E-F-R-O-N, Z-A-C

I recently found myself at a county-wide librarian's training day. We covered all the exciting updates to our inter-library loan system and some of the bells and whistles added to particular databases. An example of these "bells and whistles" is the biographies that were added to SIRS Discoverer (trust me, it's awesome), biographies of luminaries such as Miley Cyrus and Zac Efron. I worked up the courage to raise my hand and ask if these new biographies had been cross-referenced with the database's Biographies feature (again, trust me -- it was an awesome question). Since we were on the topic of Zac Efron, I suggested that we use him as an example. The presenter proceeded to type in "Zach Ephram." I found myself in the awkward situation of knowing exactly how to spell Zac's name, but not necessarily wanting to admit this to the librarian community at large. Oh heck, you know I went for it. The next thing you heard was my thin voice piping up, "E-F-R-O-N, Z-A-C!" That's what she said!

Oh, Snap! Comeback of the Week...

House: I quit.
Dr. Foreman: You can't quit.
House: I think you're confusing me with Jake Gyllenhaal.

I love a good Brokeback Mountain in-joke! Monday's episode of House featured several other zingers. For example, when a patient attempted to diagnose himself with mercury poisoning, Thirteen quipped (*paraphrase alert*), "And you're currently getting mixed reviews in Speed-the-Plow on Broadway?" Oh, snap! Although I am a little embarrassed that I got this vague reference to Jeremy Piven's untimely departure from Speed-the-Plow because of sushi-induced mercury poisoning. And now I'm blogging about it. Time to move on. To another embarrassing incident ... to follow in my next post!

Mattie meets her scratching box ...

Sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words, but I tend to be wordy (true!). So I couldn't resist leaving a caption for this series of three typically adorable photos ...

Here, Mattie meets her scratching box for the first time.

Mattie in the midst of a catnip-induced scratching box frenzy:

"It's mine, mine all mine. As evidenced by the drool stain. Mine!"

Steampunk

I learned a new word recently, and then didn't the word start popping up all over the place? "Steampunk" is a sub-genre of fantasy fiction that depicts an alternate world where everything runs on steam power. It's like the 1980s mashed up with a Jules Verne novel. But, you know, awesome. In these alternate worlds, we all get around in airships not unlike the Hindenburg (but safer), do our work on analog computers, and wear cool Queen Victoria-meets-Cyndi Lauper fashions. Well, I think they're cool. Now what kind of librarian would I be if I got you hooked on the idea of steampunk novels and left you hanging with nary a recommendation? Meet The Affinity Bridge by George Mann.
In this novel, it's 1901 and Queen Victoria is being kept alive by means of a complex, mechanical life-support system (steam-powered, I'm guessing?). Which means that it's still Victorian England and everyone had better dress the part. Meanwhile, Detective Maurice Newbury and his assistant, Veronica Hobbes, investigate a crashed airship, search for a glowing police officer suspected of serial stranglings, and deal with the plague of zombies infesting London's slums. Oh yeah, and the airships, also known as dirigibles or Zeppelins (now I'm just showing off) are piloted by automatons. Affinity Bridge is so going on the Amazon.com wish list!

Rumored News / I heart James Franco

According to a highly reliable source (the Internet Movie Database) my beloved James Franco is "rumored" to be co-starring in the big screen version of Eat Pray Love. This rumor is backed up by a recent People Magazine photo of my beloved James Franco arm in arm with Julia Roberts, who is portraying author Elizabeth Gilbert. I did not, nor will I ever, read Eat Pray Love because Elizabeth Gilbert is profoundly irritating. I will, however, definitely see the movie because I will watch anything starring my "Hollywood husband." Pineapple Express was the best movie of 2008 and even though I'm sure Eat Pray Love won't hold a candle to that masterpiece, my calendar is now marked for its 2011 release!