is the kind of thing that makes you think hard about what you are doing.

There is a new feed site for library feeds and podcasts , http://www.lisfeeds.com/

One the subway home, I read a bit more of Building Hope. This is a nice quote which I found while reading the book. It is a Chinese proverb. "If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help someone else." I rather like the idea. Maybe, I feel it is because I have devoted my life to helping other people through literature.

You are unique!!!

Over today's lunch, I went into a rather interesting discussion with one of my dear friends. It was about a very handsome, smart and charming person's inability to see how good that person really is. It sounds so strange right? That you can be all of those things and not realize it yourself. It is like you have the full right to feel so good about youself, but you don't. Because, you don't see what other people see in you. I believe that every person has something good in them, it is just that we have to learn to see that side and that uniqueness ourselves.

People can tell you that you are pretty, but that doesn't really matter in the end, does it? If you don't feel pretty within yourself, you will feel miserable, and if you feel miserable your life will become horrible, and then you will end up thinking of why you didn't see yourself as pretty, because then that life that just passed you by would have been worth living! So, please feel pretty and stay happy, and if someone does tell you that you're pretty...- Use it to boost your ego!

Someday, when I get the opportunity I am going to tell that handsome person how good he really is.

Who's Who in Renoir's The Luncheon of the Boating Party

First, here's a link to Renoir's The Luncheon of the Boating Party on the website of the Phillips Collection which I featured in my post on Tuesday. http://www.phillipscollection.org/collection/boating/index.aspx

Second, on Tuesday I mentioned that art history people know the identity of all the people pictured in Renoir's The Luncheon of the Boating Party. Here's a link to the info. http://www.phillipscollection.org/collection/boating/whoswho.aspx Also, I'm including the diagram here, and the text below.

"The Luncheon of the Boating Party includes youthful, idealized portraits of Renoir's friends and colleagues as they relax at the Maison Fournaise restaurant. Wearing a top hat, the amateur art historian, collector, and editor Charles Ephrussi (8) speaks with a younger man in a more casual brown coat and cap. He may be Ephrussi's personal secretary, Jules Laforgue (5), a poet and critic.

At center, the actress Ellen Andrée (6) drinks from a glass. Across from her in a brown bowler hat is Baron Raoul Barbier (4), a bon vivant and former mayor of colonial Saigon. He is turned toward the smiling woman at the railing, thought to be Alphonsine Fournaise (3), the proprietor's daughter. She and her brother, Alphonse Fournaise, Jr. (2), who handled the boat rentals, wear straw boaters'. They are placed within, but at the edge of, the party. At the upper right, the artist Paul Lhote (12) and the bureaucrat Eugène Pierre Lestringuez (11) seem to be flirting with actress Jeanne Samary (13).

In the foreground, Renoir included a youthful portrait of his fellow artist, close friend, and wealthy patron, Gustave Caillebotte (9), who sits backwards in his chair and is grouped with the actress Angèle (7) and the Italian journalist Maggiolo (10). Caillebotte, an avid boatman and sailor, wears a white boater's shirt and flat-topped boater's. He gazes at a young woman cooing at her dog. She is Aline Charigot (1), a seamstress Renoir had recently met and would later marry. "

You can view some of my shaped 3-D paintings on my website at www.jayrolfe.com/.

Daily Thoughts

Paul Alexis Reading a Manuscript to Zola. Paul Cezanne.

Daily Thoughts

Right now, I am reading I Can Make You Thin by Paul McKenna as well as Building Hope. I Can Make You Thin is a behavior management program for eating. It admonishes you to eat what you want, stop eating when you are full, eat when you are hungry, and eat slowly. There are sections on how to make exercise fun as well as how to identify eating when you are angry, stressed or frustrated. I am about halfway through the book. It includes a hypnosis tape which runs for about half an hour. I have not played it yet. The book is not complicated and it is not like most diet books.

I finished reading the book in about two and half hours. There is also a hypnosis cd which has a guided relaxation and positive reinforcement session that runs for about half an hour. I found it quite relaxing.

In addition to the hypnosis tapes there are short meditative exercises focused on changing your body image, preventing cravings, and picturing yourself differently. My favorite example is an exercise with a mirror which asks to look at how you would look if you were in excellent physical shape.

This is not a diet book, it is a behavior modification book focused on food. It asks you to change specific behaviors and gives you meditative exercises on how to do this. I have to say reading this was quite different than what I expected. I don't know if it will work until a later date.

I found this book on Twitter, Sterling Publishers was advertising it on Twitters as part of a book marketing campaign. The book is in british english which makes it read a bit differently than many books which I have read. It does have a slightly new age feeling to it because of the meditation exercises, but it is not overbearing.

This was a nice short break from Building Hope. We have hundreds of diet books at the library. People are asking for The Zone, Pritikin, Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, the American Heart Association diet, and many different diets. There are not just popular diets, there are also diets for specific conditions; heart disease, kidney problems, cancer, diabetes, celiac disease and many other conditions.

The diet books have even spun off into the cookbooks section. Now, you can get your American Heart Association diet book, get your American Heart Association cookbook, and get your American Heart Association exercise book in one step. Diet books are no longer diet books, they are a package of different books. Maybe, after you get your books, you can go to a meeting to discuss the three books at your local American Heart Association chapter. I am using American Heart Association because it is reputable much like the American Diabetes Association. I have trouble believing the commercial companies like Jenny Craig or Weightwatchers.

