Finding the Fun in Dysfunction

The first time I ever heard of Jeannette Walls was this summer when we committed to this years Baltimore Speakers Series. She was the October 30^th speaker, which ended up being postponed until last night because of Frankenstorm. Mama Wordbones had never heard of her either

Obviously we didn't buy the subscription series because of Jeannette Walls.

Two weeks before her appearance, I found myself between books. Her bio in the program said that her book “The Glass Castle” had been a New York Times best-seller for over four years so I figured I'd check it out. I mean, it had to be good, right?

Those To2C readers who've already read this book know the answer to that. I couldn't put it down. I finished the book in less than ten days.

The Glass Castle is Jeannette Walls real life memoir of an absurdly chaotic childhood with absurdly dysfunctional parents. That alone wouldn't necessarily distinguish this book from thousands of others with similar themes but the way Jeannette spins her tale with humor, grace, grit, and hope is masterful.

In other words, I liked the book, a lot. Last night I had the opportunity to hear her talk about her life, then and now. She was terrific. Chalk up another reason I've come to love the Baltimore Speaker Series.

The next writer in the series is Peter Warren. Singer on January 15^th.  Peter is described as a “leading expert on changes in 21^st century warfare." I've started reading his “Wired for War” but I have to admit, it’s a lot slower going than The Glass Castle.

Brain Food

Instead of watching the debate Tuesday night we headed into Baltimore for the first lecture in the Baltimore Speaker Series. I've often described these evenings as brain food. It’s not as if we escaped an evening of politics either, the featured speaker was Bill Clinton.

It is not all that uncommon for protesters to show up at some of these lectures. A few years ago when we went to hear Pervez Musharraf, a sizable group of protesters in the park across the street from the Meyerhoff greeted attendees. Tuesday night a handful of protesters were on hand for the 42^nd presidents appearance but their cause was much more benign. The signs they held read “Don’t Blame Me, I Voted for Hillary.”

Even if you don’t agree with the mans politics or find his presidential behavior to be abhorrent, you probably would have enjoyed his lecture. He spoke at length about the work of his foundation but also offered his perspective on current affairs, um, I mean events.

As reported in this story by John Fritze in The Sun, the former president told the audience “he is confident Washington will work quickly through the nation's looming fiscal crisis after the election despite predictions that partisanship will continue to leave the federal government gridlocked next year.”

It’s easy to forget that before the impeachment mess he actually enjoyed a pretty good relationship with Congress, much better than Obama has. That being said, he was hopeful that things would soon improve.

“He reiterated calls for Congress to adopt a 10-year budget plan front-loaded with new spending to boost the economy that would then begin to impose cuts to reduce the nation's debt in the out-years. He said the Nov. 6 election would be a defining event that would force Republicans and Democrats to work more cooperatively.

"I think you'll be surprised after this election," he said.”

Next up in the speaker series is Jeanette Walls, author of The Glass Castle. I doubt there will be any protesters for her but we’ll still enjoy another healthy serving of brain food.

Phantom Feature

One of the reasons I choose the Nook for an e-reader was the ability to share my digital books with others. Prior to joining the ranks of digital readers I freely borrowed and lent books to friends and family. The Nook is the only digital reader I know of that at least allows you to share your digital books with other Nook owners. Granted, that’s a significantly smaller universe than printed books but I figured it was better than nothing.

Or was it?

Last month, Jessie Newburn asked if she could borrow Steve Jobs biography that I had just finished. Jessie is a member of that small Nook universe with her Nook Simple Touch. I was anxious to see how the Nook digital lending worked so I immediately agreed. We met at Lakeside Coffee with our Nooks to make the switch.

We couldn’t figure it out. Neither of us could find a command nor prompt to get my book to her Nook. Put another way, there'd be no Nookie for us.

Ahem.

