Monday, September 22, 2008

My Town Monday: Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library, Oklahoma City



The Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library in Oklahoma City is one of the coolest library you'll ever step foot in. In general, I'm partial to old libraries with heavy oak bannisters and high ceilings and mysterious lighting. This library is an exception.

It's a four-story, 112,000-square-foot white, gleaming library and learning center named for former Mayor Ronald J. Norick.

Odd facts:

As part of the opening ceremonies, staff and supporters passed books BY HAND from the old to the new library.

Mayor Ron's dad (James Norick) was also mayor of OKC, once upon a time.

The stacks and other library services are located on the first two floors. There's a business information center and small meeting rooms on the third floor. On the fourth floor, there's a conference center and auditorium.

Child #4 and I walked into the library to the sound of live music and the aroma of decent java. We took the elevator up to the fourth floor where (in alpha order by last name) PJ Hoover, author of The Emerald Tablet; Jenny Meyerhoff, author of Third Grade Baby; Stacy Nyikos, author of Dragon Wishes and I

WERE EACH INTERVIEWED FOR TV!!!

Sorry, I had to shout this out.

BJ Williams is the producer of Read About It. She and Doug Benton do the interviews. They interview 48 authors each year.

Doug Benton and me just before the start of the interview. He'd read the Advance Reader Copy of I So Don't Do Mysteries and prepared enough questions to fill up our 8 minutes.

Gulp. Deep breath. Sorry to report that I don't think I gave that great an interview. Sad but true. It's like I just couldn't relax or something. It all felt too weird. It wasn't the people; they were super nice. There was BJ Williams and Doug Benton, the inteviewers I already mentioned; Jon and John, the camera guys; and Lesli the makeup person. I don't really know what my problem was. I mean, I'm generally a pretty chatty Cathy. The cameras, the having to look in a certain direction, the little coffee table that didn't actually live anywhere? I don't know.

And guess what was in the back of mind for the entire 8 minutes (which is actually an eternity when you're ill at ease)? I hope I don't cough. Because a cough would've been so loud with the mic attached near the collar of my sweater. Well, the second I thought about not coughing, I got a tickle in my throat.

Anyway, it's a done deal. I guess I'll know more after I see the DVD. The show only airs in the metro Oklahoma City area. On the upside, if I ever do something like this again, I think I'll be better at at.


On the upperside, I did learn about a couple of great makeup products from Lesli. Which I'll gladly share: Eye Bright by Benefit is whitish eyestick which, when applied to the inside corner of your eye, totally opens the sucker up. You immediately look bright-eyed and alert. Then there's Sally Hansen's Skin Firming Line Minimizing Liquid Powder makeup. Leslie used "beach" on me. This product obliterates the circles under your eyes. Obliterates. With these two products, you could pull an all-nighter and look none the worse for the wear and tear.

Please visit Travis Erwin, the guy who spearheads My Town Mondays. He'll have a list of links to other Mondayers. I bet everyone, unlike me, got their posts up in a timely fashion.

(Oh yeah, and sources and where you can get more info too:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4182/is_/ai_n28000114
http://www.eventective.com/USA/Oklahoma/Oklahoma+City/)

21 comments:

  1. I just popped in to say thank you for your kind words on my blog! And congrats on your first interview! I can't wait to get this book!
    hugs,
    Robyn

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  2. You look nice and relaxed in the photo - I am sure you did a whole lot better than you think. I am positive about that! WOW - kudos to you and all your hard work. I cannot wait to get a copy...I may even have to request a signed copy for my two nieces! I can tell them I knew you when...hee hee!

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  3. Totally seconding Beth.

    I can't wait to purchase this book and delve in to it. Thanks for the history and for sharing your interview. :)

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  4. How exciting to be interviewed for television. You look great.

    What a beautiful library.

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  5. Barrie, I am certain you were fabulous! (PS love your makeup tips--haha!).

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  6. Kudos to you, Barrie!! How exciting for you. Now that you are famous....
    (did you tell them that you are the member of that exclusive group the PPP?)

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  7. What a great day. The building sounds outstanding. New libraries in our town feature a lot more potential for various comminity uses. I like that as long as they don't cart books away to make more room.

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  8. That's cool. Congrats. Interviews are always nerve wracking.

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  9. OKC has a lot of great writers in the area and their conference in May is a good one. I've been a couple of times. Would love to see that interview. Maybe you can put it on youtube and show us.

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  10. Aw, I bet it's a fantastic interview. I'm sure you did great. And hey, thanks for the makeup tips! :-)

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  11. Professional makeup, TV interview (!!!), and a visit to the library. Sounds perfect.

    Thanks for sharing this day with us!

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  12. I appreciate the makeup tips too.

    The worst thing to happen in an interview is to freeze and not say anything. Since you talked, I'm sure the show was happy and the viewers were happy. Next time you'll know what to expect and do even better.

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  13. congrats on the interview! that's great! i've heard about that white eyestick thing before in magazines, but never actually bought one. i'll have to try it for work. :)

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  14. Congratulations, Barrie, on the library, interview and book. I don't know what I'd do without a good library.

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  15. Very cool and congratulations about the interview. Funny about the coughing - tee hee! I'm sure you were wonderful!

    Take care and see you soon - Kellan

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  16. TV? How cool! Way to go. I like your upside. I bet Katie Couric wasn't to intrepid her first time on camera either. I hope you post it on YouTube or in your blog so we can see it.

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  17. I can only imagine how nerve racking a televised interview would be. Congrats and it probably went better than you imagine.

    I always appreciate some good make up tips. Thank you!

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  18. Barrie, how cool that you were interviewed on TV. I'm sure you did better than you realize, but I understand why you were uncomfortable. I would have been, too. The library sounds fabulous and thanks for the makeup tips. I'm always looking for something to cover those dark circles under my eyes. You're getting some great advanced publicity for the book. So cool.

    Linda

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  19. How exciting...and awesome! Sounds like a nerve-wracking thrill! ;)

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  20. Your photo looks great, and I'm very certain your next interview will go just fine. The first is always the hardest, and everything gets easier from then on. Congrats on your second book coming out. It must be so exciting for you!

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Comments are always welcome!