Happy Banned Books Week!

Happy Banned Books Week! Check out some of these links for more information:

ALA Banned Books Week
ALA Challenged and Banned Books
100 Most Frequently Challenged Books from 1990-2000
Most Challenged Books of 2006
Librarians Against Palin
Office for Intellectual Freedom
Amnesty International Banned Books Week

And, just to show how unbiased I am, you can read this tripe by some homophobic right-wing nutcase: Banned Books Week: Smokescreen of Hypocrisy

Miscellaneous

A coworker did Reiki on me the other day. It was nice, but I wouldn't pay $75 for it. I'm not a spiritual person at all, but let me tell you, I was extremely relaxed on the drive home. So relaxed, in fact, that I pulled into my driveway and didn't remember driving home at all. One of the things she told me is that the spirits demanded that she tell me to relax, so I'm going to work on relaxing more. My goal is to be like Peter in Office Space, but with a little less money laundering.

Speaking of not worrying, I just found out on Thursday night that they are creating an office manager job that would be perfect for me. The person would supervise support staff, do some HR, and generally make sure the York, Harrisburg, and Lancaster offices run smoothly. I already am essentially the office manager in Harrisburg, but I don't have the authority to do anything or the pay of a supervisor. Plus, I should probably have some kind of supervisory experience if I want to get a full-time library job that pays more than minimum wage. I'm pretty sure I'd be qualified to do this (my current supervisor doesn't even have a Bachelor's degree), but my fear is that they are transferring me to a job that no one else in-house would be able to do, and they might not want to go through the hassle of hiring and training someone else. I really want this though, so wish me luck!

My hatred of PETA knows no bounds, but they've really done it this time. They are asking Ben and Jerry's to use human breast milk instead of cow's milk in their ice cream. WTF?!?! First of all, no offense to all the mothers out there, but that is fucking disgusting. Second of all, you don't mess with my Ben and Jerry's. This idea is so ludicrous for a variety of reasons that I'm not going to mention because anyone with two brain cells to rub together (in other words, people who aren't members of PETA) can see how flawed it is. It's so stupid that I'm wondering if it's a joke.

I just finished Season 2 of Dexter and I sent an e-mail to March since he wants to talk about it...still haven't heard back. Where are you Maaaaaach?!

In other TV news, I completely forgot to watch The Office premier on Thursday night. I guess that takes it off my list of the top 10 shows. I did watch it on Hulu and it was good, but I still think the magic that they had in the first two seasons is gone. I won't talk about any specifics since some people may not have watched it, but right now I much prefer 30 Rock. I loved season 1, and season 2 is coming out on October 7 and is on my queue.

Netflix Picks

I have a new addition to my top 10+ movies of all time: C.R.A.Z.Y. It's in Québécois French with English subtitles. Put it on your queue right away!

And, um, it doesn't hurt that the main character is insanely hot:



Dexter season 2 is also great. I thought the series got off to a slow start, but the end of the first season was awesome and it's only getting better. And, incidentally, the main character in that show is hot as well:

Funny or Sad?

I normally hate e-mail forwards, but I got this from a coworker.

• If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic and different."'
• Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, a quintessential American story.

• If your name is Barack, you're a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.
• Name your kids Willow, Trig and Track, you're a maverick.

• If you graduate from Harvard Law School you are unstable.
• Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're grounded.

• If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first black president of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works, and Veteran's Affairs committees, you don't have any real leadership experience.
• If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council, 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you're qualified to become the country's second-highest ranking executive.

• If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years while raising 2 beautiful daughters, all within Protestant churches, you're not a real Christian.
• If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress and left your disfigured wife to marry the heiress the next month, you're a Christian.

• If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.
• If , while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other option in sex education in your state's school system while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant, you're very responsible.

• If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family's values don't represent America's.
• If your husband is nicknamed "First Dude," with at least one DWI conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.

Politics

First, I'd like to take a moment to remember the thousands of people who died in the terrorist attacks 7 years ago (I can't believe it has been 7 years already).

Today marks the beginning of the Pennsylvania smoking ban. Granted, there are plenty of exemptions (casinos, bars that make less than 20% profits in food sales, etc.), but it still scares the shit out of me that the government is telling private business owners that they can't allow a legal activity to take place on the premises. You know what they say: absolute power corrupts absolutely. *Update* I just got an e-mail from the PA State System of Higher Education that smoking is no longer permitted on any campuses. Between undergrad and grad school, I've put tens of thousands of dollars toward PASSHE and now I can't smoke outside?? I guess most people are so wrapped up in being happy about not having to smell smoke that they aren't concerned by the government's erosion of our rights.

And while I'm writing about politics, I just read that Palin's church is hosting a conference to "pray away the gay."

The Omnivore's Hundred

I swiped this from Daily Pie. It looks like I need to broaden my culinary horizons, although that's hard to do, considering my grocery store's "ethnic foods" section consists of Chi Chi's salsa and La Choy soy sauce.

"Here’s a chance for a little interactivity for all the bloggers out there. Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers.

Here’s what I want you to do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk/ linking to your results."

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos Rancheros
   
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black Pudding
   
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
    
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly (Jell-O shots)
    
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat's milk
45. Malt whiskey from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken itkka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald's Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8& ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S'mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs' legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

Job Interview, Part Deux

I have an interview with the Department of Public Welfare on the 17th. I'm not nervous at all; because of the way this works, the job is pretty much mine if I want it. Basically I have one week to think long and hard about what I want. I'm leaning toward not taking it for various reasons, among them not wanting to lose vacation time, having upcoming medical appointments, possible issues with leaving early to make it to school on time, and the fact that I made some connections in class this past weekend with people who work in various libraries in the area. Plus, if I turn the job down and change my mind later, I can just re-take the test. I can't even decide what I want to order at a restaurant; how the hell am I supposed to decide what life path I should take?!

You Don't Want to Piss off the Librarians

Not that this comes as a surprise, but Sarah Palin is, in addition to being a member of the NRA and a fund-cutter to sex ed. programs, a book banner.

"[Former Wasilla mayor] Stein says that as mayor, Palin continued to inject religious beliefs into her policy at times. 'She asked the library how she could go about banning books,' he says, because some voters thought they had inappropriate language in them. 'The librarian was aghast.' That woman, Mary Ellen Baker, couldn't be reached for comment, but news reports from the time show that Palin had threatened to fire Baker for not giving 'full support' to the mayor."

Booo!! As a card-carrying member of the American Library Association (seriously), I would like to direct Mrs. Palin's attention to the ALA's Library Bill of Rights:

I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.

IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.

V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.

VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.

Republicans, do you really want someone in office who would fire a person for disagreeing with her beliefs?

Please support challenged and banned books. Civil liberties are one of the founding principles of this country.

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