Pets #74: Social Petworking

Ok, this is just too much! Blogging for our pets! I don’t even blog for myself! Anyway, it’s fun to see what’s out there and what people are up to. Of the websites suggested, I couldn’t resist registering on Animalattraction.com, since donations are involved. The registration was very straight forward. I’ll try to log on often and encourage family members to do the same. It has cute names for its categories, like “My Den” for my profile and “Pet Pals” for others who would access my blog. Not sure about the feature, “Pet Parent Search”, where you look for other pet owners in your vicinity – if it were breed specific, I could understand it a little better, but…again, it interesting to know what other people are up to.
The other websites were good to know about, especially the ones to do with health and the one for great deals.

Pets #73: Losing a Friend

1. I found the ASPCA website very helpful and easy to use. I really wish I had had this information before we euthanized our last dog. Knowing when the time is “right” is a very difficult decision and this website helped give some pointers. I also really wish I had this website’s information about the actual euthanization process before. You always hear about animals being “put to sleep” and that’s what I expected and I was quite shocked when I did not actually see it happen that way. The ASPCA is a well known organization and I would recommend its website to others.
The Humane Society is also a well known organization and its information about pet loss can be helpful. I would probably refer patrons to this site as well as the ASPCA site for this reason and also because they offer other additional information for pet owners.
2. Dealing with pet loss is very difficult. I was with our last dog, Shamal (Arabic for sandstorm), when she was euthanized and I swore I would never do that again (be present for the euthanization) but now that we have another dog, Karma, I’m sure I would, for her sake. Having a pet is totally worth it in terms of love and companionship, even when the relationship must end.

Pets #72: Pet Health Online

1. My dog, Karma's real age turns out to be 33.6, which DogAge says is 13.9 years younger than the average for her breed. She is actually 8 in actual years. The site is interesting, but as happens with these quizes, sometimes the choices for answers were often limiting. The website does offer what could be useful information in relation to the outcome of the quiz and how to improve your dog's health.

2. Karma is actually pretty fit, mainly because we take her for daily walks (usually daily, anyway) and she walks at a fast clip, considering she is a small animal - sometimes we have to walk a little faster than we want to in order to keep us with her! Sounds like we already do "Power Dog Walks with Intervals", suggested by Petfit.

One of the things I guess we could try that was listed on Petfit was "Fetch Races", where we would try to race and get the fetched item before Karma could - fun!

Pets #71: Finding a Pet

I took the Pet Picker Quiz and found out the suggested pet for me is (drum roll)... a ferret! I am so offended! Well, actually I guess there is a little physical resemblance (furry and cute) to my Shih Tzu.

I did a pet search on Pet Harbor and thought I would search for ferrets - there were none found at all but there are hundreds of rabbits and one hamster.

I found the websites Petfinder and Pet Harbor to be useful for adopting pets in that you can actually see pictures of the adoptable animals and descriptions - that can save alot of legwork for prospective owners.

Crafts & Hobbies #63: Digital Scrapbooking

1. I went to Scrapblog.com and watched the video and spent a little time selecting a layout and then uploaded pictures.

2. I think digital scrapbooking is wonderful! We are currently dealing with hundreds of family photos (the actual physical items) which have been handed down and this method is so much better! Easier to keep, document, share, etc. for others and even future generations, if the scrapbooks are saved to cd.

3) As far as I could tell, posting the layout actually meant having to register, although I did not have to register to play around with the layout, upload photos, etc. When I checked it on my blog, the script kept saying it was loading, so I had to click on view full size to actually view it. Don’t know what’s up with that!

Crafts & Hobbies #63: Digital Scrapbooking

Crafts & Hobbies #65: Coin Collecting

1) I looked up a 1882 Morgan silver dollar that I own in the Red Book. Looks like I’ll be keeping my day job, since it looks to be worth only $18.00!

2) I looked up dealers in the PNG directory and was surprised to see there are not that many for the state of Texas. I did see four in the Houston area. There were gobs listed under coin dealers in Google Maps for Houston.

3) Overall, this looks like a hobby that could get involved. The grading of coins especially seems to get a little tricky. I could more consider myself to be an occasional collector, maybe hoping to come across something valuable as I go. I know, the odds are like winning the lottery!

Crafts & Hobbies #66: Knitting and Crocheting

1. I checked out the knitting and crochet websites, especially the ones to do with making items for charities. I do not knit or crochet now but may do so in the future. These do look like relaxing, worthwhile hobbies. At this point, I would rather make a lap blanket, mainly because it looks like it might be the easiest? Not knowing how to knit or crochet, I can’t really tell.
2. Yes, our branch does have a knitting group, which appears to be very popular and inviting!

