This morning I woke up to about 2 inches of light fluffy snow on the ground, trees, everything. It looks lovely. I will not have a problem driving in it because there's just not that much and I have an all-wheel-drive vehicle.
Last Saturday, I awoke to about 2 feet of snow. Luckily, I had given my Library Science students an online tutorial to complete along with some readings and gave them the take-home assignment that was scheduled for that day according to the syllabus. I couldn't see making them (most of whom travel from Connecticut) drive to So. Hadley just to hear me talk about MARC.
But today is different. There's just not that much snow (even though I'm sure some people will have problems driving) and I'm not going to do the electronic thing two weeks in a row.
I have a appointment to get my hair cut this morning. My day begins.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Juggling
Mostly I really like my life right now: I'm busy doing interesting things, I'm meeting new people, I'm doing useful things, my body is getting exercise, and my brain is getting a LOT of exercise trying to keep my schedule straight.
I have 4 part-time jobs that pay money and 2 volunteer positions. Here's what my week looks like so far:
Monday was a state holiday so Springfield City Library was closed. However, DGI was not, so I drove to Windsor, CT and worked there for the day. Monday at DGI is "soup day" when two people bring in soup and two bring bread and we have lunch together. Usually I'm not in that office at lunch time and don't get to share the soup and bread. Since this was one of the few times I'd be there all day, I volunteered to make one of the soups. The meal was tasty and fun.
Tuesday I went to MassCat and hunted for bib records that the members could not find. Then I merged duplicates. I only work there for 5 hours so I had some time at the end of the day to visit my insurance agent who is reviewing the various policies to see what needs changing.
Today is Wednesday and I need to stop by the library to sign warrants and deliver them to Town Hall so that bills can be paid. This is one of my responsibilities as Chair of the Library Trustees. Then it's on to lead the Senior Exercise Class - my other volunteer position and then on to MassCat.
Tomorrow, Thursday, I'll spend the morning at Springfield City Library cataloging music CDs and then the afternoon at DGI cataloging e-books.
A symptom of my juggling life is that I wrote the above post a week and a half ago and I'm now just getting to finish it.
So now it's Saturday. Yesterday I led the exercise class, went grocery shopping and then home to prep for today's class on Information Organization. That's my typical Friday (it may or may not include grocery shopping). However, yesterday afternoon, my husband (it still seems awkward to call him that) went to visit our financial advisor to begin planning for April 15 - tax day - and beyond.
In a few hours I'll be heading out to Simmons-west to teach budding librarians about organizing information resources. Today's topic is metadata.
Sunday is the day my husband and I spend quality time together. I have a nice breakfast planned - Mediterranean Baked Eggs. I hope to get some housecleaning done, too.
And next week? What's that phrase? Rinse, repeat.
I have 4 part-time jobs that pay money and 2 volunteer positions. Here's what my week looks like so far:
Monday was a state holiday so Springfield City Library was closed. However, DGI was not, so I drove to Windsor, CT and worked there for the day. Monday at DGI is "soup day" when two people bring in soup and two bring bread and we have lunch together. Usually I'm not in that office at lunch time and don't get to share the soup and bread. Since this was one of the few times I'd be there all day, I volunteered to make one of the soups. The meal was tasty and fun.
Tuesday I went to MassCat and hunted for bib records that the members could not find. Then I merged duplicates. I only work there for 5 hours so I had some time at the end of the day to visit my insurance agent who is reviewing the various policies to see what needs changing.
Today is Wednesday and I need to stop by the library to sign warrants and deliver them to Town Hall so that bills can be paid. This is one of my responsibilities as Chair of the Library Trustees. Then it's on to lead the Senior Exercise Class - my other volunteer position and then on to MassCat.
Tomorrow, Thursday, I'll spend the morning at Springfield City Library cataloging music CDs and then the afternoon at DGI cataloging e-books.
A symptom of my juggling life is that I wrote the above post a week and a half ago and I'm now just getting to finish it.
So now it's Saturday. Yesterday I led the exercise class, went grocery shopping and then home to prep for today's class on Information Organization. That's my typical Friday (it may or may not include grocery shopping). However, yesterday afternoon, my husband (it still seems awkward to call him that) went to visit our financial advisor to begin planning for April 15 - tax day - and beyond.
In a few hours I'll be heading out to Simmons-west to teach budding librarians about organizing information resources. Today's topic is metadata.
Sunday is the day my husband and I spend quality time together. I have a nice breakfast planned - Mediterranean Baked Eggs. I hope to get some housecleaning done, too.
