The Power of Quiet

"When I tell people I identify as an introvert, they say, “How are you able to give speeches in front of 600 people and still consider yourself an introvert?” Introverts, I say, know how to “bring it,” or at least can learn when we have to. But it has a cost. Learning how to embrace your “inner extrovert” when you need to is necessary."

 Michael Stephens at Library Journal writes about the challenges and opportunities for introverts in the library world (hint: there are lots of us) in The Power of Quiet, on his blog Office Hours.

I am often times grateful for my office, which is tucked away in a staff area, far from the Maddening Crowds of students. An older office that I occupied for several years was directly off of a student casual seating area of the library, so I would often look out my door (it felt too stuffy to keep the door closed) and see a student watching me with curious interest. It was disconcerting to say the least. Among my memorable interactions with students in that office was:

• The student who walked into my office, and then asked if she could use my microwave to reheat her coffee. I was discussing an issue with my supervisor, who was sitting right next to me, at the time. I let the student use the microwave. 
• The student who got all the way into my office before realizing that this was not an available study room. My name plate on the wall and all my stuff posted on the door did not seem to register to him that the room was occupado. 
• The string of students who wandered back and forth outside my door while talking loudly on their cell phones. 

By comparison, my new office is much less subject to interruptions. I do get phone calls from student workers, asking me to tackle a reference question that they're unsure about, and that's fine. Sometimes I cringe when the phone rings, if I feel like I can't handle talking to anyone; but I've got my "inner extrovert", or my professional face to get me through a tiring encounter. 



I don't claim to never need interaction; I really enjoy talking with our student workers, and learning about where they've come from and where they want to go. Maybe that's why they call me with the hard questions. However, I'm usually the one who initiates and ends the conversation, and I prefer to talk with students one on one. At staff meetings, whether student workers are involved or not, I tend to sit quietly and let people come and join me if they choose. If they do, thanks for enduring the meeting with me. If not, I'll be all right just the same.



What's your preference, in the thick of it, or towards the edge?



photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60141638@N06/8512104420">Hello My Name Is Introvert</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/">(license)</a>

More Hilariousness from Top Gear

This is for my kids, who love LEGOs, and for everyone who can't get enough of Top Gear.

Enough said. Enjoy.

This book is REALLY overdue!

Part of my job at our library is handling all of the book donations. One of my colleagues who was helping me sort out a recently donated collection discovered these two cards tucked into one of the books.

The card below the notice is an actual catalog card. Don't see those around much anymore.

This book was at one time part of the collection of the Jones Memorial Library, a separate library institution from the Lynchburg Public library. The Jones Memorial specializes in central Virginia history and genealogy. I contacted the Jones Memorial and inquired whether the book was something they would want back. Apparently the book (which clearly was never returned) was excised from their catalog at some point.

It's probably a good thing, too. $0.02 per day is not a lot of money, but over 82 years it does add up. By our math, the patron who borrowed this book in 1932 would now owe the Jones Memorial nearly $600.

Remember, gentle readers, RETURN YOUR LIBRARY BOOKS!

Seriously. Don't make her come and get it from you.

photo credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/derrypubliclibrary/3762251190/">derrypubliclibrary</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">cc</a>

Are Librarians Nerds?

Librarians: Rule of Cool or Revenge of the Nerds?

          As a profession, we librarians seem to spend more than the normal amount of time worrying about our image, and the status of our profession. (1) Are we being replaced by computers, the internet, iPhones and Google?  

          We have an even deeper self-image issue. For a long time now our profession has been painfully aware of the negative image we've got. Somewhere along the line, a thought seeped into our collective consciousness – we’re afraid that we’re nerds. 
 

Nerdvana!

          But are we?  To determine the truth of this, we must first define our terms, then evaluate how much we match the description. So what is a nerd?

          The word nerd is a relatively new one, appearing first in the 1950’s. Possibly it was introduced to us by Dr. Seuss (a mean turn from one whom librarians have always liked) in the book If I Ran the Circus. (2) But, the book used the word only in passing and did not offer a definition, so no help there. 

          I have consulted a number of definition sources, and find that there is no one accepted definition for nerd, although there is a lot of overlap from one source to the next. 

How to Nerd

•  The Urban Dictionary defines nerd thus: “one whose IQ exceeds his weight”, and offers this as well: “an individual persecuted for his superior skills or intellect, most often by people who fear or envy him”.
• Britannica has no entry for nerd. I include this just for completeness.
• Merriam-Webster, my go-to dictionary says “an unattractive, unstylish or inept person; especially one slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits.”
• Wikipedia says nerd  "is a descriptive term, often used pejoratively, indicating that a person is overly intellectual, obsessive, or socially impaired."
•  The Oxford Dictionary of English (3^rd ed.) says “a foolish or contemptible person who lacks social skills or is boringly studious”, and “a single-minded expert in a particular field”.
•  TV Tropes offers a more descriptive definition. A nerd is “not smooth, not handsome or attractive. Not, above all else, popular outside of a grouping of fellow-nerds. A walking, talking fashion disaster”. Like this:

For his own sake, don't let him out of the house like that!

