The Library as Office Max

Here, in no particular order, is a list of items typically found in an office supply store that patrons have asked me for the reference desk.

Aside from golf pencils, staplers, a hole puncher, and tape, we do not stock the rest.

• glue stick
• heavy duty stapler for 40+ pages
• post-it notes
• binder clips
• binder ring
• standard envelopes
• interoffice envelopes
• rubber bands
• matte photo paper
• lined paper
• Reinforcers for hole-punch holes
• colored pencils
• sharpie
• manila folder (“one of those vanilla folders that doesn’t have pockets”)
• shipping boxes “for mailing stuff home” (this we actually supplied, having extra cardboard boxes from shipments of printer paper lying around that we otherwise would recycle. What can I say? I was feeling magnanimous.)

This is my list.  What’s yours?

 

 

Plugged, Now Playing

I graduated from library school with a second Master’s in Music History on May 15, 2011.  On August 29, 2011, I began my first-ever grown-up-person job in my chosen career – as a reference/instruction librarian specializing in Human Development, Psychology, and Kinesiology!  6 weeks into this job, it amuses me when students occasionally come to me with interdisciplinary research projects that involve music.  They tell me their musical topic somewhat uncertainly – either because they themselves are not that well-acquainted with research in music or they think that I am not – and I want to say: if you only knew.

I enjoy this psychology crash-degree I am getting.  The way I see it, I am getting that psychology major I decided against way back in my sophomore year of college.  I had spent my freshman year choosing between English, psychology, and sociology as my major, and even after choosing English, continued to pursue a psychology minor for another year before realizing that I would have to drop it if I wanted to graduate with the two Bachelor’s degrees I was already pursuing simultaneously.  Now I am thankful every day that I took Psychology Research Methods before I decided that!  Apparently, being an overachiever these days translates into “just achieving enough.”

I am using my real name in this blog, and also discussing real aspects of my very real job.  I considered going the anonymous route, but really, I think it is folly to publish anything on the free web that I would not feel comfortable having everybody in the world know about and know that those thoughts belong to me.  Anonymity?  In 2011?  In a networked digital medium?  Hah!  Furthermore, I think it is entirely possible to be honest without being inappropriate, and to pick and choose what I talk about in a public forum.  So, in other words, my posts will be rant-free.  Stream-of-consciousness sometimes maybe, but no stream-of-subsconsciousness.

For any of you out there who are still searching for jobs, library-related or otherwise, here’s the best piece of supportive advice I received as I was job-hunting: Hang in there. There is a job out there made exactly for you and your qualifications, and it will come along sooner or later and you will be the one who gets it.  I heard this twice, perhaps, during my 6-month-long job search, and it was not phrased exactly like this, but that was the gist.  And you know what?  It’s true!  There’s some self-fulfilling prophecy in there along the lines of “of course you eventually come to feel like the job you got was the one that really wanted you,” but I think it’s also more than that.  A great deal of specialization is going on these days, both on the learning end in higher education and the job description end, and my recent job-searching experience suggests to me that employers really are looking for the plug-and-play employee, totally ready straight out of the box.  You can probably tell from the metaphors I am using that I am not exactly fond of this trend.  I’m not.  But, generally speaking, I think it is true.  There are so many well-educated (even over-educated) candidates for jobs now that I think hiring committees really are able to find the perfect candidate for just about any position they can dream up, assuming they cast their search net wide enough, that is.

So here’s my question for the rest of you who found jobs recently: Did you apply to any jobs that were not exactly spot-on for your qualifications, but were jobs that you believed you would have been competent at after a learning curve?  If so, did you feel like (or know) you were a competitive candidate?

What’s your Tao?

Laozi Pointing- Image from http://www.tao-te-king.org/

This post by Information Tyrannosaur about “The Tao of Librarianship” got me thinking.  It’s sometimes hard to see the philosophical goals of the library when you’re working there every day, filling your days with projects, workshops, technical stuff and question answering.  The “how” of what you do on a daily basis seems more pressing than the “why.”

