Angelheaded Hipsters
I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked... - Howl, Part I, Allen Ginsberg. It's the end of what feels like a long month and here I am, quoting Ginsberg. This is for a combination of a few things. The first being that the newCardigan GLAM Blog Club theme is 'watch' and that line was the first thing that popped into my head (well, that and Watchman. Quis custodiet ipsos bibliothecam?). Secondly, I re-watched Hackers while I was in Melbourne for V
Ideas For Your Next Conference Presentation
Inspired by @jinglefrisbee's latest blog post Ideas For My Next Conference Presentation I decided to throw some ideas I've been sitting on for a while out into the world. Sadly the soft focus stopped working on my camera so there won't be any cool bathroom mirror, lip-sync type shots, sorry. It should be noted that these are all sessions that I would like to see or think we need, not ones that I want to run myself. Mainly because for many I am the last person (white, male) who should be runnin
Looking Forward, Looking Back
In trying to figure out what I want to learn in 2018 I looked back at what I had learnt in 2017 and it turned out it was quite a lot. The way I learn best is through practical projects. The mixture of real-world applications, deadlines, and passion really drive my learning. Inversely, I find learning something for the sake of it frustrating, which is why I tend to struggle in purely academic settings. Sitting down and learning a programming language while not having a project seems a bit useless
A Year In Read-view (Comics)
This year I dropped a lot of titles, specifically the big publishers, and focused more on indie titles and manga (more of the same really). Since I started working in a library system that had a extremely good manga collection I decided it was a good chance to get back into it. So far I've been pleasantly surprised and have been enjoying manga again. I also found out this year that these lists are great for fellow librarians who are looking to add new titles to their collection. Most of the si
A Year In Read-view (Books)
This year I wanted to make a conscious effort to read more non-fiction and I was pretty happy with my effort. I started the year with Mara Wilson's autobiography/essays and finished it with Lindsey Fitzharris' biography of Joseph Lister. Of course I balanced this out with a strong handful of Star Wars, dipping my toes into the wonder (horror) of the EU and the new cannon. I blame Never Tell Me The Pods for my Star War obsession, which is something I'm actually enjoying. I also continued my que
All Right Stop, Collaborate and Listen
I’m back with a brand new edition…of GLAM Blog Club. Now that you can’t get that song out of your head, let us turn to the theme for this month, ‘collaboration’. Ever since I first found out that authors collaborate and write books together I’ve wondered ‘how do you even do that?’ Do they write a chapter each and try to fit them together? Or do they sit in a room together with one of them typing and the other leaning back on a chase lounge, cigarette dangling from their limp hand, an arm folde
Comics, Manga, Anime, Oh My!
To me, the difference between a Marvel trade paperback and a manga omnibus is like the difference between a cheeseburger and sushi. While both are forms of comics, the art styles, backgrounds, and stories are so distinct. What I have noticed in public libraries is that while I can tell the two apart, many of my colleagues struggle. After removing all identifying labels from comic collections many staff were left confused when it came to shelving. While you can add extra stickers on the back of i
Moving the Centre
The theme of ‘balance’ for the November GLAM Blog Club made me think outside the GLAM box. I’ve been studying tai chi (taiji, taijiquan) with some Xingyiquan and Baguazhang thrown in for almost three years now. Prior to this I studied fencing for two years, but before that I haven’t trained in any form of martial art. I do remember as a teenager begging to learn a martial art. My main motivation was that I wanted some form of mental discipline, physical activity, and self-defence. Looking back I
House of Discordia. Chapter One.
James Carol is a lousy private eye and even worse human being. While looking for a missing teen he must navigate a world full of gods and thugs with each and every one out to get him. Pulled into the middle of a godly grudge match can James stay alive long enough to solve the case?