This Week's Special: Baked Bunnies, Scrambled Eggs and Kitty Kabobs

Welcome Guest to the 3^rd annual All Ages Easter Egg Hunt, where empty eggs are hidden, carnivorous live rabbits nibble off chunks of your hair and a life-size Easter Bunny finds pleasure in terrifying poor wittle old me.

The library will be holding its annual Easter Egg Hunt Saturday March 31^st. Children of all ages can enjoy crafts and games, a petting zoo featuring live rabbits, and a meet and greet with the Easter Bunny. Events start at 1:00 with the egg hunt kicking off at 2:00.

Pages Invites all to come!

Yes, I’m inviting everyone! I figure if I have to suffer the insufferable smell of pooping rabbits, melted chocolate smeared on faces and an Easter Bunny who’s bent on taking one of my nine lives, YOU have to suffer with me, too.

I’m sure you’re wondering where I get my delightful descriptions of this event. Oh… you’re not wondering this…TOO BAD! I’m going to tell you anyway.

It happened last year, at my first egg hunt. The day started out like any other, however, it quickly changed when I saw Erin running around like her pants were on fire. My guess was that she had told a lie, as the saying goes, “Liar Liar Pants on FIRE”! Little did I know, that was not the case. Instead she was panicked because some giant rabbit had not shown up yet. I laughed at her; I have to admit she was pretty funny looking. I sauntered over to the check out desk with my baggy of teats to sit and watch the show. After about 5 minutes, the door dinged and in rolled a cart of some sort of stinky fur balls. Curious, I jumped down to investigate. Just as I stuck my nose through the grate on the cage to see what it was, the horrid creature bit me! I jumped back, only to be met with a cackle from Erin. I gave her a glare hoping her pants would reignite, as they must have temporarily cooled. The lady who accompanied these creatures informed me they were rabbits and baby ones at that. She pulled one out and showed it to me. I made sure to keep just out of biting distance.

I was so entranced with these over grown cotton balls I hadn’t noticed the covey of children who had gathered with me to scrutinize the rabbits. The next thing I know one of the children spun me around and planted a giant chocolate covered kiss smack dab in the middle of my forehead. If the smell of slobbery chocolate wasn’t enough to knock me unconscious, the death grip around my neck was sure to accomplish the deed. As the world was growing dark I felt the hands slip away and I was placed on the ground. It was just then, as my blurry sight was sliding back into place, that I saw the most horrid, grotesque, monsterrific creature I had ever laid my eyes on…. The EASTER BUNNY.

I turned and ran, not entirely sure where I was headed. My vision hadn’t fully recovered and I kept stumbling over my own feet. I tripped and rolled out into the middle of the room, with no cover, no nothing that I could hide under. The rabbit was right on me! I flipped over, hoping my playing opossum would make it go away. Hope was not in my favor. The Easter Bunny had me in its grasp. I thought for sure I was going to get eaten! A strange gargle rose out of its mouth. I had no idea what that noise meant. It did have a familiar ring to it. That’s when it hit me. The Easter Bunny was laughing at me. I took this moment to look it over and realized that it wasn’t a monster but an overgrown version of the rabbits I had just been looking at. I knew those were harmless so this one must be too. I relaxed into its soft fur. We took a few pictures and promised to see each other again next year.

Ok, so I guess last year wasn’t that bad. And I am looking forward to this Saturday to meet up with my old friend. I’d love to introduce you all to my friend the Easter Bunny. Maybe I’ll get a special egg filled with teats!! I’ll share with you all….Just Kidding, they are all mine!

Hoppy Easter!

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Cake, Costumes and Crazies Celebrate Dr. Seuss’s 108th Birthday

“My alphabet starts with the letter called yuzz. It’s the letter I used to spell yuzz-a-ma-tuzz. You’ll be sort of surprised what there is to be found once you go beyond “Z” and start poking around!” Dr. Seuss

Well Dr. Seuss I took your advice, hopped a train and rolled the dice.

The train sped it went beyond z and OH I was amazed by the things I had seen. They had all came together the cats and the hats, the lazies and crazies, the bats and the mats. To celebrate the day, where we’d all gather to say, Hip hip horray today Dr. Seuss is your BIRTHDAY!

