There were 15 teenagers in formalwear, but we were the most obnoxious table.

I'm entertained.
And now we must ask ourselves, should John Green be informed?

I can’t stand to look at my face when I don’t know where you are.

You know, I’m not really sure how much I’m going to continue here. I started (damn, Tiff, the auto-correct on this Word is fast. And I like that your name is an autotype)
Sorry.
I started PoBaL when I moved to the last town and hadn’t been at the last job that long. I needed a way to vent. I needed a place to share all my random theories about pop culture, teen librarianing, etc.
And that’s not to say I won’t still need that, but I’m definitely in a different place now, mentally, physically, and professionally. So, you know, don’t be surprised if I’m not as verbose around these parts as I used to be. At least for a while, while I settle into things. I kind of suspected this would happen, actually. It was a big part of the thinking behind doing nablopomo (even if I didn’t finish). I figured, even if I was going out or slowing down, I might as well do it with a bang. Right?
Speaking of my physical place, damn! I got out of shape over the past two years. Everyone remember that this was really my first experience with car-commuting, and living in an environment where everyone drove. Compared to a lot of my other moves, this one wasn’t that bad, but it totally kicked my ass. Luckily, my neighbors here are much less shifty than they had been in the last town, and one was nice enough to help schlep boxes up 3 flights.
A little feminine wiles didn’t hurt, either. But I’ve been getting the impression more and more that this particular Wacky Neighbor* would have helped either way. And that’s the way I was raised: you see someone carrying heavy shit, you offer your services.
I walked around for an hour and a half (at least) today and it felt so nice. Even nicer was that I wasn’t the only person enjoying the late fall/early winter sunniness. And I bought the latest Rogue Wave album. It’s really good. And the hill I live on now isn’t as steep as it seems when you’re driving up it.** This is nice when you’re a girl like me, who grew up on the kind of hill you could pause at the bottom of, to look straight up and think, “damn, why didn’t I wait for the 67F?”

*Melissa has some theories about this particular neighbor that will probably be a part of a future blog post.
**Plus, there’s like an inch thick layer of salt on it—good to know that they overboard when it comes to iciness. Now I just have to convince everyone else on my street to turn their wheels the correct way when they park, so no one’s car comes drifting into mine. Which actually happened to my dad.

I just can't resist a bandwagon.

Sure, why the hell not?

Extra fun is added by the fact that I don't actually own a computer, so am not entirely sure how I'll post on days when I don't work. It's an adventure!
Yeah, mostly I feel like I've just been neglecting PoBaL, except when I've got a new Billboard. And who knows? This may be the opportunity for me to finally get together my thoughts on Mr Russo, Second Life, etc.

ETA: BEAR SEAL!!! I couldn't resist.

I've been cataloging and labeling for days now.

I've moved to Blogger Beta. I may be updating the links and messing about with things. I haven't decided yet.
Mostly, I moved because Beta has tags, and, like the good little librarian I am, I want to be able to categorize every little part of my life.
Just think of this post as the key.

Billboard * boys * cheap plastic toys * comics * Craftiness *
emails clearing house * family * Fashion * general nerdiness * hair issues * holidays * In the Year 2000 * Junior/Buddy * Librarianing * Memory Lane * metaPoBaL * movies * movies * nonBillboard random * nonteenlit * politics * public transportation * relocation * Reviewing * stuff about me * Teenlit * television * the jerks * thrifting * travelogue

Like any classification system, it's pretty imperfect. (LC Subject Headings aren't all-encompassing and conclusive!? Heresy!) But, you know, it'll help people skip over the crap they don't want to read.

having an Angela Chase moment...

Personal blog of a young adult librarian in Indiana. Read about the quirks of life inside and outside the library.

Own up, people. Who wrote this?
Me and my goddam quirky life.
***
That's the description of PoBaL over at Yahoo Librarian Weblogs. Which, I should add, my stats never show anyone coming from. Can you blame them? I mean, I know I'm not all that consistently entertaining, but I'm certainly better than that assy write-up.
Can I blame sunspots for this, too?

so wonderfully wonderfully pretty

I was playing with the movie function on my camera the other day, instead of working on my resume.

Anyone know how to embed youtube in blogger?

And how neat is this? Ann Arbor Library set up this thing where you can look at every record as an old-school catalog card, and even add notes to it.

you'll read it in a book tonight

I read all the damn time, and I read fast. Sometimes, I review things. Other times, I say I'm going to review something and then never get around to it. Or, I have a great review written in my head, while I'm flossing or something (someday, the fact that I never listen to "Health in a Heartbeat" is going to kick my ass), and then forget all the best parts when I can actually write it down.
This is why I would make a terrible actual writer. When I come up with the best stuff is when I physically cannot get any of it down, or even say it outloud half the time.
So I'm trying a new experiment. I'm going to use LibraryThing. You'll notice, once you link on over, that my tags are actually tiny little opinions.
I'll still be reviewing things here on occasion, but this seems like a way of keeping track of what I read that I'll actually keep up with.

I'm also planning on linking to my LibraryThing from my work-related stuff, as sort of a "see what the librarian is reading" dealie. Has anyone else done this?

I am so smart...SMRT

Now, many people are unaware of this, but my primary occupation here in town seems to be entertaining Melissa. Tonight, for example, we have our weekly Project Runway date. She also never fails to laugh at my terrible jokes. For example, Melissa claims to enjoy my Billboard posts.
Of course, she could just be an excellent liar.
Melissa does this thing on her blog that she pretends to be taking a break from where she puts up things that people have said around her that she's been taken with.
But she doesn't give them any kind of context. This is what we're doing here today.

