thedamari

Film Thoughts: The Librarians

I attended a conference this week where the organizers arranged a screening of the newly released documentary The Librarians. In a room of ~400 people, at least 200 of us shed tears during the viewing.

Working in the profession in one of those states, I have been well aware of the growing attacks on books, libraries and librarians. But it was an extra level of intense seeing actual interviews and footage of people who have served their communities, for decades in some cases, slandered and under attack for working to preserve access to literature, for dedicating their lives to igniting a love of reading, for insisting on inclusion for every person who comes through the door.

Some have lost their jobs. Some have fled the homes they loved to start over in a new place. Some have had to hire security (on librarian wages!) One was pictured driving through her hometown saying something like, “I have made sure everyone here knows I do own a gun.” This in response to death threats she has received. All because they want kids and adults to have access to books that combat racism or affirm the dignity of LGBTQ individuals.

I very nearly ugly cried (mild spoiler alert) when the filmmakers interviewed the gay son of a woman who has crusaded in the most vile way against school librarians for having books with diverse characters and messages of acceptance. He ultimately decided to go speak against his mother’s message at the same school board where she had been showing up and making a spectacle.

Mixed in with the tears in the room were cheers for these folks who have been thrust into the role of intellectual freedom warriors, a battle they didn’t anticipate. Importantly. the documentary pulls back the curtain on some of the behind-the-scenes funding and organization behind the pro-censorship groups.

If you get a chance, I highly recommend a viewing of this movie. But have your hanky ready.

See the trailer here.

After you watch it, check out these sites for information on protecting the right to read:

5 Ways to Fight Book Bans–PEN America

Unite Against Book Bans

ALA Get Involved–Banned and Challenged Books

In Missouri, there’s the Right to Read Coalition.

Jane Goodall, Secretary

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”

― Jane Goodall

I assume everyone has by now heard the news of Jane Goodall’s passing. Like many others, I found inspiration in her achievements. I admire the work of anyone who helps us deepen our understanding of life on this planet and our place within that web. The older I get, the more my philosophy and sense of ethics boils to down to “everything is connected.”

But Goodall inspired me in another way. Several years ago, while I was creating my own unorthodox educational path toward my personal goals, I went to hear her speak. And she told the story of how she got started in the study of chimps in the wild, which is that she went to secretarial school.

As a young woman, she already knew her dream was to travel to Africa and learn about wildlife. But she didn’t have the money for college, and pathways were not created for women of modest means. So she and her mother together cooked up a plan that Jane would qualify as a secretary so that she could find work anywhere, save her money to travel to Africa, and hopefully get a clerical job with someone who was doing the research she dreamed of. A foot in the door at the right place.

Through hard work, lots of brain power and the support of her mother, the plan was stunningly successful. Goodall first worked for Dr. Louis Leakey at a natural history museum. But he was so impressed with her, he decided she would be the perfect candidate to send out to observe the chimpanzees. When she eventually did embark on PhD studies many years later, she did so without ever having done any formal undergraduate work.

Hearing this story at that time in my life meant more to me than anyone could have imagined. It’s a vast understatement to say my own personal accomplishments pale in comparison to Dr. Goodall’s, but they mean a lot to me. I believe a lot of us should take her lesson to heart. If you feel a strong calling but don’t see a road to it, get creative, come at it sideways, build a road.

I’ll wrap up with another of my favorite Jane Goodall quotes: “It actually doesn’t take much to be considered a difficult woman. That’s why there are so many of us.”

Onondaga Cave Revisited

My firstborn came to visit recently, staying for eight days. Due to the fact that I rarely call out from work, I had abundant PTO in my leave bank and was able to take off the entire time for a staycation. The spouse was also able to use vacation most of the days. And son the younger works from home, so was able to flex his hours.

We did a lot of nostalgic activities and generally had a blast playing tourist in our own area. This included a day trip to Onondaga Cave, a place I haven’t visited in at least 15 years, though I did write a poem about it once. It had been long enough that the tour was fresh and new to me, for the most part. And even the bits I remembered were still awe inspiring, well worth a revisit.

Walkways and handrails inside a very large cave system — walking paths/handrails

Stairway inside a tourist cave, with pillars rising on either side. — walking paths/handrails

Onondaga cave is immense. Though there are a couple of places where adults need to duck a little, there’s no crawling, climbing or ropes involved in the exploration. Trails and handrails have been put in, and there’s an option to sit out the steepest part of the tour. Still, you need to be able to do some hills and stairs and to be on your feet for quite a while. If you’re able to do that, it’s a fascinating place to visit.

Since it’s operated by the Missouri Department of Conservation (incidentally, one of the top state conservation departments in the country), it’s well maintained with an eye to preserving a healthy ecosystem. That means there are no tours during bat hibernation season. A piece of good news we learned from our guide is that bat populations are starting to rebound after being nearly decimated by white-nose syndrome.

Some of my favorite spots on the tour:

Two large pillars--onne white, one rust colored--rising from a cave floor. — The Twins (cave pillars)

Cave formations - pillar and "curtains" — The Twins (cave pillars)

Saving my very favorite for last — the Lily Pad Room, where mineral deposits sitting in a pool of water take the shape of lily pads. It’s breathtaking.

