It?s been real quiet at my place of work this week. Graduation was this past Sunday and the summer session hasn?t started yet. With not that many people needing reference help, I’ve been spending most of the work day at my desk in the back room. Even when I?’ at the reference desk, reference questions from patrons have been few and far between.
Mom’s Chili
It’s been rainy and unseasonable cold here in Madison lately. When dreary weather like that comes around, I often find myself making comfort foods to pick up my mood. Today I decided to make one of my favorites — the chili my Mother taught me to cook. Chili is one of those dishes that everyone makes a little differently. I remember as a kid eating other people’s chili and thinking, “This is not chili. My Mom knows how to make chili the right way.”
I’m sure there are people out there who will scoff at what I make and think the same thing. Nevertheless, my taste buds and I have known it is the right way to make chili. Over the years I’ve made a few alterations to the original recipe (most recently using ground turkey meat instead of ground beef). Whenever I make it I usually end up thinking about Mom’s chili and appreciate the knowledge that she passed on to me. Thanks Mom!
Blossoms
Web stats for play bloys
I usually try to take a look at the statistics for this web site once a month or so. One of the things you can see in the stats, are the search phrases people used to get to your site. Every month, without fail, at least a couple of visitors arrive here by searching for the phrases “play bloy” or “bloy job.”
I’m going to make two assumptions here.
- These people can’t type very well.
- They did not find what they were looking for.
Of course by posting this entry, I’m going to get even more hits from swingin’ play bloys looking for bloy jobs. Move along fellas, nothing to see here…
Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings The Flood
I?ve been listening to the new CD by Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings The Flood over the past few weeks and it’s one of the best albums I’ve heard in quite a while. You could probably file her music under the alt-country genre (along with bands like Wilco, or even Graham Parsons). Ms. Case prefers the term “neo-country,” a label once used by a reviewer to describe her music. However, like other outstanding musicians, Neko Case’s sound does not easily fit into strict categories.
Spring in the Arboretum
Yesterday I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and went for a hike through the Arboretum. There were a few early flowers out, like this blossom from one of the fruit trees.
Ah… fresh air
Today when I got home from work the temperature was in the upper 60’s (F). The first thing I did when I got in the house was open the windows.
It was the first time I had the windows open in my place since last fall. That’s probably one of the best smells in the world — that rush of fresh air you get in the house when you open the windows for the first time in four or five months.
I do like the change of seasons here in Wisconsin. Feeling that change on days like today is good for my soul. I don’t think I’d like to be a permanent resident in a climate where the temperature is the same all the time — even in a beautiful setting like Hawaii. Okay, I probably wouldn’t pass up a chance to live in Hawaii for a time. But after about six months or so I would definitely miss seeing the leaves turn colors, tromping through snow drifts, and smelling that first breath of fresh spring air.
A new catalog for Edgewood
This week, my latest web creation was launched: a new design of Edgewood College Library’s catalog.
Visually, I designed the new catalog to have an appearance that compliments the look of the library’s web site (with a similar header and footer on each page). Marketing types would probably use the word “branding” here somewhere. Some new features have also been unveiled along with the catalog’s new look.
Photos from Washington
Computers in Libraries 2006
Yesterday I came home from the Computers In Libraries conference in Washington DC. Recognizing the importance of technology in libraries, this conference has been going on for 21 years, and it was great to be able to attend the 2006 edition.
If I were asked to name one underlining theme of the conference it probably would be Library 2.0, the library specific counterpart to Web 2.0. Web 2.0 refers to the latest generation of web sites, which are more interactive, collaborative, personalized, and customizable (using tools like AJAX, blogs, wikis, podcasts, RSS feeds, etc.). One speaker said that traditionally, libraries have been somewhat behind the technological times, or as he put it, “Libraries: giving you yesterday’s technology, tomorrow.”