My Favorite Things

So I lied. I told you that I would be reading the book, Crawl Space, last night but at the last minute this book came in. I LOVE Connie Willis novels and her newest is a continuation of one of my favorite time travel books, To Say Nothing of the Dog: Or How We Found The Bishop's Bird Stump at Last. Between dipping into this book and going to see the movie The Young Victoria, (for my Oscar movie watching marathon) I did not end up reading Crawl Space. I am sure it is a lovely book, but dude, it just can't compete with time travel.

And it starts again....

I just turned in my first suggestion list (40+ books) for the new book award committee and ordered them all from the library. Now I present you with the first book I will be reading for the new award....

What I Am Working On

I spent most of last week working on a new Readers Advisory training plan for my staff. Readers Advisory, for those who don't know, is the ability to suggest books that a reader will enjoy (NOT what you think they should be reading) and it is one of my favorite library related things to do. There is more to it than that but you get the idea. Every month my staff will meet to discuss different genres of books. Our first session will be an organizational meeting and then we will jump right in and start with mysteries. During the second meeting we will explore useful tools and discuss the appeal factors of our first genre and then we will have a discussion on a book that the entire group reads together. For the third session each person will pick a book from a different sub-genre and do a short review and book talk. We will continue with the training until all the genres are covered....and then we will start over again.

The beauty of this new plan is that the basic structure of it was a gift from a librarian at the St Louis County Library. Two of the book lists were gifts from library friends on a Listserv. After consulting a Genre studies book, I contacted the author (another librarian) and got some tips from her. The collaboration among libraries is only one of the many reasons I love being a librarian.

Valentine's Day Love

Public Service Announcement. It is important to know that pink hearts are the rejects of the candy heart world. Show them a little love and pick a pink heart next time you indulge.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! This morning a friend sent out the following tweet: "RT @kst8ter76 Was just discussing with a friend the tragedy of people not knowing how important they are to others. For V-day lets #spreadlove" To honor this idea, over the next few months I am going to attempt to highlight some of the special people in my life.

In a past post I have mentioned how important the blogger community has become during the past two years. One of the couples I met shortly after I started attending the blogger meet-ups was a couple named Bea and Logtar who have are now a big part of my life. They are two of the most loving, generous, positive people I have ever met and to know them is to love them. (Plus, Bea loved books which made me predisposed to love her.) Several months ago, they broke the blogger community's collective hearts by moving to Chicago. I know it was a wonderful opportunity for them but we all miss their exuberance and joy. Luckily, they also miss us and come back to visit as a special Valentine's Day treat. Their visit made my weekend special. Photo of Bea and Logtar courtesy Average Jane

A brief history of pretty much everything

Because this art school final was too good not to share...

Suvudu Free Book Library

"With the Suvudu Free Book Library, you can read the first book in some of their most acclaimed series absolutely free! They are kicking off the library with five full-length novels for you to sample, but will be adding new titles on a regular basis."

http://www.suvudu.com/freelibrary/

Simple Meme: What Book Are You Reading Now?

Here's a simple Meme...answer the following questions.

1. What Book Are You Reading Now?
2. Why did you choose it?
3. What's the best thing about it?
4. What's the worst thing about it?

Here are my answers...

1. Use of Weapons by Iain Banks
2. I am reading it as part of my paranormal romance challenge from my Goodreads.com group.
3. Discovering a brilliant new-to-me author.
4. The book doesn't really fit the "paranormal romance" parameters.
   

Winterfest at the Library

I picked "Picture Wednesday" for my blogging schedule because I thought it would be an easy middle of the week post. Unfortunately, I cannot seem to remember to take pictures of anything interesting. Therefore I am going to pull a picture off my phone that was sent to Twitter last week. Here is a picture of the boss and another staff person dancing in Kirk Hall at the Central Library. (I did tell the boss I was twittering him.)

Several years ago the library decided to do away with the annual Christmas party and have something called Winterfest instead. The beauty of this approach is that you can schedule it for anytime that winter is occurring. Usually this event falls squarely on my birthday which always makes me a little cranky. This year it didn't happen until February, last Friday night to be precise. This year it didn't seem like as many staff attended which was a shame because the committee did a really nice job with the food and drinks this year. I did miss catching up with all the retirees who usually attend but it was still a nice evening.

