• 14:05 RT @cmairn: USA 2 BRA 0. #FIFA (OMG OMG OMG--that last one was EXCELLENT!) #
• 17:43 RT @ndn: Collier commission begins budget talks Monday bit.ly/17X62f #swfl (Its complicated, I get it, but libraries need support!) #
• 17:45 listening to "Billie Jean - Michael Jackson" ♫ blip.fm/~91qmm #

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I have been very unmotivated to do much lately.  Matter of fact, I am sitting and typing this when I ought to be ironing clothes.  (I did already clean the kitchen today, and yesterday all the toilets and floors...)  I don't know if it is heat or the fact that I spend much time in other online pursuits, but both blogs have suffered.  I have how ever been knitting and cooking and reading up a storm, as well as endeavoring to be more active, even in the absence of ballet classes.  (I understand the need to modify the schedule, it is kind to the teachers and staff that they can go home earlier, but hard for me with my work schedule to get there on time.) 

I am looking forward to ballet classes starting again, and the prospect of The Nutcracker.  I have ALWAYS wanted to be in the party scene, and now perhaps it will happen.  I was in a rotten mood after the spring performance, but only because I felt bad for making mistakes the second day, and that Lana had been so injured and in pain.  I hope that things will be much more settled about The Nutcracker and who is doing what, as I feel that was part of the issue with the Spring piece as well...we started with nine dancers and ended up with six, the result being a lot of rehearsals where we had to reconfigure and refigure out what we were doing.  

I did participate in a reading challenge  a few weekends ago, and I had a blast doing it.  The idea was to spend as much time reading and blogging and commenting and visiting other book related blogs as possible.  Final Stats:  5 whole books read, 2 partial books read:  The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander, Breathless by Jessica Warman, Envy by Anna Godebersen, Forest Born by Shannon Hale, The School for Dangerous Girls by Eliot Schrefer, Mozart’s Ghost by Julia Cameron, Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty by Jody Gehrman.  1933 pages read.  16 blogs updates, and too many tweets to count.  Total time spent on the challenge is 24 hours and 15 minutes. Thanks to MotherReader who organized this event, and all the great bloggers I connected with over the course of the weekend.  I have been lucky recently in receiving many great advanced reader copies, and after a huge discussion all over the internets about the value of sending such to bloggers, I am happy that I am deemed worthy of getting them.  (A big thank you to:  Random House Candlewick  Little Brown Books for Young Readers Bloomsbury USA St. Martin's Press Henry N. Abrams Key Porter Books Walker and Company and probably several more I am forgetting...)

The discussion was varied, but the part that caught my attention was a distinction between first wave and second wave book blogs. And I guess partly the reason is that I am not a part of either wave really.  I am a professional in that I am a librarian, and have almost 10 years experience in developing collections for children, teens and adults.  So I have that experience, along with an English degree to back up what I say.  I am both thinking about other librarians and other books in these areas when I review as often as not.  However, I am not a professional reviewer, and I receive no compensation for writing reviews, and I feel as though a more casual conversational tone is appropriate for this blog as often as not.  (I have considered adding ads to the blog for the sole purpose of putting money back into the site, either in design or in contests and giveaways for readers.)  Also, I see no discussion/conversation arising from the blog, although I do hear from librarians and others on the lisetservs I frequent that they enjoy the reiews and sometimes they agree or disagree with my sentiments.

Since I started working in public libaries, I have been a regular loyal library user.  One one of the first things I did when we moved here to Florida was to find the public library and get a library card.  I have visited the library about once a week since then.  For this reason, I have been paying particular interest to the budget process here in Collier County.  The fact of the matter is that property values have dropped so far that to tax property at the same rate or even a little more than last year will result in a loss of 5-15%.  There was a brief article in the Naples Daily News yesterday explaining why this was especially difficult, as there are projects that the county has committed to, that they are receiving government money for, etc., that have to go forward.  I GET it, I really do.  But I don't get closing two library locations and laying off library staff.  The county library has already undergone several reductions in both service hours and staff in the last year, and yet the number of visits and circulation continues to increase.  One of the branches being considered for closure is in a part of town where the library is most needed, where people don't own books or computers or have internet access...I wrote a letter to my county commissioner, but I am considering writing a stronger letter to all the commissioners.  Okay, so we're not as bad off as some libraries (see Ohio for example) but I KNOW that losing this ground and seeming to survive means that when things turn around, the county won't automatically add these services back.   

I have shown restraint in not buying more and more yarn.  I have even looked up on a map where the local yarn shop is and as of yet, have not visited it.  I have been working through some of the yarn I have acculmulated, although my husband would point out I still have a closet left.  I finished the gift for Denise and would send it to her, except I thought of another I wanted to make up quickly to send with it.  I knit my first baby sweater that really turned out well for Jane's sister-in-law, and then, in the spirit of using up yarn, I knit a baby blanket.  My attempts to measure gauge still need help, but after several years of not getting it, I am starting to understand the mechanics of joining one piece to another.  (That said, I much rather like patterns that have little or no seaming...)

Still cooking up a storm.  People it seems are often surprised by two things--that I iron our clothes every week, and that I cook dinner almost every night.  (Note to anyone trying to save money--learn how to cook and then DO IT.  I promise you that you will eat better, be healthier, and save money.)  I tried out another Everyday Food recipe last week: Spaghetti with Shrimp and Bacon.  I was surprised that my husband would consider this, as bacon is one of those things he doesn't eat.  However, the combination of flavors and textures was a good one.  I did use twice as much shrimp, bacon and other ingredients as the recipe called for and much less spaghetti, I would say 4 to 6 ounces dried.  I did not add the bacon back to the pan with everything else, instead letting my husband decide how much to add to his portion.  He decided it was good but not something he wanted to eat all the time.  I, being the bacon lover that I am, thought it was excellent, although perhaps I would add a little more lemon juice. 

Recently reconnected with a friend from high school on Facebook--I was so glad that she found me, as I had been thinking about her and wondering how things were going.  Finding out that she had two beautiful children spurred me to search out some cute things to send their way, and I found them, of all places, at Target.  And at GREAT prices too.  So much so that I went back and picked something out for another friend's little girl.  Circo is one of Target's own brands, and everythng at the store was even less than the online prices.  Sad that Target no longer carries Issac Mizrahi, but I am really liking a lot of the Merona Collection.  They actually sold out two dresses I really liked, so when I saw this one on clearance, I bought.   It is hard to tell from the picture, but it has little cap sleeves and a tie in the front. 

Summer TV has started!  Yay for Burn Notice, The Closer and So You Think You Can Dance.  (You can find Nigel on twitter @dizzyfeet along with several other SYTYCD regulars.)  Happy to note that SYTYCD is also going to have a fall edition.  I don't have a strong favorite at this point in the competition, but it is hard to see who gets cut.  I also managed to catch a marathon of America's Best Dance Crew season 3 on MTV.  Season 4 starts in August.  We have started watching Royal Pains, which is better than the reviews I have seen would indicate.  Mental is not quite as good, but the main character is pretty interesting, and some of the episodes have been better than the pilot, which was just okay, although Chris Vance has been pretty good in all of them.  We are also giving Raising the Bar another try, but I have a feeling we may give up on it again. (Make John Michael Higgins character a regular and maybe we'll reconsider.) Law and Order: Criminal Intent has new episodes and I am glad that Jeff Goldblum has joined the cast, although it really just make me miss Raines.  (It appears that all episodes are online, watch them and be sad that you didn't before.)  I watched a few episodes of Leverage online, and enjoyed it pretty much, although it definitely requires suspension of disbelief.  It returns soon with new episodes as well.  I recorded Make It or Break It tonight, even though I missed the pilot, and we also have The Philanthropist in the DVR.  I also hear good things about 10 Things I Hate About You.  Thank goodness for cable television!