Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; 1922–1969) was an American actress, singer and vaudevillian.  Several stories persist regarding the origin of the name "Garland."  One is that it was originated by Jessel after Carole Lombard's character Lily Garland in the film Twentieth Century, which was then playing at the Oriental; another is that the girls chose the surname after drama-critic Robert Garland.  Garland's daughter, Lorna Luft, stated that her mother selected the name when Jessel announced that the trio "looked prettier than a garland of flowers."  Another variation surfaced when he was a guest on Garland's television show in 1963.  He claimed that he had sent actress Judith Anderson a telegram containing the word "garland" and it stuck in his mind.  By late 1934, the Gumm Sisters had changed their name to the Garland Sisters.  Frances changed her name to "Judy" soon after, inspired by a popular Hoagy Carmichael song.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judy_Garland  The famous theme song David Raksin wrote for Laura (1944) was originally entitled "Judy" in honor of Judy Garland.  She was mentioned in the song "Happy Phantom" by Tori Amos, "Dance in the Dark" by Lady Gaga, and "A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel" by U2.  http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000023/bio

A cenote is a natural pit, or sinkhole resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater underneath.  Especially associated with theYucatán Peninsula of Mexico, cenotes were sometimes used by the ancient Maya for sacrificial offerings.  The term derives from a word used by the low-land Yucatec Maya, "Ts'onot" to refer to any location with accessible groundwater.  Cenotes are common geological forms in low latitude regions, particularly on islands, coastlines, and platforms with young post-Paleozoic limestones that have little soil development.  Find a list of notable cenotes at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cenote

There's no evidence at this stage that the great books in our culture can be produced through the Internet right now," says bestselling writer James Patterson.  "If the equivalent of 'Ulysses' came along, out it would go on the Internet, it would get like about 12 Fs in a row — 'I couldn't get through the first page,' 'Couldn't get through the first chapter,' F-F-F-F-F, and 'Ulysses' would disappear."  Patterson's prominence as one of the world's biggest-selling authors has made him a prophet with a platform.  He's on a crusade to make books matter — to, as his hashtag says, #saveourbooks.  In addition to publishing 10 books a year, his recent endeavors have included a petition campaign to get President Obama to demonstrate a love of reading, giving $1 million to independent bookstores, funding teacher scholarships, making a documentary about disadvantaged neighborhoods, partnering with the Library of Congress and tussling with Amazon.  "I'm just stepping up, trying to make some noise, and get others to step up," he says self-deprecatingly, talking by phone from his home in Palm Beach, Fla.  "With the Amazon thing, I could draw attention to the effect it's having on a lot of writers — they were hurting."  Earlier this year, authors published by the Hachette Book Group saw their Amazon sales drop when the online retailer made it harder to buy their books as a tactic during contract negotiations.  Because Amazon accounts for 40% of all retail book sales in the U.S., most authors feared alienating the company.  Patterson (published by Little, Brown, which is part of Hachette), got up at the publishing industry's annual convention, Book Expo, and sounded the Amazon alarm, opening up a public discussion of the online retailer's aggressive business practices.  Whether through his sharp analysis of the publishing industry, the more than 400 teacher scholarships he funds, student reading programs he sponsors, or online campaigns designed to reach the president, Patterson emphasizes the idea that reading is necessary and that a vital literary ecosystem is as important as clean water.  "What kind of culture would we have without books?" he asks, his voice rising.  It's rare for a heavyweight author to engage with the world the way Patterson does.  Over time, he has sold more than 300 million books; in the last decade, that's more than any other single writer.  In 2009, you could take the combined book sales of John Grisham, Stephen King and Dan Brown and still not equal Patterson's.  He holds the Guinness world record for most entries on the New York Times bestseller list and regularly tops Forbes' list of top-earning authors.  Carolyn Kellogg http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-james-patterson-20141214-story.html#page=1

Temple University in Philadelphia announced that Snøhetta would be at the helm of the design for its new library for the original location on North Broad.  Those plans were eventually scrapped, in favor of a centralized location at 13th and Norris St., still designed by Snøhetta.  Temple's new mega-library will feature a true starchitect's touch (with the help from local firm Stantec), it will also boast a "robotic text-retrieval system," according to The Inquirer.  The Inquirer reports the library will cost $190M to complete, which should happen by 2018.  It will be comprised of 210,000 square-feet of space and utilized a robotic text-retrieval system.  A green roof and cafe space are also in the plans for the new library.  According to The Inquirer, Paley Library will be "will be retooled as a welcome center, with a cafe, classrooms, and gathering spaces."  See pictures at http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2014/12/10/plans-for-temples-shhettadesigned-library-include-green-roof-robotic-retrieval-system.php

Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a sovereign city-state and microstate, located on the French Riviera in Western Europe.  It is bordered by France on three sides; one side borders the Mediterranean Sea.  Monaco has an area of 2.02 km² (0.78 sq mi) and a population of 36,371; Monaco is the second smallest and the most densely populated country in the world.  Monaco has a land border of 4.4 km (2.7 mi), a coastline of 4.1 km (2.5 mi), and a width that varies between 1,700 and 349 m (5,577 and 1,145 ft).  Monaco's most populous Quartier is Monte Carlo and the most populous Ward is Larvotto/Bas Moulins.  Through land reclamation, Monaco's land mass has expanded by twenty percent.  Monaco is governed under a form of constitutional monarchy, with Prince Albert II as head of state. The House of Grimaldi have ruled Monaco, with brief interruptions, since 1297.  The official language is French, but Monégasque, Italian, and English are widely spoken and understood.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monaco

Nobel Prize-winning novelist Doris Lessing, who died in 2013, spent her early years in Zimbabwe.  She is still giving back to the country whose former white rulers banished her for speaking against racial discrimination.  The bulk of Lessing's book collection was handed over to the Harare City Library (at the corner of Rotten Row and Pennyfeather), which will catalogue the more than 3,000 books.  The donation complements the author's role in opening libraries in Zimbabwe, to make books available to rural people.  "For us she continues to live," said 42-year-old Kempson Mudenda, who worked with Lessing when she established the Africa Community Publishing and Development Trust.  "The libraries she helped set up are giving life to village children who would otherwise be doomed," said Mudenda, who said he used to trudge bush paths daily to reach remote villages with books.  Lessing's trust started libraries in thatched mud huts and under trees after the author was allowed to return to Zimbabwe following independence in 1980.  http://lisnews.org/doris_lessings_books_to_go_to_zimbabwe_libraries

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 1236  December 29, 2014  On this date in 1800, Charles Goodyear, American engineer, was born.  On this date in 1914, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the first novel by James Joyce, was serialized in The Egoist.