libraries are for everyone and i mean *everyone* 📚

every librarian reading this and thinking about all the signage people just walk by

Possum prints after our last dusting of snow.

Remembering that I brought a slice of cheesecake with me while at work on a Saturday is the best thing that’s happened this week, except maybe for the initial buying of the cheesecake

Patron today kept pronouncing “archive” as “are-chive,” like the early-spring perennial. Are chives, or are chives not? Hmm. I perhaps need more sleep. Or more chives.

Me, looking at an incunable on Instagram: I wish we had more older books at work Alex: Well good news for you, they’re getting older all the time

you know where I never hear ads for ICE? on my hard drive! on my cool local radio station! on the CD drive in my 13-year-old car! quitting Spotify feels great

Rocking my new @nightvaleradio.bsky.social shirt from @topa.to! It’s comfy, it’s creepy, it’s Night Vale, it’s appropriate for work. Perfection.

i spent a little while going through the AIDS quilt and picked out a few panels that stuck out to me for one reason or another. may the memories of all these beautiful, far too young souls be a blessing.

Everything is on fire but I got to talk with a patron today about why most AI is sh*t, and they actually seemed to take it to heart. So there’s that.

The Mass Senate passed "An Act Regarding Free Expression," which protects the right to access books in MA and safeguards creators, librarians, educators, and book professionals. The bill is now moving to the House! Visit www.massfreedomtoread.org/act and follow the steps there to show your support!

My favorite bookstore is about to level up and buy their building!!! 🤩 Go forth, and help them by buying books!

Your Cherokee words for today. The top word is English followed by how it is written in the Cherokee language followed by how it is spelled in English then how to pronounce it phonetically. Tsawasi (jhawahsee) and Tsagasi (jhagahsee) are the names of two small fairies, who are mischievous enough,

I really wish we'd stop calling them climate "skeptics" or "vaccine skeptics", if you jump off a cliff we don't call you a "gravity skeptic"

This pediatrician in Massachusetts is not holding back

I’m teaching my very first “intro to bookbinding” workshop today and I am STRESSING. Send cat photos! Send chocolate! 😭 (I did this to myself and it will be fine)

Solange Knowles’ Saint Heron has launched a free digital archival library of literature by Black and brown authors, poets, and artists. Readers can borrow rare and out-of-print books for up to 45 days

If you know what time someone starts their shift, maybe consider not just waiting for them at their work and ambushing them right as they come on. It’s a bit creepy and makes them feel super rushed right off the bat. If it’s urgent, work with someone else. If it’s not, wait 15 mins or make an appt.

Some amazing books here. Holidays approaching. Just sayin'.

“Meaningful decay” and “wallow creatively” are two of my favorite phrases to keep on post-its by my desk.

I don't know about the rest of my eldritch millennials but "little treats" have been holding us together for our entire adult lives and if we lose even that, I will become pennywise the clown and haunt the sewers of DC, yanking GOP interns into the storm drain to sprinkle on my avocado toast.

I'm coming as its contemporary upstart cousin: a plausible-looking citation dreamt up by GenAI that a librarian loses hours trying to trace.

I *know* that SQL is “sequel” and not “squirrel,” and yet every single time I see it, my brain goes SQUIRREL!

Reading can be such a wonderful generative thing when you let go of any ideas about what you should read or what you should want to read, and go instead to what draws your interest and maybe even more so, your joy

I adore book people. I wanted an article I could not locate RE women in rare books (404 links), so I emailed the author and politely asked if they’d share it with me. They did; asked some clarifying q’s RE my interest; and sent a handful of other articles and resources they thought would help. ❤️

BREAKING: A court ordered the Department of Defense to stop censoring educational materials discussing race and gender in schools on military bases. Books removed from the schools must be returned to the shelves immediately.

Ad for a local market from 1889. I have so many questions.

I just misread “The Poky Little Puppy” as “The Poxy Little Puppy.” Could be a fun rewrite, I guess?

Guy asked me today how I was doing, and I said I had a nasty headache. He explained for several minutes how that isn’t a real problem, *he* has real problems, etcetc. When he was done I said “you know, it’s weird…after all that, I STILL have a headache.” He stopped talking to me 🥳

I’m so grateful to have friends who say my name in spaces of opportunity. ❤️

If you expect to be raptured next week, please be courteous and move your car out of street parking in advance

Reminder that September is National library card month, so you should totally go get a library card! Yes, they have books, but many also have dvds, cds, video games, game systems, hot spots, streaming services, ebooks, audio books, park passes, museum passes, and more! Maybe it's time for a visit!

I’m fond of Kanopy, via my local & state libraries.

if u see this quote with the energy u bring to blue sky

It seems like we could all use some cuteness, so here are Cole (orange) and Maggie (calico).

Scheduled my Covid and flu boosters; very glad to be living somewhere I can still access vaccinations.

On gabapentin for a pinched nerve. I’m starting to feel like the woman in The Yellow Wallpaper; everything is a little weird and not quite real. I think I maybe just need to brave the pinched nerve and stop the gabapentin.

Occasional reminder that libraries, museums, archives & historical societies cannot tell you what your antique or collectible is worth, just like they cannot give you legal or medical advice.

Imagine a world where every person has access to the book they need when they need it, regardless of where they live or what they can afford. What do we need to do to get to that world? We're not just fighting to protect what we have now, we're also fighting for a better future.

Dolly Parton has sent my daughter a new book every month for years as she does for thousands of children. She help fund the development of the Covid vaccine. She’s not a billionaire. I think as non wealthy people it’s hard to even imagine how much billionaires *could* be doing with their money.

The early closure of the House of Representatives leaves the future of the only agency dedicated to public libraries in question. What this means and what you can do right now: bookriot.com/imls-funding...

When you tell someone you’re overstimulated and they IMMEDIATELY start on a chatter-binge at you, you’re allowed to scream, right? Just wordless shrieking?

I mixed up some PVA/methylcellulose (literally called “mix”) for bookbinding at work today, and the number of people who thought it was yogurt and said it “looked tasty” has me worried, so…

I referred to myself as an awkward socialist today, by which I MEANT that I am awkward at socializing. But honestly, close enough.

Needed this reminder today.

If you’re looking for a way to help, this links to Friends of the Everglades who are trying to fund a lawsuit against the concentration camp Trump has set up in Florida. www.everglades.org/alligator-al...

This bill hasn't passed. The only thing that changes is you call your house representative rather then your Senate Rep! 5calls.org/issue/hr1-on...

We know there is just too much going on, but wanted to make sure that everyone who loves Kathryn Davis knows there's a chance to share that love our our symposium with @kellylink.bsky.social Link below for more info & to submit an essay!

What is common knowledge in your field, but shocks outsiders? White cotton gloves are not for use with paper-based books. We use them for some photographs and artifacts, but for handling “regular” rare books the professional standard has been clean, dry hands for decades.