Uh-Oh . . .

This can't be good.

 Click Images to Bigify

Today is our annual Summer Reading Kickoff bigbash, which begins at 5 p.m. this afternoon.  It is now 1:48 p.m. (synchronize your watches, minions).  Look at that pouring rain!

But wait!  Casey at the Bat and Crafty Gal have a backup plan!  We can still do lots of fun stuff inside the Library, even if it's raining felines and slobberdogs outside.

 Crafty Gal gets the fun going (or getting ready, anyway)

in the MPL Community Room

Casey at the Bat reviews her strategies in case of inclement weather

So there's absolutely no reason why you should miss our bigbash this evening.  Come on over to the Library if you live 'round these parts.  No amount of rain could dampen the great times we'll be having.

But just in case . . .

Better Safe Than Sorry, I'll Venture

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  Want to read my blog post about cat umbrellas and rain gear?  Sure you do.  I've also got one about slobberdogs.

P.P.S.  All this rain reminded moi of "Here Comes the Rain Again," by Eurythmics, from the LP Touch (1983).  It was also released as a single (1984).  Here's the group's music video.

P.P.P.S.  Naturally, this weather we're having posed the obvious question, "Who'll Stop the Rain?" by Creedence Clearwater Revival, from the LP Cosmo's Factory (1970).

P.P.P.P.S.  Off the top of my head, I can think of at least three Bob Dylan songs that have rain in the title, but none is actually about the weather, if I remember rightly.  Check out the official Bob Dylan website for great stuff about this legendary folk singer-songwriter.

P.P.P.P.P.S.  It's now 2:10 p.m., and the SUN IS PEEKING THROUGH THE CLOUDS!  We'll beat this rain yet!

P.P.P.P.P.P.S.  Let's all sing George Harrison's "Here Comes the Sun," by the Beatles, from the album Abbey Road (1969).  Was this George's only Beatles "double-A side" single release (b/w "Something")?

Will Travel 4 Bookmobile (Viaggerà Per Libro Veicolo)

Lots of libraries have shared this photo on Facebook, but I saw it courtesy of Browser, the Pine River (Minnesota) Public Library Cat.  Thanks, Browser!

Library Bookmobile in Ferrandina, Italy

(Click Images to Bigify)

We need one of these, Boss Lady.  Why not have the Library Board of Trustees (or the Friends of the Library) pay for moi and a couple of minions to travel over to Ferrandina, Italy to see if we could purchase this one?

It couldn't cost all that much for a feline roving reporter to fly first-class to Italy.  Minions could ride with the baggage.

So where is Ferrandina, anyway?

What's it look like around there?

Ferrandina, Italy

I might need to stay awhile to scope out the bookmobile and negotiate a sweet deal.  Six months, at least.  Probably a year.  Or two.  Maybe I could get a job (minions, too) working at the local library.  I could even drive the bookmobile!  I'm an excellent driver, as I've previously shown.

Setting the Pace at the Indianapolis 500

Definitely Not on Mondays

I'm not sure about my Italian translation for the title of this posting, however.  I used one of those free online translators.  I hope it doesn't say something bad.

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  Speaking of Italy, here's a music video of Lucio Dalla (1943-2012) singing "Caruso" (2003), which he composed in 1986, and which has been covered by a gazillion musicians and performers.

175 Large

I'm not much with the hip lingo of today's young folks, but I just noticed that my blog viewings have reached 175,000.  Is that 175 large? Whatever.

Thanks to my loyal readers for following my postings.  Just in case Boss Lady or our Library Board start handing out canned tuna-in-oil for top achievers, I'll mention in passing that my blog has the largest readership of any at my Library.  Our most popular social media, however, is our YouTube Channel, which just topped 300,000 viewings.

How should we celebrate? Extra portions of din-dins and naps spring immediately to mind. But perhaps my Library should erect some sort of display honoring my achievement. I'm available to pose for a bronze statue anytime. It could be placed where the water volcano now sits. It isn't erupting water anymore, so why not replace it with a statue of moi? Just asking.

Now-Dormant Water Volcano in the MPL Courtyard

(Blurry Photo From 2011)

Steady-cam, Scowl-Face.  You really need to use that tripod when you're snapping pix with the Library's digital camera.

A Considerable Improvement, I'd Wager

There must be some reputable sculptors around here, Boss Lady.  I'd look better in solid gold, but bronze would be fine.  Copper turns green, so we'll pass on that.

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S. Hüsker Dü, a "hardcore punk" band from St. Paul, Minnesota, released "Statues" as a bonus track on the CD re-release of the album Everything Falls Apart (1983).

A Triumphant Re-Voicing

My Library's composer has re-voiced (I think that's the correct term) the first movement of one of his best symphonies.  He has uploaded it as a "music video" to his YouTube channel, using one of his photographs as a background "still" image for the soundtrack.

