What I Have Learned

Ok, I can definitely say that I am not much of a blogger. This is not my only attempt at blogging and it may not be the last but I will need to be more conscious of it in the future if I really want to become a blogger - and I am not sure that I do.

The real reason for this post is to say that the formal education of this librarian is coming to a close. I will be graduating from library school in a few weeks and am looking for a job as a real life librarian. It is possible that I could go back to school for another masters degree, perhaps in Gender Studies, but I am definitely taking an education break.

If I were to try and list the things I learned about being a librarian in my classes I would have to say there was very little. I learned a lot from volunteering at libraries, talking to librarians and students but learned little during my classes. Yet at the same time the classes were important, they raised my consciousness about issues, even if accidentally, they allowed me to meet students and librarians that I otherwise would not have been able to, and they made me think about how I would teach a subject if I were the one planning the class.

Now I am looking forward to learning what it is like to work full time in a library. I am interested to see how I fit into a library setting and how I benefit the library and the community I serve. This type of informal education is what I have been looking forward to since I decided to become a librarian and now I finally get to go out into the world and do it.

Now I just need a job.

Young Adult Literature

I have been preparing for my Library Materials for Young Adults class and am finishing up all the assigned reading. I had originally assumed that I had read some of these books and was surprised to find that I read very few. Thinking back I realized this is because I skipped young adult literature as a young adult. I went from reading the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder to reading Of Mice and Men, Jane Eyre, and Gone with the Wind.

It is definitely a lot of fun to go back now and read these books. I can read about one a day and they are all very well written and usually fun reads. There were only two that I have not enjoyed in some way, and that will happen with any book list someone is given. This is definitely a part of my library education that needs improvement since I was not much of a reader of young adult literature prior to this and I am glad that I am working on it now as I am getting ready to apply for jobs.

Fall Semester

It is a miracle but I am actually signed up for the classes that I want for fall semester. I had to get the dean's permission to take one of the classes but after a letter and a series of phone calls I am in the archiving class I needed. I am also taking Preservation and Conservation as well as Searching Electronic Databases.

I am starting to get anxious about finishing school. While I like my job I am getting to the point where I want something else. I definitely ready to finish this degree so I do what I want to do.

I had taken a break from volunteering since I was in a class that met on Saturdays, maybe getting back to doing librarian things will help this ease this anxiety.

Two down three to go

Two semesters down, three to go and then I'll be done. Well technically this semester isn't done until next week but I needed a break from doing final exams/papers so I thought I would write this a little early. All I really have left is about 2/3 of a take home final exam and then I will be done.

This semester was a bit more tolerable than the previous because I finally got to take a class that was not required by the program. In general I have come to the conclusion that I just need to get through most of the classes and that although there may be some interesting moments or topics for the most part it feels like busywork full of theory without any practical use to offset the information I am getting from a book.

I realize it is a little silly for a future librarian to be complaining about the information found in books but when one is learning to be a librarian there is a lot that can only be learned by doing. Working at the special library has really been the practical experience that I needed. One of my latest finds has been a copy of Faust translated into Hebrew from the 1860s. There is something very odd about such a Catholic text being translated into Hebrew. It must have been odd for the person first reading it, almost like a book of witchcraft - deals with the devil and all that.

This summer will be a busy time. I will be taking two classes and probably starting a new internship in addition to continuing to work at the special library and with the wee redhead. Somehow I will fit this all into four months (since according to the university the summer begins in May).

I will be going to a student archivist meeting in a few weeks, I am excited about that. The university I am attending seems to ignore the needs of students interested in archives and offers all the archivist classes in the same semester. Hopefully we can organize a way to bring this to the attention of the school.

This brings me to the realization that I had about my dream job. When I was in my Early Books and Manuscript class I realized that as much as I would love to work with such texts the probability of doing so is pretty slim. I would most likely need a second Masters degree probably in history or even linguistics and I would need to learn more languages and probably Latin. At this point I realized that I am more interested more modern materials that need archiving. When working at the film center library I loved finding artifacts of film history and when I visited the local GLBT library I loved that they had an archive of GLBT history. It is this type of thing I would rather care for, things that could easily be overlooked because they are relatively new but in time will be a part of history. I would like to preserve these things before they are lost and before they begin to fall apart.

No Time

No time seems to be my new catchphrase. I had class this weekend and between that, my Thursday class and the laundry room in my building closing at 10pm I did not have time to do my laundry. This led to me doing it at work. This isn't necessarily a problem but it was a bit weird. It caused my employer to remind me that I can take some time off work if I need to. I have vacation days that I have not as of yet used but I always feel guilty about using them. I haven't even used a sick day, even when the wee redhead gave me a cold. So I am taking a few days around my birthday and the Monday after my next weekend class. This should help me from going too crazy.

