Really?!?

Imagine my horror when I discovered it's been a month since I posted!
Sorry, but school, internship, and life got very hectic for a while. Now I'm down to the last few weeks of school and most of the major stuff is either done or nearly done.
My internship has been fabulous and I've learned SO much. I can't believe I only have one week left there. I've also applied for a job at TRL in Lacey, so cross your fingers.
I also was honored at Highline CC for scholastic achievement. I'm the "queen geek of the geek squad" as CJ puts it. Actually, I am the top student in the Library and Information Services Program. I've worked hard at school, so I'm proud of the honor and my 3.98 GPA.
So now I'm wondering what life will be like in two weeks when I'm done with school and ready for the next phase.
The possibilities are endless...

Internship, Week One

Wow, what a fascinating week! But first, let's check the countdown to graduation . . . 68 days left! (Wishing my countdown clock gadget had worked, it would be WAY cooler - sigh)

So I worked at the library as an intern for three days this week and it was a real eye-opener. The place is busy from open to close, which is a good thing, but man it keeps the staff on their toes. It made a big difference that the local schools had half-days for teacher conferences much of the week, so a lot of the kids came to the library to hang out. I think that's a double-edged sword: good that the kids like to be at the library, but hard on the staff because some of them get rowdy and aren't really there for library-type activities. The free wi-fi is a big draw from what I saw of the laptop users.

I've been shadowing different aides and learning from them, which proved to show me three different views of what goes on in the library. Next week will be more shadowing, but as I go along I do more and more on my own. The biggest learning curve is their computer system and all the functions as far as how the books are coded in the catalog (as in their status, location, even collection codes).

I've had some patron interaction, which I was amazingly comfortable with. I wasn't nervous about answering the questions I knew the answers to or directing them to the right person to help them. And all the shelving of books I have done really has taught me where everything belongs and where to direct patrons to find it.

In all, the internship is going to be a great way for me to synthesize all I have learned about libraries in theory (putting it together into the complete picture) and gain hands-on experience. The only downside is that the dogs must miss me because they go nuts when I get home. :)

Spring quarter begins

OK, I've had a nice week off and now it's time to get back to work. First off: 73 days left in school - woot!

The most exciting part of Spring quarter will be my internship. I'm so looking forward to being able to put into practice all the "theory" and book learning (sorry, bad pun - unintentional really!) from the past year at school. I'll be able to work the circulation desk, process materials along side other staff, and work with the librarians as they develop programs, work with patrons, etc. Not only will I learn a lot, I'll be gaining real-world experience. I love the staff at this library (it's where I volunteer every week) and I'm super excited to get to work there for three months.

As much as I'm excited about school drawing to a close, I think I'll really miss it, too. I have met some really wonderful people and learned really great things. I have great memories and friendships from the experience.

Countdown continues, excitement builds

Days left in school: 81!
With Winter quarter in the past, and a week off to do what I want to (yeah, right!), I'm feeling pretty good. I don't know my exact grades, but they will all be in the A range. That puts me in a high enough GPA to graduate "with honors" in June. Call me an overachiever, but I like to excel, especially in classes like Web Devel. that are a real struggle for me. I think I managed an A in that class, but he hasn't posted all of our grades yet, and some of them were subjective so I have no idea how he'll grade me on things like "participation."
In other news, my internship for Spring quarter is all set up at Yelm Library, we sign the papers on the Oly house Monday, the chicks are growing fast (they look like gawky teenagers now with lots more feathers but still some down), and the weather is getting so nice we've begun yard renovations.
It doesn't get much more exciting than that. Today we're going to take it easy and go see "Green Zone" with Matt Damon.

Back to the Library

It has dawned on me that when I transformed this blog from a project for my Library class into my personal blog, I wrote that it would chronicle my journey as I moved from one career to another. Looking back at most of the posts, I haven't said much about school lately. There has been so much going on in life that I wanted to share!

Anyway, as I am ending the 5th quarter of my college career in the Library and Information Services program and heading into my last quarter before completing my Associate's degree, I realize I have much to share about my newfound path.

