Retro Girl

The book discussion group I help faciliate at my library is in the midst of a series on "Working." The books and discussion focus on the concept of work and what that means to many Americans. Last month's book was Working by Studs Terkel. It was a densely written, long book that was a compilation of Terkel's interviews with a wide cross-section of Americans and how they felt about their jobs. It was a tough book to get through, and I was worried about leading the group, but the discussion was excellent; one of the best I've attended.

This month's book is Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy. Written in 1963, Ogilvy, the founder of Ogilvy and Mather, one of the country's leading advertising agencies and the creator of many ads, including the Hathaway shirt man, gives advice on how to be successful in the advertising game. It was a pretty quick read, and interesting to consider how things have changed over the past 40 years.

Of course it was impossible to read this book without thinking about the AMC series, Madmen. One of the things I like about the series is how it shows a segment of society in the post-war, pre-Kennedy assassination years.

This was my early childhood, and the look and feel of the show brings back those early memories. Recently I've found a way to propel myself back into that time. The first is on the Madmen website,
http://www.amctv.com/originals/madmen/ where it's possible to "Madmen" yourself. Another site is a Facebook application where you can "yearbook" yourself into the past. So, here's me as a Madmen character, and my "1962 yearbook photo."

In Which I Hit a Snag

Earlier this year I wrote about my goal to read 100 books this year. At the time I was flying along and it was looking that I would possibly surpass this goal. Well, I kind of hit a snag, in the form of Working by Studs Terkel. The book discussion group at the library is reading this as part of a series on "Working in America" sponsored by the Maine Humanities Council. My co-facilitator and I are taking turns with this series, and it fell to me to lead Terkel's book.

Coming in at 589 pages, it is a dense tome, full of individual interviews with people about their jobs. First published in 1972, the book was a best-seller, and was even turned into a musical (really!). I didn't read it back then, and reading it now, it definitely feels somewhat dated. It would actually be interesting to find out what happened to the people interviewed, and how their lives turned out.

One of the things I picked up from the book is that most people are dissatisfied with their jobs, the exceptions being those who have some control over what they do. I think that control is important, but also is the ability to leave ones job behind at the end of the day and have a wide variety of interests and experiences that don't relate to ones work.

Anyway, now that Working is out of the way I'm hoping to get back up to speed on my reading list. I've already finished Tea Time for the Traditionally Built by Alexander McCall Smith, the latest in the No. 1 Lady's Detective Agency series, and I'm nearly done with The Time Thief by Linda Buckley-Archer, the 2nd in her trilogy.

So, as of July 6th, I've read 28 adult books and 26 Children/YA books, for a total of 54 in 2009.

Lilacs!

Lilacs are probably my favorite flower. I've loved them since I was a kid and we had a huge lilac bush in front of our house. I love the color and the scent, and the fact that they mean I've survived the winter.

When we moved into our house 2 years ago one of the best surprises was the lilac bush right outside our bedroom window. If the weather is warm enough we can open the windows at night and have the subtle scent of lilacs wafting in.

Well, the lilacs have finally bloomed, but unfortunately it is a bit too cold to have the windows open at night, so I brought a few in and put them on my coffee table. It may prove to be a bit much, but I plan to enjoy them as much as possible.

100 Books in 2009

Since 2003 I have been keeping a list of Children's and Young Adult Books I read. There are no annotations, just title, author, and an asterisk if I really liked the book. No picture books, just novels and non-fiction. In 2003 and 2004 I read 107 books each. The number decreased to 86 in 2005, 54 in 2006, and 63 in 2007. Last year was an abysmal 44. I realized that part of that was due to the fact that in my new job I also need to read a lot of adult books since I do Readers' Advisory for all ages, plus I'm in charge of the Adult Book Discussion group. When I thought back of the adult books I read, I realized there were at least 40, bringing my 2008 total up to 84.

So, I decided that I would also keep track of all Adult Books I read, also. In addition I set a goal for myself to read 100 books this year.

As of today, I've read 22 Adult Books and 23 Children/YA books, for a total of 45 book so far in 2009.

Here are a couple of highlights:
Ron McLarty - The Memory of Running and Art in America
McLarty is an actor and frequent Books on Tape narrator. The Memory of Running was the first book produced as an audiobook before being published. Both novels are incredible stories of human interaction with rich characterization. McLarty also has a novel entitled Traveler, which I read last year. I highly recommend him, and if possible suggest you get the audiobooks. They are true treasures.

