Who doesn’t want to wants to be Yonce?! :D

Day 45!

I don’t generally manipulate the lottery–ok well there was butt on a tubb.  I didn’t review the book but I’ve shown you the image enough haven’t I? LOL! Good times.   Anyway.  In the 45 day history of  A Dewey A Day I’ve never completely abandoned the lottery and just  chosen a book to review based on my own selfish, biblio lust. I’m doing that today.

I’ve always appreciated the art of impressionism–not Renoir and his homies, more like Tina Fey and her homies.  What makes some folks so good at mimicking others (my younger sister, older sister and my oldest son are effortlessly good), and some people so bad (I can’t even do an impression of myself)?

But after I saw this clip, with Maya Rudolph doing a subtle but spot-on impression of the incomparable, the ultimate, the ex-quotient, the new math, the head honcho, bottom line–Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, I had to find to find a book on the subject.  What does it take to be a good copy cat?

This is what I turned up…eventually (lots of Drag Queen 101 type books kept coming up):

Lean in close to see this book because its kinda………NON EXISTENT!

I fancy myself a good researcher.   I used my synonyms, I searched in several different forums, I did my pearl growing, crumb following and all that other Library school stuff and I came up with nada.

I did find this great blog entry on the subject but no books.  This speaks volumes.  It says that it’s an art that really can’t be taught–at least not in a self help book.  Guess there’s no Cher impression in my future.

That said, I’ll leave this nugget just on G.P.

Can't say I didn't give you a title a day!

And I didn’t touch a book all day #moretolibrariesthanshelving

Day 24 and you’re back for more! 😀 (Don’t get use to those funky fresh rhymes. A girl can only give so much of herself!)

In honor of the 8th Annual Library Day in The Life Project which I learned about from my school chum’s blog, I’m gonna throw my hat in the ring too.  Because if I had a nickel for every time someone asked me “don’t you get tired of reading/shelving books all day?” I’d have—well I’d have roughly $1.35.

Fiscal matters aside, in this post I’ll outline what I did yesterday (since today is kinda just un-folding and my goal is to post before noon. The early blogger gets the reader. Or so I’ve heard) and then I’ll finish up the post with the Dewey details.

So here goes:

9:30-9:45 AM – Arrived at work. Cued up the Pandora. Put on the pot of Joe.

9:45-10:00 AM – Made sure the classroom was in order for part of a tour/presentation I’m giving.  Got handouts in order. Made changes to flash cards for speech.

10:00-11:30 AM – Greeted group of 35 from another County Agency and gave them tour/presentation.

11:30-12:00 – Returned to desk and checked emails. Did blog entry 😀

12:00-12:30 – Did quick search for some resources on entrepreneurship for one of the members from the tour.  Met with one of the tutors for the Adult Literacy Program that I coordinate

12:30-1:30 – Did stats (entered them on Access database) for various library programs

1:30 – 2:00 – Lunched with sister friend and author of this bloggy goodness!

2:00 -3:30 – Staffed the public service desk (serving the public in all its many splendours)

3:30 – 4:00 – Completed Monthly Narrative/Report to be submitted to supervisor

4:00 – 4:30 – Met with Volunteer Services coordinator re: an Adult Literacy Tutor who’ll be working with my program

4:35 – Left the building!

She looks like she's leaning with it and rocking with it. That or catching The Holy Spirit.

Bibliographic Information:

Myths and civilization of the Ancient Romans
Malam, John, 1957

New York : P. Bedrick Books, c1999

Summary (Library’s website):

This book offers readers a beautiful blend of history and mythology – providing a new approach to exploring the Ancient Romans. This book retells a selection of important myths, using dramatic illustrations and supplementing them with historical and cultural information, including realistic maps and diagrams.

My Reaction:

No time to read/skim this one.  Don’t you see how busy my days are?! 😀

Quattro Libri, not to be confused with Nacho Libre

Days 14,15,16,and 17. What can I say? I’ve been a slacker 😦

1.

The librarian’s guide to homeschooling resources

Scheps, Susan G.

Chicago, IL : American Library Association, c1998

Librarians. They can rock you world if you let em.

Summary (Library website):

As the number of homeschooled children in this country rises, the public library can be an excellent resource for parents who prefer to educate their children at home. In this new guide, Scheps (Homeschoolers and the Public Library: A Resource Guide for Libraries Serving Homeschoolers, Public Library Assn., 1993) gives librarians tips on serving the homeschool population and information on existing programs. Part 1 presents problems librarians face when serving homeschoolers, background details on what a homeschooler wants from a public library, homeschooling laws, and eight sample programs from libraries in the United States

My Reaction:

Pretty good listing of resources.  A tad dated but still applicable.