Yesterday I dropped by the Nook support desk at the Barnes & Noble store in Ellicott City to see if I was doing something wrong. “The lending feature is not available for all books,” the tech told me. “The authors and publishers decide whether they want to make a book available to lend. With most of the more popular titles they haven’t allowed it.”

The digital book lending universe is now even smaller than I thought. 

Keeping It Real

A commenter to this post wrote, that after a recent visit to the home of George Washington, he was “reminded of the remarkable character of the people in positions of public trust and authority at the time which  set the standard of how public officials and their appointees were, and still are, expected to conduct their official duties.”

It has become common practice among certain activists to nostalgically reach back to the days of our founding fathers and compare them with contemporary politicians. They'll often write and  speak in revered tones of the wisdom and character of Washington, war hero and first president, Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, and Madison, author of the Constitution.

In doing so, they tend to gloss over the fact that these three white guys were humans, not saints. For example, it is important to remember that all three of these men held other humans in bondage while simultaneously championing the cause of liberty and equality.

I just completed Ron Chernow’s 904 page biography of George Washington, “Washington. A Life.” I am fan of Chernow’s work, having previously read his biographies of J.P. Morgan, John D.Rockefeller, and Alexander Hamilton. The author painstakingly researches his subjects leaving no stone unturned.

This is actually the second biography of George Washington that I’ve read. From “His Excellency” by Joseph Ellis I first learned that Washington was quite the land speculator, buying up thousands of acres of land west of the Allegheny Mountains in the path of the new nations growth. What I further discovered after reading Chernow’s book was that Washington also profited on what today would likely be considered insider information. While president, he took a personal interest in the layout and development of the new capital city and purchased a few choice parcels of land for his own account. That hardly “set the standard” for conduct in office. If a public official tried to pull that off today they’d be run out of office in a New York minute.

Don’t misunderstand me. George Washington served our country selflessly, both as a warrior and a politician. At the same we do a disservice to history by overlooking the things that made him human. While he did free his slaves in his will, waiting until he died meant that he was able to avoid dealing with the social and political consequences of his actions. That makes him human and a bit flawed, just like the rest of us.

Where Did the Weekend Go?

“Where did the weekend go,” I thought to myself as I cleaned up after Sunday dinner. Here it was the night before another work week and it felt like another weekend had flown by.

That’s not to say I didn’t have fun. Friday was the last day of school and Peanuts last day of middle school. Unlike some private schools, Ellicott Mills did not have an elaborate eighth grade graduation ceremony. They had a formal dance on Wednesday and a nice little assembly on the last day but no caps and gowns scene. I think that’s a little too much, for eighth grade anyway.

We marked the occasion beginning with lunch outside at Johnny’s Main Street Bistro in Ellicott City and later with one of her one of her favorite meals enjoyed under the stars at home. In between we launched our summer reading project while sitting in the white rocking chairs on the screened in porch.

Saturday night Mama Wordbones and I narrowed our outside dining choices down to Eggspectation and Rams Head Tavern in Savage Mill. We concluded that the food quality was about the same at both places but Rams Head won out on ambiance. The outside deck at the old mill overlooking the river won out over the best storm water management view in Columbia.  

After breakfast this morning Peanut and I set off to try and find nectarines, one of her favorite fruits. I realize that it is too early for loco nectarines but with all of these farmers markets going on around here, I figured somebody would have nectarines. We started with the Second Sunday Market in Ellicott City but it was fruitless. We then headed over to Catonsville where the market held more offerings but nary a nectarine. On a whim we decided to check out the Green Valley Market in Elkridge and was there that we found our nectarines. This grocery store has the warm feel of a real community market as opposed to the bigger chain grocers.

After we returned home, unprompted, Peanut suggested that we spend a little time reading together. I asked her what she thought of Game of Thrones so far.

“Awesome,” was her response.

Sigh. So far so good.

I don’t know exactly where the weekend went but the journey along the way was awesome.

