Thanks-- JK Rowling

Ahhh--- I am done. I need not worry about spoilers anymore, and you need not worry about finding any spoilers here. I read in the car back from Vermont and for the next day and 1/2. I thought it was great and wrapped up the series well. I will miss the series-- the complex characters, the excitement of good versus evil, Harry and his friends. Will JK write again? A new series perhaps? I hope so. I can hardly imagine her not writing after such a prolific series.

Anyway--- today I prepare for the beach. I am looking forward to reading Annie Freeman's Fabulous Traveling Funeral while I am there. An adult book for a change. I will truly be barefoot with a book and sand between my toes. Perhaps there will be posts from the beach--- perhaps not. Afterall that is what vacations are for!

Mud, Boys, and Books!

I am back after a trip up to Vermont to retrieve J from a 4 week camp in the Green Mountains. What have I learned from this experience? (Actually I knew it already but had forgotten it in the past few quiet weeks when boys were traveling) Boys love mud! and when electronics are not present they will turn to and enjoy books some of the time... I had to forgo my barefeet as it was just to ooky for me. J read and read and read he quickly devoured the books I had sent and borrowed all he could from tentmates and staffmen.

I also got a chance to read on the trip up and back. I finished Skin which was awful... I am not even going to put it on the Middle School Blog--- it had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. I also read another Black Eyed Susan Nominee--- Crooked River--- it was a refreshing genre I had never read before--- A historical Courtroom drama. I wonder though whether it will catch the interest of the intended audience of 6-9 grade?

And of course.... Harry! I am 1/3 of the way through and I love it. It was great to see it all around the camp. Staffman snuck off to read a chapter or two--- over 48 copies were delivered in Saturdays mail to the staff and kids-- others had theirs delivered as it was mid-season. It is wonderful to have a book make such a splash on so many. What will be the next "harry" we all will be so wild about? Hmmmmmmm...... it makes one think!

Northward

I'll be away from the computer for a few days so 23 Things and Blog postings will be on hold until next week. Hopefully when I return I will have Harry Potter in hand. It has been a dilemma as to how to deal with accessing Potter while on the road--- I could not find a presence on the web for any bookstores in the area I am headed to--- with 10 hours in the car on Sunday, I will need Harry Potter for my sanity. I know there is a Walmart presence, so hopefully all will be well.

I just hope I can read in the car. Funny--- wasn't a problem as a kid. Best Wishes go out to ME and her husband J for a speedy and recovery. Live each moment, and cherish the unexpected delights in everyday living---

Zucchini Bread gone Bad!

Arrgh! There is only one thing to do with the surplus of zucchini's these days... turn them into chocolate cake. Unfortunately something went awry with the recipe and there was cake batter oozing all over the oven, down onto the heating element creating a smoky smelly mess.

What is person to do? Give up, grab a glass of pinot, and a book of course. Currently I am reading Skin by Adrienne Maria Vrettos. It's YA and seems to throw in the F bomb whenever appropriate-- when the storyline would suffice without it. Does just adding the "F" bomb make it edgy and desirable for kids to read... so far I would say no.

Anyway--- you can see I have added my avatar with the help from the tech savy kid -- from now on referred to as JD. If only my cyberspace self can do the dieting and exercise necessary to maintain that look. JD however assures me I will need a different avatar for the school blog. I can't be running around the media center in short shorts--- barefoot sure but with longer pants! If anyone knows where I can find a barefoot avatar with longer leggings, please let me know.

Blogs and Such

I just finished the book Uglies by Scott Westerfield and will probably start something new today. It is almost too hot to be barefoot outside, so I have spent the morning trying to learn more about how to manage my Blog --- the school one. I am learning the difference between pages and posts and such. This personal blog is much simpler. Though I am beginning to see the advantage to this whole social networking and tagging thing. It makes great sense particularly in education. I added someone to my del.icio.us network because he ha these great school library links. I will be able to benefit from all of his time spent searching.

I know in order to make blogs and such useable with kids--- I need to have some understanding of what it is all about. But I think it would be super cool if kids actually use it to start talking about books! Wouldn't it?

Introductions and Barefoot Beginnings

Welcome to the online meanderings and postings of a barefoot librarian who is jumping into the Library2.0 feet first. There's no testing the waters-- I"m jumping in and creating several blogs. This one is my personal meanderings and musings-- Time will tell as to the direction and form it takes.