A is for April

I'm not doing the A-Z challenge. 

I'm just excited that spring is here!

A temporary fix & the 1st blogfest of the season (I think)

It was a risk, but I went through and deleted some of the pictures that I thought were extraneous which has fixed my picture problem for now. I probably shouldn't waste a picture to tell you that...

although this picture is representative of what the world looks like from my eyes. It's been a crazy warm October/November and December 1st was almost freaky warm. Tonight is the Parade of Lights here in Denver which is a big deal-- a Christmas extravaganza which could make the Grinches out there practically throw up at the festive excess. It's a parade of Christmas, for lack of a better word, stuff and some characters (Santa, elves, Rudolph and much, much more)- all lit up (go figure). It's a fun to attend- once or twice in your life. The crowds are ridiculous and generally it is absolutely FREEZING! No really, I mean, REALLY FREEZING!!! Frigid temps are as much of a tradition as the lights themselves. Except this year. It is a bit chilly but that's about it. Weird. 

Tomorrow we're even going on a hike and a little jaunt into my favorite little nearby 'burb of Boulder. Should be fun. 

And before I forget this week is the...

hosted by Trish over at WORD+STUFF What are the requirements?

1. Between December 2nd and 3rd, post a pic of yourself as a baby, and/or;
2. Tell us a story about when you were a baby (no doubt you can't quite remember it yourself, but you've probably heard some stories from other members of your family).

You can choose to do one or the other or both, depending on your mood on the day(s). ;)

So here goes:  

My mood to go down into the storage room under the stairs was completely spoiled by the picture snafu of the last few days- and it was no small thing! I would have had to dig around the boxes (buried you understand) of pictures and memorabilia just to find the book of pictures my grandmother put together for me some years ago. Then, I would have had to go to the library early to scan them into the system- all that without knowing whether I could even  post them or it. So no pictures, sorry Trisha! But a promise is a promise. I shall participate without the picture(s) and with one of the only (somewhat lame) stories that I know of from my early childhood:

I was about 2 1/2 when my younger brother was born but I guess I thought I was pretty big stuff, being a big sister and all. The house was small but apparently big enough that my mother had not heard the baby wake up (perhaps fussing about). I guess I decided action was called for and took thing into my own hands (and not for the last time, I will tell you now!). I climbed up the bars of the crib and lifted the 9.10 oz. lump of baby tininess and carried him to my mother. She of course panicked seeing me, probably barely observing the look of pride on my little face a stranglehold around the newborn babe (it was just rewards for all the trouble he later caused, I must say). And he probably looked a wee bit uncomfortable -not unlike this cat....

 However, the little one survived and is today a 6'4" strapping old guy. I am sure it was my stretching technique that helped him become the basketball semi-good that he was (since height is critical in basketball). 

So that's my story, and lame or not, I'm sticking to it! 

Cheers Trisha for coming up with a such fun blogfest! And I hope you all stop by and see some of the other participants- not to mention reading Trisha's entry!

Goodbyes

 My family moved quite a lot when I was a girl. My Grandpa and Grandma's farm was the home port, the anchor in my childhood when I was moving (yet again!) to a new town. I went to stay for long stretches each summer but at the end of the long, hot, lazy days of eastern Oklahoma it was time to say goodbye to all my friends-- once more. It was never easy.

One particular adult friend used to say he hated goodbyes and simply refused to say it. He'd grin, give me a hug and say, "See you later, kid." 

As I grew older, I had many more goodbyes (as do we all, yeah?)... Goodbye to high school friends when leaving for college. Goodbye to college friends when heading out into the "real" world, to grow up, have a life. As an adult, my friends would get jobs in other cities, grandparents passed away, etc., etc. 

It's never any easier: leaving, coming, going, farewell, goodbye, passing by, see ya. 

