No "Leap Second" Added Today

Add a second? Subtract a second? Just how important is "exact" time? The rotation of the earth is not only erratic but also has been slowing down since 1900, which makes an astronomical second longer than an atomic second, therefore adjustments are made by international agreement to keep the two clocks within 0.9 second of each other. June 30 is one of the days that has been favored for a change in our clock time to coordinate atomic and astronomical times. (December 31 is one of the other dates often used.) The Central Bureau of the International Earth Rotation Service at Paris, France, has been determining which days to select since 1972. As of July 1, 2005, a total of 22 leap seconds had been added. But not this year. No positive Leap Second will be introduced today. This information was found at the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service web page.

We were started down this train of thought just browsing for fun in our Reference copy of Chase's Calendar of Events under today's date. Every day new trains depart.

Weather and Fire

We think it hailed up on top of the mountain yesterday afternoon. By the time we got up on the roof for a picture it was already melting, so you can't really see it:What storms we get are so localized. It sure didn't hail or snow or anything but feel damp yesterday downtown, but elsewhere around town it did hail. The New Mexican has weather station read-outs for downtown and El Dorado which you might want to compare to the official Weather Service numbers taken at the airport.

The City's Fire Marshall sent the following Weekly Wildfire Conditions Update for the week of Friday, June 30, 2006, through Thursday, July 6:
     Current Conditions:
Current fire danger is HIGH with predictions of Moderate fire behavior for the Santa Fe area. Thunderstorms are expected to develop in the afternoon with a twenty percent chance of precipitation.
     Fire Weather Outlook:
Afternoon thunderstorms expected throughout the weekend and early next week. Expect the fire danger to remain HIGH and possibly becoming moderate by the end of next week.
     Fire Restrictions Within the City of Santa Fe:
The use of all fireworks throughout the City is prohibited.
All smoking, the use of charcoal fired grills, and the use of all terrain vehicles is prohibited on city owned parks of open spaces.
     Safety:
STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE STATE...WINDS UP TO 55 MPH.... AND HEAVY TO VERY HEAVY RAIN. RAINS WILL RESULT IN LOCALIZED FLOODING OF ARROYOS AND SMALL STREAMS... AS WELL AS SOME LOW LYING AREAS AND STREETS IN THE URBAN AREAS.

Learn Something New Every Day

Sorting through the donated books, we came across a British paperback, Fiesta : The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway. Huh? we said. What is this? None of the biographies of Hemingway on the shelf at the moment were any help.

One of the reference librarians found us a fascinating (well, fascinating if this is what you're thinking about) article, The Textual History of The Sun Also Rises, which offers the following explanation: "The eventual title given the novel, The Sun Also Rises, was not chosen until the typescript. Hemingway had a list of possible titles in the last of the notebooks used for the first draft. He chose the published title because he wanted to 'emphasize the optimistic idea of progress of life's cycle' (Svoboda 106). It should be noted that although Hemingway changed the original title of Fiesta to the one known, British editions of the novel have used the title of Fiesta from its original publication to the present." The Svoboda book cited is Frederic Joseph Svoboda, Hemingway & The Sun Also Rises, The Crafting of a Style (UP of Kansas, 1983.) We don't have it in the system. But Interlibrary Loan could get it for you if you want to pursue this further :-)

The Sun Also Rises; all of Hemingway's works.

Farmer's Market Parking

We are so sorry we forgot to post this at the end of last week, but the arrangement is good for two more weekends. The City has announced the following:

"With the construction of the 400-space underground parking garage beginning at the Railyard and the many summer events planned for the different locations around its perimeter, parking will be more difficult on Saturdays. Particularly challenging will be finding parking at the Farmers Market. To alleviate some of the hassles en route to the market, the city of Santa Fe, the New Mexico Department of Transportation and Santa Fe Trails has a possible parking solution, according to Joyce Bond, Public Works Marketing Manager.