Dr. Seuss your stories are timeless just like you, so let’s take this day to celebrate you.  In your very own words “today you are you that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you.”

To one of the greatest guys I know, we wish you the very best as you turn 108! To celebrate we baked you a cake, blew up some balloons and partied away.  Here’s a picture we took just for you, to show how much we love you!

Thing 1 and Thing 2 showed up for the day, with Daisy Head Maysie and some fish on your cake. A wocket from your pocket and our boss in cat ears, topped off the group to throw up some cheers. The cake was delicious, and so not nutritious. But it all disappeared without any fear. I took this from you and now I’m giving it back You are cooler than cool and that is a fact. I think with that I will call this a wrap. From the look of my watch it’s time for a nap. As I settle in bed I know just what to do, grab a book for my dreams to take me to. “The more that you read the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you’ll go.”

Nighty Night Dr. Seuss...................... Happy Birthday!  

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A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes

Dear Readers,

I appreciate you all reading my blog and keeping up with me as I document all of my adventures here at the library. I’m sorry if I’ve held you at baited breath waiting on my next installment on the sanity level of my co-workers. I’ve had much to do and lots on my mind this past month with the holiday season falling upon us and time simply slipped from my paws. With many apologies for the long delay, I’m back!

I’d like to say that the evidence that I’ve acquired would prove to a judge that all my co-workers should be fitted in a comfy straight jacket and sent to live in a nice lovely padded room. Sadly all of this isn’t the case. Due to a technicality (everyone goes crazy during the holiday season) all of my evidence has been thrown out. Don’t worry. These nuts are bound to keep attracting squirrels and eventually I’ll have all the evidence needed to check them all in to a padded hotel for an extra long vacation.

On a more serious note, I want to share with you all something that has been on my mind an awful lot lately.  It’s a touchy subject for me, so bear with it. I just need to talk this out so I don’t end up going crazy. Ok…here goes.

Some of you might know, before I came to live at the Library, I was homeless. That’s right, little old me had no place to call her own. I had no place to sleep, nothing to eat, and no one to call me their own. I was unloved, unwanted, and out on my own.

I don’t really remember my first few months of life, not that many people actually remember that time of their life. They remember the stories told about the things that they had done, the people and places that they had experienced. As for me? I had none of that. No mommy to cuddle me when there was a bad storm. No daddy to read me a story before I drifted off to sleep. It was just me.

I try to not think about that time of my life. I don’t hold many fond memories from then. Getting chased by dogs, soaked in the rain, and fried under the hot sun, aren’t exactly the types of memories that I want to share with all my friends. But I find myself here, telling you my story. I’m not really sure why…I just felt like telling it. I know it will never make a front page headline in the local paper or be a top story on the evening news, but if I can reach the heart of someone…anyone…then I’ll know my story was worth telling.

June 24^th 2010, was the best day of my life. It was sort of a new birthday for me. A chance to start new, a chance to become anyone I wanted… it was a chance for me to find a home. The day was beyond hot. I was exhausted, hungry and at my wits end. I’d been walking for days, just trying to find somewhere I felt safe. At least safe enough to take a quick cat nap. I finally found a place that looked like it would work. I found a shady little spot under a bush and curled up for a much needed nap. The next bit is sort of hazy. It was like one of those dreams where you’re wide awake. I remember being lifted out of my nap and carried inside of a building. Water and bit of food was placed in front of me. I absent mindedly ate it and found my eyes once again starting to droop. I was placed in a chair where I spent the next few hours napping. I awoke to a dark room. No one was around. I explored and discovered I was inside of a library. I was too tired to wonder how I had gotten here, and once again fell asleep. Over the next few days, I came to find out that I was welcome to stay. The people here would feed and water me, they would play games with me, and they would give me a place I could finally call home. There is no amount of hugs and kisses that I can give to tell them all how much I appreciate what they’ve done for me. They made my dream come true. I now have a family, people to love for the rest of my life.

My dream came true… Not many homeless animals are as lucky as me…many die without ever having a home…without knowing how magical a hug can be…without knowing what it is like to look into one of your people’s eyes and see just how much they love you…too many homeless never get to experience this…I’m one of the lucky ones.

