Dewey Scrapper

What's In a Name 5: The Dry Grass of August

2012-01-30T14:22:00.001-06:00

If you liked The Help, you might want to try The Dry Grass of August. It's the story of a white family and the black woman who works for them in the South during the 1950s. The narrator of the story is thirteen-year-old June "Jubie" Watts. Jubie and her siblings has been cared for by the family's housekeeper, Mary Luther, for as long as she can remember. Jubie's father is abusive while her mother doesn't pay much attention to the children. Mary, on the other hand, loves the children unconditionally.

Jubie and her family go on a vacation to Florida. During their drive through the South, they see evidence of the racism that plagued the U.S. during that time. A tragedy occurs during the trip that no one could have predicted. In the aftermath, Jubie must decide how to deal with her parents' flaws, as well as learn how to move on.

I enjoyed this debut novel from Anna Jean Mayhew. The characters were well written, and their personalities really came through. If you like historical fiction that deals with racial tension, give this book a try.

Friday Five: Pinned This Week

2011-08-19T08:00:00.004-05:00

Do you Pinterest? I do, and I quickly became addicted. Pinterest is a virtual bulletin board for anything you'd like to pin. It's a lot of fun. I have the app on my iPhone, which makes it super easy to pin stuff. I usually repin things people have already pinned when I'm using the app, because I haven't quite figured out how to pin new things. I'll get the hang of it.

The app stopped working for a little while, which was very annoying. It started working again, so I've been a pinning fool. For your viewing pleasure, here are five things I've pinned this week.

Can't go wrong with Jon Bon Jovi.

Yep. Need to listen to this.

This looks soooo good!

Pinterest is a great resource for scrapbooking inspiration.

It's also a great place to find different kinds of art.

So give Pinterest a try. I think you might like it!

Friday Five: I Miss Her Already!

2011-07-01T11:34:00.000-05:00

A tough decision has come my way. When is the right time to put a dog to sleep? Yes, it's come to that.

We adopted Daisy on January 12, 2008. Her owner wasn't taking care of her, and was being borderline abusive. Daisy's owner moved in with her sister, and her sister decided that she didn't want the dog around any longer. My friend PJ, who is an angel on Earth for pets, called us and told us she wanted us to meet Sugar (her name at the time). We hadn't had a dog in 1 1/2 years, which is the longest I've ever been without a dog. We decided to adopt her, but we changed her name to Daisy.

About three months ago, Daisy started coughing and gagging. We took her to the vet who thought it was a cough. We were in and out of the vet with her for weeks. They finally decided to do an endoscopy because she wasn't getting any better and they needed to figure out what the issue was. They figured out that she had cancer. Squamous Cell Carcinoma, to be exact.

We've tried different meds, but they're making her sick. We went back to the vet yesterday for an x-ray to see what is going on with her esophagus. It's OK, but now she's got pneumonia. The doctor gave us more meds, and told us it's just a band-aid and expects that the meds will only get her through the weekend.

I really thought we'd have more time with her. When the vet told us that the prognosis wasn't good, he wasn't kidding. Now we've got to decide when is the right time. I wish she could tell me.

Enjoy five of my favorite photos of Daisy.

Friday 5: What Do I Still Need to Learn?

2011-06-03T08:00:00.002-05:00

Spring at Bartlett Public Library

I've been at Bartlett Public Library for almost three months. There are still a few things I need to learn.

1. Do we ILL books that we own? For all of you non-librarians out there, ILL stands for interlibrary loan. These are materials that we request for our patrons that come from other libraries. I think that we shouldn't ILL something if we own it, but I have a feeling that I'm wrong. I need to find out for sure.

2. How do I get those darn express computers to not shut down whenever they feel like it?

3. Are there reviews out there somewhere about computer books? In July, I will start buying computer books, and I can't find reviews anywhere.

4. Is there a foolproof way to teach patrons about ebooks and how to use Overdrive?

5. How do I write a better book review? We've got a book recommendation blog, and I need to improve my review writing skills.

Friday FIVE: New (to me) Authors

2011-05-20T07:15:00.001-05:00

Three cheers for the return of the Friday FIVE!!!

