cold hands
in journal
hi ~
first of all, if you didn’t see it in the movie theatres last year, please check your local pbs station to see when they’re airing the documentary the weather underground. here in l.a., it’ll be on kcet the 29th and on may day. i saw it last year and remember not liking it too much, but being glad i saw it anyhow, i.e. some info is better than no info.
in the most recent issue of american libraries, they have lots of photos of recent library additions, constructions, and renovations. very pretty but the one that was most interesting was san jose’s west valley branch, the first, and only, green-certified library in the u.s, according to the u.s. green building council. with so many resources out there, why aren’t more libraries being built with (at least some) sustainability in mind? there are some articles online about some case studies: oak park library, yarborough library in austin, this minneapolis library, and l.a.‘s own lake terrace library (scroll down, it’s project number 8).
also, these articles look great but aren’t online, sux. while looking for sustainable library info, i came across the seven deadly sins of library architecture. also, here’s a list of green buildings throughout the u.s., though mostly centered on california. lately i’ve been real design-oriented, i like that.
i constantly have cold hands at work. especially my mouse hand, the right one. number 15, anyone? yuck. i work in an archives, so it’s pretty chilly, which i’ve gotten used to, but really my right hand is so much colder than all the rest of me. (also, for a while, i was going to buy a tush cush but of course i still haven’t done that. but that’s about my back/butt, not my hands..) it’s really hard, though, to find out for sure which is better ergonomically: for the mouse hand to be straight or bent at the elbow? i know my posture’s not that great, and at home, since i use a laptop, either the screen’s too low (so i slouch) or the keyboard too high (so my arms hurt).
update: dorothea writes about her upcoming visit to the doctor about her hands. akma talks about his right thumb. serious problems that i see (and feel) more and more of.
(by the way, i needed to resize a photo just now, and i don’t have photoshop on my computer anymore, but i found this great and very easy (though limited options) site called resize2mail that does it for free. yay!)
lastly, the berkley public library will soon be implementing rfids: “our interest in RFIDs is as a main tool to fight workers’ comp claims,” said Jorge Garcia, chair of the board of trustees.” the dailycal article adds, “The radio frequency identification system, already used for commercial purposes by retail outlets such as Home Depot and Banana Republic, will ease repetitive motion injuries suffered by library staff and thus help reduce workers’ compensation costs for the library system.” i’m all for easing repetitve motion injuries (my poor cold hands!) but these tags are downright scary. for more info on rfids, see this blog (libraryrfid), the eff‘s rfid page, and the privacy rights clearinghouse position on rfids. not only are rfids bad for all kinds of privacy issues, but for many folks, checking out books is the only real pupose to have librarians, right? so, what’s to stop them from thinking that the next step is a totally ‘self-service’ library?
~andrea
p.s. the computer freedom & privacy conference just passed. it sure looked good.
