An Announcement

Hello, dear readers! I am very excited to announce the news that I received today. I'll give you a hint: columns.



Not enough? How about another: massively awesome reading room.



Still not sure? Okay, I'll tell you. This summer I will be interning in Washington, D.C. at the Library of Congress!!!!!! :)



I am SUPER DUPER excited about this, more than I can put into words! I will be a part of their 2011 Junior Fellows Summer Intern program, likely working on something called the Ptolemy Project helping the LOC researchers in the preservation and rare books departments examine a hand-colored "Geographia" atlas from the year 1513. I cannot believe that this incredible opportunity has come my way! I hope and think that I will learn so much from the LOC staff about preservation, conservation, the study of rare materials, etc.

So, that is my news! :) I will certainly miss being in the Chicago area for the summer, but I think it will definitely be worth it!!

Recently...

Life has been rather busy! I have been doing lots of homework and hanging out with friends....so, I mean, that doesn't sound that complicated, but I feel like I haven't had any free time lately for some reason! So here are some pictures that describe what I have been doing for the past few weeks:

1. Buying presents! It was my sister-in-law's birthday a few weeks ago, and since I found out that I am going to be an aunt (!!!), I included a little something for my future niece or nephew with her present, pictured below.




2. Hanging out with my awesome roommate, who bought me these super adorable owl pillows!




3. Cooking!! Since I made those Snickerdoodle Cupcakes I have been on a roll! I made home made onion straws, hamburgers (for the 1st time ever!), and a baked pasta dish (a recipe from my sis-in-law). So far I am pleased with the results, apparently my years of watching nothing but the Food Network are finally paying off...lol!



4. Reading! I don't have a picture for this, but I have been reading comics, YA books, and much more for my classes. I've also been reading for fun using my new Nook Color e-reader, which I ADORE! I will post a full review of its features soon, but so far my favorite thing about it is that I can read magazines in stunning color (seriously), and use the internet/listen to Pandora radio. I also recently read "Black Heels and Tractor Wheels" by Ree Drummond (aka The Pioneer Woman) and adored it! She is a clever and fun writer, and the story of how she met and married her husband and transitioned from being a vegetarian city girl to a carnivorous country wife is really entertaining.

So, that's all for now. Hopefully soon I will have time to put together a few posts that aren't quite so random! :)

The Tale of the Voynich Manuscript

With all of the research that has been done on nearly every aspect of our history, it is sometimes surprising to hear that there are still some artifacts and events that escape our understanding. I learned about one such artifact from a classmate who did research on something called the Voynich Manuscript for their final project.

According to Wikipedia (and my classmate), "The Voynich manuscript is a handwritten book thought to have been written in the 15th or 16th century and comprising about 240 vellum pages,[notes 1] most with illustrations. The author, script, and language remain unknown: for these reasons it has been described as "the world's most mysterious manuscript".[1]" Here are some of the images contained within:







Aren't those cool?? There are tons of conspiracy theories surrounding this manuscript. Its ownership can be traced for its entire history except for 200 years when no one knows where it was or what happened to it. Various testing and dating has proven that the manuscript's parchment and ink are authentic to the time period that it is supposedly from (the 15th or 16th century). No one, and I mean no one, has yet been able to decipher the language or code that this manuscript is written in. I am fascinated by this! How, in all this time, has no one been able to figure out what it's about? Is it real? Is it a fake? Does it mean anything at all? Does it contain some sort of astounding secret, or if we ever decipher it will it just tell us something obvious, like poison ivy is poisonous? It's a mystery...

Working...

Project number 1 of 4:



This is for my Preservation class, as part of a presentation on the preservation of cartographic materials (aka maps). I took this last night before I finished it, and since then have added some "tips" to it as well.

