Artist uses his sense of humor to enhance his art

KOTV - The News on 6: "Danny Gordon's life as an artist has him realizing that he's just a big kid at heart. That's why he feels at home illustrating books and drawing caricatures for children.

He was a fashion illustrator for C.R. Anthony department stores before they closed in 1997. Now, he illustrates greeting cards, magazines and books.

His drawing appear in five children's books, including ``The Mulberry Gang'' and ``Jasper's Magic Blanket.''

Gordon shares his art with children during library workshops and school presentations in Oklahoma City and Edmond. He also teaches at the Edmond Fine Arts Institute.

Children especially love his drawings of dogs and cats, he says, and when he sells his artwork, he tries to make it affordable for wee ones: Prints of dogs and cats cost eight dollars outside of schools. "

Collection of last resort | New road for Gov't Docs?

Collection of last resort: "Government Printing Office officials have held preliminary discussions with librarians about creating a backup library to supplement federal depository library collections. GPO officials describe the new concept as a 'collection of last resort.'
But officials at libraries that are part of GPO's Federal Depository Library Program have mixed views about the proposed collection.
A period of public comment on the proposal began in the spring, and GPO officials have extended it to Sept. 7. "

Yahoo! News - Web Turns 35, but Still Work in Progress

Yahoo! News - Web Turns 35, but Still Work in Progress: "Thirty-five years after computer scientists at UCLA linked two bulky computers using a 15-foot gray cable, testing a new way for exchanging data over networks, what would ultimately become the Internet remains a work in progress."

Miami Tribal Library and Archives

Everyone is familiar with their local school, public, or university library. But did you know Oklahoma has a lot of other types of libraries? One such library is the Miami Tribal Library and Archives, located in lovely Miami, OK. The mission of the library is to "provide quality library services to all Miami Tribal members nationwide and all area Native Americans of all ages." And the archives strives to "preserve the Miami's unique sense of identity as a separate people by remembering its shared past."

Why don't you check-them-out?!

Red Dirt Book Festival anthology released

From NewsOK| Organizers of the Red Dirt Book Festival have released an anthology of original works submitted by festival attendees.

More than 1,000 Oklahoma amateur and professionalw riters, illustrators and people who love to read gathered for last year's inaugural festival, which is to be held every two years.

The Red Dirt Book festival 2003 Anthology, available for purchase at any Pioneer Library branch for $15, includes the short stories, poems, essays and art of more than 40 authors and artists.

Tulsa Public Schools receive $$$

Some local students will get the chance to improve their reading skills, thanks to a federal grant.

Tulsa Public Schools superintendent Dr David Sawyer accepted the $180,000 check Monday. The money will go to help several Tulsa schools improve their library media and address the literacy and reading challenges of their students.

Lori Rich with the Oklahoma Department of Education: "These library grants go to support No Child Left Behind which as you know, kids reading and math on the grade level."

The grant will be distributed among 11 Tulsa schools.

Mazel Tov! Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library

The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office and Nextbook, a gateway to Jewish literature, culture and ideas, have selected 34 public and academic libraries to receive grants to host Let's Talk About It: Jewish Literature programs. The Oklahoma City Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library is representing Oklahoma.

Based on the Let's Talk About It reading and discussion model pioneered nationally by ALA starting in 1982, Let's Talk About It: Jewish Literature features four new themes exploring Jewish literature and culture. Participating libraries will each host a five-part scholar-led discussion series featuring one of the four new themes: Your Heart's Desire: Sex and Love in Jewish Literature; Demons, Golems, and Dybbuks: Monsters of the Jewish Imagination; Between Two Worlds: Stories of Estrangement and Homecoming; and A Mind of Her Own: Fathers and Daughters in a Changing World.

K-12 Information Literacy Standards

As a special service to school librarians, the American Library Association (ALA) is providing free, online PDF access for the K-12 Information Literacy Standards for Student Learning.

Designed to help students become skillful producers and consumers of information, these standards provide the necessary guidelines that lead to dynamic, student-centered programs. The free PDF can be downloaded by clicking here.