If you read my blog at all, you might have seen this post, where I made a list of 34 things I want to accomplish during my 34th year. So far, I've finished 5 of the 34 things on the list. Today's Friday Five will showcase books by 5 authors that are new to me.

I read a description of this book recently, and it sounded really good. I thought it might be a good book to discuss, and since I'm starting a new book club in the fall, I decided to read it. I'm really glad I did. I couldn't put it down. The premise of the book was so interesting, and the writing was excellent. Caroline Leavitt is definitely a writer whose books I will read more of.

I read this book for a book group, and bonus! It's an author I've never read before.The discussion we had was very interesting. I heard that Baker's book A Good Man is kind of a sequel, so I'm interested to read that one in the future.

This book was unlike any book I've ever read. It tells the story of Emily from early adolescence to Emily in her mid twenties. Hard to describe, and not one of my favorites.

Bezellia Grove is such a great character! She is tough, and always stands up for what she believes in. I listened to this on audio, which just added to my enjoyment. The narrator did a wonderful job bringing the characters to life.

The premise of this book made it sound a lot better than it was. A woman goes missing, and her family tries, in vain, to find her. This was another book that I listened to, and I wonder if it just added to my confusion. The book was told in largely second person, and that just threw me off. It was hard to follow, because I was never sure what was going on.

Why I Will Never Be a Mother

2011-05-09T08:00:00.003-05:00

I can’t get away from it. Every Mother’s Day, people wish me a happy Mother’s Day. Andy says they’re just saying it because they hope I have a nice day with my mother. The cynical side with me disagrees, and thinks that people assume, because I’m a woman, that I have a child. I wish people would stop their blanket wishes for a happy mother's day. Many women are not mothers. I am one of them.

Much to the chagrin of many people in my life, Andy and I have decided that we will not be having any children. While we were still dating, we talked about having kids. We said that we both wanted them, although I think that he wanted them more than I did. Soon after we married, though, we decided that kids weren’t something that either of us needed to have. We’ve been married now for 10 years, and we are very much decided that we are not going to have any kids, and I think we’re very happy with our decision.

There are some very specific reasons why I will not be a mother. Here they are.

Patience: I recently saw a father with his young son at Target. They were in the dollar section, and the boy was poring over a coloring book. Dad was patiently waiting and letting his son have his fun. I wouldn’t be that person. I’d probably be the mom you see who is rushing her kids through a store because there are more important things to do. Sometimes I might recognize that we have the time, or, they’re having a lot of fun browsing. But more often, I probably wouldn’t. I’m a better aunt than I am a mother.

Self: I am selfish. I want time to myself. I want a place that’s my own. I am pretty independent, and I can’t picture myself caring for children. I don’t want to have someone depending on me all of the time.

Nurture: I am not the nurturing type. I get frustrated with needy people. I am often heard telling people to suck it up. Get over it. A mother should not tell her kids this all the time. It’s true that kids need to learn to let certain things roll off their backs, but they also need a lot of nurturing that I am not able to give.

So to those who want me to have children, I’m sorry. It’s just not going to happen.

Librarianship: It's All About Sharing

2011-04-27T10:56:00.001-05:00

(photo source)

Last week, a patron came to me needing help with her resume. She's looking for a job, and she's desperate. She didn't want just books on how to write a resume, she wanted someone to sit down with her and help her write it. I'm not good at writing resumes, so I didn't offer my services and hinder her job search. I recommended another local public library because I'd heard that they had a resume service and I thought they might be able to help her. I was wrong.

She came back to me and told me that the librarians at the other library were rude. They told her because she didn't have a card from their library, she couldn't take part in the service. And she called at different times, and talked to different people. She was told the same thing, and each time they were rude. You know? It's understandable to a point, but don't be rude. Explain in the nicest possible way why other patrons can't take part. Maybe even offer to try to find her help in other places. Librarianship is about sharing. We should share information with our patrons, no matter who they are or where they live.

This patron came back to me today. She still needed help, because she was turned away by that other library. Now she's more desperate and this time, she's frustrated. I started digging. I made calls. I surfed the web. I found five places for her to contact. FIVE! All of these offer the service she's looking for.

