Get Your Library Card and You Could Win $100

Library cards are some of the handiest things on the planet. With your library card, you have access to so many great things - books, magazines, movies, music, and so much more. Don't have a computer or internet access at home? Visit your local library! Looking for fun activities with new friends? Again, visit your local library!

Best of all, you get access to all these things for free. Just show your library card.

September is Library Card Signup Month, and to help spread the word, the American Library Association is hosting a giveaway. Just post a picture of you and your library card with the hashtag #GetLibraryCarded to Instagram or Twitter, and you could win $100. Don't have a library card? Head on down to your local library and get signed up!

Help us spread the word about the value of libraries this September by snapping a picture with your library card and posting it to Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #GetLibraryCarded. You'll be automatically entered in a drawing to win a $100 Visa gift card! Entries can also be submitted by posting as a comment or wall post on the I Love Libraries Facebook page.
Don't forget to cover up any personally identifiable information!
The promotion begins Sunday, September 1 at noon CT and ends Sunday, September 22 at noon CT. Librarians and library lovers are encouraged to participate.
The #GetLibraryCarded Promotion is open to residents of the United States, Washington, D.C., and U.S. Territories. Employees of the American Library Association are not eligible to participate. Official rules (pdf)

Oh, By the Way, They Have Books

I just finished reading The Library Book by Susan Orlean. I loved the book, which reminded me of how much I love the library. Sadly, I haven't been spending nearly as much time there as I used to...

While the book was primarily about the Los Angeles Public Library, it could also serve as a love letter to libraries everywhere. Yes, libraries are places where you can check out books - and who doesn't love taking home a whole stack of books? But libraries are so much more, always adapting and changing to meet the needs of their communities.

This morning on Good Morning America, one of those libraries was featured as a finalist in the Reader's Digest "Nicest Places in America" search.


I would have enjoyed the story anyway, but I just thought the timing was perfect, having just finished reading The Library Book yesterday. (which, by the way, was not a library book but an advance copy I got from NetGalley, which pretty much explains why I'm not in the library as much - ebooks!)

I'd like to believe that all libraries are among the nicest places in America...

and it's really time to get back into the habit of going regularly.

But It Won't Be the Same

I hope the library where we're moving is a good one.  I should probably research that...

Last week I boxed up a bunch of paperbacks that I'm planning to donate instead of move.  When I told my son Cory I was getting rid of those instead of taking them and that I could just get them at the library when I want to read them, he said that yes, I can get them at our library here, but what if I can't get them at the library there.  I'm not really worried about that, but I am definitely going to miss our little library.  Sure another library can give me books and programs, but it just won't be the same.  It's like if you always went to a certain day spa montreal and then moved to a different city.  You're used to the aesthetic and therapeutic services in the elegant and relaxing atmosphere, and you're sure no other spa can be as good.

Maybe it can, but there's something to be said for what you're used to, and if you're used to your montreal day spa the same way I'm used to my library, then it's going to take some adjustment.  Will the new spa be open 7 days a week?  Will they offer the same therapeutic massages, hydromassages, aesthetic care, and waxing?  Will my new library give me the same access to the books I want to read, access to great programs, and a feeling of community?

Or maybe I'm the only one who obsesses over these things.  Normal people would just go to the library or the spa in their new town, once they've moved, and see what they have to offer.

I'm Not So Good with Ratings

I mentioned meetings in my last post (What?  You didn't see that?  That's because I forgot to mention it - and went back to add it - so it's there now)

I had a regular Library Board meeting on Monday night and then a committee meeting on Wednesday afternoon - immediately after Cory and I got back from seeing The Muppets.  That meeting wasn't too terribly long.  We just went over the ratings we gave all the architects who submitted proposals and decided which ones we didn't really like and which ones we want to interview.  I must admit I'm not really good at the ratings thing.  Somebody asks me to rate something on a scale of 1 to 10, I'll probably go with a 5.  I just have a hard time with the whole thing.  I did know enough to weigh library experience over experience with something like alcoholism treatment centers, but the rest was a bit iffy.

