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*Abecedary Arranged in alphabetical order; elementary, devoid of sophistication. As this list, in both senses. Items/categories marked with an asterisk are repeats from last year, but you'll find, we think, that even the repetitions reflect change. The past is a moving target, changing as we do. ABC: An Alphabet Exhibition at the University of Delaware Special Collections was one of Iris Snyder's last. [See Librarians who have moved on.]  The mix of periods and formats was a testimony to the depth of the Delaware collection and the breadth of Iris's interests and scholarship. We'll miss her. ARLIS or The Tale of the Missing Dress-Code Police We are evermore thankful of small lapses in taste. Vicky spent one whole day at the annual meeting of Art Librarians wearing two different shoes. Not only did she not receive a summons, but not even her husband noticed. For small blessings, we are thankful.

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Breyten Breytenbach From Ninja Press's Intimate Stranger (one of the most exquisite productions still flying under the radar): "Listen: you must continue traveling because the earth needs to be discovered and remembered again and again, cyclically, creatively, with her seasons and her sounds, with the warm breath of hospitality, with the healing touch of strangeness… Lest it become cold and impenetrable – a barren place of power and of politics, the earth needs to be reminded of the eternity of one life." We hope the spirit of our ongoing road trip sups at that table. Bacon chocolate ice cream Vicky may have retired the trophy for bravery in trying new foods. This at 555 in Portland, Maine. (You'll have to ask her.) Bruegger's We found our first one in Iowa City, but then like a word newly learned, we started to find them across the country. Basically a bagel-sandwich-salad site, a cross between a deli and a bakery, with an emphasis on healthful offerings. (Eating healthy at this point in our lives does smack of a deathbed conversion, and we confess to being as consistent as yo-yos, but ….)

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Carlton College/MCBA Roundtable [see MCBA/Carlton College Roundtable] *Casey Our younger granddaughter (age 9), still the competitor, but becoming more and more complex – like a bottomless bottle of fine wine that compliments every occasion. Kate Chaney Chappell Center for Book Arts (at the University of Southern Maine) Launched in 2008, the Center melds the passion of its namesake with the diverse talents of the local art community. We gave a short talk there and were overwhelmed by what is going on. Civilization is planting a tree you won't sit under. Someone wise said that; wiser people take notice and act. Codex 2009 This biennial event (2009 was the second gathering in Berkeley) surpassed even our high hopes. No second-time drop-off or disappointment. It was once again an honor to be on the floor. The highlight for us was the standing ovation Ron King [see] received after his key-note talk. Thanks, adulation, praise, and continued support for Peter Koch, Susan Filter, Roberto Trujillo, Carolee Campbell, Duke Collier, and all the volunteers.

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Deaths Judith Hoffberg, Carl Dern, and Joe D'Ambrosio. Some wise person said, "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened." The only way we can make sense of the passing of each special life is to work harder to make up for the good the world has lost. *Desmond (Lim) is the man who (still) takes care of our website. The combination of Jeanine Herrmann [see], Vicky, and Des keeps the website current and, we hope, interesting. He's talented, dependable, and understanding. Bill knows if it ever comes to the point where it's a choice between him and Des that he's in serious trouble. Dinner Theater After an elegant dinner, Peggy Gotthold and Larry van Velzer regaled us with George the Third Baseman, a modern Elizabethan drama loaded with shameless puns, using their full-scale marionette theater, which is complete with stage, lights, and sound. It's easy to see why their Foolscap Press productions are so accomplished and fun.   Discovery Cove A few days in Orlando with the grandchildren was highlighted by a day here. We petted sting rays, swam with dolphins, and introduced the girls to snorkeling. Highlight: Victoria (age 10 at the time), who had just grudgingly learned to use the snorkel 20 minutes before, leading Vicky, who does not like (as in no, no, no, I said no) to put her head underwater, into the cove with "Gran, c'mon, I'll help you. It's really not hard, just hold onto me. C'mon, I'll help you. We'll take it easy." And off they went.