I learned a lesson today. Keep digging until you find the information you need. Share that information with others. So share what you've got. Don't hold back.

The Lincoln Lawyer: Book vs. Movie

2011-03-21T22:30:00.001-05:00

(photo source)

I saw The Lincoln Lawyer this weekend. I read the book a few years ago, and just listened to the audiobook so I could refresh my memory. Matthew McConaughey played the main character, Mick Haller, a defense attorney whose office is in the back of a Lincoln Town Car. I really enjoyed the movie. In most book to movie adaptations, there are so many changes made that it doesn’t feel as though the movie is being true to the book. With The Lincoln Lawyer, I felt that the movie included the most important parts of the book and didn’t make any unnecessary changes or deletions.

There are a few differences between the book and movie, namely some character changes. In Michael Connelly’s book, Mick Haller’s investigator is named Raul Levin. He’s half Jewish, half Hispanic. In the movie, Raul Levin is now known as Frank Levin, a man who is played by William H. Macy. Macy does an excellent job in the role, but he wasn’t what I was expecting. When I saw the previews, I thought that John Leguizamo was going to play Raul, but instead he played the bail bondsman.

One of Mick Haller’s former clients turns out to be innocent, and wrongly accused of a murder. In the book, the client’s name is Jesus Menendez. In the movie, his name has been changed to Jesus Martinez. He’s still the same client, and he has the same back story, but his name was changed. The last difference in characters was the judge in the case that’s tried during the movie. In the book, Judge Fullbright is a woman, but in the movie, Judge Fullbright is a man.

I wonder what makes the screenwriter make so many changes to the screenplay. I also wonder why this particular screenwriter made the small changes he did. I don’t think leaving the characters as they were in the book would have made any difference.

Mick Haller is a character that is in many Michael Connelly books. Since Matthew McConaughey was cast in this role, I wonder if there will be more movies with Mick Haller. One can only hope!

34 Things Progress Report

2011-03-14T08:15:00.005-05:00


(photo source)

It’s been one month since I posted my 34 Things list. Here’s an update on the progress I’ve made. I haven’t done as many things as I was hoping to by this point, but then again, it is only a month into this project.

8. Practice yoga regularly, at least once per week. I’ve fallen behind on this one a little. I’m four weeks in, and I’ve done yoga 3 times. Not horrible, but not quite on the numbers.

10. Do a "go figure" layout about me and Andy. = Done!

I might lighten the photo on the layout a little, but hey, for now it's done.

12. Reread 5 Nancy Drew books. I’m one-fifth of the way through this one. I bought The Clue of the Broken Locket and downloaded it to my Nook. It’s funny that reading Nancy Drew is so different than when I was younger. I remember loving those books so much. I still love them, but it’s a much different experience now.

17. Write a blog post once per week. I’ve written 4 posts this month, which averages out to one per week. However, it wasn’t exactly one per week, because I posted twice in a week. I know. I can’t believe it myself!

21. Give blood 4 times. I gave my first pint of blood for this project on February 25. I won’t finish this task until sometime in October, since you can only donate once every 8 weeks.

31. Scrapbook once per week. In an episode of The Paperclipping Roundtable, the brilliant Stacy Julian said that scrapbooking doesn’t always have to mean doing a scrapbook layout. According to Stacy, it can also include printing photos, organizing supplies, or organizing photos. This is a good thing, because I’ve been doing a lot of organizing lately to get ready for my scrapbook weekend getaway, which is number 18.

33. Hit 1,000 Twitter followers. As of today, the number of people following me is 744. I’m getting closer!

So that’s my progress so far. Here’s hoping that the nicer weather and spring will make it easier to get some these things done.

Onward & Upward

2011-03-07T08:30:00.000-06:00

Today, I start a new job. I am the newest Adult/Teen Services Librarian at Bartlett Public Library. I'm really excited for this new adventure. Let's take a look at where I started.


