Library Cats

As the holiday season approaches, many of us have gifts, food, and family on the mind. And, if you fit the "library person" stereotype as well as I do, you include your furry relatives in the family category as well. How could I not with this weird creature in my house?

Yes, I did use the same photo of my cat twice with different text on this blog. 

There's just something about books and cats that seem to go well together, and the existence of "library cats" proves it! In the distant past, cats were used in libraries to keep away rodents and other pests, but these days they stick around simply to nap, patrol the stacks, be our mascots, and make our patrons feel at home. Library cats are rarer than they once were, but if you take some time you can find them still today. And they may be more common than you think.

One filmmaker in Massachusetts, Gary Roma, created a documentary about library cats called "Puss in Books: Adventures of the Library Cat," and as part of his research he created a list of all the library cats in Oregon, past and present. [EDIT 1/26/2017: Looks like this domain has expired unfortunately. If we find another list, you'll be the first to know!] I don't know about you, but I find that to be essential information for all library staff.

Library cats are sometimes so essential to the library that it can cause a public outcry when they lose their jobs. Browser was a library cat in White Settlement, Texas, but when the City Council voted to fire him, the response was so immediate and overwhelming that they reversed their decision unanimously. Library cats of the world, rejoice!

Do you have a library cat, or know of one? Share their story! You'll have at least one support staffer listening with rapt attention.

The Toronto reference library was recently renovated, and they sent a drone flying around it to get a bird's eye view. They now have a salon for "writers, thinkers, artists and innovators come together for conversation and debate."  They forgot to mention ASTRONAUTS.  Have any of you had experiences with drones in your libraries? Or astronauts, for that matter?

It was Banned Books Week last week.  Did you know it is still an issue? The Mercury out of Portland also has a list of books challenged in Oregon.

Did you know Overdrive is integrated with Bing search engine?  Overdrive is the company behind Library2Go, Oregon's digital library consortium.  Search for a title in Bing, and you'll notice now on the right side of the screen there's an option to borrow the book from Overdrive.  I searched for "donna tartt the goldfinch" and despite the weird results (El Jilguero?), I found it under "Read this Book".

The Library of Congress has many many things in its collection.  And people do many many creative things with them. And creepy things. Artist Kevin Weir has more examples over at his site.

Kevin Weir

Sewing at the library

Here's another interesting idea of something "different" to add to a library collection - sewing machines!

There are open sewing hours at the Mountain View Public Library in California every Saturday and they've been getting more and more popular.  I like that the machines are all named Grace.

What kind of help do you think the staff provide?  I know we're expected to help patron's to a certain extent on the computers at my library, but I'm not sure everyone would be comfortable trouble-shooting a sewing machine or serger.

Does your library have any interesting things in their collection and do you help with maintenance or trouble-shooting?

Secret messages found in library!

Secret message found in Weldon Library

Someone has been leaving coded messages in books at D.B. Weldon Library! Mike Moffat is keeping track of them in his blog over at Reflections on Southwestern Ontario.  What do they mean?  Who is leaving them?  They come with trinkets and drawings and are so far inscrutable. I love this kind of thing, which is why I rated Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore so highly in goodreads.

If your library has themed displays for the coming planting season, a seed library might be a good addition.  It seems seed libraries would be a good fit in Oregon.

Multnomah County Library is celebrating it's 150th anniversary this year, and Kelly House, a reporter at the Oregonian, was lucky enough to get a peek in some of the early historical records. The founders certainly had some beautiful penmanship.

There was a recent story about Google having the interiors of libraries available through Street View over on ebookfriendly.com, but they don't compare to the interior tour you can take of the Strahov Library, which is the worlds largest indoor picture as of March 2011.  It is beautiful.  You can take the tour (which might take a little too much time if you're at work) or you can click and pan and zoom on your own, and get closer than you ever could in real life.  The resolution is stunning.

Strahov Ceiling Detail

Amazing approval ratings for public libraries

We don't all work in public libraries, but this article from The Atlantic is an uplifting quick blurb about people's attitudes towards libraries and I'm sure that feeling is shared towards all good libraries!

Here's a library that got it wrong:  A library in Italy was "ransacked" by the director... of the library.  

But don't fret, here's a library that got it right: The British Library uploaded one million public domain pictures to Flickr.com. Enjoy!

Libraries in the news

Locally:

A super-late book is returned.  Thankfully, Cedar Mill is not trying to collect the dues.  Or issuing an
arrest warrant, as happens in some other states. 

Congratulations to the Garden Home Community Library for getting a four-star ranking from the Library Journal in their annual Index of Public Library Service!


Nationally:


Here's another interesting addition to a public library to continue to foster a sense of community.  Would you add an arcade video game to your library collection?

Libraries in the news

The Ted M. Natt Research Library in the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria was written up in the Oregonian.  It sounds like it would be a fascinating place both to work and research.  It also sounds like they've got their hands full cataloging!  Check out the article if for nothing else but the photos.

A library in Bend was evacuated because a bike lock looking remarkably like a hand grenade was found on the property.  It was possibly something like this.  But it never hurts to be safe.  Glad our Deschutes compatriots were not at all harmed.

Jackson County's Library Advisory Committee is backing a library funding proposal to create a library district. 

Hannon Library at Southern Oregon University is going to be cataloging... wine?  No, they are archiving historic documents of local wine makers.  Again, sounds like another interesting cataloging project.

Iconic Oregon Library Cat Dies

Aggie, one of the many cats that have called libraries their home, passed away July 15th.  She originally came to the Willamina Library back in 1995 and moved out in 2010 to live with her adopted couple. You can read more about it in the article from KGW.

Oregon Libraries in the News this week

 The Rockwood library, part of Multnomah County Libraries, "with the help of Volunteers of America and Catering for a Cause, ... will be offering hot lunches as part of the federal summer food program" to feed hungry kids. How amazing is that?

Does your library have unusual or innovative programs to help out the community?

Oregon City Library

The Oregon City Library, headed by Maureen Cole (also appearing at our conference this year),  is looking to expand in its current location. This has been an ongoing issue for several years. I think the most interesting thing is the Carnegie library was originally built to accommodate an expansion. What a forward-thinking idea! Let's all keep our fingers crossed for Oregon City.

How many Carnegie libraries are in Oregon? Do you work in one?