cataloging my life

Literary Tumblrs

2012-02-08T12:20:00.002-05:00

If I could sit in this space, these are the literary tumblrs I would read:

1. Awesome People Reading

2. Longreads

3. Lapham's Quarterly

4. PEN American Center

5. Bobulate

For an even longer list, look at this one from the Millions.

Intelligence

2012-02-06T12:09:00.001-05:00

Wild and Homeless Books

2012-02-03T16:22:00.000-05:00

via Megalomaniaczz

"Books are everywhere; and always the same sense of adventure fills you. Second-hand books are wild books, homeless books; they have come together in vast flocks of variegated feather, and have a charm which the domesticated volumes of the library lack.

Besides, in this random miscellaneous company we may rub against some complete stranger who will, with luck, turn into the best friend we have in the world. There is always a hope, as we reach down some greyish-white book from an upper shelf, directed by its air of shabbiness and desertion, of meeting here with a man who set out on horseback over a hundred years ago to explore the wollen market in the Midlands and Wales; an unknown traveller, who stayed at inns, drank his pint, noted pretty girls and serious customs, wrote it all down stiffly, laboriously for sheer love of it (the book was published at his own expense); was infinitely prosy, busy, and matter-of-fact, and so let flow in without his knowing it the very scent of hollyhocks and the hay together with such a portrait of himself as gives him forever a seat in the warm corner of the mind's inglenook."

Virginia Woolf "Street Haunting"

Information Overload

2012-02-01T15:46:00.002-05:00

via Aaron Schmidt at Walking Paper

Students ask me, more times than I care to admit, how to cite Yahoo Answers. In my kindest librarian voice, I respond that Yahoo Answers is not a great source for their research paper. It's obvious, right? Of course Yahoo Answers isn’t a scholarly or reliable resource. But what about the reliability of the information we consume?

It’s easy to read only news from content farms. It’s also easy to read only opinions similar to your own. This kind of information is like junk food according to Clay Johnson. Just like eating McDonalds, media can be bad for your health. Johnson’s The Information Diet encourages a conscious consumption of information. In short: delve deeper, read opinions you disagree with, and create your own answers.

So, as your favorite librarian, I thought I would curate a little online collection for you. My go to online resources are below but I really am curious to hear what you think and where you get your information. So, do tell!

Project Vote Smart You may have heard, it’s an election year. So. Check out this brief but comprehensive overview of the election, candidates, and important laws.

The World Factbook Know your world. Or at least as much as the CIA wants to share. This site, produced by the US Central Intelligence Agency, provides information on the people, government, economy, etc of 266 world entities.

Mayo Clinic One of the most respected health care facilities in the country maintains this site with up to date and comprehensive information on diseases, conditions, drugs, and medications.

Oxford Dictionary Because it’s the best.

O*NET Get the facts about the job market, instead of the scary rumors. The US Department of Labor collects key attributes and characteristics of workers and occupations.

Sustainable Table Guidelines for healthy eating resources and where to find local food.

Public Library of Law It’s a litigious society. Here’s where you can read cases from the U.S. Supreme Court and Courts of Appeals, cases from all 50 states, and Federal statutory law.

the power of friends

2012-01-26T10:48:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Carly, I read an inspiring essay early this morning. Emily Rapp describes the life changing female friendships she saw among her colleagues in Geneva:

"I saw, on that afternoon, that it’s possible to transcend the limits of your skin in a friendship. That a friend can take you out of the boxes you’ve made for yourself and burn them up. This kind of friendship is not a frivolous connection, a supplementary relationship to the ones we’re taught and told are primary – spouses, children, parents. It is love."

The rest of her incredible essay is here: Transformation and Transcendence: The Power of Female Friendship

safe investments

2012-01-24T10:46:00.002-05:00

Cabin Love

2012-01-21T12:34:00.001-05:00

Hinton, WV by Lou Murrey via cabin porn

I dreamt about this cabin last night. Isn't it perfect? The red. The wide logs. The split wood on the porch. The smoke pouring out of the stone chimney. I also love the one in Siberia. And the one in Japan. Yes, I'm afraid this site is my new obsession.

what I'm reading...

2012-01-20T11:05:00.003-05:00

... and thinking about: I'm lying alone with my head on the phone. It is the most poignant revelation I have read in a long time. And a reminder of how fragile life can be. So my thoughts go out to someone who I've never met but someone who I feel like I know, just a little.

the Librarian

2012-01-19T16:06:00.000-05:00

The Librarian, Giuseppe Arcimboldo

Young Goethe in Love

2012-01-16T17:52:00.002-05:00

image from SFGate

Young Goethe in Love. Go see it. Immediately. My favorite line: when asked if The Sorrows of Young Werther was their real story, Lotte responds: “It is more than truth. It is poetry.” I'm hopeless. I know.

for a winter's night

2012-01-10T16:46:00.002-05:00

via Bourbon and Pearls

This looks like the perfect setting for a winter feast with friends. Well... maybe a Fall feast. It would probably be drafty, even if enchanting.

Resolved.

