PLA Blog

I’ve been active on the message boards for Robert Earl Keen, a wonderful Texas singer/songwriter, getting some insider tips for San Antonio, since many hardcore REK fans are from the area. The key piece of information I’ve gotten is that burritos are a gringo invention and that if :

1. you are in a restaurant with burritos on the menu, you’re not in an authentic joint;
2. you are in an authentic restaurant and ask for a burrito, you might see a quick eye-roll from your server

I’ve also heard that Rosario’s, a five-minute cab ride from the RiverWalk, is The Place to go for authentic Mexican/TexMex food. Someone else recommended the Blanco Cafe and said the tacos there “will ruin you on eating tacos anywhere else.”

For lounge kitsch, head to Martini’s Fri/Sat after 9:30.

And for an authentic Texas dance hall experience, it’s JT Floore’s Country Store out in Helotes. I was hoping to catch Robert Earl Keen while I was in town, but it’s not to be. Los Lobos, however, will be doing an acoustic set at Floore’s Friday night at 10:30. (tix are $25-30 and likely to sell out).

By the way…Robert Earl thinks that reading is Keen.

IFLA has updated a document they put out on meetiung user needs [PDF]. (link via Resourceshelf)

+ News from the Briggs Lawrence County Public Library [OH] about a new program called Learning Express Library which will “offer unlimited 24- hour, 7-days-a- week access to skill-building courses in subjects such as math, reading and writing and a wide variety of online interactive practice tests including civil service, graduate school entrance exams, middle school skills tests and law enforcement exams.”

+ The Indianapolis - Marion County Public Library [IN] is using e-mail to connect with patrons, asking them to contact their representatives so they [the library] can get more funding.

+ The Baltimore branch of the Fairfield County District Library [OH] is getting some work done: “We’re not doing anything to the building itself,” said Judith Cosgray, branch manager. “But the inside will look different.”

For the first time ever, we will be awarding a Bookshelf - 15 classic books for young readers on the theme of “Becoming American” - to 2,000 school and public libraries. This is four times the number of Bookshelves we’ve awarded in the past for a single application deadline! We hope you’ll take advantage of this easy opportunity to acquire free books for your library.

Guidelines and the online application are available at www.ala.org/wethepeople from September 6, 2005 - January 17, 2006. Libraries interested in receiving the collection are required to develop and host a program to introduce the collection and its theme of “Becoming American” to students and/or patrons. Unlike past We the People Bookshelves, there will be no second deadline for “Becoming American.” All applications are due by January 17, 2006.

To access a list of titles and further details, please visit http://www.ala.org/wethepeople. With questions, contact publicprograms [at] ala [dot] org.

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Multiple libraries within a system or school district may apply for and receive a Bookshelf. For tips on applying on behalf of multiple locations, visit http://www.wethepeople.gov/bookshelf/becomingamerican-system.html.

Many new technologies are hitting the retail shelves these days. Recently I casually chatted with the Head of Information Services at my library about the potential to purchase and lend PlayStation Portable(TM) (PSP) movies (yep, the handheld game devices play movies, among other things), and what that means logistically for the library, which made me curious about what other public libraries are doing.

Is your library looking into lending PSP movies, games, or other new gadget items? Do you already lend these items, and have stories to tell? Drop us a line or leave us a comment and let us know what you’re up to.

See also:
- Library to try lending video games [IL]

- Wauconda Area Library [IL] New DVDs and UMD Movies (designed to attract the elusive young male patrons demographic)

- The Ossining Public Library [NY] Teen survey asks whether or not teens want access to PSP-compatible videos & games

From the press release:

“The American Library Association (ALA) launched its Advocacy Resource Center today. Located at www.ala.org/issues&advocacy, the new online site is designed to provide members and advocates with easy-to-find tools and resources.”

“New sections include: “Getting Started,” a motivational piece for the beginning advocate, and “Grassroots Resources,” a bibliography of articles and Web sites pertaining to specific advocacy issues. Other new features include links to statistics and reports from the Office for Research and Statistics (ORS) and the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) and the American Association of School Librarian’s (AASL) advocacy pages. To increase visibility of Library Champions, the Library Champions logo and associated text was added to the main page.”

Wouldn’t you like to be a mentor too?

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We need you! If you are a public library leader and experienced national conference goer, read on. PLA needs 15 public library leaders to serve as mentors to ALA Spectrum Scholars who will be attending the upcoming PLA National Conference in Boston. As you may know, PLA has provided travel grants to Spectrum Scholars to attend the conference so that they are introduced to public librarianship and to provide networking opportunities for them.

This is an unstructured mentoring program. Mentors are encouraged to introduce themselves in advance of the conference (via phone or e mail) and to answer any pre conference questions and then will meet up with scholars at conference during the New Member Reception, Wednesday, March 22, 6:00 p.m.  After the new member reception, we hope that you will touch base with your Spectrum Scholar occasionally during the conference to ensure that they are having a successful experience.

Please let me know by Friday, Jan. 20, if you are willing to serve as a mentor during the PLA conference. I will provide information on the Spectrum Scholars who will be attending conference including theirve mail addresses. Thank you.

Angela Thullen
athullen [at] ala.org

Happy New Year! And with it come so many new beginnings.

Repairs are now complete at Allerton Public Library [Illinois]. The new Delray Beach Public Library [Florida], set to open January 8, will feature a fabulously Zen-sounding waterfall and bamboo decor, self-checkout, a teen cyber center, and much more.

A few more finishing touches are all that’s left for the renovation of the Rogers Public Library in Arkansas (See also: an interesting story of the travels of a Rogers Public Library book), and the Bristol Public Library [Connecticut] is debuting a new and improved young adult section on January 4 to serve the city’s teeming teen population.

Meanwhile, Princeton Public Library [New Jersey] is proving to be a new (and improved) local hot spot for the community, and the third floor of the Ellsworth Public Library [Maine] is the new hot place to go for genealogy and local history materials.

In other news, the public library in Bellevue, Nebraska is issuing free library cards to active (nonresident) military personnel stationed at a local base. Nonresident cards normally cost $25.

And as we say hello to the New Year, Westlake Porter Public Library in Colorado says a fond farewell to their director, Paula Miller, as she accepts a new positions as the executive director of the Pikes Peak Library District.

Have you got news for the New Year? Let us know.