Librarian's Rant

Is this for real?? The AP seems to think so:

COPENHAGEN, Denmark - The Danish Air Force said Thursday it paid about $5,000 in compensation to a part-time Santa Claus whose reindeer died of heart failure when two fighter jets roared over his farm.

The animal, named Rudolf, was grazing at the farm of Olavi Nikkanoff in central Denmark when the screaming F-16 jets passed overhead at low altitude in February.

Rudolf?? I mean, seriously.

Just don't tell the kids!

Thanks, John M.

From my buddy staunton: it seems that the Flying Spaghetti Monster has its own game!

http://www.venganza.org/games/index.htm

From littlefluffy.com: "No longer the realm of courtroom testimony, the Flying Spaghetti Monster has taken the land by storm, converting worshippers to Pastafarianism like wildfire. Now you can live the experience of touching with your noodly appendage free from fear of restraining order. Only the tedious repetitive music will stand in your way. Bonus: Touching the people turns them into pirates."

Per request from a few folks, I've copied a lot of info about library rebuild efforts and donations sites I'd gleaned and posted here over to the Katrina Help Wiki, both in the Help Wanted area and also in Aid Agencies and Donations (state library assn's, etc.).

I hope this will be helpful to folks.

Found via the Iowa State University Extension Service website:
Hurricane Katrina – Stress and Coping, Disaster Resources

I'm simply going to reproduce Michael Gorman's letter here. My apologies for the delay on this, but I've had access issues to my blog. Peace.

Dear Colleagues:

I am writing to you today to ask you to join me in contributing to the ‘ALA Hurricane Katrina Library Relief Fund.’

Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing flood devastated the lives of thousands of people in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Since then, we have encouraged all ALA members to contribute to the humanitarian relief efforts organized by the American Red Cross and other organizations seeking to meet the pressing needs for food, housing and financial assistance for hurricane victims.

The storm which destroyed so many homes and businesses also destroyed or damaged dozens of libraries. While the full extent of the damage and destruction which the storm caused to libraries in the region is just becoming clear, we know for a fact that there has been great damage to many public, academic, school and institutional libraries in the region. These libraries need to be rebuilt, the library staff who work in them need assistance, and the many evacuees created by the storm need to be served.

The Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama Chapters are organizing relief efforts, both temporary and long term. They need our help. Please help them by donating to the ‘ALA Hurricane Katrina Library Relief Fund’ at https://secure.ga3.org/03/alakatrina

This site allows you to make a donation, large or small, to the reconstruction of libraries in the region, using your Visa or MasterCard credit card. We have attempted to make the process quick and easy. I can assure you that all funds collected will go to the three Chapters for immediate relief and long term reconstruction projects.

I would like to thank CSA Bowker and Proquest who have generously donated $10,000 and $5,000 to start the ‘ALA Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund’

There are a number of other hurricane relief funds being organized by Chapters and other library organizations throughout the country, and I want to thank you in advance for your generosity, however you give. For more information on the many relief efforts being organized around the country and some of the additional ways in which you can help those affected by the storm, please visit the ALA Hurricane Katrina web site at www.ala.org/katrina.

Thank you for your support for the libraries, library workers, and library users who will need your assistance in the coming weeks and months. Again, to donate today, please go to https://secure.ga3.org/03/alakatrina.

Sincerely,

Michael Gorman
President
American Library Association

As a follow-up to my previous post on what you can do to help libraries affected by Hurricane Katrina (and presumably Rita, as well), this info came over my state listserv a few days back:

The Texas Library Association is accepting book donations (can be from anywhere) to help the Gulf libraries prepare to re-open for business. The Association is accepting book collections to help libraries fill their shelves.

TLA will ship the donated materials to Gulf Coast states as soon as libraries are ready to receive the materials. To make a book donation, you can ship materials to Braker Self Storage, ATTN: Katrina Book Drive, 2607 West Braker Lane, Austin, Texas 78758.

State library officials in the Gulf Coast report that many libraries have been completely demolished. Those facilities will have to be completely rebuilt and re-equipped. The items most needed include new or very lightly used children's books, adult fiction and nonfiction, reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, almanacs), and Gulf Coast-area collections. They ask that materials have recent publication dates.

Since it will likely be several months-perhaps even a year or two-before libraries are able to take these collections, the Association has partnered with the Texas Mini Storage Association (TMSA) to collect the books and store them in climate-controlled facilities until area libraries are able to receive collections.

Ginny Sutton, executive director of the TMSA, said "We are thrilled to help in any way we can. We want to let our Gulf Coast neighbors know that we are here for them over the long term. We want library officials to know that our member facilities, led by Braker Self Storage in Austin, are very happy to help in this noble effort to replenish the libraries in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama."

Additional information, including information about local relief programs in the affected states, can be found at www.txla.org.

In a similar vein, but library-to-library:

ALA Creates 'Adopt a Library' Program to assist Gulf region libraries recover and rebuild

September 14, 2005

(CHICAGO) While cleanup efforts begin in Louisiana and Mississippi, the American Library Association (ALA) continues its mission to lend support to devastated libraries in the Gulf Coast region. The ALA's Chapter Relations Office has established an "Adopt a Library" program to provide assistance to libraries damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

The program will provide an opportunity for U.S. libraries of all types to adopt a library in the Gulf Coast. The ALA will collect information from libraries that need assistance, and will connect those libraries with others that can provide relief. Contributing libraries are asked to lend support in the way of books, computers, fundraising and volunteers.

