2010 Banned Book Week Display

Banned Book Week (September 25th through October 2) reminds us all not to take our freedom to read books of our own choosing, for granted.

Celebrate your freedom to read by visiting the East Tawas Library.

New this year, to the East Tawas Library's annual display, are 5 books that list and explain the reasons behind various book challenges and bannings. Also on display are a sampling of the many books people have complained about over the years. These complaints came from a variety of states (including Michigan) and countries around the world. They range in date from 1931 to 2010.

The American Library Association's web site features a calendar of banned book week Library and Bookstore Events 2010. The East Tawas Library is one of seven Michigan entries on the list.

http://bannedbooksweek.org/events.php

Come visit the East Tawas Library's banned book week display and see how many of the 25 displayed books you have read and enjoyed over the years.

Check Out A Michigan State Park

Michigan has wonderful state parks. In fact, we have 98 state parks and recreation areas.

The Michigan state park system celebrated its 90th anniversary this past year.

Interlochen State Park is our oldest state park. It was officially created in 1919 after the establishment of the Michigan State Park Commission by the Michigan Legislature. However, the park is actually two years older than that. The Public Domain Commission bought 200 acres for the park, at that time named The Pines, in 1917 for $60,000. This translates to $1,021,917 in today's money.

Our newest state park is William G. Milliken State Park and Harbor in Detroit. Phase Two of the park was just completed this past October. This is the state's first urban park. The park's 31 acres are located along the banks of the Detroit River. A 63 foot scaled-down replica of our Tawas Point Lighthouse is located at the entrance to the park's harbor. In September 2008, I was privileged to be able to view the park and lighthouse while on a Detroit River cruise. It was a beautiful day and the riverfront, park, harbor, and lighthouse were spectacular to see. I will admit, when a person is used to seeing our full-sized lighthouse overlooking Tawas Bay, it is a little disconcerting and disorienting to see a smaller version located on the Detroit River. It definitely catches your attention and makes you look at the lighthouse twice.

Our closest state park is Tawas Point State Park. Originally the park was even closer to the library than it is now. The East Tawas State Park was located at the foot of Newman Street along the lakeshore from 1920 to 1965. It was one of Michigan's 17 original state parks. After 5 years of planning and development, Tawas Point State Park officially opened for camping in 1966.

This summer you can "check out" one of Michigan's State Parks for free instead of having to pay the $6, day use motor vehicle fee. The East Tawas Library is part of the Park & Read program. This program allows a free, one-time, day visit to the Michigan state park or recreation area of your choosing.

To take advantage of the Park & Read program, just visit the East Tawas Library, obtain a library card if you don't already have one, and ask for your Park & Read pass. You must use your pass within 7 days of receiving it. The library was only issued 8 passes, so be aware a pass may not always be available. The program runs through the end of September. Due to the limited number of passes received, there will be no reserving, no renewals, and only one pass issued per family unit this summer. This will allow the maximum number of East Tawas Library patrons to enjoy our Michigan State Parks.

Here is the DNR's press release about the Park & Read program:

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10365_36576-215611--,00.html

National Nurses Week Display

You may know men and women that are nurses. There are probably quite a few other people among your friends and acquaintances that also trained and worked as Registered Nurses. Two of us now work and/or volunteer at the East Tawas Library.

Stop by the library and see the display honoring nurses. The display features our actual nursing caps from Michael Reese Hospital School of Nursing in Chicago and from Wayne State University in Detroit. The display also includes personal photos, clippings, certificates, and graduation mementos.

National Nurses Week is observed each year from May 6th through May 12th. May 12 was chosen as the final day of the week because it was Florence Nightingale's birthday. Somehow I never knew this despite three years of nursing school and 15 years of working as a RN. During some of those years National Nurses Week meant a free coffee mug, or a free button/pin, or a free meal in the hospital cafeteria. Other years, it was just another week without any special mention or celebration.

So, if you know a nurse, thank them for all their education and skills, their hard work and long hours, and most especially, their caring. Your thanks may be the only mention of National Nurses Week they receive this year.

Titanic Display

Today, air travel in Europe and across the Atlantic has been interrupted by an ash plume from a volcano. The volcano is located under a glacier in Iceland. Over 5,000 flights have been cancelled and the actual total may be closer to 6,000 cancelled flights. A report emailed from a friend in Barry, Wales states that over 300,000 travelers in the United Kingdom alone, have had their travel plans interrupted. The inconvenience, however, may save lives; the ash can cause engine failure.

