LSA News

No. 71, February, 2006

If you have anything you want in the next newsletter, send it to lsaweb@lists.uoregon.edu .

Index The Grey Matter Contemplates the White Matter The View from Hidden Spring Holiday Potluck Features Good Cheer, Food, and Friends Annual Report of the Library Diversity Committee Building a Digital Library of the Middle East Sale-ing into the Holidays From the Fact File Events of Interest People in the Library

Colorful scarves by Debi Baker for sale at the LSA Holiday Sale

The Grey Matter Contemplates the White Matter
or the Tale of the Third Occasional Tofu Challenge

by Stacy DeHart, photos by Jennifer Rowan and Stacy DeHart

On Thursday, December 1, LSA sponsored the Third "Occasional" Tofu Challenge. It is called "occasional," of course, because no one knows when or if the next challenge will take place. The Challenge originated in 2002 when former preservation technician Jan Roberson regularly contributed some extremely (as far as the tofu judging world is concerned) tasty tofu jerky to departmental potlucks. When it was learned that Jan was to leave the employ of the library the jerky treats were to be missed, hence the challenge to replicate the delicacy. Visions of the food replicators on Star Trek (any generation), and The Jetsons come to mind.

Andrew Huot with his prizewinning dish

This theme of this year’s challenge was Thai Tofu. Entries were placed in the categories of entree, appetizer, jerky, and "tofu fusion," which means not able to be categorized. The organizer of the event, Marilyn Mohr, said that the theme was in honor of the gift of books from the Thai Royal Family, and the fact that Andrew Huot of the Beach Conservation Lab had recently returned from Thailand with his wife and many tasty Thai recipes.

This years winners are:

• Entree: Andrew Huot's Masuman Curry with Tofu
• Jerky: a two-way tie for Marilyn Mohr's Land of Smiles Green, and Red, Curry Jerkies
• Appetizer: Stacy DeHart's Tofu Spring Rolls with Lime Peanut Dipping Sauce
• Tofu Fusion: Lisa Sieracki's Spicy Tofu Spinach Dip

Other participants in the challenge were Sylvia Worrix with a Chocolate Dream non-Thai Pie, Jennifer Rowan with her Ginger Sesame Lime marinated Tofu and Michelle Page with her Tasty Thai Tofu. Please forgive any exclusion.

Winners received a lovely magnet depicting members of the Thai Royal Family in a stylized 60's era TV screen, and a $5.00 gift card to Trader Joe's.

Marilyn Mohr lights the torch

The overall winner of the last Challenge was to have passed on the "Tofu Torch" award to the new winner; however it was inadvertently tossed out when the plant pot it was stuck in got thrown out when the plant recently died.

This year's overall winner, Andrew Huot, received a temporary torch in the shape coffee stirrer snatched from the administrative kitchen area. Andrew is to pass off the new torch before he leaves the library at the next anticipated Tofu Challenge.

Breaking news!!
The Tofu Torch was recently recovered from some secure undisclosed location, and was delivered to the new bearer. Considered by many to be the Holy Grail of Tofu cooking contest prizes, the Tofu Torch was returned with a new match shoved firmly into the calcified tofu crown of the torch, ready for the next lighting which took place recently on the loading dock so as to not set off any water sprinklers.

For more photos from the Tofu Challenge click here

The View from Hidden Spring

by Pam DeLaittre

Sometimes we do feel "married" to the farm; it's hard to leave that many critters in someone else's hands. It's a big responsibility. But almost never do I wish I could just flick it all in. These are my friends: they welcome me home, complain at me when I'm slow, bump and push me in their eagerness to get to their grain and hay. The horses whinny at me to hurry with the "goodies" topped with carrots. The dogs are eager to "do" chores. They run and play on the way over to the barns. But even they are tired of the weather, and run from one barn to the next to hurry under cover.

The monsoon-like weather has been and is being really trying. The first major rains caused mud flows down the driveway from the horses' turn-out space, spouting gopher holes babbling like little brooks. A small creek flowed under the feed stall pallets and into Rainy's stall, floating her 100-pound-plus stall mats. It was a challenge to decide if she was better outside standing in mud or standing in water in her stall.