Summer Reading Project

I just downloaded Game of Thrones Book One on to my Nook. After trying out the free sample last night I still wasn’t certain it would make the cut. Today however, as I drove to pick Peanut up from her last day of middle school, it occurred to me that this just might be my best stealth summer study opportunity. Peanut and I will read the book together, I decided, preferably at the same time.

Left to her own devices, she would be just as happy lounging around and playing on her computer all summer long. That of course is not an option when she enters the dreaded sphere of my parental control. We do stuff, all kinds of stuff.  She often tells me I'm "annoying."

A few weeks ago, while having dinner, I asked her if she’d ever heard of “Game of Thrones.”

“I’ve heard the kids at school talk about it,” she said, “but I haven’t seen it.”

We discussed the fact that it probably isn’t appropriate for her age but accepted the fact that she’s already been exposed to as much already. Twilight and New Moon are not our parent’s vampire stories, if you catch my drift.

“It has dragons in it,” I told her. I knew she would rise to this bait. She loves dragons. Wait until she gets a load of the Calisi.

Anyway, we watched the first episode of the first season on my iPad that night and that set the hook in. This afternoon I decided to exploit the initiative. I purchased a paperback version of the book for her and we sat outside in the screened in room with cool drinks and jumped right in. We won’t watch any more episodes’ together until we’ve caught up to that point in the book.

We’ll see how this goes.

Summer Book List(s)

Back in my primary school days I remember being given a summer reading list on the last day of school. Back then spending any of those precious lazy days of summer with my nose in book was very low on my to-do list. It was only through parental dictates that the list was cracked at all.

Nowadays reading a good book is one of my favorite summer pastimes and I find myself seeking out summer reading lists, particularly now that I find myself between books. Having just finished and thoroughly enjoying the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson, I’m hoping to find something that will keep me similarly engaged. The problem is that there are almost too many choices. I’ve poured through the NY Times Book Review, The Washington Post Style Section and the HoCo Library website. I’ve downloaded samples of books on my Nook and taken them for test run, including Fifty Shades of Grey. Yesterday I checked out what some national politicos are reading in this list in The Washington Post; Barbara Mikulski is reading Cleopatra, Chris Matthews is reading “They Eat Puppies Don’t They” and Virginia Guv, Robert McDonnell is reading one of the books on my short list, "Washington:A Life.” I’m a little partial to biographies too. The guv and I apparently share that.

The good news is that my list is finally narrowing and I’ll likely make my first summer reading pick today or tomorrow.

The Post also had an article by Michael Rosenwald about e-readers and summer reading pointing out that “sand and electronics are not best friends.”

“I shouldn’t have to point this out, but I will: You might be able to continue reading from a printed book that accidentally takes a dip in the ocean, but a waterlogged e-reader is as unusable as an empty tube of suntan oil.”

What are you reading this summer?

Writing Good

I stumbled across this neat little app yesterday that measures how well you write by using the Flesch-Kincaid system. All you need do is provide a writing sample and it will tell you what grade level is needed to comprehend your writing and how easy it is to read the stuff you write.

I was curious to see how some of our HoCo loco writers fare with this test. According to this chart from Readability Formulas, the lower the score the more difficult the read. This article by Sara Toth in Explore Howard earned a score of 33 (“Difficult’) at a 14th grade level while a blog post by 53 Beers on Tap on the same subject rated a 55 (“Fairly Difficult”). Both Marshmallow Man and I are writing blog posts at a 9^th and 10^th grade level respectively. My sample post also rated Fairly Difficult at 52. Tom Coale and Sara Toths writing is more college level stuff. This post by Tom was rated at a 13^th grade level with a readability score of 39 (Difficult).

Nook News

I have taken to my e-reader like a duck to water. I am now in the middle of my third book (Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson) on my Nook Color tablet and I actually think I’m reading faster.

The Nook is the fourth or fifth player in e-reader market share so making a decision to buy one includes a calculation of the likelihood of Nook becoming another Betamax and obsolete before its time.

