Toilet Turtle

Our library made a strange discovery this week. Thursday morning we found a small green turtle in our bathroom. We have absolutely no idea how he got there. Did some kid bring his pet turtle to the library and leave it accidentally? Or did the turtle somehow wander into the building, crawl (slowly) past the DVDs and sneak into the bathroom? Or was it a prank of some sorts? A few kids tell themselves: "Hey, I got an idea, wouldn't it be funny to leave a turtle in the library!" Each scenario is unlikely and the turtle could not have crawled up from the toilet, it would not have fit. We are stumped about how he got there but either way we ended up with a small water turtle swimming in an aquarium in our staff room. We named him Lou after the name of British toilets.

Chopstick Races

This week for my anime club's first meeting of the school year we had a chopstick program. For the last few weeks I have been sneakily stealing chopsticks from the local Teriyaki Bowl each time I go. I would go up to refill my drink and slip several pairs of chopsticks down my purse. After a few visits, I got 22 pairs of chopsticks. I was ready for the races.

I divided the teens into two lines and set an empty bowl at the end of the line. Then at the other end was a bowl full of mini marshmallows. The teens were to take a marshmallow with their chopsticks and then pass it to the person on their right down the chain and into the empty bowl. This proved to be difficult and I had to reprimand a few teens for their cursing. So then they decided to curse in Japanese, and I had to reprimand them again.

Eventually they got into it and we did the race a few times before they had enough and wanted to resume eating the food I brought with their chopsticks. I made a bowl of jello for them to eat just to watch them struggle to pick up the wiggly stuff with their chopsticks. The challenge of the jello only spurned them on. It was an entertaining and successful afternoon especially considering that some of the teens wanted to throw their chopsticks and no one's eye got put out.

Empty Libraries

It's going to be tough for me to post as much since I'm back in school this semester and my professors are loading me up with tons of papers. But I'll try.

Our library has decided to delete all VHS, Books on Tape and Book Cassette kits by the end of the year. Then CD-Roms will be gone by the end of next year. I read in American Libraries that they estimate that CDs will be mostly gone in the next decade. 75% of Americans have internet at home and the number is increasing and eventually there will be less need for computers at the library. DVDs are streaming too. With all of these things fading. What are we going to do with all this extra space?

Libraries can fill their extra space with a cafe, or couches and make the library more like Barnes and Nobles or a Starbucks. But will people really go to a library to get their coffee or hang out? I really wonder what the future of libraries are going to be, I imagine they will be more like community centers.

Whatever the case may be I suggest to all librarians to start working on a second degree so they can have a plan B in place. It's what I'm doing. You really never know what the future is going to bring.

Two Week Accent

I was talking to a cute teen girl at the library the other day. She was talking to me in a British accent. She has never stepped a foot in England in her life. I asked her why she was speaking in a British accent. She said that she had been speaking in the accent for a week and that she had a week to go. She was convinced that if she spoke in the British accent for two weeks straight it would stick.

I know that people say that you can develop a habit in two weeks but I do not believe you can develop an accent in two weeks. I did not want to burst this girl's bubble since she was working SO hard at it so I just smiled and said, "Wow, you're really good." I'll see her this week and we'll see if it "stuck." I'm more than doubtful.

Dye Disaster

It's been a while since I've posted. First I went on vacation and then the DAY that I was supposed to return I got a jury summons and out of 40 people they summoned they were to pick 8 for the jury and lo and behold they picked me. So finally, today I returned my normal schedule.

This afternoon I had a "Be Creative with Food" activity. I love food crafts and think as many crafts as possible should be edible. So I pulled four of them together for a giant craft feast. First, were marshmallow sculptures, very simple, just different sorts of marshmallows and toothpicks. Then I bought red licorice strings online and gave the kids cheerios, fruit loops, and life savers to make their own candy necklaces. Another station was corn syrup mixed with food coloring that makes an excellent paint that you can lick. Finally, the most complicated project was a "make your own" gum kit.

The "make your own" gum kit had food dye gel in it to color the gum. I had never seen food dye gel and did not know its potency. Apparently cake decorators use it in icing and they only put a tiny drop in to color a whole lot of icing. Well, the kids used a lot more than drops to color their gum. We had four small vials of it and one child dumped a whole vial of blue gel in her gum and then chewed it getting blue all over her hands, lips, hands and the table. Of course there were spills and blue and red streaks were over the table that I (stupidly) forgot to cover with a tablecloth. Blue and red were streaked on children's hands, lips and it got on my skirt which I still haven't gotten out.

Of course the children didn't care that they were messy, they were having a ball. But I'm sure some mothers will be mad at me as they struggle to get blue dye out of their children's clothes tonight. When the children left I was faced with a blue and red streaked table only armed with chlorox wipes. I wiped and wiped until my arm was sore but there is still a blueish tint to it. Oh well, perhaps with all the other stains from all the other projects I've done on that table not many people will notice. But next time, definitely a tablecloth.

Publicity is Publicity

I had a simple summer activity this week: provide the children with chalk and popsicles and let them decorate our library sidewalks. This was the easiest and most UN-elaborate activity I had this summer yet the local paper called and asked if they could come to the activity and photograph it. I told them it was basically an "open house" of kids coming to draw and eat popsicles and suggested a more involved and exciting activity coming up soon they could attend yet I suspect there was a deadline involved.




So they came late AFTER most of the kids had left and after I had left for a meeting. Thus they had to gather the kids who drew the art back from inside the building to pose in front of their art. They later called me for a quote which I had to give them while a patron stood in front of the desk, staring at me, waiting for help. Oh well, publicity is publicity.

I Can See Into Your Future

To celebrate Harry Potter and the Half-blood prince movie coming out, our library had a Harry Potter party last week. We divided the activity into several classes based on the books: "Care of Magical Creatures", "Defense against the Dark Arts", "Potions", and "Charms and Divination."

I was to be Professor Trelawney over Charms and Divination. I took three pie pans and filled them up with a mixture of laundry detergent and milk. Then I had the children put a few drops of food coloring in and spin the mixture with their hand. It makes a cool, dreamy, effect in the pan. Next I would peer into the mixture and pretend to think deeply. Then I would come up with the most outrageous fortune I could think off the top of my head: "you will take a trip to Paris...Paris, Idaho", "You have a long lost twin sister in Australia," "You will have three visitors, young men, The Jonas brothers will visit your home," "You will get a new pet, a pet that likes water, a very big pet, You will get a pet hippo." And on it went.

The children really enjoyed the fortunes. They kept clamoring "me next! me next!" Although there was one boy who didn't like his fortune. I decided to have a little fun with this 7-8 year old boy and said he was going to meet...a girl...who would like him. This, of course, disgusted him and he went stomping off. Maybe if he was just a few years older he would be asking me: "Now what does she look like?"

Goodbye Charlotte

After more than a year of having our library pet tarantula Charlotte, next week we are bidding a fond farewell to her. Or should I say I am bidding a fond farewell to her, the others are not too sad she is leaving. She was my pet more than anyone else, I fed her, changed her bedding, gave her water and took her out on presentations. I have to admit I will miss the big creepy gal.

But now we are getting a new pet. After months of deliberations, and then a split second decision in the pet store, we decided on a water dragon. I am abdicating responsibility for this pet's care. I am done with taking care of library pets and worrying if they will be dead when I come back from the weekend. I am going to do hardly none of the work and take all of the glory talking about the water dragon to the children as if I'm some expert on lizardology. I really know nothing about water dragons now, I should bone up on information since children always ask SO many questions like: What does it eat? Is it a girl or a boy? How big will it get? Hey, that last one is a good question. Hmmm...