New Overtime Laws

Confused as to whether or not the new overtime laws apply to you and your library setting? Then the Department of Labor's Fair Pay site might help--or it could just make you more confused. My non-legal not-an-expert opinion leads me to believe librarians in various settings would be classified as professionals. But ultimately it will most likely be up to the employers, lawyers, and courts to decide what it all means.

Poetry from Google

Found this fun little site, Get a Google Poem, via Metafilter. And so on this Back-to-School-Friday (for many of us)--I offer you:
Oklahoma Library, by the Search Engine Google

Your browser does not support script. Physics & Astronomy Library. Physics & Astronomy Library. The materials ... Library Instruction The library
...
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Quick Links: Welcome to the Oklahoma Library Association. ... The Oklahoma Library
Association, 300 Hardy Drive, Edmond, OK 73013, Copyright ...
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The University of Oklahoma Libraries. ...
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The Oklahoma Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped is operated by the
Division of Visual Services of the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation ...
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... 30am - 6:00pm Closed on weekends. Did you know? Chambers Library | University
of Central Oklahoma | Edmond, Oklahoma | (405) 974-3361.
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Oklahoma Dept. ... Oklahoma Library Links. The Oklahoma Department of Libraries is not responsible for the content or accuracy of information on outside websites. ...
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Information on library jobs in Oklahoma, and contacts for library jobs outside the
state. ... ODL Jobline. Welcome to the Oklahoma Department of Libraries Jobline. ...
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Services About the Library Giving Library News. Oklahoma Library Web Sites. ... Metropolitan
Library System; Miami Oklahoma Public Library; Pioneer Library System; ...
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The University of Oklahoma Libraries web page has moved to -
Visit the Oklahoma Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. ... So...what
does a small library
in Central Oklahoma have to offer? ...

Village School Takes Controversial Book Off Reading List

KOCO | via Yahoo News |
A required summer-reading book for eighth graders recently caused controversy in a metro-area private school, Eyewitness News 5 learned Thursday.

Parents whose children attend the private school in The Village recently received a letter apologizing if they were "offended by the content" of the novel "Montana 1948."

School officials -- who asked not to be identified -- took the title off their required reading list, saying the book contains nudity, bad language and descriptions of sex crimes.

Oklahoma City middle school librarian Paula Morrow said the concern over "Montana 1948" is certainly not new.

"Censorship ... The Bible has been censored, Harry Potter has been censored," she said. "Everything that happens in our lives is controversial, and books represent the human experience."

Morrow said that in her seven years of choosing books for children, she has seen plenty of controversy. However, she said her opinion is it is up to parents -- not schools -- to decide what their children read.

"As a parent, you have a right to protect your child," she said. "But you don't have the right to say other people can't read this book."

First Day of School | The Librarian Perspective

This article is from the Houston Chronicle--I think it applies to Oklahoma Librarians as well...

As I worked in the library getting it ready for students, I saw numerous classes pass by in the hall. When they looked into the library, I waved at them. The nice thing about elementary students is that they are happy to wave back. Their wide-eyed vulnerability and sweetness, and the teachers' preparedness, competence and caring, made the whole day a special day for everyone.

As a class of first-graders was leaving the library, a small boy said to me, "I miss my daddy." Touched, I said, "He must be a wonderful dad." The boy said, "He's in jail." How sad that such a little person has to bear something like that.

6th Annual First Amendment Congress!!!!

Mark your calendars! The 6th Annual First Amendment Congress will be held November 11 and 12 at Oklahoma City University. A basic schedule is available from ODL. Watch that page, also, for registration information in the coming weeks.

School and academic librarians will also be interested in sharing information on the annual Essay Contest. Students may enter the contest to win cash prizes.

This year’s essay theme is "Everybody's First Amendment?" Students are asked to examine whether everyone in America is treated as the First Amendment requires, regardless of age, sex, ethnic origin or class.

Bye-bye Bugmenot.com

I suspected this--and boingboing has kind of confirmed it. But Bugmenot.com, the website you could use to get around registering for news sites, has been taken down.

Update! Bugmenot--after much-to-do--is back up and running! YEAH!!!

The Chronicle | How to get out of a Job Rut!

