Thursday, January 10, 2008

Loss for Words vs. Love of Words

What's worse than a writer at a loss for words, or a reader without a book? Words have been a good part of my life since childhood. I recall my eagerness to learn how to read, how it seemed magical for me to visit other places and times through the pages of a book. I am happy to see my own 3 year old daughter, Holly, sharing this interest, even as computer programs and websites appeal to her. The library is still her favorite place which is no wonder because I work at one and take her there often. Books are just as fun for her as toys, as they were to me as a child. My favorite birthday and Christmas gifts were always books, so I make sure to provide plenty of these for her along with Barbie dolls, Dora the Explorer playsets, DVD's, and other items that will hopefully not be recalled for safety issues. Barring paper cuts, most books are pretty safe, and now that she doesn't rip, chew, or color in them, they are lasting much longer.

So what am I doing writing a blog? I thought I'd give it a try. As I said, my life has been pretty full of words. In college, I majored in English and then went on to graduate school for Library Science. During college, I was also Features Editor of the student newspaper. In my twenties and thirties, while working at the job I still currently have as a reference librarian at a public library, I continued to write as a freelancer for cat magazines and journals and also had a short-story published for a mystery anthology. I gave this up for a short time after having my daughter in 2004 and am now returning to writing both in the virtual world, Second Life, and on my own writing a novel in memory of my beloved cat, Floppy.

You can never really "lose" words, but words are less meaningful if not shared. I hope that, through this blog, I can reach those who may have similar interests as mine or who would like to provide feedback on my experiences with writing, cats, virtual worlds, and/or librarianship. Thanks for reading.

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