Open-minded.
We used to play a game when I was younger where you write your name and the name of your secret (or not-so-secret) crush on a piece of paper. Your cross out the letters that the two names have in common, and then calculate your relationship status based on the remaining number of letters in each name. The end results were easily manipulated so that it would come out however you wanted by using a person's full name, middle name, nickname.....whatever worked. The goal was to have it end up with the two of you walking hand and hand into the sunset together, and living happily ever after.
To go with yesterday's symbol of hope, here's one for faith. I dedicate the photos to two of my great aunties. My grandfather was one of 15 children -- let's see if I can name them all: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Gerome, Ashley, Ruth, Sally, Alice, Mary, Sylvia, Faith, Hope, and Charity.
These are books from the library's genealogical collection, dating back 100 years. I love that they are beautiful, and that they carry the symbol of hope.
Pilgrims go better with Coke.
This is for my daughter's friend Fallon, because it was her idea. Thanks, Miss Fallon!
For the last day of self-portrait week, here is a view of my office at the library from an antique mirror. To read a quick story about random acts of photography and my office, read this post on my other blog. If you follow the link in the story to flickr, you'll see I had my 15 minutes of fame.
"Many hands make light work" was one of my grandmother's favorite sayings. Of course it was meant to be a rallying cry for everyone to pitch in and help with the dishes, or shell some freshly picked peas, or polish the silver. Here's my take on the many hands theme, all of them mine. Click on the picture to view large.
After reading the post about our vintage toy the other day, friend and superboy Dan made us a mallet so that we can play with our toy the way it was meant to be played with. How awesome is that?
PS: You can see more photos of Gingham Bear & Iron Giant here.
My favorite road sign ever. It appeals to the inner 6-year-old in me.
This is a photo of my father, which I just edited for a project we're doing for National Library Week, held in April each year. I'm creating a series of READ photos fashioned after the National Library week posters that feature celebrities reading their favorite books. If you've never seen these posters, you can check them out on the American Library Association website.
I'm two weeks into this project, and I thought it was time to say hello and tell you a few things about myself. 
Hannah made me take a picture of this number on the front of the Goodwill store, and when I asked why she told me to go home and look it up. So I did. You learn something new every day!
I was cleaning out a cupboard at the library last month, and found an old broken camera with a roll of film still inside. The roll of film sat in my car until yesterday, when I took it to be developed. Definitely 1980s-1990s vintage, with pictures of a family of girls and their parents, making funny faces, sleeping, and playing recorders. I liked this little ghost-of-Halloween-past the best. Are those some kind of pre-Uggs she's wearing? Also, her little note is pinned to her as if by becoming a ghost she's also somehow lost her voice.
I love vintage toys -- this one sits on the hearth in the living room. It's got a funny name, and is an example of old-time amusements -- a little one-note, a little politically incorrect by today's standards. People visiting our house can't resist playing with it and testing their strength (all it takes is a good jab with your index finger). The little mallet that originally came with it disappeared -- I scour thrift shops to see if I can find another one. This was made by the Royal Tot Manufacturing Company of Brooklyn, NY, whose other claim to fame seems to have been a series of little percussion cap miniature atomic bomb toys, which "allowed children to pretend they had the power to drop the mighty atomic bomb on the targets of their choice." Wow!
A little librarian humor. You can entertain your friends and family (or just yourself) and generate your own cool catalog cards at the Catalog Card Generator at blyberg.net - a library geek blog.
Since I am a redhead, this sign spoke to me (click the photo to view large). We won't discuss the whole "shooting while driving" issue -- all I can say is that I've moved past denial and I'm trying to quit.
I've been reading the latest PostSecret book. Here is one of my own secrets, revealed. It happened when I was just 19, only a few years older than my children are now. So today, I send this out into the universe and set it free. Be at peace, Jay.
This is the Sandwich fish hatchery (click the photo for a bigger view), where they have fish -- mostly trout -- of all sizes, including some giant brown and rainbow trout that are pretty tempting to touch even on a cold snowy day. They had a little visitor last January who not only touched but had a few meals while she was there.
