Daily Thoughts 04/30/2014

Young Man With A Book, 1860, Ernest Meissonier
Daily Thoughts 04/30/2014

I checked the library Twitter and Facebook page this morning.

The Information Session on the Mount Vernon Public Library Board of Trustee Candidates is today at 6:30 p.m. in the Mount Vernon Public Library Community Room.   There are ten candidates.
http://www.mountvernonpubliclibrary.org/node/666/

I checked the gift books this morning and the displays.  I also spent a little time working on programming.

I did a little work with the website and went to radio shack to buy a USB remote for the computer to change slides in Microsoft Powerpoint for the budget presentation.

2015 Mount Vernon Public Library Proposed Operating Budget
http://www.mtvpl.org/sites/default/files/2015%20Proposed%20Operating%20Budget.pdf

2015 Mount Vernon Public Library Proposed Budget Pie Chart
http://www.mtvpl.org/sites/default/files/2015%20Proposed%20Budget%20Pie%20Chart.jpg


Web Bits

Training the 21st Century Library Leader
http://metaarchive.org/public/publishing/Training_the_21st_Century_Library_Leader.pdf

14 New York City Bookstores You Should Visit Before You Die

http://www.buzzfeed.com/hnew92/14-new-york-city-bookstores-you-should-visit-9qja

Daily Thoughts 04/29/2014

Period photograph of New York University library (Bronx campus), later converted to Bronx Community College., 1904

Daily Thoughts 04/29/2014

On the way to work, I read some more of Memories, Dreams, Reflections.  Jung is writing about his dreams and unconscious thoughts.  There is Egyptian, Greek, and Gnostic Symbolism.  He also describes archetypes.  I like the Greek maxim which he uses about writing journals and self reflective writing.  "Give away all that thou hast, then shalt thou receive."

I checked the libraries Facebook and Twitter this morning.  I also checked the displays and the gift books.

The vote on the library budget is on May 6, 2014 from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. in the community room.  There is an Information Session on April 30, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. where people can meet the candidates for the Mount Vernon Public Library Board of Trustees.

I have a program today.  The Brown Bag Nonfiction Book Club is meeting at 1:00 p.m. in the Trustees room.  We discussed Michelle Obama.

This afternoon the computer lab was open from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.  We also have two computer classes tonight, a Beginning Microsoft Word class from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and a Fundamentals of Computer Operations Class from 6:45 p.m. to 7:45 p.m..

I am reading Opportunity Knocking Lessons from Business Leaders by Lori Ann LaRocco.  I also checked out The Book Thief by Markus Zusak and Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup.

The Mount Vernon Public Library Friends of the Library Book and Bake Sale is on Friday and Saturday, May 2 and May 3, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. this weekend.

I started reading on Opportunity Knocking.  It is a business book which is inspirational.  The book is about how to create a pyramid towards success.  The difference in this book is that the author, Lori Ann LaRocco is a business journlist and has a different style focusing on peoples lives, showing how they acted, and documenting how they are successful.  This is very different from most business administration books.  It is very practical in its orientation.

The board of elections is in the community room tonight.

I am looking at http://www.libraryedge.org

Daily Thoughts 04/28/2014

Still Life With A Guitar, Book, and Newspaper, Juan Gris, 1919

Daily Thoughts 04/28/2014

This morning, I read a little more on Memories, Dreams, Reflections.  Carl Gustav Jung is describing his break away from Sigmund Freud as well as his first steps toward an understanding of the unconscious mind.

I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library this morning.  I did an order this morning for bestsellers.  I also placed the book, Essentialism: the Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown on hold.

I read the latest New York Times Book Review. I also printed a few copies of articles on Michelle Obama.  I checked out the book, American Grown the Story of the White House Kitchen Garden and Gardens Across America by Michelle Obama.

Mount Vernon Public Library Board of Trustees Candidate Information Session-- April 30, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. http://mountvernon.dailyvoice.com/events/government/645647/mount-vernon-public-library-meet-candidates-board-trustees-information-sess

I spent some time working with the oversize books today.  There is going to be some phone banking this evening.

Mount Vernon Public Library Adopted Operating Budget Chart-- 2015
http://www.mountvernonpubliclibrary.org/sites/default/files/PDFs/Adopted%202015%20Operating%20Budget%20-%20Chart.pdf

Mount Vernon Public Library Adopted Operating Budget -- 2015
http://www.mountvernonpubliclibrary.org/sites/default/files/PDFs/Adopted%202015%20Operating%20Budget.pdf

On the way home, I read American Grown.  It is about the White House vegetable garden.  It is very much a kitchen garden for the white house chefs.  Also, Michelle Obama uses it to promote her Lets Move! campaign for healthier eating and lifestyle for children. When she was a child, unlike children now, she would go outside to play every day.