Not painting a very pretty picture, is it?  

          Women in the profession still have to deal with the "Marian the Librarian"/old maid/spinster stereotype, which implies anti-social attitude and old lady dress sense. Men in the profession get tagged with being in a 'women's field'. Plus sitting around reading all day. (I wish it were like that).

For the last, I offer a visual definition, the Nerd Venn Diagram!

The fact that I've included this, and analyzed it pretty much makes the case, doesn't it?

         As you can see here, to achieve a Nerd score requires a witch's brew of Intelligence, Social Ineptitude and Obsession. This includes all of the aspects of nerdiness brought up in the definitions above.  Do Librarians, as a profession, deserve to be branded with this Trifecta of Fail?

         Having studied the definitions, and reflecting upon myself, I will readily cop to the Intelligent part. Is this a problem?  The other two 'requirements' are another matter. I have my hobbies, and my occasional social faux pas, but on the whole I can, with confidence, conclude that I am not a nerd. I present a short sampling of my reasons why not for your inspection. 
  
Reasons I am not a Nerd

• I know how  to wear a hat. My hat of choice is the fedora. While my wardrobe is not super stylish, I understand the basic rules of menswear, i.e. length of pants, to avoid clashing tie with shirt or shirt with pants.
• I was in the Army Reserve as a hospital corpsman where an infantry officer once described me as a "hardworking son-of-a-**@$%". I have thrown live hand grenades and fired machine-guns. There is an Expert grenade badge and a Sharpshooter rifle badge on my dress greens.
• I teach fencing, which anyone will tell you is a fast, intense sport requiring focus and whole-body coordination. 
• I can do 12 pull-ups in one set. 
• I have been happily married for 15 years now, to the woman I love, and who loves me. Anyone who says my wife is a nerd needs their head examined, and may need their nose straightened. 
• I have been a librarian for 13 years, and I've lost count of how many times I have stood in front of a room full of students (who know all about being cool, right?) or professional educators to present library research techniques, copyright, and other weighty matters. All without stuttering, stammering or fainting while communicating in an engaging and comprehensible manner.
• Book currently on my coffee table: How to Be a Gentleman, by John Bridges. I am endeavoring to teach my sons to be gentlemen. 
• This post should clear up whether I am obsessed with Star Wars or not. Or this one.
• My favorite TV show these days is the BBC's Top Gear. 
• My Pandora channels include 80's Rock radio, Dave Brubeck, Joe Satriani, Taylor Swift, Beethoven, Harry Connick Jr, The Four Freshmen, Kings's X and Straight No Chaser. 
• I answer library reference questions in person, by phone, by chat and by email. I work with donors, faculty, staff and students. I have had questions on every subject you can think of.  I have yet to meet a question that has caused me to freeze up and be unable to provide at least some answer. 
• The only thing that I absolutely, positively will not give up as long as I'm still breathing is my faith. The word for that is devout, not obsessed. 
• Read the rest of my blog. Do I sound obsessed to you? Merriam Webster defines obsession as "A persistent, disturbing preoccupation with an often unreasonable idea or feeling."   So no, that's not me. 

 Some non-nerdy activities practiced by my co-workers:

• reading - fiction & non-fiction
• crochet & knitting
• walking and fitness
• baseball
• a side business in homemade ice cream
• gardening
• running
• karate (an advanced belt)
• being parents
• politics/current events
• online gaming 
• motorcycling
• hosting dinner parties
• role playing games
• model trains
• kayaking & mountain biking
• cooking
• ultimate frisbee
• hiking

           I admit that there may be nerds among us in the library field, but it may be more true to say that the general public thinks of librarians as nerdy, owing to representations in popular media, or the apparent anti-intellectual bias in the background noise of our culture.

          Here's one example of a librarian who's got a lot going on, all of which requires significant social ability: http://acrlog.org/2014/07/20/the-varied-life-of-an-academic-librarian/  I do not know how this lady dresses, but I'll bet she doesn't have a pencil through her hair bun.   These folk from my blog roll seem to know how to dress themselves as well:  Hedgehog Librarian & Stephen's Lighthouse. Or how about Steven Bell?

          Will my little blog post make a difference in how Americans view librarians, or how we view ourselves?  I don't know, but I am still convinced that I'm not a nerd, and will continue to act and speak for our profession getting some respect.  

If you know of any cool librarians, please share a pic or web site in the comments.