I also took a break from working last night to buy this:



All I have to say so far is this: if I could listen to the prelude on repeat all day every day, I would. The rest of the CD was amazing also, though, so I wouldn't want to do that!! Josh Groban wrote or co-wrote nearly every song on the album and plays piano for almost all of them too, and I'm pretty sure it's my favorite album of his to date. I DEFINITELY have to see him on tour, because if the album is any indication, it's gonna be off the chain!!! ....well, as off the chain as Josh Groban gets, which is pretty civilized. We'll put it this way: at every concert of his that I've been to, I've been within spitting distance of someone who is carting around an oxygen tank...lol.

Painting Water

You must watch this:

http://www.wimp.com/paintingwater/

I'm sorry it's just a link, I tried to embed the video (I even searched on how to do it!) but the code isn't working for some reason. At any rate, this is a guy doing an awesome job marbling paper, something that I learned about in my Paper in the Scholarly World class. You need (as you can see) a tray for the water which has been treated with (usually) something called carrigeenan, which comes from a plant. Then you can drip pigments/paints which have been treated with oxgall (literally stuff that comes from the gall bladder of an ox....appetizing, no? lol) onto the water, where they will float. You can then use various tools, combs, etc. to manipulate the pigments to make cool designs, then gently place a piece of paper that has been treated with allum (another chemical) onto the top of the water. Ta-da, marbled paper! It's often used to cover the boards of books, and/or as endsheets on books.

In somewhat related news, I just started my bookbinding class today and I. Love. It. so much! :) There will be many pictures and a big post to come at the end of the week. I know, you're all really excited to hear more dorky book stuff, don't all tell me at once. hehehe :)

Goals

Since summer is almost over and the completion of my master's degree finally seems attainable (I'll be done in May 2011), I have decided that it's time to set some goals for myself. I want to make the most of library school, and so by posting them here I hope that I will be more likely to really stick to them! I *usually* stick to my guns pretty well, but it's nice to have an extra incentive, like the thought of people reading this blog later if I update on progress, and, well, if I haven't made any progress I would feel judged by the internet at large. lol. So, without further ado, here we go!

GOAL 1: get in shape/eat healthy very strictly until the end of 2010

This goal is already going pretty well. Part of this has to do with the fact that I need to fit into the clothes I already own, since a) one of them is the bridesmaid's dress for my brother's wedding in September and b) I can't afford to buy new clothes! I would also like to be a more active person, get outside and all that, and eating vegan really helps with eating healthy (although knowing that Oreos are technically vegan has SO not helped...lol). As for eating vegan, I've been doing pretty well, but haven't been extremely strict with myself over the past few weeks. I'd say I'm eating about 75-80% completely vegan, and the other % are just random things, like cupcakes for my friend's birthday, or butter that was already on some pre-prepared frozen garlic bread. But, the goal of getting in shape/eating healthy will be a joint one, as I am moving in with a friend and have been staying with her the past few weeks, and we are planning our meals and working out together!

GOAL 2: gain technological skills useful to future employment/continue professional development

Now, my mom thinks I'm pretty tech-savvy already. I love her very much, but she is not the greatest relative judge of my technological skills, lol! Since I have planned out my library school path anticipating that I will be able to get a job in a rare books-related position, particularly focusing on preservation and conservation, I haven't taken many classes focused solely on technological skills. I hope to broaden my knowledge of technology through my own study, including learning basic HTML, photoshop, and web-design skills. I don't know if this is a realistic goal or not, having not had much experience with technology, but I know that in many library positions I will soon be applying for that familiarity with many kinds of technology is a must and will (hopefully!) give me an edge over other applicants. In addition, I hope to keep volunteering at the preservation/conservation lab, and hopefully to research and apply for internships for the spring semester before I graduate.