It is very hard to make sense out of the proliferation of these books. You wonder every time someone gets a diet book whether or not they will actually help. I sometimes am a little cynical about these kind of books.

Searching For A Starry Night on Grill Today at Book Roast blog

Hear that sizzle?

I'm being roasted, grilled and put to the test today. Come see what's cooking today at the Book Roast blog.

Stop by and read a new excerpt from Searching For A Starry Night, A Miniature Art Mystery.

** Visitors can take a chance! Answer a question at the Book Roast blog and you may win a copy of Searching For A Starry Night, A Miniature Art Mystery or get a copy from Quake.

See you at the grill and bring your chef's hat. It seems to be up late so stop by mid-morning.

El Greco and Goya at the Phillips

The Phillips Collection, which I visited on Saturday in Washington DC, calls itself "a museum of both modern art and its sources." Some of its sources are old masters including El Greco and Goya who painted the same dramatic subject, "The Repentant St. Peter," about 200 years apart.

The top painting is by Doménikos Theotokópoulos, known as El Greco, painted in 1600-1605. The lower painting is by Francisco Jose de Goya painted in 1820-1824. They are displayed in the same huge gallery with a number of other older paintings by famous artists, but at different ends of the gallery. Both are very powerful paintings when seen in person. I hope you take the opportunity to see them at the Phillips Collection.

You can view some of my 3-D mixed media paintings on my website at www.jayrolfe.com/.

Say muuu to the word!

So, now we are in the year of the cow, representing solemn hard work and prosperity. Muuu, is what I have to say :P It did start pretty well, but it had a rather bad ending. Like, I mentioned we went out to eat at...Forno Romano (the weather didn't allow any long distance journey), and everything was really delicious and so on. However, my sis ordered some kind of salami pizza, which I considered to eat (lucky I didn't!). She ended up food poisoned, and puked the whole night...-.- I mean, what if I really had taken a pizza like that? Then I would lay so much behind in school! Since I've started the IB my life is like a poor factory worker in China - litteraly - everything is working out perfect, but it's completely dependent on my health, just like all of those other people...If just a small change interfers, everything becomes a mess. Nevertheless, she is becoming better...

Oh, and before I am off for my beauty sleep...some pictures from the beginning of 牛年

Sis - now I say "don't eat that, don't eat it! I'm serious!!!"

CNY's dress-for-success :)

Daily Thoughts

Hans Christian Andersen in his living room at his home in Nyhavn 18 in Copenhagen.

Daily Thoughts.

The BookCalendar is reviewing Rabbit Angstrom in memory of John Updike. It is sad to see this writer. While, I was not particularly fond of his works. I was fond of what he represented. http://www.thebookcalendar.com/

I am still reading Building Hope by John Bateson. It is a very serious book and a very slow read because he is trying to add depth and say very meaningful things. This could take me a while to read. There is quite a bit on hiring people both for board positions as well as staff positions.

I have another book which I am plainning on reading. I found the book on Twitter. It is called I Can Make You Thin by Paul McKenna. I am still watching my diet and doing yoga every single night.

Serenades in Richmond

You are cordially invited

to three upcoming Jeff Prillaman, tenor events right here in the Richmond region. I hope that you will consider making the time to attend one (or even all ;-) of these concerts and that you know how much it would mean for me to see you in the audience. If you do come, please be sure to stay and say Hi after the concert. I would be honored to talk with you and hear your reaction to the programs and the cultural ideas we explored.

Hope to see you soon & Happy New Year!
Jeff

==============================

==============

SERENADE: Sunday Feb 8, 2009 4:00 PM
Jeff Prillaman, Tenor, Charles Hulin, Piano
Second Sunday South of the James series
Bon Air Presbyterian Church
info call: 804 272-7514 or click here for flyer
In this exciting concert, Tenor Jeff Prillaman and Pianist Charles Hulin will explore the many facets and cultural ideas of "Serenade" with selections ranging from Canzone to Aria and from Barber of Seville to Boheme to Carousel and even the Student Prince. The program includes tributes and favorites from great serenaders such as Luciano Pavarotti and Mario Lanza.


SERENADE: Friday Feb 13, 2009 7:00 PM
Jeff Prillaman, Tenor, Charles Hulin, Piano
St Paul's Episcopal Church, Petersburg VA
info call: 804 733 3415
In this exciting concert, Tenor Jeff Prillaman and Pianist Charles Hulin will explore the many facets and cultural ideas of "Serenade" with selections ranging from Canzone to Aria and from Barber of Seville to Boheme to Carousel and even the Student Prince. The program includes tributes and favorites from great serenaders such as Luciano Pavarotti and Mario Lanza.

=====================================

Love, Death, Art: Saturday, Feb 28, 2009 2:00 PM

GELLMAN CONCERTS RICHMOND PUBLIC LIBRARY
101 East Franklin St
Info contact Pamela McClain at pjm1952@aol.com

The event at the Richmond public library features a rare public performance (all Russian) of a Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet duet. Collaboration with Soprano Lisa Edwards-Burrs, and Pianist Pamela McClain. This program is an exploration of Russian music assembled by Pamela McClain. and featuring several other wonderful artists.. Daphne Gerling, viola, James Lynn, bass-baritone, and Carole Wyncoop, soprano

--
Jeff Prillaman
Executive Director, Da Capo Institute
http:www.dacapoinstitute.org

Phillips Collection, Renoir

On Saturday I visited the Phillips Collection in Washington DC. I was struck again by what is perhaps their most famous painting, Luncheon of the Boating Party by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It is large, animated, brilliantly colored, and depicts a fun scene with recognizable people (if you've studied impressionist art history) painted in 1880-1881. Every time I visit the Phillips Collection I am wowed by this painting. It's beautiful!