(story continued)

Holiday Potluck Features Good Cheer, Food, and Friends

The delectable dessert table

The Library Staff Association Social Committee once again provided a wonderful setting for the December 2005 Holiday Potluck. The color scheme of blue and white was reminiscent not only of Hanukkah colors, but also of the fact that the temperature was still hovering around freezing! Nevertheless, inside the Browsing Room the mood was warm. The golden-panelled walls were bedecked with fairy lights, the tables and windows were festive with greenery, and rolled napkins in the shape of candles stood ready on the tables. The long serving tables were full of food, and people could be heard to say how glad they were to see a particular dish again this year, reminiscing about recipes old and new as they waited to load their plates. One recipe that got raves from everyone who tried it was Liesl Vorderstrasse's Yummy Sweet Potatoes. Light and lemony, it was more like a dessert than a side dish. With so many good cooks in the library, it could be time to come out with a third edition of an LSA cookbook.

Jo-Anne Flanders, Paul Harvey, Linda Zimmerman, and Lisa Sieracki

Perhaps it's true that our profession is aging? The Potluck seemed to feature more retirees than ever feasting and socializing with current library employees. Rosemary Batori, Jean Murphy, Linda Zimmerman, and the inimitable Jo-Anne Flanders were just a few seen chatting and munching. Considering the many activities in which they indulge now that they don't have day jobs, it was good to see they don't plan on forgetting old friends.

Interested in finding out what we used to cook up around here? There are copies of the Cake 'n Cooky Cookbook of 1961 in both the Knight Library and the Oregon Collection (TX771 .C35 1961). The Oregon Collection also holds the Library Staff Association Cookbook, 1987 (TX715.2.P32 L53 1987).

For more photos from the potluck click here

Annual Report of the Library Diversity Committee

submitted by James D. Fox

The diversity environment at the University of Oregon over the past eighteen months has been a dynamic one, which saw far-reaching initiatives launched. Within this context the Library Diversity Committee had a productive year. We set an ambitious agenda for ourselves and, I am pleased to say, we accomplished a great deal. The Committee was involved in a wide range of activities from exhibitions to sponsoring workshops and developing a long-range diversity plan for the Library. The Committee's activities made a positive contribution to the evolving diversity climate on campus and in the library.

Exhibitions

Exhibit — The Many Faces of Oregon's Workers, circa 1900-1940

This exhibit featured photographs from Special Collections and books from the Library's collections to document the contributions made by African American, Asian, Hispanic, and Native American men and women to the cultural and economic development of our state. A web version of this exhibit was developed as a permanent part of Special Collections & University Archives' on-line presentations, and can be viewed at http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/exhibits/manyfaces/index.html.

Exhibit — Ping Yang on the Mohawk: The Forgotten Asians of Marcola, Oregon

This exhibit in the Browsing Room display cases, featuring the historical research and photographs of Stephen Williamson, documented some local Asian communities and events in the Mohawk Valley from 1895-1925.

Film series — A series of five films from the Library's Video Collection were shown as a complement to the Many Faces exhibit:

• Yours for Liberty: Abigail Scott Duniway
• Hatiya (Wind): Voices of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
• American Cowboys
• The Oregon Story: Agricultural Workers
• Family Gathering

(story continued)

Workshop Report:
Building a Digital Library of the Middle East

by Dale Smith
University of Oregon Computing Center

I recently returned from a workshop called “A Digital Library of the Middle East,” which was held at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt, January 15 to 17. This workshop was sponsored by the U.S./Egypt Joint Fund, the Egyptian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.

Interior of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (Photos by Dale Smith)

A primary goal of the workshop was to develop a vision and mission statement and to identify key issues in developing a regional digital library of the Middle East with an initial focus on cultural heritage resources. The workshop format was group lecture and breakout work groups. The group lectures provided background and content in a number of areas, including some fascinating discussion of a variety of issues ranging from digital cataloging of cuneiform tablets to discussions of the difficulty of digitizing and providing searchable Arabic texts. The workgroups focused on four topical areas: Building a Shared Vision, Policies and Promoting Participation; Content, Collections and Users; Network Infrastructure; and Interoperability and Digital Library Standards. I was invited to assist with planning and strategizing about the network infrastructure that would be required to support networks of collaborators and users including researchers, content providers, educators, and the general public.

The workshop had almost 50 attendees, about half from Egypt and half from the U.S. There were also attendees from the UK and Taiwan. A draft report will be available in 6 to 8 weeks. Additional information can be found at the Middle East Digital Library workshop site.