Michelle Obama ties her garden with farmers markets, community gardens, healthy school lunch programs and encourages people to go outside and eat healthily.

This book very much ties in and shows why Michelle Obama is so poised.  In this book, we learn that she eats vegetables with every meal, avoids processed foods, and saves her desserts for the weekend.  She goes outside regularly, gardens, and gives part of the proceeds of the gardens to food programs for the hungry.

It is very much about a healthy, poised lifestyle.  In the books I previously read, I learned she was a dancer, had excellent fashion sense and even was considered by many designers as a role model for color and style, and worked out with both cardio and strength training for 90 minutes three times a week.  She was so fit and toned that she does not need to wear stockings or gloves.

The book itself has lots of beautiful photographs, illustrations, and is superbly laid out.


Web Bits

5 Things You Can Do to Boost Your Libraries Facebook Reach
http://www.proquest.com/blog/2014/5-Things-You-Can-Do-to-Boost-Your-Librarys-Facebook-Page-Reach.html

Gutting Net Neutrality Also Guts Innovation Fairness, and Democracy
http://boingboing.net/2014/04/28/gutting-net-neutrality-also-gu.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Daily Thoughts 04/27/2014

Carl Gustav Jung, full-length portrait, standing in front of Burghölzli clinic, Zurich, 1910

Daily Thoughts 04/27/2014

I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library this morning.
I also spent some more time reading Memories,Dreams, Reflections. I am reading about his early years as a psychiatrist. Jung chose to become a psychiatrist because it mixed science with the spiritual. The relationship between Jung and Freud is a bit perplexing.

I also spent some time posting the link for the Mount Vernon Taxpayers for a Stronger Library to different places and people on Facebook.    Please share this and like it.  https://www.facebook.com/MountVernonTaxpayersforaStrongerLibrary
I also posted the library support video in a number of places.  Please like and share this.
http://youtu.be/QB85dlerrRM
  
The Mount Vernon Fund Our Libraries site was updated with some new financial information.
http://mtvernon.fundourlibraries.org/

Mount Vernon Public Library Winners of Childrens Essay Library Contest Announced. From the Mount Vernon Inquirer. http://www.mvinquirer.com/library-contest.html#

 

Web Bits

Oregon County Aims to Replace Volunteer Run Libraries with Publicly Funded Model

http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2014/04/budgets-funding/oregon-county-aims-to-replace-volunteer-run-libraries-with-publicly-funded-model/

Effective Door to Door Campaigning

http://illinoislibrariesmatter.wordpress.com/2014/04/25/effective-door-to-door-campaigning/#

Daily Thoughts 04/26/2014

L. Block (British 1848-1901), The Bibliophile's Desk


Daily Thoughts 04/26/2014

 This morning, I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library. My colleague is preparing for a lecture today Sin and Subversion: The Rise and Fall of Book Censorship in America. http://events.lohud.com/mount_vernon_ny/events/show/370204125-sin-and-subversion-the-rise-and-fall-of-book-censorship-in-america

I checked the gifts and the displays.  I am looking at an article on Overdrive Media Station.
http://blogs.overdrive.com/devices/2013/11/06/overdrive-media-stations-create-engaging-comfortable-digital-experience/

I spent a little bit of time helping with the set up for the event this afternoon.  I also spent some time preparing for my order of new books on Monday.

On the way home, I read some of Memories, Dreams, Reflections by C.G. Jung Recorded and Edited by Anelia Jaffe.  This is Jung's biography.  It has some very interesting things to say about religion, faith, and some striking symbolism in it so far.

There are two books which I have to read for the Adult Summer Reading Program, Mark Zusak, The Book Thief, and Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup.

Web Bits


Libraries Support Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth Studies Find

https://www.freelancersunion.org/blog/2014/04/16/libraries-support-entrepreneurship-and-economic-growth-studies-find/

Your Beautiful Library Photo Contest

http://solutions.cengage.com/beautifullibrary/

TNT Greenlights ‘Librarians’ Series, Rebecca Romjin to Star

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/librarians-gets-series-order-rebecca-694967

Daily Thoughts 04/25/2014

Andre Gill, Madame Anastasie, 19 June, 1874-- the person with a giant pair of scissors is an old fashioned symbol for censorship. On Saturday, April 26, at 2:00 p.m., John Howard will be doing a lecture titled Sin and Subversion: the Rise and Fall of Book Censorship in America in the Community Room of the Mount Vernon Public Library

Daily Thoughts 04/25/2014

This morning, I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.  I also checked the displays and the gift books. 

We had a management meeting this morning.  We went over issues on policy, strategic planning, a possible new catalog system, and vacation requests.  I have to think about my staffing needs.  Also, we went over the budget which was discussed last night at the special board meeting.