Of course, there are many other great paintings in the collection, ones you will recognize from art books you may have seen.

You can see some of my 3-D paintings on my website at www.jayrolfe.com/.

Introducing Sam Morton

Yo, yo! What Up? Slammin’ Sammy is in the hiz’ouse with a little sumpn, sumpn.

Okay, that’s the extent of my effort to be “hip.”

By way of introduction, I am Sam Morton, a member of the Quake team of teen fiction/young adult authors. I am a former professional wrestler, trained by the Fabulous Moolah who, for 25 years was the WWE women’s champion. For ten years I wrestled people like Wahoo McDaniel and Ivan Koloff. Out of the current crop of superstars, I wrestled two who are still around—Rob Van Dam and Viscera.

So how did I come into writing as a profession? Two words—Pat Conroy, author of such books as Beach Music and The Lords of Discipline (both Hollywood feature films). Conroy went to The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina, and so did I. If you don’t consider yourself a reader, go to the library and pick up one of Conroy’s books. You will, as I did, immediately fall in love with words and language. He is a masterful writer. He’s a transformative writer. Read him, and your life will change. Mine did.

My first novel, Disavowed, came out in 2006. Besides being a pro wrestler, I was also a homicide cop for ten years. Disavowed is an adult crime novel, a police thriller based on my experience.

What made me want to try young adult fiction? Simple. I had a story to tell, and it has to do with a remarkable, inspirational 15-year-old young man named Austin Pierce Whetsell.

In my newest novel, Betrayed, (due out in August of 2009, BTW), it’s an election year and Senator Ben “Pitchfork” Stevens from Texas made a campaign promise to stop illegal immigration. He virtually has. Problem is, people trying to cross the border seem to disappear. That’s a dilemma for 15-year-old Austin Pierce whose father is a political consultant and whose best friend, Rico Alvarez, happens to be in the United States illegally. When Austin discovers Rico’s beautiful cousin Veronica helps people cross over illegally, he faces a decision: should he help his friends or help the FBI to stop the senator? Either path could lead to danger, even death.

The real Austin went on a mission trip to help renovate a church in Mexico. Just before the work week began, he and the guys from his youth group decided to go swimming in the ocean. Before heading to the beach, Austin called his grandfather to tell him about the trip so far. At the end of that call, he said, “Grandpa, what if God intends me to do this the rest of my life?” Two hours later, Austin was gone forever, caught in a rip current and swept out to sea.

His last words haunt me and I knew his story needed to be told, his spirit of helping others carried forward. And so, Austin Pierce, the teen spy, was born. Betrayed is only book one from The Austin Files. Look for another adventure to soon follow, thus Austin Whetsell and the example he set lives on.

You may find it surprising that adults could find true inspiration in the example of young adults. But if you’re a teen reading his, give yourself more credit. There are people around you with incredible courage, resolve, and determination. And if you look inside, you just may find it in yourself.

Daily Thoughts

L'Arlésienne (Porträt der Mme Ginoux) Vincent Van Gogh Oil on Canvas 1888

Daily Thoughts

The new director for the system came and visited our library. We sat in the staff room and introduced ourselves and said what each of our departments did. It was fairly pleasant. There were coffee, bagels, and muffins. He walked around and did a tour of the building. Then he went off and had lunch with the director of our library. I wonder what they were talking about.

I can see some changes coming fairly quickly to our library very soon. The city is proposing a survey of people want from their local government. We have not had an official survey of library patron's needs since I came here. I look forward to seeing what people want.

Tomorrow is the monthly board meeting. I usually take the reference desk during the board meetings so I can't really attend the meeting. I see the various board members leave as the meeting ends. I think this should be an interesting meeting. There are supposed to be several people from the community who will be there today. I often talk to one of them at the library about which computer books he likes. I think one of them may be asking for a board position.

I'll wait until after tomorrow to see what happens.

We are currently in union negotiations, something which can be very touchy. I am not going to say anything positive or negative. We have not had a contract for a number of years. I wish they could hash things out between union and management. It can be quite difficult at times in both directions. Because I am a line employee, I am a member of the union, CSEA which I support. Union membership is important.

A round of sexual harassment and violence in the workplace workshops were held in the library. I heard that they went over The Code of Conduct during the training for the library. The trainer said hello to me. She remembered me well.

On the way home from work, I read some more of Building Hope Leadership in the Nonprofit World by John Bateson. It is quite enlightening. I really don't understand that much about how boards work, this has given me a little bit more of an idea of how these things work. I am not sure that I get the idea of volunteering to be on a nonprofit board that much. This probably open doors to opportunities for many people.

Berthe Morisot

This week has been one of those weeks that we all occasionally have. I seem to have spent all my days running around, firstly with the exhibition we have on at the moment, secondly with trying to get my visa and passport in order so that I can leave next week and thirdly with all the shopping I've had to do - that was nice though, I love buying presents to take over. The shop assistants think you're nuts when you test the weight of each thing you buy! And on top of that, the weather has been energy draining hot!

