Leaving my comfort zone

I checked on the Library Association of Ireland website for upcoming conferences and found the LAI Public Libraries Section Annual Conference which is being held November 11^th to 13^th in Cork. We are lucky enough to have an annual budget for training and my line manager is always agreeable to staff attending training workshops/conferences. There are good public transport links to Cork and seen as usually one or two members of staff attend the annual conference there is always sufficient staff to cover the library desk. The theme for this year’s conference is ‘Opportunities For All’ and has a very varied line up with talks about; the library and arts funding, the work of the library and the online cultural archive and will conclude with a ‘My life in Books Panel’ where authors discuss their favourite books. So it promises to be an enjoyable experience, the thoughts of attending a conference alone is slightly alarming but even if I only interact with a few others and make some new contacts it will have been worth the fear. I do enjoy interacting with staff from other libraries and ‘borrowing’ ideas to use in my own library but this usually happen in cyber space and not in the flesh, but I suppose I have to get out of my comfort zone at some stage.

Catch up

Only I could be at the stage of writing a blog about time management (Thing 11) on the day the final Thing is released!! I knew that it had been a while since I had spent any time working on the course but I didn't realised that I was so far behind. I was on leave for 2 weeks, other staff were away so I have been spending more time on the front desk and had Children's Book Festival events to plan. Now my evenings are filled with fabric and buttons preparing for Christmas craft fairs..........I had mentioned in a previous blog that I hate falling behind with all sorts of things so I'm annoyed and frustrated with myself for ending up in this situation but I'm determined to complete the course. In terms of a plan/timetable I think the only way to go forward is to commit to spending half an hour, 40 minutes, an hour......anything at all on the course every day, watch this space....

Up Periscope

I downloaded the Periscope app on my phone and I found it very easy to use. In terms of the technology currently available in the library (we don’t have a webcam and a smartphone held in a shaky hand would be so annoying) I don’t think we would be able to stream successfully which is a pity because I can think of a few times when it would have been great to stream events. Author visits are probably the most obvious choices, when we have a ‘big name’ like Darren Shan we are usually booked out in minutes so to be able to stream the event to schools that couldn’t get to the library would be great. Other possible events would be book launches and local history talks. Our Children's Book Festival is due to begin in October and we are lucky enough to have Chris Riddell coming to speak to a group of school children......it would be a great opportunity to try a live stream......maybe I should talk nicely to the guys over in IT........

The die is cast

I decided to use Screencast-O-Matic software for this thing. My only prior knowledge of screencasts had been limited to using them as a 'how do I?' tool on YouTube and therefore I decided to create my own 'how do I?' screencast video. The end result is a very rushed 2 minutes and 46 seconds video showing library users how to download a digital magazine to their PC.

I honestly didn't spend much time on this task as I have been off work and I'm way behind on my 'things'. I hate being late, I hate falling behind, I hate any kind of 'things' piling up and not getting done......try and picture John Cleese in Clockwise....but in a library and not in a school.

I did try to add subtitles but couldn't....I think this might be because I was using the free version of the software but please correct me if I'm wrong, as I said because I'm falling behind I did rush this 'thing' so the option of subtitles was probably quite obvious to everyone else and I just missed it.

It's the first time that I have downloaded anything to YouTube and it was surprisingly easy!! I do think that creating and using videos on the library social media platforms would be very useful especially for situations like....'how do I renew my books online?'....'how do I download an audio book?' etc. I have decided to spend more time familiarising myself with the software and creating screencasts specifically for our borrowers. 

The imitation game

I did take a look at Flipboard and Storify and to be honest I didn’t like the look of either. The interface is bland and unappealing and personally I’m not sure if they would be a useful tool for the library I work in. I know that one of the things that we were asked to do was to open an account but I’m reluctant to set up yet another account that will generate more email notifications, since beginning this course I’m finding that my inbox/news feed is being filled with information and no offence to anyone but the notifications, blogs and shares are becoming overwhelming. 

I already have a personal Pinterest account and I also moderate the library Pinterest account so this is the tool that I am going to write about. At this stage I should declare that my name is Susanne and I am a pinoholic! The 44 boards and 1.1k pins on my personal profile are a testament to this.

From a work related point of view I like using Pinterest as a means of sharing information that is categorised. I think the option of following particular boards of interest is appealing to users; a library user that is interested in local history materials may not want recommendations for picture books for toddlers. If you don’t have a board that is suitable for a new pin you can just create one. Our (work) library Pinterest page has been slow to get off the ground, I'm hopeful that regular pinning of attractive and interesting articles will help our numbers grow. As well as connecting with library users the ability to follow other libraries and library staff is fantastic. I don't mind admitting that I have 'borrowed' many ideas for displays, promotional ideas etc. from other libraries that I follow on Pinterest........as the saying goes 'Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery'.

Castaway

I find myself all at sea this week I didn't fininsh 'thing 7' before I read 'Thing 8'......big mistake I saw the word Pinterest and had palpitations......Pinterest is my social media drug of choice but more of that in my next blog!