There is a shipment of books going out to Better World Books on Monday.

I also did a bit of work with programming today.
The reader poll closed on the The Mount Vernon Daily Voice Article on April 16, 2014 http://mountvernon.dailyvoice.com/news/mount-vernon-library-budget-will-face-its-first-vote-public Mount Vernon Public Library Will Face Its First Public Vote. The reader results came out to be 65% for the budget and 35% against the budget. It was interesting following the article and comments.
The library is getting close to the date for the vote which is on May 6, 2014 from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., if you are in Mount Vernon and on Facebook, please take the time to like Mount Vernon Taxpayers for a Stronger Library https://www.facebook.com/MountVernonTaxpayersforaStrongerLibrary and like the library Youtube video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB85dlerrRM

Last night on April 24, 2014, the Mount Vernon Public Library Board of Trustees discussed the budget.  Hopefully, it will be out tomorrow on April 26, 2014.

There will be a meet the candidates forum on April 30, 2014 for the four open board positions in the community room of the Mount Vernon Public Library at 6:30 p.m.
http://www.mountvernonpubliclibrary.org/node/666/

This vote will profoundly affect the future direction of the Mount Vernon Public Library. 


Web Bits

Book News: Happiness Study Says Library Trips Are As Good As a Pay Raise
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/04/24/306415439/book-news-study-says-library-trips-can-make-you-happy-as-a-pay-raise?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_term=artsculture&utm_content=20140424

Daily Thoughts 04/24/2014

Girl Reading in a Salon, Giovanni Boldini, 1876
Daily Thoughts 04/24/2014

This morning, I spent some time on Facebook and Twitter for the library.  I also worked on sending the libraries first newsletter out through Bookletters today.  http://library.booksite.com/7273/nl/?list=CNL18#sthash.75pLhxK4.gbpl

We had a meeting discussing the upcoming vote.

I spent some time working with the oversize books this afternoon.  I also checked the displays.

The Computer Lab was open from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. today.  There is also a computer class tonight, Social Media (Twitter and Facebook) from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Library Board of Trustee Candidates
http://hosted-p0.vresp.com/169374/1169b8c8ec/ARCHIVE
There is a meeting on April 30 at 6:30 p.m. to meet the candidates who are running for the board of trustees.

Mount Vernon Public Library Budget Meeting April 24, 2014
http://mountvernon.dailyvoice.com/events/government/632013/mount-vernon-public-library-board-trustees-special-meeting

Web Bits

Who Needs a Business School The Hidden Startup Resources at Your Local Library
http://www.fastcompany.com/3029579/who-needs-business-school-the-hidden-startup-resources-at-your-local-library

Daily Thoughts 04/23/2014

Portrait of Jaques Villon, Marcel Duchamp, c1905

Daily Thoughts 04/23/2014

This morning, I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.  I also checked the displays and the gift books this morning.

I have a copy of Booklist and the May Forecast from Baker and Taylor to read.  Neil Gaiman has a new book coming out in June, The Truth is a Cave in the Black Mountains: A Tale of Travel and Darkness with Pictures of All Kinds illustrated by Eddie Campbell.

We are giving away copies of Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers as part of the World Book Night celebration in the teen section of the Mount Vernon Public Library after 4:00 p.m. today.

A sample copy of the ballot for the May 6, 2014 vote at the Mount Vernon Public Library.
http://www.mountvernonpubliclibrary.org/sites/default/files/PDFs/Ballot(Sample).pdf

An announcement about the April 30, 2014 Meet the Trustee Candidates Meeting at 6:30 p.m.
http://hosted-p0.vresp.com/169374/1169b8c8ec/ARCHIVE

Web Bits

What Will Become of the Library?
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/design/2014/04/the_future_of_the_library_how_they_ll_evolve_for_the_digital_age.single.html

Digital Public Library of America Marks A Year of Rapid Growth

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/22/digital-public-library-of-america-marks-a-year-of-rapid-growth/?_php=true&_type=blogs&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&_r=0

How Paperbacks Transformed the Way Americans Read

http://mentalfloss.com/article/12247/how-paperbacks-transformed-way-americans-read

Daily Thoughts 04/22/2014

The Smolensk Newspaper, Marc Chagall, 1914

Daily Thoughts 04/22/2014

This morning, I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.

I checked the displays and the gift books this morning.  I also printed some more flyers.  I spent some time ordering new books.  Things are quiet and steady today.

I spent some time reading the latest review material.  I read a copy of the New York Times Book Review and the New York Review of Books.  A book which caught my attention is The Tyranny of Experts Economists Dictators and the Forgotten Rights of the Poor by William Easterly.

I spent a little time working with the oversize books.

