karanaflower

~change subject~
Mr. Wonderful is busy readying the house for eventual resale. Yeah! He's so good at being a handy man. The only downside: the furniture is everywhere and it's going to be one of those times where I'll be looking for something and realize it's buried behind fifteen other hard to move objects. But it's all worth it. :) The carpet was torn up in the dining room and he was going to try to do the living room today. We have hardwood floors under it but the other two rooms have tile (possibly, he's not really sure). Fun times!
I will be fervently finishing a cross-stitching during this time before I can adequately help. That sounds stupid but it's true. I'm so close to being done, I just want to finish it before the move. Ka-kaw!
~change subject~
Moment of Transitional Zen:

current mood: thirsty

When I lived in the Austin house, it was not in the greatest part of town. In fact, I said it was on the corner of Hooker Ln. and Crack Alley. It wasn't that bad (although I'm convinced I saw a "lady" give oral pleasure to a man outside my bedroom window...don't worry, they were in a car) but it wasn't that good. Anyway, there was some low-rent apartments as you drove towards Lamar. There were always questionable looking people hanging around and the apartments themselves were pretty crappy. But one apartment had a little yard full of beautiful flowers. Hibiscus, trailing vines with blooms, etc, in orange and red. The yard was obviously cared for daily and even in winter, the owner had the forethought to cover the plants when it was harsh outside. I always liked driving by that yard because it gave me a sense of hope and unexpected beauty. This person worked so hard to make a crappy looking apartment, small yard, and probably dangerous environment beautiful. It made me feel like an idiot because I wasn't doing the same for myself and I was probably in a better situation than they were but it also encouraged and inspired me. 
Yesterday at work, I went outside to make a phone call. I work in a building that is usually incredibly busy. Chairs, trash, cars, concrete, people, smells, chatter, yelling, all sorts of negatives permeate my day. Outside, for the very first time, I noticed that part of the building overlooks a pasture with some horses and cows. It is on a little bit of a hill and is cleared enough to have nice land for the animals while keeping beautiful shade trees. I was so happy to see this pastoral scene and I wanted to run away from the building, strip off my clothes and embrace the animals and trees. 
Well, you can imagine I didn't do that. But I will visit this scene again, especially when stressed.
I love Spring. I never remember my strong feelings for Spring until it is here. It seems, suddenly, that everything lives again. Colorful, vibrant (especially after a rain), natural, and inviting. 
Maybe I will fulfill that dream today of basking with the animals....
Moment of Beauty Zen (unexpectedly)

current mood: hopeful

First: worse shirt ever.

Mr. Wonderful and I actually saw this on Spellbound, that movie about the spelling bee. Yeah. Almost as bad as the "Jesus Got-Her-Done" shirt which a patron was wearing the other day. Yes, I know.
So this weekend was wild and woolly for several reasons. First: both brothers, parents, Auntie, and sister-in-law were at our house where we played games. My dad created a game called "Real Life." It was much like the Game of Life except you accumulated stress and happiness points. If you accumulated 40 stress points, you had to committ suicide. My dad even brought a cap gun (full of caps) and a tupperware container full of "poisoned" Skittles, for those that didn't want to use the cap gun. My brother (Joseph), dad, and Mr. Wonderful ended up committing suicide. It's a brutal game and it lasted for four hours. Despite the casualties and length, it was fun and a little bit autobiographical (ex. the "Daughter Quits Job Yearly" space was one stress point while the "Pick Stickers" space was 2 happiness points. It's kind of a complicated game but once we got the hang of it, it was fun. My mom started crying though when my brother "committed" suicide. 

Next we played The New Yorker (Melissa hated it) and Loaded Question. Fifteen hours later (my mom retired around 9 pm and took a six hour "nap"), we were done and it was awesomely fun!! My favorite part: when I thought some guys in the New Yorker had large brains and hosts of a Physics radio station. They were actually turbans and they were in the Middle East. Yeah, you get tired sometimes.
The next day we got up early and hiked over to the Body Worlds exhibit. This was my second time to see the exhibit but it was really awesome the second time around (it was awesome the first time too). The same group from the night before minus Steven and Auntie went. We were joined by Aunt T, Jeremy, Uncle D, Oma and Ross. Everyone had a great time! Mr. Wonderful, my dad, and I checked out the Children's museum too because they had a farm and tons of fake food, one of my favorite things to play with. They also had a fakr cow (full of water) that you could milk but it was tapped out when I tried. My favorite line: Dad: "Yeah, Mary tried to milk a dry cow!" Hehehehehehe

