Spring Break
Posted March 5, 2015 by Hayley Botnen
I can’t believe it’s spring break next week. And I’m sure I’m not alone in being surprised at how suddenly the semester has flown by. A major part of that is due to the frequent cancellation of classes at the beginning of the semester. I don’t have any Monday classes, so I never had to worry about that, but my Tuesday class didn’t meet a couple of times. And even now, six weeks into the semester, it feels weird to go to class on both Tuesday and Thursday (which is my normal schedule). It’s been even weirder for me because I still compare every day to Montana. I lived in Montana my whole life, and while it’s a big enough state that each part of Montana is very different from another, it still feels like a place where one can speak for the state as a whole. Montana gets plenty of snow (as I think I’ve said before), but they rarely get snow storm after snow storm after snow storm. And as far as I…
Hanging out with the Future Authors of Tomorrow
Posted March 2, 2015 by Jill Silverberg
Yesterday afternoon, I had the pleasure to attend an event hosted by the Children’s Literature Department over at the School of Management. Our neighbors up the stairs, my first interaction with the Children’s Literature Department and Program occurred way back on September 1, 2014. That was the day that I formally moved into my new apartment with three other girls. Two of these young women were just beginning their second year in the Children’s Literature Program. Since that time, I’ve learned a great deal about the Children’s Literature Program, and all that is has to offer its students. Yesterday, I sat down and listened to various students from the program not only discuss their mentorship experience from the previous semester, but also hear excerpts from the novels that they are currently working on. Hearing the culmination of months, and in most cases, years of effort, was a wonderful experience. I could not only hear the passion that these talented writers had for their work, but also the excitement, pride, and love that they had for…
Thoughts of Summer
Posted March 1, 2015 by Samantha Quiñon
This week I registered for summer classes and applied for a summer internship. I could hardly believe it. Summer seems so far off, especially given the amount of snow on the ground now, but it’s better to plan for it now than to be caught unprepared later. As for classes, after much vacillation, I decided to take courses in XML, digital stewardship, and digital humanities. It is all very technology oriented. A year ago if you had told me I would focus on something like this for a career, I would have told you that you were out of your mind. It is really challenging, but I’m passionate about making information available and discoverable for everyone. That’s why concentrating on digital repositories seems like a good choice for me. The choice also fits very well the professional and internship experience I have. It’s tough, because I feel like my level of skill with technology isn’t as advanced as a lot of other students’, but I think I can overcome my deficiencies and learn more given…
Taking Care of Business
Posted February 28, 2015 by Alison Mitchell
So, the first half of this semester was a little unusual. I’m just thankful I didn’t take any Monday classes, because between snow days and holidays, they have only met once. How crazy is that? By the end of last semester I figured out that things worked best for me if I had big blocks of time for each part of my life. A day here for work, a day there for homework. From 3:15 – bedtime, all my focus was on the kids. Weekends were family time, unless there was a big assignment on the horizon, in which case I carved a few hours out of precious family time so I wasn’t freaking out. It was a little hard to keep to that schedule at the beginning of this semester, as I got used to the slightly different rhythm of an online class. Still, I was keeping a positive attitude and trying to figure out the best way to get things done. I mapped out the dates for all the group projects in…
3D Printing: A Nerd’s Fantasy Realized!
