August 2013 Archives
Posted August 30, 2013
Yesterday I was getting on a plane for Rome, right? It feels that way anyhow. I cannot believe it is the end of August and summer is coming to a close. I don’t remember a summer in recent history where I did so much or went through so many changes in such a short period of time. What a ride it has been and now, just as my routine feels settled, things are about to shift again. I am in the midst of my last full week at my job with the National Park Service and I start my new public library job on September 5th! The fall promises to be full of challenges that come with a new job, new classes, and a new schedule, but I cannot wait to get things started. I will be working a few more hours per week this semester than last and with three classes, my time management skills are going to get a workout. That said, I will finally have personal experience working in a library to…
Posted August 19, 2013
I watched the first episode of Game of Thrones on June 22 as an escape from the afternoon heat in Washington, DC. Fast-forward 24 hours, and I had watched five more. The only thing stopping me from completing the entire ten-episode season by dinnertime on June 23 was my flight back to Boston. I hurried home from the airport and immediately went to my library’s webpage to request Seasons One and Two on DVD. When I saw that there were 100-something holds on 90-something copies of each season (my library is part of a network of libraries in the greater Boston area, hence the large numbers), I added myself to both hold lists and vowed to start reading George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, the book series upon which the Game of Thrones television show is based. It didn’t take long to become so immersed in the books that I forgot about the queue for the DVDs. The novels initially intimidated me, as there are currently five (with two more forthcoming) that…
Posted August 14, 2013
I am recovering from the summer term and the intensity of two classes. You may have followed our ground-breaking alternate reality game in my online Management class with Mary Wilkins-Jordan. (See earlier Kingston posts) As fabulous, dedicated Simmons GSLIS students, we did, indeed, save Kingston and all its libraries! We battled blizzards, naysayers, and gloomy politicians to raise the level and value of the library and information science industry of our fictitious town. To do so, we had to be a team, and all flag-waving aside, the collaborative effort was the likes of which I have not seen before in any of my classes. Early in the term, our professor gave us complete flexibility to work alone or in groups related to our organizations (public, corporate, prison, archives, etc.) or across our base groups (our classes – management, reference, etc.). She cautioned us, however, that while working alone remained an option, we might need to work in groups in order to accomplish it all in the compressed summer session. I am pretty driven, but she…
Posted August 13, 2013
Hi everyone, We just completed our 2nd #GSLISchat. Check out the conversation here: Tweets about “#GSLISchat”
Posted August 13, 2013
For the first time in seven years, I am so happy that this coming September 1, my husband and I will not be moving. I will be excluded from the uHaul hassle, the security deposits, the shady landlords, and dealing with the fact that dishwashers are still a sought-after commodity despite our foray into the twenty-first century. In the past year, knowing that we wouldn’t be moving in September, we have made our little apartment a true home (rental-style) – temporarily replacing the dim lighting fixtures, accruing beautiful (if eclectic) art and photographs, even adopting a puppy for our pet-friendly pad! But one of the things that we have admittedly slacked on is learning our area. When my husband randomly plugged our address into Walkscore.com and a 97 popped up, his friend asked what great coffee shops, bars, parks, and restaurants were in the area to inflate our score so much – sadly, we had no idea. It wasn’t until very recently that we actually made exploring our area a priority – and we have…
Posted August 9, 2013
I have fallen into the habit of falling in love with fellow classmates in my past few semesters at GSLIS. I share my crushes through this blog to you, the GSLIS community. I first met my friend Graham in LIS 408, User Instruction. While there were many talented people in the class with lots to contribute, Graham always intrigued me because of his usability perspective on library science issues. Graham is one of those students that blows you away with his passion and genuine interest with the way patrons interact with information. I want more Grahams in my next class, though I suspect he may not be taking storytelling in the fall. Regardless, I am thrilled to present Graham Herrli. 1) What made you choose the GSLIS program and what is your focus while here at Simmons? I came to GSLIS initially because I was interested in how people interact with information and I thought I might want to become a librarian. Since arriving, I’ve found that librarianship isn’t for me, but I’m still intrigued…
Posted August 8, 2013
Last weekend marked the fifth annual literary festival in Woodstock, Vermont, whimsically named Bookstock. This event brings together many community groups and businesses including the public library, both of the independent book stores in town, the National Park Service, and private vendors. I’ve been able to participate in this weekend long celebration of the written word through my job with the National Park Service and it is absolutely a highlight of the summer. The event appeals to tourists and locals alike and really offers something for everyone. In addition to a tent of exhibitors there is also a huge used book sale; I was able to get 6 books for $10! Quite a steal! I am so happy to see this event thriving and expanding every year because community events like Bookstock are why I want to work for a small public library. (Interested in learning more? Check out: http://www.bookstockvt.org/) Starting in September I will have a new job that I hope will allow me access to more behind scenes details of similar community events….
Posted August 1, 2013
Most people know what it’s like to have an email inbox that is constantly full of crap. Listservs, gimmicks, promotions, mass emails that may or may not pertain to you but you should probably read anyway just in case…you know. I do my best to keep my inbox as crap-free as possible, which necessitates a fair amount of deleting things based solely on their subject line. Who knows how many emails I delete that I shouldn’t, but I do my best to diligently discard blatant crap emails while still opening anything that is, or might be, relevant. Last week, my usual subject line deletion system was jarred by an email from the GSLIS Student Services Center with the subject: PETITION TO GRADUATE form – 2013-2014. This petition clearly pertains to me as I enter my final semester; thus, the email was granted the esteemed privilege of being opened and read. I expected the petition form to be long-winded and daunting, asking me to list every GSLIS credit that I took with which professor on which…
Posted August 1, 2013
Tweets about “#GSLISchat”
Posted August 1, 2013
We’re going live on Twitter in about 45 minutes – 10am EST! Tweet your questions to us at #GSLISchat and/or join us on Twubs to follow the discussion: http://twubs.com/GSLISchat. If you can’t join us today, we have two more scheduled for this month: http://www.simmons.edu/gslis/admission/events/. I’ll also be putting up some of the questions on the blog today after the chat is over. We hope you’ll join us!
