It is a matter of worry

The way the markets and the economic situation is decomposing. Rotting away. Has the look of a death spiral. Thinking that 2 years ago, we were floating on a cloud of economic global bliss, or almost. Then one little bloc from the JENGA economic tower was removed. ABCP, it was written on the little wooden bloc.

Since then, the JENGA economic tower has been tumbling, and isn't done crumbling yet, it seems.

It is said that bad economic times are good times for public libraries, as more and more people come to use and rely on our free/inexpensive services. Good for us library workers, in a way, as being asked to do more with less is a kind of lesser evil compared to someone loosing his/her job and being stuck in economic distress. Still. I see nothing here to rejoyce about. Let's roll up our sleeves...

Are you smarter than a 5th grader?

This morning my daughter's school was hosting a science fair. Rachel and her friend Claude-Hélène where hosting an exibit on fossils, along with maybe 20 other groups. Some were so so, some were good (including my daughter's) and some were truly amazing! The amount of work and dedication these pre-teens put into their displays is quite impressive, and they sometimes were obviously helped by their parents (some had powerpoint presentations on laptop at their booth!!!), but still. Some of the fair booths well well researched, well illustrated, and the 10 years old actually maning (or preteening?) the displays KNEW their stuff!

Seriously, I've learned that you can use Botox to relieve cerebral palsy symptoms, that in some parts of Canada it's 90% of the population of polar bears went down the drain, and was granted the horrible pleasure to see gruesome pictures on the effects of head trauma, polio and anorexia.

Some of these kids will go far, given the chance. They also have means and tools that were only a distant dream when I was their age...

Ipods: Fantastic antidote to procrastination?

My beloved got a Ipod classic for her 30th birthday. And she sooooo deserves it. As I'm much older, a small Ipod shuffle would be aplenty for me! So let's go on a lenghtyish post here to make my point that the iPod shuffle is mine, not thru privilege, but because I worked hard to deserve it (and I'm filthy lucky, too!)

I basically enjoyed the whole workshop, including the little commoncraft videos on YouTube. I must say that what I disliked most is FaceBook (we call it FesseBook at home, it's great to be francophone). I enjoy having a blog, I've improved my l337 RSSing skillz, and Flicker is great! Honest, I don't see how to improve that workshop. Not having us shuffling around in our cars to go from one end of the city to the other is great, too! It's GREEN! It means we are fullfilling one of our strategic plan initiatives! *Rachelene slaps Matt and Caitlin in the back* GREAT JOB, YOU TWO! I may have thought that the lifelong learning video was a bit of a bore, but I do agree and believe that the best way to learn is to have fun. I'm having fun now! Really!

So, let's check what I've done to get my tiny wonder of technology...

1. Set up a Google Account. *CHECK*
2. Set up a Blog using Blogger *CHECK* well, as they say, if you are reading this...
3. Create your first Blog Post *CHECK*
4. Create a post in your blog on Lifelifelong Learning. (Which is easiest? hardest?) *CHECK*
5. Add a link to your Blog on the wiki *CHECK*
6. (Optional) Add a comment to one of your colleagues' blogs *CHECK*
7. Set up a Google Reader Account *CHECK*
8. Subscribe to 10 RSS feeds including an OPL feed *CHECK*
9. Post in your blog about RSS *CHECK*
10. Set up a Delicious Account *CHECK*
11. Add a bookmark to your Delicious account and tag it *CHECK*
12. Create a post in your blog about your experiences using Facebook *CHECK*
13. Add a post in your blog about Flickr and Creative Commons, OR Create a Flickr account, post a photo and provide a link to it in your blog *CHECK*
14. Create a post in your blog that reflects on your experiences during this workshop *CHECK*
15. (Optional) Continue blogging after this workshop and discovering new web applications and technologies! *OF COURSE!!!*

And again, thanks for all of those who assembled this lovely little package. It should be compulsory for anyone who works @ OPL in the information field, although I think it would be of use to almost anyone. Being aware about these tools means added expertise I can share with our patrons. Fantastic job!!!

Wednesdays Wednesdays...

That is our new Family vehicule. Basically accurate, including the color and the bike rack. The roof box is much cheaper however, being Canadian Tire Karite stuff...

Ridiculously exotic Devonian trilobite from Morocco (B&W version)

Ridiculously exotic Devonian trilobite from Morocco (B&W version)
Originally uploaded by pomphorhynchus

Truly amazing, no? And sent directly from Flicker to my Blog. I deserve 2 Ipod Shuffle, Methinks...

I really, really love flicker!

Why do 2 when you can do only 1?

Of course, why not do two exercises instead of only one?

Time to share my burning interest in paleontology with the rest of the world. Here is a nice pictures I've found in the Creative Common photo search on Flickr... And the next photo I will ship to my blog straight from Flicker!!!

Nice little monster leftovers, no? All of them found on publicly shared photos on Flickr!

I may not like Facebook, but I'm definitely liking Flickr... Got to push it on my Girlfriend, now...

Flickr exercise

Well, I sure can see a use for Flickr! Somehow, the first impressions REALLY is good. I feel that I can make use of it, if only to back up photos. And I haven't figured the catch yet! I always wonder: Whoever makes this, what is their motivation and how do they come into their money and time? How are they rewarded in the end?

Anyway, here is the link to my new Flickr account and some dated photos (yes, the daughters are very busy growing...): http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachelene2

Exercise complete: I can already smell the Ipod shuffle...