It turned out OK, though, because we all had the same firm at the bottom, and pretty much the same 3 at the top - so I guess I didn't do horribly bad.  The end result (for now) is that we will hopefully be talking to 4 of the firms in the next few weeks and then choosing one to do a feasibility study for our library - to see what we can do to expand our current and/or build a new one.  Of course there's no guarantee that we'll be able to do anything, but at least we'll have the information we need to make an informed decision.  And hopefully have plenty of room for our library and all the awesome services and programs it offers to the people of our community!

Cathy Marie Buchanan Visits Alice Baker Library

I went to our library yesterday for a very interesting event. Cathy Marie Buchanan, author of The Day The Falls Stood Still came all the way from Canada to visit our little library. Granted, she didn't come from Toronto specifically to visit us.  She was already in the area visiting her sister, who lives not too far away. I'm currently reading her book, so this was definitely on my upcoming events calendar as soon as it was scheduled.

Cathy talked about some of the history of Niagara Falls, about becoming a writer and how this book came to be, and some of the environmental issues threatening Niagara Falls and the River today.  She read a chapter from her book and answered questions from the audience.  We had quite a nice turnout - over 30 people, which is great for our small library.  Our library director did a great job of promoting the visit.  I even heard Cathy comment to her sister that other places she gets a couple lines in the paper when she visits, but in Eagle, WI she gets a whole page!

After Cathy's talk,we had snacks - our Friend's group and library staff went all out!  Copies of The Day the Falls Stood Still were available for purchase and signing by the author.  Cathy Marie Buchanan is one of the nicest people you could ever meet. Overall, it was a very enjoyable way to spend an afternoon.  It just goes to prove that some of the best events in Wisconsin aren't necessarily the biggest ones.

Now, I really want to sit down and finish the book.  So far I am really enjoying it and so happy that Alli, our library director suggested it - and arranged for Cathy Marie Buchanan to visit our library!

Heads or Tails - Photograph

The theme/prompt for THIS week, September 29, is:

TAILS - "Photograph"
Share any photograph and explain why you did.

 

This is the photograph I’m thinking about right now.  Cory needs to turn his senior picture in for the yearbook by Friday.  I’ve been telling him all summer that we need to get out and take some pictures (photographs?) so we can get an idea of what he likes and hopefully come up with something good.  But he never wanted to do it until last Friday.  This is the one he likes – except it needs a little work.  We went back to the library last night to see if we could get a few more, but he’s not happy with any of them.  Thanks to my brother, the photographer, for his tips, but it just wasn’t happening.  This is the one.  I’m just going to do a little editing.   The size it prints in the yearbook, it will be fine.

Heads or Tails is a fun weekly meme created and hosted by Barb (aka Skittles) – feel free to join in!

Craziness at the Library

Cory's been on Spring Break from school this week. Mostly that means he's been able to sleep in, and stay up too late at night talking to his Bookworms on Skype, which is why he needs to sleep in. He also volunteered at the library one day, helping with the Wii Bowling for seniors. Our library staff is really good, but when it's time to use technology those teenage volunteers really come in handy!

Later that same evening he had a TLC (Teen Library Council) meeting where I suppose they planned lots of fun teen activities, but mostly it looks like they made a video and took pictures.



I love the video (except for that one part where he said something he shouldn't have and didn't bleep it), and this pic:

He's got some crazy friends. :)

Camera Critters (#53)

Here’s another critter from New York City.

One of the lions in front of the New York Public Library.  It was Sunday.  The library was open, but I didn’t get to go in and check it out.  I was with teenage girls, and they were busy shopping.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in. There are all kinds of great critters to see!

Fiskars Wants to Help Your Community Garden Grow

A couple years ago our Library Director decided that we needed some flowers out in front of the library. She got a local business to donate the plants, and she got a group of community residents together one Saturday morning. Together, they planted a beautiful flower garden in front of the library building. Now, instead of dirt and a few bushes, visitors to the library are greeted by colorful blooms. I don't think anyone realized what we were missing until we had it.

A community garden, whether to grow flowers or vegetables, is a great way to bring your community together. That's why Fiskars has created the Project Orange Thumb grant. They are going to award up to $1,500 in Fiskar's garden tools and up to $800.00 in gardening-related materials to 20 groups or organizations in the US and Canada. The grant is available to groups like schools, youth groups, clubs, and, I'm sure, libraries. You have to submit an application in two parts, an electronic submission to answer some questions about yourself and your organization, and a creative portion that can be about anything. You get to use pictures, words, video, whatever you can think of to help an alien understand how gardening makes you feel. Sounds like fun, doesn't it?

So, if your group is interested in starting or maintaining your own garden, be sure to check out Fiskars Project Orange Thumb. The deadline for submitting your application is February 17, 2009 and recipients will be notified by March 25th.

Too Efficient

There is such a thing as being too efficient. (not a problem I have, though)

We left Lake Geneva Tuesday evening and spent the night at home before heading to Baraboo for the last two days of the Feast. I've been reading the library copy of Brisingr, so Cory could loan his copy to his friend Jenna. Of course, being at the Feast and spending time with friends and in Bible studies and services does not leave much time for reading, so I still have quite a bit of the book left to read. And, it was due Wednesday, with holds so I couldn't renew it.

So, I decided to read as much as I could Tuesday night and then drop it off at the library on the way out of town Wednesday morning. Only, we forgot to grab the book and didn't think of it until we were almost to Baraboo. Oops! So, I emailed one of our wonderful library staff members and asked her if she could possibly extend my loan so I could return the book next Tuesday when I normally get into the library. She not only did that for me, but also renewed two other books that I had somehow overlooked and didn't realize they were due. I said she was wonderful, didn't I?

Then, tonight we got home, and the book was not on the table where we left it. See, Jeffrey had called Beth and asked her if she would take it to the library and drop it off, along with the audio copy that he had been listening to. So, she took them and returned them. I forgot about Beth being home! And she was sick, so I wouldn't have wanted to bother her anyway, but Jeffrey figured the books were due and needed to go back.

See - way too efficient. I was planning to finish that book over the weekend.

Eventually Cory will get his (our) copy back, and I can finish it then. I have other things to do - like laundry!

Books I Read

I took some books back to the library this afternoon, books I haven't read yet. I could have kept them, because they weren't due yet, but I knew I wasn't going to have a chance to read them. So I figured it would be better to take them back so they could perhaps be read by someone else. The thing is, I really want to read these books. They're not about anything important like employment screening, just interesting books I pulled off the shelves. You know how they say you can't judge a book by its cover? Maybe you can't, but I tend to choose a book by its cover. If the cover looks interesting, I'm more likely to pull it off the shelf.

These books looked interesting enough that I pulled them off the shelf, checked them out, and brought them home to read. The problem is that I do that with a lot of books - more books than I have time to actually read. I so wish I could read faster like Cory does.

I need to find a better way to keep track of the books I want to read, instead of just checking out every book that catches my eye and then not having time to read them all, though that does help the library's circulation stats. So today I started using the 'I want to Read' option on iRead on Facebook. I've been using it to keep track of the books I am reading and the books I've read this year, but I hadn't added any to the 'I want to Read' list until now. I added the books I took back to the library - so I'll remember to check them out again when I'm ready to read them. That is, unless some other book covers attract my attention and get in the way.

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The Monkey's Paw (Part 2)

YouTube wouldn't let Cole upload the whole movie at once, so he had to break it into two parts. If you haven't watched Part 1, you'll want to do that first.



Wasn't that fun? We have it on DVD, and there are even bonus features. The bloopers are really fun to watch.

I think they did a great job, don't you? Next contest is a music video, and I can't wait to see what they come up with.

