Shattered Sun

I knew that it was coming but I was hoping that it wouldn’t. I’m not ready to give up using the Dewey Decimal System at the local library. I think that’s part of the draw. Of course, I must be in the minority because we’ve gone the way of the bookstore here in Phoenix with a local library opening up without Dewey. I’d like to think Dewey will be missed, but I don’t think my children or even my little sisters will really care either way. I guess it’s good to be open to change. And who knows, maybe I’ll actually enjoy the library more than I already do.

I still think it’s sad.

New Gilbert library due to be first in nation to drop Dewey Decimal Yvonne Wingett The Arizona Republic May. 30, 2007 12:00 AM When the new Gilbert library opens next month, it will be the first public library in the nation whose entire collection will be categorized without the Dewey Decimal Classification System, Maricopa County librarians say. Instead, tens of thousands of books in the Perry Branch library will be shelved by topic, similar to the way bookstores arrange books. The demise of the century-old Dewey Decimal system is overdue, county librarians say: It’s just too confusing for people to hunt down books using those long strings of numbers and letters. Dewey essentially arranges books by topic and assigns call numbers for each book. “A lot of times, patrons feel like they’re going to a library and admitting defeat because they don’t understand Dewey Decimal and can’t find the book they’re looking for,” said Marshall Shore, adult service coordinator for the Maricopa County Library District and driving force behind the idea. “People think of books by subject. Very few people say, ‘Oh, I know Dewey by heart.’ ” Libraries are trying to adapt to changing times, experts said, and their success lies in a generation of young people who are more comfy at Borders than libraries. Across the U.S., some libraries are trying to lure readers by adding lounge chairs and coffee shops. Some are incorporating the “bookstore” shelving system into sections of libraries but still use Dewey, or other classification systems, to arrange the bulk of collections, said Leslie Burger, president of the American Library Association. The books in Gilbert’s new library will be organized in about 50 sections, then subsections, from sports to cooking, gardening to mysteries. For example, a book on the Civil War would be in the history neighborhood and in the U.S. section. “Nowadays, people are used to going to a bookstore to browse, so we’re just trying to create that same atmosphere,” Shore said. “I know Dewey fans are out there. But we haven’t changed a lot in so long, and I think we’re in a fight for our own survival.” Credit: AZ Republic

There’s talk of the Trophy Guy becoming an NBA national ad campaign. I think that speaks a lot for the brains behind it, The Lavidge Company (a local Scottsdale agency did the original work for the Phoenix Suns). It’s a great bit of work and the gentleman they have embodying Trophy Guy acts very well.

Anyhow, check out the videos and giggle with it. They sure cracked me up (but I was probably a bit cracked before, so that might not be saying much!)

Via Darren’s post I learned about something completely scary happening to a well known blogger. I’m not A-list, but if becoming A-list gives you evil thing like death threats, explicit images, and general evilness, then I’m not certain it is worth it. Is it worth fearing for your life? I don’t know if I love blogging enough to blog no matter what. This is the reason why people stop using their real names. I’m just disturbed and saddened by this whole mess. I don’t really care who is doing it. I just don’t think it’s right and if it was happening to me, I would be in the same boat as Kathy.

I invite you to read what I have read and to remember to put a stop to people abusing others and placing it under free speech. However, if you are of a more delicate nature, I do not advise you to read Kathy’s complete post on what has happened to her. It’s nothing overly grotesque but I would not want children to read some of the screen shots she has placed up with the intention of explaining her position.

Abusing others is wrong and remember, words are not merely words. They are weapons that inflict more damage than anything else. ‘Nuff said.

I have always admired Senator John McCain and it comes as no surprise that he was on Letterman and sorta announced his presidency. Did anyone really believe that it was all an exploratory committee for nothing? (As a matter of fact, if you go to that site, it now redirects you to the official John McCain 2008 site.)

I am so voting for Mr. McCain. I was bummed when he didn’t go farther in 2004 and I’m really hoping that 2008 is his year.

Random side note: Anyone else a bit bothered that Mr. McCain has a cheesy name ripoff and calls his supporters’ online area McCainSpace?

When someone tells me that they support the right to go to school without killing yourself for the finances, I stop and listen. I listen for both myself and my children. I have previously written about the rising cost of tuition at ASU and to find that the new Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is someone in my corner on this issue. Well, at least she is when she speaks. Politicians are always a bit like salespeople and therefore you can’t really trust their words. And yet, I hope that she’ll follow through. Raising the amount of money received from the Pell Grant would be wonderful. I’m not totally sure I even qualify for it but it would do a million underprivileged individuals a lot of good. It would give many the chance to go to high education and not have the high loan costs that come with it. Well, not as high, anyway.

Anyway, I keep my fingers crossed and hope that they’ll continue to go down this path. I’d like to be able to afford for my children to go to college (or what-have-you), thank you very much.

If I lived in Cali, I think I’d totally vote for this chick.