Linda Buckley-Archer - Gideon the Cutpurse (also published in America as The Time Travelers)
I'll be the first to admit I'm not a big fan of fantasy, and time-travel books just confuse me way too much (I only made it through the first 50 pages of The Time-Traveler's Wife). But Buckely-Archer's novel of 2 preteens, Peter and Kate who find themselves in 1763 London due to an accident at the lab where Kate's physicist Dad works, is a page-turner. There are 2 stories here - Peter and Kate's adventures in London, where they must find the mysterious Tar Man who has stolen their time machine, and their parent's in London who are trying to discover where their kids are. Peter and Kate are assisted by Gideon, a reformed thief who now works for a wealthy family. Not only must Peter and Kate find the Tar Man, but the must be sure not to say too much about themselves or the future, or risk changing the future. Their parents, on the other hand must deal with a police detective who is trying to learn the truth. Oh, and the kids also discover that they can "blur" themselves, meaning they disappear from the past and return to the present in ghostly form. It's all greatly exciting, and since it's part of a trilogy you will eagerly look forward to the next book, which I am currently reading. The second book is called The Time Thief, and the 3rd book is due this fall.

There have been other gems this year, and I'm glad I set this goal. It's helped to focus my reading and I hope will make me a better librarian.

The Maine Event

The other day while driving on the Maine Turnpike, I was passed by a truck from a company called Mainely Roofs. It reminded me of another local business called Mainely Ticks. I began to wonder if people moved to this state just so they could have clever state-related names for their businesses. Then I began to wonder if there were any other states where one could come up with business names that tied into the name of the state. The "best" I could come up with was "Iowa Lot of Money Finance Company."

Clean and Maintain a Dishwasher - wikiHow

Who knew that I needed to clean my dishwasher? But here's how!

Clean and Maintain a Dishwasher - wikiHow

Oh, and if you scroll to the bottom of the article you'll find a link for "How to Wash Dishes." Really?

Spring? Maybe.

Well, my front yard is now finally nearly 100% snow free. The back yard - still pretty much under snow cover. However, the flower bed in the back of the house is now beginning to sprout some flowers. The daffodils are coming up and there are a few buds, and I spotted some lovely purple flowers along with one lone white flower. I'm not sure what these are (they were planted by the previous owner), but it's nice to see some color in the backyard.

April?

Well, it's April 8th, and here are the current views from my front door and back window. I'm really, really, really tired of the snow. We had around 100 inches this year, and it's not going away.

It's been a long winter - emotionally and physically and I'm more than ready for a change.

How It Got in My Pajamas I'll Never Know

"I shot a moose in my pajamas. How a moose got in my pajamas I'll never know." Groucho Marx

I don't think I'm alone when I say I've always liked moose. Judging by the number of stuffed moose available here in Maine, I think that a lot of people are fascinated by this creature. Which is why ever since I moved here I've been trying to spot one. Everytime I see a Moose crossing sign on the highway (and I'm not actually driving) I keep my eyes peeled to the side of the road and into the fields and woods looking for one. I've heard colleagues and patrons at the library tell of their moose sightings and been totally envious.

Which is why I was so disappointed one day last week when I came home and was looking through the mail. There, on the front page of one of those free shopper newspapers was a photo of moose. The caption said that it was seen at a location about 5 miles from my house. A spot I drive past everyday on my wy to work! I thought that the moose was long gone and that once more I'd missed a moose.

So Saturday night Steve and I are on the way to the airport in Manchester NH to pick up our son who was flying in from Colorado. I was looking out the window, not looking for moose, but just lost in thought. It was dark out, but as we passed this field I thought I detected a dark shape against the snow.

"I think I just saw a moose!" I shouted to Steve.
"Are you sure?"
"I think so."

So Steve turned around and drove to the spot where I saw the shape. Apparently I was not the only one, because two other cars were pulling off at the side of the road. Steve drove up a little ways and pulled into a closed business that adjoined the field where I saw the shape. We got out of the car and looked, and sure enough, there was a moose! She was just standing there, not moving. One other car pulled into the lot and that couple got out, too. We all just stood there and stared at this moose. After a few minutes we were on our way to the airport.

After picking up our son we drove to the same spot. Sure enough, there she was. This was now after 11:00 PM, and I don't think she had moved. Of course, we didn't have our camera; our son tried to take a picture with his camera phone, but it was too dark. The next morning we went back with the camera, but the moose was gone.

When living in Illinois we saw deer all the time; once on my bike I saw three bucks. And in Vermont a bear cub ran through the woods past our cabin. So now I've seen a moose. Pretty amazing.

Storm

This morning a storm came in right before I went to work. The clouds were especially interesting. I grabbed the camera and got some great photos and video.

Here's another video: