versatile blogger

Thank you very much to Miss Smith for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award in a recent post. (Oh and wait, be sure to check out this post that details some crafty holiday ideas!) Really, I am a winner because you are here, reading this.

el camino, Brunswick, ME

Sometimes it's my turn to be fragile and I am today. So it seemed like an extra good idea to remember that my connections and community are broad and wide, thanks to this little thing called the Internet.

I think being versatile is a way to describe a lot of things in my life. Am I a true Renaissance woman? Probably not. But being a librarian is pretty versatile: there's a fluidity in my work on a few levels. For one, I am meeting each person with an information need in the moment. There will never be two interactions that are the same and my job is to figure out the scope of what is being asked so that I can find a source for the answer.

I am versatile in what I read. I like a good Young Adult book (Will Grayson Will Grayson, The Book Thief, My Most Excellent Year), graphic novels (The Arrival, French Milk), meaty works of literature (Cutting for Stone, Italian Shoes, The Elegance of the Hedgehog), and sometimes things that are totally fluff (here, here, and here).

I am versatile at home, but you know that already.

So here are 7 things about me, as per the instructions for this award:

1. Rats, tomato horn worms, and my basement scare me. Bats, heights, and dogs do not.

2. I am reading the new Ken Follett book right now, The Fall of Giants.

3. I have at least three unfinished knitting projects that are lying dormant right now and I have no plans to do anything with them other than occasionally finding them and feeling guilty.

4. I like sweet better than salty. But chocolate with salt is wonderful.

5. My idea of a perfect morning does not involve my family; this sounds mean, but it's the truth. I still dream of having a nanny for the mornings who would get everyone fed, ready, and nagged, and I would float down the stairs in my silken robe to administer little kisses as my family left me a quiet house in which to enjoy a cup of coffee, my breakfast, and a book.

6. The autumn is my favorite season. But I also really like winter until about the end of February.

7. I would rather knit a new pair of socks than darn them.

a little early holiday cheer

from someone who knows me well

So, now the hard part: picking a few good bloggers out there who make me smile when I see a new post waiting in my Google Reader. If you'd like to take the torch and run, great, and if not, take this as a thank you for sharing your good ideas, humor, and talents with the world (and me).

Tollipop

(she deals with scorpions with panache)

StillmanSays

(versatility to the extreme)

BeautyThatMoves

(inspired, always)

Shalom Cardigan: Done

A quick to knit, perfect for chilly days, new for me, and flattering sweater! Remember when I went to Burlington? I visited the wonderful Kaleidoscope Yarns (where, hold on, they actually keep *stock on hand!!!!!* so that I could purchase ten skeins right on the spot...instead of the frustrating local phenomenon of: Oh, sorry, yup we only have those two skeins left, but we could order it for you. Blech.) and purchased yarn for the Shalom Cardigan (free pattern) by Involving the Senses, that I first saw on SouleMama's blog.

Except there were a few things "wrong" with the pattern: the only size offered was for a 34" bust and the original was knit for a 6' tall woman. Oh, AND, the original was knit without sleeves (huh?). So this is where the wonders of Ravelry started to make sense to me: I was able to log on and search for others who had knit the Shalom.

First, I started looking at all the little thumbnail photos for a slightly curvier lady. Then I used her directions for a 38" bust and SouleMama's directions for sleeves, and tweaked a few other details, and came up with a very cozy addition to my wardrobe. You can find my conglomerate of patterns here.

And how could I resist THIS addition to my personal library??? This Book Is Overdue: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All by Marilyn Johnson. Though it's sometimes hard to get excited about more school-work-related reading, this is a pretty cozy bedfellow. Already, I love this Marilyn Johnson for her snappy and clever rejoinder to that tired question I get asked: Do we still need libraries/librarians in the age of Google? The answer she gives is essentially, OK sure, for most of you reading this blog, you obviously know your way around a computer and a mouse. But what about those folks who need hand-holding to print their e-ticket? Or how about if you're pretty savvy and have your own computer and internet at home but you're still not quite sure how to even phrase a question that Google will understand? What if you don't speak English as your native language but you need to navigate an online form to apply for a job at McDonald's?

my Library of Congress bookmark from ClimateGirl

Total nerdy fun. And even if you're not a librarian, this is interesting and rousing reading. I kind of hope my parents and loved ones will read this book, so they know a little bit more about the profession I am in and the one I am studying. (And yes, we are getting it for the Rockport Library's collection also! I have already put some names on the hold list!)

