"PL-AAH" The Final Chapter

Okay, okay...I promise this will be my last blog post about PLA! Just a few quick odds and ends to wrap up about my experience at the conference.

I cannot believe that I forgot to include this in my other blog posts! I got to meet Gene and Bill who are the creators of my all time favorite comic strip ever... Unshelved!

You don't even know what these guys mean to me. They are my hereos. I feel like we are connected on some deep librarian spiritual level.

I literally squealed like a little girl when I saw them at the exhibits hall at PLA. No lie. Squealed. And then when I actually got up there to meet them? I gushed and giggled obnoxiously like pre-teen girls do for the latest boy band phenom. It was so terrible. Yet, so right! I actually got them to autograph a t-shirt and a book for me.

Oh god, I'm feeling so flustered and giddy just typing about this. Be still my heart. The only thing I didn't manage to do was get my picture taken with them. That's okay. They're images will forever be imprinted on my heart. *smiles* Could I really be anymore pathetic?!

Actually, yes, I really could be! The exhibits hall at PLA was insanely big. By insanely, I mean you could easily take two days and never make it through all of the vendors that were there. Insane. And the best part? Every one of them wanted to give you free stuff. I love free stuff. But the thing was...it wasn't the cheezy, stupid stuff...it was cool stuff. Like books. Lots and lots of books. I came home with five...count 'em...five big bags *full* of books. It actually got to the point that I had to make trips to the car because of how much stuff I had. Most of the books were advanced copies of books that will be coming out in the next few months. But hey, who cares?! They're free books!!

*sigh* So I think this will wrap up what I will blog about my experience at PLA. There's plenty more I could probably say...then again...you're probably sick of me gushing about it. "Enough" you say...get back to the whining...you're right...enough.

I promise.

I'm done.

Over and out.

"PL-AAH" (Part Deux)

I told you I'd be back with more!!

So...It's been a couple of days since I got back from PLA (The Public Library Association's National Conference in Minneapolis for those of you who don't follow along very well!). We're pretty much all moved back into the library after the big carpet re-do (even if we still can't find anything). Now, I *finally* have some time to reflect!

To say that the whole PLA experience was amazing would be doing it a great injustice. I honestly cannot put into words just what an incredible experience this conference was for me. For one thing, it made me realize that many of the problems that we face as libraries here in the state of Iowa are actually faced by libraries all of the country. And as odd as it sounds, it's really quite a comforting thought. It's nice to be able to come together from all over the country and say "what can we do to change this?" or "what has worked for you?" Or sometimes it's just a simple, "oh, you had that problem too!" I loved being able to converse with other librarians about our similarities and our differences. In doing so, I realized how so very lucky I am to be a public librarian in Iowa. Our little state is quite progressive when it comes to recognizing the importance that our public libraries play in our communities. So you all should feel very fortunate that you're here with us too!

I attended many wonderful sessions while at the conference. One of my favorites was on safety and security at libraries. I know that many would think its ridiculous for libraries to need a session on safety and security. But what many don't realize is that we deal with *all* of the public. Key word: *all*. Almost every librarian I know has some sort of "war story" of a patron interaction gone bad. The guy who did this session was fantastic! He had been a security guard at a public library in North Carolina. He was blunt and to the point with his presentation, but downright hilarious too! One of my favorite lines from his session was actually something that his grandmother had told him as a little boy. She said, "Son, some people are just mean as hell...just like your granddaddy over there...just look at 'em!". What a hoot! He was actually discussing the different people that we meet throughout our days working at the library and in that case he was referring to those people that seem to always have a perpetual chip on their shoulder.

I also had the opportunity to see Nancy Pearl speak at a luncheon. For those of you unfamiliar with Nancy, she is the other of "Book Lust" and "Book Lust 2" as well as her newest addition to that family "Book Crush." She also happens to be the model for the Librarian Action Figure (complete with actual "shushing" motion!!). It truly was an honor to be able to see her speak. She was delightfully funny and also inspiring! For more info on Nancy check out her website at: http://www.nancypearl.com/

I did happen to get some down time away from the conference and was able to do some shopping (Helllooooo IKEA!), eat at some great restaurants, visit the Walker Contemporary Art Museum (meh...not a fan of modern art...but I went at the urging of friends), and the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. The picture to the left is Christina (Circulation Manager for CRPL) and I in front of the world famous "Spoon Bridge and Cherry." And yes, that is my leg around her...and no, there was no alcohol involved at this point in the evening! (I plead the fifth as to what happened later that evening! Ha!)

So, apart from getting lost in downtown Minneapolis multiple times (by multiple I mean at least twice, if not more everyday I was up there)...the entire experience of PLA was an amazing one. Amazing enough that I'm already firing up the whining, begging and groveling in hopes of being able to attend PLA in Portland, Oregon in 2010. Wish me luck!

I love ugly animals...

So, this blog really has nothing to do with the picture to the right...but I have a thing for ugly animals and wanted to share it! You may laugh, but it's true! My favorite animal in the whole world is frogs. Yep, those slimy, ribbett-y, hopping little creatures. Love 'em!

Anywho, onto more interesting subjects than my random odd obsessions...like cheap, nasty jelly beans...okay...I'm done...seriously...

I'm going to be attending the Public Library Association's National Conference in Minneapolis from March 26-29th. I'm super-duper excited about this!! You have no idea how much whining, groveling, nagging and begging was involved on my part in order to be able to go to this conference. I *literally* started begging to go to this conference over a year ago. No joke. Ask Jeaneal. I haven't shut up about it since I saw on the website that it was going to be in Minneapolis for 2008. Yeah, really excited about this one!

I mean, just think, there will be hundreds upon thousands of librarians from all over the country decending upon Minneapolis for this conference. Be afraid, be very afraid! Bwa-ha-ha-ha! Actually, in all reality, I'm just very excited to be able to network, attend workshops, and see vendors. It's going to be very cool and I'm sure ya'll are going to have to listen to me rave about it for the next 6 months. So get ready! I do want to send a shout out to our Friends group for their assistance in the registration fees. I'm very thankful!

Which reminds me, that is also the week that we will be laying down some new carpet in the library. (And me, the slacker, will get out of most of the work!) Because of the new carpet, we will be closed March 21-24 and March 31-April 1. We will be offering reduced services from March 25-30. These services are limited to: *check out of reserved items only, *returns, *Pre-printed tax forms only, *No juvenile programming or internet service. Please also keep in mind that Marion and Cedar Rapids will be offering full services during this time, so if you have a need that is urgent, don't hesitate to contact them for additional assistance. Finally, remember that you can return materials to any of the metro libraries as well as any of the Hy-Vee grocery stores in the Cedar Rapids area as well.

That's about it for now! Here's a re-cap for those of you who don't love me enough to read my entire post:

*I love ugly animals and cheap, nasty jelly beans
*I'm going to PLA in Minneapolis
*We are getting new carpet and will be closed for about a week

There you have it! Later tators!