"On June 24, July 1 and July 8 city staff will be giving out tote bags and free bus rides if market goers park at the NMDOT parking lot at 1120 Cerrillos Road beginning at 8:30 a.m. until noon. Adult riders will be given one free shopping bag and a free bus ride. Then on subsequent trips to the Saturday Farmers Market, if the person parks at the same lot and shows his or her bag to the driver, that ride is free too. 'This is a trial promotion and we hope to make it an annual event, at least until some of the parking structures are built,' said Bond.

Many shows and exhibitions are planned for El Museo Cultural, SITE Santa Fe, and Warehouse 21, located near the Farmers Market, throughout the summer weekends, and there will be parking attendants directing traffic to parking spaces at these events. For more information contact Joyce Bond at 505/470-0933; Laura Banish at 955-6046 or Sandi Duran at 955-6556."

Andé— And Other Excuses For Dancing In The Street

Summer Reading festivities continue this week with Andé Marimba Band. This lively group of young musicians will bring their music, drawn from the Zimbabwean tradition, to La Farge Library on Tuesday, June 27th, 2:00 PM; and to the Main Library on Thursday, June 29th, 2:00 PM. Grownups, don't hesitate to come by the library. In fact, come hear them twice. They're that good.

If Andé inspires you to think about dancing around, soon there will be more opportunities. The Santa Fe Bandstand 2006 season begins on July 5th— free music performances on the Plaza, four evenings a week and noon concerts on Tuesdays and Thursdays, all summer long. The schedule tells us who is playing when.

"Roofing Has Started..."

This week the architect's field notes for the Southside Library include: "Work in progress: Concrete bond beam at East Patio. Perimeter slab insulation. Electrical rough in. Ducts are being placed. Steel stud punch list is being picked up. Plumbing supply and returns are in progress. Roofing has started over the Young Adults and is progressing over the Main Stacks area. Shade ramada is being fabricated."

OCLC and RLG Plan To Combine Operations

OCLC? RLG? This is more than alphabet soup. OCLC is the network of 50,000 libraries through which we borrow books on Interlibrary Loan. The Research Libraries Group is a consortium of only a hundred and fifty or so libraries but some of them are Really Really Big Ones :-), and there are a lot of museums. Merging OCLC's 67,000,000 titles with RLG's 48,000,000 titles is really hot news. It's like doubling the size of the telescope we can use to look at the world of knowledge.

The first question on everyone's mind is, will we see the RLG titles in OCLC's public interface, WorldCat? RLG's information page about the merger tells us the answer: "...RLIN, the RLG Union Catalog, will be integrated into WorldCat, delivering economies of scale and reach that will benefit members of both RLG and OCLC." Burning question number two is, what will happen to RLG's marvelous public interface, RedLightGreen? OCLC's information page answers: "RedLightGreen features will be incorporated into OpenWorldCat. OCLC and RLG staff will engage an advisory group of RLG members to help incorporate features of RedLightGreen into WorldCat.org."

We haven't seen any answers for burning question number three, will RLG libraries like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Harvard, and MOMA, and the Folger Shakespeare Library be making their holdings available for us to borrow by interlibrary loan?

P.S. Right now you have access to WorldCat from computers inside the library. And soon, like really soon, the State Library is arranging for all our library users to have access from home. Yaaay.

Zimmerman Updates

A letter to University of New Mexico faculty has been posted on the University Libraries website. Other than that they hope to reopen the first floor on Monday (June 26th), there is no way to make the situation sound good: "As many of you already know, on April 30, there was a fire in the basement of the Zimmerman Library that destroyed some periodicals and damaged many more. Among the areas completely destroyed were history, Latin American studies, Native American studies, Hispanic studies and African-American studies. Other damaged areas were geography, anthropology, archaeology, religion, philosophy, and cultural studies.

"All the surviving periodicals and microforms were shipped out of state for cleaning and further assessment. Some of those materials may be so damaged that they cannot be restored; the exact losses will not be known until the materials are returned." Read the complete letter.

News stories (1)(2) are indicating that the cause of the fire was arson.