98 years ago travel across the Atlantic was also interrupted, but by an iceberg rather than a volcano. On April 14, 1912 the Titanic struck an iceberg. Less than three hours later, at approximately 2:20 am on April 15th the Titanic sank with many lives lost.

The East Tawas Library currently has 21 different books about the Titanic on display. The library display case contains a foam three dimensional "jigsaw puzzle" model of the Titanic and a Titanic board game.

One favorite book is Polar, The Titanic Bear by Daisy Corning Spedden. The original manuscript was written in 1913 as a Christmas present for Daisy's son Douglas. Polar was Douglas' white mohair Steiff bear. A picture of Douglas spinning his toy top on one of the Titanic's deck has been reproduced in many books.

Please stop by the East Tawas Library and view the tribute to those travelers of April 1912, many of whom never reached their intended destination.

Holocaust Remembrance Day Display

Holocaust Remembrance Day is observed on April 11th this year.

The East Tawas Library has a display of 26 books about the Holocaust, its victims, and its survivors. Besides the books on display, the library's Holocaust collection consists of over 40 additional books. There are children's picture books, graphic novels, fictional stories for kids as well as adults, diaries, books of photographs and letters, memoirs, and historical studies.

When thinking of the Holocaust most people immediately think of Anne Frank, however, the name Miep Gies is unknown to many of us. Without this Dutch woman, who recently died (at age 100) we would not have Anne Frank's diary. The library's display case contains a January 25, 2010 People magazine article about Miep Gies and how she kept Anne's diary safe until she gave it to Anne's father, Otto Frank, following the war.

The display case also contains several note cards featuring art work by child survivors who were brought to England after their liberation. Twenty-eight hostels were opened up in England to care for the 732 children. These cards were produced by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. For more information see the following two web sites:

http://www.rh7.org/factsheets/Holocaust.html

http://www.ushmm.org/

We must all remember!

Fire Prevention Week Display

Today is the first day of Fire Prevention Week, which continues through October 10.

Fire Prevention Week has been celebrated since 1922. The week always includes October 9th in memory of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. While the Chicago Fire actually started on October 8, 1871 most of its damage occurred on October 9th.

Today, the Chicago Fire is more "famous" but the bigger fire actually occurred in Peshtigo, Wisconsin. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) website states that the Peshtigo fire was the "most devastating forest fire in American history." It burned down 16 towns in northeastern Wisconsin. It also spread into Michigan burning the town of Menominee.

The East Tawas Library has a new display case which was given to the library earlier this summer in memory of Suzanne Smith Frantz and Hubert "Stacy" Smith. The display case allows the display of small items as well as books. The display case is a wonderful addition to the library and something that has been on the library's wish list for a long time.

This week the display case contains a few items from the fire collection of the late Thomas C. Elvey. My Dad started his life-long career and passion for fire prevention by serving on the University of Alaska's fire department in College (Fairbanks), Alaska, while still in high school.

Some of my favorite fire related memories include: taking my Dad to see the Old Chicago Water Tower (one of the few buildings to survive the Chicago fire), when I lived in Chicago; visiting the new University of Alaska fire station with my parents, 25 years after they left Alaska; and I will also never forget visiting the Peshtigo fire museum and cemetery.

The East Tawas Library Fire Prevention Week display includes 33 different books, some of which are:

Jim Murphy's The Great Fire, a 1996 Newbery Honor Book, is a factual book about the Great Chicago Fire.

The Firebrand by Susan Wiggs is a novel about the Chicago Fire.

The book Day of Darkness, Night of Light by C.L.G. Martin tells the story of the Menominee fire from the perspective of a thirteen-year-old boy.

See the following web sites for more information:

http://www.nfpa.org/categoryList.asp?categoryID=1438&URL=Safety%20Information/Fire%20Prevention%20Week%202009

http://www.chicagohs.org/fire/

http://www.peshtigofire.info/

http://www.michigan.gov/documents/hal_mhc_mhm_fire_10-08-2003_92068_7.pdf

Community Garden Book Display

This month's book display celebrates the new community garden located across the street from the library.

The creation of the garden has been spearheaded by Christ Episcopal Church, which is also located just across the street. As someone who both works and lives within sight of the garden I want to personally thank everyone involved in the project. The garden is a wonderful addition to the neighborhood! I hope this is the first of many years to come, for the community garden.

