Lately we've been posting little flip camera interviews of our patrons on our website. These are folks that have a library story to tell. Since libraries are in the story telling business, it makes sense to collect a few of our own.

After the 2008 election losses, followed by a recession, the Douglas County School District and the Douglas County Libraries had some cuts to make.

The school district chose to eliminate all of its subscription databases -- information resources offered over the Internet. At the same time, the library was looking at trimming its own subscriptions.

I'm conflicted.

On the one hand, over the past couple of years, I've changed my whole idea of what my profession is about.

I used to think the library business was about access to "intellectual content," whether it be fiction, non-fiction, movies, or music.

As an undergraduate, I spent a lot of time at the student billiard center. Occasionally, smooth, well-dressed pool sharks would come through on tour. They had great names, like blues singers or gangsters: Las Vegas Jimmy, Spats McDonough, Gentleman Joe, and so on.