ALA Midwinter
Posted January 15, 2016 by Tara Pealer
A scene: You walk into the Boston Convention and Exhibit center. It’s 7:30 on a Saturday morning, and the sun is still struggling to break through the dawn and clouds. You rush to the table you’re staffing for the day, check in, and then head over to pick up your pass. You made it. You’re at ALA Midwinter. It’s official. You have a pass and everything. They even gave you a free tote! And then, as you’re heading back to the table, you see it. A wonderland. A dream come true. A place better than Neverland. It makes you feel how Cinderella must have felt looking upon the Prince’s Castle. You’ve caught your first glimpse of the ALA Midwinter Exhibit Hall. Above the crowd of stations and booths, rise recognizable signs for Ebsco, JStor, and McFarland. Hidden in this huge arena, you know, reside the numerous tables for Penguin and Random House. Authors and illustrators are preparing for signings. Free books, posters, and tote bags are just within reach. Already, the scene is alive, bustling…
Attending ALA
Posted January 13, 2016 by Jill Silverberg
This past Friday I attended the American Library Association’s mid-winter conference which was held at the Boston Convention Center. Not only was this my first time attending an ALA conference, this was actually my very first library conference in general! Talk about exciting. While I had known that the ALA mid-winter conference was going to be held in Boston for quite some time, at first, I wasn’t certain if I should go. Since my focus within the field of library science is archives and cultural heritage, I was slightly concerned that, despite being a wonderful opportunity, I wouldn’t have too much to do beyond wandering around the exhibit hall. However, after speaking with a cousin who is a librarian in the Queens, NY area, I reconsidered a few things. To begin with, the conference was being held in a city that I was currently living in. One of the primary reasons I had opted out of attending the Summer ALA conference (previously held in San Fransisco) was the cost of finding a place to stay…
New Year, New Conference
Posted January 8, 2016 by Tara Pealer
Happy 2016! I hope everyone had a good break and is ready to face the New Year! I spent my break back home for a couple weeks, chilling with my family and my puppy, catching up on netflix shows, and generally destressing after my first semester as a grad student. My friend and I went to a local art museum/historic house, and I ended up antiquing with my father and sister, both of which were interesting and fun. My family and I also went to see Star Wars together. I didn’t do much beyond, well, relax. With the close of 2015 being rounded out with a game of Heads Up and a Taylor Swift music video (and wine), the start of 2016 is pretty packed. I picked up a friend from the airport, met her cat, cleaned my apartment, and started to round up scholarships to apply for. Boston itself is prepping for the influx of librarians and information professionals for ALA midwinter this weekend, which is beyond exciting. The official conference runs Friday to…
Finished with Flying Colors
Posted December 17, 2015 by Tara Pealer
I officially finished every assignment for this semester on Tuesday, and I’m currently only waiting on one grade to find out my GPA for my first semester in Library Science School, in order to humble brag on Facebook. I’ve returned all my books, organized all my notes, and printed the last thing I’ll print for this semester. And as exciting as that is (Yay! I’m done!) I can’t say that this hasn’t been a whirlwind semester. I’m still getting used to public transit, I keep forgetting to do my laundry, and the world of library science is much larger and cooler than I expected. I can definitely say I’m happy with where I am. With the first semester winding down, some of my friends and I were talking about why we chose Simmons. For most of my friends, who are archives students, the scale was easily weighted in favor of Simmons because it’s the number one school for archives in the nation. Another friend said that she decided to go to Simmons because of the…
Expecting Nothing More or Less
Posted December 10, 2015 by Tara Pealer
It’s the end of the semester. I have two assignments left, two days of work, and four days. I’m trying not to stress out. However, looking at the semester, I’m trying to make sure that I’ve achieved the one goal I set out for myself: To Have No Expectations. I like to theme my school years. Junior year, for example, was the Year of Yes, and I said yes to every opportunity I could, from entering the honors program to becoming a head tutor. Senior year was my Year of No, and that year I did my best to not add extra work to my overfull schedule. Entering Grad School and moving to Boston, however, required a new focus. I’d learned a lot between the yes year and the no year, and I knew what I could handle without freaking out. So this time around, I decided that my focus would be to have no expectations. I wouldn’t expect classes to be difficult or easy. I wouldn’t expect myself to always have it all together….