Footnotes (1) pre-published article in New Library World 115, 7/8 (2014) Identifying the prevailing images in library & information science profession: is the landscape changing?
Authors: Evgenia Vassilakaki, Valentini Moniarou-Papaconstantinou
(2) Dr. Seuss If I Ran the Circus (1956) https://openlibrary.org/works/OL261176W/If_I_Ran_the_Circus

Word Crimes by 'Weird Al' Yankovic

"Word Crimes" by 'Weird Al" Yankovic

Librarians and English teachers rejoice, for someone has finally said what needs to be said. And is hilarious at the same time.

Top Gear on Communist Cars

     My favorite TV show, which these days means a show on Netflix, is the BBC's magazine show Top Gear. 

 It's great fun watching Clarkson, Hammond and May thrash about England and Europe (and the US occasionally) talking about cars, driving cars, crashing cars, etc. If you haven't seen this show yet, let me give you a sample. This segment, presented in two parts, is my and my kids' favorite bit. Enjoy.It appeared in Series 12, Episode 6.

Has Communism ever produced a good car? 

 
And the answer is: No. No, it hasn't.

Five Vintage Library Posters!

My wife shared a link with me today showcasing 9 Striking Library Posters from the Depression. 

They were so cool, I thought I would find a few more, and here they are!

 Another page of Vintage posters (Including this one)

Librarians - Warriors Against Ignorance!

From the Library of Congress' American Memory WPA poster series

Shelfies

    This one is hot off the presses. Just a few minutes ago, I was walking through the Book Tower, and out of the corner of my eye, I spotted someone lying on a table. Now, sleeping in the library is nobody's idea of news; people do it all the time. They just usually do it in chairs or on the couches. So I stopped to have a look. 

     It was one of our student workers, and she was not sleeping, she was posing for a shelfie. This is a new concept for me; but as fads go, I understand this one a little better than some others. A shelfie is a picture that features a shelf of books, and often yourself. It is usually your own bookshelf. I've said on many occasions that you can learn a lot about a person by looking at what books they buy (Or indeed anything they spend money on).

A sort-of history of this phenomenon can be found here: "The Rise of the Shelfie" 

Example of Shelfies 

The Seattle Public Library on Pinterest

 

 

And, of course, one from Jeffro's Game Blog -it's his page header. (I can't link to the image directly)


     I have not gotten in on the 'selfie' trend; my cell phone is very basic - it just makes phone calls. But the shelfie?  Well, I think I could get behind that. Share your love of books, internet! (How's that for irony?)

16 Quotes about Librarians from authors & literature

So the America I loved still exists, if not in the White House or the Supreme Court or the Senate or the House of Representatives or the media. The America I love still exists at the front desks of our public libraries.”
― Kurt Vonnegut, A Man Without a Country

“Most people don't realize how important librarians are. I ran across a book recently which suggested that the peace and prosperity of a culture was solely related to how many librarians it contained. Possibly a slight overstatement. But a culture that doesn't value its librarians doesn't value ideas and without ideas, well, where are we?”
― Neil Gaiman

“I'm just the librarian. I can only give you the books. I can't give you the answers.”
― Kami Garcia, Beautiful Creatures

“Google can bring you back 100,000 answers. A librarian can bring you back the right one.”
― Neil Gaiman

“Adult librarians are like lazy bakers: their patrons want a jelly doughnut, so they give them a jelly doughnut. Children’s librarians are ambitious bakers: 'You like the jelly doughnut? I’ll get you a jelly doughnut. But you should try my cruller, too. My cruller is gonna blow your mind, kid.”
― John Green

“Rule number one: Don't #### with librarians.”
― Neil Gaiman

“The librarian isn't a clerk who happens to work in a library. A librarian is a data hound, a guide, a sherpa and a teacher. The librarian is the interface between reams of data and the untrained but motivated user.”
― Seth Godin, The Library Book

“Back before the internet we had a name for people who bought a single copy of our books and lent them to all their friends without charging: we called them "librarians".”
― Charles Stross

“Librarians! Librarians always know how to find out things. That was their job even before the Internet.”
― Susan Beth Pfeffer, This World We Live In

“Librarians understand about power - they know how to find anything.”
― Joan Bauer, Best Foot Forward

“I was under the librarians' protection. Civil servants and servants of civility, they had my back. The would be whatever they needed to be that day: information professionals, teachers, police, community organizers, computer technicians, historians, confidantes, clerks, social workers, storytellers, or, in this case, guardians of my peace.”
― Marilyn Johnson, This Book Is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All

“As a librarian I learned one of life’s great truths: you don’t have to know all the answers, you just have to know where to find them.”
― Lucia St. Clair Robson

“Look, I... I may not be an explorer, or an adventurer, or a treasure-seeker, or a gunfighter, Mr. O'Connell, but I am proud of what I am.
And what is that?
I... am a librarian.”
― The Mummy

