Go read a banned book!

This is banned book week, and as a recent graduate of library school, I would be remiss if I didn't point it out, so go read something banned. If you need help finding a book, here is the American Library Association information page. This could be as easy as re-reading The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Where's Waldo, or Harry Potter, but try to stretch yourself a bit. I have to admit that I have only read about 24 of the 100 most banned books for 1990-2000 on the ALA list. I'm pretty sure that there are a number of books I have read that would be banned, if more people knew about them...

Remember, if you do not use your rights, they are likely to disappear!

We need more voices like this

The rhetoric surrounding climate change is far too often unhelpful and unproductive. We are all going to be affected by it, whether you believe humans have caused it or not. This editorial by Vaclav Havel in The New York Times is the sort of moderate, reasoned voice that we need to hear more of in the debates and attempts to find solutions.

Apple Fest!

On Saturday, we took a trip to the Hilton Apple Fest! Apples are a big deal here, and the local paper said that 70,000 people were expected over the two days of the festival. As you can see from the pictures, the weather was perfect - sunny, mid-70s. And I don't know about 70,000, but there were a LOT of people there - we kept almost getting trampled by mothers pushing 4-wheel drive strollers. When we arrived, we were able to get a parking spot without too much trouble; when we left, the line of cars heading into town was probably 1/2 a mile long, and we were at the very end of that - who knows how far it went the other direction.

There was a vintage car show, arts and crafts for sale, and food, lots and lots of food. There were apple pies, fried dough with apple syrup (this was sort of like a large donut, but not in a circle - kind of a dough turd really, but tasty looking), apple sausages, apple fritters, apple crisp, apple cider, and fried apple slices. That is what we settled on, and boy were they good! I am not certain that they were actual apple slices, or if they were grated apple formed into slices, but it doesn't really matter. They were hot, and fried, and covered in powdered sugar and cinnamon. Mmm...

The crafts leaned heavily on the side of harvest kitsch - scarecrows, pumpkins, corn stalks, witches - that sort of thing. The bird houses and thermometers painted in the colors of local sports teams also appeared to be popular. There was one booth with really neat beeswax Christmas ornaments. Watch out if you got in the way of a local matron who had her eye on one of the booths... The only thing that tempted me were a couple of hand carved rolling pins made of cherry and kona woods, respectively. Alas, I had not brought the checkbook, so I had to pass. We also passed on the apple fishing booth. Apparently, bobbing for apples is out - not hygienic I guess - so the kids got to fish for the apples using a big net/scoop thing. Too easy! I think it would more fun if they had to use a real fly rod or something. All in all, it was a fun fall afternoon diversion.