I've started a few paintings in between all the chaos, but nothing is finished. I was looking at Jo Ann Elig's blog at a recent post when she did a copy of a well known American artist, William Merritt Chase's work. In class about two months ago, we were given a project to also do a Master, so I thought, in lieu of not having a really new painting to post, I would put this up.

It's a copy of a Berthe Morisot painting, Lady at her Toilette and I found it one of the most difficult things to do - copy another's work. In the end, you tend to put a bit of yourself into it and it shows if you go to the original.

The Princess Litmus Test

I'm by no means the first person to note the problems with what fairy-tales could be teaching kids. Veritably, fairy-tales are rife with infanticide (Hansel and Gretel), incest (Many Furs), cannibalism (Hansel and Gretel again), genetic determinism based on birth order (anything featuring a Seventh-Son or -Daughter) and maleficent or outright murderous step-family (Cinderella, Snow White, etc.). Some of the more unpalatable devices have been omitted from public consumption in recent years; for instance, it's difficult to find a current copy of Cinderella, which depicts the public torture of the evil-stepmother and -stepsisters which featured at the end of original versions. In another act of housekeeping by Disney, Ariel the Little Mermaid traded her voice for legs, whilst Hans Christian Andersen's Little Mermaid endured legs which were paid for in agonising pain - every step she took on them was enchanted to feel that she was walking on upturned knives.

What the modern fairy-tales don't omit, however, is what I consider to be the most dangerous device of all - the notion of innate royalty. And, more frighteningly, how royalty is operationalised to children to, socialised by ideas of tiaras, pretty dresses, castles and white horses, are taught to aspire to it.

The Princess and the Pea instructs young readers that a Princess can easily be identified from a "commoner" through the application of a simple test - a Princess Litmus Test - where she is put to bed on a boiled pea beneath twenty mattresses and twenty feathered-eiderdowns. The take-home points from this engaging story, regarding the properties of a Princess (that is, as repeatedly emphasised, a true Princess), are as follows:

a) She will be beautiful (with tiny hands and feet, flaxen hair, and skin as white as milk, in most translations), mild-mannered, and pliable enough to allow herself to be subjected to bizarre experiments designed to determine her lineage.
b) She will be "delicate" - to the point where she is unable to sleep on a boiled pea, even when this pea is underneath twenty mattresses and twenty eiderdowns.
c) She will suffer from a bizarre skin condition which will cause her to break out in bruises after spending a sleepless night in said pea/mattress/eiderdown arrangement.
d) She will complain heartily of her mental and physical stress from the event, in front of the people who did her a favour by putting her up for the night.
ERGO: This will hook her a royal wedding and "happily ever after", as only a true Princess could exhibit such delicacy and fragility.

Take-home points for little girls (who are taught to idolise Princesses) include:

a) Princesses really are a whole different species to you and me.
b) Princesses are, without question, beautiful (and blonde, and thin, and white).
c) Princesses should not be able to cope with anything.
ERGO: The ultimate aspiration presented to little girls is to be pretty, wear a nice dress, and marry a prince after demonstrating the ultimate in physical inferiority and self-indulgent hysteria over creature comforts.

Recently, when I asked some little girls I was taking care of for the afternoon what they wanted to play. The answer was, of course, "Princesses!", and was the same when I asked what they wanted to be when they grew up. I caught myself, for one moment, trying to explain to a five-year old in a pink tulle dress-up skirt that Princesses are just like you and me, but with more expensive outfits.

"They're not," I explained,"really any different to other people. You're just the same as them."

The little girl didn't believe me. Why would she, when everyday, imagined princesses are presented to her in their rosy, golden glory, complete with storybook Prince. I suddenly had a sneaky idea. I pulled out a glossy magazine from another room, and flicked through until I found a royal; Princess Beatrice, looking pallid and unattractive at a London event.

The little girls were unanimous in declaring that she didn't look like a Princess at all. Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, playing with her children in a parka on a beach, was judged the same way. In fact, the only person that the little girls agreed did look like a Princess was Hilary Duff, in a pink dress on a red carpet.

Even real Princesses were failing the Litmus Test.

In the end, I don't think I managed to rid those little girls of their illusions about royalty. In their hearts, they know quite well that Princesses are beautiful, pink-clad, and better than real people. Instead, I think that the only take-home point I provided to the little girls that day was that they wanted to be Hilary Duff. OK by me, so long as it doesn't imply skin trauma from sleeping on a boiled legume.

An Interview with Marlis Day

You can buy The Secret of Bailey's Chase by clicking here.

National Portrait Gallery

I spent the weekend in Washington DC visiting art museums, one of my favorite pastimes. My photo of the day is one I had another visitor take of me at the National Portrait Gallery. You probably read in the newspaper that this iconic portrait of Barack Obama was recently donated to the National Portrait Gallery. It's a mixed media stenciled collage by Los Angeles artist Shepard Fairey.

You can view some of my 3-D paintings at www.jayrolfe.com/.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Jean-Louis Ernest Meissonier (1815-1891) The Reader in White

Miscellaneous Thoughts

I am enjoying reading Mirror, Mirror by Gregory Maguire. I am finding it unique and refreshing. It is a retelling of the Snow White story. I read some more of it on the train to work this morning. I also read it for a bit on the way home from work. It is a very strange book with a unique style. I have not seen anyone else write the way he does. I really cannot compare it to any other writer I can think of. If you want something very different read this book. I am foregoing review this book because it is very hard to grasp and describe in any simple terms.

