Vol. 28 No. 3 Nov/Dec 2000

December Meeting

December wouldn't be complete without the annual SLA/LACASIS gala. So, naturally, on December 12, the Caltech Athenaeum was bursting at the seams with librarians from all over the Southern California area, visiting over cocktails and toasting our tushes by the fireplace. As usual the dinner was wonderful -- after resolving a glitch caused by yours truly forgetting to inform the chef of the number of vegetarian meals. I hope the pasta people have forgiven me! (Er ... the Coq au vin was delish!)

The speaker was first-time author Christina Schwarz, author of Drowning Ruth, a New York Times bestseller, and the 37^th selection for Oprah's Book Club. She read a chapter from her novel and answered questions from the audience about writing. As an English major and former teacher, she embodied the fantasy of many a librarian/potential novelist among us of becoming best selling authors ourselves!

But, as usual, the best thing about the evening was catching up with old friends in pleasant surroundings, and unwinding after a long day at work. The annual visit to the Athenaeum, all decorated for Christmas, puts one in the mood for the holidays.

Barbara Amago

Jet Propulsion Laboratory