This weekend wasn't actually all that bad. Like the previous class weekend we had a presentation due at the end of the second day and a paper due in a few weeks. My group did a presentation on the Luxeuil Abbey and the Luxeuil miniscule that they created which can be seen here http://medievalwriting.50megs.com/scripts/examples/luxeuil.htm
My group and I tried to recreate the script and the illuminations used as best as possible. Part of the presentation was do to a mock page of text to try to better understand the life of a scribe.
I don't know if I understood the life of the scribe that well but on Sunday night my neck and shoulders hurt so bad from the tension due to writing that I couldn't sleep.

I also introduced the others in my group to Google docs and to Refworks. Since we are all writing the paper together and because there aren't really clear divisions of the topics it makes sense to write it together in Google docs. This way we can all share the information as we go. Hopefully this will also make editing the parts together a bit more streamlined. Refworks is a really great tool when doing a bibliography, it will format it once the sources are entered into the program. You can also put websites into it by using RefGrab-It. This makes paper writing so much easier, it even does the in text citations.

I was very lucky to have Garrett's help this weekend. He encouraged me to enjoy the art project that I was assigned (even though I paid thousands of dollars for this class only to be assigned an ART PROJECT!). And even better he took Miso (the cat) for the weekend so that I would have uninterrupted rest. Most nights I get kept up until late hours because she decides to randomly bite my arm or she wakes me at 5am with her call of the wild moments that last for about an hour. Although it was very nice to have her back Sunday night, she fell asleep next to me by about 10:30 and stayed that way most of the night. I think I was missed.

Technically this week is spring break but next Tuesday I have a presentation to give about a library visit for my management class. I spoke to the library director today and will visit the library tomorrow evening. There is also a corresponding paper due the week after the presentation and a midterm take home exam for my cataloging class. Combine this with the paper for my early books and manuscripts class so I don't really have a Spring break at all.

I am debating my decision to take three classes next fall. This has been a very busy semester however part of the difficulty have been that these are the last of my required classes and the added problem of snowy commutes. I hope that taking classes that I want to take and in weather more conducive to commuting I should be ok. I think I will register for three but drop one if need be.

Early Books and Manuscripts

This weekend I started my Early Books and Manuscripts class. Overall I am really enjoying it, during undergrad I never had a chance to take a Medieval History class and that is essentially what this class, at least this weekend was.

The workload isn't too bad, for each of the three sessions we have a 10 page group paper and the majority of the reading has already been done. Most of the groups are three people, unfortunately someone dropped the class so my group is only two, which makes the part of the paper I am writing longer. Next session we switch groups so hopefully I will be in a group of three.

My only criticism of the class is that we are only focusing on Medieval Europe, I wish we would cover non-Europe texts, I would love to learn about Middle Eastern and Asian texts. I don't believe the school offers a class like that. But to be honest I didn't expect to have a more global coverage.

This is my first non-required class and I am so glad that I finally got to take one this semester. Taking a third class does add a lot of work but this is the only class that is truly enjoyable and should help make the other classes a little easier to take.

Volunteering is also going well. I was able to go in on Friday since I had the day off work. I got some work done and met more of the library staff. They all seem pleased that I am there, although there were moments when I wished they would leave me to my work and stop asking questions, but they were just being friendly. I am looking forward to going back on Sunday when it is quiet. Out of all of my responsibilities this is the one thing I am enjoying the most, sadly it is the one thing that I can only do occasionally and will be the first thing to cut if I don't have the time.

Busy Bee

In order to procrastinate just a bit I thought I would write a bit about last week. The weather here in Chicago has been absolutely insane which has made the commute to class very difficult. In both my classes last week the professor ended an hour early in order for us to take our time getting home.

On Tuesday the day started at 50F but dropped into the single digits by 9pm. Getting into class it was about 40F and raining but when I left it was very cold and snowing. Unfortunately Thursday was even worse, it snowed all day and it took me 90 minutes to get to class, making me half an hour late, then since the professor let us out an hour early I was only there for an hour and a half then repeating the process going home. The only upside to that entire trip was the cheaper suburban gas.

Homework has been getting heavier, I had multiple chapters to read in each class and have started the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, Second Edition. This is insanely boring. There are multiple pages about the different ways to enter a title into a bibliographic record depending on if there is a subtitle, secondary title, title in a non-English language etc. Then the same number of pages for the "statement of responsibility" which is essentially the author.