Tyrannosaur’s blog reminded me of another great blog post I read recently on ACRLog, “The What Versus The Why.”   In this article, StevenB reflects that libraries spend a lot of time explaining what we do, whether in the context of mission statements, budget justifications, or elevator conversations, but we don’t tend to think about WHY we’re doing it.  The why is just as important to a successful library program as the details of getting a working group together, assigning duties, and assessing outcomes.

Whether it’s a project you’re working on alone or in collaboration with colleagues, taking a moment from the list-making and implementation phases to ask yourselves bluntly “Why do this? What’s the purpose of this activity and what do we hope to accomplish by it?”  can really help focus the project and the group.  Running through some of Information Tyrannosaur’s Taoist Librarian guidelines can’t hurt either.

To add to the list, here’s a bit of Taoist philosophy that might apply to weeding and collection development:

If you want to shrink something,
you must first allow it to expand.  (36)

–Tao Te Ching free translation from CUNY Brooklyn

Are there any Tao Te Ching axioms– or ideas from other philosophies– that you find particularly apt for working at your library?

Tao Te Ching Scroll. Image from sinoarts.net

I want this poster

Alan Rickman, READ, copyright American Library Association

Alan Rickman is just cool.  I’m not even a Harry Potter/Snape fan.  I am a fan of reading, and of Alan Rickman.  (Not many actors could play the super villain in Die Hard and the stately hero Colonel Brandon  in Sense and Sensibility.)

I don’t know if your libraries have READ posters. My academic library has fabulous student artwork on the walls instead.  But I’m sure Alan Rickman has a place in libraries somewhere…even if only in my office!

For more READ posters, including ones featuring Rachel Maddow, Tim Gunn and Queen Rania of Jordan, check out ALA’s website.

Superstar Librarians

This excellent post on Guy Librarian got me thinking about superstar librarians.  I agree with Alex that librarians need to be more like Lady Bird Johnson (actively advocating and changing things) than Lady Gaga (glitz for the sake of glitz).  I have a lot to say about advocacy, but Alex’s post inspired me in another direction.

I have come to the somewhat embarrassing conclusion that I am jealous of Superstar Librarians.

There are a lot of rock star librarians out there, especially in the blogosphere.  I don’t mean literally (although many librarians are musicians too).  I mean the young up-and-coming librarian that always seems to be doing something way cooler than you are, and on a tighter budget.  The digital-savvy, geek chic librarian who is invited to join panels and speak at conferences and has already published twelve book chapters or articles.  The go-getter librarian who is constantly improving things at his/her library and turning those achievements or failures into job talks, best practices, and learning experiences.  Needless to say, these are the people that seem to work at the coolest libraries.

Maybe you work with somebody like this?  Maybe you’re competing with Ms. or Mr. Perfect Librarian on the job market.  Maybe you are the Librarian Superstar at your library!  Without being bitter or defensive, can we all at least acknowledge that not everyone can be a superstar all the time?

As starstruck as I am by these “cool” librarians, I think I’m also suffering from library envy.  I’ve been feeling a little burnt out lately (due to the dead months of the summer?). Seeing how industrious some of my coworkers are and reading the happy-go-lucky exploits of “emerging leaders” in the blogs I follow have left me feeling dizzy and overwhelmed.

I’m usually not a competitive person, but being one of the youngest members on staff has me feeling a lot of pressure to do something new and innovative. I expected to have certain ideas shot down as a new librarian; I didn’t expect to be blocked for ideas!

I think maybe the discrepancy here is that by the time somebody writes about or gives a presentation about a creative accomplishment at their library, all the grunt work is behind them.  The day-to-day, 40-hour-a-week pattern of a full time job has been condensed and edited to make a nice picture–fast forward to the future!

We don’t see that Superstar librarian at the reference desk being asked whether she has any binder clips. No? How about a rubber band? If not, I guess a paper clip would do.  We see the Superstar roving around with an iPad and having nothing but positive interactions with patrons otherwise reticent to approach a shy or intimidating librarian.

Coming back to Alex’s point in his post…

The old catch phrases are tired. For example, when I was getting trained to be a teacher, the phrase “creating lifelong learners” started to make my eyes roll. It became a slogan without much substance. Saying you want to create lifelong learners is not daring. Explaining how you would do it, is.