Summer Reading Kickoff, and Thursday Program

Today is the kick-off for summer reading, Little Readers Day with Paul Glickman. Come sign up for summer reading and meet Paul Glickman's puppet friends. La Farge Library — 10:30 AM. Main Library — 2:00 PM

Author in the Making. Thursday, June 22nd, 10:30 AM, Rita Feinstein will be reading from her novel-in-progress in the Community Room at the Main Library. Her book, The Dragon of Icicle Quarry, is an Adventure/Fantasy about a young dragon named Andalucia who has traveled to Avalonia, a mystical city in the sky, to get a magical mirror repaired. This mirror is the only thing that can stop an evil dragon named Jarnal from taking over the Dragon Realms. For information, call 955-6783.

La Farge Branch Is Ba-a-a-ack!

New carpets, fresh paint, exactly on schedule. Come see the refreshed Oliver La Farge Branch Library. 1730 Llano Street, 955-4862. Monday through Wednesday, 10 AM - 9 PM. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 10 AM - 6 PM. Sundays 1-5 PM.

Your hold books items and Interlibrary Loan items requested for La Farge pickup have migrated back there.

Wildfire Conditions Update

We have received the following information from the City: "The Santa Fe Fire Department reports the following:

Fire Conditions:
•Current fire danger is EXTREME with predictions of Active to Very Active fire behavior for the Santa Fe area...Expect high winds, low relative humidity and high temperatures.

Fire Weather Outlook:
•Strong winds and dry conditions with some lightning potential today to be followed by more widespread breezy to windy and dry conditions through the end of the work week. Continued drying trend to continue through next week.

Fire Restrictions:
•Within the City of Santa Fe: oThe use of all fireworks throughout the City is prohibited.oAll smoking, the use of charcoal fired grills, and the use of all terrain vehicles is prohibited on city owned parks or open spaces. •For Other areas surrounding the city: For info on current Fire Restrictions call 1-877-864-6985 or for current fire information call 1-877-971-FIRE (3473). For both fire restrictions and fire information you can also visit www.nmfireinfo.com .

Remember To Look At The Sky Saturday Night

Space Weather News for June 16, 2006: "MARS AND SATURN: After passing through the Beehive star cluster last night, Mars is on a collision course with Saturn--at least it looks that way. The two planets will not collide, but they will have a pleasing close encounter in the evening sky on Saturday night, June 17th. Look west after sunset."

The Sky and Telescope Sky-at-a-glance page always has good illustrations. In addition to Mars and Saturn, Mercury is prominent in the evening sky and Jupiter reigns all night long. Venus in the morning...

Saturn's moon Enceladus with its ice fountains remains a hot scientific topic. Sky and Telescope has a summary article about the article in Nature earlier this month which brought Enceladus back into the news. There is also a press release at NASA, but only the abstract of the article itself is available online at Nature.

Bloomsday

It's Bloomsday, the fictional date on which James Joyce's Ulysses took place in 1904. Joyceans everywhere are partying hearty. Joycean librarians look for librarianly tools. Are there 'If you like' lists (example 1)(example 2) for James Joyce? Alas, no. Well, let's make one up:

If you like James Joyce, then you might try At swim-two-birds by Flann O'Brien; In His Own Write by John Lennon; Dhalgren, by Samuel R. Delany; Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll; Faulkner; Pynchon; Burroughs; Nabokov; Shakespeare; Monty Python... for starters.

The current New Yorker (June 19) has article about Joyce's snippy grandson: "The Injustice Collector" by DT Max.

Donald Hall, Poet Laureate

Donald Hall has been named Poet Laureate of the United States. In his long career, Hall has written poetry, prose, and children's books. The Academy of American Poets has a nice profile with good links. The story at NPR includes audio. There are plenty of other news stories and profiles. We have about a score of his books.

...not going to be there alone...

Gail Schuler, the library's Manager of Youth Services, was named the City's Employee of the Month, and received her award from Mayor David Coss last night.