As David Poque, the personal tech columnist for The New York Times pointed out in this column, “when you buy an e-reader, you’re committing to that one company’s catalog of books forever, because their book formats are mutually incompatible.”

“You can’t read a Kindle book on a Nook, or a Nook book on a Sony Reader, or a Sony book on an iPad. Sure, you can read Nook and Kindle books on an iPad, but when you buy an actual Nook or Kindle, you’ve just married its company forever. If you ever want to change brands, you have to give up all the books you’ve ever bought.”

On the positive side, Barnes & Noble, the developer of the Nook has a pretty deep book shelf and buying a book on their device is almost too easy. I can see how this could get out of hand like my iTunes addiction. 

If I had it to do over I wouldn’t get the Nook Color tablet again though. I don’t need an e-reader that can also play movies and surf the web. I have an iPad for the heavy stuff like that. The lighter weight dedicated e-reader is the way to go. You can read a regular book anywhere, standing in a line, lying in a hammock, or sitting on the can. An e-reader should be no different and in all those situations lighter is certainly better. Trying standing while holding an iPad, and reading a book. You’ll soon see what I mean. An e-reader should be comfortable to hold in one hand.

If I was in the market for an e-reader today I’d get the new Nook SimpleTouch with GlowLight. It’s less than seven ounces and David Poque thinks there is “no better E Ink model than this new glowing Nook. For the first time in e-reader history, you can have spectacular, crisp pages to read in any light, from beach sunshine to sleeping-spouse darkness.”

As for the survivability question, yesterday Microsoft announced that it was investing $300 million in Barnes and Nobles tablet and e-reader business in return for a share of the e-reader action, That should help keep the Nook around for at least little longer anyway. 

A Book is a Book is a Book….

“Aren’t you packing your NooK” Mama Wordbones asked as we got ready for our recent trip. She had given me the Nook for Christmas.

I told her I had just started reading what some now refer to as a “tree” book. My sister Pat sent me “Matterhorn” by Karl Marlantes for my birthday at the end of January. When it arrived I was already about midway through “The Big Short,” by Michael Lewis, my very first eBook. It's a tale about a few investors who figured out the absurdity of sub-prime mortgage underwriting and made a boatload betting against conventional wisdom.

I put Matterhorn on deck until around mid February. It’s a big book, 566 pages. By the time we were ready to leave for Curacao, I was only about a third of the way through.

And so I left my shiny new eReader back home while tree book made the trip. I can’t tell you what it is like to read an eBook on the beach, by the pool, and on the plane. I did enjoy a moment of smugness with old tree book when passengers were instructed to turn off their electronic devices. It was a guilty pleasure though. There but for the grace of literary timing I would have been one of them.

Then there’s the security thing. I thought nothing of leaving tree book on a beach lounge whilst I wandered off for a beer. I doubt I’d feel as cavalier about leaving my Nook lying about. I’d probably take it everywhere with me.

Just like this guy.

Anyway, I wrapped up Matterhorn on the flight home. It was the best book I’ve read about the Vietnam war since reading “A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam,” by Neil Sheehan. If you have an interest in that conflict I highly recommend both of these.

Ignoring the two tree books awaiting on my night stand, I instead find myself trolling the Nook bookstore for my next read. The bottom line is that reading a book on an eReader is just better, in most situations. Reading a book on my Nook is a treat for my eyes. The lighting is always perfect, just right for me and I never lose my place. I flew through The Big Short, flipping pages with my finger, never having them flap back.

I’ll still read tree books of course. A book is a book is a book after all. There are two of them sitting next to my bed that will beckon me back to the good old days.

It could be awhile though. I downloaded a free sample of “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” by Stieg Larssen. It’s the first 76 pages of the book. I’m on page fifty something. I feel the hook gently sinking in.

From One List to Another

I didn’t waste any time removing my name from the HoCo library waiting list for Nooks. After receiving my very own e-reader for Christmas, my wait for the e-book experience was finally over.

