Cleaning and Careers

Nearly every day I've been spending a few hours doing some very deep house cleaning. I'm the type who unscrews light bulbs and switch plates so that I can dust them (the light bulbs) and wash them (the switch plates). I've been working on the pantry lately.

I wish I could say that I've tossed a lot of stuff, but I'm not much of a hoarder and I only keep what I use or really love or to which I have an incredible sentimental attachment. Everything that was in the pantry is still there except for a few jars of condiments that were very old. After dusting and washing all the shelves, I made sure the labels of all the cans faced forward. They look beautiful and every time I open the door, I'm so pleased.

Washing shelves and arranging cans of beans and tomatoes gives me plenty of time to think about what I want to do with the rest of my life.

I didn't set out to be a librarian. Like many other people, it happened by accident. I had dropped out of UMass/Amherst after 2 years and needed a job. I went to the personnel office in the administration building and filled out a general application. After taking the typing test I was told there was an opening in the library. I was not thrilled. I wanted something more glamorous, but I needed the paycheck.

Shortly after starting there, I was assigned to a project reclassifying some 250,000 books from the Dewey Decimal System to the Library of Congress System. What an education! And I decided I liked the work. So after finishing my BA (with tuition waivers because I was full time staff), I attended library school at Simmons College in Boston.

It's been a great career. I've done a lot of traveling and met lots of interesting people along the way. I'm well known throughout Massachusetts and also Connecticut because I've taught lots of cataloging workshops. But do I want to continue doing this? Is this a good time to try something different? If so, what?

I actually made a career change once. I sold textbooks for the College Division of what was then Harper & Row Publishers. I was an okay sales rep but not great. After 5 years of my job being on the line every minute, I made the transition back to libraries. I had missed working in a library.

I've thought about other careers. I was a part-time aerobics instructor at the Greenfield YMCA for about 8 years. I was even certified by the American Council on Exercise. (I thought it quite interesting that after earning my MS at Simmons I didn't have to do another thing to continue being a librarian, but I continually had to take courses to maintain my certification as a fitness instructor.)

Not even an energetic 20-year-old can be a full-time aerobics instructor. In order to make a living, one usually becomes a personal trainer or something similar, and for whatever reason I never made that leap. When I moved from Greenfield, I left that volunteer position along with any intentions of pursuing a career in fitness.

So what's next for me? I'll let you know as soon as I find out.