But on the upside I am starting to feel a bit like a librarian. I began volunteering at the museum library this weekend. While it does take away from the weekend "break" period I have and cut into study time it is well worth it. Just being there reminds me of why I am doing all of this craziness in the first place. I am not doing very interesting work but it is helping out the librarians quite a bit. Mostly I will be processing books - getting them ready for the shelves. They are already cataloged but need to be stamped with the library stamps (along side of the book, if it is reference or non-circulating), mylar covers need to be put on dust jackets, spine labels need to be made, magnetic strips put inside the spine to deter stealing, that sort of thing. I actually really like the process, although my supervisor told me many times that I will soon bore of it and if I want to do something different to let her know.

I know it is a small thing but I feel like I am really helping the overall workings of the library. In a small way I am helping patrons find the information they are looking for. Just by making sure the spine label is correct I am helping someone find the book they are looking for, that is pretty cool.

Bit of an update

I am starting to feel a bit overwhelmed with everything. Homework is starting to get more involved and to make matters worse I caught a cold from the wee redhead. I was able to write a paper today that is due early next week so I am somewhat caught up but I still have one assignment and a lot of reading to do.

My cataloging class is going better than expected, I did well on the first paper (the standard library visit paper). And I do seem to be understanding the topics presented although our first real assignment is this week so we shall see.

Also to add to my responsibilities I am starting to volunteer at the library next weekend. I am really excited about this because I feel the need to be working in a library but I am worried about how much time this will take up.

Lots of new

I began my first two classes of the semester in the last week. My third class doesn't start until February but I am already doing assigned reading.

Cataloging is going to be a lot of work, which I was expecting, but luckily the professor seems to understand that cataloging is not for everyone. It is the only class that we can really be tested on material because like math there is a correct and incorrect answer without any room for discussion, luckily the exams are take-home, that eases my nerves considerably.

Today I started my Library Management class, this professor's ego is so large that I am surprised that we fit into the room. And he did one of the things I cannot stand in professors, he assigned his own articles as assigned reading. It is better than assigning one's own book (since we then have to purchase said book) but it is still very frustrating. We are already getting his opinions during the lecture we do not need to read his opinions as well.

I also found a new route to class that seems to be a much better and faster way of getting there. Instead of taking the expressway I take a side street that is large enough to have proper traffic lights but small enough that it isn't used much during rush hour. Hopefully it will stay that way.

I went on my "interview" at the museum library that I want to volunteer. I don't really want to call it an interview because they are very happy to be getting free help from a library student and when I went to talk to them it wasn't a matter of if I could volunteer but what would I like to do. Assuming that the background check they did on me goes through, which should unless I committed a crime while sleepwalking, then I should be starting to volunteer on weekends soon. Most of what I will be doing is getting new books ready to be shelved but I am happy for the experience and ready to feel part of a library.

Done

The semester is officially over, my last class was this week. It seems that I have gotten through it with pretty good grades. I have about a three week break until next semester starts and I am already purchasing books for my new classes, since I need nine books it is best to spread out their purchase.

I wish I could say that I have learned a lot about librarianship and that this new knowledge has further confirmed my want to be a librarian. Sadly this is not the case. I still know that I am supposed to be a librarian but the classes did not give me much new knowledge and did not help confirm my desire.

The lack of knowledge given in class has in a way been beneficial, it makes me seek it out in other ways. Conversations with Garrett and looking into things by myself has increased my understanding of librarianship.

There were a few things I learned from classes, although this is probably not what the course objectives were:

• do not talk or engage with the old lady classmate, she will tell you why she has not been in class, her time in hospital and the tests and diagnosis. She will also ask your help with assignments she has missed and state that she knows nothing about technology.
  
• Do not trust your professor to properly explain or even know what you are supposed to include in an assignment. They seem unable to properly convey their wants.
• Some classmates can be much more informed than professors and can be the best resource.
• A small university is no better at managing bureaucracy, getting the personal touch, providing a better education than a large university, and it almost makes me miss UIC, at least there was no pretense.
  

Wrapping up

I was finally able to register for next semester's classes. Luckily I was able to get the classes I wanted especially considering there was a hold on my registration since the school did not have my final transcripts from my previous school. Would have been easier for them to tell me I needed those about 5 months ago since they only gave me a week to get those to the registrar. Oh well I always expected idiocy when it comes to university bureaucracy.

Hopefully I will soon be starting an internship/volunteer type of thing too. There was a point recently when I realized that the problem I was having with my classes is that they didn't make me feel like a librarian. Actually working in a library would help fix that feeling I was having.

I should be working on final assignments right now but I am listening to Smodcast and writing this instead.

End of the Semester

I still have about a month of this semester left but it definitely feels like I am at the end. My last weekend session was last weekend so I am practically done with my reference class although I still have two assignments left.