2.

Bridges

Dupré, Judith

New York : Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers : Distributed by Workman Publishing Co., c1997

Love a picture book.

Summary (Booklist Review):

The unusual size of this album–a foot and a half long by a half-foot high–evokes the elongated structures that it extols. To illustrate the dozens of bridges Dupre selects, she uses two-page spreads, featuring a beautiful black-and-white photo, often a vintage nineteenth-century image, and pairs it with a page of inset pictures and text summarizing essential facts of design, construction, and history. Eye-catching book design is the essence here, and although bridge enthusiasts have more detailed sources of knowledge, such as Henry Petroski’s Engineers of Dreams (1995), they will demand a visual feast at some point. Dupre serves up the celebrity spans, naturally, but she also displays bridges that don’t loudly brag about themselves, for instance the humble iron-truss bridges one sees in rural America. Because of its shape, this book will be hard to shelve so displaying it seems to be the best option–and the cover of the Brooklyn Bridge in its cathedral-like magnificence ensures that many patrons will stop in their tracks and look.

My Reaction:

What a beaut this book is!  Beautiful photography. Its a big-un too.  Bridges fascinate and frighten me.

3.

Wiring 101 : 25 projects you really can do yourself

 Carter, Jodie

Chanhassen, Minn. : Creative Pub. International, 2006

For me the terms 'do it yourself' and 'wiring' don't feel right together.

Summary (Library website):

Black & Decker? Wiring 101 takes the mystery (and nervousness) out of routine home wiring repairs and projects. It includes 25 of the most common projects and repairs and gives readers everything they need to know to finish each project safely, quickly, and with perfect results. Projects are arranged in order of complexity to help readers build confidence, from removing a broken light bulb to adding track lighting to installing a ceiling fan.Presuming no experience or expertise, Black & Decker? Wiring 101 will guide the would-be DIYer step-by-step with clear, jargon-free text and detailed color photos. Readers will learn exactly how to turn the power off safely and how to assemble and use a basic collection of wiring tools. This book will remove the intimidation factor from household wiring projects and allow readers to save money and make satisfying improvements.

My Reaction:

Just because there’s a DIY book for it, doesn’t mean you should DIY. I’m gonna leave the wiring to the pros.

4.

Italian made simple

Jackson, Eugene

Doubleday, 1960

If you get this book you can go to the Jersey Shore try out your Italian on Paulie, Snooki et al. Yeah right.

Summary (Library website):

For almost four decades, Made Simple books have set the standard for continuing education and home study.

My Reaction:

The book cover makes me want pizza for lunch. Mama Rosa’s here I come!

Not your Grandma’s Mother

Hi All!

Forgive me for deviating from the Dewey-A-Day norm will yall? Just had to get this out but I do give you a bite sized Dewey entry sans ‘my reaction’ at the end of the ‘Mother’ post for you die-hard Dewey heads 😀

************************

The following was inspired by a recent epiphany:

“Oooh he’s kinda cute”… “Ooh! I wanna get this outfit so I can be the bomb.com!”  These words have actually been uttered (to me mind you) from the perpetually glossed lips of my  actual 12 year old.  Pre-epiphany this kind of overly familiar teen talk would get met with a disapproving glare from me or a scold:  How are you talking to me!? You do know I’m your mother right?! That’s inappropriate!

I may owe my daughter an apology greater understanding.  You see, prior to this epiphany whether I “did it like my mother” was my litmus test for whether I was mothering right.  I now see a mild error in that logic  because all of the ‘players’ involved are different.   I was a different kind of child than my daughter is and my mother’s experiences made her different from me and vice versa.

That said, I realize that my mother did a bang up job raising us (fight anyone who says otherwise!) but I don’t have to follow her blueprint to the letter to be a successful parent.  Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery but in this case it may be the sincerest way to ruin your mother/daughter relationship with your own child.

After an exchange like the aforementioned one I asked my daughter “Why do you talk to me like this? I would have never had this kind of conversation with my mother”.  Note that her talk was not in a disrespectful tone, just a very ‘familiar’ tone.  She looked at me with that look specific to pre-teens and teens, lip gloss just a poppin on her pursed lips and said “like what? what way?”