Vernon Area Public Library District

I started at Vernon Area Public Library in October 2006. VAPLD was the first library I've ever worked at. I learned a lot in my four years there. It was a good beginning. I started at Barrington Area Library in November 2009. I wasn't there for long, but this library made quite the impression on me. It was a great place to work.

Now I'll show you where I'm going.

Bartlett Public Library

I hope to do great things at Bartlett Public Library. I was really involved in social media at VAPLD, and I hope I'm able to continue that at Bartlett. We'll see what the future holds!!

Wish me luck on my new adventure.

From the Archives: My Library Route

2011-03-02T09:35:00.001-06:00

(This entry is part of Ned Potter’s Library Routes Project. The idea of the project is to detail how you ended up in the profession: what made you decide on librarianship, how you ended up in the particular area you're in, etc.)

I never grew up knowing that I was going to be a librarian. In fact, the thought never crossed my mind until I was 29. It’s pretty amazing that it took that long, considering my lifelong love for books and reading. It’s true that librarians don’t go into the profession merely because of their love of reading. They either love the public service aspect, or they love research, etc. But it makes sense that a love of reading is the first step into the field, right? Maybe that’s just me.

I fell into librarianship completely by accident. In college, I was an English major, and after graduation went into publishing. My first job out of college was at a legal publisher. The office closed, and I chose not to move with it. Next, I went to work for an educational professional development company. The job wasn’t moving in the direction I wanted to go fast enough. After that, I went to work at another educational company. This company wasn’t so much a publisher, as it was a creator of educational toys and teacher resources. Towards the end of my time there, I became very disillusioned with what I was doing. I was no longer a good fit for the company, and my boss and I both started to realize that.

So how the heck did I end up a librarian? Remember my disillusionment? I wasn’t the only one. One of my coworkers had left the company to go to library school and become a librarian. Suddenly, a light bulb went off. I knew that’s what I was also supposed to do. So, I did the exact opposite of what my parents have always told me to do. I quit my job without another one lined up. I applied for a job at a public library and applied to library school.

Thankfully, I got the job, and I was accepted in the Library Science program at Dominican University. Throughout grad school, I worked part-time at a public library. I started in circulation, and moved into Extension Services. I hoped to become full-time at that library. Considering the horrible economy, that didn’t happen. Suddenly, I was done with library school, and I had to find another job. I got lucky and found a part-time job in Adult Services at another public library. Instead of working full-time at one library, I’m working part-time at two. When I first realized that I would have to do that, the disillusionment started to set in all over again. But you know what? It’s turned out to be an awesome experience, and I wouldn’t change it.

Who knew that splitting up my time between two libraries would turn out to be such a good thing? And why didn’t I ever think of being a librarian? I don’t know the answers, but I’m really glad it turned out this way.

I'm a Traditional Girl

2011-02-27T09:04:00.001-06:00

I’ve been scrapbooking for about 12 years. Until recently, I’ve been a traditional scrapper. That is, the supplies I use are very tactile: paper, pens, stickers, die cuts, and other embellishments that all have a texture to them. I’ve also done some hybrid scrapbooking, where I use my computer during the scrapbooking process. For me, this means typing out journaling and adhering it to the page. I’ve started to add digital elements to photos, such as frames. Recently, I’ve started exploring digital scrapbooking. Digital scrapbookers use only their computer for scrapbooking. They might use a program like Photoshop Elements to create their digital pages. They use all the same elements that traditional scrapbookers use: paper, stickers, die cuts, and other embellishments, but all of these elements are digital, and not tactile. I got Photoshop Elements for my birthday a year ago, and finally decided to try my hand at digital scrapbooking. I was very intimidated by it, so I started out by using a template created by the awesome Cathy Zielske. Here is a page I create using that template.

This was the second all digital page I created, so I thought that it would get easier the second time around. This would probably have been true if I created one page right after another. Instead, I created each page a month apart. Trying to remember how I created the page and how I made changes to the template was pretty difficult. I liked the experience of digital scrapbooking, but I realized that I’m really a traditional girl at heart. I love all the texture that goes along with traditional scrapbooking. I like feeling the pages come together using my hands. Not that you don’t use your hands when you’re scrapbooking, it’s just a different feeling. Here’s a traditional scrapbook page that I’ve created.