Feeling stuck in your job can happen at any stage of your career. Sometimes it's the result of unrelenting tensions among people you have to see on a regular basis. Being in the middle of a difficult interpersonal situation can feel like an insurmountable problem, yet sometimes only a small change can bring about a significant improvement...

Read the entire article by clicking here.

5 most visited LibraryStories

I want to say Thanks! to Bill Y. for have sent me the 500th story the other day. And in honor of this tiny little landmark I present to you the:

5 most visited LibraryStories. {insert drum roll}

5. Library Cartoons: An Annotated Bibliography (viewed 62 times)
4. I was there...were you? (viewed 71 times)
3. AirSnare (viewed 73 times)
2. HAM at your library (viewed 102 times)
1. Library Romance (viewed 155 times)

Over all LibraryStories has been viewed over 10,000 times--and has had visitors from 72 different countries.

A big Thank You to everyone who takes the time out of their busy schedules to read these stories...in a unique way ya'll are supporting your Oklahoman libraries and librarians.

Happy Reading!

Free Census Workshop

Steve B. at, ODL, sent out this announcement for all.

Jeff Wallace and I will be delivering in Oklahoma libraries during September and October. He and I will be the instructors. This is the first time that all of these workshops will be given in the libraries of our state. The workshops are free, but space is limited. If you're interested, please register as soon as you can.
If you have any questions about the workshops, contact me at sbeleu@oltn.odl.state.ok.us

Locations include: Alva, Muskogee, Goodwell, Norman, McAlester, Weatherford, Stillwater, and Oklahoma City. See the linked .pdf brochure for more information (or contact Steve).

Digital Warehouse under construction

Thanks to Bill Y. who sent me this story!

A digital warehouse is under construction on the World Wide Web that could change how Oklahomans, including Oklahoma journalists, obtain public records.

ODMC founded at OU The Oklahoma Digital Media Center (ODMC) was conceptualized as an information clearinghouse for journalism education, scholarship in mass communication and related fields, the professional development of journalists, and for the citizens of Oklahoma and the nation. The collections of the ODMC will include historical collections related to journalism and mass communication, digitized public records that are otherwise unavailable, and digital cultural artifacts like photographs, video recordings, and sound recordings. The ODMC provides digital access to historical and cultural resources that might otherwise be lost or that are simply not accessible to the public. As the Ransom Center at the University of Texas collects and archives the physical artifacts of American culture, the ODMC will collect and archive digital materials of interest to citizens and scholars in Oklahoma and beyond. The ODMC will enhance democracy through its indirect impact on journalism education and more directly by giving citizens access to public, historical, and cultural records via the Internet.

OkieDokie Talks Patriot Act

The USA Patriot Act allows a federal agent to obtain library records if the agent thinks it may be related to a terrorist act. AND the library is not to inform patrons of the warrant. Stillwater’s Public Library director, Lynda Reynolds, has come up with a plan in an attempt to provide the privacy of patrons as dictated by Oklahoma law and meet the special privacy invasion provisions of the USA Patriot Act.

One reader states: "but - the federal government has never issued a warrant to examine library records."
What's your take Librarians?

OKC Downtown Library to open today!

From ChannelOklahoma.com|
The last project to be financed by a metropolitan improvement bond issue has been completed.

The new Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library, a $24 million project in downtown Oklahoma City, will open to the public on Tuesday.

The building is the last of the city's nine Metropolitan Area Projects to open, and underwent more than three years of delays because of site problems and legal battles over a subcontractor's delivery of disputed exterior panels.

On Friday 3,000 people participated in a ceremonial book passing, bringing the new books to the library.

"It's a wonderful piece of art in its own right. It's got an amazing view of City Hall and the county courthouse," Mayor Mick Cornett said.

Free books for Teen Read Week

Managing Information News: "For the sixth year, Scholastic will donate two new books to members of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) who are planning to celebrate Teen Read Week in America between October 17 - 23, 2004. "

Open Audiobooks Project

Found this via Open Access News. Could your library adapt this for a book group, collection development, or promotional tool? hmmmm.... Open Audiobooks Project | Purpose: "The goal of the Open Audiobooks Project is for volunteers to work together to create audio books of public domain texts for people to freely download, distribute, and modify. While the results will probably not be a match for books read by professional readers, we hope they will nonetheless be enjoyable and useful."