Ugliest Book Cover: Year 2

when two friends spend the day together,

the table might look like this

So one of the things that I do at the library is to weed the collection. Although I didn't go into librarianship because I like to kill books, space is finite and writers keep writing more books, so one of our tasks is to remove books with a set of specific criteria in mind.

• First, I use a list generated by the circulation software that we can set parameters for: like if the book hasn't circulated in X years, if the book was added more than X years ago, etc.
• Second, I use The Fiction Catalog by H.W. Wilson, a big bible sort of book that tells us what books are worth keeping (lots of caveats here...like what if it's by a local author but not in the book? what if we are a tiny library by comparison and just plain don't have the space to keep every book that every classic author wrote?)
• Third, I look at condition (of every book, not just the ones on the list): is it torn, musty, ugly, unappealing, water damaged?
• Fourth, I check our statewide catalog to see how many other libraries have the book. I look at how many times it circulated and when was the last time. I consider its position in a series, if applicable.
• Fifth, the library director and I conference about each and every book. Some get replaced. Some get withdrawn. Sometimes we discuss the idea of modern graphic design as it relates to older covers. Some books get put back on the shelf (a reprieve!) because of their relative merit.

So I am the grim reaper who wheels her cart into the stacks and makes the books flap their worn out pages in fear.

And I will tell you that, in this work, I have come to feel a little tetchy about authors who crank their books out at 1 or 2 a year and take up more than their fair share of shelf space, and who are NEVER on my list because they are so popular. I am always a little thrilled (in a guilty way) when I discover that one of these books is falling apart---HA! Robert Parker, take that! (If the Parker books had regular size margins instead of 1.5" I might have more pity.) Oh and by the way, if you happen to write books and have a last name that begins with "P" please consider choosing a pseudonym because Mr. Parker and Mr. Patterson and Ms. Perry and Ms. Peters are already filling the shelves to bursting. A "Q" name would work great.

I also come across some books that get into the running for Ugliest Book Cover. We are in the second year of this prize, somehow almost exactly a year! And nothing could really beat last year's winner, but you can't have leeches on toenails every time.

Entry 1: copyright 1972

Entry 2: 1960

(go Harvard University Press!)

You may submit your vote in the comments section.

Saturday Swap Group Success!

"Good" by Robinsunne, on my kitchen sink windowsill spot of honor


On Saturday I worked all day at the Rockport Public Library and we had our very first Saturday ATC Make and Swap group there! It was fantastic to have 19 kids and 10 adults in the library, hanging out, chatting, and making art together. Some highlights: a Mother-Daughter team making an ATC for their patient pup, Roxy (who was waiting in the car)...A tiny adorable toddler (~18 mos.) who was making her first ATC, with a little help from Mom (it featured a chicken)...Three generations of a family, all artistically snipping away....A very shy girl who doesn't hardly say a peep, but is a prolific artist and made some great cards and smiled a lot...And many more sweet moments! It was very organic, people just dove into their work, though Robinsunne was there to facilitate and check in with folks. So much fun!

What I love about this ATC swap group at the library is that I think it represents a very real evolution of what libraries are moving towards: community places for people to meet, a place to use resources (physical and virtual), responding to community interests, and having a welcoming "Yes We Can" attitude. For a very cool view of how libraries may look in the future, check out this post by Jenny Levine, the Shifted Librarian, about a library in Delft, Holland which calls itself a "library concept center"---pretty amazing visionary ideas!

My personal favorite moments: When A. (who is 8) came up to me at the desk to ask if I was willing to trade some cards with him. His cards were really lovely in their constructions, layers of papers very artfully put together. This was the one I chose:

And here's the one that Jenny gave me, in trade for the Amy Sedaris card from this post; Jenny's is a terrific 2-sider. This is just the front...She knows what I like!

Robinsunne passed her "Good" card to me, pictured up at the top, my recent favorite of her alphabet series! Yay! This is what I see when I wash my dishes, approximately a million times a day, so it may as well be something I like looking at. The sea shell is a favorite from my mom, and it serves as a very nice stand to display ATCs.

And finally, here are a couple of my Spring Meditations. Recognize the backgrounds?
And one last thing...Do you know that Robinsunne is writing a book (The Great Library ATC Swap) about what we are doing at the library? This is meant to be a resource for folks who may want to start up a group at their own local library. I have had the privilege to be a proof-reader for this project, and let me tell you: it's great! She is including many helpful photos of the techniques, following the schedule of our year of Library projects, and then has additional ideas and things to try out. Go join Robinsunne's Yahoo group to stay apprised of the release date of this fabulous resource.