GOAL 3: begin researching PhD/second master's programs

I have already started doing this, but what I really need to "research" is the amount of student loans I currently have VS how expensive it would be to get a second master's or even a PhD. A lot of rare books jobs call for a PhD or a second master's degree on top of your master's in library sciences, and so I think it would be wise to at least consider this option in planning for future employment. I think I'd like to get some "real-world" experience first, but if I can't find a job in my field maybe going back to school WOULD be the best option. I just have SO. MANY. student loans, and so the thought of trying to pay for school literally blows my mind. So that's something I need to explore, especially because taking careful inventory of my existing loans will help me when I have to start paying them back, which is pretty soon (right after I graduate).

That's all I can think of for now! :)

Library Math

There are many ways that math shows up in the world around us. For example, take a look at this:



I know, I know. Just from that sentence and picture you're thinking to yourself "Jess? Is that you? YOU DON'T MATH! WHO HAS YOU KIDNAPPED?!?" lol. And the best part is, that isn't even the entire equation! Here's the tail end:



Now to you folks who actually know math and stuff, this probably doesn't look like much. But when one of my professors earlier this summer put this on the board during a lecture I was like "I'm done for!" Surprisingly, this formula was actually pretty easy to understand once it was explained.

These mysterious equations are what is known in the library cataloging/bibliography world as a collational formula. Perhaps you are familiar with the term "collate" or "collated" when it comes to printing? The collational formula is a set way for bibliographers or catalogers to describe a book's physical contents in terms of # of pages, # of "signatures" or groups of pages, and some other factors. Let me break it down for ya'll.

Part 1: The beginning.



The "pi" symbol is used in place of what are called "unsigned leaves." Maybe you have opened a book before and seen blank pages at the beginning? Pi and the number "attached" to it indicate the number of "unsigned" leaves (or pages) at the beginning of the book. It is important to note that there could be things written on the pages; what is meant by "unsigned" is that most old, hand printed books had letters and numbers at the bottom of the pages so that printers and bookbinders would know what order the pages went in. But, since title pages, table of contents, etc. sometimes say the number of pages or page number where something appears in the book, they had to be printed LAST not first, which is why they were unsigned. I hope that made sense. Then the small letters a-c indicates pages/signatures that have been signed with these lowercase letters; again, these pages are likely a table of contents, list of illustrations, preface, forward, author's note, etc. etc.

Part 2: The text itself!




The A-K and K-U and U-Z indicate something interesting to note about hand printed books. As I mentioned before, printers had to have a way to indicate the order in which the signatures, or tiny groups of pages, would be stacked and then sewn together by bookbinders. They used the alphabet, "numbering" the bottoms of pages beginning with the capital letter A1 (usually; every printer had their own system, though). Then you will see A2, A3, A4, etc., usually until the fold or middle of the signature. Think of a signature like this: imagine a small stack of regular old computer paper, let's say 3 pages. If you folded that small stack in half you would then be able to "number" the pages A1, A2, etc., but ONLY on the FRONT of each page. So the "cover" of your tiny pamphlet would be A1, then the next page (NOT the reverse side) is A2, etc.

Wow this is kind of confusing to type out.

But anyway, the numbers after the letters indicate how many pages are in each signature, and the letters "J" and either "U" or "V" are always skipped because those letters didn't used to exist in the old English alphabet!

Part 3: the additional signatures



You may be thinking to yourself, "but what about long books with more than 24 signatures? how did they get to the end of the alphabet then keep going?" Additional signatures and their pages were noted by Aa, or AA, or aa, or whatever new combo the printer came up with (again, each one was different).

Part 4: The final notes!!



These notes tell us a little more about the book. For example, the (*4) indicates that there are 4 "signed" leaves in each signature. So, if we were looking at the book, in the first signature (again, a group of pages) we would see A1, then A2, then A3, then A4, and then nothing on the next few pages until we got to B1. The plus/minus "C" part indicates a cancel. A cancel is when somebody messed up while printing, or there was offensive material, or some unforseen problem with the text, so they would have to go through each and every page with the "cancellandum" or "error" and take it out, and replace it with a "cancellans" or "correction." It could be a letter, a paragraph, or even an entire page. The letter "C" indicates that the cancellans in this book was on the 6th leaf of the "C" signature.