Her nomination reads: On Thursday, April 20, at the bus stop just east across the street from the La Farge Branch Library on Llano Street, a young man was shot. Gail Schuler was leaving the Library for her lunch break and saw staff standing on a berm calling 911. They informed Gail they had heard a shot and it was a young person who had been shot at the bus stop across the street. Gail immediately ran to the bus stop to see if she could help. As she said, "We serve children and that child was not going to be there alone after being shot. I just wanted him to know others cared and were with him."

Gail did not hesitate; she had no knowledge of who the shooter was, where he was or if she was putting herself in danger. An off duty EMT started attending to the young person and Gail stayed with them until an ambulance arrived. Gail is very humble and does not feel that she did anything special. But her colleagues and supervisors do feel that it was a brave and caring action that she took. She serves young people every day in the library in less dramatic ways, but always stands tall for the children she works with. She would not leave a child alone to face any situation such as this one, or any other, where a child might be hurt or in danger.

La Farge On Schedule To Be Ready June 19th

La Farge's carpet project is rolling right on. At any given moment, one quarter of everything is packed, stacked, shifted, wrapped. And the painters are going full brush! But we still expect to reopen as planned on June 19th. Thanks for your patience and understanding—this is the first new carpet since 1988!

News from Local Blogs

Or in some cases, sort of blogs. Taoseño J. H. Farr, for example, appears to use his blog, FarrFeed to point to his essays on his site Grack!. The one on top right now is an account of a hike up into the hills above Taos. (Beware though of the audio raven call that insists on startling you out of your chair everytime you arrive at Grack!)

Local author George Johnson's Santa Fe Review is also not quite a blog, but a venue for occasional essays, usually on water and development. What he has on top is right now is a piece about local planning lobbyist Jennifer Jenkins. (At the bottom of that page are links to his webcams pointing at the Tom Ford house and the Davis Mansion).

More? Sheriff Greg Solano has a blog. What's on top is a piece about Officer James Archuleta who recently was killed in an accident while on duty. Santa Fe Blog, which we'd never seen before, has a piece about local author Robin Williams's book, Sweet Swan of Avon: did a woman write Shakespeare?. (One of our reference librarians has been recommending this book to everyone.) The no-longer-newcomers at Going to New Mexico have put up a nice hike along the Chamisa Trail.

More still? New Mexico Magazine has a list, heavy on Albuquerque sites (and we're not in it).

Dirk Wales Reading on Wednesday

On Wednesday, June 14th, 10:30 AM, Dirk Wales will be in the Main Library Community Room (145 Washington Avenue) reading two of his books, A Lucky Dog: Owney, U. S. Rail Mail Service Mascot and Penny House. P.S. Hope you can join us!!

"A Yellow Light For The Internet"

Geri Hutchins, Federal Programs Coordinator for the New Mexico State Library, has sent us the following message: "A Yellow Light For The Internet: The House passed legislation late Thursday night that will pave the way for telephone companies' speedy entrance into the video market, but rejected an amendment that would force cable and telephone companies to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing on their networks.

"The defeat of the amendment, on a 269-151 vote that fell largely along party lines, more or less dashes the hopes of a big coalition of Internet companies and Democratic groups that strict "network neutrality" regulations will become law this year, since such legislation has only slightly better odds of passing the Republican Senate. Source: Forbes June 9, 2006
"Other articles: Network neutrality killed again, but cable reform bill lives on Source: ARS Technica ; Internet Freedom Coalition Applauds Defeat of 'Net Neutrality' Regulations on the Internet Source: Internet Freedom Coalition (via Yahoo)"

It's a vigorous topic out in the blog world too. Just for one example, truthout.org

Zimmerman Library Update

We received the following message from Teresa Neely, Director of the Zimmerman Library at UNM in Albuquerque.

"Thanks so much for keeping your users informed and updated about Zimmerman Library and our recovery efforts. The Library remains closed at this time and the investigation into the fire by the state fire marshal is still ongoing. Staff in the Dean’s office which is on the 2nd floor were able to return to their offices several weeks ago but the remaining staff formerly housed throughout Zimmerman (all of technical services, Center for Southwest Research, Library Information Technology, Reference, Government Documents, and Circulation, Acquisitions, ILL, Collection Management and tenants are still working from locations as disparate as homes, other branches, the SUB (student center), or other departments on campus.

