It Was a Blast!

Thank you, 23 Things Team!

This program was the most fun I've had at work in a long time. Not to mention the fact that it was a phenomenal learning experience. Every exercise was interesting, challenging, and educational. I have so many new tools to put to use both at work and at home. And I feel so much more techno-savvy than I did 13 weeks ago.

What did I enjoy the most? There wasn't any project that I didn't enjoy but, by far and away, my most favorite activity is Blogging. Flickr ran a close second. Any endeavour in which I can stretch my creative wings gets my vote every time.

I am looking forward to delving more deeply into many of these applications on my own, as well. As I mentioned in a previous post, Facebook and Diigo are both places where I will want to spend more learning and participation time. And I still have most of my collection to add to Library Thing.

I can't say enough about 23 Things. I feel grateful that the Library felt that these were worthwhile skills for us to learn and gave us the opportunity and the time to participate.

With that, I can't resist telling you about one more ghost (although I plan to continue to Blog as ghostgirl in the future). I think Library ghosts are too much fun and there are so many. I would love to continue to compile their stories here.

For my final "23 Things" haunting I have chosen the Brand Public Library in Glendale California....

The building itself was constructed in 1904 and was originally the home of Leslie Coombs Brand. He lived there until his death in 1925. In his will, Brand stipulated that the house be converted into a library. Legend has it that it is the ghost of Leslie Brand that haunts the library to this day.

According to an L.A. Times article, "Stories are passed on of a...shadowy male figure ascending the stairs, of a presence in the tower, of the feeling, when standing near his portrait, of being watched".

If you're feeling in the mood for a good healthy dose of adrenaline, click on the postcard image below for a more detailed story.

And don't forget to check back from time to time. I'll be the first to let you know if our own local paranormal activity heats up in the future. On some dark and stormy night when the Library is deep in slumber and the stacks are silent, I just may attempt some EVP's...





Sliding into Home Plate

I have a confession to make. Although I've been tempted to work on my 23 Things assignments at home, I've been able to resist until this week. Library Thing demanded some at-home time. I have so many books in my personal library that I would never be able to add them all from memory. For instance, I added 34 books about Yoga and still have a few stragglers left.

I love Library Thing and will put it to very good use in the future. I found that the fastest and easiest way to add books is by ISBN. Once I made this discovery, it was a breeze!

I did attempt to embed the Library Thing widget in my Blog but was unsuccessful. Blogger just refused to accept the code that was supplied. From reviewing the Blogger discussion forums, it sounds like this is a common problem. I was quite disappointed...Library Thing has a very cool widget and I would have loved to have it on my Blog.

Wordle was just plain good fun! At first I tried entering the url from my Blog but didn't quite get the effect I was hoping for. So I tried to use several different websites that I thought look promising. Still, limited success. Finally I decided to "Paste a bunch of text" and was very pleased with the result. What do you think?



A Secret Location Revealed

Good day fellow psychic sleuths. This will be a brief, though very exciting, blog.

Finally, after weeks and weeks of keeping you all in suspense, I am ready to reveal the top secret location of our very own haunted library! It is cleverly hidden in my Community Walk map entitled (you guessed it...) Haunted Saskatoon. See if you can find it, then put on a pair of good walking shoes and take a stroll through eerie, ghastly, frightening, nightmarish, Saskatoon! Happy Ghost Hunting!



Social "Things" and a Book Loving Ghost

I've experimented with Facebook in the past and wondered about its potential. It is definitely something I will want to further explore at some time in the future. Especially now that I know how to better protect my privacy. On a personal level, at this point in my life I have so little time to spend on my computer that I can't see myself adding the care and feeding of a Facebook account to my "to do" list. But some day...

That said, the various library pages that I reviewed were interesting and informative. I can understand how Libraries would find Facebook to be a useful tool for keeping clients up to date on current Library events. So many people these days are Facebook users. It just makes sense to use it as method of advertising your wares.

I appreciated the fact that the 23 Things Team offered up some alternative social networking sites for our consideration. I love Dogster and could really see myself spending some time there...

This little fellow is Jacob the Werewolf...my best friend and the main reason

why I do spend some time on dog-related websites. He may look sweet and innocent,

but he's a handful (especially when the moon is full) and I occasionally find

myself looking for advice from other dog owners.

On Twitter, I searched for Library-related sites and found a few that I thought would be interesting to follow. The New York Public Library's was particularly enjoyable with its refreshing mixture of Library news and interesting articles, interviews, etc. Following this site feels like time well spent.

For fun, I decided to follow some very cute and funny animal-related sites. Amongst my favorites is the "Simon's Cat" page. If you've ever been owned by a cat, or have been close friends with one, this is for you. Check out the "Films" tab. They are hilarious!

This blog is a compilation of my experience with a number of "Things" so I'll briefly comment on Diigo. Running late, as ever, I was able to view a number of the tutorials and experimented briefly with some of the available features. It seems like an instrument with enormous potential. As with Facebook, I will return to Diigo in the future to become better acquainted.

You will see the results of my experience with Thing 18 - Widgets in the upper right hand corner of my Blogger page..."Mysterial"...the search engine for all things paranormal.



And Now......



Well, not really....just kidding... Our next ghost really isn't all that frightening. But he was a hero in his past incarnation. We, as Library folk, will find a special appreciation for his love of books that ultimately (and so very sadly) was responsible for his death. So, without further delay, I would like to introduce (for your spine-tingling pleasure)...The Ghost of Felbrigg Hall!

Welcome to Felbrigg Hall, Norfolk, UK.

This castle-like structure dates back to the 17th century and stands on what was once one of the largest estates in Norfolk. Today, the Felbrigg estate covers almost 7 square kilometres and boasts breath-takingly beautiful gardens....

Stunning architectural features....

And...of course...a Library!

...Wherein lies the tale of William Windham III, the purported ghost of Felbrigg Hall.

William lived at Felbrigg in the latter half of the 18th century. He was a scholar and is said to have had a great love of books.

On a summer evening in 1809 William was returning to his lodgings in London when he noticed that a nearby house was ablaze. Only a few doors away was the home a dear friend who possessed an impressive library of valuable books. Fearing that the books would be lost in the quickly spreading fire, William almost single-handedly removed them all to safety. In the course of the rescue however, our hero fell and badly bruised his hip. Eventually a tumor grew at the site of the injury. William underwent surgery to remove the tumor but went into shock shortly afterwards and did not recover. His remains lie in the family vault at Felbrigg Hall...

   

Ever true to his great passion for books, even in death, the ghost of William Windham III is frequently seen in the library of Felbrigg Hall. He sits in an armchair by the fireplace, beloved book in hand. After a time he will place the book on the table beside him and gradually fade away. According to estate employees, William can be coaxed to appear by setting out specific books that were given to him by his friend, Samuel Johnson....

...Sigh...what bibliophile could ever hear such a tale and remain unmoved? I ask you!