Midnight Ramblings

This is the nerdiest thing I'm ever going to say.

I've been trying to get out to the library more.

See, about a year ago, the Entwistle Library was amalgamated with the Entwistle School Library. I was one of the ones lobbying for the change. On paper, it just made sense. Firstly, the Entwistle Library is now open regular hours. It's open whenever the school's open. That is a lot more functional than the original hours: 10-12 on Saturday Morning, 6-8 on Wednesday night.

Plus, now, they have a real, competent librarian working there. In the Province of Alberta, they have this wonderful system now where you can check-out books online. I go to the website, request the book I want, and in about a week, I get a call from the library saying that the book is now in and I can go pick it up. Thanks to having a real, competent librarian working, the Entwistle Library now actually uses this system and I can request a book pretty much from any library in the province, and have it in the Entwistle Library in about a week.

And, seeing as to how I was one of the ones lobbying for all this to happen, I figured it was finally time to partake.

Right now, I'm about halfway through Downsize This by Michael Moore. This is Moore's first book. It came out in 1996, and I've always wanted to read it. I figured it was a good one to start my newfound use of the library. It's OK...granted, as it is 9 years old, it is somewhat dated. Analyses of the OJ Simpson trial, a call to have the "Rodney King 5th Anniversary Commemerative Riot," and ripping apart Bill Clinton for being too right-wing are so...well, 1996. It doesn't seem as well thought-out as Stupid White Men. A lot of it seems like just the average guy venting. But it's still good, and still has some good points.

In the weeks ahead, I'm going to have to watch The Big One again. For those who don't remember, the Big One was Moore's third movie, in which he chronicled his book tour plugging Downsize This. The more I read Downsize This, the more it feels like The Big One is just the movie version.

And then, today, from the library, I get a call telling me that my next book is in. I'm going to have to start reading faster. Next up is Silent Bob Speaks: the Collected Writings of Kevin Smith. You know I'm just a big fan of Kevin Smith's, and this is his first book that came out back in the spring. It's nothing fancy, it's just a compilation of essays and articles he's written over the years for various magazines and websites. It has an interview he conducted with Tom Cruise, some ruminations and rants for indie film mags, and his complete Jersey Girl production blog - all 3 entries. I've already been leafing through it. It looks to be a very easy read, and damn funny.

I'm going to have to get my best friend to read Smith's review of the Star Wars prequels. Smith wrote it in the summer of 2002, right when Attack of the Clones came out, and he writes why exactly he is loving the prequels.

That essay is called "Defender of the Faith."