T-Minus Ten Days (and Counting)
Posted August 26, 2016 by Tara Pealer
In theory, I have ten days left in the summer to chase excitement, hunt down adventure, and capture magic. In reality, there are only ten days standing between me and the semester, and I am not ready. Don’t get me wrong: I have the binders. I’ve rented the books. I’ve figured out my class and work schedule. I’ll be meeting with the rest of the LISSA leaders today to discuss our plans for the semester concerning events and other exciting plans. I even–get this–went to the Annual SLIS Retreat to learn more about the future of SLIS as a school and as part of Simmons College as a whole. I know I can handle classes, though I’m taking Database Management, which is a different kind of approach to information than I’ve taken before. And I know I love what I do and where I work. I’m excited for my classes and for the kind of work I expect to be doing in them. So, technically, I’m more ready for this academic year than I have…
Moving Day: A Preview
Posted August 10, 2016 by Tara Pealer
It’s almost halfway through August, which should mean that anyone moving into or out of Boston should be planning how to attack Move In Day. Facebook just told me that this time last year, I was trying to convince family and friends to do the heavy lifting by offering them pizza and alcohol. That’s approximately as much planning as I did. I didn’t even order the pizza until we were done moving things in. I did figure out how not to move on ‘move in day’ by taking a train to last year’s orientation and crashing at my older sister’s house. For those of you moving into Boston, Move In Day officially begins September 1st. Boston is a college city, and college students are always moving. According to a real estate article from 2014, Beacon Hill has an 80% turnover rate for apartments. In 2010, a little over 9000 people lived there. So imagine 7,200 people trying to move in about one square mile from one apartment to another, and you get a pretty solid…
SLIS Reflections
Posted August 8, 2016 by Jill Silverberg
It’s been a little more than two months since I walked across the stage at the Blue Hills Pavilion to accept my Masters degree in Library and Information Science. The fact that I won’t be starting classes this September still hasn’t totally sunken in. This has never happened to me before; I have held the identity of “Student” since I started kindergarten. While I am thrilled to be starting the next chapter of my life, the part where I finally get to find out what grown-ups do during the work week, I will miss the familiarity and comfort of the classroom. I will also miss the familiarity and comfort of SLIS. For the last three years, I have been a part of a community of like-minded individuals. Like me, the many members of my cohort have aspirations of becoming LIS professionals while also juggling the struggles of being a twenty-something living in the city of Boston or Cambridge. Yet whenever the uncertainty of the unknown would begin to become overwhelming, one of the program’s many mature…
Guest Blog Series about Study Abroad (Part 1)
Posted July 20, 2016 by Katie Olivo
We have a special guest blog post this week by current SLIS student, Hanna Soltys. Hanna Soltys is beginning her second year in SLIS with a focus on archives management. Since moving to Boston, she’s learned to like seafood and loves games at Fenway despite being an STL Cards fan. She believes tea, laughter, and a good book can cure any ailment. From A to Z: Finding a SLIS Study Abroad Program Guest Blogger: Hanna Soltys Every start of the semester when learning about other students in the class, it’s inevitable. It’s the one thing tying a vast majority of us students together: We all love to travel. Yet, I was shocked to learn most of my classmates weren’t aware they could study abroad as LIS students, even if they weren’t interested in the programs Simmons offered. After looking through a couple options at SLIS, I didn’t find one that spoke to me, and met with my advisor (Prof. Bastian) to see what my options were (if any). She introduced me to a SLIS Study…
Reminiscing on Belonging
Posted July 14, 2016 by Tara Pealer
Sometimes it takes a while to feel like you belong somewhere and that you’re on the right path. Sometimes you search for reasons and moments and days where you can puzzle together hints that you aren’t chasing a silver lining that isn’t there. Sometimes it takes a costume contest, two glasses of wine and a lot of fake confidence to find those signs. I applied to Simmons sight unseen. The first time I saw Simmons I was applying for a job at the writing center and then rushing off to meet my roommate for the first time. The next time I saw it I was at orientation. Simmons, as a campus, had a hard time making an impression on me, and at orientation, since I’m a notorious introvert, making conversation was pretty hard. We talked about the weather and where we were from. Invigorating discussions. I like to joke that when I saw the short hair and quirky dresses that everyone was wearing, I knew I was in the right place. My old boss, when…