“Librarians are tour-guides for all of knowledge.”
― Patrick Ness

“If librarianship is the connecting of people to ideas – and I believe that is the truest definition of what we do – it is crucial to remember that we must keep and make available, not just good ideas and noble ideas, but bad ideas, silly ideas, and yes, even dangerous or wicked ideas.”
― Graceanne A. Decandido

“Libraries are like houses of worship: Whether or not you use them yourself, it's important to know that they are there. In many ways they define a society and the values of that society. Librarians to me are the keepers of the flame of knowledge. When I was growing up, the librarian in my local library looked like a meek little old lady, but after you spent some time with her, you realized she was Athena with a sword, a wise and wonderful repository of wisdom.”
― Jane Stanton Hitchcock

All of these quotes were found at GoodReads.

Tales of the Roaming Librarian Feb 18th

Today, when I went about Roaming the library, I carried with me the tablet computer and an old-fashioned notepad in a leather case, which I refer to as my i-pad. I can take notes, do calculations, record phone numbers, draw pictures, play Hangman and Tic-Tac-Toe, and it never needs batteries or suffers from poor wifi connections. But that's not the point. The point is, that today the tablet computer had a sign attached to it that proudly proclaimed

which has gotten very positive reviews from all of the library staff that I've shown it to. So far, though, the patrons have not yet caught on to the potential we have to offer. I know people are seeing it, I've gotten a few wry grins from people as I've slowly coasted by. But no other takers as yet. I've asked one or two of my colleagues who also carry this sign with them when they go Roaming, but it seems we're all in the same boat. If we want to prove this concept, we may have to be more assertive about it than we have been so far. Today I saw a few groups of students at tables, all apparently working on the same thing. So if I were a bolder sort, I would stride confidently up, and ask in warm and sincere interest what they were working on, and could I be of any assistance?  The problem for me, I think, is what to do if they should say (as is very possible) "Um, no, thanks, we're good here."  Oh. 
  If I know that is a likely response, then I should be prepared for it, and know that it is not anything personal, and respond with. "All right, if you do need help later, you can ask at one of our service points and someone will be glad to assist you."  But there it is, I know at least a little part of me will take it personally. I have promoted/boosted/pushed for the sign shown above, and I do genuinely enjoy helping students find what they need to do their homework. Yet at the same time, I can't help but think that all I've done is give the student body an opportunity to have a laugh at my expense. So, there is my biggest road-block in a nutshell, my vanity. God help me overcome this vice, and enable me to do my job to the best of my ability. 
    On a lighter note, I did have one curious encounter while I was out and about today. I was walking through the lowest level of the Learning Commons, when, as I was passing by a long study table, I saw a pair of shoes sticking out from under the table's end. This would not have been odd, had there not been feet still in the shoes. I knelt down, and discovered a student lying prone on the floor beneath the table, right at the feet of two other students who were sitting in the chairs at the table, studying. I asked the student under the table if there was anything amiss, and she replied that she was just resting between the two tests she had today. She confirmed that the two students directly above knew her, and that she was there. They promised not to kick their friend, apart from a friendly toe-tap so that she wouldn't sleep through the second exam. As the recumbent student was not in distress nor causing a commotion, I wished her well on her exam, and after admonishing her friends to not forget or neglect her, I Roamed on. 

The things that go on in the library. Hmmm. 

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

This is NOT an Off the Cuff Movie Review. But maybe I will do this one some day. This is a modern 'trailer' for the classic British comedy, done over to make the movie look like an awesome action epic. Enjoy.

For those of you who have never seen this film, please consult the IMDB page. and then go rent this movie immediately.

Thwart Not the Librarian

(I found this as a static Web page all the way back in graduate school. It's still awesome.)

     Ok, sure.  We've all got our little preconceived notions about what librarians are and what they do.  Many people think of them as diminutive civil servants, scuttling about "Sssh-ing" people and stamping things.  Well, think again buster. 

     Librarians have degrees. They go to graduate school for Information Science and become masters of data systems and human/computer interaction.  Librarians can catalog anything from an onion to a dog's ear.  They could catalog you. Librarians wield unfathomable power.  With a flip of the wrist they can hide your dissertation behind piles of old Field & Stream magazines.  They can find data for your term paper that you never knew existed. They may even point you toward new and appropriate subject headings. 

     People become librarians because they know too much. Their knowledge extends beyond mere categories. They cannot be confined to disciplines. Librarians are all-knowing and all-seeing. They bring order to chaos. They bring wisdom and culture to the masses. They preserve every aspect of human knowledge. Librarians rule. And anyone who says otherwise is itchin' for a fight.  

Not my own work. I have seen credit for this quotation ascribed to the website www.librarianavengers.org