Some wonderful (random) things.

You can guess how busy I am when I start posting obscure lists of seemingly unrelated items. So use your powers of deduction, if you will, but here is another such list of some wonderful stuff that I've recently discovered.

In the category of -

Air-conditioned places where you can read: This may be totally irrelevant to most of you, but the Bank Street College Library (located on 112th Street, between Broadway and Riverside) is a lovely place to read. It's small and cozy, and the children's room is full of nice bean-bag chairs, and it seems to be completely empty during the summer. You can get in with your Columbia ID.

Asian snacks: I love Asian snacks. Mostly, because they are so tasty, but also, because they are fun to eat. I particularly love the warnings on the packaging, along the lines of "this product was manufactured in the same facility as shrimp and milk products." Shrimp chips and pocky are perennial favorites, of course. But recently, I tried snow pea chips, which are very good, and actually look like snow peas. Also, aloe juice is a perfect snack for when you want to combine drinking and eating into the same activity.

Shoes: Dollhouse Berkley wedges are oh-so comfortable and very pretty, and are only $40. The 2.5" heels are good for every day wear, and don't get stuck between cobblestones on College Walk.

Comics: I was thrilled to discover the "Bone" series of comics (or graphic novels, if you are over 15). It's so clever, and I can absolutely see why it won so many scholastic awards. The first 2 books were very cute and cheerful, but after that it got very sinister. It's sort of a combination between The Smurfs and The Lord of the Rings. I am waiting for them to colorize all the books, and then I'll buy the whole collection.

Interlibrary loans: I have been using the WorldCat database to search hundreds of thousands of libraries all over the world, and I have already made several interlibrary loans for material that is not available through the NYPL. Although the whole system could use some work (for example, you can't make interlibrary loans on the web, you have to go to your branch and fill out a paper form, and these requests aren't linked to your online NYPL account) it is still fantastic to be able to search for so much information (over 35 million records) so easily.

Books made into a movie: I must admit that I loved the "Children of Dune" mini series. Granted, the casting was a bit off, but overall, the whole series was very entertaining.