Gearing up to get away

The last two weeks have gone by in a blur.  I’ve been trying to get my 15 minute presentation for the PNLA preconference ready.  The session is called “The Young and the Restless: a new breed of library customer” and the presenter/facilitator is Aaron Schmidt.  He’s one of the presenters that got me going on the right track to serving digital natives at a conference long ago.  I’m on a panel within his session.  The panel will make short presentations about what their library has done/is doing that addresses the ICFL Perceptions of Digital Natives on Public Libraries focus group report — and more specifically, what the DNs have to say on the DVD that came out of the study.  Since the name of the session borrows a soap opera title, I went a little further.  My little session is called… Days of Our (library) Lives: the Young and the Restless as our Guiding Light.  Over the top, I know, but hey!  It fits the theme AND the content.

What does all of this have to do with the interns?  This week is the last that I’ll work with most of them.  After PNLA, I’m going on a two week vacation.  I’ll come home in time to go to the appreciation BBQ Laura is hosting for them, and then they will be leaving us to get ready to go back to school.

While I’m gone, they will be executing their group project, which is to unshelve, box, label, store ALL of non-fic.  Then dismantle, move, and rebuild the shelves.  Finally, they’ll measure CAREFULLY (interns, please read this!) and when the rows are perfectly spaced and super straight, they’ll restock the shelves, knock down the boxes, and eat pizza.  I think they might have to eat pizza a few times before the job is done.

Ross will round up the posse and assign duties — and generally oversee the whole project.  And like I said, I’ll be       On.  Vacation.

Done with TSR, getting serious about projects

It’s such a pleasure to see our library’s interns develop an interest in different aspects of the library.  Ross is a weeding maniac.  He affixed a Jolly Roger sign to his weeding bookcart, with the heading “Condemnation Cart”.  So, he is attracted to researching material histories and making decisions that weigh usefulness and shelf space.

Shelby is doing some weeding of another kind — Our library automated early in this decade.  All patron cards were transferred into our system, without regard to card activity.  Since then, unused cards have never been purged from the system.  I’ve given her a report of THOUSANDS of patron cards that expired in 2005 or before.  She’s looking for fines, fees and messages, then deleting those that are clean.  Shelby also likes to help at the circulation desk.  She’s a people person.

Sara is heading up the group project, which is to honor Evelyn Crowder, the retired teacher who bequeathed nearly a million dollars to our library.  The plan is to dedicate a wall to expressing appreciation for the gift.  Sara is one busy girl.  After committing to the internship, she got a job.  I don’t think she’s lounging at the pool much this summer!

Aaron was incredibly helpful at the last teen summer reading event.  It was Survivor in a Day.  Aaron showed up at 8:00 A.M. and stayed for the duration.  The program didn’t end until nearly 6:00 P.M.  He took on many duties; Jeff Probst at tribal councils and challenges, event photographer, judge of tribe camps, etc.  I’ll never go back to doing the whole thing myself!  Ross spent the afternoon helping too, giving Aaron time to play with the challenges and survivors a bit.

Jenna is mostly here when I am not.  I hear from staff members how very helpful and competent she is.  Note to self: make a point to work with Jenna and find out what she’s up to @ the library!

A Program Hit — Thanks to Ross & Aaron

Today is a good day.  Last night’s TSRP event was a great success, AND I’ve discovered that the staff has conspired to celebrate my upcoming birthday later today. 

The program was a cell phone texting game at the mall.  Earlier this year, the YAC chose to have a scavenger hunt at the mall, and I’d been wracking my brains to dream up a way to use cell phones in a program.  It was a beautiful fit.  A description of the game is posted at the C3Library blog.

Ross and Aaron were key to the success of the program.  I wouldn’t have been able to keep track of the five teams’ text responses by myself, and honestly, I don’t know how I’ve ever put on a TSR event without interns.  I depend on them now and refuse to do it all by myself ever again!

Another thing… I think that teens like other teens to be in charge of things.  I’m there if needed, but dang, I’m old!  If I ever leave this job, I hope the library replaces me with a very young… guy.  A guy because the rest of us are women, and I thing middle and high school guys need role models that read and are proud of it.  Young because of the energy and endurance that comes with youth.

Wouldn’t it be cool if one of our male interns was inspired to become a librarian?  Of course it would be just as cool if one of the girls was too. 

The Human Side

*Note: I found this post in drafts — see how distracted I was?

I’m late for blogging.  The interns and I are supposed to be blogging at least once per week, and though technically, I did blog last week, that one was late too.  I’ll just keep trying to do my best.  Work is very important to me, but … the sun is shining!

We had a really good week.  The interns are learning how to expedite things at the circ desk.  They’re also learning our procedures for weeding.  And of course, they’re doing all of the other things that keep materials moving through the library’s work space.  At least three interns have chosen their display projects.

To be truthful, I’m not in work mode as I write, and won’t be much of this week.  I’m leaving after CSI night (TSRP) for Boise to see my little girl compete in the Origin Records/Gene Harris talent search with her band, Take 2.  That, after the Jazz in the Canyon weekend, with just one work day sandwiched in between, makes it really hard to get into anything but jazz and this terrific weather.