Crafts & Hobbies #62: Decoupage

Actually, I decoupaged eons ago. I believe it was a foot stool and I remember it as being ridiculously easy! I don’t see decoupaging in my immediate future but would definitely consider it if just the right idea surfaced.
I especially liked the outline of the desk that was decoupaged on the bureau on Flickr. I also loved the poster chairs and the Warhol cabinets that came up on Jonathan Fong Style. They wouldn’t fit into my “décor” but were fantastic and inspirational!

Crafts & Hobbies #61: Craftspiration!

1) I did check out the craft sites. The website that I found most appealing was Instructables, mainly because it seemed to have a lot of practical advice about how to improvise in creating or fixing something useable. For instance, I would be interested in learning how to make homemade sunscreen, which is really not a craft. I guess at this point in my life, I’m really not that into making a craft for craft’s sake.
2) I looked at the websites in the multimedia section. I think learning a craft by watching a video would be great! Written instructions, for me, can be kind of hard to follow.

3) Overall, this crafting section was very interesting. Even if I personally don’t use it, it can be helpful for patrons or for planning programs.

Crafts & Hobbies #64: Zines

1) I would not make my own zine. Goodness, alot of people have time on their hands! Really, though, I could understand the concept if someone feels like they are expert on a subject, have a special interest, or have something interesting to say others would want to read on a continuing basis. At this point, I don't think any of these categories apply to me.

2) I think zines could have a place in the library, especially if they have a local focus.

Recession Busters # 60: Food, Fun & Frugality

Recession Busters # 60: Food, Fun & Frugality

1. I watched Clara’s video for depression style pasta and peas. The recipe was rather freestyle:
Cut up one potato, and some onion, and sauté in pan with a little olive oil. Add a can of peas. Add enough water to cook pasta and bring to boil. Add pasta and then turn off heat under pan. Allow to sit at least ten minutes. Salt and pepper are added to taste, and if desired, can add a little tomato sauce. Yum!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuMkW35BwK8

2. Of course, recession news has been all over the media for months. Recession busters I have come across? Packaging home services, such as cable, telephone, and internet. Shopping around for the best electric rates.

3. I have practiced some money saving tips forever, such as grocery shopping with coupons and specials, buying store brands, etc. I have also been a Consumer Reports subscriber for years and it is a great source of information for shopping wisely.

Money & Finance #59: Credit, Money Management, and Saving

1. I read the article How Credit Reports Work. One of the interesting things I learned was the breakdown by percentage as to how a credit score is determined. The hints on how to improve your score were also enlightening.
2. We have never had a formal spending/budget plan but have always contributed to savings, lived within our means, and are aware of our finances. That being the case, I really do not plan at this time to implement a formal spending/budget plan. If I were to do so, however, I liked the website suggested, on About.com’s Frugal Living section.
I also bookmarked a couple of sites that I would be useful to suggest to patrons.

3. On the TCDRS website, I found the information in the Service Center to be the most useful. As I get closer to retirement, perhaps I would find it useful to log in to check my balance but for right now, the yearly written statement is sufficient.

Money & Finance #58: Banking, Budgeting, and Spending

1)Yes our bank does offer online services, which we principally use to transfer funds. It seems to have very good security, showing special preselected screens and of course, passwords. We do not use it for online payments, as we have automatic withdrawals. We do need to be careful about passwords - that we are not writing them down, and not using the same password for sensitive money matters as \ we do other reasons/sites.

2)I did take a look at the budgeting tools and they look fine, but we really feel we have done a good job ourselves. I have to admit I am reluctant to put personal info on yet another website, which brings us back to the security issue. And Rippleplay, are you kidding me? That seems like a really bizarre concept, but I guess it must work for some people!

3)I already do almost all of the savings tips from Consumer Reports , but am interested in checking out InsWeb for competetive insurance rates and might try out taking clothes out of the dryer while still damp (hmm, that might be issue as where to put them until they dry out completely without wrinkling.)

Apologies!

My blogs for the Books, Readers, and Beyond are out of sequence because for various reasons, technical difficulties, etc., I did them out of sequence!

Books, Readers, and Beyond: #53 Finding Books Online Exercise 3

I downloaded the book, About my Sisters by Debra Ginsberg from Overdrive. For entertainment, I still at this point would prefer reading a paper copy, but perhaps that is because I do not own a device that I can download to. I certainly can not see myself reading on a desk computer a book for pleasure. I can certainly see, however, doing this for perhaps, a cookbook, or some other nonfiction title that I wish to refer to quickly. Which brings me to the advantages of the online format - being able to find words or terms quickly (handy if you want to go back and reread something) and being able to bookmark.