I had very little experience of podcasts until this 'thing'. I had heard the Serial podcast being discussed on a radio programme last year and I listened to the first couple of episodes......I don't remember why I stopped listening to it because I was enjoying it. Enjoying may be the wrong word to use here....after all we are talking about the murder of a young girl and the possible wrongful conviction of her ex-boyfriend.

I downloaded the Stitcher app to my phone and I have been listening to podcasts every morning whilst trying to survive another app on my phone....the dreaded couch to 5 K.

I love the variety of programmes available, depending on your mood there is something different for every hour in the day. In terms of library use I can see how they could become a great tool for us here in Meath. We have regular book launches and we could use these events to record author interviews for future broadcast. We also have archive interviews on record that could be broadcast. So yes I like podcasts and yes I do think that they would make a great library tool....you can probably tell from the brevity of this blog that I am eager to proceed to the next thing for a Pinterest 'fix'.

Single White Female or just inspired

The various paths that people took in order to end up as library professionals were interesting. Like me some had applied for the job just because it was advertised locally. I love the fact that everyone knew that they had chosen correctly and that the world of librarianship was for them as soon as they settled into their posts. My job is so varied, no two days are ever the same especially when you are dealing with members of the public and this was something that echoed in other people’s blogs.

I enjoyed this 'thing' as it answered a couple of questions that I had. As a newbie blogger I was unfamiliar with blogging etiquette. Should I comment on blogs that I enjoyed reading and should I respond to comments that people made on mine or simply like the comment? If I found a particularly interesting/funny blog was it acceptable to delve a little further, find and follow that person on Twitter without going all 'Single White Female'? Well I did find some and I did stalk.....sorry follow a couple of intertesting bloggers.....watch this space for tales of a restraining order!!

Following a late night

As I already had Facebook and Twitter accounts thing 5 didn't take as much time as the previous tasks had which was just as well as I was way behind starting it. As requested I joined the Rudai23 Facebook group and introduced myself and I followed a group the '5 minute librarian'.

On Twitter I followed Rudai23, tweeted with a #rudai23 hashtag (the topic was in no way related to the course but I thought it might initiate a conversation) and found a few library related lists to subscribe to including; 'library life' and 'librarians in Ireland'.

I use both platforms regularly mostly for social reasons, I don't know if I would be inclined to use either for professional interactions. I know the difference between having Facebook 'friends' and 'liking pages' and having the ability to control what people can see but it still feels a little bit like mixing business with pleasure, not that either my Facebook or Twitter accounts contain anything wild or salacious. The most exciting thing about my Twitter account is that Sheridan Smith (actress); Wendy Jones (author) and Stephen (one of the guys on Gogglebox) are following me!!

The exercise on Twitter did give me an excuse to look at exactly who I was following and all I can say is that allot of them obviously seemed like a great idea late at night after a few glasses of wine! I did a cull and the remaining people I follow fell into 5 categories; library/book related, craft related, celebrity/TV shows, satirical feeds and surprisingly health & fitness......this was probably motivated by an early morning following an aforementioned late night drinking wine, a Bridget Jones moment perhaps.....is it too late to make a New Year’s resolution in July?

#thing4

Who knew Google+ had so much to offer? Maybe everyone but me! Having established profiles like Niamh's and Stephanie's to look at was a great help when editing my own. Hours could be spent searching for communities to join, posts to share and people to connect with. Pinterest (my current online addiction) may become neglected because of this newfound social network.

The Meath libraries equipment budget has yet to stretch to monitors with built in webcams so I tried to open the Hangout app on my phone on Thursday. I was at the back of the library building where the Wi-Fi connection is poor so I hovered around the circulation desk close to the router with phone in hand trying to connect only to receive an error message informing me that I was not authorized to log in and to contact a member of staff, I was tempted to go into the toilets, look in the mirror go all De Niro and demand assistance........"You talkin' to me?"........ but instead I waited and tried it at home later.......fast forward to today (Tuesday) the hangout app is finally installed on my phone and I have just had a brief video chat with my colleague Shauna yeaaaah it works....it took me 5 days but it's installed and working. I'm not sure if the video call is a feature that I will use very often for work related purposes but at least I know it's there.

I'm obviously way behind on thing 5 at this stage so I will have to get going now........Taxi!!

A work in progress

Having executed Thing one and Thing two........sounds like a Tarantino remake of The Cat in the Hat it was time to move onto Thing 4 of my Rudai journey, my professional brand. I followed the steps and Googled myself incognito. Google decided to include results that had Susanne spelled with a ‘z’ and even with these extra results lo and behold there at the top of the list was little old me, with a LinkedIn profile that I have no recollection of ever creating.........Friday the 24^th of May 2013 had obviously been a slow day because there it was for all to see. How had I not been headhunted in the last 2 years you might ask? It may have something to do with the fact that all I had included on my profile was my name and place of work, what could have happened to cause me to abandon my profile? The only thing I can think of is the realization that I should have been busy in the kitchen that day baking a cake for my son’s 15th birthday which was the following day or at least going to Tesco to buy one. 


