Greetings! I have lots of new news to pass along (and whine about)!
First, the City of Hiawatha is hosting an event on September 6th from 12pm to 12am called "Fill the Sandbags
For Students" Floodfest. The goal of this event is to raise roughly $25,000 (hopefully more) to assist students displaced by the floods in the Cedar Rapids Community School District. The event will be held at Gutheridge Park and will include local bands, food vendors, children's activities, and a live charity auction. All net proceeds from this event will go to the Cedar Rapids Community Schools Foundation for assistance in helping students affected by the floods. This is a great way to get out help those in need and raise money for a very good cause. Oh, and I should mention that I'm on the committee that is planning this and I can say that we have some super cool things to auction off! So be there!
Second, Pat and I are planning to do a display in September that will coincide with Banned Books Week. For those of you who still don't know (because everyone should by now...) Banned Books Week is like, totally my favorite week of the year. Totally. Banned Books Week and intellectual freedom rights are the main two reasons why I love being a public librarian. For real. Anyways, more on this to come later!
Finally, I am addressing this last issue because I am so tired of answering this question 30 times a day. We still don't know when the online catalog is going to be back up. Sorry, we just don't. The biggest reason, is that we don't have an accurate counting of what we lost in the flood. All three libraries lost materials due to it and although we are getting a better picture of what was lost, we are stil lnot completely and totally sure. So, all I ask is for your patience and understanding (so that I don't flip out the next time someone asks me that question!).
Monday, August 18, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
Moving Stinks
So I moved this weekend...
To a new apartment in Marion.
And...now...
my everything hurts...
ow-wee....
To a new apartment in Marion.
And...now...
my everything hurts...
ow-wee....
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Rules of the Library Card
Have you ever seen the movie Fight Club with Brad Pitt?
In the movie, Brad's character rattles off a list of rules about the Fight Club. I decided that it was a pretty good set of rules and mirrored my rules of the Library Card after it...
Enjoy! (And obey!)
In the movie, Brad's character rattles off a list of rules about the Fight Club. I decided that it was a pretty good set of rules and mirrored my rules of the Library Card after it...
Enjoy! (And obey!)
#1 the first rule of the Library Card is, you always bring your card
#2 the second rule of the Library Card is, you ALWAYS BRING your card
#3 if someone says I forgot, I can't remember, do I have to have it, the transaction is over
#3 if someone says I forgot, I can't remember, do I have to have it, the transaction is over
#4 one card to a patron
#5 one card at a time
#6 no shirt, no shoes, no card
#7 library cards will last as long as 4 years
#8 if this is your first time at the library, you have to use your card
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Those hazy, crazy, days of summer!
Did summer finally come in with a bang, or what? I'm not sure about the rest of you...but I'm not a big fan of the summer heat and humidity that we get here in Iowa. It's just so...sticky. Ick.
Ah yes, but with summer comes the onslot of summer reading programs here at the library. We have done quite well here for participants this summer, all things considered. We have certainly seen an increase in circulation and in patron visits since the flooding. I'm not entirely sure if that's translated to more people participating in our summer reading programs or not. But hey, we're just excited to be helping out our fellow libraries in any way we can.
Speaking of fellow libraries, we have been fortunate enough to have the company of several staff members from the downtown library out here working. We have also become like a second home to our LSA office associates and librarians as well. So needless to say, we've been a bit crowded here. It's a little difficult with our regular staff not to be stepping all over each other in our closet...er...I mean, workroom. So add a few more to the mix...and well...we just might be going out on the road with a routine!
But the reality of it is that we could not have possibly been able to make it through the last month without them here. They have been a wonderful addition to our staff and have been a joy to work with. So a big thanks to all the staff from CRPL who have been out here helping us...we really appreciate it!
In closing, we are coming upon the end of our summer reading programs...but we still have some great programs planned. Also, don't forget that John Sanford will be here on Tuesday, July 22nd at 7pm at Washington High School!
Ah yes, but with summer comes the onslot of summer reading programs here at the library. We have done quite well here for participants this summer, all things considered. We have certainly seen an increase in circulation and in patron visits since the flooding. I'm not entirely sure if that's translated to more people participating in our summer reading programs or not. But hey, we're just excited to be helping out our fellow libraries in any way we can.
Speaking of fellow libraries, we have been fortunate enough to have the company of several staff members from the downtown library out here working. We have also become like a second home to our LSA office associates and librarians as well. So needless to say, we've been a bit crowded here. It's a little difficult with our regular staff not to be stepping all over each other in our closet...er...I mean, workroom. So add a few more to the mix...and well...we just might be going out on the road with a routine!
But the reality of it is that we could not have possibly been able to make it through the last month without them here. They have been a wonderful addition to our staff and have been a joy to work with. So a big thanks to all the staff from CRPL who have been out here helping us...we really appreciate it!
In closing, we are coming upon the end of our summer reading programs...but we still have some great programs planned. Also, don't forget that John Sanford will be here on Tuesday, July 22nd at 7pm at Washington High School!
Thursday, June 26, 2008
I want my...
baby back, baby back, baby back, baby back...RIBS!! YUMMY!!
That's right kids, this weekend is the 21st Annual Barbeque Round-up, and yours truly here is planning on stuffing herself silly! I looove myself some ribs!
If you have never been to the Barbeque Round-up, I highly suggest you attend! There are vendors from all around the country that come here to lil' ol' Iowa to compete for our tastebuds! That's right, they're here to compete. As you go around tasting (and tasting some more...and some more...) you need to keep tabs on which vendor you liked the best. Because you will be asked to fill out a ballot at the end for your favorite.