The Monkey's Paw (Part 1)

You have to see this. Cory and some of his friends from the library got together to make this 'silent' movie for a movie contest at the library. I think it was actually the only movie entered in the contest, but I'm pretty sure it would have won anyway. Cory and his friend Cole did the editing.

Sky Watch Friday #37

It's (almost)Friday again, and that means
Sky Watch Friday!

Cory and I were headed to the library Tuesday, in between rain showers.  I was waiting for him to grab whatever it was that he forgot and had to run back inside for when I looked up and saw a rainbow.  I was thinking I needed to run back inside and grab my camera when I realized I had my phone with me, so I tried getting a shot with the phone.

OK, not great, but you can see the rainbow, right?  In the other direction, the sun was spilling through the clouds:

I love when the rays show up like that.  And then Cory was ready to go to the library.  We had books to return, books to pick up, and people to talk to.  Cory also shot some video for his Tuesday video on YouTube - I should really link you up, shouldn't I?  Oh, and that's what he ran back into the house for - camera batteries.

Anyway, after we finished at the library and went out to the parking lot - another rainbow, or at least part of a rainbow.  See it?

If you enjoy looking at the sky as much as I do, you'll want to check out Sky Watch Friday. You can enjoy skies from around the world!

I Won a Pizza!

Image via WikipediaThe Summer Reading Program at the library isn't just for kids. Sure, there are lots of fun activities for the kids, and they get all kinds of cute prizes, but there are also activities and prizes for the adults. So far I haven't attended any activities, but I have been turning in my reading minutes, and I'm trying to fill up my Bingo card. I have a hard time actually keeping track of my reading minutes because I really don't pay attention. I just read. So, I've been guessing and turning a sheet in when I figure I must have read 300 minutes. Probably I've read more, but...

The Bingo card is fun, but I don't think I'll get that filled up. It has squares for reading different kinds of books and for attending library programs. It's a good idea because it gets people reading different things than they would ordinarily read, but I just think I'm going to run out of time before I get all my squares filled.

Still, I won a gift certificate for a free Large pizza from Dominos, because they drew out one of my reading slips. Cory already won one of them and one for a free order of Cinna Stix, but this is the first time I've won anything. Go, me!

16!? How'd That Happen?

It's Cory's birthday today - he's 16. I could spend all day asking myself how in the world that happened. Just yesterday he was a cute little guy, and now he's this tall person who shaves and has hairy legs. Of course this is where he asks, "Don't you still think I'm cute?" Yes, he's still cute. He's also smart and talented and silly and sweet and still needs lots of hugs. I do think I'll keep him.

He wants to go see a movie, since it's his birthday, so I need to get busy. I've got a library board meeting tonight, and I still need to type the minutes up. Why do I always wait until the last minute? Good question.

Trials of Technology (Part 4)

It's been a more than a month since I mentioned anything about our newMP3 players but we got one of the rebates yesterday and it reminded me.

I was having trouble using my Sansa c250 player with our library's Overdrive service. I thought it was working, except that I couldn't rewind or fast forward through the tracks. That I could have lived with, but about 3 tracks into my first book, when I started playing what should have been about 40 minutes into the track, it started from the beginning. No matter what the counter said, I could only start from the beginning of the track. That meant that I listened to the first 40 or so minutes while I was walking one day, then the next day I either had to listen to the same 40 or so minutes, or just forget the whole thing. It was rather frustrating, especially considering I don't have as much time to listen to books since Jeffrey has started walking with me in the mornings. I guess we could both listen to our MP3 players while we walk, but it's nice to be able to talk to each other. But I had a couple days to walk by myself because he was in Baraboo for work, and one of those days was a complete waste.

I have since deleted all those nice books I downloaded from Overdrive and added some from MP3 CDs I checked out of the library. I put them all on Jeffrey's player, too so he can listen to them in the car with his FM transmitter. The MP3 books work just fine.