The Friends of the Mount Vernon Public Library were registering people to vote today.  The library is working on collecting a list of biographies of trustee candidates for the website.

There are two computer classes today, a Beginning Microsoft Word Class from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and a Fundamentals of Computer Operations class from 6:45 p.m. to 7:45 p.m.

On the way home, I finished reading Success Through Stillness by Russell Simmons.  It is an interesting, but a bit exaggerated book.  Russell Simmons writes a book about meditation in the style of a self help manual.  The difference in this self help manual is that he cites real life practices and promises glowing results which seem a bit far fetched at points.  However, a lot of what he is writing about does have real life backing. The message is one of success through meditation.  It is not about having deeper religious experience or enlightenment.  It is about how to calm oneself down, be more compassionate, have more self control, and be a more successful person.


Web Bits

Libraries Our Story, Our Future
http://www.districtdispatch.org/2014/04/libraries-story-future/

E-readers Vs. Old Fashioned Books Which is More Eco-Friendly?
http://www.sierraclubgreenhome.com/featured/e-readers-vs-old-fashioned-books%E2%80%94which-is-greener/

Release Statement Funding Museums and Libraries Are Core Federal Responsibility
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/release-statement-funding-libraries-and-museums-core-federal-responsibility/6g1tTXHv

Daily Thoughts 04/21/2014

Reading A Story, James Tissot, 1878-1879

Daily Thoughts 04/21/2014

I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.  I am following the steady progression towards the budget vote.  Last night, I learned there were ten candidates for the board of trustees.  There will be a meet the candidate session on April 30, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. in the Mount Vernon Public Library.  I think we will start seeing the candidates step up and campaign for the four open positions.  There already is one candidate with an article on him in the Mount Vernon Inquirer.

I am off today.  I spent some more time reading Success Through Stillness.  I am reading about mindful eating.  The author is writing about paying attention, focus, and compassion all of which come out of regular meditation practice.

I am looking at the Lynda.com training videos.  I signed up again for two months through the Westchester Library System.

Mount Vernon Historical Photos Are Back-- Photographs from the Mount Vernon Public Library
http://www.mvinquirer.com/hist-photos-may-2014.html

Library Displays Group on Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Library-Displays/110021479081391

Web Bits

Library Broadband Takes Center Stage at IMLS Hearing
http://www.districtdispatch.org/2014/04/library-broadband-takes-center-stage-imls-hearing/

Daily Thoughts 04/20/2014

Daily Thoughts 04/20/2014

This morning, I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.

I also read some of Success through Stillness: Meditation Made Simple by Russell Simmons and Chris Morrow.  Russell Simmons describes how he meditates twice a day for twenty minutes.  He believes his success and his avoidance of burnout comes from meditation.  He also practices yoga for an hour a day.

Mount Vernon Public Library Vote Yields Ten Trustee Candidates-- Mount Vernon Inquirer
http://www.mvinquirer.com/library-cadidates-to-vote-for.html

Web Bits

Invest in Libraries: They are Windows Into Digital Literacy for Adults (Commentary)
http://www.syracuse.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/02/libraries_are_windows_into_digital_literacy.html

Daily Thoughts 04/19/2014

Pierre Mignard, Self Portrait, Between 1670 and 1690

Daily Thoughts 04/19/2014

This morning, I checked the Twitter and Facebook for the library.

I read some more of Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett.  I rather like the name for the railroad, the Hygienic Railway. Also, the opposition to having a railway is interesting.  I find reading fantasy to be relaxing.

I went to the mall today and walked around.  I also went to Barnes and Noble.  There were a few books that looked interesting:


In My Skin:  My Life On and Off the Basketball Court by Brittney Griner. Carla’s Comfort Food: Favorite Dishes From Around the World by Carla Hall looked like it had some character to it, Creativity Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces that Stand in the Way of True Inspiration by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace.  Ed Catmull was one of the founders of Pixar, Red Now and Laters by Marcus J. Guillory.  This novel is about Louisiana Creole culture and black cowboys.

I looked at the Mount Vernon Inquirer.  There is a listing for a candidate for the Mount Vernon Public Library Board of Trustees, Oscar Davis, today.  http://www.mvinquirer.com 

I finished reading Raising Steam A Discworld Novel by Terry Pratchett.  It was enjoyable light reading.

I have been thinking about library value:

Placing an Economic Value On Services of Public Libraries in Suffolk County, New York

http://scls.suffolk.lib.ny.us/pdf/librarystudy.pdf

ALA Wiki Value of Libraries
http://wikis.ala.org/professionaltips/index.php/Value_of_Libraries

Web Bits

Libraries Seek High Speed Broadband

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/18/technology/libraries-seek-high-speed-broadband.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0