So that is it!! Library math! It's not EXACTLY math, but to me it seems like math, so that's what I'm going to call it. Thanks for bearing with me if you've read this far......I think it's really interesting but I'm sure I'm the only one, lol! Bibliographers and catalogers use this formula to keep careful records of the structure of their books, especially if someone has to take them apart for repairs, digital scanning, etc. It makes it much easier when you're putting it back together to have a thorough formula to work from!

Mac VS PC?

Dear technically minded friends: I need your help!!!

Since I am going to be switching to U of I's online program in January, and will hopefully have a little extra loan money this summer/fall, I am thinking about buying a new computer or laptop, probably laptop. Though I have had no end of trouble with every single PC I have ever bought, I am hesitant about buying a Mac just because of the cost.

So....help! Which is better, Mac or PC? Which is cheaper? Is cheaper really better? I really want a Mac, so are there any discounts or anything on Macs that you know of? What about getting a netbook plus an external hard drive? Leave your comments please! :)

Preservation & Conservation

I had a really good time volunteering at the Preservation and Conservation lab today! Since we do (what I think is) some pretty neat stuff, I thought that I would take some pictures and give a play-by-play of what I do there :) Get ready for a journey of AWESOMENESS!! lol :)

1. I walk to the lab, and put on my apron! I used to use the aprons they had there, but I got one for my birthday from World Market (pictures below). I think it is so pretty! My favorite part is the pink rickrack on the pockets and bottom hem. It's almost too pretty to get dirty with leather red rot, glue, and various other hazards of book repair. ALMOST. lol.





2. Once I put on my apron I set up my workstation. I usually lay down a piece of heavy brown craft paper to cover my desk so that I don't get the desk dirty, it makes cleaning up all the little pieces of paper, book, and dust much easier! I also take out my toolkit (pictures below). It contains many things with which I was totally unfamiliar, some that I was like "oh yeah I know what a paintbrush is" (lol), and some that I was surprised to find (like a scalpel!). I have various paintbrushes, a ruler, scissors, a scalpel, a bone folder, a teflon folder, sandpaper, a needle, waxed thread, a book knife, 2 spatulas (one small one large) and some other things I'm sure I am forgetting! I also make sure my station has a cutting mat, a container of PVA (aka white glue), and a small cup of water for dirty brushes. Sometimes I change the blade on my scalpel. That part is scary. lol




3. I go back to my shelf (which is where I keep my toolkit and any works in progress) and take out the books I am working on. When I got to the lab today I was in the middle of working on 3 books, and am now in the middle of working on 5! Because I am still learning I still need my supervisor to walk me through pretty much every step, and when she goes on lunch/while various glued things are drying I sometimes run out of things to do, hence starting 2 more books today. So, in the next steps we will go through the repair I am learning how to do!


4. The repair I am learning is called a Princeton 305. This is what the books generally look like when I start working on them:




As you can see, the spines are usually falling off, and the boards are either completely detached or falling off. I begin by taking off the spine, and removing the boards (careful not to cut too short some strings that sometimes attach the textblock/pages to the boards).

5. Then, for the leather-bound books, I detach the leather from the ends of the boards. Depending on how badly damaged the leather is, sometimes you have to remove the leather entirely to replace it, but in the picture below the leather has remained intact.



6. I then use something called methyl cellulose to scrape down the spine of the book. I put the book in a press (I think they're called presses....lol) so that I have both my hands free, then I use a paintbrush to brush the methyl cellulose on. I let it sit for a few minutes to soften the paper and glue that are on the spine, and then use my spatula to scrape it down! Depending on the book this can either take me a few minutes or close to an hour...lol I had some difficult ones, like the original 3 I was working on, but the one I started today was not too bad.