Inside a cave, flat rock formations in water look like lily pads

I’ll finish by sharing the poem I mentioned. This was published a few years ago in “Eternal as a Weed: Tales of Ozark Experience.”

Onondaga Cave

This race is indeed not to the swift
and is not a race.
Today we like speed. The whole world
in an instant with a keystroke.
Third-graders: do 100 addition problems
in five minutes. Speed proves competence.
Service so quick you’ll quake,
or something like that.
Nobody should wait.
The gravest sin is to slow others down.
That’s above ground.

Enter this cave and the standards invert.
Muse upon the mighty stalagmites.
Take in the tightly clinging stalactites.
Marvel at the pace of growth, an inch per hundred years.
One. Inch. Per. One. Hundred. Years.
That’s where the awe comes in.
If they formed at a fast clip, we’d chop them out,
carry them off, stack them in our garages,
intending to use them in a craft someday.
There would be no sense of wonder.
The slowness makes it so.
Speed wins the day, persistence the millennia.

Old House Woes and the Joy of a Purple Kitchen

This has been a great house for us. I love hating working on it.

I am trying to show up here again, both reading and writing. I won’t get too long-winded with what has been occupying my time instead, but I will share my latest old home misadventure.

The husband and I have never broken free of the find out phase of choosing to live in a 124-year-old house. Though in our defense, it was only 102 years old when we bought it. It’s been a 22-year fix-up adventure, including adding missing gutters, getting rid of the dangerous knob-and-tube wiring, planting raspberries and pollinator plants, adding a carport with solar panels, and seemingly endless repairs.

Often, our next project choose us by announcing itself in dramatic fashion. The latest was back in May when we woke up to find a water pipe in the bathroom above our kitchen had sprung a leak overnight and dripped through the ceiling for hours while we slept. Then the shut-off valve at the sink broke when Mr. Damari tried to turn it. So whole house water shutdown it was until he could enact a temp fix.

We already had not been using the tub in that bathroom for similar reasons, thinking that repair would rise to the top of our to-do list at some point. Welp, might as well get it all done at once. Get the plumber in for an opinion, and then a second plumber. And then learn we had bigger problems — namely our main water intake was leaking and needed to be replaced at the foundation of our home.

Which required removing this neglected-for-years bush to provide access. I didn’t think to take a before pic until it we had it half cut away.

Massive bush half cut away in front of a house with white siding.

It needed to come out anyway. Why not keep adding project upon project?

Once the main intake was replaced, work could proceed on the pipes for the bathroom, which of course involved cutting away part of the kitchen ceiling. And then as the contractor followed the maze created by previous workers, also involved removing a bit of one wall in the kitchen. The spouse decided to add another light switch while we were at it, so holes in two walls. May as well replace the old, janky light fixture/ceiling fan in the kitchen while we were spending all our money and time anyway.

Meanwhile, this happened in the living room. I tried to clean the fan blades with an extendable brush, and it just…fell, missing me by inches.

ceiling fan light fixture lying in pieces on a carpet

We’re in the zone. Why not replace two light fixtures?

We experienced multiple delays for multiple reasons. Example: Hey, says the contractor, they don’t actually make valves like the ones in your ancient tub anymore, and I can’t find one locally anywhere. So we’ll have to wait until we can get one shipped.

But eventually, around mid-July, all plumbing was done, light fixtures replaced, ceiling and walls patched. Time to touch up the paint on the kitchen walls. The walls I had painted purple 19 years ago. Guess how much success I had finding a color match?

wall with two different shades of purple paint on it

All right, I can roll with painting two entire walls. We’ll only have to unbolt and remove the rack for our pots and pans along with getting a refrigerator out of the way. And it will only expand a two-hour job into a whole weekend project.

Did I mention we have ten-foot ceilings? We have ten-foot ceilings. The good news is that I’m still well able to go up and down a ladder. I move a lot more cautiously than I did two decades ago. But I do take joy in a purple kitchen.

Cookware hanging on a stainless steel rack attached to a purple wall

Now the only remaining detail is deciding what to plant in the bare patch in front of our house where the huge bush used to be. Maybe something large enough to hide the evidence of how much the sunroom that was added to the original structure at some point is now separating from the rest of the house.

Bare earth in front of a house with white siding.

Despite all this, the spouse and I talked it over and agreed we made the right decision moving in here. It’s a great location and provided a lot of space for our kids when they were growing up.

A direct quote from my husband: This has been a great house for us. I love hating working on it.

On Today’s Bike Ride: Hungry Hungry Hatchlings

I’m trying to get out on my bicycle at least a little every weekend, even when I don’t have a great deal of time. Today’s ride wasn’t all that long, but I got to see some barn swallow babies at a shelter house.

Hungry, hungry hatchlings:

No rest for new parents!

On Today’s Bike Ride: New Trail and Blue Heron

After a brutal, snowy winter followed by an exceptionally wet spring, Freida and I are hitting the trails again. I was able to add a new experience to my new experiences list today thanks to the city adding a new section of trail into the network.