Through both the research I had to do before I got into the Worker Retraining program and the work I have done in school, I have found a passion for libraries and serving people. That's one of the big things: I didn't think I would like to work in a public service job, but I am enthusiastic about it now. I am also thrilled to be working in the public sector. I realize that it will have its challenges too, but working for a big corporation where the "bottom line" ruled most decisions and making a profit was the main goal really wore me down in the end. The newspaper business has been ruined by profit-seeking corporations. 'Nuff said there.

My biggest thrill about library school coming up is my internship. I'll be working as unpaid staff -- in the trenches, not just doing volunteer stuff -- at my local library. I could pinch myself I'm so excited! I'll still have other classes to work on in addition to working at the library 15 hours a week, but I will finally be able to put into practice so much that I have learned in the past year or so. Hopefully, it will lead to great experience that will help me get a job with the library.
I have met soooooo many wonderful people in library school and in libraries themselves, that I just know I'm going to enjoy my new career.

As a side note, I had installed a countdown clock on my blog, but it jacked my page and I had to get rid of it. So I'll just have to give the countdown myself: 94 days to graduation! Woot!
See you all soon!

Stepping away from the swirling vortex of life for a minute ...

Yikes, this blog dates my entries, so I know just how long it's been since I posted, sorry.

Life here has been a never-ending stream of things that HAVE to get done. Moving in is mostly done, except for the stacks of boxes that can wait for more time to really focus on what's in them and where that stuff should go. Moving out is also nearly done. Things got left at the Oly house that either we weren't sure if we wanted them there to stage it for sale or if we wanted to store them at the Yelm house or what. The Yelm house garage -- even though it's big enough for 3 cars -- was so full of Mom's old stored stuff that we've had to work at winnowing that down, getting it over to her garage, and making room for all the stuff we had stored in the shed in Oly. That process is nearly done, too.

The thing that has been a big focus has been fixing up the Oly house to put it on the market. There were unfinished projects (ceiling texture, painting the trim in the main room) and there were projects we had planned but chose to wait on until we were out of the house (a complete revamp of the main bathroom, painting the Master BR). I'm happy to report that most of that is done. As Dad has said: "Why is it that we don't do these things when we live in a house, but then have to do it for someone else to buy it?" It has me scratching my head sometimes, the thought of making the house really nice so that someone else can have it. But we're close to putting it on the market -- YAY.

On top of all that activity, I have been continuing my studies. I took 4 classes this quarter: Practical Accounting, Circulation Services, Serving Diverse Communities, and Library Administration and Management. Whew, has that been a load! I've really enjoyed Circulation and Diversity. The information in Management has been good, but the structure of the class doesn't suit my style. Accounting has made me tear a few hairs out, but I resolved to learn some good skills by taking it, so persevere I must! Since we moved to Yelm, I've also had the opportunity to get ot know a new library. (My school work often requires either talking to library staff and administration or examining the library for a report.) I'm due to start volunteer work there in a few weeks, when I'm on Winter Break and I have more time. I recently took what you might call a self-guided field trip to Seattle to tour the Washington Talking Book and Braille Library for my Diversity class. Mel went with me and we had a great time and learned so much about services for visually impaired and blind people.

The only other news I have to report is that two weeks ago, CJ had a close call when he ran his truck off the road (sharp curve + wet road + teenage driver unfamiliar with the area = wrecked truck) but he's OK since he missed a telephone pole by a foot -- thank goodness! But now I drive him to school and about 50% of the time I pick him up too. All part of the fun, right? He's worth all the effort.

And in case that leaves you wondering what Katie is up to: She's so busy with school, life, and work that we hardly see her except on the way in, on the way out, or asleep on the couch in front of the TV. I guess that means life is good for her; she seems to be enjoying herself.

I should mention Mel, who has been hard at work making the 5 acres here in Yelm secure for the dogs and arranging the garage, plus working on the aforementioned projects in the Oly house. He's itching to fish and hunt, but the priority has been getting the house up for sale, so he's practicing a little "delayed gratification." Whatta guy!

Since this blog post has mostly been a catch-all recap of the past few months, I'll make a BONUS post about marching band since it deserves to shine on its own. Stay tuned...