I think librarians need to share more about the challenges and daily activities of our jobs both with the public and each other, and more importantly, we need to discuss how these activities relate to our overall mission and goals.  These conversations happen a lot at conferences, but they need to be happening in libraries themselves.

And those superstars need to show us a small degree of human frailty. Please.

Infrastructure

When my coworker and I got back from eating lunch, she found her computer tower in a pool of water on the floor of her office.  Our library–the entire campus really– has suffered from flooding for years.  Numerous fixes and architectural band-aids have been put in place to remedy this problem, but just as often, the construction creates new issues.

The Library is doing what we can to protect our collections (no books on the bottom shelves!) and our computers (we’re moving our largest computer lab from the basement to the main floor, where flooding is less of a problem).

I’m sure we can’t be the only ones with infrastructural and architectural issues like this.  I remember my undergraduate library at Oberlin had a Japanese beetle infestation (the ones that look like lady bugs) nearly every Fall.  Do any of you have stories about natural, physical, or man-made phenomena that plague the library you work in?  How have your libraries responded?  Given the floods, tornadoes, and fires that have been hitting all different regions of the U.S., does your library have a disaster plan?

Master Librarian

When I received the diploma for my Masters of Library and Information Studies last Spring, I had two thoughts.  1)  Thus forward I shall be referred to as “Master Darcy.”  (It’s not fair that doctoral students get an honorific and we don’t!)  and 2) Now I have a job title: Librarian.

My official job title now is actually  “Senior Reference and Instruction Librarian.”  This may or may not mean anything to most people.  It’s not as obscure to the average non-MLS person as “Systems Manager” or “Digital Content Supervisor,” but basically, people understand what I do.  Whatever your role in the library, you are among the semantically blessed. You have a straightforward answer to the question:

“What do you do?”

“Why, good sir, I’m a librarian!”

Even if people have no idea what librarians actually do all day, they have a mental image (probably something like this), and usually positive associations with the title.  This is why calling people “Information Professionals” makes no sense to me.  Job titles these days are at best euphemistic (Sanitation Worker) and at worst completely meaningless (Senior Associate for Development). As a librarian, I have an easy handle to give people.  If they’re positive about librarians, we can have pleasant small talk.  If they have no opinion at all, the conversation moves on.

But even though I’m proud to don this moniker, I have had reservations at times.  After all, I am not only a librarian. I do other things, have other identities. Before deciding to make a career in libraries, I always introduced myself as a writer.   “Writer” was a lot harder to explain at parties and was generally followed by the annoyingly obvious question: “What do you write?”   I still write and consider myself a writer, but it’s an identity I wear on the inside now.  I love what I do for a living, but does “librarian” really express who I am?

I’m wondering how the rest of you feel about the title.  Some of you have been working professionally in libraries for almost a year now, others of you are newly minted Masters looking for employment.  Some of you have pursued other careers and creative interests.  In fact, almost nobody I know wanted to be a librarian from the time they were little.

How do you feel about being called–and introducing yourselves as– “librarians?”  (comment below)

Ahoy Sailors!

Ahoy sailors!  We need all hands on deck to launch this proud vessel on her maiden voyage…

…ok I’m already sick of the sailing metaphors!

In case you couldn’t tell from our header or the “about” section, this is not a sailing blog.  This is a librarian blog, but of a different color.  It’s not Lone Librarian Versus The World.  It’s not Yet Another Librarian Association Makes a List Serv.  We’re a group of friends and former library school classmates who decided to contribute to a group blog.

Anyone in this virtual happy hour group–the Sailing Club– is free to post about whatever they wish.  Need a job-hunt pep talk?  Ask your pals.  Did something cool at your library?  Share it!  Want to pique our minds on the existential dilemmas entrenched in our profession?  Posit your theory!  Still haven’t said enough about Harold Bloom?  Keep talking!  Got a hankering for some buffalo wings?  So do I!

I really hope we can do something cool with this blog and take the professional and personal connections we all made as students forward into our careers.  So, what are you waiting for?

Anchors away, Sailors!

 

You'd be surprised how many search results you get for "Nautical Bookends"