Tuesday night's storms hit Guthrie library

News-Star OnlineStrong storms lash state killing two 08/12/04: "Guthrie's community center, water plant and library sustained roof damage. The city declared a state of emergency."

Wired News: An Original Way to Go Postal

Try this as a promotional tool for your library or reading group!
Wired News: An Original Way to Go Postal: "Every year, the U.S. Postal Service receives 40,000 submissions for new stamp images and releases about 35 of them. But now, thanks to PhotoStamps, a trial service from Stamps.com formally announced Tuesday, the number of new stamps hitting envelopes nationwide could become nearly infinite.
PhotoStamps allows anyone to design their own image and emblazon a stamp with it. Thus, be prepared to see a wave of stamps with babies, cats, weddings and other personalized images and logos arriving in a mailbox near you. "

Rural Libraries have a lot to offer

This LibraryStory was sent to me courtesy of Annette H., at Beaver County Pioneer Library. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

I've been researching small rural libraries in the United states and found out some very interesting things. The Association of Small, Rural Libraries started by Clarion University in Pennsylvania is reaching out to all kinds of small, rural libraries. Approximately 69% of the nation's libraries serve small cities and/or rural populations according to the research done by the University, which defines small, rural as serving populations of 25,000 or less, with a limited budget and a diverse clientelle. The organization will be having a national conference in Ohio in October. If you would like to help send representation to the conference, please contact the library.

Summer of Champions @ Your Library boosted local students into the next school year by helping maintain reading levels over summer break. Maria Mitchell, children's librarian, did another outstanding program this year. Students involved in the program received information from eleven Olympic sports associations, the International Federation of Olympic Athletes, NASCAR, the professional associations of football, hockey, basketball, baseball, and softball, and several college and professional teams in various sports. Closing ceremony last week saw the children carrying out the "Olympic flame" to remind them to always play fair and to play their best. Hats off to Maria!

Our library will be joining the "Smartest C@rd" campaign coming soon from the American Library Association. Just imagine what a free card can do: internet access, nearly unlimited access to journals and periodicals, e-books, books and materials, newspapers, videotapes, audiobooks, and much more. Keep watching this column for more information.

El Club de Conversacion/The Conversation Club brought two cultures together for fun and learning this summer, too. Six weeks of classes in many ways didn't seem like enough. Not a traditional English as a Second Language course, El Club/The Club focuses on learning conversational English and Spanish, as well as exchanging cultural similarities and differences. An average attendance of thirteen for the six-week session made our first foray into multi-cultural learning a big hit! Thanks to our moderators, Stephen Shadden, Christian Chavez, and Consuelo Reynoso for helping all of us communicate.If you are interested in attending classes in the fall, please contact the library at 580-625-3076.

Fans of suspense will enjoy the latest FBI thriller from Catherine Coulter, Blow Out. Set in the Washington, D.C. area, tongue-in-cheek humor and non-stop action are trademarks of Coulter's husband and wife team Dillon Savich and Lacey Sherlock. Joined by key characters including a metro D.C. police officer and a reporter for the Washington Post, Savich and Sherlock set out to discover the er of a Supreme Court Justice and two of his law clerks. Interested? Check it out!

Congressional economists tackle copyright issues | CNET News.com

Congressional economists tackle copyright issues | CNET News.com: "The Congressional Budget Office released a new study on digital copyright issues Tuesday, outlining economic problems that Congress should keep in mind as it grapples with making new laws.
While stopping short of specific legislative recommendations, the paper offers a set of principles for lawmakers that's largely focused on avoiding being tied too closely to past practices or to the interests of powerful companies or consumer groups."

Eufaula bade adieu to a hometown son last week.

McAlester News Capital & Democrat: "The Friends of the Eufaula Memorial Library will also miss Harkey. He served that group as president several times, his final term being last year. He was also a member of the library's building committee and hoped to see the expansion of the library to its fruition. Under his leadership, the computer system was instituted at the library in 1996, making local dial up service available to the community. "

School libraries offer retreat from work

Reg. Req. NewsOK.com | School libraries offer retreat from work: Oklahoma City Public School administrator DeAnn Davis calls it "a hidden classroom" deep inside every city school. The Library, once a place student visited only on occasion, has become one of the busiest school rooms. And with the rise of technology, more students--and their parents--are turning to school libraries to do research and to improve reading skills.