I put a few more books in the current events display. I also put in an order for books on electronics. Right now, I am also looking through the Job Information Center for outdated material to replace. I already have about twenty titles that need to be updated.

I might go to the Open Access and Libraries Conference on March 17, 2009 if I can get a pass for it. The lecture on Google Books last year was very interesting, also the part on public domain ebooks was quite interesting as well. As you can imagine, copyright was an important part of the discussion. http://unabashedlibrarian.com/open-access-2009

I spent most of the afternoon at city hall. The new assistant director of human resources was giving two presentations to city employees: a presentation on sexual harassment, and a presentation on workplace violence. Each ran for an hour long. About half of the time was spent watching a video and filling out a multiple choice questionnaire. I sent a link to our code of conduct on our website to the assistant director. I found the presentation to be fairly well put together and not at all boring which was a surprise.

On the way to the lecture I dropped off several fliers of different events at the library as well as the new service brochure and calendar of events. I am hoping it will bring in a couple of people to our events. A few of the employees asked about the AARP classes for defense driving being given at the library once a month. The price of $14 was much cheaper than most insurance classes for defensive driving.

When I got back, I did a bit more placing inserts into the law books, and pulled some books to be put in storage.

I also picked up two books on nonprofit management, How To Manage An Effective Nonprofit Organization From Writing and Managing Grants to Fundraising, Board Development, and Strategic Planning by Michael A. Sand. The other book which I am currently reading is Bulding Hope Leadership In The Nonprofit World by John Bateson. I am very interested in how this kind of thing works.

What do you think of 'zines?

We're trying one out for Team Quake news and you can take a peek at our first Aftershock by clicking here.

If you want to sign up for the 'zine mailing list, you can go here. As a bonus for signing up, you'll get a free pdf of Death Match by Quake author, Sam Morton. It's an especially good read for guys who like wrestling, and it's got a scary real-life challenge in it, too. Happy ending though.

If you liked that read, you can take a look at some more of our downloads at the Quake Publishing site.

How do you read your downloads? Leave us a comment here.

Harry Turtledove The Breath of God

Harry Turtledove The Breath of God

This is the second novel in the series The World Beyond. It was preceded by Beyond the Gap. The novel is a kind of fantasy setting, but it feels very different. The magic being described is not the magic of throwing lightning bolts and summoning strange creatures. It is often quite subtle. A person may start clucking like a chicken, or become much more afraid of mammoths, or be bedeviled by flies.

The ice wall separating the glacier from the Raumsdalian Empire is melting. A ruthless barbarian tribe called the "Rulers" is invading. They ride mammoths and practice dark magic. In the north of the empire the barbarian Bisogoths are being crushed and enslaved.

A wandering adventurer, Count Hamnet Thyssen and his companions, Ulric Skakki , a tribal leders referred to as his ferocity, and the shamaness Liv are running and fighting the "Rulers." They are also seeking "The Golden Shrine." Eventually they are forced to the top of the glacier where it is so stark that the people on top of the the glacier resort to cannibalism to survive.

Count Hamnet, the main character very much reminds me of the accounts of Sir Richard Burton, Ibn Battuta, or Lawrence of Arabia. He is a man more comfortable living among barbarians who herd mammoths and musk oxen than living at court. He is so hated by the emperor that he is thrown in the dungeon when he comes back to warn the emperor of Raumsdalia.

This novel reads like a cross between a mens adventure novel, a bit of an alternate history story, and a fantasy novel. It incorporates all three. There is lots of action, sex, fighting, and some rather crude jokes thrown in for good measure. Harry Turtledove writes alternative history and fantasy novels. His most famous novel is Guns of the South. My favorite novel by him is Fox and Empire.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Maxime Faivre (1856-1914)A good read Oil on canvas, 1903

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Last week it was cartoons at the Louvre. Now the Morgan Library is doing an exhibition of cartoons about money. There is a certain irony in this considering the current economic conditions. Money is suddenly becoming a much more important subject, not that it wasn't already important.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/stageNews/idUKTRE50L5OK20090122

The RUSA Reference and User Services Association of the ALA American Library Association has a new continuing education series for librarians. I am looking at the Library Marketing course and the Business 101 courses as things I might be interested in taking.

http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/rusa/development/index.cfm

CNY tomorrow!!!

Ooh, as life goes on, so does the years. I am so excited for Chinese New Year tomorrow! Haha, I know I am not a pure Chinese, and we usually don't celebrate big time like they do down there...But I am half-Chinese and that means that I have the completely right to celebrate half-CNY here in Sweden. xD

My family does not really prepare anything else than ourselves the day before the big day. You see, mother has started noticing that eating out on days like these are much more chill than she spending 5 hours in the kitchen, preparing for a less than 30 minutes meal (even though it turns out to be better than any other food, most of the time). I am glad she realized that, because then we have more time to spend as a family...Which is the most important part of everything. However, the most funny part with CNY is to decide what new clothes to wear. =) Which is also a very important feature. I think I quite have figured out my outfit, but it will remain a secret until tomorrow, hehehehehe...Gosh, it sounds like I am going to show up in a gown to school...-.-

Haiz...dreaming is over, now I have to get back to French grammar...-.-

sis and mama at Pangor Island, last summer

The Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt

The Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt

This book is a suspense novel in a science fiction setting. Alex Benedict, an antiquities dealer is approached by a woman to find out what happened to her. Vicki Greene's recent memories were destroyed. Thus ensues a mystery of tracking down where Vicki Greene was.