 The big goodbyes are emotional hurricanes or tornadoes that leave a trail of detritus -uprooted trees, eroded shores, a changed landscape. The small goodbyes do not litter the yesterdays and todays with the same force but the horizon shifts nonetheless. 

 

And then there are the goodbyes we don't want to acknowledge- leaving it to others to mourn, to adjust to burnt pastures.  

 But sometimes it is important to stop and give a nod to the passing of a stranger or the loss of an acquaintance- their lives were threads in the tapestry that makes up our lives. Recently two such people have passed away in my corner of the world and I thought I would pay tribute by telling you a bit about them.

   One was a shy but needy individual who visited the library almost daily and she called two- or three- or even four times a day with questions about her due dates, to order music, to double-check what she had checked out. Whether she had just been in to see us or not. Really she called to have someone to talk to. And we, those of us who work at my branch, were that someone.  

We joked about her need, coarsely wisecracking that her quota of calls had maxed out like the limit of CDs she could take home. But when she stopped calling one day, stopped picking up her holds, stopped asking for receipts for items she returned and stopped asking, "could I bother you to check one more thing...", we wondered where she was, where was our shy bird who smiled in relief when you said more than a short "is this it today?",  who lit up when you asked her how she enjoyed the movie, the retro music?

When the word came that she had passed, even those least affected by her passing sadly gazed on the empty spot she once held in our little community. 

Goodbye Laura Brazeal-Nudelman. 

 The other was a dotty old gentleman, as rickety as the house in my pictures. He rattled around the neighborhood, trash or some other treasure he'd found in the alleys and gutters bursting past the seams of the covered cart that rambled behind him.   

I never spoke to him, shy (or suspicious?) of the outstretched hand, we'd been told to steer clear. Owns half the block, the landlord pointed. Stay off the land, he'll be after you, shaking sticks and making a fuss. Might call the police.  Even kids. (A nearby heart sank as visions of expeditioning the property were dashed.) 

But rumors of his stubborn fight with the city were passed from one door to the next.

 The city would love to take over his property, develop it. Probably put up a highrise amidst the glass monstrosities that reflect on to his unkempt yard. Get rid of the eyesore of a house. But he won't let go. Not Joe. He wants to screw The Man. Up yours! his boarded windows yell. Bugger off... the unhinged door squawks.

Till one day, he closed his eyes and they never reopened.

He was a fighter, that Joe. A man who wouldn't take the 30 silver coins to make the load easier. He'd rather dive for scraps than sell out to the movers and shakers. I never spoke to him, never shook his hand. But I admire him. He was a human among men- or perhaps better said, mice.

Goodbye Joe.

(It's never easy to say goodbye.)  

Pour me another glass of champagne

I occasionally mention the library where I am Lead Circulation Clerk (not a librarian). This means that I do lots of day to day organizational things and manage the work load to make sure everything gets done. I also get the joy of being the go-to person when a patron calls for "Someone Else Who Can Help Me." Some days there are very few problems- I mean really how many complaints can there be in a place that gives you stuff for free??? Well, there are also a few rules to deal with at the library, as we all know, so that's when we usually have Situations. And today was one of those crazy days (several times) but the most outrageous disagreement came when a woman came to return some books she had put on "Claimed Returns" (like it sounds, this means she told us at some point in the past that she had already returned them and that we had made a mistake by not checking them in).

She walked up to the desk (see picture below- that's not her in the purple dress) with her books and gave them to the circulation clerk. She said that she had returned them and they had been found on our shelves so she shouldn't have to pay the fines. Meredith (aforementioned clerk) did not believer her (checks the woman's card) and said that they could not have been found on the book shelves as we had done several searches. On it goes until the conversation becomes heated enough that the woman asks for "Someone Else..." So Meredith came to find me outside (I was on break).

She explained the situation and I walked in prepared to be firm as I knew that we had looked diligently for the items (I had looked personally and remembered the search) "Sorry you have to pay the fines on books you return this late, we did a search here and did not find them," preparing my speech.