I also downloaded a converter from Giveaway of the Day that removes the licensing from the Overdrive books and converts them from WMA to MP3, and I used that to convert a new book I downloaded from Overdrive. That works perfectly - I can fast forward and rewind if I need to, and it starts where it is supposed to. My conclusion is that, yes, the Sansa c250 player can work with Overdrive, but you will have to find a program to convert the files to MP3 first so that they will work properly. It's probably easier just to check MP3 or audio CDs out of the library and use those, but sometimes it's nice to be able to just download a book and not have to actually go to the library. Also, I have had the best luck setting the player's mode so that I can just drag and drop the files onto the player instead of syncing with RealPlayer or Windows Media Player.

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My Dishes Still Aren't Done

Last night at dinner, I told Cory he needed to put the dishes away so I could wash the dirty ones. There was a whole pile of dirty ones because I didn't wash them Wednesday night either *gasp* - so they really needed done. Then dinner was over, and the next thing I knew Cory got a phone call. He had a Teen Library Council meeting that he had forgotten about, so he was off to the library, and my drainer was still full. I figured the dishes still needed done, so I put them away so Cory could wash the dirty ones. Except that didn't happen, because by the time he got home from the library he had other things he wanted to do, and it got late. I figured it would be OK if he washed them this morning.

Except, I forgot that he was volunteering at the library this morning so he got up early, but then he left. Now it's almost 2:30, and he's still not home. He hasn't been volunteering all this time. He went over to his friend's house (the one who gave him the video game from the video) and he won't be back for a while. That means my dishes still aren't done, and there are even more because we had breakfast, I had lunch, and I turned 4 bananas into muffins.

I'll be washing dishes now - so the drainer will be full again. Maybe this time Cory will stay home long enough to put them away.

Jobs and High School

Cory was out of bed and into the shower at about 8:00 this morning. Seriously.

He's volunteering at the library today. He could be there all day. He loves it there, and they love him there. I'm just glad he's got something positive to do with his time. His dad seems to think he should find a job, but right now that would mean that I would have to be sure he got there and back. He can ride his bike to and from the library, and at least he's not wasting all his time on his computer (unlike me!?). Also, during the school year, he's got activities going on with band and drama and such.

Part of the reason we told Beth she needed to get a job was that she was not involved in anything at school. She went to school, and she came home and wanted to goof off and 'hang out' with her friends. It just seemed like she needed some kind of direction, something positive going on in her life, because she would have been happy just whiling it away doing nothing. Also, after calling around for car insurance quotes, we realized how much more it was going to cost if she didn't get her B average and qualify for the Good Student Discount. That's when we told her that, if she didn't get the B average, she would be the one paying for her car insurance, not us. No job, no insurance, no driving. She didn't get the B average. She had to pay for insurance, once. After that, she put a little more effort into her schoolwork and has achieved her B average. I think she's hoping she'll get to keep a little more of her paycheck for herself...

What do you think? Should teenagers have jobs while they're in high school? Should they concentrate on schoolwork, school activities, and volunteering when possible? Or is it good to get a taste of what the real world is like - working all the time and having next to nothing to show for it?

Rain Delay

Image via WikipediaSerious rain today. We were at our friends' house in Milwaukee, and Cory wanted to get home because he had a games night at the library. About the time we needed to leave, it started pouring. So, we waited for it to let up. In the meantime, Jeffrey went out in the rain a couple of times, loaded the van, got the umbrella, moved vehicles so ours was behind and we could get out. Then, when it let up a little, we all ran for the van and headed home.

About then it started raining hard again. Streets were flooded so we had to turn around and take an alternate route, and it was hard to see. There were a few places on the interstate that were flooded - luckily in the opposite lane. Cars were backed up over there and taking their time getting through. Still, we managed to get Cory to the library, about half an hour late. And by then the rain had pretty much stopped - or we just drove out of it.

Cory's game night ended up going later than originally planned, so he really didn't miss all that much. It sounds like they had fun. They played some board games or party games and some video games on the Wii and playstation 3, and no-one was ready to go home at 8:00 as planned. This would be why we don't plan to pick Cory up at any particular time. We just tell him to call when he's ready or if he is getting a ride.