Alex ends up on a planet on the very edge of the galaxy Salud Afar. I really like the name of the planet. Salud Afar has just come out of a long period of tyrannical rule by a single family. It is a dangerous place to be.


As the novel progresses, the danger becomes deeper, the mystery unravels to reveal an earth shattering disaster, and the story becomes poignant and deep. The action is very fastpaced and well thought out.


The writing is quite believable because the author focuses on what makes us human and tries to tell a story we can relate to. There are aliens in this novel, but they are not people in rubber suits. The aliens frighten humans to the core even though they are not that hostile. The aliens in turn are equally unsettled by us. They are telepathic "mutes."


I thought the author was a bit conservative with emotional reactions from the central character and could have added a little more depth. I got confused sometimes about the reactions of Chase Kolpath, Alex Benedict's partner. I felt that the reactions of Chase Kolpath were not that convincing for a lady character.


Jack McDevitt won the Nebula award for his novel Cauldron. I have enjoyed several of his previous novels, especially his archaeological science fiction novels which are quite unique.

Context for relationships

I have really short thought today.. I have a very broad context of relationships set up in my life. From talking with Scott at the basketball game, to the Tchaikovsky rehearsal with Pamela and Lisa last night, to breakfast as Dwayne's place this am, to more BB as the coach of the Fever in about an hour.. I do a ton of different stuff, but the primary reason is so that I can stay in touch with people of many types, personalities and abilities. What is exhausting to some, is actually exhillarating to me. I don't know what I'd do without my many, many lives and the associated, many many friends.

Relationships are a blessing. Now if I can just figure out how to keep up with it all.

Daily Thoughts, Reading With A Purpose

A public domain clip art image which I liked. Reading In The Study.

I did a bit of weeding for the electronics section. Now, I am ordering consumer electronics books. Books on audio, appliances, television repair, home theater, and similar subjects. I have started using http://www.worldcat.org to look up and see what different libraries around the country have on various subjects as part of my ordering process. I find it to be a very useful tool. It is almost a national library catalog for the United States.

People are taking more books from the display stand for current events.

Today is another quiet day. I have to go to one of those standard trainings on violence in the workplace and sexual harassment on Monday. This one is a little bit different. The local police department is giving the training to different agencies around the city. I think it will be more complete than the other ones I have attended. The public library is open to anyone who comes in.

Also the new director of the system is coming on Tuesday for a visit. We are a cooperative library system. This means we share resources but not rules or regulations. We have a common catalog and interlibrary loan, but separate budgets. Each town in our county runs their library differently.

I have started reading Mirror Mirror by Gregory Maguire. For some reason, I could not get myself to read his most famous book, Wicked about the Wicked Witch of the East from the land of Oz. It was even turned into a Broadway play.

Reading With A Purpose

Many people participate in reading challenges. I have done one so far. They usually involve reading a number of books in a particular subject like China, graphic novels, science fiction, or by a specific author. Sometimes people will read through a list of different authors in alphabetical sequence, or titles in alphabetical sequence.

There are a lot of different reasons to read. I am hoping to read a number of science fiction and fantasy novels and review them. My goal is to get some of the reviews linked to by the authors of the books. This has already happened with Slow Train To Arcturus, and A Secret History of Moscow. There is something very satisfying in getting your reviews acknowledged.

Although, I have never really asked openly, I would not mind receiving reviewers copies of books to read. I really don't need them because I am always surrounded by books, but if something especially interesting became available, I would not mind reading it. Maybe a new general interest non-technical computer book like Groundswell or Wikimomics would be interesting to receive.

The other reason I am reading is to improve my skills. I think that books like Spunk and Bite will improve my writing skill. I am not just looking to improve my general writing skills by reading, but specifically, my writing skills for blogging. Hot Text helped me a little bit with this. I am always looking for something new to learn.

Another hope I have is to gain access to free conference or training opportunities. A couple of years ago, they gave away free passes to bloggers at Book Expo America. It would be nice to go as a blogger and get in for free. I don't think this will happen again. Still, there is a nice discounted rate for librarians. I am looking forward to going to the O'Reilly Tools of Change For Publishing Conference.

Of course what I really should be doing right now is writing the reviews of the two books I finished reading yesterday.

Cynthia's Attic: Curse of the Bayou

Curse of the Bayou is book three in the award-winning young reader time-travel series, Cynthia's Attic.

Hope you enjoy reading page 59!
------------------------
Twelve-year-old best friends travel through the magic trunk in Cynthia's attic to a 1914 Louisiana bayou searching for Cynthia's great-grandfather, Beau Connor. Discovering a connection between Beau and Buzzard Jack LaBuse, the meanest, orneriest pirate this side of the Mississippi, leads to a heart-stopping confrontation to recover a long-lost treasure and lift a family curse.
------------------------------------------

Curse of the Bayou: Page 59

How do you reckon they got here, son?"

"Like I told you, Ma, I found them here in the hayloft, all nestled down like they were fixin' to take a nap."