But in that instant I had answered my own question.  She talked to me in a way that was natural to her, and when I wasn’t holding myself to my mother’s standard—a much more strict, conservative parenting style—I realized that it felt very natural to me too.  So in the end my daughter and I do talk freely.  We might talk about things that might make another mother blush or get worked up into a self-righteous tizzy. That’s ok.  I’m the mom.com in my house and we’re doing it our way 😉

Mother/daughter girl talk...with only the occasional reminder about who pays the cost to be the boss.

*********************

As promised!

Day 11

Bibliographic info:

The quotable scientist : Words of wisdom from Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Richard Feynman, Galileo, Marie Curie, and more

Horvitz, Leslie Alan

McGraw Hill 2000

Summary: A book-o-quotes from that odd lot called scientists

Playing catch up! Four the easy way.

Hi guys!!

Welcomes to Days 6, 7, 8 & 9!!!

Please forgive the tardiness of these offerings.  I knew that doing this project every day for a year would be an experience and an exercise in consistency and I felt myself prepared for the challenge (a random book a day? WINNING!!!).  I was excited to do my Dewey lottery, hunt the book and then do an arm chair analyses of  a different book each and every day…except on weekends.

So the first weekend of this project found me looking at the computer, knowing I had an obligation yet still shirking it.  And then it was a long weekend too  with the M.L.K. holiday!  Fahget-about-it.  Here is an abbreviated version of my regular entries, just the bibliographic info and a picture because I aint got it in me to read skim four books today.  So do yourself a favor! If any of these books looks mildly interesting to you check em out!! They long for your caress!

Saturday’s (coulda been) book:

How to Photograph Absolutely Everything

Ang, Tom

New York : DK Pub., 2010.

Ready yourself for a closeup!

Sunday’s (shoulda been) book:

Life Sentences : writers, artists, and AIDS
Avena, Thomas

San Francisco : Mercury House, c1994

Wow.

 

Monday’s (woulda been) book:

Mapping time : the calendar and its history
Richards, E. G. (Edward Graham)

We really are missing out if we don't pick this one up!

 Tuesday’s Book:

Understanding hieroglyphs : A complete introductory guide
Wilson, Hilary

Lincolnwood, Ill. : Passport Books, c1993

Next time you're in Egypt you'll be prepared. Mummy monster due to resurrect and set off chain of events of catastrophic proportion? You'll be the 1st to know!

In the shadow of ‘Freakonomics’. The life of 123.3 TALEB

Hi there folk!! It’s Day 3 at A Dewey A Day!

Since you’ve been so faithful I figure I’ll pull the curtain back just a tad on my little operation. Its all about transparency these days right?

OK so I told yall that I get the Dewey numbers from a unique identifier generator and that I choose the 1st 6 digits for my Dewey.  Well sometimes there is no exact match for my number so the library catalog pulls up a list of similar matches.  At that point I choose a book from a list of about 5.  So its not totally random.  But all of the books are similar in nature.  So today’s short list had titles like The four purposes of life : finding meaning and direction in a changing world and Will the circle be unbroken? : reflections on death, rebirth, and hunger for a faith.  Sorry guys, close but no cigar.  No, this title had me at ‘randomness’…

Bibliographic info:

Fooled by Randomness : The hidden role of chance in life and in the markets

Taleb, Nassim.

New York: Random House 2005, c2004.

Summary (Booklist review):

Taleb is a “quant,” or mathematical trader, and an expert on financial derivatives who has made a name for himself in investing circles as a voluble critic of popular theories and conventional wisdom. He is also the author of Dynamic Hedging: Managing Vanilla and Exotic Options (1996). Taleb is fluent in seven languages and a reader of classical literature, an avocation that readily manifests itself in this meandering discourse on the roles of probability, luck, and risk in the markets and in life. Taleb examines how and why the attempt to determine cause and effect is continually hampered by random occurrences and our emotional responses to them. He freely shares his ideas and opinions, finding insights in the funeral of Jackie Onassis, B. F. Skinner’s experiments on pigeons, Solon’s warning, Karl Popper’s work, George Soros, Darwinism, the O. J. Simpson trial, Pascal’s wager, the collapse of Long Term Capital Management, the trading floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, birthdays, taxicabs, and especially the works of ancient Greek philosophers. –David Rouse

My Reaction:

I think I’m actually gonna keep this one and read cover to cover.  I’m riveted.  Who wouldn’t love a book with a chapter entitled “If you’re so rich, why aren’t you so smart?”?  This book takes a kind of irreverent pass at the goings on of the stock market.  I suggested in the title of the post that this book didn’t make as big a splash as the mega hit Freakonomics but it got a co-sign from Malcolm Gladwell so perhaps its not as obscure as I think it is.  The gist in a nut shell—the author suggests that more often than not in the stock arena, luck is mistaken for skill.