Questions not to ask in an interview

Questions not to ask in an interview Questions not to ask include:

"How many hours a day do you work?"
"If you were an animal which one would you be?"
"What needs to be accomplished in this position in the next six months?"

Read the linked article to find out why you shouldn't ask them.

Also, can you think of any additional questions not to ask?

United Press International: PoliSci: House acts on research access

United Press International: PoliSci: House acts on research access: "Anger over limits on access to research results, due largely to high publication prices, has risen to the point a federal backlash is brewing.

Congress is moving to force a shift to 'open access,' a form of free-to-consumer publishing, for scientific papers. The move angers commercial publishers, who see their livelihoods threatened, and scares scientific societies, who are afraid they will face revenue losses or new costs they cannot afford. Even librarians, who pushed for the move, are cautious, because they are concerned for the health of the scientific societies.
...

The accumulation of price increases appears to be what has angered Congress -- that and the fact federal dollars support much of the research written about in the papers.

"Taxpayers not only have to pay for the research, they have to pay to read it," said Micah Swafford, spokesman for Congressman Ernest Istook Jr., R-Okla."

Library Lady brings kids, books together

Reg. Req. Library Lady brings kids, books together

When it comes to abused and neglected children, the smallest things can make a big difference, even a book.

At one metro shelter, there's a special lady who's providig books and much more, and loving every minute of it.

At the Pauline Mayer Shelter in Oklahoma City, they have a special name for June Balaban: "Library lady."

The 65-year-old retired school counselor volunteered to set up a library at the shelter three years ago, and has spent time each week updating it and helping shelter kids take advantage of it ever since...

Click here to see the story.

WebCT and MERLOT Form Strategic Partnership to Energize Inter-Institution Learning Content Exchange

WebCT and MERLOT Form Strategic Partnership to Energize Inter-Institution Learning Content Exchange: "WebCT, maker of higher education's most flexible and widely used e-learning solution, today announced a strategic partnership with MERLOT, higher-education's leading online content clearinghouse. As a result, the MERLOT community will grow, and faculty will teach more effectively with WebCT course management systems (CMSs).
MERLOT stands for Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching. Under the partnership, unique among course management vendors, WebCT users will be able to perform targeted searches across the 10,000 learning objects indexed on MERLOT to create their customized online courses in a timely manner. They will pinpoint WebCT-ready content produced by faculty, institutions and publishers, including IMS standards-based learning modules, question databases and quizzes. WebCT users will also be able to easily identify training content designed to help faculty more effectively use WebCT e-learning systems."

America's Most Literate Cities

From the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
The most literate city in America, according to UWW, is Minneapolis, MN. So where do the cities (population over 200,000) in Oklahoma fall on the literacy scale?

Tulsa checks-in at number 21 and Oklahoma City is number 39.

Be sure to look at the methodology behind this study.

Mural Created for McKee Library

Oklahoma Panhandle State University is home to many fine artists, and two of them recently completed a mural in McKee Library. Heather Baker and Lacy Mussman used acrylic paints with an airbrush to create much of the mural and used a paintbrush for detail work. The colorful painting spans an entire wall in the children’s literature section of McKee Library and measures over 27 feet wide and 7 feet 6 inches high.

Entitled "Oklahoma Afternoon," the trompe l’oeil painting depicts highlights of Oklahoma nature including official state flora and fauna. Examples include the redbud tree, the official state tree, the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, the state bird, a bison, the state animal, and Indian Blanket, the state wildflower. The painting also depicts other common Oklahoma sights such as wheat, the cotton-tailed rabbit and deer.

Baker graduated cum laude this past May with a Fine Arts degree, and she has worked in the library since she was a freshman. Mussman begins her senior year this fall and is an Art and Animal Science major. She said, "I’ve been waiting three years to paint on the walls, and they finally let me!"

Open patio doors invite the viewer to follow the dog and tour the garden. When discussing the perspective, Baker said, "We proved art majors can do math."

Thanks Elaina S. for sharing this LibraryStory!