Then we went to Oma's house and had chicken and chatted. It turns out that Aunt T likes dead people as much as I do and is thinking about being an Autopsy Technician. I started doing some research for her and maybe I will too!! It sounds interesting and I wouldn't have to be cop first.
Then we went to Auntie's house and had BBQ. Eating every four hours is filling. :) Finally we went home, after non-stop chatter from my parents, Melissa, Joseph, Auntie, me, and Mr. Wonderful. We just couldn't get enough of each this weekend!
Other firsts: 
I got a perm. It's not bad and I like looking different. I feel like Andie McDowell in Groundhog Day, minus the black hair.

I watched the America's Next Top Model season premiere and promptly called Tiny Robot to make sure she was also watching it. She wasn't but quickly changed stations. She did miss Tyra Banks "steppin'" and Jael throwing down verbally. But we all got a good laugh anytime Kathleen talked. My favorite quote from her:
Panel: "How do you really feel about wearing fur?"
Kathleen: "I'm o.k. with wearing fur if the animal died naturally. You know, like it was old or something? Or they found it? That happens, right?"
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?
I know that models aren't the sharpest tacks in the box but you have got to be kidding me. And only one person knew who Richard Avedon was. Come on!

I got my vampire shirt in!! It's so cute!

It's on blue though.
That's pretty much all my firsts from last week. I'm so tired now from the weekend. *sigh* 
Zzzzzzzzzzennnnnn:

current mood: sleepy

I have been listening to my "O Brother Where Art Thou?" soundtrack and loving it!! Yeah! And the best part was getting it for cheap at Recycled Books and Records. I *love* thou!
Two major things to post about: ovaries and libraries. I'll get the ovaries out of the way first.
Last Friday I noticed pain in what I assumed was my ovary region. Every once in a while, I get pain there. I believe I have gigantic eggs that travel down the Fallopian tubes, scraping the walls with their round egg-edges. The pain usually lasts a day, is about a 3 or 4 on the pain scale (which means bothersome, constant, and just "there" but not cramp bad), and then goes away. Well it didn't. Come Sunday I started getting concerned. I called my aunt who works for a gyno and she said that I probably had an ovarian cyst. That caused me to worry but she said that women get them during every cycle and they usually go away. Sometimes they don't, sometimes they are more noticeable, sometimes they rupture, etc. but they usually don't do anything. On Monday I scheduled an appointment with the doctor. Tuesday: doctor. She sampled my urine for infections and pregnancy, felt around, and then ordered an ultrasound. She said it was most likely the cyst and it's rupture/fluids but wanted to make sure. I had the ultrasound this morning and my ovaries look great! The technician said it was probably a ruptured cyst but the radiologist and my doctor would be able to tell me for sure in a few days. So I'm relieved that it is nothing beyond what my aunt has said in the beginning. You might think me paranoid for going through all these steps but I would rather cover my butt than wind up with ovarian cancer down the block due to my negligence. :)

(I have no clue what a chocolate cyst is. Maybe they all look like that? I wonder why the ruptured cyst uterus looks so weird?)
The other thing: libraries. I have been reading a lot of library literature (it all came at once. Two Library Journals, an American Libraries, and two CRLs). 
**Congratulations to Laura who got an article published in the recent CRL!!! It was a great article and I'm so glad you are sharing your knowledge with all of us!!**
O.k..because I have been reading a lot, I have been getting inspired, then depressed, then lazy, then hopeful, then tired. There's so much cool stuff out there that libraries are doing. I feel like I'm wasting my time here. O.k...to be more accurate, I feel like I'm living in a Black Hole. In the Hole, I can't think, I can't do. I can just react. In my diary at home I talked about how I feel like some days we take two steps forward and then one step back. Other days we take two steps back and that's it. I don't know what it is about this place but it just feels like it's strangling me. 
But then, on the other hand, I read an article about how librarians are like artisans. It takes several years for them to perfect their craft. So perhaps I feel like I'm in a Black Hole because I am still a novice and the only thing that will get me out of this Hole is to continue with my craft. I would like to, I just need to do it somewhere where I can put search clouds on the webpages! 