7. After I scrape down the spine, I make sure I have sanded down the inside of the boards so the old endsheets (paper attaching the boards to the inside of the book, usually blank pages at the beginning and end of books) are not too bulky. Then I glue new endsheets onto the textblock. This got tricky on one of my original 3 books, because one of the signatures, or group of pages, fell off! I then got to sew it back on, which is actually what I did when I first got to the lab today. It was really hard. And totally awesome!



8. After the endsheets are glued onto the textblock, I glue down new supercloth, which reinforces the shape of the book's spine. I then glue a piece of paper on top of the supercloth (which, as far as I can tell, is for more reinforcement? And also, eventually, to glue the spine back on).

9. There are more steps, but maybe I will wait until next week to post them, because this entry is really long and I also don't completely remember them all, as I have not totally completed a repair of this kind before! The books I did before these 5 were just spine repairs. Thanks for reading if you got this far!! lol :)

Web 2.0, Library Skillz (that's right, with a z) and more

So tonight in one of my GSLIS (grad school) classes we had a discussion about Web 2.0, and the importance of keeping up to date with technology and technology related skills in the field of library and information sciences. One of the things we discussed was blogs, both related to the field and personal. My friend/classmate Emily and I both keep blogs and, without discussing it first, had both decided during this discussion to blog about tonight's class and share it on our course web page :)

One thought I had during class tonight that I wasn't sure when to share was how daunting all of this Web 2.0 technology seems to me. I often browse library and LIS-related job ads to see what the descriptions say and what I would be comfortable applying for. Many, if not most of these job ads list web design skills or familiarity as requirements for the job. Now, my mother may think that I'm some sort of computer guru because I know how to update my Facebook status, but I know pretty much nothing about web design. I can use very rudimentary HTML code, like I could probably make something bold for example, but that's about as far as my knowledge reaches. We talked about web design and other technological skills and how things such as database and other code-related topics are covered in some of GSLIS's classes. However, since I am doing our program's Certificate in Special Collections, I try to take as many rare book/special collections classes as I can while I am here. So while some people may be taking say, community informatics over the summer, I am taking Bookbinding and Paper in the Scholarly World, two classes which will likely do next to nothing to advance my technological skill set!

I'm so torn when it comes to technology in libraries. I hope someday to work in a museum or library in a preservation/conservation related job, and though digital preservation is obviously becoming hugely important to this field, I don't know enough about these kinds of jobs to say how necessary technological skills will be to any future job I may hold. With the wealth of information and tutorials available on topics such as HTML, web design, and even using YouTube, Facebook, and other social media sites, I feel like if I put aside the time and effort I could probably attempt to teach myself some rudimentary skills in these areas. However, the approach I have taken so far to my education is that 1. Old books will only continue to get older as time advances and 2. The people who know now how to preserve these old books won't be around forever, so someone has to pick up the torch. I'm hoping that by learning the somewhat specialized skills involved in the preservation and conservation of books and documents I will be marketable when it comes time to find a job, but I do worry realistically about the fact that I will be a new library school grad with very little experience with technology (not to mention very little job experience on my resume, as graduate assistantships here are harder to find than Carmen Sandiego).

So.....that's my 2 cents and more on the topic of technology! As you can probably tell from my previous entries, this blog doesn't often deal with library issues and I probably won't ever market it as a library-related blog, but I will occasionally blog on library stuff just because I enjoy it so much :) below is a list of library blogs I read, and I don't know how to make them hyperlinks so if anyone can clue me in on that that would be great! :) lol

BLOGS:

1. Awful Library Books at http://awfullibrarybooks.wordpress.com/
2. Library of Congress blog at http://blogs.loc.gov/loc/
3. The Adventures of an Unemployed Librarian at http://theunemployedlibrarian.blogspot.com/
4. Closed Stacks at http://closedstacks.wordpress.com/
5. The Food Librarian at http://foodlibrarian.blogspot.com/

I occasionally visit other library blogs that I have found through this list of library-related blogs!

http://www.bachelorsdegreeonline.com/blog/2009/100-best-blogs-for-librarians-of-the-future/

A Change In Plans!