Well sort of anyway. I still haven’t actually read a book on my new Nook yet. Just before Christmas, my sister loaned me “Unbroken” in regular old hardback book form. I’m just finishing it now. My next book will be my first e-book but its not likely to come from the library. As Christian Davenport reports in this story in The Washington Post borrowing an e-book from the library “is often far from the on-demand satisfaction people have come to expect from their laptops, tablets and smartphones.”

“Want to take out the new John Grisham? Get in line. As of Friday morning, 288 people were ahead of you in the Fairfax County Public Library system, waiting for one of 43 copies. You’d be the 268th person waiting for “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” with 47 copies. And the Steve Jobs biography? Forget it. The publisher, Simon & Schuster, doesn’t make any of its digital titles available to libraries.”

Book publshers are experiencing the same angst that racked the music industry when computers made sharing music files easy.

“In November, when it announced that it was withholding its new e-books from libraries, Penguin said it has “always placed a high value on the role that libraries can play in connecting our authors with our readers. However, due to new concerns about the security of our digital editions, we find it necessary to delay the availability of our new titles in the digital format while we resolve these concerns with our business partners.”

No doubt this will be resolved over time but, for now at least, public library e-book lending has to seen as a work in progress.

Number 172 Moves Up

Yesterday I went on the HoCo library website and removed my name from the waiting list for a Nook. I had moved all the up to 171 on the list after starting at 569 last August. As it turns out, Mama Wordbones came through for me first, giving me a Nook Tablet for Christmas. As I took my name off the list I wondered how many others in HoCo were doing the same thing. Sales of eReaders this year were expected to be three times that of a year ago. Who knows, maybe number 172 took their name off the list yesterday too.

So far my personal eReader experience is a bit mixed. Unlike some well known tech products, my out of the box Nook experience was not good. A software glitch required me to return to the store yesterday to have the factory settings reset before I could use the thing. Still, it wasn’t a big issue and was easily remedied by the tech in the store. I suppose that it’s just the kind of thing that happens when you rush a product out the door.

Even though it is now fully functional, it will still be awhile before I’m likely to read a book on it. When I visited my sister over Thanksgiving, she sent me home with "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand in what Beth Tribe calls a “tree book.” Since I was still finishing "Top Secret America" by Dana Priest and William Arkin at the time, Unbroken got put aside until now.  I’m not going to buy an eBook until I finish this tree book.

On the other hand, I figured could at least borrow an eBook from the library in the meantime just to test it out. I soon discovered that the only available library eBooks that I found even remotely interesting were all unavailable. 

It appears I’ve simply moved from one library waiting list to another…

It’s Miller Time

Only in HoCo would five hundred people stand in the cold for a new library opening. Even Congressman Elijah Cummings commented on the surprisingly large turnout. The unexpected Saturday morning traffic on Frederick Road almost caused him to miss the ceremony.

I was one of those in the crowd. I had attended the groundbreaking for this building back in February of 2010 and so I naturally wanted be there when it opened. Mama Wordbones on the other hand opted to stay in bed on this overcast cold morning. She said she’d join me at the library after the opening stuff was over. As it turned out, there were so many people crowding inside at 10AM that I called her and told her not to come. We decided to take a walk around Centennial Lake instead and come back later when the crowds had thinned out a little.

The ceremony was nice though. A couple of students from Mt. Hebron High School played holiday music to warm the crowd up and the Boy Scouts presented the colors and led everyone in the pledge of allegiance. I did notice that during the pledge, Delegate Frank Turner did not remove his hat though he didn't seem to have a problem taking his hat off for the photo op ribbon cutting. I’m sorry but I’m old school when it comes to this. He should know better.

Anyway, after our lake walk we decided to drop by the annual holiday train garden at the Ellicott City Volunteer Fire Department. Visiting a train garden during the Christmas holiday has been a tradition for me as far back as I can remember and the garden in the firehouse on Montgomery Road is one of the best. The layout changes every year too so it never gets old. 