Dale Smith visits the Pyramids

In addition to participating in the workshop, I spent a half day in Cairo meeting with representatives from the Ministry of Communications, the national Egyptian University Network, and the Egyptian National Science and Technical Information Network to discuss strategies for developing research and education networks that would serve the needs of the Egyptian community.

Editor's note: Dale Smith, Director of Network Services at the University of Oregon, is the Principal Investigator for the National Science Foundation grant that provides core funding for the Network Startup Resource Center (NSRC). The NSRC provides technical information, engineering assistance, training, and equipment to research institutions and networking organizations in developing areas. The primary goal is to make it easier for American scientists and engineers, and those in developing areas, to collaborate via the Internet. It provided assistance in establishing the first Internet connectivity to Egypt in 1993. Dale's paper, Networking Issues For A Digital Library of the Middle East, was one of the scholarly papers delivered at the workshop described in this story.

For readers interested in learning more about digital libraries, information about University of Oregon's digital library collections can be found at UO Libraries' About UO Digital Library Collections page.

For more photos from Egypt click here

Sale-ing into the Holidays

Sheila Gray goes on a shopping spree

Holiday shoppers found lots to attract them at the LSA Holiday Sale. Paintings, knit items of various types, pottery, hand-made books, and blankets were just a few of the items on sale. As usual, the rummage table was a big hit. Andrew Huot's three-dimensional cards drew a lot of comments. Baked items were popular, and the home-canned preserves nearly sold out.

This year's dessert raffle was a dense and sumptuous German cheesecake with raisins and lemon. Donated by Harriett Smith, it was won by Marion Obar, who shared it with her department, apparently setting off a chain reaction of monthly cheesecake offerings in MDLS.

The Library Staff Association made $197 from the Sale. The 10% commission on items sold netted $55, while the dessert raffle brought in $64, and $78 was brought in for 2005-2006 LSA dues.

For more photos from the sale click here

From the Fact File

by Terry McQuilkin

Shakespeare on Love

Valentine's Day is approaching, and along with it, thoughts of love, so we thought we'd see what the Bard had to say on the subject. Below are observations on love and love lines uttered by characters in Shakespeare's plays, each followed by a short clue. Each quote is from a different play; tell us which play from which the lines are taken.

1. Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind,
   And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.
   
   (The comedy in which the above lines are spoken incorporates three separate plots that are connected by a wedding. Fairies abound. In the mid-twentieth century English composer Benjamin Britten wrote an opera based on this play.)
2. Doubt thou the stars are fire
      Doubt that the sun doth move,
   Doubt truth to be a liar,
      But never doubt I love.
   
   (The title character of this tragedy penned these words in a letter to his beloved, although they are read aloud by someone else.)
3. Dead Shepherd, now I find thy saw of might:
   'Who ever loved that loved not at first sight?'
   
   (These lines are from a pastoral comedy. The shepherdess who speaks these words quotes from a poem by Christopher Marlow, who is the "dead shepherd" to whom she refers.)
4. Love sought is good, but given unsought is better.
   
   (Taken from a comedy in which mistaken identity plays a central role, the above lines are spoken by a countess who falls in love with a woman disguised as a man.)
5. Speak of me as I am. Nothing extenuate,
   Nor set down aught in malice. Then must you speak
   Of one that loved not wisely but too well…
   
   (The title character who speaks this words, deceived and driven to murder his wife, says them before taking his own life.)
6. But love is blind, and lovers cannot see.
   The pretty follies that themselves commit
   For if they could, Cupid himself would blush
   To see me transformed to a boy.
   
   (In this play, the woman who speaks the above lines has disguised herself as a boy in order to elope.)
7. Some Cupid kills with arrows, some with traps.
   
   (The speaker is remarking that her efforts to trick Beatrice into admitting that she loves Benedick have succeeded.)
   
8. My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
   My love as deep: the more I give to thee,
   The more I have: for both are infinite.
   
   (There have been many film adaptations of this tragic love story. The title character whose lines appear above has been played by [among others], Norma Shearer in the 1930's, Olivia Hussey in the 1960's and Claire Danes in the 1990's.)

After you have identified the eight plays from which these words are drawn, submit your answers to Fact File. The deadline for submissions is February 24. The winner will be determined by the number of correct answers; in the event of a tie, a single winner will be selected by lot. The winner will receive a gift certificate worth $10.00 toward purchases at the U.O. Bookstore, courtesy of the Library Staff Association. All staff and faculty of the University of Oregon Libraries are invited to participate, although the winner of the most recent Fact File contest is ineligible to win this contest's prize.