In this page, you can see the texture, you can feel it and you can see what the results are from all the cutting and adhering. With a digital scrapbook page, what you get is a flat, printed page. Many digital elements do add texture to a page, but ultimately, the page is a flat, printed page.

So I’ve come to the conclusion that when it comes to scrapbooking, I’m more of a traditional girl. I love the feel of the products, and the visual aspects of them. I love to do the physical creation of a page, and seeing how it all comes together.

How about you? Are you like me or do you love digiscrapping?

34 Things in My 34th Year

2011-02-14T08:04:00.003-06:00

(photo source)

Today is my birthday, the beginning of my 34th year. My One Little Word for 2011 is action. So far, it's been going very well. To keep the momentum going, I decided to compile a list of 34 things I want to accomplish during my 34th year. During the next year, I will move into action and do all 34 things on the list. I will also be blogging the process, and updating this post each time I make some progress.

1. ~~Go to Margaritaville Navy Pier~~
2. ~~Travel to Disney World~~
3. Go on a hot air balloon ride
4. Read one Hemingway novel
5. ~~Take the train downtown and go to Open Books~~
6. Get my sunflower tattoo redone & my heart tattoo reinked
7. Do Couch to 5K
8. Practice yoga regularly, at least once per week
9. Learn how to make good french toast
10. ~~Do a “go figure” layout about me and Andy~~
11. Learn to use my camera
12. Reread 5 Nancy Drew books
13. Weigh 140 pounds
14. Give up chocolate for one month
15. Write a will and a living will
16. Travel to Nashville, TN and Antique Archaeology
17. Write a blog post once per week
18. ~~Go back to Crop-a-doodle-do in Indiana~~
19. Work on my Linkedin profile
20. Finish reading My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster
21. Give blood 4 times
22. See Dave Matthews Band in concert
23. Save $2 per day for 3 months
24. ~~Buy sparklers for 4th of July and use them on 4th of July~~
25. Go on a double decker bus tour in downtown Chicago
26. Eat outside on the deck twice a week during the summer
27. ~~Finish the Pacific Northwest road trip album~~
28. Convert my chronological scrapbook system to Library of Memories
29. Go to a beach on Lake Michigan
30. Go on a spur of the moment weekend trip
31. Scrapbook at least once per week
32. Visit the Newberry Library
33. Hit 1,000 Twitter followers
34. ~~Read a book by 5 authors I have never read~~

Friday Five: 2010 Highlights

2010-12-31T10:08:00.000-06:00

(photo source: losmininos)

My 2010 one little word is commit. I was committed in some things, but others seemed to fall by the wayside. One of my goals was to post a Friday Five every week on the blog. Here is the last Friday Five of 2010. Here are five things that were highlights of my year.

1. Giving Chris Bohjalian a tour of one of the libraries where I work. He was there for an author visit.

2. Meeting Mac McAnally from the Coral Reefer Band.

3. Going to a Raiders game. They played the Bears, and they won! The best part was that it was a preseason game in August, and I didn't have to freeze my butt off.

4. Going to Antique Archaeology. Andy got me hooked on the show, American Pickers, this year. We did a mini road trip to LeClaire, Iowa to see the store in person.

5. Visiting two new states. Our summer vacation was a trip to the Pacific Northwest and Northern California. We've never been to Washington or Oregon. It was a great trip, and it was nice to be able to check two more states off the list.

What are some of your 2010 highlights?

Book Talk: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

2010-12-29T09:53:00.000-06:00

Doctors have learned a lot about cancer over the years. There still isn't a cure, but there continue to be improvements in treatment. One of the reasons we know so much about cancer is because of a woman named Henrietta Lacks. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the 1950s. One of her doctors took a sample of her cells, but failed to mention it to Henrietta. These cells have survived long after Henrietta’s death. They have been shared, dissected, examined and tested. There is one catch to this story: Her family was never told. And it was twenty years later that they found out. How did they react to the news? To find out, you’ll have to read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

Welcome to My New Home!