2012-01-07T16:39:00.000-05:00

Southern California is my perfect winter getaway. The sunshine, the warm air, the laid back people. You can imagine how much I loved seeing familiar faces and surroundings last week. My days were spent lazily with friends and family (I couldn't resist including a few photos). Days like those are conducive to recollecting emotion in tranquility, as Wordsworth recommended. So I looked back at 2011, took a deep breath, then began dreaming about 2012. And then I got carried away. It happens every New Year. I blame my active imagination. I imagine the best of all possible worlds and then I write a very long wish list of all I want to accomplish in the New Year. Not good. Or realistic.

So. I resolve to resolve less. This is what I came up with: slow down, be active, and share more. My guess is that the first two are pretty standard. I'd like to slow down, relax, simplify. You know, resist the urge to make another to do list. Exercise has to be the most common New Year's resolution. My inspiration this year: a hill sprint race scheduled for June 2012 (what was I thinking?!). The third resolution may be a little less usual. I want to share more, of me. I'm a little slow on that front. Anne Lamott's theory might explain why. Whatever the reason, I find it hard. So my idea is to practice on this blog among the endless, overlapping communities of like-minded souls. I'm not a writer but I'm a reader. This year I'd like to be a reader who enjoys the daily discipline of words. And by writing more, hopefully I'll start sharing more.

reuniting

2012-01-05T14:55:00.000-05:00

you can read more of HollyGoNightly here

a banquet

2012-01-01T16:00:00.000-05:00

from the bottom of the ironing basket

It’s a new year! Are you looking forward to it? Or did it sneak up on you? Some people dread it; like birthdays that they would prefer to forget. The passing of a year doesn't bother me since I’m usually filled with optimism (and to do lists). It’s those big milestones – midlife, later life – that worry me. Will I be nice when I’m old? Will I become a crotchety librarian? Will my vision be good enough to read? I’m a little young to be worrying about these things, I know. It’s a gift. One that I would rather not have.

Gilbert Meilaender was kind enough to save me from (most of) these pre-mature worries. In an article he recently wrote, he reminded me that the transitions in life don’t have to be feared. He used the picture of life as a banquet, an old image but a helpful one. At a banquet guests enjoy each course, one after the other. They may linger over some dishes but no one stops, at least not intentionally. The dinner progresses, the evening passes. It’s filled with unique moments and conversations, none of which can be repeated. It’s ephemeral and that is part of the charm. And life is the same. There are distinct stages, often tied to relationships that come and go. This momentary, fleeting nature is part of life’s beauty. Not something to be feared.

It is easy to want more- more time, a more complete life. But is this a desire for something that life can give? Is this desire actually a hope for something that transcends? Yes. Following Meilaender, I would echo Aquinas. My hope is for eternity with the God who has shared humanity’s vulnerability in time and space, then overcame it. To use Meilaender’s words: “Only the beauty and goodness of this God can catch the heart and hold it still, answering its deepest desire.” And this hope “moves us to desire something more than life’s banquet, sumptuous as it may be, something other than just indefinitely more of the same life… It enables us to wait for the strength to run and not be weary, to walk and not faint...” That is something to look forward to. And in the meantime, I will enjoy the banquet here.

The All of It

2011-12-29T10:00:00.000-05:00

Oh sunshine. How I love you. San Diego is the perfect place for a winter break, especially with a few of these adventures. There's been time for a little reading too. Before leaving Nashville, Gideon wandered into Parnassus Books and took Ann Patchett's recommendation to buy The All of It by Jeannette Haien. And it was a perfect Christmas gift! The story is incredible and incredibly compact. An Irish priest, a deathbed confession, and the limits of empathy. Definitely recommended.

the descendants

2011-12-27T08:30:00.000-05:00

The Descendants is such a great movie. And this scene was incredibly powerful, particularly if your name is Elizabeth.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T08:44:00.000-05:00

I hope your day is warm and bright! Mine promises to be... Southern California has its advantages.

bookish wanderlust

2011-12-23T17:12:00.003-05:00

Thanks to a sweet reader, I recently received a letter introducing me to the Livraria Lello bookshop in Porto, Portugal. And I now feel the need to travel... Just look at these pictures and you'll understand. Hilary, want to come?

photo by claudio.marcio2

photo via Francisco-PortoPortugal

edible christmas

2011-12-22T13:41:00.001-05:00

Christmas shopping (almost) complete! Thanks to the wonderful folks down the street at Cocoa Tree. Yum. Living in Germantown is so tasty.

planning

2011-12-19T12:03:00.001-05:00

librarian nightmare

2011-12-15T11:38:00.004-05:00

things organized neatly

well, hello!

2011-12-13T15:07:00.001-05:00

by ME and free to read here

Yahooooooooooooooooooooo! With much encouragement from Gideon, Lisa Lavoie, and Carly, I wrote an article about a topic I love. And today this is what arrived in my inbox. I'm just a little excited. Just a little.

tree

2011-12-12T13:16:00.001-05:00

thanks to re-nest

Reminds me of last year's book trees....

your experience

2011-12-09T11:11:00.001-05:00

by BOOK/SHOP

Amazing. Erik Heywood is a book consultant. Give him a call, he'll ask you a few questions, then give you a list of 10 books you'll love. Thanks to Jordan for the tip!

'tis the season

2011-12-07T23:07:00.001-05:00

thanks Connie!