Cartwright Memorial Library

McAlester News Capital & Democrat: "I have to start from somewhere and one of my primary interests in Clayton is the beautiful new Cartwright Memorial Library building.

This building is the result of the determination and tireless effort of the board of directors who wanted a library for the north end of Pushmataha County. Some believed this to be an impossible project, but nevertheless the building stands in grand array awaiting the finishing touches in the landscaping.

Although Clayton's population is only 719, people from the Tuskahoma, Albion, Nashoba, Kiamich, Sardis, and Adel communities are frequent users of the library.

The library is equipped with six computers with Internet access, many new books that are on the top sellers' list, a children's reading section, and a conference room. A literacy instructor meets with students two days a week at the library.

A recently formed genealogy group utilizes the library for their meetings and contributes donations to help with the utilities.

Cartwright Memorial Library was funded by the USDA and KEDDO and received grants from Sarkeys and other foundations, but the smaller donations cannot be overlooked. Many people who have made donations of $5 are dedicated to frequently contributing to the utility fund that keeps the library in operation.

The library is not affiliated with the city or state and is totally dependent upon fundraisers and donations from individuals."

Nancy Pearl--the Oklahoma Connection

Nancy Pearl trading the quiet confines of the library for a life of leisure: "Pearl was raised in Detroit, in a family that 'today would be labeled dysfunctional,' she wrote. She credits books and librarians with saving her life.
She became a children's librarian in her hometown library system, just like the ones who inspired her -- Miss Long and Miss Whitehead. She later moved with her professor husband, Joe Pearl, to Oklahoma.
She raised two daughters while earning a master's degree in history, then worked in an independent bookstore as well as the Tulsa City-County Libraries, where she was a popular figure on the level of her early Seattle years.
Craig Buthod, who worked with Pearl in Tulsa before becoming deputy director of the Seattle Public Library, recruited her to come to Seattle 11 years ago."

300 Libraries Receive Human Rights Video Collection Grants

Managing Information News
The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office and National Video Resources (NVR) have selected over 200 libraries in 44 states to receive the Human Rights Video Project grant.
A panel of librarians, filmmakers and human rights professionals selected the video collection, which covers topics such as globalization and labor rights, landmines, the prison industry in the United States, sexual violence in war, police brutality, disability rights, rights to education, justice for torture victims, globalization and International Monetary Fund (IMF) policies, post-apartheid South Africa, Israel and the Palestinians, AIDS in Africa and U.S. immigration and political asylum.
For more information about the Human Rights Video Project and to view a complete list of selected libraries, please visit www.humanrightsproject.org.

Participating Oklahoma libraries include:
Grace M. Pickens Public Library (Hodenville, OK)
Pioneer Library System (Norman, OK)

Add this Spanish language resource to your website

Registration Required Pro-business Oklahoma Web site now available in Spanish The Greater Oklahoma City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the State Chamber jointly announced the launch of Poyecto de Properidad de Oklahoma, which is Spanish for Oklahoma Prosperity Project, the State Chamber's voter education initiative.

Library Journal - 9-11 Commission: Libraries Can Be Part of the Solution

Library Journal - 9-11 Commission: Libraries Can Be Part of the Solution: "The 9-11 Commission report, which looked broadly at the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks and future responses to terrorism, invoked libraries in 'defending our ideals' and communicating such principles to Arab and Muslim audiences. 'If the United States does not act aggressively to define itself in the Islamic world, the extremists will gladly do the job for us,' it warns. One way of achieving this is to ' rebuild the scholarship, exchange, and library programs that reach out to young people and offer them knowledge and hope.'"

ChannelOklahoma.com - As Seen On 5 - Help Donna Norvell

ChannelOklahoma.com - As Seen On 5 - Help Donna Norvell: "Help Donna Norvell
Donna Norvell has been in charge of the summer reading program for the Oklahoma Department of Libraries for the past 12 years. She was recently diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.
To help cover the cost of radiation and chemotherapy, her family decided to have a garage sale Saturday, July 31, 2004.
People who would like to help, but who can't attend the garage sale, may make a donation at any MidFirst Bank branch.
Donations must be specified for deposit into account #0303219216. "