Three Fun Places in Boston
Posted July 7, 2016 by Jill Silverberg
For the first time in months, I took some time yesterday to simply walk around Boston and visit a few of my favorite locations within the city. While I probably should have picked a cooler day (yesterday was HOT!), it was still nice to just take some time to enjoy sites that are unique to Boston. If you have not had an opportunity to visit any of the following locations, I strongly suggest you do. They are a part of what makes Boston special and are as notable to city as Central Park is to New York City. Beacon Hill: I started my day over in one of my favorite neighborhoods in Boston. With history extending as far back as the early 1600s, the neighborhood of Beacon Hill predominately features federal-style houses build during the nineteenth century. I love this neighborhood; while walking around its brick sidewalks and narrow streets one can easily forget that there is a modern city just a few streets away. The Charles Street area is where the old neighborhood and the…
SLA Conference 2016
Posted June 24, 2016 by Amy Wilson
I’m home! It’s been a week and a half, but I still feel like I’m getting back on my feet after a month of traveling – Puerto Rico (for fun), Ohio (for work), and Philadelphia (for school). Most recently, I was in Philly for the Special Libraries Association 2016 Conference. My boyfriend and I took advantage of the location to also stay with family outside the city, and we got to meet their new (four months old is new, right?) baby! We drove to Philly on Friday (June 10) night after work and arrived in the suburbs at about 11:30pm. On Saturday we took a bus tour of the city with Rob’s cousins and had a nice dinner with them – there was a lot of chilling out because it was so hot and muggy! On Sunday, after lunch, Rob headed home to Boston and I went to the conference downtown. Because of my stipend from SLA New England, I was able to get a rental car, which allowed me to drive in and out…
Beach Daze
Posted June 17, 2016 by Tara Pealer
I went to the beach this week. Word of advice? Make sure you apply as much sunscreen as humanly possible; and always re-apply it after swimming. My back could make Taylor Swift’s lipstick jealous, though I put on sunscreen pretty often. We went to Revere Beach, which holds the distinction of being the first public beach in the nation, having been established in 1896. The ride out to Revere isn’t bad–if you’re like me, you catch the C or the D and ride to Government Center, then hop on the Blue Line to Wonderland (which, by the way, is actually closer to the beach than the Revere Beach stop. New England…what can you do?)–and the ride home is pretty relaxing too, if you time it right to avoid Red Sox traffic. Revere Beach is pretty quality for a non-ocean beach. Depending on where you set up, the sand is pretty clear of debris and rock, the water is full of seaweed but not super murky, the downside is that the water is absolutely freezing, because…
Farmer’s Markets of Summer in Boston
Posted June 10, 2016 by Jill Silverberg
June is one of my favorite months of the year. In the past, it used to signify the official end of the academic year. Since moving to Boston, June has come to mark the beginning of farmer’s market season! As a lover of all things related to food, farmer’s markets are like catnip to me. I absolutely love wandering through markets like SoWa, the Boston Copley Farmers Market, and the Haymarket Square Farmer’s Market and talking with the vendors about their produce. The fact that you can buy an amazing amount of fruits and vegetables for just $10 doesn’t hurt either. Whether it is your first spring in Boston or not, you definitely should check out a few of these farmers markets while you can. This past week I’ve been nose deep in books that discuss the history of New England cuisine. At the same time, I’ve been spending my Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the Schlesinger Library reading through the letters of Arthur Nichols, as a means of learning about the late nineteenth and…
Summer Semester and SLA
Posted June 6, 2016 by Amy Wilson
I’ve had a short break since my spring term, and now I’m getting ready for my online summer class, ‘Competitive Intelligence.’ In the last few weeks I have been busy with work, but I did fit in a quick vacation to Puerto Rico! Enjoying a coconut on the beach Zip-lining in the rainforest with kittens Based on what I’ve seen of the syllabus, Competitive Intelligence going to be intense. There’s a lot of reading, plus we will have weekly virtual meetings on Monday nights. On those evenings, I plan to stay at work late and call in from my office, since I won’t make it home for our 6pm start time. This week, I’m getting ready for another trip, to the Special Libraries Association’s Summer 2016 Conference in Philadelphia! We are lucky enough to have family in the area, so we will stay with them. Our plan (for Rob and me) is to drive down Friday after work; he is driving home Sunday, and I will fly home Tuesday. The conference is only from Sunday…