Daily Thoughts 01/27/2012

The love letter. Oil on canvas, framed as oval. 61 x 51 cm, August Leopold Egg, by 1863.  It has a nice romantic flair to it.

Daily Thoughts 01/27/2012

This morning I read some more of Clark Howard's Living Large In Lean Times.  He is writing about insurance and mortgages.  I am finding it very easy to read on the Kindle Touch.

I spent some time updating the Facebook and Twitter accounts.  I also spent some time checking the displays.  I am putting together a display for writing and publishing.  A colleague is working on a display for Black History Month which includes books and dvds.

The book, Leviathan Wakes came in for me to read by James S.A. Corey.

I am looking at the Penguin Speakers Bureau http://www.penguinspeakersbureau.com/  I found it because of a catalog sent to my library from Penguin books.

I also am reading through Publishers Weekly right now.  I found a science fiction book I am planning to read.  The book Exogene by T.C. McCarthy should be interesting.  It is the sequel to Germline which is a military science fiction novel.  Another book which caught my eye is Too Much Magic: Wishful Thinking, Technology, and the Fate of the Nation by James Howard Kunstler.  It is coming out in June of 2012.  James Howard Kunstler is the author of The Long Emergency which is a book about how America will systematically decline because of peak oil and excessive resource use.  In my view, this does not have to happen, there are solutions to our problems both social and technical.

I spent some time talking to a gentleman who works with Shen Yun Performing Arts.  They are doing a presentation on classical Chinese arts on Saturday, February 4, 2012 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the community room.  It is Chinese New Years right now, the Year of the Dragon.

I spent some more time looking through Publishers Weekly.  There is a new book by A. Lee Martinez who writes humorous fantasy and science fiction that verges on slapstick at times, Emperor Mollusk versus The Sinister Brain.  A. Lee Martinez reminds me a bit of Robert Asprin.  Another book which caught my attention is Local Dollars Local Sense How To Shift Your Money From Wall Street to Main Street and Achieve Real Prosperity by Michael H. Shuman.  This is a very timely book.

On the way home, I finished reading Howard Clark's Living Large in Lean Times.  What it basically does is show you different places where you can save money from a variety of different sources by either coupons, bidding, or special deals.  The one drawback to this kind of book is that immerses you in advertising to get the special deals.

I am feeling a bit of relief.  Today, many people where I work got their pay reinstated after a challenge to a reduction in force including myself.  I feel as if I have my position back.  This makes me feel much more motivated.  I am still sad for the people who were let go.  I think things are getting a bit better for some people.

Web Bits

Joining a Noble Profession From the Bell Tower
http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2012/01/opinion/steven-bell/joining-a-noble-profession-from-the-bell-tower/

Occupy 2.0 Changes Tack
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2012/1/27/occupy-protest-libraries-walk/
It is interesting that the Occupy Harvard group is supporting the library against layoffs.

 Occupy Cal Protesters Claim Victory in Reinstating UC Berkeley Library Hours
http://dougoakley.blogspot.com/2012/01/occupy-protesters-claim-victory-in.html