I’d like to tell you to all go out and adopt a pet. To go out and find one who needs you…because chances are…that you need them too. But I know not everyone can, for whatever their reason may be. But you can still help. I’d like to give back…a sort of pay-it-forward. I’d like to give to those who have none, when I have so much. I don’t get an allowance. No money to buy things with. But that doesn’t stop my wanting to help. So if you could help me…maybe we can make other animals’ dreams come true. Some dream of homes…some dream of loved ones…but for many…they just dream of food and a safe place to lay their head. Our Local Animal League can give these animals just that. But unfortunately…their supplies are running low. I want to help! I want to help with all my heart! But I can’t.

Maybe you can help for me?!? It’s just a thought. A small thought at that. But maybe that small thought is the difference between a dream dying… and a dream coming true.

Just a thought...

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The Local Animal League is asking for Dog food, Cat food, and Cat litter donations. Donations can be brought to the Valley Center Library to be boxed up and taken to the League.

Donations will be made in Pages’s name and in the name of all animals that have been given a second chance.

Valley Center Public Library

321 W. First

Valley Center, KS 67147

Warning! Crazies are Loose and at the Library

Caroline Gordon once said, “A well-composed book is a magic carpet on which we are wafted to a world that we cannot enter in any other way.”  In the year and a half that I have lived at the library, I have traveled to more destinations than I can even begin to count.  I journeyed back in time to become a knight in King Arthur’s court, I soared at light-speed to fight alongside the Millennium-Falcon, and I even had a duel with the famous Harry Potter. Not only have books taken me on amazing adventures, but the building itself has served as a teleportation device to whisk me away to one of the craziest loony bins in the world. And where is this loony bin? I’m glad you asked. This loony bin is none other than…. THE LIBRARY! Now, I’ve never had it confirmed but I’ve come to the conclusion that in order to be a librarian you must be CRAZY! I swear I work with some pretty crazy coo-coo birds.  Let us take a moment and look at the evidence that I have collected.

 Exhibit A- Kathy

Kathy is your typical “I have the best conversations with myself” type of person. Not a day goes by that I don’t find myself strutting up and down the aisles in search of a good book, than what to my wondering eyes should appear, but Kathy talking away with no one to hear.  This gal can carry on a conversation with herself for hours. And I’m not talking about just chatting; Kathy will get into verbal fights with herself. Now I’m sure she is more likely to be yelling at books that are miss-shelved but I like to think that she’s just crazy and fighting with her imaginary friend.

Exhibit B- Corbin

This guy is constantly being caught doing something CRAZY! Take for instance the other day. I was minding my own business, reading the new magazines that had come in, when all of a sudden a giant black mass went whizzing by my head. I flipped over away from whatever it might be. I heard a quiet “plunk” as the mass landed in my water dish. I slowly crept forward to investigate. I was right on it when I caught a whiff of the foulest odor that I had ever sniffed. The smell was warping my brain. Just seconds before I passed out Corbin reached down to pick it up. I came back from my blackout and saw that he was wearing only one sock. The nasty smell was radiating off of his other sock that he had catapulted into my water dish. Crazy here was trying to wash his socks in my water dish! How absurd of him! But don’t worry. I’ll get him back somehow.

Exhibit C- Erin

Yep, this is Erin! She’s my trusty right hand man… I mean woman. There’s never an adventure that she’s not ready for. But on the crazy scale… She takes the cake!!!! HAHA get it cake, HAHA spider cake! I just crack myself up sometimes!!!! Anyways... this gal is the epitome of crazy. She drips with craziness. If you look up crazy in the dictionary her picture would be next to it.  Erin dresses up in crazy outfits, long skirts and fluffy sleeves. I’m not sure if there isn’t a skirt she hasn’t tripped in or gotten me stuck in. She’s always talking in crazy voices. And the sad thing is… I understand her most of the time. She also has “her” toys.  Toys that I’m not allowed to play with. I just want to read stories with her stuffed dogs, but no, she flips out every time I get close to them. So I just sneak them away at night and leave them around the library. HEHEHE…this really messes with her OCD. I’m so evil. I’d have to say, even with all of this, I’m only scratching the surface to the Erin crazy train.