So I am a big believer in God, and that everything (good and bad) happens for a reason. Sometimes your plans can change at the last minute, but sometimes that is not necessarily a bad thing!

For example: I had spent quite a few hours dissecting my summer and fall class schedules. I carefully planned the timing of each class, the number of credit hours I was taking, which classes were requirements and which were just for fun, etc. I had accepted the fact that I didn't get into one or two classes over the summer that I REALLY wanted to take and are not offered very often, and had tailored my schedule just so.

Well.

All that changed when I found out that even though I was on the waiting list for one of the summer classes I really wanted to take but wasn't planning on taking, I got in!!! So now I had the option to take Bookbinding. The problem was that this messed up all my other credit hours for summer AND fall, and so I had to change my schedule around again! I did this, then found out that I got into ANOTHER class for summer that I didn't think I was going to get into! So I changed my schedule AGAIN! :)

All of that to say that sometimes even when you think you are totally in control, it is interesting to have those moments where everything you have carefully planned gets thrown in the trash in a second to make way for plans that are so much better than you could have ever imagined for yourself :)

Burnt Out

I feel like it has been a very long time since I've written in this blog! I'll have to check the last date.

I have been pretty busy with school lately. My first semester of graduate school is ending and I couldn't be happier! Not that it hasn't been super fun, it has been. For example, last week on Thursday and Friday my Library Buildings class took a field trip to Chicago and the surrounding suburbs to look at some libraries with our professor. Not only did we get to see some pretty cool libraries, but we got to talk in person with the staff and see staff areas of libraries and discuss what worked, what didn't, etc. This might sound kind of lame but it was really cool! My favorite that we visited was the Riverside Public Library (picture below). It is done in an "arts and crafts" style which basically means medieval revival and it looks like a castle! It is also featured in a children's picture book called "Bats In The Library!" We also saw a really cool statue of an elephant made out of old newspaper articles about the library (this was NOT at Riverside, I forgot which library this was at!).





So, even though I had lots of fun on our field trip, I am excited for this semester to be done so I can start my summer and fall classes! I will be taking Paper in the Scholarly World, Rare Books, and another intro class over the summer, and then I will be taking Preservation, History of the Book, and Youth Services Librarianship over the fall!

What else. I had to make a sort of tough decision this weekend that I am not ready to share with the world yet. All I can say is that it was the right decision for me and for the others involved, and I am glad to be back in Champaign with less stress involved in my life!

Book Collection Contest Entry

Hey, ya'll! (wow...totally had a Paula Deen flashback just then....lol) So yesterday while I was doing my homework I was also putting together an entry into a book collecting contest here on campus! You can read the full rules here if you like: http://www.library.illinois.edu/rbx/CollectingContest.htm. Basically all you had to do was write an essay describing how you developed your collection, give a bibliography with notes on your collection, and include a list of 5 books you hope to someday add to the collection. Below is my bibliography, and at the end I will include some pictures of my books! I called the collection "Books on Nature," because, well, it is a collection of books about nature! lol some are on flowers, some on trees, many on birds, but the overall theme is outside. They range in date of publication from 1899-1950, and 1950 is my "cutoff" date for the latest a book can be published and still be included in the collection. Keep in mind I am a total amateur and that most of these books likely have no significant monetary value, this is just for fun! :)

COLLECTION

1. Harvey, Jane. "Wild Flowers of America." Racine, WI: Whitman Publishing Company, 1932.
I chose this book because I liked the art-deco feel of the title font on the cover. In addition, its tiny size and interesting color illustrations prompted me to add it to my collection as a unique item.

2. Lemmon, Robert S. "How to Attract the Birds." Garden City, NY: The Country Life Press, 1948.
The title of this book is initially what drew me in. I also really enjoy the line drawings and diagrams of various birdhouses one may build to, as the title says, attract the birds!