Some of the books on display include:

The Green Guide to Herb Gardening: Featuring the 10 Most Popular Herbs by Deborah Harding. This book includes information about growing, harvesting, and storing herbs. Various uses and recipes for herbs are also included.

Ortho's All About Vegetables by Barbara Pleasant and Katie Smith. This book has general gardening information plus it contains specific information about the growing needs of different vegetables.

How Groundhog's Garden Grew by Lynne Cherry. This book is not just for little kids. It is also not just for gardeners. I love this book and I haven't had a garden since I lived in an apartment in Chicago, over 20 years ago. The illustrations are wonderful; they are so incredibly detailed. I showed this book to a patron, who liked it so much she shared it at a recent Master Gardener's meeting.

Taste of the Midwest: 12 States, 101 Recipes, 150 Meals, 8,207 Miles and Millions of Memories by Dan Kaercher. Dan is the founding editor-in-chief of the magazine Midwest Living. If you like the magazine, you will like this book. If you are not familiar with the magazine, stop in and look at an issue. I think you will enjoy both the magazine and the book.

Vegetables on the Grill: A Menu Cookbook by Kelly McCune. In addition to recipes, this book will tell you how to grill every vegetable from apples and artichokes to turnips and yams.

Besides the books on display, the library has two and a half shelves of gardening and landscaping books. The library also subscribes to the magazines Birds & Blooms and Garden Gate. For those of us who are non-gardeners, the library has lots of other books and magazines.

Whether you garden or not, please enjoy the view of the community garden as you visit the library.

Evening Hours

The East Tawas Library will now be open Tuesday evenings from 5 pm until 8:30 pm.

The hours for the rest of the week have also changed as follows:

Monday, Thursday, Friday: 8 - 11:30 a.m. & 12:30 - 5 p.m.

Tuesday: 12 noon - 4 p.m. & 5 - 8:30 p.m.

Wednesday: Closed

Saturday: 8 - 12 noon

The new hours are effective today, Monday May 11, 2009.

2008 Banned Book Week Display

“Closing Books Shuts Out Ideas”

Stop by the East Tawas Library and view the 2008 Banned Book Week Display.

The purpose of Banned Book Week (September 27th through October 4th) is to showcase nationwide the importance of the freedom to read whatever one chooses. This year’s slogan is “Closing Books Shuts Out Ideas”.

The books that are on display at the East Tawas Library are NOT banned at our library. They are books that people have tried to ban or have succeeded in banning from other libraries, some recently and some in years past.

Stop by and look at the titles on display. You may be surprised to find some of your favorite books are actually books that someone somewhere did not want people to be able to read.

Display for Holocaust Remembrance Day

Holocaust Remembrance Day is celebrated this week.

The official name is Yom Hashoah. The day's main purpose is to remember.

This date was chosen in part because it marks the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising.
For more information on the Warsaw Ghetto uprising see the following web site.

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/warsawtoc.html

The East Tawas Library has a display of 35 books and videos about the Holocaust, its victims, and its survivors.

Please visit the library and look through the books, or check one out and take it home to read.

We must all remember!

Earth Day - Arbor Day Display

This week Michigan celebrated both Earth Day and Arbor Day.

Earth Day was celebrated on April 22nd. The first Earth Day was celebrated back in 1970. It was spearheaded by a Senator from Wisconsin, Senator Gaylord Nelson. In 1990, Earth Day experienced a resurgence and has now become an international celebration.

The national day set aside for Arbor Day is the last Friday in April, according to the Arbor Day Foundation web site. This year's date is Friday April 25th.

www.arborday.org

Michigan is one of 24 states that also celebrates Arbor Day on the last Friday in April. The rest of the states celebrate on a variety of other days and months according to the best time to plant trees in their states. Most state Arbor Days fall in the months of January through May, although Hawaii's observation of the day is in November and South Carolina's is in December.

The East Tawas Library has had 80 books on display all month in honor of Earth Day and Arbor Day. Books include nature activities for kids and families, field guides to trees, environmental and conservation books, and many more. Please help celebrate these two important days by helping our environment and our world all year long.

"Friday Night Lights" DVD Sets Donated

The East Tawas Library was chosen as one of the initial 36 libraries nation wide to receive a donation of the television series Friday Night Lights Season One DVD. We will also receive Season Two on DVD as soon as it is released later this month.

The donation was funded by the group Save Friday Night Lights. This group was formed by fans of the show who organized a successful campaign to fight for the show's renewal for a third television season.

