A number of new classes were recently approved by the administration, so I got a hold of the tentative syllabi and am looking for books on the featured topics. I devoted most of the day to a Social Gerontology course. The accoutrements of my book hunting: Amazon.com, WorldCat, book reviews on Academic Search Premiere. Interrupted at noon by a meeting of the Library Committee convened for the purpose of approving this year's budget (although the art prof took issue with my factoid (supplied by a book vendor) claiming that the average art book costs $38 (which does seem low, although the population from which the average is derived probably includes paperbacks (but it's a non-issue anyway since there are always surplus funds at the end of the year which could pay for requests she might submit (although I wonder if she'll appreciate my spending hundreds of "her" dollars filling in what I perceive as gaps in the art collection?)))).

Lots of interesting-sounding movies have been released lately (Zhang Ziyi kung-fu flick, Tautou/Jeunet collaboration, Kinsey biopic, and a road movie/buddy film about wine connoisseurs), none of which are playing within 300 miles of here.