I’m still working on collecting evidence to prove the crazy level of everyone else. I’ll update you on my findings as I accumulate them. I’m just hoping that I’m not going to start having to wear a hazmat suit so I don’t catch the crazy. I hear it’s contagious.

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It's a Bird...It's a Plane... NO it's BAT KITTY!!!

Dunananana……. Dunananana……. Dunananana…..

BAT KITTY

Faster than a speeding bullet. More cunning than a fox. Able to jump incredible distances in a single bound. Can consume quantities of food larger than herself. Rescuing helpless books as they tumble to the ground. Bringing lost stuffed animals back to their homes. Protecting library patrons from reaching total and complete boredom annihilation.

It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… NO it’s BAT KITTY!!!

                                                

Today’s day started out like any other. I’d had my bowl of milk, and was just settling down to scan through the list of new books. My ears perked up as I heard a *KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK* on my door. “Come in,” I meowed. In walked Erin clutching a picture almost in tears. “You must help me Bat Kitty. Terry’s Hedwig has been owl-napped!”

I listened as she sputtered out all the details. Erin had just walked into the children’s room to shelve some books and upon her return she found this picture and a note saying that we must pay Hedwig’s ransom or Hedwig would be sent to live with Draco Malfoy. 

“Please Bat Kitty! Help me find Hedwig before it’s too late.” I accepted the mission. I felt that it was my duty to save this poor defenseless owl. Plus Erin told me that she’d pay me in treats. So with all the paperwork in order I started my search for the missing owl. The first place I headed was the scene of the crime. For the past two weeks Hedwig has been perched on the top of the Harry Potter Movie Party display, telling patrons about the upcoming events at the library. I dusted for fingerprints. I pounced for footprints. I even sang for something, for anything that might help me find this missing owl. In the end I came up empty pawed. I had given up hope of finding anything that could lead me to Hedwig and started to walk away. Just as I did my tail snagged the corner of the display, bringing it to the ground. When the dust cleared, sitting on the top of the mess was the clue I had been looking for.

I now held in my paw the clue that I needed to solve this mystery. This clue was none other than a picture of the paw of the kidnapper. From here my task was simple. For the next few minutes I slunk around the library taking pictures of who was in the library when the owl-napping had occurred. Now I just had to compare the pictures that I took of their hands to the picture of the owl-napper’s hand. I soon had my answer.

I lined all the suspects up, ready to divulge the conclusion I had come to. “Erin I’m pleased to tell you that I have figured out who the owl-napper is. After much searching and research I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the owl-napper was…… KATHY!” “Muawhahaha. Very good Bat Kitty But you will never find Hedwig. She’s already halfway to Draco’s by now” cackled Kathy. “Oh but I’ve already found her,” gloated Bat Kitty. “That was the simple part. I knew she’d have to be caged to be shipped, and that my cage would be an easy one to use. I checked there and that’s just where I found her.” “You’ve saved her!” squealed Erin. “I would have gotten away with this,” howled Kathy “If it weren’t for you Bat Kitty.”

I placed Kathy in time out to think about what she had done. Erin sat Hedwig back up where she belonged just as Terry came in the door. I’d say today was a successful one. I helped a damsel in distress, freed a caged owl and placed the culprit in timeout. Such is a day in the life of…

Falling Plants, Mutilated Nails and Grinding Teeth

Update from last week. The teen group looked great on their float, however the float gods didn't smile down on them and sadly they didn't win anything.

For today's library news update, the top stories are falling plants, mutilated nails and grinding teeth. Today's work day started off with normal traffic flow no tie ups or crashes down the book shelf asiles. I was throwing together a quick morning work out (I was busy sleeping all night and didn't do my jumping exercises), when Josh came running at me with a very much alive cricket! I jumped up and darted to the top of the information center. This lovely piece of furniture is about 6 feet tall and is just out of jumping distance for the crickets. Now don't get me wrong, I love crickets, just as long as they are wounded or not very active. When they can out jump me, that's when they become a problem. So I was now up on my perch, hiding behind a plant and trying to escape this extra crazy cricket. When I thought that Josh had finaly left me alone I turned around and there he was. I back peddled so fast that I wasn't watching where I was going. I knocked the plant off and brought everyone to a fit of laughter.