3. Moseley, Edwin Lincoln. "Trees, Stars, and Birds: A Book of Outdoor Science." Yonkers-on-Hudson, NY: World Book Company, 1925.
I will admit that I totally judged this book by its cover, but in a good way! The cloth cover is printed with a nighttime scene of trees, animals, and stars (or maybe it's snow?), and I thought it was really beautiful! It also came with a supplement "with key to trees" tucked inside. The book also contains pictures and illustrations of tress and wildlife, and several star charts.

4. Peterson, Roger Tory. "A Field Guide To The Birds." Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1934.
I liked this book because of the silhouettes of birds printed on the endsheets of both the front and back covers. Inside the book there is also a "life list" of birds which one of the previous owners has begun checking off, which I really enjoy as it shows the history of the book's use. There are also several more illustrations and silhouettes of birds throughout the book.

5. Thompson, Ernest Seton. "Wild Animals I Have Known." New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1899.
Once again I was drawn to this book because of its cover! The cloth cover is printed with several little animal faces and some pawprints. There is an interesting bookplate inside that looks like it is covering up an inscription, which adds to the historical feel of this, the oldest book I have acquired so far. This is also the only fictional title in my collection, but I feel it relates to the others due to its subject and inclusion of photographs and line drawings.

6. Walker, Margaret Coulson. "Our Birds and Their Nestlings." American Book Company, 1904.
The cloth cover of this book has a cute printed illustration of a cardinal in a tree with a child looking on. Again, I liked this book because of its many photographs and illustrations inside. In addition, the book includes some cute poems about birds.

7. Zim, Herbert S. and Alexander C. Martin. "Flowers." New York, NY: Simon and Schuester, 1950.
I liked the fun line drawings of flowers on the endsheets of this book. In addition, as with the other flower book in my collection, the full-color paintings prompted me to buy this book. Though it was printed in 1950, it looks and feels a lot older, perhaps because of its exclusive inclusion of paintings over photographs. I would have thought that by this time in history photographs instead of paintings or drawings would have been the norm in guidebook publishing, but as I actually prefer the paintings and illustrations I was happy to collect it!

Finally, here are some pictures for your entertainment :)


^ this is the inside cover of "A Field Guide To The Birds"

What I Like About You

Okay. A lot of you have heard me complain (a lot?) about Champaign. Though it definitely has its downsides (it's no Chicago!), there ARE a few things that I have found here that I enjoy.

Insomnia Cookies

I have ordered from them a few more times than I'm willing to admit....but it can be pretty expensive, and since the end of the semester is approaching I probably won't be ordering again any time soon! Confession: once I ordered from them just because I was out of milk and it was really cold and I didn't want to have to walk to the grocery store. lol

Cakes on Walnut

Yes!!!! I don't know if you know this, but I LOVE cupcakes! A friend and I once spent an entire afternoon doing a cupcake-tasting of several cupcake stores in Chicago. Now, it's no Cupcakes (which is now out of business, sad sad), but it's pretty delicious. I really like their regular chocolate cupcakes (below) and their black & white cupcakes (also below). The black & white is kind of like a Hostess cupcake, and was really delicious.


Used Bookstores

I hate to admit it but I actually don't know the name of my favorite used bookstore here! It is right next to Cakes on Walnut, though :) I'll probably post pictures of some of my favorite finds there in another post. I like to collect books, although the ones I've bought are probably not very valuable because they were priced pretty cheaply, lol. I also just read an online pamphlet about rare books and what makes a book rare, so maybe I will apply those standards to what I've found. The store is really neat, though, they also have a large selection of records, and a cat lives in the store!!

What else is good about Champaign....I do really love my apartment, and my wall of Playbills! I have been getting outside a lot and walking the dog, and walking to class, and now that the weather is (mostly) nicer it isn't too much of a hassle. Though I can't wait to get back to a big city, it has been interesting living in (what I consider) a smaller town in a rural area!