TOP 5 BOOKS OF 2025 * Binding Chaos - Heather Marsh * Wonder Boys - Michael Chabon * There Is No Place For Us - Brian Goldstone * On Tyranny-Graphic Edition - Timothy Snyder * The Serviceberry - Robin Wall Kimmerer I gave 5 stars to one work of fiction this year, a novel published in 1995. lol

come for dr. john, stay for neil young’s thanksgiving snowball

on a.i…"this won't stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of god's creation.”—the people’s pope

There’s countless versions of Carrickfergus and debate about where it came from. I like the Peter O’Toole origin story but this melody and structure is much older. He probably picked it up at a sleepy pub somewheres, added a little, and then passed it along like we do with songs.

In search of 21st century FDR

MTV was cool. Long live #dexterromweber

A library worker from my community was taken by immigration officials. My library responded by creating a whistle kit assembly line. We made over 700 in an hour.

What the world needs now is love sweet love and a new tom waits album.

@durbin.senate.gov doesn’t know what time it is, let alone…

Chicago-motherfucker-can-you-speak-it?

“What keeps us going, ultimately, is our love for each other, and our refusal to bow our heads, to accept the verdict, however all-powerful it seems. It’s what ordinary people have to do. You have to love each other. You have to defend each other. You have to fight.” —Mike Davis

I’m pretty much always stoked on libraries but it’s programs like these that get me right in the feels. This is what a community library looks like when it meets the moment.

Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day!

Throw the collapse of Baker & Taylor on the pile with the other bad omens.

The limitations to speech we allow to be imposed on us now will impact our governance as surely as moats and mountains did in the past. -Heather Marsh.

The Birkenhead Drill dates back to the 18th century. In an emergency, save women and children first. Instead, the building’s on fire and we’re all inside. As with everything else, the opposite of what should happen, is happening. At what point do we stop sleeping and take the streets en masse?

“Every person has a right to belong to a society, except in extreme cases as complete shunning can be equivalent to a death sentence.”—Heather Marsh, Binding Chaos Shunning is dehumanizing. Where we draw lines on extreme cases matters quite a bit because even a small dose of shunning is hurtful.

Prepare yourself for an emotional experience!

With Granny’s passing yesterday and what would be my dad’s 71st birthday tomorrow, I’m reflecting on what was and what could have been. I loved these people. Didn’t get to spend nearly as much time with them as I wanted. They were both makers. Granny loved textiles, Dad loved carpentry…and fishing!

A light has gone out.

As a librarian, I just want to say, and I understand the irony of it all…the internet was a bad idea. Now look at some buttons I made at the makerspace.

Hello good people of the United States…a lot of bad news going on and we can point fingers all day…but in the end, let’s come together and improve quality of life for everyone across the board…red states, blue states, rural areas and cities…nobody deserves this chaos and pain. Solidarity forever.

Turn of the century music was great. Lots of good songs, good videos came out around 2000. @talibkweli.bsky.social mos def, and common in top form.

Hope builds through people power, so of course they don’t want us to have renewable energy. Green energy is gaining serious momentum though and we are building toward a world where everyone has what they need to live with dignity, regardless of what our dear oligarchs might want for us.

SLW is galactic guitarlord of the hometapers.

Post a song from the year you turned 12

Stephen Colbert should interview Pope Leo in Gaza

I was pleasantly surprised to hear Geeshie Wiley featured so prominently in Sinners. She’s as mysterious as Robert Johnson, as haunting as Skip James, and her deep cuts are as vibrant today as they were 1930.

Bonne Fete Nationale! Rue Montorgueil, Paris Festival of June 30, 1878 by Claude Monet

Garden The world spins and grows. There is enough to go around. We change together. If we get lucky and make something beautiful… if we see each other and take time to acknowledge our neighbor’s contributions… it will grant us peace in knowing we are not alone. After tears, comes laughter

My intro to Philip Glass was watching weirdos at the Wherehouse perform a moving cover of Knee 5. A few years later he came to the Englert and we sat front row. IC is cool like that—you can see one of the greatest composers of all time and still have enough $ from your service job to eat ‘til payday

If Jesus was born today, he’d be Palestinian.

They used to tell me I was building a dream.

Remake the world modeled off of the best library you’ve ever been to. For me, that’s Iowa City public.

#bunnies & #bostonterrier friends keeping me going.

Are these hobbits!?! I’m tuned in and as present as ever, but we all deserve a timeline cleanse. I think there’s about 10 of these little doods in my backyard. Last week I saw them in a bunch rolling all over each other but didn’t have my phone on me so that was an experience just for me.

Here’s looking at you, NYT. Copaganda by Alec Karakatsanis coming out hard on page 1.

Interesting development across the pond.

The only 7/4 movie to watch is obviously the cult classic, Return of the Living Dead. Stream it for free on Hoopla with your public library card!

Give me your well-rested, your filthy rich, your gilded ones indifferent to breathe free, the curated bloodlines of your privatized beach. Send these, the housed, sheltered to me, I lift my gaslight beside the golden visa door!

The people hoarding our planet’s resources are the poorest of all. Poor in spirit. Poor in empathy. Poor in imagination. Poor in compassion. Poor in love. Poor in solidarity. Poor in community. Poor in resilience. Poor in joy. Poor in authenticity. Poor in culture. Poor in trust. Poor in purpose…etc

Good news is, it’s very easy to distinguish yourself from the ghouls.

Starting my day out seeing this dood every morning has been good for my mental health.

There’s mostly merchants and moneychangers in the temple.