Resources for Transitioning to Boston
Posted November 8, 2022 by Magenta Jasinski
Recently, I had a person who was close to me decide to leave the Simmons-Boston campus. This was a shock and a surprise to me, as she had only been on campus for five weeks when she announced this decision. The astronomical cost of living, the distance from family and friends, the frustrations she faced with her landlord, roommates, and other people in her life all contributed to this choice. Conversely, I’ve been in Boston since January, working at various internships and integrating myself into the life I’ve built for myself. Coming to Simmons this September was a relief after months of doing virtual classes andfeeling a tangible lack of community with other students. It was a joy to see my classmates inperson, and I felt everything click into place after I came on campus. I made the decision totransfer from my university in my hometown to prolong my stay in Boston for an unknownamount of time as I progress through my program and decide whether to stay or leave aftergraduation. I can’t imagine moving…
Setting Back the Clocks
Posted November 4, 2022 by Ivy Noonan
I feel like I just began the semester and now the countdown to Thanksgiving has begun and I’m currently in swirl of midterms. While that can be tiring, I’ve been taking breaks to remind myself to enjoy it. This is my last fall semester for a while and knowing myself I’ll probably miss it at the start of next September. For now I’m focusing on choosing my final library science class. I’m considering between 456 – Records Management, LIS 476 – Outreach & Advocacy for Cultural Heritage, or LIS 471-OL1 – Photographic Archives, or LIS 471-OL1 – Photographic Archives. Each one offers insight into a different side of Library Science that I’m interested in. I’m most likely going to take Records Management as I’ve heard this provides helpful experience working in a corporate archive, which I would love to work in. I’ve also began receiving emails about thesis topics. I hope my fellow pre-thesis-semester students are doing okay. It can be daunting but I’m incredibly excited about the prospect of really delving into my research…
Museum Adventures in Boston
Posted November 3, 2022 by Rebecca Devereaux
And the adventures continue! In this post I am going to focus on my obsession with the museums and libraries in the Boston area. Prepare for a lot of Rebecca’s brain in a perpetual explosion. My list of visits so far: The Central Boston Public Library (BPL), the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the immersive Monet and Impressionist exhibit, the Boston Athenaeum, the Simmons Library, and Emmanuel College’s Library. I have decided that the BPL is my favorite study space in Boston, at least at this point. I love seeing all the people interacting with books, research, and information. I am a fan of studying with the white noise of people moving around in the background, with children walking past, and with so many books at my fingertips. Beyond my visits to the BPL I also need to share about my visits, yes plural visits, to the MFA. I have been three times so far (each visit lasted multiple hours). I plan to go again tomorrow. And I have STILL not…
Outdoor Excursions
Posted October 31, 2022 by Rebecca Devereaux
The semester has found itself in a rhythm. I understand what is expected of me and how to accomplish it when it comes to course work. Things which used to be wild hurdles have just turned into everyday speedbumps. While I still keep google maps almost perpetually open on my web browser, I am beginning to gain confidence in my basic understanding of the layout for Boston and its landmarks. Even as I explore the city of Boston, I have also been branching out into the surrounding area. A few weekends ago I made the trip to New Hampshire to go on a hike/ leaf peeping. Side note: leaf peeping is not a thing out west. It was a totally new term for me. Anyways, I drove through New Hampshire at the height of its Autumn beauty. If you have ever doubted the calendar pictures which show a hill covered in trees of all shades of red, orange, and yellow, thinking they may perhaps be photo shopped, I am here to tell you this really…
Inciting Joy at Boston Bookfest
Posted October 31, 2022 by Claire Pask
This past weekend, I attended the Boston Book Fest, a day of readings, discussions, and more.While I enjoyed walking through Copley Square to visit the booths of various literary journalsand publishers, my favorite experience of the day was a panel session titled “How to Live:Purpose, Joy, and Dash of Philosophy” with authors Ross Gay, Kieran Setiya, and Ellen Warner,held in Old South Church. Though I attended the session to hear Ross Gay speak about his new book Inciting Joy—I’vegifted Gay’s Book of Delights to many a family member or close friend, and have multipleannotated volumes of his poetry on my bookshelf—I was pleasantly surprised by how much Ienjoyed the other speakers’ presentations, as the titles of their books had not originally piquedmy interest: Life is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our Way and The Second Half: FortyWomen Reveal Life After Fifty. My notes from the session almost read like a prose poem, though not one of Gay’s caliber:“justice is not separate from self-interest — you always must invite guests — speak well ofpeople…
