Daily Thoughts 7/20/2009 ( Talent Is Overrated ) ( Kreativ Blogger Award )

This was an appreciation award given by William Bentrim http://bookrevues.blogspot.com/

Herodotus and Thucydides

Daily Thoughts 7/20/2009

We created a new section for citizenship books and material next to the ESL books. I think it is the right practical thing to do. I also have been checking for books to mend and clean. They are mainly replacing plastic covers on books.

My orders were put in for the month this morning for July. I am putting in fiction orders for August. I like to be well ahead of time on ordering things.

Right now the computer technician is setting up a laptop with a handheld scanner so I can check the shelves without bringing the books upstairs and downstairs. It will make things go much faster.

They are shifting books to make room in the 700s. Hopefully, when they are done, I think there will be a little extra room and I will be able to merchandise the graphic novels.

We have a new part time librarian who came in today. I am looking forward to working with him. It has been a nice quiet day today at the library.

Sometimes I don't have a huge amount to say. I read some more of Talent Is Overrated by Geoff Colvin. I am learning about the difference between practice and "deliberate practice". Deliberate practice is practice focused around improving specific skills using expert instruction. This is what separates the practice of experts like Jerry Rice, the football star, and Ben Franklin who spent hours every single day practicing his writing.

An example of how I might use "deliberate practice" to improve my writing skills would be for me to read Fowler's English Usage and then The Elements of Style, followed by learning more about wordprocessing software, then taking O. Henry's short stories and rewriting them in my own words.

As a condition of the award, I have to list seven of my favorite things.

1. Walking, I try and walk a lot on the weekends.
2. Libraries ( I go there a lot)
3. Bookstores (Especially ones like the Strand)
4. Conventions ( Comic and book conventions are best )
5. Reading ( I even like reading labels on cereal boxes )
6. Cartoons (The old ones are best, Superman, Betty Boop, Popeye )
7. Coffee ( I drink too much coffee)

My favorite blogs:

1. Joe Wikert's Publishing 2020 Blog http://jwikert.typepad.com/the_average_joe/
2. Kimbooktu http://kimbooktu.wordpress.com/
3. Read Street http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/books/blog/
4. I'll Never Forget The Day I Read A Book http://residentreader.blogspot.com/
5. The Thin Red Line http://libdrone.info/
6. Cromely's World http://cromely.blogspot.com/
7. Pick of the Literate http://bookrevues.blogspot.com/