I climbed down and tried to settle into my chair, hoping for a nice nap. Erin and Vickie had other plans. Erin pounced on me and tied me down. She gagged my mouth and told me to be quiet. While she did that, Vickie pinched each of my toes, forcing my claws to poke out. She then took out a giant machete and started to hack away at my claws. I squirmed and tried to fight my way out but Erin kept me pinned down. I screamed and hollered to no avail. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they stopped and let me go. My poor toes! My lovely claws that I had worked so hard to grow and sharpen were filed down to nubs. At this point I figured that there was no way that my day could get any worse. But of course, it did.

Just as all the torturing had stopped, the most horrid noise started echoing thoughout the library. A rumbling, growling, terrible screeching filled the air. I ran for cover, scared to know what was coming for me. I knew that this must be the end. My little kitty life was over. A monster was coming to have me for a snack. Tears squeaked out of my pinched closed eyes. This was it... Any second now... It was coming... It was taking longer than I thought...Maybe it stopped to have Erin for a snack on its way to me... Here it comes... Oh come on, where are you already? I opened my eyes and to my relief I realized that the noise had stopped and there was no monster in sight. I crept out of my hiding place. Cautious that it might still be out, I slowly searched the library, unable to find anything that could have made the noise. Just as I was about to give up it started back up again. I flew up into the air. The monster was right in front of me. The only problem was that I couldn't see it. The back door was keeping it outside. I knew that Terry had said that the door was having trouble opening so I figured that I was safe within its hold. I started to let my guard down just as the door swung open. Every hair on my body was standing on end. I could just make out its shadow through the bright light streaming in. I darted away, rushing to save myself. I turned around and saw Erin walking towards the monster! As scared of the monster as I was there was no way I was going to let it eat Erin! I raced towards her, preparing to die for her protection. The monster started to grind its teeth together. I yelled at Erin to get back! That monster was going to eat her! She couldn't hear me over the noise. I darted in between the monster and her. I raised my back and started hissing! The monster quieted. Erin scooped me up, and started telling that it was okay, that it wasn't going to hurt us. I looked out at the monster and realized that it wasn't a monster at all, but the city guys who had come to fix the door. I felt silly for having gotten spooked over nothing. But Erin hugged and thanked me for trying to protect her and I got a treat out of the deal. By now I was exhauasted and just wanted to sleep. Erin set me down and I curled up in my bed. And to think, all this happened before lunch. Lets hope this afternoon is not nearly as eventfull.

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Where Mold Spores Become Golden Nuggets

Over the last week the staff has been running around like chickens with their heads cut off. IT’S FALL FESTIVAL TIME! And just like last year we’re putting a float together. Erin and some of the teen group have been getting together the past two Tuesday nights and have been constructing some really crazy stuff. They connected some pool noodles together and filled the shape with balloons. It looked like she and the teens were building a model of a mold spore. Erin had once again totally confused me with her contraption. I chocked it up to her being a teensy bit crazy, (most librarians are) and went about my business for the evening. An hour or so had passed and I decided that I should probably go and check to make sure that the mold spore hadn’t decided to eat Erin or any of the other teens as a snack. They had covered it with paper mache and it now looked like a lumpy blimp. I was just about to compliment them on their fine art work when a large glob of flour water paste landed on my face. I tried to wipe the gloppy mess off and it got tangled in my whiskers. It covered my paws and I couldn’t flick it off. I walked away hoping to be able to wash it off in the sink. I looked back and I realized that I was leaving little white foot prints everywhere that I went. I screamed, frustrated to be covered in this gloppy mess. Erin was having all the teens clean up the mess, when she heard me making my lament. She took me and washed the goo out of my fur as best as she could. Days later the mold spore blimp was taking further shape. Terry had tied it to a trash can, and Erin, Terry and Alice spray painted it gold. Terry and Alice both agreed that it looked like a golden nugget. Too bad we couldn’t cash it in for a new library. They all started calling it the Golden Globe Award. Everyone on the float is to be dressed like different countries, showing that the whole world is celebrating Valley’s Fall Festival. I’m really hoping we win a prize. The group did last year so the chances are pretty good that we’ll win again. Erin said this year’s float is cooler than last years. Let’s cross our fingers and hope for the best. I’ll keep you updated on our prize status! Until next week…

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