"Sick Doctors Treating Healthy Patients"

First movement from Music Therapy for the Deranged

(2013 Orchestral Remix)

by Daniel E. Buckley

Music Therapy for the Deranged (2010) is one of my favorite symphonies (using the original instrumentation), but the new orchestral voicing (2013) gives the compositions extra texture and subtle new impressions.  The updated version will delight and amaze.  It is a triumph that has been favorably compared with the musical scoring of famous film composer Bernard Herrmann.

We used a portion of the first movement as the musical soundtrack to one of our recent book trailers.

The Clocks, by Agatha Christie

(MPL Book Trailer #172)

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  To hear the original (2010) version of Music Therapy for the Deranged, you could reprise my blog posting.

Three Hundred is Grand

The MPL YouTube Channel has just surpassed 300,000 video viewings.

Click the images to bigify

How should we celebrate?

Not What I Had in Mind

I was thinking a nice little snack and a quick nap, moiself.

Thanks for watching our videos.

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  In bowling, 300 is a perfect game (all strikes).  Never happened to moi, but Wild Thang's family has bowled a few.  Here's a video of some famous professional bowlers who have rolled perfect games.

Penny For Your Luck

Today (May 23) is Lucky Penny Day.  I'd say "A penny for your thoughts," but maybe it should read "a penny for your luck" today.  Why is finding pennies good luck?  Rather than re-mint the coin (to paraphrase a cliche about redundancy), visit this website for some explanations.

Ouch!  Hey, That's Honest Abe's Face, For Crying Out Loud!

Isn't it a federal crime to deface currency? Just asking.  Scowl-Face says that Title 18, section 331 of the United States Code prohibits the fraudulent defacing, mutilation, alteration, or falsification of any U.S. coins, and this crime is punishable by fines and/or up to five years imprisonment (18 U.S.C. § 331).  Unless somebody is attempting to defraud someone else by defacing U.S. coinage, it appears not to be a federal offense.

How can you find your lucky penny?  Just glance around on the ground while you're walking, or check beneath your sofa or chair cushions.  People don't bother to pick-up pennies on sidewalks or other public floor space, so you should be able to gather several today.

Why is the poor penny unappreciated?  Well, it could be its actual monetary value.  What can you buy with a penny these days?  According to the U.S. Mint, in 2011 it cost 2.41 cents to mint a single Lincoln penny, so one wonders about the economic law of diminishing returns.  I'm not certain if that rule applies to this situation, because I never took economics in school (I'm a cat, after all).  I'd ask Scowl-Face, who completed two semesters of economics in college, but that was before coins were invented.

Special 2009 Penny Backs For Lincoln's 200th Birthday

and the 100th Anniversary of the Lincoln Penny

I'm fond of Abraham Lincoln, naturally (he loved cats, which all by itself makes him one of the greatest American presidents), but I really like so-called Indian Head pennies.

I've Got One Nearly This Old

Because they're more expensive to mint than they're worth at face value, lots of folks want to abolish penny production in the U.S.  That would be a shame, because folks in the over-50 crowd who remember how much you could buy with a penny in their youth want a visual point of reference.  (According to my minions, way back in the day, you could purchase a cart full of groceries, a small automobile, and a round-trip train ticket to San Antonio for a penny.  Frankly, I'm skeptical.)

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  "Penny Lane" (1967), by the Beatles, was the group's first single (after they started topping the charts in 1963-1964 with every single release) not to reach number one on the British pop charts (when it was first released), although it topped the American and Canadian charts.  The song was the other "A" side on the single that also featured "Strawberry Fields Forever" (1967).

P.P.S.  Speaking to trains to San Antonio, the Monkees recorded "What Am I Doing Hangin' 'Round?" for the LP Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. (1967) and, of course, for their television series (NBC, 1966-1968).

P.P.P.S.  Anybody Scowl-Face's age remembers the character Penny Robinson from the television series Lost in Space (CBS, 1965-1968), portrayed by actress Angela Cartwright.   Lots of young dudes fell in love with her (ol' Scowlly included) while watching that show, which was pretty cheesy even by Irwin Allen's production standards.  Hey, Allen made a gazillion dollars making youth-friendly popular TV programs, so I'll cut him some slack.

At Least You Can Eat Strawberries

Today (May 20) is Be a Millionaire Day, as well as Pick Strawberries Day.  I go for the strawberries.  At least you can eat them.  That's a whole lot more likely than your becoming a millionaire.  Moi, too, for that matter.

Striking oil with an old rifle?  Come on!

(Not Like James Dean in Giant, that's for sure)

Not that I'm opposed to becoming a millionaire.  If it worked for Jed Clampett, then why not this feline roving reporter?  Not much "bubblin' crude" around my neighborhood, though, so I suppose I'll have to make my millions by being extremely witty and massively cute.  Cuteness comes naturally to us felines; wit is a tougher nut, but only because people have so much trouble interpreting our verbalizations.