See, isn't that awesome!! So if your class is researching all the same or similar topics, your little search cloud can recreate the searches for you!! These library articles are cool like that, they give me hope.
One of them talked about field librarians. Field Librarians work in academic departments and the library. So they are like subject specialists but they also get to do things like go on buying trips with professors and finding obscure text in their subject. They also (maybe) had an office in the department and worked one on one with the department for BIs, research, etc. The funding is set up differently so it makes them more than just a subject specialist but not much more.
The other article talked about a lady who is the Hospitality Management librarian at UCF. She gets to do a BI for a History of Winemaking class!! Then they sample different wines. Yum! 
There are lots of interesting stories. I know I will be like that someday but not today. But someday.
Moment of Zen:

current mood: tired

Things I'm tired of:
1) Being cold. It's been going on for far too long. It was in the 40s or maybe even 50s yesterday and today the high is 38. And I will be surprised if it gets there and stays for longer than two seconds. Punxsutawney Phil is a liar. He said there would be an early Spring. Maybe in Philadelphia (but I doubt it. Weather forecast for the Northeast is tons of snow). 

The fact that he is a liar prevents me from buying this stylish hat. That and the fact that it is sold out. And that it is incredibly ugly. :)
2) I'm tired of people being sick. Not only has it dessimated our student assistant population, it is just nasty hearing "hack hack, cough cough, spit spit" all the time. Now, I'm a little biased here because I rarely get sick and don't really understand people who are sick all the time (I would have to shoot myself in the face if I got as sick as some people, just because when I get sick, I get SICK and I can't/don't want to move. So to be like that all the time seems wretched!). I just think of all the evil that is coming out of someone's mouth when they are hacking, and how that evil is spreading. It scares me. So no more sickness, people!

(he's sick, but in a different way....hehehehehehe)
3) People not trying. This includes the following:
     *not pushing in their chairs. Come on!
     *not thinking for themselves. "Do you have an outline that can be printed out?" I wanted to say "Yes, it's called Google it" but instead I referred to the APA style manual. Now, if this person had not been a person I despised from early encounters where he wanted me to do everything for him, I would have tried to show him how to do just this. But I had previous encounters with this individual and he does expect you to do everything for him. So he gets the style manual (which does have an outline example. It's just not as easy).
     *not thinking for themselves, part deux. "Where's the Smith reserve?" My answer: "On the reserve shelf. It's labeled Smith." This is just like when I worked at Wal-Mart and people asked where the Pharmacy was. I would say "It's down the aisle, to the left, under the big sign that says Pharmacy." I know that these are smart ass responses but how else do you describe it?
    *thinking that mediocre is acceptable. "I need to write an article on the Digital Divide. I need three sources." I do a search and bam! two e-books about the Digital Divide. They both look incredible. I point these sources out to the lady and she says "O.k....I'm going to stick to these articles though because they are easier. You know what I mean?" Yes, I do. But I'm still disappointed. No, I don't expect her to be rolling around archival sources in ecstasy but I would think that using an e-book, especially one where you can print pages individually and search the entire book for whatever word you want, is also easy. Are we handicapping our students by showing them the easy way? Or empowering them?


Things I love: 
1) YOU, you sexxxy thing!!! Happy Valentine's Day!!

2) The groundhog. I can't help it. He's hard to resist.
3) Milk. Damn. Cow's taste good, in all forms.

(I know some of you have problems with Horizon but I like them)
3) My new found favorite place to shop if I had money: Thread Head creations.

(o.k...I have money. But I want to overhaul my wardrobe and I can't so I have to do it one thing at a time. Not a problem, just tedious).
That's pretty much it. 
I want to thank God that I don't live in Iraq. The head of the National Library there writes a blog (you can access an excerpt from the NY Times by going to NY Times and typing in Baghdad Day to Day) and it is just imaginable what he and his staff are going through. I talked with my colleague about the situation and we both agreed we would have quit a long time ago and gone home to our mommies. :) It's the fact that he stays, that he continues to work, that he cares so very much that is just amazing. I feel blessed but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop being annoyed. Although it probably should. 
Moment of Zen:

current mood: calm

This past weekend, I was snowed in with 

karanaflower

current mood: devious

Mr. Wonderful and I are finally back to watching movies using Netflix. We have had the subscription for awhile but have never found the time to sit and watch the movie in its entirety. So, we had Garden State since September and I finally plucked up the courage (maybe?) to watch it. 
Meh. That's pretty much all I have to say about it. It was o.k. I have heard from others "you gotta watch it. It's got great music." It does have great music but I found myself not really caring about the characters or even having a desire to finish the movie. In fact, I started checking my email at the end and tuning out. I will admit: I'm weird when it comes to movie watching.