2010-12-27T18:49:00.000-06:00

(photo source: jcbonbon)

I have been blogging at Dewey Scrapper for a little while now, but want to welcome all of you who used to read my Wordpress blog, Librarybug. I hope to keep up with the new blog, and post more than I had in the past.

Thanks for sticking with me!

Staff 2.0 Challenge: Wrap-Up

2010-11-18T13:14:00.000-06:00

The Staff 2.0 Challenge ends tomorrow. I was really excited that we were able to do a 2.0 challenge here at VAPLD. I've done all of the tasks in the past, but I took part because there is always something new to learn. I enjoyed being able to use Blogger as the blog platform. I have always blogged using Wordpress, and recently decided to switch over to Blogger. The Staff 2.0 Challenge gave me the chance to use Blogger and get used to a different blog platform. I think I'll be able to switch my personal blog over to Blogger without many issues.

The thing I least enjoyed about the project was MyMediaMall. I think this part of the project is very important, and I think downloadable books should definitely be included, but overall, I just don't like MyMediaMall. It's very hard to use, and I will have a hard time showing patrons how to use it.

I hope that we'll be able to do another 2.0 Challenge in the future!

Staff 2.0 Challenge: Week Seven

2010-11-18T12:55:00.000-06:00

A library website has a lot more to offer than just access to the library catalog. Patrons are almost always amazed when I tell them that they can access most databases from home.

The subject guides are my favorite thing on the website. They connect patrons with information that they may otherwise have missed. I wonder if people know they are available. I would like to see the subject guides as part of the featured services or featured databases.

A website should never have more than a couple of clicks to get information people want. Sometimes, on our website, it takes more than a few clicks to access the information needed. I am afraid people might give up if something is too hard to find.

Staff 2.0 Challenge: Week Six

2010-11-18T12:53:00.000-06:00

Downloadable digital books were the focus of this week's challenge. The library has two databases for downloadable audiobooks and ebooks: NetLibrary and MyMediaMall.

I have used MyMediaMall before, but I decided to try it again for this blog post. I signed into MyMediaMall, selected a book to download, and downloaded the book. I had no problems downloading the audiobook. I tried transferring the audiobook to my iPhone, and that's when I had issues. No matter what I did, I couldn't transfer the audiobook.

MyMediaMall is not easy to use. It is not intuitive, and it is very difficult to figure out how to use it. The Quick Start Guide provided on the database doesn't go into enough detail about how to download and transfer books. This is what MyMediaMall says about checking out books, and downloading them.

"Browse or search this site for downloadable materials. When you locate a title of interest, add it to the cart and check out the title. Once you have checked out a title, a download page is displayed. Click the 'Download' link to start the download. Once the download is complete, open and enjoy the title."

It never tells you that you must transfer the downloaded book to your device before you can use it. I found out this morning that I was downloading the wrong audiobook format. I downloaded the Overdrive WMA format, and I should have downloaded the Overdrive MP3 format.

Overdrive needs to make MyMedia Mall more user-friendly. If a librarian and other library staff can't figure out how to use it, then we're going to have a very hard time showing patrons how to use this resource. The database has tons of potential, but it is so hard to use, that people will give up easily.

Staff 2.0 Challenge: Week Five

2010-10-31T13:51:00.000-05:00

Our challenge this week is to check out Google Tools. Google offers so much more than just a search engine. This blogging tool I'm using is a good example of other tools that Google has to offer. I use Google Docs frequently, because I need to be able to access documents from multiple computers. Instead of saving a document to my computer, I can create a Google doc and get access to it wherever I am.

Libraries can use Google Scholar for those in-depth research questions. Google Scholar gives us access to all kinds of scholarly articles and papers. Google Directory might also be useful for libraries. Instead of doing a blind search in Google, you can use Google Directory to immediately focus in on specific subjects.

Google Alerts is helpful if you'd like to find out when and how often certain topics are mentioned on the web. For example, you can set up a Google Alert for Vernon Area Public Library, and you'll get an email each time the library is mentioned anywhere on the web.

Out of all the Google tools, I like Google Docs the best. Being able to access my documents from anywhere is invaluable.