One Semester Down
Posted December 7, 2015 by Amy Wilson
Two days – this is all that stands between me and my last assignment this semester. Technically, my last class is next Tuesday, December 15, when half my classmates in my Information Organization class will present their research on an LIS topic. My group is presenting in this first week, so my only job for next Tuesday is to listen and bring a snack. I think I can handle that. Finishing this first semester is a little surreal. A year ago, I had no intentions to apply to Simmons, and here I am one sixth of the way through my program. Last Thursday I turned in my eleven page literature review for my Foundations class. My focus was the information behavior of lawyers, and it really gave me a new respect for my colleagues on the legal team at my work. Ultimately, I found that there are really two levels of information seeking in legal work; first, there is basic legal research, and second, there is a more complicated process of finding the solutions within that information…
A Christmas Gift for All the Bibliophiles on Your List
Posted December 4, 2015 by Katie Caskey
In some ways, book lovers are the easiest people to buy a gift for. If all else fails, they will always be ecstatic to unwrap a new book. But wading through the infinite pool of possibilities to choose the perfect book (or book-related item) can be daunting at best. Enter this gift guide, complete with the best tried and tested book and gift options around! So before you head to the store this season, arm yourself with this list…and some sort of caffeinated beverage…and prepare to win at your holiday shopping this season! For the traditional book lover… In our glitzy, shiny, high-tech world, there are still those who love the dusty smell of an old book, love to crack open the binding and feel the coarse paper between their fingers. For the traditionalist on your list, steer clear of the chain stores with their e-readers and their paperback-filled shelves. Instead, visit your local used book store and hunt the racks for a hidden treasure. Maybe you’ll find an early edition of…
6 Assignments in 12 Days: The Final Two Weeks
Posted December 3, 2015 by Tara Pealer
For those wondering, I did win NaNoWriMo. I’m currently in the final throes of the semester, with a LibGuide, a presentation, a homework assignment, 2 discussion posts, 2 annotated bibliographies, and a five-minute instruction session standing between break and me. It’s a lot of work, but I’m sure if I focus and crack down, I’ll get everything done without being stressed. So, of course, this weekend I’ve made plans to go to the Boston Public Library Book Sale and go Christmas shopping. I’m sitting in the SLIS lab co-working right now, and trying to not stare outside at the Simmons Green Cupola against the brilliant sky blue background. With winter break fighting its way toward us, and the end of the semester nigh, I have to keep reminding myself to focus on completing tasks and paying attention to the present here and now. Here are some of my tips for refocusing attention from ‘four weeks of no school’ to ‘6 assignments and 12 days left to get everything done’. Co-working An extensive rewards system, i.e: ten minutes…
My Disney Rant
Posted December 2, 2015 by Jill Silverberg
*I want to preface that the topic discussed in the following blog post is something that is near and dear to my heart. The thoughts and opinions that follow are not meant to insult anyone. Please enjoy the oncoming rant. Thank you.* Dear Disney, Remember the good ‘ol days when you were known for creating stunning works of animation and beautiful stories? Remember all the colorful characters and memorable songs that have become, for many, wonderful pieces of childhood nostalgia? Well I remember those days. In fact it wasn’t too long ago that your studio produced what many argue to be one of the best Disney films in years. I’m sure you know the one that I am talking about. It’s the one with that extremely catchy song that kind of sort of hasn’t totally gone out of the public conscious. Oh I remember what it was called. FROZEN!!!!!!!! Considering that this little blockbuster of yours has earned $1.219 billion at the box office, I was kind of shocked to read that in the coming years, your…
Dreaming of December Reading
Posted November 24, 2015 by Alexandra Bernson
While free time and sleep are definitely high on my list of “Things I can’t wait to have once this semester is over,” the top of that list is “reading for pleasure.” I’ve been trying to sneak books in during slow weeks where presentations and projects and papers aren’t due, when there are only a few scholarly articles to read, but I can’t wait to dedicate some good time to my armchair, curled up with one of the many books I’ve put on hold at the BPL. In honor of this upcoming pleasure reading, I’ve included some of my favorite books that I’ve read recently in hope that you will recommend some of your recent favorites to me! Feel free to comment or email me with any suggestions! “The Girl on the Train” by Paula Hawkins http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/91lUeBR2G1L.jpg I see the words “murder mystery” and I’m a goner. Sadly, sometimes these grisly tales are poorly written, super predictable, or completely impractical: but this novel is none of these things. Plus, as a frequent rider of the…