To me, watching a movie is something that should be done with the lights on so I can do something else. It started in my youth when I would do homework/projects while my family had movie night. I think I'm pretty good and following the plot and doing something else (probably wouldn't advocate homework but a mindless activity like cross-stitching works just fine). The only time I am willing to watch a movie with lights turned off is in the theater or when a bunch of people are watching as a group activity. Otherwise: prefer the lights on so I don't feel like I'm wasting time. I don't believe watching a movie is wasting time but I do like multi-tasking. 
We also watched Crash (lights on, me cross-stitching. I was going through boxes during Garden State). Crash was good but at times I felt like it too quickly devolved into the stereotypes and critiques. However, if the movie was striving to make a point, point taken. It centers around a 36 hour period in LA and the lives of at least a dozen characters. How the characters intertwine, how their preconceived notions of people change or don't change, their lives, etc. It's worth a look. In the first five minutes, Mr. Wonderful and I were convinced that everyone was a jerk and that really doesn't change throughout the movie. But it gives you a sense of how quickly people can become uncivilized and start crossing those boundaries that are pretty thinly veiled to begin with. And it has my new favorite actress: Thandie Newton.

She totally rocked in this movie. I don't remember if she was nominated for anything but if she was, she deserved to win. And if she wasn't, she deserved to be nominated. And if she won, bravo. Greatness.
On to lighter things: really bad pick-up lines:
10) I can't find my puppy, can you help me find him? I think he went into this cheap motel room.
8) Man - "Fat Penguin!"
>   Woman - "WHAT?"
>   Man - "I just wanted to say something that would break the ice."
hehehehhe, fat penguin.

I had a fun-filled weekend of museum going, food eatery, and parent watching. My mom turned 53 on Saturday and we celebrated Friday night. Before that time, I went to a photography exhibit (and also saw their permanent collection) at the Amon Carter Museum and trotted over to the Kimbell and viewed their permanent painting collection. Fun for all!! The Amon Carter had a photography exhibit about nature (with some gorgeous embroidered silks patterned after the actual photos), an Audubon exhibit, an American Indian exhibit, and a photographic portraiture exhibit. Huzzah!! The Kimbell had mostly European paintings from Medieval to Modern (including a Mondrian). They also had a sculpture exhibit but I was running out of time. 
I met my parents at La Madeleine which is fastly becoming their most favorite restaurant. I also like it but kind of wish we had visited a non-chain. Oh well. : ).
Saturday: cleaned and watched movies.
Sunday: went to the Amon Carter again with parents and Mr. Wonderful. Then we had dinner at Shady Oaks BBQ. It was a lot better than I expected and I stuffed myself silly. Those New Year's Resolutions are starting off with a bang!! At least they are present in my mind and I am actively thinking and making plans to do something instead of giving up. 
Moment of Zen:

Praise for the grand library!! Yesterday, I went to make copies at the library. Unbeknownst to me, it was closing. Ack! And I left my wallet behind in a panic to not keep the kind staff there any longer than needed. Today, in my stressed out state, I went to the library upon opening. Lo and behold my wallet was there and nothing was missing! Salew!!

Now to the dark side: Library Link of the Day shared this article about aggressive weeding. After looking at the list, I hardly agree that the majority of those books should be weeded based on checkout alone. Most of the literary canon should be kept for reference purposes at least, not to mention people that don't necessarily cdheck these books out but still use them. And libaries are fastly becoming the only place where you can get access to some books in physical format since bookstores are carrying only items that sell. Still, I am not a public librarian and the time period for weeding books in academia is years, not months. I am also of the opinion that it is far better to carry Plato and have no one read it than four copies of the same Janet Dailey novel and for them to always be out. Contradictory yes but there's a small portion of me that believes that if you only have popular fiction, you are maintaining a disservice to your patrons. Again, not a public librarian and there's probably a good reason for that since no one would come to my ancient public library. :)

Some changes are a-brewing in Booklahverland. More details forthcoming.
Half of Mr. Wonderful's family is going back to Russia. They are there as missionaries. I met them for the first time in December and they are super-ultra-fun. We will miss them but they seem to really like it over there. Mr. Wonderful and I will have to make a trip up there before they are reassigned! :)
Moment of Zen brings you: Kitler.

On a completely different note: I'm glad they play Metallica on "older" radio stations now. Makes me feel bad-ass at work. :) I know severe metalheads and my brother would probably disagree but I for one welcome it. 
Moment of Metal Zen: