Deep Thinking

There are too many meetings I need to attend. Going on ALA Council and on AASL as Director-Elect of Region 4 after annual means orientations, observations, and more. Legislative meetings take time. Affiliate Assembly responsibilities take time. Some meetings I’ll be able to attend, some I’ll have to pass this round.

Friday June 22
Attempt to attend the advocacy workshop in the morning WCC Washington Convention Center 103 A
ALA WO/COL/Legislation Assembly Joint Meeting 1:30-3:30 PM WCC Rm 204C
ALA COL 3:30-5:30 observe for Ruth Toor to report for Sat. mtg WCC Rm 158 A/B
Gareth Stevens private event drop in and out 5-5:30 PM at the Capital Grille
AASL Affiliate Assembly Executive Committee 5:30-7:30 PM WCC Rm 203 A/B
AASL Affiliate Assembly 1 8-10 PM WCC 146 C
YALSA’s 50th Anniversary Party 10-11:59 PM Renaissance Washington DC Ballroom West

Saturday
ALA Council Orientation Session 8:30-10:30 AM WCC Ballroom
AASL President’s Program 10:30 AM -12:oo PM Renaissance Mayflower Grand Ballroom
EXHIBIT HALL 12-1:30
AASL 101 1:30-2:15 PM WCC Rm 160
EXHIBIT HALL 2:15-4:00
ALA WO-COL Grassroots Subcommittee Meeting 4-5:30 PM WCC RM 141
ALA Opening Session 5:30-7:00 PM WCC Hall D
Scholastic Intro’s BookFlix 7:00-9:00 PM Renaissance Mayflower Grand Ballroom
Private ALA Pres. reception 9:30-11:0oPM Renaissance Washington

Sunday
AASL Affiliate Assembly II 8-11:59 AM Renaissance Washington DC Ballroom West A/B
ALA Council 1 10:45-12:15 pm WCC Ballroom
EXHIBIT HALL 12:15-1:30
ALSC/AASL/YALSA Joint Legislative Committee 1:30-3:30 Hotel Washington Rm Capital
ALA President’s Program 3:30-5:30 WCC Ballroom
Private ALA Pres. Reception 5:30-7:00 Renaissance Washington
Private Coughlan Invite 6:30 Capital Grille
Hug the walls to listen to Newbery/Caldecott speeches

Monday
ALA WO-Legislation Assembly 8-10 am WCC Room 140A
AASL Booth in Exhibit Hall 10-11 am WCC Exhibit Hall
EXHIBIT HALL 11-12
AASL Awards Luncheon 12-2:00 pm WCC Room 207A (see I do eat)
AASL All-Committee Meeting Leg. Meeting 2:30-3:30
EXHIBIT HALL 3:30-5:00
ASPCA Henry Bergh Children’s Book Award Ceremony 5:30-7:30 Renaissance Washington DC Ballroom East
Library Of Congress Reception 6-8:00 LOC

Tuesday
ALA Council II 9:15 AM -12:45 PM WCC Ballroom
AASL Board of Directors III/Orientation 12:00-3:00 PM WCC Room 156 (includes my lunch)
ALA Library Day on the Hill 11-4:00 PM

Wednesday
ALA Council III

What am I missing out on? All the technology stuff that I WANT to attend, but can’t because I’m stuck in meetings like:
LITA meetings on blogging, OCLC blogging get-together (which I don’t even know where it is),
Michael Stephens YALSA Using Technology to Market to Young Adults,
ALA -PIO PR Forum - 10 Cool Technologies that Can Impact the Public Relations Plan @ your library (YouTube, Blogs, Wikis, RSS, MySpace and more. Are these just sizzle or are they the steak? Are we ready to move beyond simple Web sites and e-mails? Has your library’s PR plan been adapted to the Library 2.0 world? Web 2.0 is coming fast and it’s big. W),
ACRL -LPSS Can Blogs Be Trusted?
ALA -WO briefings on Saturday mornings (I did blog about the Social Participation briefing at Midwinter)
AFL -AILA AILA- American Indian Children’s Literature: Identifying and Celebrating the Good
ALSC Nurturing a Love of Books Through Readers Theatre
ALSC Search and Research: How Three Nonfiction Writers Navigate Information Overload (Learn how nonfiction authors do their research and how librarians can use their methods to help guide patrons. Prominent children’s nonfiction authors will speak alongside their editors about their research process. Sy Montgomery will speak along with pub)
Sizing Up America’s School Libraries: The first annual report on the AASL Longitudinal Survey of School Library Media Centers by Keith Curry Lance
AASL Promoting Diversity through Young Adult Literature
LITA Top Technology Trends
ACRL -WSS Once Upon a Furl in a Podcast Long Ago: Using New Technologies to Support Library Instruction
ALSC 2007 Newbery/Caldecott/Wilder Banquet (I can’t afford to eat at this conference anyway - sigh)

