Notes from the Everyman

Your intrepid CAL Conference planning committee members are combing the hallways for up-to-the-minute stories of the CAL human experience. This morning, attendees were entralled by presentations on creating authority records, authoritative websites, teacher/librarian collaborations, books into movies (that don't reek), and the morning's biggest draw, sustaining rural libraries. Whether they're fledgling library school students or seasoned library veterans, attendees are finding the preconference sessions informing and inspiring.

When asked how the preconferences had changed their lives, respondents burst into laughter. When told very sternly to get serious, they burst into laughter again, then shared some of their experiences. (Quotes are generally accurate, with only moderate elaborations and creative license taken by Your Faithful Reporter.)

"I went to the session on faithful film adaptations and plan to look up Walden.com for more ideas of movies that are 'inherently educational.'" -- Tanya, Fort Collins Public Library

"I'm going to look into some of the sites presented in the session on authoritative websites, including Del.icio.us: Social Networking and Ask.com. I want to create an account so I can keep my webpage information organized." -- Cynthia, Arapahoe Library District

"I took a semester-long class on creating authority records, but things have changed so fast, I learned a lot in the preconference." -- Anonymous library school student

"Randy Testa is the greatest, most wonderful presenter ever and Walden is the only company that consistently makes faithful film adaptations." -- Beth, library maven, conference queen, and encompasser of just general thingness