Misadventures of the Monster Librarian

Happy Birthday Rudyard Kipling (1865), author who gave us The Jungle Book ; Just so Stories , and over 300 stories and poems. Kipling won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907. I found this today and LOVED it. “If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don't deal in lies, Or being hated, don't give way to hating, And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise If you can dream - and not make dreams your master; If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools If you can m...

I am reading Brene Brown's Daring Greatly , right now and am sucked into what she is saying about vulnerability. After putting myself out there with some relationships this year I am feeling vulnerable, and while looking for the quote I wanted from her book found, this...not sure if it's in her book, but it works, and is leaving me feeling a little less vulnerable and a little more hopeful. "I think we lose sight of the beauty, the most beautiful things I look back on in my life are coming out from underneath things I didn't know I could get out from underneath. You know, the moments I look back in my life, and think, those were the moments that made me — were moments of struggle." --Brene Brown So, Saturday finds me with laundry at the laundromat, coffee on the table at this great, little coffee shop I've discovered, and trying to work through those moments and find some beauty... this song just came on as I was about to press publish...I will take ...

UB40 CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE I LOVED this song when I was in middle school...in fact there may have been a dance to go with it, and maybe I used to lock my door and do said dance and imagine the day when Tom Cruise and I would star in a musical together...too bad Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman beat us to it...and that Tom Cruise is now crazy and not as hot as he was to be 12 year old brain...and I remembered that I can't sing. Here's to Fridays and fun memories. Happy weekend!

A beautiful sky at the Farm Everyone has a napkin ring at the Farm for sit down dinners--I found mine! Where all good things go to die...or be recycled. View heading toward home! The tree outside Avalon where TSO , RugbyGirl , and I used to live!

B1 & B2's house and their kitty Mabel. BEST brunch ever: homemade mac n' cheese, asparagus and black forest ham frittata (made by me), veggie salad, homemade sesame bread (made by me) with soft Farm cheese, homemade blueberry muffins, grapes a BIG beef steer DiXit--I LOVE this game so much! Think Apples to Apples with pictures!

I was supposed to leave tomorrow for Massachusetts and the Farm, but winter storm Draco (Malfoy) is headed our way and so I am leaving early, taking to the open road. I pray that no matter how old, how crooked, how arthritic, I never forget or lose this love of the open road ; this dog-like desire to bounce on the seat, stare out the window, breathe in the changing smells--tongue lolling in excitement. I don't want to lose this desire to see towns, cities, lonely country unfolding in front of me; to go over the bumps of hundreds of railroad tracks and know the different journeys available in that too. I will keep this need to look for familiar signs and traces of roads I've traveled on, walked on, lived on. I will never lose the appreciation of what it means to add seconds, minutes, and hours--a math sum of home. I am so excited to get back to the Farm; to spend Christmas with my dear Farm friends; to again walk the familiar paths and roads, to see the animals and gardens. Ca...

For all my Dad's faults, some things I really valued in him and have tried to replicate in my adult work life: 1. Work HARD. 2. Look people in the eye. 3. Don't bullshit people, be honest. With that in mind, at a recent Board Mtg. one of the board members offered to break some news to my staff which I knew was going to be met with less than enthusiasm, but  I knew I had to do it, this is why they pay me, right? It can't always be easy or fun, and it's important to not bullshit people and avoid the tough stuff--people respect you more for doing it. So, I did it. And I didn't enjoy it, but trying to gracefully make it through something uncomfortable makes it easier for the next time, and makes you stronger.

Idea for libraries around this time of year: set aside "gently used" books from your book sales (our used book sale is on-going, so it was easy to snag good ones), donations to the library, or weeded books--put them out on a table marked, "Last Minute Holiday gifts!" We've A. gotten rid of some of our recently weeded books B. thinned out our on-going used book sale shelves C. made nearly $30 in two days--pretty impressive when you consider that's $0.25/paperback, $0.50/hardcover! D. made the patrons even happier!

Remember the Silent Auction we just finished? Well, the total is in, and as promised, I want to share it...drum roll please! We made $1,300! I am so proud of our small town! Go us! And for our first try too. I am beaming...just a little , a nd planning ahead for some great ideas for next year! Now I am getting excited about possible ways to fund raise! This particular fund raising event was fun because of the community involvement piece, but what next?! I have also been applying for grants; I applied for two grants in November and a County grant the other day...what great heights we may achieve!

Remember when I got to talk to Anne Lamott ? Well, Bestie L found the list which she'd jotted down as I stood in awe; this is what I could decipher from L's chicken scratch (SO EXCITED TO DIG INTO SOME OF THESE!!): Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity , Katherine Boo In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin , Erik Larson The Brothers Karamazov , Fyodor Dostoevsky The Executioner's Song, Norman Mailer , Dave Eggers Middle March , George Elliot 9 Stories , J.D. Salinger The Seven Storey Mountain , Thomas Merton The Red and the Black , Stendhal May Sarton Gerald Durrell Rumi Donald Miller Ann Beattie

Praying for all of the families affected by this tragedy. Just praying.  :(

I am reading The Dog Stars by Peter Heller (apropos with the whole Mayan end of the year thing), and it's good, but a bit sad and a bit of a downer in that post-apocalyptic way. Inspired to find something happier-post-apocalyptic feeling, I remembered The Postal Service's " We Will Become Silhouettes ." Happy non-apocalyptic weekend!

I haven't been posting much lately because things have been so crazy busy! Tomorrow is the last day of our silent auction; we asked businesses and community members to donate something that we could auction off, with all proceeds going to the library (hopefully toward new computers!) Stay tuned for our final $ count! Tomorrow is also the end of our holiday fines-sweep-clear for those patrons who donate new winter gear for kiddos.  Weeding still goes on! I weeded out the most tattered and gnawed on kids' board books--bought a batch of new ones to replace the old; weeded the adult non-fic, taking out anything that hasn't circed since 2004, with some exceptions. Funniest find? An old VHS manual from the early 1980s. Building maintenance issues arising with the boiler and a broken drain. Still meeting with people in the greater community and college to see how we can help each other out! Storytimes out the wazzoo!! I used to feel beat at OHCity when I did two a week as n...

We had our visit from Santa last night and it was a hit! We had 80 people show up (kids and adults)--that might not seem like a lot, but it's good for our little town!--lots of happy kiddos, only three crying babies, and adorable pictures galore on our Facebook page. We've made it into the local paper and online...we're pretty famous around here. :) I can't believe Christmas is only two weeks away! Some books to share with your little ones as we prepare for the Christmas: How the Grinch Stole Christmas , Dr. Seuss I'll be Home For Christmas (Toot & Puddle) , Holly Hobbie Mistletoe Madness , Miriam Hees N is for Navidad , Susan Middleton Elya The Nutcracker, Renee Graef The Polar Express , Chris Van Allsburg Twas the Night Before Christmas , Clement Moore Yoon and the Christmas Mitten, Helen Recorvits

I am pretty much hugely crushing on Macklemore & Ryan Lewis right now. This past weekend we had our Ugly Christmas Sweater Party at the new home of A3 & Dayna, but the week before the party, when everyone was hunting for ugliness, I introduced everyone to "Thrift Store." An instant hit. These guys even made it onto NPR . Well played, well played! So much library stuff to post about. SOON!!

Tis' the season to be applying for jobs in the Library world of Ohio, especially as OPERS is changing and lots of the old 'uns are retiring, so do your self a favor and read this HuffPost article about what to avoid using in your resume. Some of the words: 1. Creative 2. Organizational 3. Effective 4. Motivated 5. Extensive experience 6. Track record 7. Innovative 8. Responsible 9. Analytical 10. Problem solving

This week I checked out one of our new books: Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows , Richard Cahan and Michael Williams; I knew nothing of Maier (pronounced "Meyer,") other than that she was a photographer. I didn't know that Maier took over 100,000 negatives during her lifetime, most of which she never developed, due perhaps to her financial situation. Unable to pay the rent on her storage unit, her items were auctioned off, and eventually someone began developing her film/examining her prints and discovered the genius of her photography. Maier died in 2009, leaving behind reminders of days gone by (photos in this book cover 1940s-1970s NYC, Chicago, Florida, France/the Alps) and a certain mystery around herself...even those who knew her best, didn't seem to know much. The book itself is simple in it's presentation, giving just enough back-story to inform, without taking away from the true purpose--to share these AMAZING black and white photos. I can't tell yo...

Remember my Anne Lamott story ? I LOVE ANNE LAMOTT! And since April, when besite L and I saw her lecture, we've both been eagerly anticipating Lamott's newest book: Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers .  I ordered a few copies (Christmas presents), and was so excited when the package was in my mail box! The book is short and sweet, Lamott in succinct. As the title suggests, Lamott shares three prayers that she finds imperative: "Help," "Thanks," and "Wow," explaining that in our lowest places we ask for help from a higher power, but for many people the prayers stop there. She shares her experience the "help," phased, but also goes on to share how prayers shouldn't stop there, but rather continue with gratitude, "thanks," and prayers of awe, "wow." In true Lamott fashion, you hear her voice as you read, the book infused with her humor and ability to create an honest, open dialogue with the reader. Wha...

For those of you following the E-book and Library relations. Check this out. Somehow all this talk of Penguin got me thinking of this ...

Recently read Dr. Marwan Sabbagh & Beau MacMillian's The Alzheimer's Prevention Cookbook: Recipes to Boost Brain Health ; the book was informative and interesting and many of the recipes sounded delicious, but I found that unfortunately, like some cookbooks, some of the recipes include ingredients which may prove expensive or harder to find.. As I said, the recipes are interesting and appealing; being a foodie, I wanted more pictures to go with the text. If nothing else, the book is informative--the first section goes into the disease of Alzheimer's, the progression of the disease, treatment, how exercise may be helpful, etc.; the later sections break down recipes by meal, etc Would I recommend it? Sure Wanted to also mention how pleased I am that more chefs and doctors are working to create cookbooks which reach out to patients with certain conditions/illnesses; Dr. Sabbagh & MacMillian's Alzheimer's cookbook joins other cookbooks covering: ADHD Au...

Holy super-thorough list(s) of "Best of Childrens books of 2012" by Chicken Spaghetti!

This week our storytimes were about our bodies; we heard lots about elbows and toes, fingers and noses, but we also read fun books like Eric Carle's The Mixed-Up Chameleon , which shows a chameleon who wants what makes other animals special, i.e. elephants trunk, deer antlers, until he's quite a hot mess...a "think outside the box," book about the body (and animals). Here are some of the books we used for all three of our storytimes (Toddler, 4s & 5s, Family) Dancing Feet , Lindsey Craig, illus. Marc Brown Here Are My Hands , Bill Martin Jr. & John Archambault, illus. Ted Rand From Head to Toe , Eric Carle The Mixed-Up Chameleon , Eric Carl All of Baby, Noes to Toes , Victora Adler, illus. Hiroe Nakata I have NEVER met a kid who didn't LOVE this book!