Posted February 27, 2015 by Jill Silverberg
Have you ever been online and saw something that you wanted? I’m sure the answer is yes, but how many times have you actually acted on that impulse? But what if the thing you wanted is something a bit bizarre? Like an Ocarina of Time? Or maybe you want your own House Crest from one of the Four Houses of Hogwarts? As a self-declared nerd, these items are merely just an example of things from various books and video games that I have wanted since I was a child. Of course, like most early twenty-somethings, I am not currently at a place in my life financially where I could justify buying these things. Thankfully, I don’t have to. When 3D printing was still a concept that one could only read about either online or in the newspapers, I thought it was the coolest things ever. I still do. However, I never thought that I would ever have the chance to see one up close, let alone 3D print something. On Newbury Street, there is a…
Ancestors & Acquisitions – My Genealogical Internship
Posted February 23, 2015 by Alexandra Bernson
There is such a difference between learning the theory behind everything we study here and actually putting those theories to good use. As I am currently enrolled in LIS438 (Introduction to Archives), I have the fortune of spending a few hours each week at the New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston, Massachusetts. Before I go into my work there, I want to encourage all of you to visit the NEHGS. While my work there will definitely keep me busy, I plan on returning to this organization and looking into my own family tree. While parts of my family are very new to the United States, there is so much to discover and explore. The librarians, genealogists, and researchers that work at the institution from Tuesday to Saturday each week are incredibly kind, knowledgeable, and helpful. The society’s collections include published genealogies, manuscripts, maps, art… and not just from New England. One floor is dedicated to European materials, while their general reference and microfilm collections include materials from New York, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Midwest. …
Forced Fun and Productivity
Posted February 21, 2015 by Samantha Quiñon
Okay. So you’ve heard by now how much snow we’ve had in Boston. Living here, it’s hard to forget, but I’m trying. Everyone is trying. Here’s what I’ve been doing to make the time go by: School Work: Writing an XML schema Reading for classes Writing critiques of the aforementioned readings Gradually making a strategic plan for Emory University Archives for a group project Things Usually Procrastinate: Doing my taxes Filing my financial aid forms Laundry Cleaning stuff that will eventually get dirty again (i.e. everything) Writing thoughtful replies to e-mails (i.e. more than “Thanks” and “Will do”) Fun Distractions and Outings: Going to a Mexican food restaurant without windows to pretend I wasn’t in Boston Many movie nights (courtesy of DVDs from various libraries) Binge watching The Killing on Netflix Tweeting stuff no one cares about Perfecting the art of making warm cocktails (Hot Toddy anyone?) Reading Lisa Genova’s Still Alice (which is so good!) Somewhere in here I also managed to go to work and my internship after dealing with long commutes, but…
Dilemma
Posted February 20, 2015 by Alison Mitchell
Like many others, I was inspired by this Humans of New York story. It made me think about the impact teachers and principals can have, and, following that logic, public librarians in urban settings. When I applied to library school, I wrote part of my application essay on the need for quality library services for traditionally underserved populations. I want every child to have access to a great public library with materials and programming and technology and responsive librarians. I want to be one of those responsive librarians. Except that I work in a suburb with a decidedly not underserved population. Don’t get me wrong. I love my job and everything about it. But the other day, reading story after story about Mott Hall Bridges Academy and the inspiring Principal Lopez (and the even more inspiring Vidal Chastanet), I started to think that maybe I should be working in an urban library. Then, I saw a job listing for the same type of position I have now, but in an urban setting. I shouldn’t have…
Outsides and Insides
Posted February 19, 2015 by Hayley Botnen
Because of the snow, I had a hard time getting to the library these past couple weeks. Which is only unfortunate because I’m taking a picture book class which meets once a month, and in which we need to read 120 picture books. I was planning to check out about 10 a week, but when I missed a couple weeks, I ended up checking out about 30 picture books yesterday. I was mildly embarrassed simply because I don’t have any children, and, to a certain extent, I felt like I was taking away books from possible child readers. But then I reminded myself that the bookshelves were still full even after my two bags of books were removed. In really trying to give myself over to picture books, I noticed a few things about my preferences. I know my last post was also about picture books, but this is slightly more applicable to all books. I’ve said before that I’m terrible and I totally judge books by their covers. Well, in looking at picture books,…
Book Recommendation: The Map Thief
Posted February 16, 2015 by Alexandra Bernson
Despite cancelled classes due to Boston’s clearly insane weather system, I’m sure all of you are deep into your classes and the last thing you need is a book recommendation. But I would be amiss if I did not share with you a great new book that I just finished and absolutely adored, not only because it is so well-written but primarily because it is incredibly relevant to contemporary libraries, archives, and special collections. http://www.michaelblanding.com/mapthief/ The Map Thief by Michael Blanding is made only more intriguing by the scandalous subtitle: “The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps.” The story seems out of the plot of some sort of period film, but all took place within the last decade. Forbes Smiley, a Massachusetts native, entered the rare map trade in the 1980s when map collecting was just becoming popular. He loved the history and artistry of the maps and often worked closely with librarians at major universities as he was researching maps for potential collectors. He was instrumental in…