If you notice, I don’t have a great deal of time for food at any of these events and, quite honestly with the change of status in my household, there are no funds to dine out. So, PLEASE, if you see me eating two Snickers or two Reeses at a booth, just look the other way and don’t get between me and the chocolate. I may be existing entirely on sugar. Anyone have a breakfast for Friday, Saturday or Tuesday to attend?

Other areas I need to remember:
ALA Store (drooling allowed)
ALA Emerging Leaders Poster Sessions

I couldn’t resist. I found this “severe case of Pfefferitis” entry from Brooklyn Arden about Susan Beth Pfeffer’s fall 2006 title Life As We Knew It and I was intrigued. Since I inexplicably found myself in the Books A Million store (only 2 miles from my house, heaven!) with nothing particular in mind, I asked at the desk if they had the title. Of course I couldn’t remember the title. Having a mom who managed a bookstore for 20 years I know all about people who walk in and can’t remember enough about the book they saw on TV or in a newspaper review, but still insist that any title you suggest isn’t it. Fortunately, I have Joe. Joe, the manager at BAM, who won’t give up. I have finally met someone as determined as myself to ensure that he finds the title I wants and gets it in my hands. While I was describing the plot from the blog post, all the employees gathered around. When he finally found the title and special ordered it for me, they forced him to order copies for themselves, too.

I was warned. I knew that once I opened this book I couldn’t stop. I just don’t listen to warnings. I began at 12:45 a.m. Do I need to tell you that I know exactly what time the birds start heralding sunrise? I had to read it twice. Once as I raced through for the plot. The second time to read the indepth stuff and begin my survivalist grocery list. I have saved it in the note section of my cell phone so I am prepared if I’m not at home when a disaster strikes and need my grocery list. Chocolate chips are big on my list. Go read this comment to understand why.

I was warned. I dismissed everyone’s claims of food cravings while they read this book. Fortunately #3 son was hungry at 2:30 so I could go fix him something to eat and count the cans of mixed vegetables and tuna I had on hand.

When I woke this morning, I found Susan Pfeffer’s blog and a few other links:

Bookshelves of Doom’s comments “As irrational as it may be, Life As We Knew It scared the crap out of me. It made me want to stockpile food and hook up the wood stove. It also made me want to move further inland, just in case.”

Sci Fi Wire interviewed Susan Pfeffer for this title named a finalist for the Andre Norton Award for best young-adult SF/fantasy novel of the year. It was nominated for seven awards I believe, but I save many of my middle grade fiction novels for summer reading.

Random House on Susan Pfeffer allowed me to sign up for new title announcements

LibraryThing on Susan Beth Pfeffer shows I am not alone in my need to have this book

Inter-Galactic Playground’s not totally shining review blogpost “Survival the American Way” points out an area that bothered me in the book, but I don’t expect perfect characters so it didn’t diminish my enjoyment. It simply gave me something to discuss with readers and that’s what I’m looking for - books that make you think, react, and respond. If you have ever made hard choices, you’ll understand why Pfeffer took one mom’s focus totally on her family and aversion to altruism without creating a simplistic message that we should all take care of one another. Personally I believe I would handle this situation differently, but Pfeffer is writing a second story on the disaster so hopefully we’ll get to see a different viewpoint.

Tracy K at GVPL Book Picks for Teens writes this title:

was kind of like a car crash I couldn’t stop looking at. While I was reading it, when I woke up in the morning I felt very relieved that the world as we know it is still here. This was an intense, thought-provoking book which will remain with me.

Does this make me a gawker? I’m hooked and can’t wait for the next installment. It’s a very good thing I waited until summer vacation to read this. What should I read next?