HOT CLAM BAKES 12:30 PM TODAY at the Main Library

Yay! The Library is reopening! I have a meeting, so I can't go to the "re-opening event," but I'll be sure to stop by soon to make sure my poor library is still there.

Here is the info if anybody in town wants to go celebrate the library:

(from an email sent by the LFPL):



The Main Library Reopens Tomorrow!

Please join us as we reopen

The Main Library
301 York Street
Thursday, August 27, 2009
12:30 pm

After flooding closed the Main Library just three weeks ago, we are very excited to be able to reopen the first floor and welcome back our friends and patrons. Louisville loves its libraries and the outpouring of support we have received from the community has been tremendous. That is why everyone has worked so hard to get the Main Library open ahead of schedule.

We still have a long way to go toward full recovery, but this is a tremendous first step.

We look forward to seeing you Thursday!

Sincerely,

Craig Buthod, Library Director

This is why people become cops

Arrested Development's Beckett Aesthetic

Martin Short's appearance in this episode is rather Beckett-esque...

Limpets are sequential hermaphrodites!

There has to be something here to use in queer theory.

Green Porno: Why I Want My Vagina

Thanks, Rene, for reminding me about this. Isabella Rossellini is amazing...and hilarious.

To all women who might possibly reproduce someday, if they haven't already:

A position paper recently released by the United States Breastfeeding Committee has some good reminders about the importance of breastfeeding in helping keep health care costs down. Below are some highlights, and the entire position paper can be found at their website under the link "Health Care Reform Begins with Breastfeeding."

- NOT breastfeeding increases health risks to baby and mother (Breastfed babies have fewer infections, lower SIDS rates, and grow up to have lower incidence of obesity, diabetes, and asthma. Moms who breastfeed at least 1 year have lower risk of breast and ovarian cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and cardiovascular disease compared to women who never breastfed.)

- Nationally, we lose $475 per non-breastfed infant due to extra health costs during the first year of life. "These costs are bourne by Medicaid, insurance companies, hospitals and parents."

So, sorry, Sparks: tits are NOT only a source of fun and games at home! They are also there to feed our little Joe so that he'll grow (and be healthy and less costly)!

Textspeak is not universally (sic)-worthy, apparently

"Okay. So. Like, right now, for example, the Haiti-ans want to come to America...but some people are all 'What about the strain on OUR resources?'"

...Sorry 'bout that. I just realized as I began to write that I frequently want to begin a blog post with "So." SO. PERIOD. And I'm sure it's because of the mammoth influence of Clueless on my speech (see above quote). So I will try not to say "So-period" all the time. However colon I do want to share an interesting grammatical tidbit with you, which also has interesting cultural implications. In my searching on the internets, I came across this article from the Miami New Times Blogs. Aside from the controversy over whether or not there is discrimination based on sexual orientation going on in the case, there is the more troubling issue of the text message transcriptions in the article.

I realize that text message quotes are only going to become a bigger part of our (news) lives as politicians, celebrities, and other public figures are caught in red-handed guilt for whatever peccadillo because of ridiculous, incriminating text messages. They are the new secret Nixon tapes of the investigative justice process. So I suppose I should just make peace with the fact that famous, wealthy, successful people use "u" to mean "you" and "ur" to mean "you are" or "your" (further inflaming people's confusion with the distinction between the two). Personally, I think all this sounds positively cro-magnon, but you can't stop the onward march of progress, right?

That being said, what is most interesting to me about this blog going over incriminating text messages in a domestic abuse case involving a high-profile gay couple in Miami is the newsblog's decision to place (sic) in the following quote:

On March 20, Peña sent a third text message containing the threat, "If and when I'm evicted u will be expose (sic) for all to c and know ur true character. Who u truly are. Ponder that. Is it worth it?"

I get that "expose" is (sic) because it is an infinitive rather than a participle, as it should be. But what I don't understand is why "to c" and "ur" and "u" are not also considered (sic)? Does (sic) only refer to grammatical mistakes/variations and not spelling mistakes? I didn't think so (and Wikipedia agrees with me). I actually find the uneven application of (sic) by the writer to be more disturbing than the slow slide into cro-magnon oblivion of our written language. It points to an even larger and more serious lack of education and critical thinking/editing ability.

So as my dad used to say, "Put your head between your knees and kiss your ass goodbye." These are the intellectual endtimes.

The eyebrows make him feel dressier

Another excellent episode of Arrested Development. This is the one where the apartment wars between Lucille and Lucille II commence.

the poor ol' library

As you all probably heard, our fair city of Louisville was hit hard by a rain storm-cum-flood on Tuesday, August 4. The damage sustained by the city was concentrated centrally, mostly between Broadway and Iroquois Park. Many people lost their cars underwater and a lot of houses had flooded basements. The University of Louisville Belknap campus was hard hit, being right in the center of the flood area. Damage was done to 13 buildings, including the caving of part of one building's roof; the Education School had to be completely shut down and its reopening time is unclear pending massive renovations. Also, the Music School took a lot of damage as well as the Houchens administrative building. As a student and teacher at the university, I'm concerned about how the university will handle the beginning of the school year, given the deficits it's operating under. Those concerns aside, however, UofL has had an organized response to the disaster and already a lot of work restoring the damage has been accomplished. Fortunately, there are a lot of smart, caring people at work, and volunteers are helping the diligent Physical Plant staff.

The real tragedy of the flood, however, has been the Louisville Free Public Library, a beacon of civic activity and benefits in our city. The LFPL suffered millions of dollars of damage to books, facilities and equipment, including the destruction of brand new electronic equipment for the recently-built Newburg branch that was supposed to open this month. Also, the main server (you know, the one that contains the library's ENTIRE EFFING CATALOG) is currently underwater. So. There is no internet at any library, no library website, the catalog is inaccessible (and possibly lost forever); I went to the St Matthews Eline branch earlier today and it was a ghost town. Usually it is one of the busiest branches, and it was midday on a Saturday. One can still check books out and return them, but without internet, there is almost no library traffic. It's really sad, and kind of scary. (Also, on a selfish note, Thomas and I have no idea when things are due because we always just look at our accounts online, and since there is no library website for the foreseeable future--or at least for the rest of the week--we are up the creek without a paddle, so to say. So we are gonna have some overdue books for sure.)

So, in short, the situation is pretty dire for the library. if you have a few dollars to spare, the library is taking donations:
The Library Foundation
301 York Street
Louisville, KY 40203
Attn: Flood Relief


More info about the flood can be found here:
Louisville Metro Government website
Library Journal.com
Business First Magazine

I'm gonna send them something myself. It's just so sad. Just to drive home the point, here are some pictures:

winnow is OLD

Wow! I believe this is the oldest word yet to arrive in my inbox as part of the OED word-of-the-day email subscription service. Absolutely incredible!

winnow, v. (from the SECOND EDITION 1989)
1. trans. To expose (grain or other substances) to the wind or to a current of air so that the lighter particles (as chaff or other refuse matter) are separated or blown away; to clear of refuse material by this method.
EARLIEST WRITTEN USAGE: a900 O.E. Martyrol.
!
Totally rad.
Interestingly, it derives from Old English AND Latin.
If I did this correctly, you should be able to follow this link to look at the etymology for yourself.

I Want That

From the National Gardening Association:

Obedient plant (Physostegia) is a widely adapted perennial flower that is so-named, not for its compact and controllable growth habit, but for the way the flowers can be bent into a desired direction and they will stay that way. In fact, most obedient plants are rampant spreaders. They can quickly become weedy, especially if grown under ideal conditions (full sun, moist soil).

Now there’s a 2010 Fleuroselect, gold medal-winning obedient plant that flowers quickly and can be grown as an annual in a container. The Fleuroselect awards are given to unique flower varieties that have impressed judges in trials in 40 different gardens throughout Europe, America, and Asia. ‘Crystal Peak White’ flowers in the first year and only grows 15 inches tall and 10 inches wide. The plants are self-cleaning, meaning they drop their spent flowers and don’t needing deadheading. Plus, unlike other perennial obedient plants, this variety flowers all summer. It’s perfect for containers or annual flowering beds. Since it’s in the Physostegia family, it’s hardy in USDA zones 2-9.
Photo from the website American Beauties Native Plants