So... I'm firm, "Sorry ma'am but we did look for your items and they were not here so..."

 "You don't understand," the woman said wiping her eyes, tear-stained, obviously angry, "I was out of the country. My daughter returned the books. She brought them in and put them on the shelf. They were here."  Incredulous might be too tame a word for the moment. There's a little bell ringing in my ear as the words work their way around to the processing part of my brain, "Her daughter walked in and put them on a shelf in a library with 70,000 other books. Just randomly. And she thinks that is returning them." It made the lap about 3 times before I said, "but the books are here." (Aha! caught her, she's just making this up!) "Yes, I told her to come to the library last week and find them. Then I would bring them back to show you." 


*deep breath* "Uh-huh. Well, I am sorry but you have to return them in a book drop or at this desk. We have one outside, one over there and you could also hand them to the people here or that one. But you can't expect us to be responsible for items that are just returned and put on the shelf. You are responsible for them until they are returned and they were not returned in the proper way. But the good news is, you are not paying for the books, you are only paying the late fines."


"It was too much," still adamant. "I could buy these books." 

Three study books for nursing school, with CDs. "Nope, I'm sorry but these books would cost much more than $10 each. You can pay $10 a month or even $5 dollars but the fines are going to have to be paid."  

"They were here, safe and sound." Yup safe and sound but lost- proverbial needles in a haystack.

"I'm sorry." It's all I could say.

This is my day...

Hi! Can I help you? Did you find everything you needed? Would you like to renew your overdue items? Would you like your receipt? Have a nice day. Hi! Can I help you? Did you find everything you needed? did you return some movies today? Would you like your receipt? Have a nice day. Hi! Can I help you? Did you find everything you needed? You have six books out. Would you like your receipt? Have a nice day. Hi! Can I help you? Did you find everything you needed? Just so you know, you're fines have reached $4.50. Would you like your receipt? Have a nice day. Hi! Can I help you? Would you like your receipt? Is there anything else I can help you with? Have a nice afternoon. Hi! Can I help you? Would you like your receipt? Would you like me to put that on hold for you? Is there anything else I can help you with? Have a nice afternoon. Hi! Can I help you? You can always put those in the return slot but I'll be happy to take them now. Are you ready to check out? Would you like your receipt? Is there anything else I can help you with? Have a nice afternoon. Hi! Can I help you? Would you like your receipt? Is there anything else I can help you with? Have a nice afternoon. Hi! Can I help you? Would you like your receipt? Is there anything else I can help you with? Have a nice afternoon. Hi! Can I help you? Would you like me to renew your overdue items? Would you like your receipt? Is there anything else I can help you with? Have a nice afternoon.*

*So I guess you'll have to excuse me if I'm feeling a little bit drained and this feels like a lame post... the one from yesterday was good though! And it's my son! 

A geek?

Maybe a bit...
The other day I was bemoaning the fact that my new red car doesn't have a CD player in it while my older car had at least a tape player in it (A tape player!?! I know, right?) And I said, I missed listening to Books on Tape like I used to, that I had listened to a whole series on Quantum Physics when I was doing research for 'Death and Politics at the End of the World.' My boss said, "Danette did you just hear yourself? *repeats sentence* I couldn't really fix it without sounding geeky and like a nerd. Sorry. Perhaps I should have gone into science and become a total nerd. Instead I've come at it late in life and incorporate bits and pieces in my writing. And now I am going to share it with you!!!
I came across this video on another blog but it was on YouTube and wanted to share it.

Welcome to paradise!

The characters and events in this post are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

His  rattletrap car only just gasped over the seven mile Overseas Highway and finally let out it's last groan on Stock Island. He ditched the pathetic deathtrap next to what looked like a trailer park and walked on to the island at the End of the World. He was grateful the car had gotten him as far it it had. He'd known the car was going to going be DOA but had risked it anyway because he had "no intention of never going back no how." And that's what he'd told his wife as he walked out the door. Her kids blinked at him blearily from where they curlicued on the doorstep, watching as he threw his bag into the backseat, understanding his flight but clearly longing for their own rescue.

