Words Softly Spoken

Nighttime beckons,

Words softly spoken.

Nightingale, an ode

By poet Keats.

Like a rose awaiting morn,

His kiss a drop of dew.

Eyes flutter, sleep awaits.

His voice

Embraces me, pillowed with dreams.

DMS, 10/24/11

Sweet dreams as you listen to Benedict Cumberbatch's divine reading of "Ode to a Nightingale" by John Keats, the inspiration for this poem. (YouTube upload courtesy of xXWeGotCharacterXx.)

Namaste.

Summer Reading Program -Not Just for Kids!

Me! The girl in the pig tails receiving her cherished award, 1975.

Many of us remember eagerly joining the summer reading program at our local library when we were kids. Each summer vacation during elementary school, my cousin and I would sign up at the North Babylon Public Library, New York and get a bookmark and a themed page – a jungle or a castle, for example – with a reading log on the back. Each time we’d read a book, the librarian would give us a lion or giraffe sticker, or a princess, knight, or dragon to decorate our page.

Of course, the more books you read, the closer you came to finishing the colorful picture.


At the end of the program, the library hosted a ceremony for the kids and parents, and we’d go up on stage, shake hands with the librarian, and receive a ribbon and a certificate of completion. A photographer took our photos, as if we were Hollywood stars. And, you know? We were stars! We read all those wonderful stories and learned about different people, places, and things! What a great achievement it was to read all those books!

My cousin Neil, front row, center.

The joy of immersing myself in a good book didn’t fade when I reached adulthood – and not just because I’m a librarian. Many of us read for pleasure or edification on a regular basis, as we can see by the many patrons who come to our libraries each day to check out books or to attend our book discussions. It is because of our patrons, who asked for more book-related events during the summertime, that we started a summer reading program for adults.

Since summer is a busy time, instead of offering a formal book discussion series – which requires a lot of time and commitment – we decided to provide a summer reading program modeled after the children’s perennial favorite at my library, the Palm Beach County Library System. We learned that other libraries around the country were having success in engaging adults in this self-paced reading activity. By using the same theme as the state’s Florida Library Youth Program, we teamed up with our Youth Services Department to produce programs that appealed to all ages of the community. Now adults, as well as children and teens, can participate in a fun reading program like the one my library sponsors. Please visit your local library for more information or see the full story at http://www.pbclibrary.org/story-srp-2011.html

Namaste.

Turn Left

Amazing the turns our journeys take. I came across this love story between Alan Lundgard and Emilie Gossiaux thanks to a tweet by The Nation's Chris L. Hayes. The story comes from Radiolab.

Sad.

Hopeful.

Inspiring.

We all need to live. We all need to love. We all need to believe.

Namaste.

Headline: Death on the Nile

When we think of Egypt, we think of the Pyramids, the Sphinx, the Nile. Right now in this point of time, the nation's people are in peril. If the people of Egypt don't survive this government's terror, will their rich cultural heritage die, too? To read more about Ancient Egyptian history, see the excellent overview at The British Museum's web site.

To the people of Egypt:

Em hotep nefer weret. Assalaamu alaikum. Peace.

Namaste

Headline: The Next Bush v. Gore?

I cringe every time Florida makes the national news. We still haven't recovered from the hanging chad debacle. A Florida judge rules the federal Health Care Law unconstitutional. Read Time.com for the details.

I don't know if I can finish this post...

Writing. Chatting.

Does writing a 175-word book review for Library Journal and chatting online with a new friend count towards my writing for the day?

Namaste.

"The Glades: Sunny With a Chance of Homicide"

The Glades by Clifton Campbell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Any fan of Carl Hiaasen, Randy Wayne White, Elmore Leonard, or Tim Dorsey will love A&E's new tv series. I was hooked after reading this pilot script!



View all my reviews

"Librarians are Awesome"

Wil Wheaton's latest blog post is titled "Librarians Are Awesome." He emphasizes the value of libraries and the importance of reading.

Make it so, Wil!

Back from the End of the Universe

After a rather prolonged absence from the blogosphere, I've decided to make a New Year's Resolution (it's not to late to do so, is it?) and try to write *something* in my blog every day. Why?

1) After attending (well, hosting actually: cf. Writers LIVE! 2011) a very inspiring talk by author Michael Koryta, I decided one of his writing tips would be very helpful in keeping me motivated to write. My fellow librarian, Mimi Curtis, who is an aspiring Young Adult author, also attended his talk and agreed that his writing tip would be useful. What was his tip: "Write 1500 words a day." Don't set time limits, he said, but try to write a designated number of words as your daily goal. Okay. So maybe 1500 words for a blog post might be a stretch, but at least I can try for a bit more than my few 140-character-Tweets that I've been tweeting.

2) I came across some interesting and unique blogs recently in my quest to expand my online community and share ideas with fellow Sci-Fi fans. Ones that are not affiliated with a major website like syfy.com or bbcamerica.com, and the like.

These are cool:

The Last Wordslinger

Allyn Gibson

And while I'm at it, I should mention my fave amateur sci-fi blogger: GameCouch (Full disclosure: GameCouch is a buddy and fellow co-worker, but I know good writing when I see it)

I'm counting on my followers (all three of you!) to help me stick to this resolution. (Tweet me @literarylattes).

Thanks!

Namaste.