Events of Interest

As well as featuring upcoming LSA events, we'd like to get the word out about events staff are involved in that might be of interest to co-workers. If you'd like the world, or at least your co-workers, to know about something cool coming up, please email Harriett Smith or lsaweb.

LSA EVENTS

MARCH 9, 2006: LSA sponsors the Introduction to Bookbinding workshop from 5 to 7 p.m. in Studio A. Never made a book before but always wanted to try? This workshop, led by the Beach Lab's Andrew Huot, will teach you the techniques to start making your own books and pamphlets. We will make a variety of different book structures that you can use for gifts, small notebooks, journals, or art projects. No experience is necessary, and all are encouraged to join in. Andrew Huot has been binding, repairing, and restoring books and making artist books since 1990. He has taught workshops and classes throughout the Northwest. There is a 15-person limit for this workshop. Please email Andrew or phone him at 6-0761 to register.

JUNE, 2006: Get your act together! June and the climactic afternoon of Gonzo Revue 2006 will be here sooner than you may think. Begin your preparations now in order to dazzle us all. Not sure what kind of act to perform? Ask a co-worker or email David McCallum.

NON-LSA EVENTS

FEBRUARY 2006: Donna Pellinger is on the board of Readin' in the Rain, and the UO Libraries is among the sponsoring organizations. Donna invites us to "discover new ideas, flavors, and friends with the award-winning Arab-American love story Crescent, by Diana Abu-Jaber". The Umbrella Opening for Readin' in the Rain is Friday, February 3, and there are events and book discussions scheduled all during the month. Check the website for more details, or contact Donna.

FEBRUARY 9, 2006: The Eugene Symphony will be performing Brahms' "A German Requiem" at 8 p.m. in the Silva concert hall of the Hult Center for the Performing Arts. This lush and moving piece is a favourite with audience and performers alike. As usual, you will spot Harriett Smith and retiree Jean Murphy in the ranks of the chorus. The orchestra will also perform the Haydn Symphony No. 100 in G Major, "Military". Tickets through the Hult.

MARCH 11-12, 2006: The Special Olympics State Competitions for basketball and powerlifting will be in Springfield. Volunteers are needed for everything from scorekeeping to distributing lunches to assisting with awards ceremonies to chaperoning the big dance on Saturday night. To manage an event such as this, there are 4-hour shifts, all day Saturday and at least in the morning on Sunday. If you are interested or would like further information, please email Paul Harvey in CMET, or phone him at 346-1828. Last year several people from the Libraries volunteered, and had a great time.

People in the Library

Welcome:

Goodbye:

Congratulations:

"Roll on Columbia: Woody Guthrie and the Bonneville Power Administration", a documentary produced and directed by Michael Majdic of Media Services, was screened on December 16, 2005 in Washington, D.C. at the National Archives McGowan Theater. See http://www.archives.gov/dcmetro/events/december.html#roll. "Roll on Columbia" aired on at least 59 different public television stations across the country during the initial season of the "Natural Heroes" series, put together by KRCB/Los Angeles. The documentary can be checked out for viewing at the Reserves and Videos desk. The call number is VIDEOTAPE 05138.

photo courtesy of Media Services

In Memorium:

Anastasia "Stacie" Jasper, former technical services assistant for the Law Library, died of heart failure on Sunday, January 22, in Eugene. She was 68.

"Stacie's sudden death is a shock to all of us," said Dennis Hyatt, former director of the Law Library. "I saw her shortly before Christmas, and she was her usual bright and cheerful self."

Stacie moved to Eugene from California with her husband Joe in 1990. Shortly after she arrived, she began work in the University Library, and in 1992, she transferred to the Law Library where she served as acquisitions assistant for almost ten years. "Stacie was a wonderful work colleague," reports Dennis. "She was always willing to try new procedures, to make us more efficient in getting the materials the library wanted, and to help the rest of us stay calm and sane. I remember how her steadfast hard work and upbeat attitude were especially important to us when we moved operations from the old law school to the new law center in 1999."

Stacie retired in 2002 in order to travel and to see her family more often. In 2003, she toured England to visit some of the historic places and gardens she had always dreamed of seeing. She and Joe traveled to California several times to see their son Chris and daughter Alison and their grandchildren. Stacie and Joe's son Jon lives in Eugene.

Been to an interesting conference?

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Last updated: 2 February, 2006
lsaweb@lists.uoregon.edu