And next week? What's that phrase? Rinse, repeat.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Bah, Humbug
I'm not a religious person. I hate the crass commercialism of any holiday. I don't have children and therefore don't (and never did) have to perpetuate the story of Santa Claus. I especially don't like trying to live a normal life - shop for food, have my hair cut, run other mundane errands - only to face incredible amounts of traffic on the city streets.
What I really hate most about Christmas - that season of "peace on earth and goodwill toward men" - is how frazzled and short tempered so many people become. While trying to navigate all that traffic, many drivers cut in front of other cars, lean on their horns, and generally become obnoxious.
However, there are a few things I like about the holiday season. I love the lights. I love driving down the street and seeing trees lit up. And one of the few concessions I make - that many others have abandoned - is writing personal notes in Christmas cards and sending them to people I seldom see. I don't want to lose touch with people I worked closely with 20 or 30 years ago. Many of them have moved far away but I still think of them. Facebook and other online connections are not the same as sitting down with a cheerful card and telling a friend (briefly) what I've been doing for the last year and wishing her or him well.
Now that we have entered the new year and the manic celebrations are over I can get back to my mundane routines and shop for food without fighting frantic crowds.
But I will miss the lights.
What I really hate most about Christmas - that season of "peace on earth and goodwill toward men" - is how frazzled and short tempered so many people become. While trying to navigate all that traffic, many drivers cut in front of other cars, lean on their horns, and generally become obnoxious.
However, there are a few things I like about the holiday season. I love the lights. I love driving down the street and seeing trees lit up. And one of the few concessions I make - that many others have abandoned - is writing personal notes in Christmas cards and sending them to people I seldom see. I don't want to lose touch with people I worked closely with 20 or 30 years ago. Many of them have moved far away but I still think of them. Facebook and other online connections are not the same as sitting down with a cheerful card and telling a friend (briefly) what I've been doing for the last year and wishing her or him well.
Now that we have entered the new year and the manic celebrations are over I can get back to my mundane routines and shop for food without fighting frantic crowds.
But I will miss the lights.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Another book
My local public library subscribes to something called Wowbrary. Every week I receive an email listing the books and other items that have just been added to the collection.
A recent Wowbrary posting included Lessons from Madame Chic: 20 stylish secrets I learned while living in Paris. Since I like to take breaks from reading murder mysteries and I'm always interested in fashion tips, I clicked on the "Reserve" button.
This book was not quite what I expected, but still pretty interesting.
Jennifer Scott spent 6 months in Paris as an exchange student. Life in Paris was very different from her native southern California and she learned a lot, only some of which was about fashion. Jennifer has one chapter in Part 2 (Style and beauty) called "Liberate yourself with the ten-item wardrobe". She claims that French women, even in well-to-do families like the one she lived with, have very few clothes. They buy good quality clothes that they can mix and match and don't wear something entirely different every single day. This wardrobe is not as restrictive as you might imagine. There are ten different items for summer and winter and many things are excluded from the basic 10 such as outer wear, underwear, jewelry, scarves, shoes and other accessories.
Ten items are fewer than I'd like to own, even with the exclutions. It feels a little like being a vegan. I can totally understand having a couple of basic pairs of pants and a couple of skirts, but I find variety in tops, of which I have several (although much fewer than I used to). Tops that really catch my attention are some of the few things I have bought during the last couple of years. I really enjoy wearing them. My wardrobe is more like being a vegetarian.
While I don't expect to whittle my wardrobe down to 10 items, it will definitely continue to get smaller. There are several things that have been on on the borderline and this book is tipping them out of the closet and into the donation bin.
Another chapter that struck my fancy was entitled "Look presentable always". The Parisian family with whom Jennifer lived always wore their good clothes, even at home. While I take care when I go out in public and when having guests in, at home alone, I usually wear what I call "play clothes." These are the sweat pants, t-shirts, old socks, etc. that are old and worn but still (in my opinion) wearable. They're great for working in the house or yard because I never have to worry about ruining them. Madame Chic supposedly wore good clothes when she did her housecleaning (she did all her own housecleaning, one way she was able to stay trim) and simply wore an apron over them to keep them clean. I don't know if my house is dirtier to start with or I clean differently, but an apron - even a large one - would not suffice.
While many of the "secrets" in Lessons from Madame Chic are things I already do and others are things I know about but have not incorporated into my life for whatever reason, I draw the line at giving up my play clothes.
A recent Wowbrary posting included Lessons from Madame Chic: 20 stylish secrets I learned while living in Paris. Since I like to take breaks from reading murder mysteries and I'm always interested in fashion tips, I clicked on the "Reserve" button.This book was not quite what I expected, but still pretty interesting.
Jennifer Scott spent 6 months in Paris as an exchange student. Life in Paris was very different from her native southern California and she learned a lot, only some of which was about fashion. Jennifer has one chapter in Part 2 (Style and beauty) called "Liberate yourself with the ten-item wardrobe". She claims that French women, even in well-to-do families like the one she lived with, have very few clothes. They buy good quality clothes that they can mix and match and don't wear something entirely different every single day. This wardrobe is not as restrictive as you might imagine. There are ten different items for summer and winter and many things are excluded from the basic 10 such as outer wear, underwear, jewelry, scarves, shoes and other accessories.
Ten items are fewer than I'd like to own, even with the exclutions. It feels a little like being a vegan. I can totally understand having a couple of basic pairs of pants and a couple of skirts, but I find variety in tops, of which I have several (although much fewer than I used to). Tops that really catch my attention are some of the few things I have bought during the last couple of years. I really enjoy wearing them. My wardrobe is more like being a vegetarian.
While I don't expect to whittle my wardrobe down to 10 items, it will definitely continue to get smaller. There are several things that have been on on the borderline and this book is tipping them out of the closet and into the donation bin.
Another chapter that struck my fancy was entitled "Look presentable always". The Parisian family with whom Jennifer lived always wore their good clothes, even at home. While I take care when I go out in public and when having guests in, at home alone, I usually wear what I call "play clothes." These are the sweat pants, t-shirts, old socks, etc. that are old and worn but still (in my opinion) wearable. They're great for working in the house or yard because I never have to worry about ruining them. Madame Chic supposedly wore good clothes when she did her housecleaning (she did all her own housecleaning, one way she was able to stay trim) and simply wore an apron over them to keep them clean. I don't know if my house is dirtier to start with or I clean differently, but an apron - even a large one - would not suffice.
While many of the "secrets" in Lessons from Madame Chic are things I already do and others are things I know about but have not incorporated into my life for whatever reason, I draw the line at giving up my play clothes.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Quality of Life
On this Thanksgiving Day, I am especially thankful for my good health.
I come from a long-lived, healthy family and have always assumed good health. As I get older, I see many colleagues who are not so fortunate. While most of the women in my exercise class are active and independent, many have had knee, hip or shoulder replacements. Others have physical limitations that keep me aware of my possible vulnerability.
Recently, I reconnected with a woman with whom I went to Library School. I had always been a little envious of her: She was very attractive, always looked good in her clothes and had a job I would have liked. Now, although still attractive, she has been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. She had to leave her job, has a difficult time walking and has lots of trouble following a thought to its conclusion. Another friend of mine broke her foot and is wheelchair-bound. Although the wheelchair is temporary, an accident like hers could happen to me.
And there are other people I know, some much younger than I, who have a variety of physical ailments.
All of which motivate me to keep active both physically and mentally and to be thankful every day for what I am able to accomplish every day.
I come from a long-lived, healthy family and have always assumed good health. As I get older, I see many colleagues who are not so fortunate. While most of the women in my exercise class are active and independent, many have had knee, hip or shoulder replacements. Others have physical limitations that keep me aware of my possible vulnerability.
Recently, I reconnected with a woman with whom I went to Library School. I had always been a little envious of her: She was very attractive, always looked good in her clothes and had a job I would have liked. Now, although still attractive, she has been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. She had to leave her job, has a difficult time walking and has lots of trouble following a thought to its conclusion. Another friend of mine broke her foot and is wheelchair-bound. Although the wheelchair is temporary, an accident like hers could happen to me.
And there are other people I know, some much younger than I, who have a variety of physical ailments.
All of which motivate me to keep active both physically and mentally and to be thankful every day for what I am able to accomplish every day.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
An Itinerant Cataloger
I've just finished the first week of my new schedule as an itinerant cataloger, although the schedule will fluctuate a little from week to week. There are two holidays in November to work around, too. The week was somewhat more chaotic than usual since I had to cope with 34 hours of no electricity due to Hurricane Sandy.
Here's what it looked like:
Monday: I arrived at Springfield City Library at 9:00 a.m. The first thing I needed to do was learn the cataloging function of Evergreen and SCL's local practices. The library closed at noon because of the storm. I went home and graded papers and began prep for Thursday's class. The lights went out at 2:30, but I worked until it got too dark to do that. I lit candles, listened to the battery powered radio and watched the wind blow the trees around.
Tuesday: Still no lights. I went to SCL and worked on music CDs (mostly copy cataloging), got more comfortable with Evergreen and SCLs music classification system.
