In Other News: Greece & the EU

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

Ah, Santorini. The quintessential picture of Greece. Stark white building against lovely blue sea. Full disclosure: I’ve chosen this picture for partially selfish reasons. It is currently -8F (-22.2C) outside of the Gale office in Farmington Hills. I need this picture right now.

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Accidental Librarian

By Katelyn H. As a child, I was a voracious reader, and the library was thankfully an easy walk from our house. By the time I hit high school, it became something else: my first employer. I was drawn to the work for less than noble reasons, as I was mostly interested in a job … Read more

Making The “Library”

By Corrine L. As an MLIS graduate student, one of the first questions we were asked in our foundations class was “What Is A Library?” A pretty straightforward answer, right? That’s what most of the class thought until an hour-long debate about whether ancient cave paintings actually constituted a library or not. What I’ve loved … Read more

In Other News: Friday the 13th

A look at a current news item through the lens of different Gale electronic resources.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

Here we go – it’s Friday the 13th! Long held to be back luck, Friday the 13th has the dubious distinction of being a problem. But are you superstitious? And is everyone superstitious in the same way?

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Making a Difference

By Mary R.  I know of a family that has lived on a limited income and comes from a challenging social background. I brought some of the children from this family to the library years ago and have since lost contact with the family. I currently work in an academic library and last week, I … Read more

In Other News: Groundhog Day

A look at a current news item through the lens of different titles available on GVRL.

By Michelle Eickmeyer

This week, I heard recount of trying to explain to someone in Mexico, who was off Monday for a federal holiday, that our “holiday” on Monday was not quite the same thing. Yeah. No. From the outside looking in, this must seem one of the most ridiculous things we Americans have done yet. (I’ll let you in on something, as an American, I wouldn’t have much to argue with you about that.) On the first Monday of February, a rodent predicts the weather. It’s covered by the news. Punxsutawney [punk-suhtaw-nee] Phil, the most major of the rodent forecasters, rules from a rather comfy perch in Pennsylvania. There are other groundhogs, including this one in Wisconsin who bit the mayor (who is fine, so it’s ok to laugh at it). The principle is simple: if the ground hog does not see its shadow, spring will come early. If it does, winter continues for six more weeks. Practically, its a lot more ‘show’ than that. I also find it interesting that you never hear reports of a groundhog forecast in the south or west — is Groundhog Day a northern/eastern observance only? (Any comments on that welcome!)

Read moreIn Other News: Groundhog Day