Daily Thoughts 01/13/2012

[North Reading Room, west wall. Detail of mural by Ezra Winter illustrating the characters in the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. Library of Congress John Adams Building, Washington, D.C.] Photograph shows right half of the mural. According to the inscription, this mural on the west wall shows (left to right): '... the clerk of Oxenford, reading his beloved classics; the manciple; the sailor; the prioress; the nun; and three priests.' (Source: On These Walls by John Y. Cole. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1995, p. 79). Date Created/Published: 2007.

Daily Thoughts 01/13/2012

On the train to work, I read some more of The Ecotechnic Future.  John Michael Greer is describing how as we move into the future with dwindling fossil fuel supplies, travel and energy sources will become much more local.  People will work much closer to home, commute shorter distances, rely on more urban agriculture and gardening, and be much more efficient with energy and resources.  This is something that I am seeing happening more.  It is much easier to recycle, find farmers markets, and get more energy efficient products.

This morning I checked the displays and gift books.  I also spent some time scheduling author visits.  We are having some poets come.  Also, on May 8, 2012 we are having Ellen Datlow coming to talk about editing her anthology, Poe: 19 New Tales Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe. It should be quite interesting.


I did not have any computer labs today so I spent some time reading Publishers Weekly and Library Journal.  Nothing stood out as far as articles.


I also spent some time talking about grants and computers.

The book, Distrust That Particular Flavor by William Gibson came in for me to read. It should be very entertaining.  It is William Gibson's first nonfiction book.

Historian and Famous Author Kenneth C. Davis Speaks at Mount Vernon Public Library
http://www.mvinquirer.com/kenneth_c%20davis.htm

On the way home, I read some more of The Ecotechnic Future.  The author correctly tells us that there is no example of a green society right now.  It is a process which people are trying to create.  He is correct, alternative energy is an experiment that sometimes works, but often does not.  I like the idea that we should experiment as much as possible and try different ways to create green technology, the solutions are not here yet.   I also like John Michael Greer's statement that capitalism and socialism are both based on consumption and production and have little to do with ecology.

Web Bits

Libraries Succeed by Constantly Evolving
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/susan-h-hildreth/the-future-of-libraries_b_1204446.html