"Well, what do you suppose we should do? Wake them, or let them sleep? I hate to disturb those angelic faces…oh, my heavens! Jay! You don't think they're dead, do you?"

I heard the word, dead, and sat straight up. "No! We're not dead, and who are you?"

"Now, listen here. I'll do the talking if you don't mind."

A tall, thin young man in overalls, resting one arm on a pitchfork, looked down at us. With that deadly weapon in his grasp, I decided to shut my mouth…for the moment.

"What? Where are we?" Cynthia regained consciousness and did a double-take.

A plump, older woman in a huge white apron answered, "You're on the Conner farm, dearie. I'm Samantha Conner and this is my son, Jay.

No wonder Cynthia was speechless. I wasn't too familiar with her mother's family, but their name was Conner, and I'd heard mention of Samantha, Cynthia's great-grandmother. Her grandfather was nicknamed Jay by his dad who thought that 'John Joseph' was too showy for a farmer's son. This might also explain why the man we were looking for, her great-grandfather, Aloysius Beauregard Conner, went by Beau.

-----------------------------------
And that's a sampling of Mary Cunningham Books

To purchase Cynthia's Attic: Curse of the Bayou, click here

Well, duh, moment on the grey pics. Here's 0ur current king of the couch. He's been with us for six years and is as relaxed and lovable and goofy as they come. He thinks it's his job to teach all the fosters how to bark (greys aren't usually big on the barking).
It's kinda hard to believe from this view, but the new foster girl (just two years old) likes to climb up and annoy him into moving. With characters like this in my world, it's no wonder they find their way into my stories.

Woof to all the pets who like to cuddle with us while we read!
Regan
Power up your inner Pixie!
The Pixie Chicks is now available at Quake!

Please, wake me up -.-

This fall, I am honestly considering to do the Pre-IB again or starting at Thoren Business School (Uppsala's sloppiest school). But, who really cares?! At least they have what I can't have.

I know this year isn't suppose to be about the negative and I am sorry for taking out my mini-depression (that's actually tremendously big, so please if you have the number to a good shrink...-.-) on this little poor blog. The thing is, that I just cannot and do not want to believe that I can't choose to study business and management in year 2...It feels like my dreams are slipping through my fingers and getting further and further away from me.

Prepare for Pixies

Four very different girls are best friends and so inseparable the drum major for the marching band dubbed them The Pixie Chicks when they were freshmen. Together they face the typical challenges of high school (homework and guys) and the atypical mysteries of the secret band hangout known as Hobbitville (how DO those statues become portals?)

Inspiration for the series came from my teenage nights spent sneaking about my hometown on several covert missions through a very unique neighbor's garden. I don't think there's a statute of limitations on trespassing, but still - Shhh, don't tell! No, sadly in our case the garden statuary didn't transport us to other cool gardens, or launch us into curious mysteries, but the risky fun we had made for great adventures – at least in our minds. LOL.

Naturally, each of the characters has their own issues and agendas, but one of my favorite quirks is Austin's ability to know every detail about every hot guy in the vicinity. The other Pixies find this informative and amusing, and more than a little scary. After all, Austin doesn't look like a stalker!

As for me, Regan, I'll be posting to the Teen Seen on Fridays. You can wait for blurbs here, or find out more about me and my books at my website. For example: we foster retired racing greyhounds (you can expect a few to pop up in future Pixie tales), have two keeper greyhounds at the moment, two cats, a parakeet (who is sure he's a small, feathered person) and two finches. It's a little like Noah's ark meets a petting zoo, without the admission fee (or the reptiles). Hmmm...maybe I should change that - the fee, not the reptiles!

Happy reading,

Regan

_________________

To buy this $2 e-book click here!

Daily Thoughts

Domenico Feti (1589-1623)Portrait of a ScholarOil on canvas

Daily Thoughts

The Louvre museum is hosting its first comic book exhibition.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_travel/20090122/ap_tr_ge/eu_travel_brief_france_comics_in_the_louvre

Today has been another steady day. I filled in a few books for the current events display that were taken out yesterday. I also put in some law inserts for the law books. I also started weeding the 621s the section on computer hardware and peripherals.

I ordered a bunch of accounting titles as well as new test book titles for open job positions listed in the county job listings. So, it is a smooth, quiet predictable day.

Today ended quietly without hassle. Nothing unexpected happened. No momentous events. No meetings. It was perfect.

I finished reading the The Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt. I am digesting it in my mind right now. I want to think about it for a little bit before I start writing a review about it. It was a very good book, surprising in its ending. I also began reading The Breath of God by Harry Turtledove, a fantasy novel in a unique setting. I like Harry Turtledove's fantasy better than his alternate history novels. I have both books sitting in front of me next to my computer.

Kids (& Characters) Just Wanna Have Fun

I'm working on a long-belated project - digging out photos of the miniatures that are mentioned in my book, Searching For A Starry Night, A Miniature Art Mystery. Okay, call it a "forgotten" project, coming soon to a blog near you.

This got me thinking about the kinds of things we do in our spare time for fun. Characters, too. After all, who wants to read about someone that does absolutely nothing? BO-RING!

Being curious, my character, Sam and her bff Lita, find themselves enjoying their search for the missing miniature replica of Van Gogh's famous painting, "Starry Night." (That's it pictured. Yes, it's a real oil painting done by an artist. See some other Van Gogh related things in miniature at my blog).

