Wiki's

I added to the PBwiki - favorite vacation spots. I liked reading about other favorite spots too. Although I have head of wikipedia before, I never used it until just the other day when I asked Cheryl for a definition of the phrase "thin blue line". She e-mailed me back the wikipedia definition which gave definition, history and example. I would use this source for quick reference but back it up with other sources.

I have now completed my 10 Things!! The 10 Things Team deserves a round of applause and an extra vacation day for all they did to get the rest of us educated on new technology! Great job Team!!!

Social Networking

I began this task a few weeks ago, started an account and then left it alone. Now I went back and found my nephew and my son. I learned a few new things about them!?! I still have to upload a photo though. This will be a fun way to communicate with my nephew since I don't see him very often.

Eileen's cat Ginger

Eileen's cat Ginger
Originally uploaded by theskokieten

Toby has helped me quite a bit with getting my photo up on Flickr and into my blog. Thanks!! Ginger is a 15 year old male cat (long story on how he got this name). He's quite healthy and active, but an anti-social cat on the whole. He likes his family, but no one else. He doesn't play nicely with the other neighborhood dogs and cats.

Virtual Library- Downloading a Book

After a couple of false starts, I finally downloaded a book to my computer through Adobe Reader. Actually I downloaded 3 books - 2 kids books that I could look through quickly and one adult book. I think kids would have fun downloading and reading. Not sure if I would feel comfortable reading a whole book on a computer screen. If I had an MP3 player, I would definitely download a book 'cause I listen to audiobooks all the time in the car.

I also visited a few of the library "hall of fame" websites. The ones that catch my eye are the ones whose home pages are clean and easy to read. If I have to search for more than 2 minutes to find what I'm looking for, then they are too cluttered for me.

Google Tools

I created a document in Google Docs and shared it with a co-worker who can edit it too. It was easy to create and the basic tools were available.

I love using Google Earth and Google maps. I was able to zero in on my son's house in Florida by using his address. How fun!!

Black Bean Salsa Recipe

As promised, here is the black bean salsa recipe. I keep a container in the refrigerator during the summer. It's a tasty, low fat snack!

1 can Black Beans, drained & rinsed
1 9 oz box frozen White Shoepeg Corn, thawed
1 can Ro-Tel Tomatoes
1 Tb. Olive Oil
1 Tb. Balsamic Vinegar
1 Tb. minced Garlic
1/4 c Cilantro, chopped
1/4 c minced Red Onion
2 Tb. Lime Juice
Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix together and serve with tortilla chips. Best if made a day ahead.
Mix all

Podcasting

The first time I head of a Podcast I was listening to Jodi Picoult speak on her latest book and she told the audience to go to her website and listen to her podcast. I thought "What the heck is a podcast?" Today, I finally got to listen to it. I have also been instructed on how to bake a potato in the microwave, heard the latest in Chiropractic medicine and listened to selections from the Dog Whisperer.

I think the library could use podcasts in the following way: record meetings or lectures and have them available on the website as a podcast for patrons to listen to later.

Social Bookmarking

Of course the first site I bookmarked is the Food Network, a staple of mine. I go to it frequently to view show segments and find recipes. Every now and then I find a sweepstakes they are running and enter it (another hobby of mine-more on that in another post). Some tags that would be useful for a library would be "book reviews", "book talks", "movie reviews", "technology" and "storytimes".

Look for more recipes in the future. If you liked the Black Bean Salsa I brought to Gudrun's baby shower, I'll post that recipe by the end of the week.

Lime Meltaways Cookie Recipe

Lime Meltaways - Martha Stewart

12 Tb. (1 1/2 sticks) butter - room temp.
1/3 cup powdered sugar
Grated zest of 2 limes
2 Tb. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 Tb. vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups + 2 Tb. flour
2 Tb cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt

In a bowl of electric mixer, cream butter and powdered sugar until fluffy. Add lime zest, lime juice and vanilla. Beat until fluffy. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch and salt. Add to butter mixture and beat on low speed until combined.

Roll dough into two 1-1/4 " diameter logs. Wrap in parchment paper and chill at least 1 hour.

Heat oven to 350 deg.. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice dough into 1/8" rounds. Place on sheet 1" apart. Bake until barely golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool, 8-10 minutes. Shake cooled cookies in powdered sugar.

Note: Dough freezes well - defrost in refrigerator completely before cutting. Cookies also freeze well.

I-MMMMMing

Finally got around to setting up my Google Talk account. I'm not sure how much I would use this as I don't hang out much on the computer, but I could see how it would be an inexpensive vehicle to talk with someone who is far away from you. Maybe I'll try it out more in the future.

Figuring out RSS Feeds

I subscribed to 5 websites and am looking for more. There were a few I wanted to add, but I received a message that the sites did not have a feed available :-( . Should all websites be able to be added - or only the ones with the special symbols? TTFN

This is a first!

This is my first post to my blog and to any blog ever! Technology is catching up with me. It was quite easy to set up. The hardest part is thinking up a name that is unique and something you'll remember.

I can see blogs as being useful for families - kind of a new version of an old fashioned family letter - keeping everyone in touch and up to date. They'd also be useful for co-workers who are working on a project together. The blog could be a central posting site for information.

Now I'm on to looking at other people's blogs.......