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Economy, The A reality none can ignore. Nothing to do but tighten belts, work harder, and be content with less. Institutions are still buying albeit in reduced volumes across the board, but this reduction is offset by having more places buying. Almost each trip we make, there is a new stop or two. *Elizabeth Daughter, step-daughter, struggling and still (amazingly) effective single mother of two girls on the cusp of womanhood [see Casey and Victoria], she is the moon to our tides. Equivocation by Bill Cain. We were fortunate to see this play at the end of its world premiere run at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Will Shagspeare (one of the bard's recorded signatures) is charged by the Prime Minister to write a play making James I the hero of the Gunpowder Plot. The production, in which characters play multiple roles as they shift in and out of time and place, is a sort of Noises Off with meaningful questions – loyalty, the role of art, truth, torture – and ends by expanding the humanity of our most human of artists by having him recognize the worth of his daughter, Judith. A real jolt of joy.

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Films: Although a few hours in the dark remains a major source of solace and recuperation on the road, we found it more and more difficult to find films we thought worth (our) time and (our) money. Gandhi said, "There's more to life than speeding it up," and we (especially Bill) think there is more to good films than special effects, simple and simplistic morality, and beautiful people with beautiful teeth. Carping aside, this is our list for the year: The Hurt Locker, Waltz with Bashir, Coco Before Channel, An Education, Avatar (special mention because this goes against Bill's general disdain for science fiction and special effects; he went as one of those mildly "for worse" parts of his troth, but he is, as so often happens, reevaluating his knee-jerk proclivities), Up in the Air, and Radio Pirates. Fripp Island Our week at the beach with our granddaughters this year shifted from the high-rise frenzy of the Florida Panhandle to this 3½-mile salt marsh-surrounded island on the coast of South Carolina. Our granddaughters loved it, and, hence, so did we.

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Giving up This year our notebook says we heard or read somewhere (or remembered?), "You know why your father never wanted you to quit any of those things you started? Because he knew if you did, you'd find out how easy quitting is." Oh, it's an attractive slope that can turn slippery, because the consequences of quitting are rarely disastrous. And it is easy. But the danger is that you shut a door. Part of the balance of life seems to be choosing which bridges to cross and which bridges to burn. Gran & Pop Just another version of Vamp & Tramp, but the personae that give us much joy.

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*Jeanine Herrmann V&T's general factotum – and often our major link to artists and customers. Without her energy and abilities we would be lesser; her humor makes much tolerable. *Judith Hoffberg died just short of her goal of hanging on until Obama's inauguration. Smart, energetic, and feisty to the end, she was, to us, above all kind. The Hybrid Book Arts Conference and Book Fair put on by the MFA Book Arts/Printmaking Program. The University of the Arts lit up our world in June. As with most of these events, there was too much to do and see, too many people to meet and talk to. Honors Day at the University of Alabama. We were speakers at this year's graduation celebration at the School of Library and Information Science. It was special recognition, not so much for us, but for the Alabama Book Arts Program. Steve Miller and Anna Embree, and all the people whose shoulders they stand on, have created a gem in Tuscaloosa. Ruth Hughes Collection of Artists' Books Book artist Alice Austin decided to honor a friend who has cancer by creating a collection of artists' books to become part of the permanent collection at Oberlin College (Hughes's alma mater). Great ideas can become reality.

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*Internet (Part 3) More and more we find ourselves in the position of old poops, but perhaps nowhere as much as in this phase of modern life. In Bill's notebook there are stars beside this entry, a quotation by John Ruskin, commenting on the modern wonders of his time: "The railroad allows the fools of Buxton to visit the fools of Bakewell." Such criticism, laced with arrogance and elitism, brings us up short every time we shake our heads at blogs, facebook, and twitter. An old poop in Justin Cartwright's The Promise of Happiness feels that the internet has encouraged the loony-toons to have a voice, one without moral, educational, or documentary standard. It has leashed a moronic inferno, he says, with spelling mistakes. By casting banal thoughts into cyberspace, he ends, people think they are investing them with some kind of gravitas. Well, yes. And no. Perhaps this is the first sea in community?