Book Repair ROCKS!

OK it’s official: I love books, not just reading them, but the physical books themselves. They call that a bibliophile but you can just call me a book lover.

I took one of the most interesting classes this summer quarter – Book Repair – and I had the best time. We met all Saturday for 8 weeks at the campus, which is about an hour’s drive from my house. There were 10 students, so we got to know each other pretty well. We learned about the structure and function of books as well as how different damage happens. We took in our own books (or in the case of several librarians in the class, books from their library) with different damage to repair. We learned so much cool stuff and it felt like arts & crafts each week. We repaired torn pages, loose pages, torn bindings, damaged spines, and we even turned a paperback book into a hardcover book!

Since I’m a bibliophile and take great care of my books, it was sometimes hard to find damaged books to take in for class. So I put out the call to several people to find books needing repairs. I got some real beat up books that unfortunately were beyond my skills. I would love to learn how to repair books that are literally falling apart, but this class was centered on fixing damage before it needed a complete overhaul.

The pictures here are of spine repairs and corner repairs that I did for class. I completely replaced the spine on two books (The Magic of Xanth and The Circle of Braves) and repaired the cover corners as well as the internal spine of Zane Grey’s The Lost Wagon Train. Don’t they look cool!?

All the corners are recovered even though only one was really beaten up. The damaged spine is replaced and everything looks great.

In addition I took Collection Development, where we learned about the decision-making process behind what books a library should add to (or subtract from) its collection. We talked about censorship, finding appropriate materials, policies, and other library-geek details. It was really interesting and something I had never really learned about. I also had Pacific Northwest History, which as an intense bunch of reading and writing, but I learned a lot of interesting stuff about the region.

Added later Sunday: Here are a couple of photos of the book by Brenda that I turned from paperback to hardcover. Pretty special, if I do say so myself...

Coming next (I think): An update on the move to Yelm, including video of the house being installed.

Kudos to the gang

I have to take a moment today to acknowledge the love and support of my friends and family. Going back to school has been a big step for me – bigger than I had envisioned. I get swept up in projects, assignments and other school-related stuff and I have to step back into the shadows of family life and other activities. Through it all, I have the support, encouragement and help of family and friends. I want everyone to know that it does not go unnoticed. All the kind words of encouragement, all the “atta-girls” and most especially the times when everyone gives me the space and time to do what I need to do for my education, are very much appreciated. I can sometimes become quite intense about school and my laser focus makes me distracted from things outside of school work and what I’m learning – I readily acknowledge that about myself. I have come to the conclusion that it is because my new avocation is not only important to my future, but also terribly exciting for me. I yearn to soak up every bit of information I can about Library & Information Services; I throw myself headlong into my studies because they mean so much to me. Not to mention that odd little way I have of not settling for mediocre grades – I just can’t help myself there.

So to everyone who understands when I have a big project due or some other “crunch week” crisis and you don’t call or worry why you haven’t heard from me: THANK YOU. I know you’re all out there caring about me but giving me the space to grow and learn in my own way. And I appreciate it so much.

Coming soon (as soon as Finals are over!): I’ll share photos of a couple of my way cool Book Repair projects. And I still haven't gotten to the video and photos of the house project, have I? :(

Really, I'm doing OK

Just in case you've been checking on me, I rally am fine. So fine that I haven't had time to post in a few weeks. There has been school -- which includes a 5-credit Pacific Northwest History class that is INTENSE and a book repair class that meets all day on Saturdays -- and there has been the "moving to Yelm" project. Plus, last weekend I got the pleasure of teaching a seminar for new agility people on Saturday then spent Sunday judging a mock trial for a local agility club that's getting its feet wet. It was an exhausting weekend, but we had a lot of fun (Katie was along for all the fun) and helped introduce a lot of new people to agility. Plus it gave me a good introduction to the world of judging. Incidentally, that may just mean I put that on hold for quite a while. I realize now how much work it takes for one weekend.
Later, probably next week, I'll be posting about the fascinating project going on in Yelm. The new house is on site, just not on the foundation yet. Monday will be the big day for that. We're taking pics AND video, so stay tuned!