A New Eye on Wisconsin Government and More

Wisconsin's own version of C-SPAN, WisconsinEye, is ambitious in its reach, and it will be interesting to see how it catches on in the state. Have a look, if you haven't already, and let us know what you think.

WisconsinEye, launched in May on the Internet and - as of last month - also available on TV to TimeWarner and Charter subscribers, bills itself as "a statewide public affairs network whose mission is to present an independent statewide view of community affairs and public policy discussion."

It was a long time coming to the state. A C-SPAN channel for Wisconsin has been discussed for years, but never really got off the ground until last spring. Cameras willl cover floor debate in both the State Senate and Assembly, as well as committee meetings, hearings and, eventually, portions of the Judicial and Executive branches. This morning the webcast link took me to a budget hearing from July 25. You can choose to watch a video of the proceedings, or simply to listen, provided you have Windows Media Player or other media software on your PC.

Recognizing that government proceedings can be ... uh ... boring, WisconsinEye's producers have added some feature-like videos, including an on-site tour of last week's EAA event in Oshkosh and the Dalai Lama's visit to Madison in May. As a librarian, I also appreciate "Wisconsin in Words," a Wisconsin version of C-Span's popular Booknotes program. About a half dozen interviews with authors have been archived so far.

Production quality so far leaves a little to be desired. Even with the audio button on my computer turned up all the way I had trouble hearing the discussions. The cameras seem to just sit there in one or two static locations; no one's making an effort to get close-ups or be visually creative at all. But the website is easy enough to navigate, and I'm impressed with the site's goals of objectively covering "local issues and civic activity that reflect the broad range of community and public life in Wisconsin."

Hey, it's a start. If you want to see state government in action, WisconsinEye may be the next best thing to sitting in a Capitol Building hearing room. At least you don't have to deal with Madison traffic.

Magazines for your health

If you're looking for a little inspiration to help you get back into an exercise or fitness regimen, we've got some quick and easy solutions that might appeal to you. I was perusing KPL's periodical section today, and counted no less than six magazines that focus almost exclusively on health. Add in our several popular culture titles that have regular health-related columns (Woman's Day, Reader's Digest, GQ, AARP, Oprah, etc.) and that makes for a pretty impressive repertoire of health magazines.

Yoga Journal is one of the newest and most popular of our health-oriented titles. It's not so much a weight-loss publication as it is a healthy living one. Our patrons really like this one.

Our other health titles are Prevention, Health, Arthritis, Fitness, and (my personal favorite) Consumer Reports On Health. Only 12-pages long, On Health offers an ad-free alternative to the over-hyped mainstream publications. It's full of useful information and on-target advice.

Like our 80+ other titles for adults, teens and youth, the above magazines (other than the current issue) can be checked out for up to three weeks. Patrons can also put specific issues on hold, or request titles from other libraries.

We're proud of our periodical collection, and we're delighted when people stop in on a regular basis, or even only occasionally, and avail ourselves of our many titles. There are worse ways to cool off on a hot summer afternoon than spending some time in the Kiel Public Library.

- Nanette

Help us create a book club

The Kiel Public Library hasn't hosted a book discussion group for several years, and we miss it. Some of our patrons contribute to online book discussion groups. There are several good ones out there. But nothing offers the fellowship, emotional invovlement, and intellectual stimulation that you get from a face-to-face conversation.

That's why several of us hope to re-launch KPL's book club. We're hosting a book Club Meet-up on Monday, Aug. 6 at 6:30 p.m. to choose some titles (or at least list some good discussion candidates), discuss possible meeting formats, and set a tentative schedule for the coming months. Maybe we can even schedule some author visits.

Please join us as we devise a plan for sharing our page-turning passions.

Last Muggle Standing

Congratulations to 7th grader Jacob Endries, the last muggle standing in the KPL Harry Potter trivia contest (otherwise known as N.E.W.T.) last month. He was one of more than a dozen local Potter fans who competed for top muggle honors. For his troubles, Jacob won a free copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and final Harry Potter book. He was assisted in the contest by friend Greg Lutz.

Finalists first had to "qualify" for the contest by passing the OWLS exam, which featured the strangest and most arcane Potter details you could ever imagine. (So what IS Mr. Dursley's profession?)

The library also hosted a "divination," (prediction) contest and an art contest. Scott Vogel was the winner of the dinivation contest. He had the largest number of correct Deathly Hallows predictions. He even correctly placed six out of the seven horcrux locations. Now that's a true Potter fan!

Art contest winners were Katie Gilsdorf for the high school division; Caroline Kuske for middle school; and Alaina Foster for elementary school. Kuske's paper-mache sculpture of Fluffy (above right), the three-headed dog who guards the entrance to the Sorceror's Stone in the first Harry Potter book is still on display at the library.

Congratulations to all the participants, and a special thank you to our sponsors: First National Bank, Kwik Trip and Stardust Limousines.

We were able to take a few photos from the Harry Potter N.E.W.T. contest on July 20, the same day publishers released Deathly Hallows. Just follow this link to KPL's Flickr.com page, to see these and more than 200 other photos of library events.