The Perche Creek Trail branches off from the MKT and eventually will extend to allow easy travel.

Paved bike trail approaching a bridge. Sign says Perche Creek Trail.

Oh, look! One of my favorite things–a bridge!

Paved trail bridge with tall rails on either side.

Scan the QR code to learn more. Phase 2 is scheduled to be complete in 2027.

Sign on bridge: "Perche Creek Phase 2 Development. — Anticipated opening of phase 2, Fall, 2027.

But for now, if you don’t want to lift your bicycle over a guardrail and continue on the road (which I know people have and do), it’s kind of a dead end.

paved trail ending at guardrail with road on other side. Red pickup on road.

But it’s a pleasant ride, and I got to see a blue heron.

Great blue heron in mud at edge of large puddle — Pondering

I hope to get out for a ride at least once a week and build my stamina back up. Today’s ride was 13-14 miles or so roundtrip. Not too bad. Here’s to more pedaling adventures!

Two Thousand Miles – Mother’s Day Poem

Well, my two kids grew up, and I’m not sure why they did that to me. I still love them. Anyhow, here’s a little poem I wrote for Mother’s Day.

Two Thousand Miles

There was a child who used to cling to me
as if he were made of suction cups
Now he lives two thousand miles away

I inched away with stealth from the bed where
he slept to have a moment in my own skin
Now he lives two thousand miles away

I drove through the city in the dark more
than once to bring him home earlier than planned
Somehow now he’s two thousand miles away

I turned my head, and he inched with stealth
then leapt so far so fast to find his own skin
and landed two thousand miles away

I want him to be where I see him on my phone
the mountains, the beach, a life of his own
I pretend it’s not that far—two thousand miles away

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms and mom figures, whether you are in the thick of child raising, empty nesting it or something else.

Not Cooperstown, but Just as Important

Kansas City Monarchs baseball uniform in display case

Friday, I fulfilled a bucket list item when my husband and I visited the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. As anyone who knows about baseball and American history is aware, the major leagues were segregated until Jackie Robinson started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Visiting this museum, we learned a lot about how Black players persevered anyway, improving our society along the way.

The website explains: The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum is the world’s only museum dedicated to preserving and celebrating the rich history of African-American baseball and its impact on the social advancement of America. The privately funded, 501 c3, not-for-profit organization was established in 1990 and is in the heart of Kansas City, Missouri’s Historic 18th & Vine Jazz District. The NLBM operates two blocks from the Paseo YMCA where Andrew “Rube” Foster established the Negro National League in 1920.

Some of the greatest athletes the game has ever seen are featured–Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Jackie Robinson, and more. We encountered Buck O’Neil almost right away, scouting a game:

Statue of Buck O'Neil in a Monarchs uniform — Buck O’Neil scouting a game

A short film condensed the history of MLB segregation and integration, including the shameful treatment of Black players who originally joined some of the very first teams, before they were officially banned. One influential player in particular is now known not for his skill or achievements, but just for entrenching racism in the sport. I am deliberately not giving him fame among my handful of readers. But imagine — the players he kept out went on to shine and give us so much. While his legacy is for all the bad he accomplished.

Poster announcing "Championship Negro Baseball with Satchel Paige."

Statues of baseball players on replica ball field.

Standing among the greats

A couple of interesting tidbits I learned:
*The KC Monarchs were the first team to install lights and play games at night.
*Several of the teams traveled and played ball in Japan in the 1920s and 30s.
*And of particular interest for Women’s History Month, there were some women who played professionally.

Bust of baseball player Mamie Johnson in front of cutout image of her. — Mamie “Peanut” Johnson

Bust of baseball player Toni Stone in front of cutout image of her — Mamie “Peanut” Johnson

I found a couple of their autographs among the vast collection of signed baseballs.

6 autographed baseballs. One says Toni Stone, another Mamie Peanut Johnson.

I can’t help thinking how discrimination and segregation harm everyone on every side. When we exclude others for no good reason, we are not only hurting them, we’re depriving ourselves of their talents and contributions. It makes no sense, yet it’s done too often.

I highly recommend experiencing this bit of baseball history if you get the chance. The woman who sold us our tickets said the museum will be expanding and moving into a new building soon, so that’s me planning to return in the future.

On Today’s Walk: Bird Gossip

Today’s walk was an early evening affair for me. I came upon some sparrows, ensconced in what I’m sure they believed to be a private communications chamber. But they were spilling all their secrets to me.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/FeXkK8HXHYM

Would they have been so chatty had they known a human was listening in?

Today’s New Thing

Though I haven’t posted about it as much as I intended, I’m still on a quest for new experiences. They can be big or small. The little ones quite often can be pretty darned fulfilling . It’s not necessary to travel great distances or spend a lot of money to discover more of the world. It’s all a matter of attention and attitude.

So today’s new to me experience was eating cranberry-apple jam from the farmers’ market. So tasty! And yes, I am acclimating to farmers’ market shopping. I still stay only a few minutes, making one or two purchases. But it’s opening up my life some more.

Despite all the troubles, there’s still a whole world of delights all around us, waiting to be noticed. It’s important not to lose sight of that.