More information about the group and their current campaign to donate DVD sets to libraries across the country can be found on the following web site:

http://www.savefnl.com/

The group plans to donate DVD sets to at least one library in each of the top 100 television markets. The East Tawas Library applied as a library in the Flint/Saginaw/Bay City TV market on Sunday April 6, 2007. The Season One DVD arrived 4 days later. I must commend the group on their swift response time, which would have been one day faster if the library's hours and UPS's delivery time had coincided.

The Save Friday Night Lights group plans on donations to other libraries as funds permit.

The DVDs are available at the East Tawas Library desk for checkout. In order to allow the most patrons at one time to view the DVDs, each disc will check out individually. When one disc is returned the next one may be checked out. (Season One is a set of 5 discs and 22 hours of TV viewing time total.)

The library also has available for checkout the book Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H. G. Bissinger. This book, originally published in 1990 and updated 10 years later with an afterword, inspired the 2004 movie Friday Night Lights. The movie in turn inspired the television show.

The East Tawas Library would like to thank the patron that donated the book to the library and the group Save Friday Night Lights for the donation of the DVD sets.

Previous Locations of East Tawas Library

Over the years the East Tawas Library has been located in 6 different locations.

The library's first location was the old City Hall building at the corner of W. Westover and Sawyer streets. The library shared a room with the fire department. Later, this old wood building was torn down so the 1962 City Hall building could be built on the same site.

Next the library was located in a small dwelling on West State Street, probably in the 100 block.

The library then moved to a frame building, owned by the East Tawas schools, located on the west side of the 300 block of Newman Street. This building was located between the current Huron Community Bank building and Stephenson & Gracik's building.

In 1909 - 1910 the East Tawas Library was located in the Ladies Literary Club building on the east side of the 300 block of Newman Street. The Club had purchased this building from the East Tawas Schools for $100, but had to move the building across the street (next to the American Legion Hall). A new floor and new roof also had to be installed. The library stayed at this location until 1962. Currently this site is occupied by part of the Post Office's parking lot.

In September 1962 the "new" City Hall at 120 W. Westover Street was completed. The East Tawas library was located here until March 2002, when the library closed to allow renovations to the building.

The renovations were completed in July 2002 and the library moved to the rear of the former city hall building. The library entrance and street address changed to 204 Sawyer Street, even though the library was still located in the same building.

If anyone can add any details to the above information, please contact Luann at the East Tawas Library. My email is: libraryet@yahoo.com

Any scrap of information is welcome: names of staff, dates, street addresses, personal memories or recollections, anything at all.

Thanks for your help.

Headstart Classes Visit Library

Two classes from the Tawas Headstart Center visited the East Tawas Library this past week.

This is the sixth year that Tawas Headstart has brought their classes to visit the library. In the past the children have all been 4 years old. This year the classes also included some 3 year olds.

In the morning 14 children and 6 adults visited the library. The afternoon group consisted of 12 children and 4 adults. The hard work of the teaching staff is always apparent, as the children were once again enthusiastic and lively but still well behaved.

Each class visited the library for about an hour. The visit started with a discussion of what a library is: "a place where you borrow things like books, magazines, movies, and puzzles (rather than buying them, like in a store) and then return them for someone else to use." They saw what a real library card looks like and were encouraged to return to the library with a parent (or legal guardian) to receive their own library card.

After showing the kids some of the wide variety of books that a library has, I read them a story or two. The kids had already learned in Headstart what an author was, and were very proud to correctly come up with the word when asked to demonstrate their knowledge, by their teacher, Miss Ellen. The morning class opted for just one story while the afternoon class listened to two stories.

The kids then enjoyed some free time. They looked at books, and had books read to them. They played with the many puppets and the puppet theater. They put together puzzles and played with the farmyard set and the Legos ®.

After getting their winter gear back on, the kids each received a bookmark about the proper care of books. This year the bookmarks were either a kangaroo with a pouch full of books, as well as her joey, talking about returning books on time, or a dog stating, "Dog-eared pages feel awful to me."

Prior to re-boarding the school bus, each child was able to use a rubber stamp and an ink pad to stamp a dinosaur on the back of their bookmark. As always, this seemed to be the highlight of their library visit.

Why not visit the East Tawas Library yourself? The Headstart classes and I recommend the following two books:

The Bravest of the Brave by Shutta Crum and illustrated by Tim Bowers. This book lead to a discussion of skunks and how they are gentle creatures unless provoked. The Headstart kids enjoyed counting along with the story as the little skunk ventured through the scary (to him) woods until being safely reunited with his family and tucked into bed.

