Before we complain too loud!

I am on my way to the American Library Association Annual Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada!
As I walked through a Casino's on my way to ALA (June 2014) Conference, I commented to my companion that people in today's world complain about kids and young adults playing their games on their computers, phones and tablets should not be howling so loudly. We adults started it when we began playing the slot machines many years before.  Adults have very little room to criticize young people when many sit for hours dropping coins in to win at their favorite slot machine! I am not criticizing others for playing, just be aware that we had our own vices and things we did or still do may be similar in nature!

Selfies!

I was browsing through the advertising resource "Library Intelligence" published by Library Resources (June 2014 issue) when I saw this great cartoon by Jeff Stahler. I just laughed and laughed!

I also just read an article about a man in who took 445 pictures of himself over three decades 

(http://news.rutgers.edu/feature/identity-revealed-man-who-took-445-photobooth-portraits-over-30-years/20140615#.U6z3fW1yyCo).   Now that is a true selfie!

It's all in our perspective!

I recently read a book, "The Four Doors," by Richard Paul Evans. He talked about how his daughter was finishing an assignment in her class.  The teacher had asked each child to finish the statement. I have a dream . . . .  His daughter said that "She had a dream that handicapped people could park where they wanted to." Isn't that just amazing? Here we have people who have battled for specific accommodations for those with handicaps and special needs over the last 50 years or more, and we finally have begun to really make access easier to some measure. This innocent child sees it quite differently!

How does our experiences color our view of our world around us?

FCC Rules = May 2014 to allow Internet ISP's to create fast lane for the big and powerful.

Now large companies that provide broadband will be able to charge more money for a special fast lane on the web. Companies that provide digital downloads services to Netflix, Amazon, Walmart, Hulu, Vudu, etc. will have to pay more for their ability to provide faster service. I imagine these companies will learn to play the game and benefit from this ruling real soon.  

It also means the rest of us will be relegated to the slower lane of traffic.  If you are a small business or individual you will be affected.  Libraries and the general public will be affected. NGO's, non-profits and other organizations will also loose. 

I know what was sold to the FCC (The U.S. Federal Communications Commission) but in this case were were sold down the river.  

Small broadband providers in rural environments will fair no better.  We already have very few companies that provide people in rural environments with access to the Internet. The large companies that get the benefit from this FCC deal will not venture into our neighborhood.  They don't make enough money.  

This will create a deepening digital divide not only in the USA but around the world. 

The public needs to sent an email comment (openinternet@fcc.gov) to the FCC or file your concerns online: http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/upload/display.

March is Murder in the Library Month!

 March is coming in like a lion in weather, but also in all the fun activities.  While this is a personal blog, much of what I love to do is at the library.  On March 1, 2014 at 6:30 the Friends organization and library staff will have our 10th annual Murder Mystery!

This year it is entitled, "Dead To Rights." We purchase the rights to the play, add our script to it (by permission of the author) and then select actors.  One our our librarians is a great chooser of characters within the area.  She seeks out those wonderful actors to participate. Its not hard.  You just have to be dress up a bit, ad-lib and read your parts as you need.  We have dinner first, then the fun begins. Come and try and figure out who done it and win a PML coffee mug and Star-bucks coffee gift card.

Did you know that I was once a bag lady in it? That was in 2011.  Often staff do not act because we help during the event or if someone gets sick sometimes we step in.  This happened in 2011 and I had just about 24 hours to find the costume and read the part.  It was great fun.

                   

                                             

In 2010 we had our 125th Anniversary for Thomas County.  So we decided to write a murder mystery that fit the original settlers.  We have library staff that are history buffs, along with some Friends of Pioneer Memorial Library board members, we had a grand time!

One of my favorite decorated tables was the 2012 when we did "Poetic Justice." The design on the program had a gold fish on it. So we decided to add live gold fish to the tables. We placed them on top of little lights (no heat).  At the end of the night we had the participants at the table look at their chairs to see who won the gold fish.  Many took them home.  However, over the next week we got reports that the gold fish were dying like flies.  The longest to have the fish live were parents of two children who were about 5 an 7 years old. The gold fish finally had to have a funeral! We have not used live decorations since. 

Buy a ticket to support the Friends and enjoy a fun filled evening with us! 

Lots of special events and happenings keep me busy!

February is always a busy month for me. It starts with Booked for Lunch on the first Wednesday of the month. This month we have Marcia Schlageck speak to us on a book she wants to share, Me Before You: A Novel by Jojo Moyes. 

The next event is the presentation of the Friend's special fund-raiser. "Art Friendsy, - Chair-ish Your Library." Come to the library and bid on the items. I don't have the pictures of the items yet, but they are coming.


Another event is Chocolate And All That Jazz! We have had such overwhelming crowds (to our joy!) we need to reorganize its layout.  All the Chocolate and desserts will be upstairs with tables around the library, which we will imbibe before and then carry downstairs to munch on while the Colby Community College Jazz Band and Sunflower Singers perform.  For those who can't enjoy the sound downstairs, we will be streaming it live upstairs!

Now, Its not that I don't have other things to discuss like books and the NSA tapping, etc.... but these plus other activities keep me pretty restricted on sharing other materials this month.  Plus, these are fun events you will want to participate in.

It is the new year! Here is our negotiated library's reading list for 2014

The PML reading group meets once a month.  When we start to make a reading list, we take suggestions and requests from our members.  We also look at recommended items by other groups, book lists and just our combined knowledge of what we like to read.  We have a few limitations for our group.  We don't get the newest books usually because the most popular new books are in high demand and we are not allowed to borrow them for about six months. Because we don't want to purchase 10 to 14 books be they audio or print either on the library budget or our personal budgets, we choose books with a later publication date.

Reviewed January 2014: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

January:  Read: David & Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell

February: The Power of Half: One Family's Decision to Stop Taking and Start Giving Back by Hannah Salwen 

 March: Leadership the Eleanor Roosevelt Way: Timeless Strategies from the First Lady of Courage by Robin Gerber; or Eleanor Roosevelt: Transformative First Lady, by Maurine H. Beasley

April: The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East by Sandy Tolan

May: 1) Pandora's Keepers: Nine Men and the Atomic Bomb (Morland Dynasty) by Van DeMark, Brian                                                    or

         2) Girls of atomic city by Denise Kernan --- you choose the book

June:  TransAtlantic: A Novel– by Colum McCann – about Ireland and immigrants to America

July:  Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power By Rachel Maddow

August: Tapestry of fortunes – by Elizabeth Berg

September:  Little Princes: One Man's Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal by Conor Grennan

October: The First Phone Call from Heaven by Mitch Albom

November:  Book of Ages by Jill Lepore

December:   Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel by David Guterson – northwest and Japanese

If you have not read these, try them and let me know what you think.