So I was one step ahead and already had a LinkedIn profile albeit a poor one. Next came the dreaded photo, Rudai asked to upload a photo of yourself that you ‘like’ well that photo is never going to exist.....I dread cameras and try to avoid them whenever possible so I used my work ID photo instead, it’s not that old but there are definitely more ‘laughter lines’ and grey hairs on the current me. 

My name is consistent, it’s always Susanne with an S not a Z, in person I answer to Susie and Sue just don’t call me Susan please. My professional headline states that I am a library assistant and I also listed the roles that I am passionate about. Confusion set in when trying to decide what should go into the summary box and the experience box, I didn’t want to overlap and be repetitive and to be honest I’m still not sure if it’s right. Maybe it’s an Irish thing but I like to keep my light firmly under a bushel so listing the achievements that I’m proud of and projects that have been successful wasn’t a comfortable experience and is something that I will have to work on. The skills, language and education sections were straightforward. As requested I connected with the suggested groups and introduced myself to the other members of the Rudai23 group. 

As well as being a platform to showcase a CV I think LinkedIn is actually a really useful tool to keep track of all the training, projects and new roles that we as librarians undertake and may otherwise be forget to include when updating an actual CV.........I won’t wait another 2 years to update mine. 

Not like the movies.....

The first step in my Rudaí 23 journey is to write a blog about how and why I became a librarian...........I'm going to begin with the ‘why’.......why I became a librarian is something that I ask myself on a regular basis. These moments of contemplation usually occur when I’m being poked by a gaggle of sticky toddlers who would rather reveal secrets about mammy and daddy aloud than listen to me read a story or when I’m handed a book smeared with a questionable substance at the check in desk. If truth be told I had a rose tinted vision of librarianship, during these daydreams I would of course be wearing a pencil skirt, seamed nylons, high heels and vintage glasses perched on the tip of my nose simply for effect . My hair would be neatly styled in a bun held in place with just a pencil thus allowing me to shake it loose in one swift motion should the need arise. In this fantasy my superpower was the ability to silence a reference area armed with nothing more than a withering glare and a ‘shush’, manicured finger pressed lightly to my scarlet lips and I would of course spend my days reading books. But alas the reality of my day to day role is as far removed from this fantasy as computer science is to Arctic Islands (see what I did there?)

I wear a shapeless uniform with a very high percentage of polyester that even Audrey Hepburn would struggle to look glamorous in. My shoes are flat and sensible and the optician assures me that glasses will be essential sooner rather than later. Young and old alike ignore my pleas to be quiet because other library users are trying to study. The manicured nails are chipped from shelving books and I barely have time to read the headlines on the front of the daily newspapers never mind a book.

The library I work in is the same library that I frequented after school and on Saturday mornings when I was growing up. The 1970’s decor has changed but some of the staff remains the same. The polite young man that checked my books in and out is now the county librarian and is still very polite. 

I graduated from library borrower to library assistant back in 2004 having applied for the job which was advertised in the local newspaper. By then the old card catalogues and due date slips of my childhood were gone and computers had taken over. I threw myself into the role; I was going to make a difference children would queue up for my story time à la Meg Ryan in the movie 'You've got Mail'. There would be a waiting list to join the children's book club that I started, I would tell them to make their lives extraordinary through books as Robin Williams did in 'The Dead Poets Society'.......yes I watch lots of movies. They don't queue up for my story time thankfully (remember my opening paragraph) and if I have encouraged a former book club member to live an extraordinary life they have yet to return and thank me for it.

The ‘how’ I became a librarian started in 2007 when I began a distance learning course with the University of Wales Aberystwyth. At this stage I had decided that the library life was for me and I wanted it to be official. Following many late nights at the kitchen table, study schools and exams I obtained my degree in 2011…..yes 4 years, life got in the way. So whilst I am technically a librarian I am currently employed as a library assistant until a position as a librarian becomes available. I will then have to apply for the post, prepare, attend and pass an interview. This process could form the basis of an entirely different blog.

There is never a dull moment in the library we are not just librarians or information providers. We wear many hats; we are daycare providers, IT experts, local tour guides, social workers, security guards, travel agents, doctors and homework helpers to mention just a few; none of the aforementioned were in the job description that I applied for by the way. We provide a safe environment and a warm place to shelter. We don’t judge the people that walk through our doors. Thankfully no two days are ever the same in the library. Trying to catch a pigeon that has flown into the building is not something that I would not like to do on a regular basis nor is ejecting a trio of bleary eyed teenagers in a smoky haze from the public toilet following a suspiciously long occupation. 

The library is no longer just about books, it is a cultural hub. I have listened as poets and authors have read their work aloud, I have been exposed to beautiful artwork hanging on our walls. I have had the privilege to meet people from all walks of life with amazing stories to tell. We hold music appreciation evenings, movie clubs, creative writing classes, Lego clubs and art & crafts sessions. It can be loud and boisterous on occasion and this can result in protestations from some of our older users but libraries are constantly changing to meet the needs of our community and for this I am grateful. True it’s not the job I thought it would be but I wouldn’t change it..............and wearing those high heels day in and day out would have been a killer!