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Wow! The Kelly Girls are getting a lot of good press lately. Check us out until Thursday at the Chicago Reader calendar and also, picked up from there, at Chicagoist.com. To be honest, I like "knitting is the new lipgloss" or maybe "yoga," better than the "new smoking," but if knitting gets you to quit a bad habit, who am I to argue?
Hurray for Bust!
It's always a joyous mail day when my new issue arrives. Vital articles for you crafty young professionals include "Saving for Slackers," an excellent guide to money management; and "Art of Glass," how to make your very own etched glass housewares at home!
Also, a reminder about the Renegade Craft Fair in September. This was a blast last year, with gorgeous sunny weather and lots of superb homemade goods by crafters from all over. Not to be missed. There's still time to join and sell your own stuff there, too!
I was deeply disappointed by the American Libraries article on the future of library leadership. Apparently, the authors' survey of current ARL library directors and assistance/associate directors indicated that the following leadership characteristics (among others) were considered low-priority: facilitation of group processes, developing extra-library partnerships, implementing systems assessing the library's value to users, and "creation of an environment that fosters accountability." Also considered unimportant or low-value personal traits were: a sense of humor, interpersonal skills, team-building, and "commitment to explaining decisions."
This article really brought into focus for me my frustrations with the library field as it currently stands. It's not that I don't approve of the many important traits that were rated highly. It's that I was saddened by the idea that team-building, accountability, assessment, and relationships with staff were ranked so low. Academic libraries desperately need to embrace their staff (librarians and paraprofessionals alike) and to encourage their input and participation. Many of these low-rent traits would be valuable in achieving those goals. It's too bad our current directors don't think they're important.
This week's Chicago Reader Calendar (back page of section 1) features the Kelly Girls! If you found us there, we really do welcome new members of all stripes (or spots, or whatever). Come see us on Wednesday and get in touch with your crafty self!
This is only funny because my mother and I are contemplating beginning the hunt for The Dress soon. See Cathy attempt the same feat.
Is Boolean dead? You know you're in trouble when Mary Ellen Bates is asking that question.
But she has some good points. Much as I want my freshmen to understand the different between AND and OR, and how to combine searches in OVID, I do find myself wondering why we can't simplify the mechanics for them. I have the same reaction to this issue that I have to the idea of seamless metasearching:
[picture me swooning with a hand to my brow] But what if they no longer understand the difference between a book chapter and an article? What if they never use a print journal again? O woe is me!
We need to figure out how much (if at all) it actually matters if they can't differentiate content types and search etiquette, as long as they understand how to evaluate what they get when they get it. (via Librarian in Black)
Blake could use your help to support the endlessly informative LISNews. Won't you donate? Every little bit helps. Blake, I hope the money I sent makes a difference.
Canada is once again permitting knitters to bring their projects on flights.
This week, Transport Canada removed four items from its list of things that are not permitted to be carried aboard an airplane: corkscrews (except for those with knives attached), knitting needles, sports racquets, such as those used for squash and tennis, and whips.
Whips. Right. A new slogan for TKGA:
Knitting needles: Certified as safe as whips by Canadian authorities!
Apparently some archaeologists think they've unearthed the Library of Alexandria. As cool as that is, the best part of this article is the picture: an image of the library as seen in Carl Sagan's Cosmos. (via LISNews)
Hurray! The Kelly Girls had an excellent time last night at the CosmiCafe. We ate, we drank, we dished, we had new members! Forgive any misspellings, ladies and gentleman.
Amy finally returned from a long sojourn with the back of a sweet sweet baby sweater (Bookworm, I believe), gorgeously cabled.
Larissa's pink-and-purple scarf is progressing beautifully toward completion.
Liz is just beginning the Sitcom Chic sweater from Knitty. Check out her fab starfish stitch marker!
Kim & Sarah looked so cute knitting together on the couch, I had to catch them in the act. The Harry Potter scarf is Sarah's, the felted bag (I believe this pattern was the basis for both this one and Nancy's, right?) is Kim's. Sorry for the blur.
Jeff is our Zen knitter. Here's his project, currently entitled, "Orange."
Finally, here's the current status of the flowery shawl. It's coming along nicely. The center diamond is about 2/3 complete, and then I get to start the part I can't decipher in the pattern. Uh oh.
I regret that I somehow didn't get a photo of Jen's Knitty shrug (this one?), in basic black, but I'm sure the sleeves (woe to sleeves, the bane of many knitters) will be done soon.
Also, Nancy was swatching for what is sure to be a stunning Rebecca sweater, but didn't have the right size needles to create something I could take a photo of. Next time, no doubt.
I have to admit, I was hugely amused at last week's Bookslut book group, when it turned out that most of the attendees that night (discussing Haruki Murakami's Underground) were moderate to rabid Buffy & Angel fans. The Bookslut herself is now wondering about the possible existence of WWBD paraphernalia. Oh she of little faith, of course there is! I had a keychain, but it broke.