Wednesday: The lights came on about 12:30 a.m. It was good to wash in warm water and make coffee that morning. I went to Town Hall to teach the senior exercise class at the Council on Aging office, then off to MassCat to work on their database. I'm more aware of the differences between Evergreen and Koha, the two most common Open Source systems available to libraries.
Thursday was owner/member appreciation day at the local food co-op. I had been planning for a couple of weeks to go shopping there and take advantage of the 10% discount. First, I had to finish prepping for LIS415, which I did. I had a lot of photocopying to do for class, so I left a little early. It was a good class, perhaps the best of the semester. This has been a quiet group of students, not much discussion/questions during class but that night was different. They had a group assignment to work on and really got into it.
Friday: back to Town Hall, but first a stop by the library to sign the bi-weekly warrants (I'm trustee chair). The other exercise instructor usually takes responsibility for most of Friday's class. I lead the part where the exercises aggravate her bad back. I found out that the Town Hall will be closed the day after Thanksgiving and there will be no exercise class. That's good because it makes my schedule easier. The MassCat office will also be closed that day and if there's no exercise class, I can work at SCL from 9-5.
So now it's Saturday and I don't feel like doing anything at all. I've done some odds and ends around the house and there are plenty of things I could do, but they can wait till tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll have more time. It's the first day of Standard Time (fall back) and will be a whole hour longer.
Here's what it looked like:
Monday: I arrived at Springfield City Library at 9:00 a.m. The first thing I needed to do was learn the cataloging function of Evergreen and SCL's local practices. The library closed at noon because of the storm. I went home and graded papers and began prep for Thursday's class. The lights went out at 2:30, but I worked until it got too dark to do that. I lit candles, listened to the battery powered radio and watched the wind blow the trees around.
Tuesday: Still no lights. I went to SCL and worked on music CDs (mostly copy cataloging), got more comfortable with Evergreen and SCLs music classification system.
Wednesday: The lights came on about 12:30 a.m. It was good to wash in warm water and make coffee that morning. I went to Town Hall to teach the senior exercise class at the Council on Aging office, then off to MassCat to work on their database. I'm more aware of the differences between Evergreen and Koha, the two most common Open Source systems available to libraries.
Thursday was owner/member appreciation day at the local food co-op. I had been planning for a couple of weeks to go shopping there and take advantage of the 10% discount. First, I had to finish prepping for LIS415, which I did. I had a lot of photocopying to do for class, so I left a little early. It was a good class, perhaps the best of the semester. This has been a quiet group of students, not much discussion/questions during class but that night was different. They had a group assignment to work on and really got into it.
Friday: back to Town Hall, but first a stop by the library to sign the bi-weekly warrants (I'm trustee chair). The other exercise instructor usually takes responsibility for most of Friday's class. I lead the part where the exercises aggravate her bad back. I found out that the Town Hall will be closed the day after Thanksgiving and there will be no exercise class. That's good because it makes my schedule easier. The MassCat office will also be closed that day and if there's no exercise class, I can work at SCL from 9-5.
So now it's Saturday and I don't feel like doing anything at all. I've done some odds and ends around the house and there are plenty of things I could do, but they can wait till tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll have more time. It's the first day of Standard Time (fall back) and will be a whole hour longer.
Friday, September 28, 2012
Hot Stuff
Of course! As soon as I posted about semi-retirement, I received a phone call from Springfield City Library asking if I could work for them part time.
Because the migration to a new Integrated Library System did not go as smoothly as everyone hoped, their cataloger has fallen way behind on original cataloging and they need someone to help. That's me.
So now I'm working just about full time: 10 hours each week at MassCat, 1 or 2 days each week (depending on what else I have scheduled) at SCL, and one full day and evening for preparation and teaching Information Organization. And let's not forget the senior Osteo Exercise class which now meets two mornings each week because it is so popular.
Last year at this time I had no work other than the Info Org class. Now I can barely fit in all the things I have to do. Guess I'll just have to cut back on cleaning house :-)
Because the migration to a new Integrated Library System did not go as smoothly as everyone hoped, their cataloger has fallen way behind on original cataloging and they need someone to help. That's me.
So now I'm working just about full time: 10 hours each week at MassCat, 1 or 2 days each week (depending on what else I have scheduled) at SCL, and one full day and evening for preparation and teaching Information Organization. And let's not forget the senior Osteo Exercise class which now meets two mornings each week because it is so popular.
Last year at this time I had no work other than the Info Org class. Now I can barely fit in all the things I have to do. Guess I'll just have to cut back on cleaning house :-)
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