Happy Winter everyone!

After the award committee...

I was going through my folders on Dropbox trying to free up space for new files and came across a blog post I had started with the title, "After the award committee". I had created it a few months ago as my time on the Notables committee was coming to an end.

I guess my list of all the things I was going to do to fill up my days will once again have to wait until "after the award committee". Please note that I did start taking some yoga classes so at least one item on the list is being accomplished.


Lately I have found myself uttering the words “when I am done with the award committee I am going to….” so I thought I would start a list.

1. Learn Italian so that the next time I visit Italy I can flirt with the cute Italian boys.
2. Take a cooking class so that I have a few new recipes. Since drifting back into vegetarianism I have gotten bored with my few basic recipes.
3. Learn to knit or crochet or something crafty that can be turned into a good Christmas gift (to go along with the giant stacks of books I currently give out).
4. Start taking yoga classes.
5. Start a vegetable (or herb) garden.
6. Sign up for the Master Gardener classes.
7. 
   

Stress and Work

Today I started a series of webinars offered through work by our insurance on minimizing stress. I will be keeping a journal of "stressful moments" during my day and I also had a few assignments. The first was to take the Myers Briggs test. As always I am an INFJ. One of the INFJ key traits is that we tend to over analyze ourselves and every situation in our world. Needless to say, I love taking tests that analyze why I do the things I do. In this case, the workbook has several tips on what tends to stress this personality type out and what to do to minimize my stress. Oddly enough, over analyzing things is something I should be avoiding.

Hmmm....does this mean I should stop taking personality tests?

If you want to know what the Myers-Briggs test is or it means to be an INFJ you can go to the following websites:
INFJ Wikipedia page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/INFJ
Myers Briggs Wikipedia page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myers-Briggs_Type_Indicator

My other assignment was to do some deep breathing exercises. Unfortunately, I kept getting distracted by my email when I tried to do these at work. I have done them effectively at yoga class so I know I can.....away from the office anyway.

Room Rehab

This week my Mom came to visit and we completed one more item in the bedroom rehab project. Last time she was here we shopped for a new bedspread and repainted the bedroom a blue/gray color. This time, with the help of my fabulous handyman, we took on crown molding.







What we learned from this experience is that crown molding is hard and having a former professional was a must. We originally thought this was going to be a learning experience for us and that by the time we got around to another room we would be able to do it all by ourselves.

Hah! We might be able to do it ourselves IF we buy pre-made corner pieces. It took hours to get all the pieces just right. Taking the extra time paid off though because it looks fantastic now.

We still have a few pieces of furniture and lamps to buy, pictures to hang and a new light fixture to find but when it is done, it should look completely different. I just wish I had taken some "before" pictures.

Free e-book Friday

Mills & Boon is offering free e-books, including "Silent in the Grave"
by Deanna Raybourn. They only have ePub and MobiPocket formats.

http://www.everyone sreading. com/

Stephen Dunn: Poet

Stephen Dunn is one of the poets selected by our committee for outstanding work this year. Below is one of my favorites.

Poem For People That Are Understandably Too Busy To Read Poetry by Stephen Dunn

Relax. This won't last long.
Or if it does, or if the lines
make you sleepy or bored,
give in to sleep, turn on
the T.V., deal the cards.
This poem is built to withstand
such things. Its feelings
cannot be hurt. They exist
somewhere in the poet,
and I am far away.
Pick it up anytime. Start it
in the middle if you wish.
It is as approachable as melodrama,
and can offer you violence
if it is violence you like. Look,
there's a man on a sidewalk;
the way his leg is quivering
he'll never be the same again.
This is your poem
and I know you're busy at the office
or the kids are into your last nerve.
Maybe it's sex you've always wanted.
Well, they lie together
like the party's unbuttoned coats,
slumped on the bed
waiting for drunken arms to move them.
I don't think you want me to go on;
everyone has his expectations, but this
is a poem for the entire family.
Right now, Budweiser
is dripping from a waterfall,
deodorants are hissing into armpits
of people you resemble,
and the two lovers are dressing now,
saying farewell.
I don't know what music this poem
can come up with, but clearly
it's needed. For it's apparent
they will never see each other again
and we need music for this
because there was never music when he or she
left you standing on the corner.
You see, I want this poem to be nicer
than life. I want you to look at it
when anxiety zigzags your stomach
and the last tranquilizer is gone
and you need someone to tell you
I'll be here when you want me
like the sound inside a shell.
The poem is saying that to you now.
But don't give anything for this poem.
It doesn't expect much. It will never say more
than listening can explain.
Just keep it in your attache case
or in your house. And if you're not asleep
by now, or bored beyond sense,
the poem wants you to laugh. Laugh at
yourself, laugh at this poem, at all poetry.
Come on:

Good. Now here's what poetry can do.

Imagine yourself a caterpillar.
There's an awful shrug and, suddenly,
You're beautiful for as long as you live.

Week Four: Photo Sharing (23 Things)

I have skipped 23 Things, Online Meetings, because I am still scrounging for a headset. I have decided I will pick that one up later.

This week 23 Things is focusing on one of my favorite things, photo sharing. The services I am supposed to explore include Flickr, Picasa, Snapfish, Shutterfly, Kodak Gallery or Photobucket. With the exception of Kodak Gallery, I currently have accounts with all of these services but I have to admit, most of photos still reside on Myspace (older) and Facebook (newer). Instead of inserting a picture into my post (the assignment), I provided a link to Flickr in the sidebar.

My family uses Snapfish because it is owned by Hewlett Packard and since my sister works for them, the family shows its brand loyalty by uploading our shared pictures to that site. I used Flickr heavily for a couple of years but now only post trip pictures there.

If you want to "friend" me on these sites I have provided links below.

Flickr - http://www.flickr.com/photos/aahlvers/
Picasa - http://picasaweb.google.com/aahlvers
Snapfish - See sidebar on this blog
Photobucket - Link to one of my albums.
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/aahlvers

My eyes are bigger than my brain

Keeping up with my feed reader is becoming a huge problem these days because I went off the deep end and subscribed to blog feeds on every topic that interests me. Turns out, I am interested in a whole boatload of stuff. I have everything from Archaeology to Zen in my feed reader right now and sadly, much of it must go before my new award committee work begins.

Right now the technology, library, cooking and old favorites get to stay. Goodbye to the science, gaming and art.

Paranormal Reading Challenge

Goodreads.com is one of my favorite interactive book sites because it has the feel of a social networking site. This month I joined the Paranormal Romance group because the have a monthly reading challenge that I found intriguing. For the most part I selected Paranormal Romance novels although I did have to cheat a bit with the male author.

"For the month of February, we are going to show some love to the very people whose efforts have given us so much fun and enjoyment - the authors. I dubbed this month's challenge as All About Authors reading challenge."

Read a book by the following:
1. A Favorite Author - The Fire King by Marjorie Liu
2. An Author that is "new" to you - The Magic Knot by Helen Scott Taylor
3. An Author you had given up before but willing to give a second chance - Kitty Takes a Holiday by Carrie Vaughn
4. A GoodReads Author - Oh. My. Gods. by Tera Lynn Childs
5. An Author born in the same year as you. If you cannot find one, one who died on that same year is also acceptable. - Stolen by Kelly Armstrong
6. An Author whose first or last name starts with the initial of your first name - Full Moon Rising by Keri Arthur
7. An Author whose first or last name starts with the initial of your last name - Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews
8. A male Author - Use of Weapons by Ian Banks
9. A female Author - Heat Stroke by Rachel Caine
10. With more than one Author (anthologies included) -Many Bloody Returns by Charlene Harris, Jim Butcher, etc...

Slumber Parties

Friday night I went out to a new friends house for a girls night/slumber party. She made us Stoli Doli's (soak fresh pineapple in vodka for a couple of days and you have an instant martini), I had my cards read (apparently conflict and theft are in my near future) and we played Rock Band till the wee hours. We skipped the board game which looked like much more work that any of us wanted to do on a Friday night. This was supposed to be a sleepover but since I now get up early to attend a 8 a.m. yoga class I braved the bad weather and headed home at around 1:30 a.m. which didn't exactly leave me at my best for exercise class.