The two assignments are the first things I have done that feel relevant to a working librarian. One of the assignments is a subject guide about Geography that I am creating for the university's library. Theoretically this would be used by geography students however there is not a geography major and no actual geography classes offered by the school. Apparently there are geography classes within the Education department but that is as far as geography education goes in this school. While the subject may not be relevant the creation of a subject guide is. It is a list of materials that the school has in its collection as well as websites and suggested materials for purchase.

The second assignment is a proposal for a new reference tool for a library of our choice. We are to chose a library that we would like to work in and hypothetically create a proposal for a new reference tool. Since this is something I could very easily be doing in the future I am pleased to be doing it. It is the assignments that feel irrelevant that I do not like doing.

I also have a paper in my other class that is due in about a month but I haven't started working on it, its only eight pages, I can do that in a day's time.

Getting Close

I am getting close to the end of my first semester. I have less than two months left and the last session of my weekend class is this coming weekend. I will still have assignments due for that class but at least I won't have to go anymore.

I started looking at next semester's schedule. Looks like I will be taking Cataloging and Management during the week and taking another weekend class possibly History of the Printed Word or Preservation/Conservation. It depends on what I can get into.

I am still heavily bored in my Intro class but luckily I found a comrade who is equally bored and appreciates my sarcastic comments. This makes things much easier.

Tired, very tired

I have been meaning to update for about a week and have not had the time or the brain power to do so. Luckily I had a spur of the moment day off of work and have recovered from the past two weeks of business.

In personal news I was the happy surrogate kitten momma to Capote for a few days last week and he and Miso got along quite well. I was doing this because 812 N. Productions was filming another short and Capote lives on the set. The shoot went well and soon we should have a finished product, more later when that happens.

Between being a P.A. on set and having an extra cat at my place I was already tired a bit worn out when I went to my second weekend session of my Reference class. Luckily this one went better than the first weekend. Mostly this is due to my ability to get back into the school groove. The first weekend was my first time in a classroom in four months and I was a bit rusty. Now I am back on track and feeling more comfortable about the subject matter. Having used libraries for so long and dating a librarian I felt pretty confident that I knew quite a bit already. This is still true but I think my knowledge is being enhanced, at least in my reference class.

My introduction to library and information science class is not so enlightening. I wish it was since I go to it every week instead of once a month but sadly it all feels like a waste of time. The hour long drive in rush hour traffic there, the three hours in class and the half hour it takes to get home are just a misuse of my time. Especially when the instructor does not seem to know what he is doing. We were supposed to construct an annotated bibliography about a given subject and he posted information on blackboard about what we needed to include in the assignment but he forgot to tell us how long it needed to be. I emailed him at this point and responded on the day it was due to check the information posted. By this point it was far too late and I had already done the assignment. I had eight entries, hopefully that will be enough. I would have made it an even ten but some of my sources were from the same publication and I didn't want to repeat myself too much.

And now my rant is done. I am just tired of the disorganization.

Speaking of organization I am looking into what classes I need to take next semester. This includes Organization of Knowledge and Management. Organization of Knowledge is a big phrase for cataloging. Cataloging for non-catalogers is not fun, again like most classes it needs to be separated from those that do want to catalog and those that don't. It would be much easier for all involved. Management I am not too worried about, perhaps if I have the right instructor it could even be useful. I am also going to take a second class next semester. Hopefully something fun that will balance out the two dull classes. Perhaps storytelling...that could definitely help improve this blog. There are also some children's lit and young adult lit classes that would be interesting. It all depends on what fits in my schedule which looks like it might be busy because a special/academic library wants me to volunteer at the beginning of the year. I am very excited.

Bored

I was severely bored in class this week. As my instructor was going through a powerpoint presentation that was also available on blackboard I decided not to listen and instead write my service report that is due tomorrow for my other class. I was particularly irritated because it was Garrett's birthday and I felt my time was being wasted when I could have been celebrating the day of my boyfriend's birth, by far the more important event of the day. At least I was able to manage my time so it wasn't a complete waste. Having a computer that picks up the school's wifi is a fantastic thing.

Disorganized

It always amazes me when librarians are disorganized. Part of the job is a certain level of organization at least in their professional life in order to be good at their job, for instance, being able to find a book because it is in the correct place. It seems my Intro to Library Science instructor missed that piece of information when getting his MLIS. The class this week was all over the place, he was randomly searching the internet to find examples of things for us (the computer being hooked up to a projector so we could all see his meandering), and the lecture -- what little of it there was confused more than enlightened me. Perhaps he is the opposite of if you can't do, teach; he can't teach maybe he can do but I really don't know. Right now I am learning what not to do.

I am just going to do what I have to do and remind myself that I just have to get through it and its only 12 classes before graduation.