Books, Readers and Beyond: #54 Social Networking Through Books

Exercise 1: I have never been a member of a book club – finding the time to read books is enough of a challenge, much less finding the time to be in a club. If I did have the time, however, I would prefer one that would be in-person. It seems that the social interaction would be so much more meaningful if it were face on. And it would seem that that would be what joining a club would be all about, the sharing and the social interaction…

Exercise 2: Actually we already have an existing book club “Who Dun it @ the Library?” but we are implementing a few changes in terms of book selection. When it is my turn to facilitate, being a non-fiction reader, I decided to choose a true crime title by a local author, Kathryn Casey. This author spoke at a mystery program here and there was great interest in her true crime writing, hence the choice, Evil Beside Her. I was surprised to note that Shelfari did list this title with 2 reviews. In the future, if the club enjoys reading a true crime title once in a while, I will definitely go to ReadingGroupGuides.com to choose other titles. I was very interested to see that The Innocent Man was on that list, a possibility for next time. As a best seller, it is on the other sites, too.

Exercise 3: I searched for Into Thin Air on both Readerville.com and Shelfari.com. Not surprisingly, being nonfiction titles, there were not gobs of comments, but there were a few on both sites. The comments were similar. No surprises.

Books, Readers, and Beyond #52 What to Read, Exercise 4

I used NovelistPlus and also MidContinent Public Library as a comparison to find the series and titles for the book by Tamora Pierce. They are:

Series: Song of the Lioness

1. Alanna: The First Adventure
2. In the Hand of the Goddess
3. The Woman who Rides like a Man
4. Lioness Rampant

Books, Readers, and Beyond #52, What to Read, Exercise 3

Using NovelistPlus, I found Greg Bear, Dan Simmons, and John Saul as alternative authors to Dean Kootz.

I also went to Allreaders.com, in which you get suggestions after you have specified a title. Authors suggested were Anne Bishop, Tim Powers, and Christopher Tregus.

I prefer the Novelist site, as you can narrow according the the things you liked about the book/writing.

Books, Readers, and Beyond #52 What to Read Exercise 2

I decided to use Library Booklists and Bibliographies, since I use NovelistPlus fairly often. For the 4ht grade girl, I selected Dillon, Dillon, by Kate Banks and Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate Dicamillo. It came under the heading, "Booklists: Children's Fiction Index: Books Featuring Animals/Pets. The website went to Novi Public Library, Mi, which lists titles by grade level.

This site also had suggestions for older children. For the 13 year old brother I found Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz and A Foot in the Grave by Joan Aiken. These might be a bit on the tame side, but without more input about the brother, it might be best to make conservative choices.

Books, Readers, and Beyond #52 Exercise 1

Since I prefer to read nonfiction, I chose the title Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer.
NovelPlus offers more options to limit than the other website, and I chose two, adventure and suspense. 1,700 titles came up! Whew!

I accessed Librarian in Black, where I chose Allreaders.com, and five titles were given. I also went into What Should I Read Next, which gave me 10 titles.

Actually, I was pleased that there were options for nonfiction reader's advisory. I knew it had recently been added to NovelistPlus but its nice to find it other places. What Should I Read Next gives the viewpoint of other readers' suggestions but NovelistPlus is handy for its limiting capability.

Books, Readers, and Beyond #53 Exercise 2

I searched for a mass paperback, Twilight, by Stephanie Meyer. It was available for purchase on Katy Budget Books, for $7.99 plus shipping, Books a Million for $7.99 plus shipping, or $7.61 plus shipping if you paid $20 a year for a membership card. Amazon beat them both, for $6.09 plus shipping, and as low as $4.97 plus shipping for a used copy. Although I did not join, both Swaptree and Paperback Swap listed Twilight as an option for a swap - not sure if those swaps would actually go through.

Books, Readers, and Beyond #53 Finding Books Online Exercise 1

I checked Katy Budget Books and Books A Million, which are closest to our branch. What really would have been helpful and didn't exist, was an inventory of what is actually available in the stores. Both allowed online sales, not that useful. Katy Budget Books does offer an email service where a customer can request a used book title and be notified when one becomes available. Katy has a large component of Christian fiction readers and Books a Million has a Faithpoint option, which features latest releases of this genre.

Since I do not know of other bookstores close to Katy, I also visited Murder by the Book, since we have a mystery book club. For this reason, this website can be useful for its title suggestions (most popular)and author interviews.

I'm not sure about this exercise - was I to write 25 words total for all 3 bookstores or 25 for all?