Are there gamers out there who still haven't seen Order of the Stick? Start at the beginning. Trust me.
I really do adore Neil Gaiman. A new ALA poster features his charming self, and he linked to the Guardian's library vs. Google deathmatch with a positive library spin. Good man.
Ok, I am in love with my Palm. I can admit that. But this, this really gets me excited. Jenny says that makes me (and her) gadget whores. But really, how can anyone resist a laser-projected keyboard for your handheld?
Tangognat is demonstrating her knitting prowess.
So I haven't been reading as much as I usually do, because while I can prop a comic book up on my knees and read while I'm knitting, I have not been able to do that with a novel.
Why do librarians insist upon multitasking? The other day, my fiance answered the phone and began chatting with one of my girlfriends. When asked what I was doing, he said, "Oh, you know, relaxing. She's knitting, reading, and watching TV at the same time."
Telnet? Awww! I really miss telnet catalogs. Man, what I wouldn't give for NOTIS some days.
Today I had to rescue a student's unsaved file when her mouse died just before she sent it to print. It took all my mystical DOS-engendered knowledge to ALT her document's way to freedom. These kids don't remember DOS. They don't know what the ALT key does, besides log them on to the occasional computer along with CTRL-DELETE. The future is bleak.
Is it a sheep, or a shawl? Whatever it is, the flowers are working up beautifully.
Felted bags are all the rage at Kelly Girls these days.
We also have sweaters and socks.
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Debbie Stoller is a national knitting treasure. Every time she's quoted she improves the image of crafty women everywhere.
"I think it's really satisfying to have something in your life that's just to do so you can relax," Stoller said. "It's not about making money, getting thinner. It's just about doing something for the pleasure of it."
A sweet article about the librarians at one of my favorite childhood haunts, the incomparable Skokie Public Library. (via ShelfLife)
Library poster to capture young
How can you argue with a headline like that? Sounds like a Twilight Zone episode to me....
Steve "Bobst Boy" Stanzak has been getting the royal treatment in the news. I often tell my students I live at the library, but I'm kidding. I was sad to see no librarians were interviewed about their erstwhile houseguest.
His school paper suggests that perhaps the university should offer one student per year the opportunity to live in the library as part of Stanzak's legacy.
What could be more scholarly than to live in a library, a sanctum sanctorum of human knowledge?
This one has been all over the web. Apparently knitting can help you cope with the trauma in your life. Caught up in a revolution? Forced to watch a slasher film? Knitting can help prevent those nasty flashbacks.
The study of how people's memories of traumatic events are affected by what they were doing at the time could help to prevent accident victims from having flashbacks.
It could also explain the effectiveness of worry beads in reducing tension and why the tricoteuses of the French Revolution, who knitted while watching people being guillotined and inspired Dickens' character Madame Defarge in A Tale of Two Cities, never apparently experienced post-traumatic stress disorder.
Ahh, I remember when e-books were going to be the next big thing. Check out Sony's new Librie, reviewed and commented upon here and here.
"In a way it's like Filipino stick fighting, except I've gone down to really little sticks," Wilson said Wednesday night as he sat in Westville Pub in West Asheville, trying to master the two basic stitches, knitting and purling. "It is calming - it's a lot different than getting hit in the head with boxing gloves."
More grammar school knitters, but this bunch is nicely multicultural and multi-gendered, and focuses on the charitable aspects of knitting. Also:
Principal Audrey Sofianos said she's been amazed at how the volunteer work has taken off -- and by the academic benefits the extracurricular activity offers.
The patterns and schemes used require the students to use memorization skills, the clickity-clack of the knitting needles strengthens manual dexterity, and the creativity of the craft offers limitless opportunities to explore their imaginations.
NASA wants an independent contractor to create an electronic archive of its huge repository of images and films.
Trying to stay on budget, the agency will not pay for the work, but rather offer the successful bidder an opportunity to use the materials however it seems best including commercially.
Am I the only one who feels antsy about NASA selling its materials to an outside vendor? (via ResearchBuzz)
The annual "Who Reads What?" list is now available. Great! Now I can feel secure in the knowledge that Jeri Ryan (7 of 9) reads John Irving, and that king of YA horror novels, R.L. Stine, likes Ray Bradbury.
Neat neat neat! Check out this exhibition on the history of games. "In "Pastimes and Paradigms: Games We Play," visitors can peruse early nineteenth-century geographical board game; a Civil War game; games designed to boost support for women's suffrage; a vintage Monopoly game; gambling punchboards; and a collection of games based on television shows. The concept behind the collection is the importance of games as a reflection of society and culture, and their subtle effect on politics, education, morality and other important issues of the day." (via ShelfLife)