"All of the collections in the basement have been removed and those that were salvageable were packed and shipped to Texas for assessment and cleaning. This monumental task was completed in about 13 days and was only possible through complex collaboration of library staff and those contracted to do the pack-out.

"One silver lining in this all is that we believe we will be able to implement some of our Research Plaza plans as well as further refine plans to consolidate Government Information and Reference Services on the 1st floor. This means that when the building reopens (1st, 2nd and 3rd floors only), last reported at mid to late June, the reference Area and collection on the 1st floor will be unavailable while that space is being refurbished. Mini computing pods will be set up in the Exhibit space on the first floor and on the 2nd floor. Wireless will be restored throughout the building. The timeline for the basement reopening is considerably longer and dependent upon a number of factors."

Moving Right Along...

Incremental progress on the Southside Library. From the architect's Field Report: "Work in progress: a. Masons are finishing the stem wall at the East Patio. Next they will grout all of their CMU. After that is complete, concrete crew will start forming the colored bond beam for the East Patio. Concrete crew is currently forming the steps to Country Club and the monuments signs. b. Sound attenuators are being placed. Two have been secured; six more to go. c. Electrical rough in is ongoing. d. Structural steel at the entrance still needs to be finished as well as the moment connections. e. Exterior walls have been inspected for sheathing."

Construction photos are always available on the Progress Page.

Summer Book Sale

The Friends of the Library's Summer Book Sale will take place Saturday and Sunday, June 10th & 11th at the Main Library, 145 Washington Avenue.

The Friends are already hard at work, moving boxes and tables and getting everything ready. This is the bargain sale. Saturday, 10 AM to 4 PM: Hardcover, $2.00; Movie Videos, $1.00; Paperbacks, $1.00; Everything Else (records, childrens books, CDs, cassettes, videos), $.50. Sunday, June 11, 1 PM to 4 PM: Bag Day. $2.50 per bag; bags provided.

We hope you will join us.

The First New Thing

The first sign of the many changes coming to our computer system is now visible in the catalog: you can email yourself records directly from the catalog. Depending on where you are you will see buttons and checkboxes inviting you to save records:
When you are ready, click on the View Saved button , and that will bring you to the export screen. You will have a choice of formats:

No more scribbling notes to yourself as you browse the catalog!! Mark 'em, save 'em, send 'em.

Santa Fe National Forest Stays At Stage II

We received the following press release from the Santa Fe National Forest:

"SANTA FE NATIONAL FOREST TO REMAIN IN STAGE II FIRE RESTRICTIONS : (Santa Fe, NM)—After careful consideration, Forest Supervisor Gilbert Zepeda announced this afternoon that the Santa Fe National Forest will not implement partial closures (Stage III Fire Restrictions) by the end of the week. "Lessons learned have shown us how closures can impact local economies and at this time the public’s adherence to current restrictions, predicted moisture, and the availability of fire fighting resources will allow the Forest to remain in Stage II Fire Restrictions," said Zepeda.

Fire managers will continue to monitor conditions on a daily basis to determine whether partial closures will need to be implemented.

The Santa Fe National Forest appreciates everyone’s efforts in being wildfire prevention stewards while recreating on the Forest. Since January 1, 2006, 8 human-caused fires have burned 18 acres on the Forest. "Considering how hot, dry and windy the spring has been, these are unusually promising statistics. It tells us that people are taking their fire prevention responsibilities very seriously," expressed Claudia Standish, Wildland Urban Interface & Fire Prevention Specialist. To join in, or continue being a wildfire prevention steward, please remember when planning a trip to your National Forest, KNOW BEFORE YOU GO and take fire restrictions seriously.

For current fire restriction information, please call 1-877-864-6985 or visit our website at www.fs.fed.us/r3/sfe. For comprehensive wildfire and restriction information across New Mexico, please visit www.nmfireinfo.com."

