Know your Patrons

Posted on 2012/02/20 by sanchezkisser

Working in a public environment, one thing that seems to always amaze me is the reality of the likes and dislikes of our users. When popular culture seems fixated on one thing, your patrons may be interested in something totally different.

I am helping create programs for the Summer Reading Program for the teens this summer. A suggestion that has been making the rounds is to create a program related to the Hunger Games series. With the movie to be released this March and the books on the New York Bestseller list for weeks now and with high hold lists for these books at the library,  this seems like a good choice.

So to verify this, I surveyed a group of our teens with possible theme ideas. The results were pretty astounding. The Hunger Games came last on the list of themes with Vampire Party at the top. I wasn’t too surprised about this since most of our holds are being placed by adults, not teens. Also, this book has been out since 2008, many teens probably read it in the early days and are now onto something new. And like I said, they will always surprise you at what they are interested in, so ask them what they are into, don’t ever assume.

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Dissolving the Mystery of the Web

Posted on 2012/02/13 by sanchezkisser

Sometimes I forget that many people only have a limited view of what is available on the internet. The idea that you need to have a complex webpage for small organizations that just need to provide information about their organization and be able to easily update their site with news and events. I recently worked with a patron who had a website set up for their organiztion by a volunteer and had lost access to the site.

The solution for the patron was to try taking HTML classes to learn how to make a webpage from scratch on their spare time. Little did they know that webpages can be made easier now using open source software like WordPress and the page can be made to look like a webpage. I had to explain that for small organizations, the needs for their online webpage is information, not flash. And the ability to be updated easily and the responsiblity divided by multiple people, rather than the responsibility of one.

After assessing their needs and the technology available at their organization, I offered another solution by creating a webpage using WordPress. I used examples from the showcase to show how other organizations of their size have utilized the software and sculpted it do what they needed. After walking her through some of the examples and using my own webpage to show how the page is administered they began to see the possibilities. I enjoyed being able to dissolve the mystery of the web and provide a simpler solution to their complex problem.

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Where not to put security

Posted on 2012/02/02 by sanchezkisser

I understand the need for security on merchandising, but could you please not put the tags on the pages of the books!

Tag in center of book

And the second tag at the back.

And a nice tag with the acknowledgments page

 

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Copyright gone haywire

Posted on 2012/01/17 by sanchezkisser

Tomorrow, January 18th, many websites will be blacking out their name and some of their services to bring awareness to two pieces of legislation proposed by the U.S. Congress: Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), which would if passed, inhibit many of the free and open internet sites we have come to depend on in our daily lives and lock them in a grand web of law suits. So if you like sharing on Facebook, Flickr, and Twitter, discovering new information on Wikipedia, and buying from artisans on Etsy, write your representatives in congress to stop these bills.

Learn more at Keepthewebopen. Contact your legislator at: Google or Wikipedia.

BTW: If you are missing Wikipedia and are in need of some information, call you local public library, the reference librarians will love to answer your questions!

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Notes found in books

Posted on 2012/01/12 by sanchezkisser

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Bean Soup

Posted on 2012/01/02 by sanchezkisser

A fresh pot of beans is one of my favorite smells in the kitchen. I remember waking up early on Saturday mornings to this smell wafting through the air. I usually have bean soup for dinner when it’s first made with tortillas, and slices of cucumber and tomatoes. The remaining beans get frozen in batches and allow us to have mashed beans for about a month.

Pinto Bean Soup
3 lbs dry beans
1 TBS Epazote
1 medium onion, halfed
1 jalopeno, whole
3 cloves of garlic, whole
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika
16 oz can diced tomatoes

Soak beans over night with water at least one inch above the beans. Drain beans and add to pot. Add water to cover one-inch above beans and Epazote. Bring beans to boil for about an hour, skim foam from top, then add onion, jalopeno, and garlic. Turn down to a simmer. Cook beans until beginning to turn soft, then lower heat and add salt, pepper, spices, and diced tomatoes.  Cook for about a half hour more, or until beans are soft.

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2011 Reading

Posted on 2011/12/27 by sanchezkisser

The end of the year is near and its time to review. This year I have been diligently recording the books I have read in GoodReads and was astonished when I checked my stats to find out that I have recorded 101 reads this year with a whopping 29,894 pages. Of course there are discrepancies, like books that I did not finish, but made a good effort to read (6), a picture book I was reviewing as a Early Reviewer for LibraryThing (1), and the audio books I listen to while commuting to work (12). Regardless, still a valiant effort. I have noticed that with the increase of reading also comes the increase of lower stars: 18-two stars (OK books) and 7-one star (I didn’t like).

My longest book read was The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters by Gordon Dahlquist at 760 pages. And my all time favorite read was The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel.

 

 

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Happy Holidays

Posted on 2011/12/20 by sanchezkisser

Postcards from the Ice Age #4: A new sport sweeps Mexico: The Aztec Snowball Toss!

Wishing you all a very happy holiday!

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Sewing Blues

Posted on 2011/12/13 by sanchezkisser

I love making new clothes, especially if they are for myself. The one thing I don’t really like doing is refitting the clothes or making alterations once the clothes are finished, I seem to do better working on other people, but when creating clothes for me I have a hard time leaving the completed clothing alone. There always seems to be something that could be improved, a seam taken in, a dart added, a lining or trim added, or small imperfections that glare ominously at me whenever I wear the clothing.
The drawback is that my sewing room closest has these dresses and a vest half way ripped apart again hanging waiting to be altered so they can go back to my clothes closet. Like a green dress that made quickly for my friend’s wedding in a day and didn’t have time to fit it better until now, two years later. It’s a great dress, Vogue 8446, but the top and the zipper needs to be taken in and a bottom lining added. I know once I finish it, I will be happy about the dress, but this keeps me from making something new. Being a perfectionist can sometimes be a very aggravating personality trait. I am slowly getting better at taking my time and wearing my outfits more before I decide to change something in them. I am hoping I’ll forget to the imperfections and just enjoy wearing my own creation.

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Muppets are Back

Posted on 2011/12/08 by sanchezkisser

On the day after Thanksgiving, my husband and friend ventured out to see the new Muppets movie. We have been enjoying the numerous parody trailers this summer and frankly my expectations were fairly low, since the last several Muppet movies were pretty lame. I was taken aback when I couldn’t stop laughing and coughing, since I was getting over a cold, through out the whole movie. What a wonderful surprise! These are the reasons I think the Muppets turned out to be so good.

  1. They didn’t give it away. In a time where movie trailers are more like 1-minute versions of the entire movie, The Muppets did a great job of keeping the main plot line hidden from their teasers. For most of the movies this year, one could save money by watching their trailers off of Apple Movie Trailers. An example would be the remake of the already good Swedish version of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” where you can see the whole movie in one long trailer. Even the Muppets parody of this trailer, called “The Pig with the Froggy Tattoo,” kept some of the plots hidden. A list of their other parodies are: Green with Envy (romantic comedy spoof), The Fuzzy Pack (The Hangover Part II), Abnormal Activity (Parnormal Activity), Being Green (Green Lantern), Fuss in Boots (Puss in Boots) and Breaking Prawn (The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn part 1). Continue reading →
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