Carnegie Libraries

Here's a link to a story that highlights Iowa's success in keeping the state's Carnegie libraries alive and well, although that's not always the case in most areas.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-ia-carnegielibraries,0,1183357.story

The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library (Indiana) currently has two Carnegie libraries--the West Branch Library and the East Branch Library. Both locations received renovations within the past six years and are absolutely beautiful. Both also serve their respective neighborhoods well. It's wonderful that the EVPL system saw the value in these buildings. View these two libraries at EVPL's website at http://www.evpl.org/.

Way to go, Iowa and Indiana!

Toddler books

This morning my husband ran to the nearby branch library to get a couple of DVDs. (Yes, he does read profusely, but as we are preparing to move, he decided he needed something to use as a "relaxation" object later today.) He really surprised me when he brought back a stack of children's books (mostly toddler and early picture books) for my grandson. Hubby knows that I am babysitting this energetic 3-year-old this evening, so he took it upon himself to select some books that I could read to the tot. Just a few evenings ago I was discussing with Husband the abundance of research that overwhelmingly proves the benefits of reading to young children--not that my husband didn't already believe in the benefits of reading). Naturally, when I babysit my grandchildren, I take a supply of books to share with them. I had not had time to go to the library to get a new stash for tonight and figured my grandson would not mind hearing the same stories again tonight that he heard last week. I am thrilled, however, to know that my husband--a man who himself never had any children and who is not particularly comfortable around very young children--took it upon himself to make sure my grandson has a fresh supply of books for this evening's visit. His action is a way not only into my grandson's heart, but also deeper into mine! I consider his action one of true love.

Local Library Conferences

Today I attended the Indiana Library Federation's District 5/7 conference, where I presented a session. Yes, it's a small conference, but there is still a wealth of information to be gained from such conferences. This year's conference featured workshops on blogging, social networking sites and the ways teens are using them, historical databases, and more. Additionally, the keynote speaker was Margaret McMullan, author of several books, including How I Found the Strong and When I Crossed No-Bob. All said, the conference was a pretty good deal at only $35 a person--which also included a decent hot lunch (with dessert!).

So why were there so few people there? I pondered that question as I drove home from the conference...in the rain... for quite some distance. Are library staff too busy to attend conferences? Do they think local conferences don't have anything to teach them? Are their budgets so drained that they can't afford to pay the registration fee and mileage? Are they simply not interested? Did they have other programs and events scheduled today which prevented them from attending? I haven't yet found the answer. All I know is that a lot of library staff in the southern part of Indiana missed a really good conference today.

My congratulations to the board that put together the event--especially to Larry Oathout, district president and director of the Tell City PL.

I'm Baaaaa-aaack!

I will admit that this blog first started as an "experiment"-- a self-designed course for learning the how/what/why of blogging. One lesson I didn't seem to take to heart, though, was that blogging takes time! If you want to have a successful blog, you've got to keep it up to date. Honestly, who wants to read a blog that hasn't had any posts to it since JULY of last year?? So...I am now hyped up and ready to become an ACTIVE blogger. A friend of mine (a librarian who has a very good blog and is much more a pro at it than I am) said she spends 15 minutes a day with her blog. Hmmmm...I'm not sure I'm ready for that type of commitment. I'm just not ready for it! I'll plan to spend 10 minutes a day with my blog, which means you'll only have to spend 5 minutes reading the posts! Hey...we're all short on time, right?

Hosting a Gaming Tournament: First-time Thoughts

I recently hosted a Guitar Hero Tournament at my library--the first one we've ever attempted. I should clarify that my library routinely hosts open-play gaming events for the teens (twice a month, I might add), but I've never been sure about the whole "tournament" concept until recently. Zach, one of the active teens at my library decided we should just do it--host the tournament, that is. I'm glad he convinced me to do this program. The tournament was a success. Registration filled quickly (I even had waiting lists), parents attended, teens drove from other counties to attend the event, and teens who have never previously visited the library participated in the tournament and had a great time.

For those of you considering gaming at your library, I can assure you that it IS worthwhile and it DOES hold merit for your library. Take a look at your library's mission statement. If you work in a public library, I'm guessing that statement says something about providing "entertainment" or "recreation" (or something to that effect) in addition to the educational aspects of your library's purpose. Gaming gets teens to the library. It helps create good relationships between the teens and the teen services librarian. Many teens visit the library regularly because of gaming events, and through those visits, the teens begin to view the library as "THEIR" place to be. I could list a lot more benefits of gaming, but I'll save those thoughts for another day.

The REALLY scary part of blogging...

Okay...So I took the first step and actually posted a blog. Now comes the even scarier part--telling people about it and inviting them to take a peek. Hmmm...Whom should I contact first? My mind starts assembling a list:
--those who will be kind
--those who are not tech savvy and will therefore be most impressed with my
efforts
--those who will only glance at my info, give me a token pat on the back and
post a generic comment such as "Nice job!"

My mind shifts gears, and I'm thinking about all the teens out there who have recently created MySpace (or whatever SNS) pages and are anxiously waiting responses, hoping someone will ask to be a friend. I'm thinking of the teens who already have such pages and have no troubles spilling their guts online and sharing all of their personal information as well as their most intimate thoughts. How do they do that? Was I born into a different generation that has more inhibitions than today's teen generation? Do I just need to get over my
blog-o-phobia and let loose? Time will tell.

Meanwhile, I'm off to invite some people to view this blog. Maybe I'll go ahead and add a few techno-talented people in order to get their constructive criticisms. I hope they will be kind!

Wow! I did it!

A fellow librarian recently started a blog. She admitted one day (in the lunch room) her hesitancy and apprehension about posting her own thoughts online as being downright scary. Yup. I can identify. Will anyone read what I have to say? Will anyone care? Will anyone get angry? Will I become publicized, ostracized, demoralized?


There's a proverb I once heard that goes something like this:
It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak up and remove all doubt.


Will a blog "remove all doubt" in the way other people regard me?


Yes, my fellow librarian, posting a blog is a scary thing, but in the world of Web 2.0 it seems like the natural thing. Here goes!