Libraries interested in adopting a library may visit ALA's Chapter Relations Office Web site at http://www.ala.org/katrina/adopt and complete a participation form.

ALA's Chapter Relations Office serves as the lead unit in ALA that gathers information on library disasters in the United States, and has been in constant contact with ALA chapters in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, and continues to gather information on damage to libraries in the region. .

Information inquires should be directed to Michael Dowling, director of ALA Chapter Relations Office at 312-280-3200 or mdowling [at] ala.org.

Seems Rory Litwin is moving Library Juice to a new format, a blog, in the near future--it will be available on the Library Juice website, along with back issues. I've rather enjoyed seeing his email arrive in my Inbox, but will be equally pleased to see what he has to say out there on the biblioblogosphere (a word I suspect he hates ). Perhaps more exciting is his new small press venture. Should be interesting to see where that goes. Best of luck, Rory.

This has hit my email like three times today:

Q: What is George W. Bush's position on Roe vs. Wade?

A: He really doesn't care how people get out of New Orleans

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19th)!!

(official site): www.talklikeapirate.com

International: www.yarr.org.uk/

A pirate joke for you:

A pirate captain was on the lookout for buried treasure. After months at sea, he arrived at the land to which his treasure map had been leading. He and his first mate disembarked to search for the buried treasure, supposedly hidden deep within a swamp at the center of the island. Sure enough, at the center of the island was a swamp, and the captain and his first mate bravely entered. Soon the swamp began to get deeper, and the pirate's feet, then ankles, and finally entire legs below the knee disappeared in the murky water. Suddenly, the captain banged his shin against something hard. He swore, reached down, searched around, and pulled up a treasure chest. Prying the lock open, the chest revealed gold and jewels beyond imagination! The captain turned to his first mate and said, "Arrrrgggghhhh, matey, that just goes to show ye--booty is only shin deep!"

Yarr!

Want to feel grateful for your life today? Read John Scalzi's blog post on Being Poor. And before you assume you know why folks stayed in New Orleans, read his post and think a bit.

And Barbara Bush should have this post tattooed on her arm to remind her to shut her trap.

I've been unable to access my blog for several days, so my apologies for the lack of chatter

From Daily Kos:

Physician who told off Cheney lost home in Katrina, detained, selling video on eBay .

"The truth is even with all our losses, we are still luckier than many people down here because at least we didn't die," Marble wrote. "But I thought I could try to raise some awareness to the bad policies of the Dubya Gump administration and also possibly raise some money to replace the many things we lost, and so I decided I would auction the videotape my friend shot of the event. I will also grant an interview to the winner if so desired."

The President, in his infinite wisdom (???) has called for a National Day of Prayer. Now, it's a nice thought, I guess, though he seems to forget that a huge proportion of Americans consider themselves agnostic, if not outright atheist. But of course, they don't matter, right? But really, most of us who were paying attention were praying/hoping/meditating/mobilizing DURING the crisis--all the crises, in fact.

Here's an idea: how about a National Day of Volunteering? On September 16th (or that weekend), take a day, even half a day, and spend it doing something for your community. It doesn't have to be hurricane-related, though if you can help load up a few semis full of water and food and clothing, all the better. But whatever you can do, do. And imagine...if even half the country stood up and gave some time over a three-day period, imagine what we could accomplish for each other!

There's my Pollyanna thought for the day. Now back to your regularly scheduled despair at the state of the world.

I thought Dennis Hastert's comments (see the Top 10 Quotes post below) were idiotic. But this takes the frigging cake:

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this -- this [she chuckles slightly] is working very well for them."

-- Barbara Bush, quoted by on American Public Radio's Marketplace program, on New Orleans residents evacuated and re-located to the Astrodome in Houston.

From http://politicalwire.com/archives/2005/09/05/quote_of_the_day.html

Thanks to Chris Z. on LU.

For Louisiana libraries, the LA Library Assn has a site with info on donating to their rebuilding efforts: http://www.llaonline.org/

For a broader scope, but still focused on libraries, the Texas Library Association has gone the extra mile: http://txla.org/temp/DisasterRelief.html From the site:

The Texas library community is rallying to rebuild hope and the future for victims of Hurricane Katrina. TLA applauds the efforts of local librarians in quickly responding to the incredible challenges in many communities.

The Texas Library Association's Disaster Relief Fund has been expanded to collect donations for libraries in the Gulf Coast area as well as for libraries providing support for the evacuees. One hundred percent of your donation will be sent to the state library agency or library association in the state of your choice. TLA is also developing a plan to accept book donations for shipment to the affected states at an appropriate time.

UPDATE: The Mississippi Library Association also has an address for library donations, here: http://www.misslib.org/index.php, as well as a hurricane damage assessment of MS libraries which is very interesting. Sharman Smith, the State Librarian of Mississippi, used to be our State Librarian here in Iowa. She's a remarkable woman and a force of nature herself, so I have great hopes that Mississippi libraries will be up and running and better than ever in record time.

Here's the info:

Friends of Mississippi Libraries, working with the Library Commission and the Mississippi Library Association, has established a fund for donations to rebuild those Mississippi libraries severely damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Tax-deductible donations can be made by sending contributions to:

Rebuild Mississippi Libraries Fund
c/o AmSouth Bank
210 E. Capitol Street
Jackson, MS 39201

I've not yet seen anything on the Alabama Library Association site. One hopes that's because they're taken care of...

Best of luck to all of our library colleagues in affected areas. And thanks to those taking on the burden of serving hurricane refugees throughout the country.