Daily Thoughts 7/19/2011

Lesser, Ury, Im Café Bauer, 1887

Daily Thoughts 7/19/2011

I read a bit more of Curation Nation this morning.  The author is talking about how it is important to keep close tabs on customers because anyone can create complaints then publicize them widely using the internet.

This morning, I made several telephone calls to remind people about programs, specifically the Computer Class tonight and a Writers Networking Event on Thursday.  I also updated the Twitter account and checked the displays.

I also visited the local history room to look up information on our library.  We were started in 1854 as a school library with 200 books which could be taken out by the adult community.  The current building was built as a Carnegie Library in 1904.  I learned we originally circulated sculptures, toys, and pictures in addition to books.  I rather like the idea of circulating sculptures.

I am prepping for a tour I do tomorrow for the Red Hatters which is a womens society.  Mainly I am going over the art in the buiilding including the murals in the Doric Hall entranceway.  On one side is the Ruins of the Parthenon and on the other side I think it is the ruins of Vesuvius done by Edward Gay in 1924.  We also have copies of the Unicorn Tapestry which is in the Cluny Museum in Paris as murals in the rotunda where we show art.  These were done by Louise Brann.  There is also a mosaic glass ceiling in the Doric Hall done by Alfred H. Freeman.  It looks like by Tiffany glass, but is not.

I also spent some time going through the clipping files looking up some of the local people that they were interested in.  We have extensive clipping files in the Local History room as well as lots of old photographs.  They probably should be digitized and organized a little better.  It was interesting looking at the old library bookmobile photographs from the 1920s.

On the way home, I read some more of Curation Nation.  It reminded me of how little time I spend in front of video camera.  I should probably get a smart phone and a video camera, but they cost a decent amount of money.      

Daily Thoughts 8/10/2010 ( programs, local history )

Peter Dell the Elder: Portrait of Jakob Woler; Würzburg 1529; boxwood

Daily Thoughts 8/10/2010

On the train to work, I read a little bit more of Mental Health Naturally.  The section I read was on the communication; how to talk to yourself so you don't put yourself down as well as change negative conversations.  I also took a little bit of time to read some more of Smart Start-Ups.  I was reading about how to keep a low profile, ask users for funding, and generate interest in your site.





While reading through Shelf Awareness an email newsletter, I saw an interesting book on books, Bring on the Books for Everybody: How Literary Culture Became Popular Culture by  Jim Collins.  None of our libraries have it yet.  I am going to request it through interlibrary loan.




This morning I spent a little bit of time in the local history room.  There is a fairly large photograph collection in there.  Many of the photographs are not yet identified.  There are also a lot of photographs of our building dating all the way back to its founding.  There is even a painting of the library from 1906 with a picture of a horse and buggy in front of the library. 




I also spent some time in a meeting for planning the events that are happening in the next two months.  We are going to have the Graphic Novels Club and the Brown Bag Book Chat as ongoing events because they have been working so far.  I have to work a little bit on better publicity for these events.




I was reading through Publishers Weekly and came across something a little bit unusual.  There is a zombie novel written for teenagers written in a haiku style by K.A. Holt and illustrated by Gahan Wilson called Brains For Lunch.  It is a curiosity to me to see it in the books for teens section.