Registration Is Coming…
Posted October 25, 2022 by Johnna Purchase
Last week one of the most-anticipated parts of my semester arrived – course listings! It seems that every year departments post their course offerings for the next term at just the right time; I’m not bored with my current classes per-say, but I am past the midway slump with more items crossed off my assignment lists than still on them, and my end-of-term papers are set squarely in my sights. Knowing how much work I have yet to do, dreaming about next semester and all of the new content I will get to learn is a welcome break. The new semester also promises a fresh start where I can readjust my schedule to try out a new mode of learning. This semester I stacked my course and work schedule so that I only have commitments Tuesday-Thursday. It’s a lot packed into a little bit of time, but I am really treasuring my four-days-in-a-row off too. Next semester I’m interested in experimenting with an online course or two as I’ve watched my roommate totally thrive with…
Overcoming Techphobia
Posted October 24, 2022 by Claire Pask
As an American born in the late ‘90s—not a millennial nor a Gen Xer—I guess I’m something of a “digital native.” Sure, I’m comfortable with most social media platforms and can figure out how to navigate any webpage or app with relative ease, but I’ve always been incredibly daunted by anything I saw as beyond the scope of my self-imposed tech barrier. I mean, I studied English literature as an undergraduate student, and my vision of my life as a librarian usually involves my future self in a hand-knitted wool cardigan surrounded by various dusty books and manuscripts—not sitting in an office writing code or thinking of the best ways to integrate new technology into my work. Any skill on the “techie” side of things—like the back end of that website I’m happy to transfer my data onto—seemed beyond my reach, out of my comfort zone. That idea is changing, and my LIS coursework is forcing me to reconsider my vision. Just this past week, I wrote an image into an HTML code and formatted…
Off To A Good Start
Posted October 21, 2022 by Rebecca Devereaux
Wow! It’s already been a month since I moved all the way across the country to begin the dual MA/MLIS program. Boston is not eastern Washington. I realize that should be self-evident, but some of the differences seriously surprised me. Where are the Fred Meyer’s and Safeways? Why am I now shopping for groceries at Target?! When you walk to get your groceries your shopping list gets a lot smaller too. I am finally learning why meal planning is so important. At least there is the continuity of valuing the great outdoors here in Boston. There are so many parks and green spaces. No matter what time of day I venture out of my apartment I am sure to see joggers and bikers and walkers enjoying the parks surrounding the area. Although it would take me longer to get out of the city to go for a hike, the number of spaces which encourage nature walks makes it seem less overwhelmingly city and more approachable. Although my library classes are online this semester, I am…
First Semester
Posted October 20, 2022 by Claire Pask
What’s that saying—peers give the best advice? (There’s not one like that; I just Googled it. It works for this blog post, though.) I’m Claire, a first year SLIS student, and here are a few things I’mcarrying with me as I work through my first semester of the program. Maybe they’ll help you, too. • To quote a Guardian headline that’s stuck with me since I first read it, “everyone is totally just winging it, all the time.” That person next to you in conference studied the exact same readings as you, and eventhough they may sound intimidatingly smart, odds are you’re just as qualified and preparedto speak up as they are. And am I technically “qualified” to write this blog post of academicadvice as a first-year master’s students? No more or less than anyone else. Maybe. • Don’t be afraid to talk to your professors. That’s what they’re here for, and you’ll besurprised by how easy they are to speak with—it’s almost like they’re real people! My firstmeeting with my academic advisor? She called…
Hello Rebecca!
Posted October 18, 2022 by Lindsey Clarke
Rebecca is another new blogger on our team. Rebecca wrote her own introduction so here it is! Look for more great posts from Rebecca soon: “Hello everyone! My name is Rebecca Devereaux, and I am in the Simmons dual History and Library Science master’s program on the archives track. I grew up in Washington state on the mighty Columbia River. I just finished up my undergraduate at Whitworth University in Spokane, WA, where I double majored in English and history. A few of my favorite classes included Sin and Chaos in Literature and the Philosophy of Chinese Architecture. On the side of my academic work load I invested a good chunk of my time playing tuba for the Whitworth Wind Symphony and the Whitworth Orchestra. I didn’t have space to bring my tuba to Boston, but I have a mouthpiece, just in case somebody needs a tuba player last minute. My work experiences these past few years have been focused on processing and disseminating information. I worked for a year and a half as an…