After that we finally made our way over the new Miller Branch library. At one o’clock it was still busy but by this time the crowds were much more manageable. It is really a nice facility. My favorite area is the periodicals section on the second floor. I was tempted to plop down on one of the chairs and read a magazine or two. Next time.

On our way out we ran into Valerie Gross in the lobby who was still beaming like a proud new parent. I asked her what was to become of the old library next door. The plan is for that building to house the library administrative offices which are currently split between the Central Branch and the East Columbia Branch. Doing this would also free up more program space in those two heavily used buildings.

E-Readers 101

Last night the HoCo library hosted a seminar about everything you want to know about e-readers. As it turns out there’s a lot to know including formats, screen resolutions and weight. For instance, up until last night I was seriously considering buying an iPad that would also serve as my e-reader but last night changed my thinking. After comparing the heft of the iPad to the milieu of available e-readers, I’ve now concluded that might not be such a good idea.

It’s like the difference between reading a big book like Hero versus a short novel like The Art of Racing in the Rain. The short novel is much easier to hold when you are reclining. I read a lot while reclining.

Before I go any further, I should note that the e-reader seminar was conducted by Beth Tribe, the Information Technology Instructor and Specialist with the library (she has a blog too!). She was excellent. In addition to giving a thorough overview of the pros and cons of  the various readers on the market and those about to come on the market, she also had most of the readers with her and passed them around. I got to mess around with a Kobo (the lightest), a Pandigital, a Nook, Nook Simple Touch and Nook Color, Sony, iPad and Kindle.

Beth also pointed out that since I owned a smart phone I already had an e-reader. I knew that but I find the phone to be just a little too small for reading a novel. It’s fine for reading newspaper articles while waiting in line but not for the serious commitment of a book.

So where did I end up after the class?

For me, it looks like the Nook Tablet would be the best fit, which coincidentally became available in stores today just in case Santa is reading this. Though it isn’t as light as the Kobo it is a couple of ounces lighter than an a iPad and features an Android operating system.

And speaking of the Art of Racing in the Rain, while working on this post I ran across this video promotion for the book. It still ranks as one of my favorite reads.

BAM!

Tales of Two Cities netizen Erik DeVito sent me a note yesterday about the opening of Books A Million in Columbia. It was only two months ago that the company won approval from the bankruptcy court to take over the former Borders space in the Columbia Crossing Shopping Center.

BAM moves fast.

Actually, as the “pardon our progress” sign on the front door suggests, the new bookstore isn’t quite ready for primetime. I couldn’t even get a cup of coffee in the rechristened Joe Muggs Café though an employee told me it should be open by the end of the week.

Book lovers familiar with the old Borders will find the new store easy to navigate. The café is in the same place as are the registers and music section. This is probably why they were able to reopen so fast. The changes that they’ve made to the store are relatively minor.

One thing that did strike me was a display (still being put together) for Barnes & Nobles e-book e-reader, The Nook. According to this story by Robert Nelson in gadgetell, this deal was announced a year ago.

“In a slightly surprising move, Books-A-Million has announced that they have begun selling the Barnes & Noble NOOKcolor ebook reader. And when we say slightly strange, that is only because while customers will be able to purchase and read BAM! eBooks on the device—they may not be as easy to purchase and get on the device as say—Barnes & Noble ebooks. Sounds like a risky move for Books-A-Million, but then again maybe any customer is better than none.”

Though I swore I wouldn’t buy any more hardcover books I made an exception today and help support HoCo’s newest bookstore. Dana Priest has written a book based on her Top Secret America series in The Washington Post and she told me she’d sign a copy if I sent her one. That’s not so easy to do with an e-book.

HoCo Library by the Numbers

The HoCo library system has the highest number of items borrowed per capita than any other system in the state. According to their latest annual report, of the 6,971,086 items borrowed over the past year, 40% were fiction, 38% non-fiction, 19% non-print (presumably videos and such), and 3% “e-resources.”