Now, I'm going to let you in on a little secret here...the best way to really enjoy BBQ Round-up is to split up. Get a big group together and everyone goes to a different booth and orders a sample. They give you roughly 3-4 ribs and sauce with each sample. You then meet back up and split those puppies up! This way, you get the best of all worlds! Take it from a seasoned BBQ-Roundup veteran, this is the way to go!
Hope to see ya'll there! I'll be the one stuffing my face...er...wait...that'll be most of us...nevermind!
That's right kids, this weekend is the 21st Annual Barbeque Round-up, and yours truly here is planning on stuffing herself silly! I looove myself some ribs!
If you have never been to the Barbeque Round-up, I highly suggest you attend! There are vendors from all around the country that come here to lil' ol' Iowa to compete for our tastebuds! That's right, they're here to compete. As you go around tasting (and tasting some more...and some more...) you need to keep tabs on which vendor you liked the best. Because you will be asked to fill out a ballot at the end for your favorite.
Now, I'm going to let you in on a little secret here...the best way to really enjoy BBQ Round-up is to split up. Get a big group together and everyone goes to a different booth and orders a sample. They give you roughly 3-4 ribs and sauce with each sample. You then meet back up and split those puppies up! This way, you get the best of all worlds! Take it from a seasoned BBQ-Roundup veteran, this is the way to go!
Hope to see ya'll there! I'll be the one stuffing my face...er...wait...that'll be most of us...nevermind!
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Floods--2008
I cannot begin to put into words the awe and absolute devastation that I am witnessing in this city of ours. Never in a million years did I ever believe that I would see something so catastrophic.
Natural disasters like this don't happen here. They happen somewhere other than here and I watch them on the national news in disbelief, but also in relief that it's not happening here.
But then it did.
It happened here.
In a catastrophic way.
I have yet to run into one person in this area who hasn't either seen the footage on television or actually witnessed it for themselves. Most have that glazed over look in their eye. The kind of look that recognizes they've seen something terrible and yet, cannot even begin to process it. It is just totally mind-blowing to see downtown Cedar Rapids right now. It looks surreal. Like something out of a bad movie. But it's not. It's real. Very real. It is so devastating to see buildings swallowed entirely by water. Buildings, that we here are all so familiar with.
One building in particular, that I and my fellow colleagues at HPL are all too familiar with is the Cedar Rapids Public Library. I cried when I saw the building in an ariel shot on the news. It literally took my breath away to see how high the water was around that building. And then to think about how high the water must be inside the building made me sick to my stomach.
For those of you who don't know, I am a former employee of CRPL. I spent three years of my life in that building, oftentimes on a daily basis. I know the books and the building intimately. I know the employees just as intimately. It breaks my heart to think of what is possibly lost in that library. Not only in damage to materials and structure, but to the staff who works so hard to make the library what it truly is. I have always loved libraries. They very often feel much like a second home to me, because of my familiarity with them. So to see one in such a condition is like seeing my own home...just devastating.
Obviously, there is more than just the library that is affected by this tragedy. Thousands are misplaced from their homes. Businesses in the downtown area are destroyed or at the very least water damaged. Our city, as well as hundreds of others around the state of Iowa have months of hard recovery ahead of us.
As I stated in the beginning, it is just so hard to put into words what I have seen over the last few days.
But I, like hundreds of others will be there when the waters recede to help with clean up. We will rebuild. But we most certainly will never forget.
Please keep all Cedar Rapids citizens and others in your thoughts.
Natural disasters like this don't happen here. They happen somewhere other than here and I watch them on the national news in disbelief, but also in relief that it's not happening here.
But then it did.
It happened here.
In a catastrophic way.
I have yet to run into one person in this area who hasn't either seen the footage on television or actually witnessed it for themselves. Most have that glazed over look in their eye. The kind of look that recognizes they've seen something terrible and yet, cannot even begin to process it. It is just totally mind-blowing to see downtown Cedar Rapids right now. It looks surreal. Like something out of a bad movie. But it's not. It's real. Very real. It is so devastating to see buildings swallowed entirely by water. Buildings, that we here are all so familiar with.
One building in particular, that I and my fellow colleagues at HPL are all too familiar with is the Cedar Rapids Public Library. I cried when I saw the building in an ariel shot on the news. It literally took my breath away to see how high the water was around that building. And then to think about how high the water must be inside the building made me sick to my stomach.
For those of you who don't know, I am a former employee of CRPL. I spent three years of my life in that building, oftentimes on a daily basis. I know the books and the building intimately. I know the employees just as intimately. It breaks my heart to think of what is possibly lost in that library. Not only in damage to materials and structure, but to the staff who works so hard to make the library what it truly is. I have always loved libraries. They very often feel much like a second home to me, because of my familiarity with them. So to see one in such a condition is like seeing my own home...just devastating.
Obviously, there is more than just the library that is affected by this tragedy. Thousands are misplaced from their homes. Businesses in the downtown area are destroyed or at the very least water damaged. Our city, as well as hundreds of others around the state of Iowa have months of hard recovery ahead of us.
As I stated in the beginning, it is just so hard to put into words what I have seen over the last few days.
But I, like hundreds of others will be there when the waters recede to help with clean up. We will rebuild. But we most certainly will never forget.
Please keep all Cedar Rapids citizens and others in your thoughts.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Drowned Rat?
I don't know about the rest of you...but I'm starting to feel a little tired of the rain!
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