Tax Time

Doing my taxes is not high on my list of fun things to do during my lunch hour, but I always remind myself of the following:

---Taxes pay for things.
---When my street light goes out, I don’t have to pick up a bulb from Lowes and shimmy up a pole.
---When the fire department comes out for a fire, you don’t have to cut them a check.
---Clean water comes out of my tap without me having to tell anyone, “Hey, I want clean water!”
---The police have yet to charge me for when I call them on the neighbors and they have to bring out 5 squad cars and a helicopter. (On a related note, does anyone have a house in a nice neighborhood I can buy? Or a nice guy I can marry who lives in said house? It’s okay if he’s on his death bed…)
---$10,000 per year for private school ($130,000 for K-12 education) vs. $0 for public school. (Top that!)
---When something goes wrong in the government I can actually reach a representative. (Or, as one put it, "It's you again!")
---Amtrak’s Capital Corridor is the best trip ever!
---Cal Grant and Pell Grant were very good to me.
---While UPS and Fed Ex wanted $66 and $72 to ship my box to Hawaii, USPS only wanted $20. (No wonder they’re going broke!)

Plus:
---Taxes support libraries.
---I like having a job.
---Libraries are warm in the winter and cool in the summer. (Or, in Kids’ Place, it’s sweater weather in the summer and bikini season in the winter.)
---Having a job and healthcare is a good thing.
---We have DVDs you can borrow for free.
---Having a paycheck means I can pay for incidentals such as food, clothes and a roof over my head.

Remember, there are a few things you don’t want to mess with in life, and IRS is at the top of the list. If you haven’t filed your taxes yet and you made under $58,000 last year, you can file both your state and federal taxes for free!!! Go to the Beehive to do so.



Tax time, too, shall pass.

How They Do It in Hawaii

I am visiting Mom for a week. Mom lives in Kailua, a bedroom community on the windward side of Oahu, in the same house she bought in 1960. It's just a couple of blocks from the Kailua Library, where I got my start in the library business as a shelver.

Kailua Library is a busy branch that sees a lot of visitors because of its proximity to the "best white sand beach in the world." Yesterday, I stopped in to say hi to the staff, and to sign up for a visitor's library card. The card costs $25 and is good for 5 years! (Residents of Hawaii get free cards, of course!)

Libraries in Hawaii are suffering the same kinds of funding shortfalls as the Sacramento library system. They are expecting a 10% budget reduction in the next fiscal year, which means they will have to "close branches", in the words of the Kailua branch manger.

Although there is Internet access in all branches, only two branches offer wi-fi. The State can't afford it, so if a branch wants to offer wi-fi, I it needs to come up with the funds - usually through the Friends of the Library.

I am hoping to visit additional branches this week, and collect more info to share about this unique library system.

Beautifulcataya's photo used with permission.

A Day in the Life of a Librarian

"You're so lucky to work in a library. You must get to read a lot of books all day!" Yeah, and the view from the vantage point of a library school student (me, [mumble] years ago) was equally disconnected from the reality of what it takes to deliver library service to the public.

So what does this librarian do all day? I'm glad you asked! This week, in response to the Librarian by Day's, challenge, over a dozen library staff from across the country will be detailing their workdays on their blogs. I could never pass up a challenge, so tomorrow through next Sunday, I'll be taking my show on the road, virtually speaking. You can get a peek into my work day at Annot8ions, and compare it with the workdays of the other participants at Library Day In the Life. (Thank you, Civil Librarian, for the invitation!)

SONRISAS : LA HORA DE LA SIESTA. #3

Esta mañana terminamos nuestra serie otoñal para niños. Los niños de nuestro grupo gozaron de un tiempo divertido, grupal y educativo aprendiendo acerca de los libros, el canto, el baile y el intercambio social. Sus padres gozaron haciendo nuevas amistades y citando nuevos encuentros.

Una de nuestras metas como bibliotecarios al servicio público es asistirles a alentar a sus hijos a fomentar un aprecio a la lectura. Alfabetización Pujante se basa en el conocimiento preescolar de los niños antes de leer por voluntad propia. Aquellos niños con estas aptitudes tienden a tener más éxito académico.

Nuestra programación infantil es conocido como Toddler-Time . Este programa reanuda el 10 de Enero, repitiéndose cada Jueves a las 10:00 horas. Por mientras tomen en cuenta lo siguiente:

- - El entusiasmo enciende la pasión de la lectura, así que escojan buenos libros para que ambos se diviertan.

- - Utilice un lenguaje rítmico y placente para llamar la atención.

- - Oraciones claras y cortas empleaando entre sí dos grandes palabras cada página para facilitar una conexción entre la historia leída y la palabra escrita.

- - La repitición conlleva la anticipación.

Lo más imprecindible es divertirse leyendo y criando futuros lectores. ¡Verémonos al próximo Toddler-Time en Kid's Place el 10 de Enero!

LINK + STARTING SOON AT SPL!

Link + is a new service scheduled to start at Sacramento Public Library on August 13, 2007. This exciting new service will enable Sacramento Public Library customers to search and borrow books from over 30 libraries throughout California and Nevada. Our customers will be able to choose from over 9 million titles from partnership libraries with a simple click of new "LINK +" button soon to appear on Sacramento Public Library website. Items will usually be ready for pickup within 5 days, and the check out period will be for 21 days. Only one 2-week renewal period will be allowed. And a standard $115.00 replacement fee will be assigned for all lost or damaged items. We're happy to provide this service to not only our customers but also to our partnership libraries who will also greatly benefit from this new venture!