Straight to the Pole by Kevin O'Malley. This story, which I always find reminiscent of arctic and Antarctic explorers, reminded the Headstart kids of the snow day they had enjoyed the day before their library visit.

Hanukkah Book Display

Come visit the East Tawas Library and see the special display in honor of Hanukkah.

This year Hanukkah starts today, Tuesday December 4th, at sundown. Hanukkah continues for eight days, ending at nightfall on Wednesday December 12th.

Books on display include:

Celebrate Hanukkah with Light, Latkes, and Dreidels by Deborah Heiligman. This is part of a series of books published by National Geographic, entitled Holidays Around the World. While the book was written for children it provides a nice overview and also includes a recipe for Potato Latkes.

Hanukkah at Valley Forge by Stephen Krensky and illustrated by Greg Harlin. In this children's picture book George Washington's strength and resolve are bolstered by a Polish soldier's explanation of Hanukkah. The book flows beautifully between the days of the army of the Maccabees and the days of George Washington's army. I found this a wonderful book.

What I Wish My Christian Friends Knew about Judaism by Robert Schoen. This is a very readable book, either in parts or in entirety. The author states that his intent is to, "explain to my non-Jewish friends, in a simple, nonthreatening manner, what my religion is all about." A glossary and pronunciation guide is included.

We all need to take to heart the last two lines of Robert Schoen's book:

"Let us work together to help make this often-troubled world one of peace and harmony."

"Shalom!"

Veterans Day Book Display

Come visit the East Tawas Library and see the special book display in honor of Veterans Day.

Veterans Day was originally called Armistice Day. It was first celebrated in 1919, one year after the cessation of hostilities (on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month) of The Great War, which we now call World War I. Other countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom use the term Remembrance Day.

For more information about Veterans Day see the following web sites from the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the US Army Center of Military History.

www.va.gov/vetsday

www.army.mil/cmh/faq/vetsday/vetshist.htm

The 30 books on display range from picture books (The Wall by Eve Bunting) to books for teens (Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac) to books for adults (The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause: The Firsthand Account of One of the Greatest Escapes of World War II).

CMU's Exhibit: "A David Small World"

I recently visited Central Michigan University's Park Library to view an exhibit of one of my favorite children's book illustrators, David Small.

If you are going to be in Mount Pleasant before the exhibit ends on October 29, 2007, I would highly recommend taking the time to see this original artwork.

I have been privileged, twice before, to view exhibits of original artwork from classic children's books. I thoroughly enjoyed both exhibits. Having the opportunity to see the original art gave me a whole new perspective concerning some of my favorite children's books. While I have always felt the art "makes or breaks" a picture book, it is easy to forget that each page's illustration started out as a piece of art. Seeing the artwork formally displayed in frames in a museum style setting, reminded me that the artwork is much more than just a picture in a kid's book, it is art.

In 1984, while living in Chicago, I saw the exhibit 50 Years of Babar at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. It featured the art of Jean and Laurent de Brunhoff, the authors and illustrators of the Babar the Elephant books.

In 2001, while visiting NYC, I saw the exhibit Celebrating 60 Years of Curious George: The Art of H. A. and Margret Rey at the Children's Museum of Manhattan. It featured the art of the Curious George books as well as other books the husband and wife team had created.

David Small works with watercolors, pen and ink, and pastels. The exhibit contained a variety of his work including original artwork from two award winning books. In 1998, the book The Gardener was named a Caldecott Honor Book. In 2001, David Small won the Caldecott Medal for illustrating the book So You Want to Be President?

I especially enjoyed the art from The Journey by Sarah Stewart (David Small's wife). The book details an Amish girl's visit to Chicago through her diary entries. Everything the girl enjoys seeing and doing in Chicago reminds her of home. The artwork shows both locations and how each place is valuable and wonderful in its own way.

The National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature, located in Abilene Texas, provided the artwork for the David Small exhibit. See their website for more information about the museum and their exhibits. As well as their permanent collection in Texas, they have eight other traveling exhibits.

www.nccil.org

If you are unable to visit Mount Pleasant before the exhibit closes, stop by the East Tawas Library to see the following books illustrated by David Small:

Fenwick's Suit by David Small

The Friend by Sarah Stewart

The Gardener by Sarah Stewart

The Journey by Sarah Stewart

The Money Tree by Sarah Stewart

My Senator and Me: A Dog's-Eye View of Washington, D. C.
by Senator Edward M. Kennedy

Ruby Mae Has Something to Say by David Small

So You Want to Be an Explorer? by Judith St. George

So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George

Chilton Auto Repair Manuals Online ®

Michigan residents are now able to access Chilton Auto Repair Manuals ® via the Internet.