Staff 2.0 Challenge: Week Four

2010-10-31T13:31:00.000-05:00

The challenge in week four is all about social networking. I use both Facebook and Twitter. Although I use both social networking tools, I am a bigger fan of Twitter. On Facebook, I've found that I am "friends" with family members, or people I know. Everyone I am friends with on Facebook are people I know. I use Twitter differently than Facebook. Many of the people I follow on Twitter are people I have never even met. I follow a wide range of people, including librarians, scrapbookers, celebrities, news outlets, and libraries.

There are huge opportunities for libraries on both Facebook and Twitter. We can connect with people in new ways using these social networking tools. A person doesn't have to come into the library to get assistance or information from us. They can start a conversation using Facebook and Twitter. We can broaden the scope of people that we serve through these tools.

Playing Catch Up

2010-10-31T13:04:00.001-05:00

I've fallen a little behind in the Staff 2.0 Challenge. Join me as I play catch up!

Staff 2.0 Challenge Week Three

2010-10-07T13:07:00.000-05:00

This week, we're taking a look at Flickr and YouTube. I have some experience with both of these tools.

Flickr is an excellent place to find cool photos, and save all of your own. I have a Flickr account that I've uploaded photos of scrapbooking layouts that I've done, as well as photos from everyday life and authors I've met. It's a useful tool for trying to find photos to use with blog posts. Some Flickr users allow other users to borrow their photos. Since I'm not a great photographer, I've used Flickr as a photo resource.

I found a great fall photo on Flickr today. The post with the photo is below.

YouTube has all kinds of videos, including some very useful tutorials, and endless entertainment. There's a video done by a group of librarians that has been making it's way around the web lately. It's called Librarians do Gaga. I still haven't gotten a chance to watch it, so I finally watched it today. They did a great job creating lyrics to go along with the song. maybe it will make it's way to library patrons, and they will have a better idea of what librarians are all about.

Prospect Park Fall Colors

2010-10-07T10:49:00.001-05:00

Prospect Park Fall Colors
Originally uploaded by ajagendorf25

Here's a really cool fall photo I found on Flickr today.

VAPLD Staff 2.0 Challenge: Week Two

2010-09-27T13:26:00.000-05:00

Week two of the VAPLD Staff 2.0 Challenge has begun! This week, we're learning about RSS feeds and Podcasts.

I've had some experience with feed readers. I started out with Bloglines. I really liked it, but then they changed the format. After the format changed, it wasn't as user friendly. I tried Google Reader, and don't like it at all. Now I use Netvibes. I love it! It's really easy to use, and it allows you to arrange your feeds under different tabs. I have my feeds organized by interest. For instance, I have a few different scrapbooking tabs, one for each library I work at, a tab for blogs written by authors I like, etc.

I don't listen to a lot of podcasts, but there is one I listen to religiously. It's a scrapbooking podcast called the Paperclipping Roundtable. It's a weekly podcast with people that work within the scrapbooking industry. It's been on since January, and they always cover really interesting topics. I've gotten some good ideas from the podcast.

Can't wait to see what we cover in the Staff 2.0 Challenge next week!

VAPLD Staff 2.0 Challenge: Week One

2010-09-27T12:52:00.000-05:00

Last week was the kick-off for the VAPLD Staff 2.0 Challenge. I'm so excited that we're doing something like this here at VAPLD. The challenge is a 2.0 training similar to 23 Things that was created by Helene Blowers at the Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Public Library.

The first week is all about blogs and wikis. The first task for the 2.0 Challenge is to create a blog.I have a blog over at Wordpress already, but I recently created this one, because I'm not a big Wordpress fan. I think Blogger is a lot easier to use. I started that blog back in library school, because it was a requirement for a class. I've kept blogging after library school because I thought it was fun. You can find that blog here.

I have a lot of experience with wikis. I have done some writing and editing for Wikipedia, and I created a department wiki that we use as a communication tool. I also have created a few wikis for various class projects.

You can read about all my progress during the challenge on this new and improved blog.

This Space Is Still Evolving

2010-09-02T19:33:00.001-05:00

(photo source)

Please be patient with me while I design a completely new, completely awesome blog!