Taleb gives several very involved historical examples. This read is not as ADD friendly as Freakonomics.  It’s 290 pages and can be a little overly erudite in some parts but I’d say its worth giving the old college try—a grad school try, not an under-grad try because who actually read in under grad?  Same time tomorrow? 😀

749.7 STEP right up and DIY

Welcome to Day 2 of a Dewey A Day!!!

Bibliographic Information:

Step-by-step Frame it Yourself : Matting & Framing

Creative Publishing International

Summary (Library Website):

Readers can achieve professional results and enjoy substantial savings by learning to frame artwork themselves. This handy resource discusses designing, preparing, and assembling mats and frames and details all the necessary tools and materials. 175 photos/illustrations.

Get with the program. D.I.Y.

My Reaction:

This book is old so there may have been major changes, I’m talking leaps and bounds, to occur in the framing industry.  State of the art stuff.  You really can’t take your eye off the ball in the exciting world of carpentry.

Condescending tone aside 😀 I really do like this book.  And I learned a new word.  And  if you tuned in yesterday you know how I feel about that. And hey!! For my WWF  (Words With Friends) people or even my HWF (Hanging With Friends) people these word gems that I drop on you might be your ace in the hole one day!

rab·bet/ˈrabit/

Noun:

rabbet– A step-shaped recess cut along the edge or in the face of a piece of wood, typically forming a match to the edge or tongue of another piece.

You too can mat multiply!

Good word right?! Anyway this is a short read at 59 pages.  And when you’re done you’ll know how to frame a mirror, do a raised or multiple mat and frame a needle point—Oh Lord.  I’m a librarian pushing needle point.  Will the granny-ness ever cease?  Ah well.  Hope you kiddies learned something! Don’t forget to get some hard candy outta the candy dish on your way out.  You might need a chisel.  And hand me my Bengay will ya?

photo from Ivan Tutorga flickr

Get your daily dose-o-Dewey right here

Inspired by the 365Project,  I (a mild commitment-phobe in a 12 step program to recovery) have decided to jump in with my contribution.   Yes I’m a few days late but I didn’t start my 12 step program for procrastination yet.  I’ll leave that for 2013’s resolution. God Willing.

I thought about creating a whole ‘nother blog for this project but was concerned about my digital foot-print.  I’m sure it really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things but still I’d rather my footprint to be in the dainty range rather than Sasquatch-ish. So I’m gonna blog this project right here on Life on Tuesday.

The premise of their project is that participants should “Document a year of your life by taking a photo a day”.  I wanted to do something a tad more involved and after a few days of brainstorming I came up with this ——->

A Dewey A Day

My 365Project—er 356Project (as it were) will involve 3 of my loves:

1) books (I could’ve said reading but didn’t because while I so love reading I also love books. I love the way they look on a shelf, on a night stand and how they feel in your hands.)

2) writing

3) the random (chance)

What kinda derring do is this you ask? This kinda derring do!  I’m gonna use a unique identifier generator to get 6 digits (the first 6 out of any string generated) and this will be my Dewey for that day.  I will then go retrieve that book (physically whenever possible but I’ll resort to e-copies if I must) and then I, your courageous (sometimes curmudgeonly) neighborhood librarian will post a mini report for that book! I’ll do this every day **gulp** for 356 days. Who will stick around to gawk at my antics? Whats’ the profile of a Dewey-A-Day audience member?

• The curious; those who want to see what long forgotten gems might be unearthed

• The Cliff Note scholars; those who wanna wax philosophical on themes and interpretations of Homer’s The Odyssey (no joke, that’s the book I got on my dry run, Dewey number 883.01) by just tuning in to my briefest of summaries

• The librarian who wants to get more intimate with the Dewey system since everyone assumes we know it like we know our own phone number (seriously, who knows anybody’s phone number these days?)

So that’s the plan.  Some days I might have more to say than just my Project356 stuff so I might do a couple of entries on that day.  My entries will include the bibliographic info for the book, a summary and my reaction (could be a poem, picture, a drawing or a blank stare).

I’m gonna stick to this even when I don’t care to.  I’m gonna do it even when I’m fairly certain no one else gives a… **search mental Rolodex for something no one cares about**—> 1000 Grand candy bar.  Here we go folks! I’m excited! Are you!?  I know the books are!!!! 😀

Seriously, we were gonna sue for alienation of affection. Signed, The Books