I consider it a personal triumph that I made it up in time for yoga class on Saturday morning. Week by week it is getting a little easier to bend my body into positions last achieved when I was nine. After yoga, we all went over to Chez Elle Creperie and Coffeehouse and had breakfast. It is a perfect brunch establishment and I highly recommend it. For lunch I met a friend at The Westside Local for my last birthday party of the month. It is always sad when birthday month ends.

Later that night, a few neighbors came over for an Ab Fab watching marathon. As usual, I made way too much food and, of course, they also brought treats. We ate too much, drank Tootsie Roll Martinis and wine and had a wonderful time hanging out and gossiping. I do need to invest in some floor pillows for one friend who prefers stretching out on the floor to watch TV and I did a horrible job planning snack options for a real vegetarian but luckily, she forgave me.

Next time I host I think I am going to have a super-girly slumber party and possibly get someone in to do massages, etc...

Readers in the Rue Morgue

I didn't have an free e-books so I thought I would tell you how to win a free book from the Kansas City Public Library. (Just so you know, the mugs are super-cute this year. Luckily staff can participate in this Adult Reading program.)

The Kansas City Public Library invites patrons to become Readers in the Rue Morgue through the 2010 Adult Winter Reading Program (January 11 – March 14, 2010), focusing on the best in classic and contemporary crime fiction.

In addition to rewarding reading experiences, participation earns special prizes and opportunities to engage like-minded readers at book discussions, film screenings, and author events.

Participate

1) Read any five books between January 11 – March 14, 2010. Readers may reserve titles or other Library materials by logging into their online account or visiting the nearest Library location.

2) List those five titles on the online reading log and print out your receipt to receive a prize pack at the nearest Library location. You can also pick up a printed 2010 Adult Winter Reading Guide with a reading log form at all Library locations.

3) Attend any Winter Reading event, book discussion, or film screening. A completed reading log is not a prerequisite for attendance.

4) Join the Winter Reading group on goodreads.com for discussions with other Readers in the Rue Morgue.

Prizes

Prize packs include a Winter Reading Program bistro mug, a paperback book, and an invitation to the annual Winter Reading Party (which will include a drawing for two gift baskets). Prizes may be received at any Library circulation desk.

Treats!

I love it when it is Fu's turn to brings treats for staff parties.

Book Groups

I did not turn in a blog post yesterday since I have not yet figured out how to attach picture in blogger via my phone and I have never liked the way my blog posts and pictures turned out trying to do it using my email. Next week maybe I will have all my technological issues worked out but in the meantime, here is an unsuccessful picture I took of my cat, who is decidedly not thrilled about flash photography.

Now on to book related topics....

In the past year I have gone from not being involved in any personal book discussion groups to being involved with two. The first group is run by a close friend and his wife and makes some attempt to actually discuss the book before the socializing starts so from now on I will refer to it as my "serious" book club. The other is called the Martini Book Club and the group really does care more about what martini we will be serving than what book we are reading.

Last night I went to my "serious" book club and we discussed Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis. I have to admit I procrastinated when reading this book so I only finished the first fourth of it but I have always enjoyed the British sense of humor and will finish this book in the near future. One of the other participants said she felt like the author nailed life in academia and I think she is probably right and this is a major strength of the novel.

In a couple of weeks I will be hosting the Martini Book Club and, since I hosted, I also get to pick the book. I decided to select one of the American Library Association Reading List Award winners for us to try. I selected the 2010 Women's Fiction award winner Very Valentine: A Novel by Adriana Trigiani. This is a pretty easy group to pick a book for because we don't actually spend much (if any) time discussing the book so I don't need to look for books with "issues" and could select based on the fun factor. Also since the last few books fell into the genre "messed up childhood memoirs" I thought something lighter might be nice as well. Now all I need is to find a fun new martini to introduce to the group. If you have a fabulous recipe please let me know!

The next book I need to read is Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson since it is the Kansas City Public Library BIG READ title for this year. I will keep you posted on this upcoming event so you can also participate.