A secret garden...

Sometimes it feels as though I have found a secret place that has been, if not untouched, unspoilt by humans. The sounds are all of nature: bees humming, birds coohooing, trees whispering and a breaking limb as a lithe creature steps gingerly through the undergrowth...

Mia Ammisione! or My Big Confession

As we nears summer's dogdays, (and while I realize that parts of Central U.S. are suffering under a heatwave, and not to be insensensitve, but...) I must say, I loathe to see it's end.

But perhaps I should explain or rather confess...

Whatever happened to Kansas?

So I am back from my little vacation! I could have used a few more days...okay, who am I kidding???? I could have used a few more weeks! But at this point I took what I could get. I didn't hear from the person downtown so I THINK all went well with the application process. I will get an interview as all inner office applicants will so I am not going to be too excited about that. The real tension comes After the interview is over. Thanks to all you who sent well wishes!
Soooo... I won't bore you with an interminable Slideshow of MY FAMILY VACATION but it was a beautiful little spot to go, as Talei Loto of Musings of an Aspiring Scribe would call it, "Glamping in a Tent". And though I am not much of a camper and might hesitate to give it such a name, I felt that once you take champagne with you, you are no longer just camping, you are indeed GLAMPING!!! 
We hit the road early and  made our way to Kansas. WHY KANSAS you ask???? 
I was asking the same question!
After all I grew up in Kansas and I know very well that Kansas looks like this:

  miles and miles of it! Not exactly the scenic vistas and lovely peaks we live within hours from. And when your driving on the plains the joke becomes "Didn't we just pass this farm?" because it feels as though you keep passing the same place over and over, never getting anywhere. At any rate, once we got there, it quickly became obviously that we had fallen in
A HOLE IN KANSAS!!!

 Down we went to find blue skies, a lingering sunset over a scenic lake and canyon walls to view the horizons from. All quite picturesque and most definitely unKansasie.

We pitched our tents..

Did some hiking, swimming (the water was a trifle cold for me, which surprised me as the water in Kansas is usually warm in the summer!!!) and the kids went out on a little canoeing adventure...

Mo's son Aubrey is in front, girlfriend Nisa in back steering and my son in the middle 

We sat out at night and drank champagne (as all cultured campers do) and watched the dragonflies put on a show and (thank god!) keep the biting gnats off their delighted audience (me!- who also played the part of gnat meal- yikes!).

Then later we watched as a Great Horned Owl swooped down so quick and low under a tree, I was convinced it was a fox. Then he flew up into a tree and down onto a table in an attempt to catch something we couldn't spot but the night hunter most definitely had his great eye on dinner! And when the sky was finally filled with a canopy of stars and the last droplets of liquid gold were gone, we went to our tents to listen to the whistling wind and the night calls of the coyote until at last we fell asleep. It was like living in an episode of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom.

Oh and by the way... I have a surprise coming up on my blog which I am hoping everyone will enjoy. Keep your eye out as I don't post on regular day (although I don't really think that matters. Would you remember if I said I was going to post certain days? It seems like it would be hard to keep track anyway so I've never bothered to try. Let me know if you think it would be helpful!)

So how was your weekend?

Cross your fingers

and maybe your toes! I've applied for a new job at:

The library 

In our previous episode (which you might have missed):  I work for Denver Public Library-- A job I got two years ago (April 2009) after my boss at Denver Public Schools told me that my position at the Middle school would be cut (slashed, chopped, reduced- you get the picture) to a para position which would mean both a pay cut and loss of benefits and fewer hours per week to top all of that off as well. It was simply not a tenable situation. So, I had already begun checking into positions at DPL but began to apply with more urgency. In March I had an interview and by April I began my training in this building: 

It was quite intimidating at the time and the massive amount of marble and cool stone never felt warm or inviting and there is a great deal too much echo but the flashiness appeals to the hip and happening set in Denver. 