Whatever We Call It

The list of titles with the most holds (Current Popular Titles)(or, Books You're Willing To Wait in Line For)(or, 'the manyholds list') has been updated. These are the titles carrying the highest interest among our readers: authors with the most faithful following or the most stamina for making the media rounds to create buzz for their works; hot topics; local favorites. Almost always the authors are familiar names. At the top of the list right now:

• Blue shoes and happiness / Alexander McCall-Smith
• Two little girls in blue / Mary Higgins Clark
• At risk / Patricia Cornwell
• Gone / Jonathan Kellerman
• Dead watch / John Sandford
• American theocracy : the perils and politics of radical religion, oil, and borrowed money in the 21st century / Kevin Phillips

But there are always some interesting things interspersed; a bit further down the list (i.e., shorter waiting list), it runs

• The secret supper / Javier Sierra
• Labyrinth / Kate Mosse
• My life in France / Julia Child
• Eat, pray, love : one woman's search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia / Elizabeth Gilbert
• Sweet swan of Avon : did a woman write Shakespeare? / Robin P. Williams
• The omnivore's dilemma : a natural history of four meals / Michael Pollan
• Elements of style / Wendy Wasserstein

Then back to a sequence of popular authors again. This is not so much surprising as just endlessly fascinating, trying to anticipate what our users want, noticing what there isn't enough of, watching demand fall off—or not. Six people are waiting for Geraldine Brooks' 2004 title, March. (Might be a reading group.)

The list is always available from the catalog start page, and from the About Books & Literature page.

Net Neutrality in Congress

This is another seemingly technical-jargon topic which actually may greatly affect both individual experience of the Web and the situation of libraries: network neutrality. Last week the House Judiciary Committee approved H.R. 5417, Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act of 2006. Of course, this does not mean the bill will make its way through the House and Senate in reasonably intact shape, or at all. For a discussion of some of the issues see the CNet news article cited above, or at ALA.

Or revisit last winter's flap about AOL and Yahoo planning to give preference to certain bulk emailers who pay for the privilege. It looks like AOL has actually begun using the goodmail system; no sign that Yahoo followed through yet. No reason to think they won't.

Dinosaurs Inhabit Governor's Gallery

The headline says it all. Bronze fossil replicas from Mesalands Community College’s Dinosaur Museum are spending the summer in the Governor's Gallery in the State Capitol. They'll be there through September 1.

This works out very nicely for the Summer Reading Program, whose theme is Dinosaurs. The exhibition opens June 9. Go take a look at the exhibit to get inspired for summer reading; registration begins June 19, and yes, La Farge will reopen just in time.

La Farge Renovations

The La Farge Branch of the Santa Fe Public Library, 1730 Llano Street, will be undergoing renovations in early June. Starting Monday, June 5, the branch will be closed through Sunday, June 18, reopening on Monday, June 19 at 10:00 a.m. During the two week closure, the building will be painted and re-carpeted. Funding for the branch library upgrades came from City CIP funds.

"We regret the inconvenience," stated Susie Sonflieth, Branch Director. "We hope our patrons will appreciate our new look, with new paint and carpeting. Special touches have been added to make the Children’s Room more inviting--children will enjoy the surprises! Wehope our patrons will understand the interruption in service. The closure is longer than anticipated as most of the shelving must be moved to install the carpeting. The last carpet installation took place in 1988, so we all welcome the renovation," Sonflieth stated.

In addition, the Legislature approved funding for the FY2006-07 year through the generosity of Representative Lucky Varela and Senator Nancy Rodriguez, which will provide further renovations to service desks, the entrance and a new HVAC system as part of a long range plan of upgrades at the La Farge Branch.

Patrons' holds for books and Interlibrary loans will be held at the Main Library during this time for patron pick-up. Books may be returned to the La Farge Branch during the closure. The phone line for renewals of items that are checked out is 955-6987. For reference or to reserve computer time at the Main Library, staff may be reached at 955-6781.

It's An Actual Building

The architect's Field Notes for this week aren't here yet, but this picture is so exciting we wanted to share it right away. This is looking at the Southside Library from down on Jaguar Drive.