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Henry James's three rules: 'Be kind, be kind, be kind.' If you note a theme of compassion, we'll be happy. Journalism This could have gone under the "Deaths" entry, but it's not dead, just dying and on life support. Opinion (how unsubstantiated is always the question) and shouting are the new currency of what used to be truth (no matter now unobtainable, this seemed always the goal) and discussion. The newspapers Bill continues to buy across the country more and more are quaint and provincial news-sheets with more tips on how to choose your next gadget than on how to plow through the global village. Somehow the victory of the bottom line seems especially dangerous in this case. [see Opinion] David Jury The man who designed the Codex Foundation's book art object (a record of the first Codex Symposium and Book Fair and a value at $75) offers this wisdom: "Rules can be broken, but never ignored."

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*Ron King this year once again graced the US, giving the Goudy Lecture at Scripps College and a key-note speech at the 2009 Codex Symposium. His address in Berkeley garnered a standing ovation. His latest work – The Burning of the Books – is a poem sequence by George Szirtes with 15 photo-etchings by King. The richness and invention of the black-and-gray etchings is prototypical King. Based on Elias Canetti's Auto da Fé, it is a fitting cap to King's career if this is, as he says, his "last book" (to concentrate on sculpture). Not to doubt the truth of his intention, but we've heard something of this sort before. *Jim Koss is printing again. Any time that our eyes glaze over at the computer screen or our back aches and a whine starts to form, his example gets us back to reality.

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*Edwina Leggett We shared two meals with the founder of Califia Books (the ur-version of V&T) in 2009. She remains indomitable, active, engaged, and razor sharp. Whatever she's taking, we'd love to have some. *Librarians who have moved on Contacts, acquaintances, or friends, their movement changes us: Iris Snyder (University of Delaware), Marilyn Wurzburger (Arizona State University). Litter is a sad form of mark-making on our earth that we see from sea to polluted sea.. In poet Timothy Steele's "At the Chautauqua Channel" a gull watches the parade of refuse: "Styrofoam cups, beer cans, McDonald's wrappers, / Condoms, flip-flops, cigarette butts, and Pampers. /… And, if she were a lexicographer, / 'A wingless animal that litters' might / Well might be her definition of a human." We'll remain wingless animals, but certainly (perhaps?) we can change the rest. Alan Loney began the year as poet, writer, and bookmaker and ended as poet, writer, and ex-bookmaker. The closure of Electio Editions means we'll miss the elegant, thoughtful, exquisitely printed volumes we've come to look forward to. Turning his energy to full-time writing will be a boon, but our world will be lesser.

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MCBA/Carlton College Roundtable In April the Minnesota Center for Book Arts and Carlton College sponsored a day-long gathering of college librarians (spiced with interested parties) to discuss how to introduce or promote artists' books on their campuses. We were part of the entertainment, and they graciously allowed us to sit in on the discussion. As an exploration, an exchange of experience and ideas, a step in cooperation, this should be a model for others. *Movie Theaters We talked last year about the difficulty in finding theaters that show more than identical offerings of the week's commercial fare. Two theaters added to our list of alternative experiences: the Sundance Movie Theater in Madison, Wisconsin, and The Loft Cinema in Tucson, Arizona. (Thanks to Phil and Karen Zimmermann for directing us to the latter).

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Noodles & Company We found them in the Midwest but they are popping up in the East and Far West. Hard-edged like most of the chains, which encourage eating and not dining, the food is good and generally nutritious. If there is one around and we have time to forego the drive-through lines, we're happy here. Malla Nunn (in A Beautiful Place to Die): "Feel the evil, yet let good prevail. What else can people like us do?" What else indeed. Ignoring either is dangerous; wallowing in either seems even more dangerous.

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