Banned Books Week: *BLEEP*

Banned Books Week: Author speaks out

via Kids' Right to Read Project

Banned Books Week: Puppet Time!

Banned Books Week: The List

Each year, ALA publishes a list of books challenged or banned in the past year:

"The challenges documented in this list are not brought by people merely expressing a point of view; rather, they represent requests to remove materials from schools or libraries, thus restricting access to them by others. Even when the eventual outcome allows the book to stay on the library shelves and even when the person is a lone protester, the censorship attempt is real. Someone has tried to restrict another person’s ability to choose. Challenges are as important to document as actual bannings, in which a book is removed from the shelves of a library or bookstore or from the curriculum at a school. Attempts to censor can lead to voluntary restriction of expression by those who seek to avoid controversy; in these cases, material may not be published at all or may not be purchased by a bookstore, library, or school district."

See the list of books here

Banned Books Week: Manifesto

Get a PDF of the poster here

Friday Fun: Dragon*Con Thriller

I know Dragon*Con was weeks ago, but here's a fun video of costumed con-goers doing the Thriller dance. The video is a bit long, but there are a few costumes which make it worth watching the whole thing - like the alien from Alien (who knew it could dance?), Westley & Buttercup, a disco-ball stormtrooper, and zombie Quidditch players.

An iTricorder?

Some (more) interesting stats

A bit of a compaion to my earlier post about social media.



(via Mashable)

Arrrrrr, Matey! It's the Shelf o' Pirates!

This year, I be givin' ye landlubbers a peek at me piratey interior decoratin' - I may decerate fer Halloween and Christmas fer a few short weeks, but I decerate fer Talk Like a Pirate Day year 'round with my Shelf o' Pirates. I know not where that scurvy Jedi wandered in from, but I see he gave that lass Elizabeth Swan a might purty lightsaber - now she can cut down e'en more scalawags!

Friday Fun: Too Much Butter

Finally (I've been such a bag BAD, bad! blogger this week), today's Friday Fun, from one of my favorite shows:

Wednesday Pic: Signs, signs...

1880 Train 08, originally uploaded by mdesive.

Musings on my clutter

Blogger's Blog of Note today is Ramblings of the Bearded One. In skimming through his posts, I came across one about how he makes notes in the margins of his Sudoku books. This sounds like my process for most of my notebooks and other scraps of paper [bold type is mine]:

Before I can throw an old Sudoku book away, it has to be meticulously gone through and any important information needs to be transferred to a different scrap of paper, to be put in a pile, lost, briefly refound and placed in another important pile, lost again, then rediscovered 2 years later when it is no longer relevant.

My piles of paper are legendary. But I am getting better. Really! Truly! I'm trying to implement GTD in my life, but like anything else, I can't just follow the directions, I have to add my own twist, so it doesn't quite work out the way it's supposed to.

Still, even partial GTD has helped me vastly. By simply asking myself "What's the next action?" I've gotten past the overwhelm of dealing with my clutter. I can now use my garage, family room, and home office all at the same time. Not one is full of the boxes and clutter from all the other rooms, which is how it used to be. I've spent years shuffling boxes from one of those areas to another, depending on which area needed to be used at the time.

I never remember to take "before" pictures,
but here's a "before before" picture ;)

The most improvement still needs to come in the garage, but I keep whittling away at the stuff out there. For now, I'm happy I can get my car in. Someday, we'll be able to get both vehicles in! (It's great to have lofty goals, isn't it?)

It's 9:00 on 9/9/09

Just thought you'd like to know.

Motivation

I came across this today in GTD Times. Great advice about a way to keep yourself focused on your goals: send yourself reminders of what your goal is. (I definitely will be implementing this.)

Send a letter to yourself! Mothercraft Tip (Life Coach Carley Knobloch) from Carley Knobloch on Vimeo.

Friday fun: Medieval tech support

Once upon a time, books were "new media" and this might be how some encountered them:

Wednesday Pic: Butterfly

DSC_0287, originally uploaded by mdesive.

September is Library Card Sign-up Month!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Now that school is in full swing, there's one more supply you need to get your kid (or yourself if you don't already have one): A Library Card! [Insert heavenly music and golden, glowing card here! Sorry, didn't have any, you'll have to supply your own]

I remember getting my card on a school trip to the library (our school was small enough that we didn't have a proper library, so every few weeks, we took a trip to the public library). I remember having that feeling I still get every time I go to the library:

OMG SO MANY BOOKS CAN I TAKE THEM ALL HOME????

If you aren't convinced you need a library card...

52 Ways to Use Your Library Card
by the American Library Association

1. Get to know your librarian, the ultimate search engine @ your library.
2. Update your MySpace Facebook page. [my strikethrough - MySpace = bleh]
3. Research new job opportunities.
4. Find a list of childcare centers in your area.
5. Learn about local candidates for office.
6. Pick up voter registration information.
7. Check out your favorite graphic novel.
8. Pick up a DVD.
9. Get wireless access.
10. Participate in a community forum.
11. Find out how to navigate the Internet.
12. Prepare your resume.
13. Get new ideas for redecorating your house.
14. Get a list of community organizations.
15. Attend a lecture or workshop.
16. Hear a local author reading his/her latest novel.
17. Join a book discussion group.
18. Attend preschool story hour with your child.
19. Get homework help.
20. Look up all kinds of health information.
21. Research the purchase of a new car.
22. Trek to another planet in a Sci-Fi novel.
23. Call the reference desk if you have a question.
24. Research your term paper.
25. Learn about the history or your city or town.
26. Decide which computer to buy using a consumer guide.
27. Check your stock portfolio.
28. Borrow or download an audiobook for your next road trip or commute.
29. Use the library’s resources to start a small business.
30. See a new art exhibit.
31. Volunteer as a literacy tutor.
32. Find a new recipe.
33. Ask for a recommended reading list for your kids.
34. Make photocopies.
35. Get a book from interlibrary loan.
36. Enroll your child in a summer reading program.
37. Take a computer class.
38. Hear a poetry reading.
39. Take out the latest fashion magazine.
40. Enjoy a concert.
41. Trace your family tree.
42. Check out a special collection of rare books.
43. Check out a legal question or issue.
44. Find out how to file a consumer complaint.
45. Learn about home improvement.
46. Borrow some sheet music.
47. Learn how to use a database or computerized catalog.
48. Find the latest romance paperback.
49. Pick up tax forms.
50. Connect with other people in the community.
51. Find a quiet spot, curl up with a book and enjoy.
52. Read a newspaper from another country.