Nevertheless, I trained here for what wound up being 6 months before I moved on to Hampden as the sole full time circulation clerk. Hampden had begun an extensive remodel job in February and we were supposed to reopen in June. But as often happens with city jobs that are contracted out to private contracts, June turned to July turned to August wound up in September. 

Hampden is one of 22 branches (at least for the moment) and is the furthest south and east branch which means that when Aurora voted down funding for their libraries and closed all but three branches, we drastically increased our DVD circulation (and everybody thinks I exaggerate about that but I really don't- one day I am going to count the number of books to DVD just to prove it.) At any rate:This is the work room where we begin our day, sorting through crates of delivery. They are delivered by the library elves who work through the night sorting the books that belong to us but have been returned to other branches (a service we offer) and the holds that have been processed during the day. They put them in crates and then stack them up by our back door.

These are what the crates look like full from the top usually stacked four high. We generally get about 32 crates a day give or take 4 or 5... and it takes me an hour by myself to unpack them (which I do on Tuesday, Wednesday and every other Friday)

Not nearly as picturesqueness (nor as much fun) as a Christmas tree on Christmas morning but there it is.  We pile two trucks (carts such as you see pictured here are properly called trucks at DPL)- one full of holds to be processed immediately, the other with our returned items that are marked "in transit" and need to be returned so the computer shows them "On Shelf".  As you can see there are quite a lot of DVDs on the second shelf. The books are only on the top shelf and it can take 3-4 DVDs to make one book.

Just saying....

THEN they get sorted onto the trucks to get shelved by this lady (below) who is a shelver. This is also the mysterious back room where all the returns are dropped onto a bin. One of us, the same people who work the outside desks, picks them up out of the bins and checks them in. The same thing we do out on the desk, it's just that no one can see us back here!

After we get all the books that have been ordered by our customers processed, we shelve them. Hopefully we are done with this before opening. Otherwise we're multitasking, running holds, returning stuff (for people who just refuse to put it in the drop box because they think we have a personal vendetta against them and don't want to check their stuff in for them, checking out stuff, taking money for fines, etc) Meanwhile shelvers are looking for the stuff people have ordered during the night and if we have time we try to help by running them through to see which branch they are to be sent to, unless one of our customers wants them. Generally, however, we are multi-tasking all day anyway, because we have DVDs to shelve and holds to shelve. We are  often making new cards for the people who move into the neighborhood and the surrounding Aurora population who now find themselves without a neighborhood library. 

SHEW! 

It can make for a very busy day! 

So NOW! The position of Lead which is a supervisory position at my branch is opening up. It's essentially doing everything I am doing now for more money- (YAY!!! Yipee!! WooHOO!!! ) And I applied today. It was a little stressful as I had some difficulty, for some reason, with the online application process (too long of a story to explain at the moment) so I leave for a long weekend vacation (a real vacation- not a blog vacation!!! pictures when I get back!) with my fingers crossed that the application process went well. 

In addition to that! I submitted the first chapter of 'Death and Politics at the End of the World' to Quiddity International Literary Journal. I have submitted it before and been rejected but for some reason I have high hopes for this one... 

SO!!! Keep your fingers crossed and hopefully good things will be happening! I'll keep you posted on the good (or not so good... boo! hiss!) news.

And in case your curious, my hopefully non-stressful weekend will be full of swimming, writing and reading and sunning while we are camping in the Sunflower state (that would be Kansas). 

What are your plans for the weekend??? 

Downtown

As a child, heading into The City meant shiny shoes and dress clothes

  Gazing at buildings from car windows as we drove down traffic laden streets, 

the excitement was tangible, Country mouse safe in her fishbowled car

 looking up at the city, gawking at towering windows 

that reach up into the sky.   