Steer Clear of Any I've Chewed Upon, Pretty Much

If you belong to the same generation as Scowl-Face and the Lady With the Red Hair, you'll have fond memories of strawberry picking along railroad tracks and in patches scattered around the countryside.  It was a rite of passage for many human kids.  We felines who favor strawberries would give them a chew while they're still attached to the vine or bush or whatever they're growing upon.  For some reason, people don't approve of that practice, but I can't see why.  Just adds some sweetness, I'd venture.

Be a millionaire if you can today.  Or pick some strawberries, if you live in the right climate.  You could always visit your friendly grocery.  Works for my minions.

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  Here's James Dean's wildcatter character [in the movie Giant (1956)] striking oil and then giving Rock Hudson's wealthy, landowning character his comeuppance.  That looks like Jed Clampett's truck from the TV series The Beverly Hillbillies (1962-1971), but I'm sure it's not.  This millionaire business can be kinda rough.

Thanks Just the Same

May 24 (this Friday) is National Escargot Day.  Thanks just the same, but I'll pass.  Snails are too crunchy for my taste.

Better Scoot, Snaily

For some folks, escargot is a true delicacy.  Huge places like Chicago and Philadelphia are having (or have had) bigbashes devoted to the slithery little dudes.  We used to have a local restaurant that served escargot, but they're gone to eatery heaven now.

If you enjoy French cooking, I suppose this is another one of those culinary holidays into which you may (pardon the pun--wait for it!) sink your teeth. But I prefer my din-dins not to carry their exoskeletons over the tender tidbits.  My teeth are approaching (or maybe passed by now) a decade old, so I don't need any unnecessary masticatory challenges.

By the way, did anybody think to ask the snails how they would like to celebrate this holiday?  Seems only fair.  I suggest eating tofu instead.  I won't do it, of course--that's why I'm suggesting you do so, because somebody has to eat the stuff; otherwise, it will just pile up, and nobody wants that--but let's cut the snails some slack.  Let them do whatever they do wherever they're doing it.

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  Folk duo Hungrytown performed "Thanks Just the Same" at the Bent Horseshoe Cafe in Tokomaru, New Zealand (March, 2013) (sorry, video is now unavailable).  Hungrytown performed at my Library in November, 2007, and it was one of the best concerts we've ever hosted.  Visit the Hungrytown website for more information about their great music.

Gotta Love Those Trees!

Today (May 16) is Love a Tree Day.  Click that link (you just passed it back there) to see lots of great celebratory ideas.  At my Library, we like to celebrate such things by showing book trailers related to the central theme-of-the-day.  Like so:

MPL Book Trailer #149
The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss
(Audience:  Preschool to Adults)

MPL Book Trailer #150
Tree Girl, by T. A. Barron
(Audience:  Readers in Grades 4-6; Young Adults)

 MPL Book Trailer #138
A Girl of the Limberlost, by Gene Stratton-Porter
(Audience:  Readers in Grades 4-6; Young Adults)

MPL Book Trailer #52
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett
(Audience:  Readers in Grades 4-6; Young Adults)

MPL Book Trailer #111
A Separate Peace, by John Knowles
(Audience:  Young Adults and older)

Each of these books features trees prominently in their stories.  Lots of other stuff goes on, of course, but trees do their part.  Here's another book with tree in the title, although it's a metaphor, mostly.

MPL Book Trailer #132

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, by Betty Smith

(Audience:  Young Adults & older)

We used to call young adults teens.  Times change, I guess.

Adult readers, too, would enjoy any of these books.  Check them out using your Evergreen Indiana library card.

I've posted reviews about each of these books, I'm pretty sure.  Just search my blog by their titles (in the blog search box in the upper left-hand corner of my blog page).

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  "The Trees," by Rush, seems like an appropriate musical closer to include with this posting.  The song appeared on the LP Hemispheres (1978).

P.P.S.  The Mysterious Forest (2012) was written by our Library's composer.  The original version appears above, while the string quartet arrangement is below.

I'll Pass, But Feel Free

Today (Tuesday, May 14) is Dance Like a Chicken Day.  I'll pass, but you can feel free.

Solid Line Media Presents

"Dance Like a Chicken?"
(Behind the Solid Line)

Okay, that horse head was plenty creepy.

I've blogged about chicken dancing before--traditional at weddings, even between slobberdogs--but I don't think I've mentioned the holiday itself. Now's my chance.

Dancing winged dinners are for the birds (I love that joke!).  Admittedly, that was pretty lame.  Still, there's not much to say about this celebration beyond the umpteen gazillion chicken dance videos on YouTube.  Go ahead--search for some.  I can wait.

We felines have entirely too much self-respect to do the chicken dance. Humans--not so much.

Have fun!

Your Roving Reporter On The Go,

Cauli Le Chat

P.S.  No musical closer today.  How could we top the chicken dance song?