When they finally get into the cranky housekeeper's home by a ruse Sam thought was pretty clever (at first), they discover a whole new world, okay, a small world.

You see, the housekeeper Mrs. Drake is a dollhouse miniatures collector. Why? Because I the author am, too.

The fun of writing is being able to share your own interests, and let the characters - and you, the reader - explore new places, things, and ideas. Even the characters get to have fun and "play" a little.

Life - fictional and real - shouldn't be all work, and no play. So, don't forget to have some fun today, okay?

* Your Turn: What's your hobby? What do you like to do in your spare time?

-- Christine Verstraete is author of Searching For A Starry Night, A Miniature Art Mystery

You can buy the book by clicking here.

Getting Things Done When You Are Not In Charge by Geoffrey M. Bellman

Getting Things Done When You Are Not In Charge by Geoffrey M. Bellman

This book is about how to bring change and lead from the middle of an organization. It talks about informal networks of power and politics inside organizations. The book focuses on support, professional, and administrative positions. There is a focus on identifying peoples wants, creating incremental goals, and moving from what is to what you want the organization to be.

Everyone wants something at work. It often makes things easier if you can help them get it. It can be as simple as a new coffee pot to as hard as a whole series of new safety procedures. Fulfilling peoples wants increases cooperation. I wish more people understood this in workplaces. Throughout the book there are numbered lists with suggestions on how to improve your lot in the workplace. There is a very nice list on how to identify what people want in this book.

In change you look at what is currently happening, then where you want to be. This is not easy at all. Resistance to change is often about personal power and a sense of being respected as well as fear of being taken advantage of. Any kind of change is naturally uncomfortable, but often inevitable. We have a new director at our job, she has been here for a little over a year and has brought quite a bit of change.

Sometimes it is better to do things in a systematic incremental manner to reach your goals. Even if you don't fulfill the main objectives, you end up finishing a number of smaller goals along the way. Sometimes, larger goals seem unattainable. Systematically completing small projects gives enough confidence in your work for you to get larger projects. For example, I started ordering computer books, then I asked to have more money to build out a larger computer books collection because I thought we needed it.

I liked the reminder about your position in an organization being what you make of it. When I first started, I was in charge of making sure the reference books were in order and the law collection. Now, I am a bit overextended. I am currently in charge of ordering adult graphic novels, business books, job information center books, social science books, ereference, some programming, and law books.

There is a nice chapter on cross functional teams. It is a reminder that it is often easier to get things done in teams than as departments. We started a team for Bridges Out of Poverty at our work. During the last month we had sixteen different service agencies come to a meeting, and created a new services brochure. I don't think this would have been possible outside of a team.

This book is very useful if you to expand your role and responsibilities in a support position and bring about incremental systematic change. The book is not a book of theory, it is a book of practice. There are numerous lists of specific actions which you can take. The book has an index and bibliography. It was written in 1992, but almost everything still feels very relevant. There was a second edition printed in 2001. It was based on an earlier title, The Quest For Staff Leadership I would call this a classic of business writing.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Thomas Pollock Anschutz(1851-1912)Woman Writing at a Table Oil on canvas, c.1905

Miscellaneous Thoughts

The NEA has a new study which shows that people are starting to read literature again. For me this is an incredibly positive sign. It means that we will have more people learning again which will help start the economic recovery.

http://arts.endow.gov/news/news09/ReadingonRise.html

A social networking package for libraries, Librarything now has a module for library catalog to enhance the interactiveness. This looks quite interesting.

http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6631420.html

I walked up to my local library and looked around for a bit. I was looking for a high quality book on Microsoft Publisher, but they did not have it. I was not satisfied with the book I had gotten sent from another library previously. We have a couple new books on Microsoft Publisher 2007 at my job, but we are waiting for the cataloging information before they can be processed and I can use them.

I also took a look at accounting titles at my local public library. None of them are at the CPA level. We have had patrons coming in and asking for fairly advanced accounting. The problem is that many of these books are over $120 each and are very academic, for the brand new titles, they can run over $200 each for an accounting textbook. Most public libraries don't buy academic titles. The cost is very high and the cost for theft or loss is much higher than popular titles. There were a few titles which I wrote down to purchase.

Many professional nonacademic titles are approaching the price of academic college textbooks. This makes it quite difficult in some cases to support the public libraries mission of buying generalist nonacademic material. I have often thought that the more money you stand to gain from the knowledge in a technical book, the more a publisher will attempt to charge you for it.

Right now, I am reading The Devil's Eye by Jack McDevitt. It is an Alex Benedict novel. She is an archaeologist of both human and alien artifacts. The story is a mystery set in the far future. One of the good things about the novel and Jack McDevitt's writing is that it shows humans keep the same motivations even in a science fiction setting. Jack McDevitt won the nebula award for his novel Cauldron.

Play with me

Why you talking all that talk Who you trying to impress Think you better check your style That might have worked beforebut I ain't having it Show me that you got the touch Hear the words that I don't say Gotta read between the lines You gotta learn this song

Cause I wanna be played
like a sweet guitar

Played like a slow jam in the dark

Gotta find the groove

You know what to do to get to meI wanna be played like a violin

Make the strings talkwith your finger tips

Never go to fast

Gotta understand

The way I need too be played