The State of Michigan provides the Michigan Electronic Library (MeL) so state residents have free access to a large variety of computer databases from any Internet computer. Library computers will automatically connect, while home or work computers require a log in process. This limits access to Michigan residents.

The web site is: http://www.mel.org/

Under the center section marked "Mel Databases" chose either "See databases from home" or "See databases from the library".

Scroll down, to the database entitled "ChiltonLibrary.com". Click on the blue colored link under the words "ChiltonLibrary.com".

If you are using a non-library computer you will now be asked to verify that you are a Michigan resident by entering your Driver's License Number or your State ID number. If you prefer, you can use your library card instead. Select "Iosco-Arenac District Library" from the drop down menu, and type in your name and your library card number. Click "Submit".

Now select the vehicle you are seeking information about. Use the arrow keys to select, in order: "Year", "Make", and "Model". Then click the green "Select" box.

Depending on the type of vehicle selected the following choices may appear: "Bulletins/Recalls", "Maintenance", and "Repair". Click on the category you want and continue to follow any instructions. The ability to print, for personal use only, is provided.

For patrons that prefer to use books rather than the Internet, the East Tawas Library has a large collection of various auto repair manuals. Many of these manuals have been obtained from donations and rummage sales. If you have repair manuals (automotive, motorcycle, marine, small engine etc.) that you are no longer using, remember the East Tawas Library welcomes donations.

Banned Book Week Display

Come visit the East Tawas Library and see the special display in honor of Banned Book Week (September 29 - October 6, 2007).

Libraries and bookstores around the country have observed banned book week since 1982. Its purpose is to celebrate the freedom to read. American Library Association President, Loriene Roy, states, "Not every book is right for every reader.... Libraries serve users from a variety of backgrounds - that's why libraries need - and have - such a wide range of materials. Individuals must have the right to choose what materials are suitable for themselves and their families."

Visit the East Tawas Library. You may be surprised to see how many "banned books" you have read and enjoyed over the years.

Welcome

Welcome to the East Tawas Library News blog.

Last week I attended the Michigan Health Sciences Libraries Association's annual conference. It was a three-day conference held at the Doubletree Hotel & Conference Center in Bay City.

Sessions I attended included:

Medical Library: Prescription for Success by Dr. James Matarazzo (Dean and Professor of Library and Information Science, Emeritus) of Simmons College in Boston. I especially enjoyed hearing about his trip to Japan to study corporate libraries. This class ended up being very relevant to public libraries, discussing budgets and other obstacles facing libraries today.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Library by Bill Barnes and Gene Ambaum, the authors/illustrators of the web comic strip Unshelved. Bill is a software designer and cartoonist and Gene (pen name) is a librarian in a public library. Both live in the Seattle area. I really enjoy this comic strip, which is set in a public library, and receive it daily via email.

http://www.unshelved.com/

Surviving the Public by the Unshelved authors/illustrators. While this session was more informal than most customer service workshops usually are, it was actually more effective and certainly funnier than other workshops I've attended.

Health Benefits of Chocolate by Dr. Patrick Fields, aka Doc Choc (PhD in Botany and Plant Pathology). This session discussed the plant chocolate is derived from and chocolate's history. I enjoyed viewing the many chocolate related displays Dr. Fields brought. The program ended with a chocolate tasting.

Introduction to RSS & Blogging for Librarians by Sandy Swanson, a Librarian at Mercy General Health Partners in Muskegon. During this hands-on class we learned how these computer technologies can be used as public relations and communication tools in the work place. Thanks to this 2-hour class, I was able to set up this blog.

Michigan eLibrary (MeL) Health Resources by Bonnie Campbell, a Principal in the information consulting firm, CMEd, Information Services. This hands-on class reviewed the health related databases that all Michigan residents have 24-hour computer access to either through their home or work computers or through library computers, during library hours.

http://www.mel.org/

I also enjoyed the various vendors' exhibits. It was amazing how almost all medical related information is now provided via computers, versus the books we used in nursing school, over 26 years ago.

All in all, it was a wonderful conference and I appreciated the City of East Tawas paying my way.