I suspect that e-resource number to climb next year. The library’s annual report also reports that virtual visits outnumbered physical visits by almost two to one.

Almost everyone in HoCo has a library card too. The system currently has 262,302 cardholders. According to 2010 census, the population of HoCo is 287,085 which indicates to me that the library likely touches more HoCo citizens than any other loco government service, including the school system.

The annual operating budget of just over $18 million is 84% funded by the county, 12% from the State and various grants and 4% from library generated revenue, which presumably includes those late fees I always end up paying.

Three Things for Tuesday

The neighborhood I live in now is one of those neighborhoods that gets absolutely jammed on Halloween. For about two hours last night, the streets were overrun with laughter and squeals. It was wonderful.

Admittedly I haven’t always felt this way. I can even recall years where I tried to ignore the holiday by riding out the evening in a loco watering hole, preferably one that wasn’t festooned with ghoulish foolishness.

I think becoming a parent changed that for me. The excitement of my kid for this night of home hopping and candy harvesting is infectious. 

It’s always interesting when a loco blog reader decides to become a blog writer as well. It seems that by reading the blogs they are able to find their own voice. I think that is the case with Julia McCready. Julia has been a regular and frequent commenter of HoCo loco blogs and now she has started her own, Village Green/ Town Squared. As someone who serves on her village board, she brings a studied and well written perspective to Columbia community issues. Welcome.

My sister is also a regular reader and commenter of Tales of Two Cities. Though she now lives in Baltimore, she grew up in Columbia and graduated from Glenelg back before Columbia even had a high school. In the late sixties and early seventies and they shipped all the Columbia kids out west because that was the only HoCo high that had excess capacity.

Anyway…

Kelly has recently completed a children's story about dogs. Her friend David Isreal even wrote a song to go with it. 

Nice job sis!

Miller Branch to Close October 1st

The Miller Branch of the HoCo Public Library system in Ellicott City will close on October 1^st to begin their transition to the new building next door. For at least a month, Miller branch patrons will have to take their library business elsewhere. The new building is not slated to be complete until December. A sign in the Miller branch lobby gave no specific date for the opening.

The HoCo Metro Connection

When Tara Boyle asked me last week to be a “Door to Door” guest on Metro Connection I readily agreed. Tara, the managing producer of Metro Connection, told me that they had a late cancellation with another neighborhood and she was hoping I could fill in for Ellicott City.

After agreeing I had a brief moment of doubt as to whether I was actually qualified to speak for EC. Columbia is really my hometown. I have only been a homeowner in Ellicott City for six years so before the taping I retrieved my copy of “Ellicott City” by Janet Kusterer and Victoria Goeller for a little refresher on the old mill town.

I think it came off okay though I look a little awkward in the picture she used. It looks like I'm holding my hand to keep from slapping myself.

Tara is also a HoCo loco. She lives in the Columbia with her husband John who formerly authored the blog “Tell Your Neighbors.”

Number 569

Now that I’ve made the decision to join the eBook revolution I need to determine which eReader best suits me. To that end I decided to take advantage of the HoCo Libraries nook program in order to give that format a test run.

“You realize our nooks are the first version,” the helpful librarian informed me. “The newer versions have color."

“No matter,” I told her. “Go ahead and sign me up. I presume there is a waiting list.”

“Indeed there is,” she replied and then added, almost apologetically, “You are number 569.”

Wow! I figured the program was popular but I didn’t realize it was THAT popular. Still, I’m in no big hurry. In the meantime, since I’ve vowed to no longer buy printed books, I’m rediscovering borrowing books.  I had forgotten how much fun that can be, just browsing the racks, looking for something interesting.

I just finished “Stealing the General” by Russell Bonds and am now knee deep in “1861: The Civil War Awakening” by Adam Goodheart”

I'm a little stuck in the Civil War genre right now. I suppose its that sesquicentennial thing.