Weekend of Ups and Downs

This weekend was a strange one for me. It all started great! I watched the Pens win the Stanley Cup for the third time in my life. I love hockey and this whole series was exciting and filled with emotion. It was what hockey is meant to be and I was so proud of my team.

The next day was a family outing to the Arts Festival, usually a fun-filled day of art, food and crafts. This year my children made it a miserable day of whining and not really getting to do anything. This in turn made my husband miserable and angry. This all led up to us leaving the city and going back home. Ugh! What a day.

Sunday turned out better. After church, we grabbed lunch and spent some more quality time at the park. It was O.K. No one got hurt at the park and we only had one little "accident" if you know what I mean. After that the kids visited the grandparents and my husband and I and an old friend went to see Star Trek. It was a thrill ride of constant adventure, but it was the kind of almost mindless entertainment that boosts the spirit. The good guys win in the end even if they get beat up along the way.

I can only hope that the rest of my week is calm and that I can surf the Summer Reading wave without crashing into the murky waters.

Program Success?

I'm never really sure when you get a really small crowd at a program if it is a success. Today we had 5 people for an author event. This is 5 more than I expected because no one registered. (grrr!) But is that really worth the author's time and my efforts to promote this event. O.K. it is 5 people who never met him before and he got to plug a new book, but still. I always feel very deflated after an event like this. Looking back I don't think I could have promoted it more. The only thing I wish I had more of was time and I think everyone wishes for that at some point. Well, back to the grind and promoting the next library event.

Downloadable Stuff

Today, my task for "23 Things" was to explore the world of downloadable books and videos. For many years now, it has been my job to promote these items and train staff about them. I really don't like them for myself. I know lots of others do and that is what the library has them for. I think the process of downloading is relatively simple once you have run through the steps and created an account. The thing that I don't enjoy is the browsing of titles, however they are organized, nothing beats walking through a library of books and discovering some little gem that you would have never picked up in a bookstore, but are willing to try for free. I just don't feel the same way about audiobooks.

The videos are a little better for me because the format is very similiar. I still find browsing a bit tedious on the computer, but I am more willing to download and watch on my computer then download and listen.

Of course, I don't tell any of this to the patrons. To them they would think I love it and work hard to promote them, just like any other resource. Hope I haven't been too much of a downer for all the lovers of downloadables, but I just love my books!