April 18, 2005: "I've decided on a new rule of thumb. If a guy is into zombies he's not allowed to see me naked." -Jessy

Well, this doesn't really need more explanation or context; I think I did enough in these comments. I did, however, have some awkward moments with explanations to people about the amount of interest in zombies I would allow. At Turoni's. After Joan Jett. To people who (let's be honest) weren't ever going to be in that particular boat.

August 19, 2005: "Well, it looks like there is a band tonight. Either that or horse racing." -Jessy

I am a cheap bastard. I hate when bars have covers on a specific night, when all you're planning on doing is the same thing you do any other night, and get to do for free. Or, you know, whatever the revolving pitcher price is.
And I hate trying to determine whether or not there's going to be a cover, because I also think it's really rude to the bouncer to say, You know what? I'm not paying your $3. Never mind. and walk away.* Which is why, walking up to the back of the bar on a Friday evening, I observed that there was a trailer in the parking lot.
And everyone knows that there are only 2 reasons why anyone would need a trailer: band equipment or a horse.
Or maybe I've just driven 64 between Lexington and Louisville too many times.

September 22, 2005: "This would be my fave Depeche Mode song, by the way." -Jessy

I don't remember saying this at all. Although "Blasphemous Rumors" is played infrequently enough for me to comment on it.
See, here's the thing, though: when this appeared on Melissa's blog, I distinctly remember having heard "People are People" the night before, which is my least favorite Depeche Mode song. And not just because it's the only one Lou knows.
***
At ILL (my college job) one boring summer day, we matched up coworkers with Alice in Wonderland characters and I got the Caterpillar. The explanation I got was that I "say weird stuff a lot," frequently nonsequitorically.
Did I just make that word up?

*I have never ever claimed I made sense. Never.

Read this, or you aren't my friend.

Twee as Fuck.
Also, Meg Cabot's latest entry is freakin' hilarious.
***
Someday, when I'm no longer spending library $$ at an incredible rate or figuring out how to make soaps that look like cupcakes with middle school girls, I'll have another real post, full of wheelchairs, princesses, giddiness, and my usual crankiness.
I promise.

Hey, I got links now. You have to scroll way far down to see 'em, since I've been all about the ginormous pictures lately.
I know I've forgotten people and things. Use the comments field to remind me, s'il vous plait.
And do I really need to say that it's not an insult if I've forgotten to link you, I'm just dumb?

So, apparently, it's Google and you can win stuff?
I'm such a sucker. Either that, or I'll do whatever Raj's blog tells me.

I've been looking so long at these pictures of you.

Debauchery! Craftiness! KITTIES!
All here, all the time. Or at least until someone complains about how poorly I photographed them, and then we'll talk.

And now I have to share the lengths I'll go to for a surprise. This morning, me an' a cup of coffee were hanging out in my room, listening to NPR, thinking about how dead all the Gaza protesters would be if they were from that other group of people the Israeli army's always after, when I hear some familiar music.
The "Six Feet Under" theme.
Faster than fast, at 7 AM, I run into my living room, singing, la la la I can't hear you Terri Gross so you can't ruin it for me.
And it worked.
(I don't have HBO, so I've only seen up to the end of season 3)

some things you might have noticed, and a key

So Google is apparently indexing random blogs, making mine insanely easy to find. After a while of other people knowing this, it's finally been brought to my attention (thanks, guys), so I've moved and attempted to make things a bit more anonymous, or at least defend the shit I talked on some people in some of the more bitter posts.
So:

• I now live in an undisclosed location. Heh.
• Anytime you see ***, I've edited something, in a rare fit of maturity.
• This color means I'm attempting to defend something I said. Does it work? Who knows?

See, I'm not really feeling put-upon or angry or censored by this, since it's not like I wasn't already self-censoring things about people I knew for a fact were reading this. Though I do feel I should argue charges of naivete. Aside from the afore-mentioned ignorance of Google expertise, I also just assume that others have a similar attention span to mine. I don't read blogs of people I don't know, unless they're crazy funny or a really good writer. And I'm no Sars.

OK, so I was just taking this quiz, mostly as a joke, because I know I don't have a religion, pretty much by choice. Quiz tells me that my belief is Unitarian, which only furthers the argument that Unitarianism isn't really a religion. I guess what I don't understand about Unitarianism is that all it seems to be is a community gathering to talk about faith. And isn't it sad that something like that has to pretend it's a church? It's like the people who have to watch Oprah for book discussions because the people in their lives don't talk about books on a regular basis, or their community has been so corroded that there really is no community anymore.
This was one of the nice things about the long voter lines. Even though I did have my nose stuck in a book (hey, I finally got through the damned thing), there was a definite sense of a community getting together and doing something. And that's getting harder and harder to come by, even in a midwestern small town. Actually, I think it's even worse in small towns, because everyone drives everywhere. I don't have a rapport with the people who wait at the bus stop with me, or the woman on her porch that I pass to buy groceries, etc etc. I miss that.
Speaking of the small town I've found myself in, it's come to my attention that there are people reading this thing aside from my friends who have owned up to reading my ramblings. Please just have the sense to remember that some things are kind of personal, and to not start any rumors based on anything here. Thanks.