There is elation still as I walk the streets downtown 

staring up at buildings that angle up into the skies, 

quadrangles and triangles of brilliant blue  

  the morning is brisk and the crowds have disappeared through glass doors,
up elevators where,
in the bustle of the day's busyness, 

They Forget     

 Cerulean skies that seem to be just within reach 

  The streets, teeming with life, 

with those who are not so fortunate

who carry their life in a bag that rolls along the street for humanity to gawk at

 Who wear misfortune with the same casualness that some don their day's wardrobe

 the spectrum of the rainbow that splatters the walkways 

  "art" that amuses amidst the stone cold hardness of the streets

 peddlers who make their daily bread one sausage at a time     

and the bus/train drivers who keep the urbanites connected with home
It's all here in Downtown...

In the immortal words... (umm, okay maybe not so immortal) of Petula Clark 

When you're alone
And life is making you lonely,
You can always go downtown
When you've got worries,
All the noise and the hurry
Seems to help, I know, downtown

Book nerds at Christmas

The Christmas Story Blogfest has not faired well as far as participants (I know it's a busy time!) but I plan on posting a story by Christmas Eve (hopefully) as it was my Blogfest. So, for those of you who thought I had forgotten, fear not! I have not! (anyone still interested is still welcome to post a story but you'd better get busy writing!)  

Twice a year, at a local bookstore, we receive an invitation for an open house. One in the springtime and one at Christmas time. The Christmas invitation is as much a part of the ritual and tradition of Christmas as purchasing our ornaments. Books are always purchased for Christmas and the Christmas open house (with accompanying discount!) is the perfect opportunity to browse for Christmas gifts. So off we head to the wilds of Cherry Creek to Rob's bookstore on 4th and Fillmore:

The lights are warm and welcoming as we descend the stairs and already we hear laughter and pleasant tete-a-tete betwixt the mulling crowds that stand not too far from the open door.  

A new face greets us at the cash register although it turns out not to be new at all- a former coworker from my Barnes and Noble days has landed this pleasant job here at the Hermitage. Allan is doing is best to keep up at the Cash register after just having started the week before. And I have the pleasure of congratulating him albeit envying his bookish work. Off to the right of the work is the pleasure--  

Catered foods of all sorts were brought in for the occasion and I cannot imagine that anyone went home hungry. The bean dip was terrific as well as the Sesame Seasoned chicken. There were several wines to choose from and desserts to die for. Needless to say, I had not fasted in vain.

In the Nooks and crannies of the shop, the customers were scouring the shelves with gusto...

some were more concerned with First Editions and older gems while others were searching for hidden treasures for their children that might not be found on the shelves of the BnN or Borders anymore...  

Rob (the gent in the Bookishly decorative shirt on the left by the counter), the Proprietor of said establishment stands quietly by hosting and overseeing and finding books when they are in need of finding. And no doubt on an evening like this, with his shop full of folk buying books and perhaps becoming customers who will come back to buy MORE books...    

 is probably quite happy with a life that is built around books that are so much more than the recent bestsellers... books that have stood up against the test of time- books of F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Lawrence Durrell, Jeannette Winterson, Paul West, David Foster Wallace, Gustave Flaubert --  

The writers that wrote and who are still worth reading. 

The kind of writers we should all aspire to be!

if we're going to call ourselves writers, that is...  

(Disclaimer: blogging is not my best writing) 

Birthday extravaganza

Having mentioned the birthday, the pictures need to be posted before the boy is able to drive so... 

Having had a warmer than average October, the first Sunday of November (the day before Mack's actual day of birth) was as bright and sunny as the boys' smiling faces. 

Rudy is a neighborhood friend

We rounded up the party and headed off for fun-- or perhaps to be sick if one were to judge by Tristan's face. 

Tristan is Mack's best friend of the last four years