Sometimes I try to do too many things. It's all Good Stuff. There's just too much of it. The family things, the volunteer things, the work things, the personal things. And don't forget to walk the dog!

Walk. Breathe. Listen.

Those things really need to be done today. The rest of it will happen in its own time. However: without walking, we stand still; without breathing, we cease to live to enjoy another day; without listening, we know nothing of those we care about. When I prioritize today, the...
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I recently returned from Dallas, TX, and the ALA MidWinter conference. What a thrill to rub shoulders with IMLS staff, librarians of all stripes, beginners and seasoned professionals, and even a 40-year veteran from the Library of Congress. My favorite author talk was John Green's reception and Freedom to Read presentation. I hope he accepts my invitation to visit Boise soon!

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If I've learned anything in my lifetime, it is that I must expect the unexpected. Each time I think I have life figured out, I know what's coming next, I'm ready for the next five years, there's a sudden turn and I have to rethink everything.

I have my MLS now, and I have long expected that there will be a job locally that will allow me to work fulltime as a children's librarian. I'd like to spend my time doing what I love, helping kids, teens, parents, and caregivers to locate great children'...
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It's funny. I've been interviewed for news articles about the library several times now. Each time, I choose my words carefully. Each time, I hope that whatever gets printed is approximately what I meant. Words taken out of context can be misleading, for better or worse. Words empower, but they can also mock or tear down. I've studied the transmission of information in library school for the last 2.5 years. The one thing I am sure of is this: Information is at the heart of what makes humans h...
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"Time keeps on slippin' into the future." So true. When I last posted in March, I was buried in schoolwork, family life, and library work. Now it's November and I'm still "up to my eyeballs in alligators," but I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. My library school experience will last for one more month and then that part of my library training will end. I won't miss the crazy schedules or the homework; I might miss the camaraderie of group suffering with fellow students.

As time moves ...
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I have a newfound appreciation of the simple things in life. This week, after a prolonged (1.5 year) hiatus, a particular room in my house again has a sink with running water. Just turning the handle and watching the water flow effortlessly out gave me great joy.

Sometimes we think only the grand, the elegant, the time-consuming and the mind-boggling projects are worthwhile. It's not true. The simple things are good. Maybe even great. After all, where would I be without a sink and running wate...
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Reading Anita Silvey's, "Children's Book Almanac," I discovered things about author Bill Martin I never knew. He had a Ph.D. and started his career in publishing. He mentored Eric Carle. He's no longer with us.

The journey we take as life moves along and careers progress is rarely a linear, predicatable one. My journey has had twists and turns too numerous to count. I've done work in my "career" that is vastly different than what I plan to do for the next 20 some-odd years. (putting electrodes...
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I spent two days last week sitting in the hospital, hoping and praying that my teenaged son would be released soon. As much as I dislike experiencing pain, I find it even more difficult to watch a loved one suffer. Pain equalizes people. Whether we are great or insignificant, rich or poor, we have to stop and acknowledge pain. Pain halts everything; seemingly important events and duties fade into insignificance in its wake.

I hope I don't spend time in the hospital again any time soon. I am SO...
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I thought the term "personal branding" was edgy enough. Now I find another term, "Micro Celebrity," that encapsulates the idea even better. As we busily create another blog post, website update, tweet, profile pic, or other momentary announcements, what is our real hope? Recognition. Look at me! See what I can do! I'm a Celebrity!

Granted, some of the things we share are worthwhile, entertaining, or thought-provoking. Thank goodness. So many, however, are just that much more blah blah in the c...
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There's something in each of us that wants things to stay the same. We resist change, to a greater or lesser degree, because often change is seen as equivalent to loss. And when things inevitably change, sometimes we go through the same gamut of emotions that accompany the grief of loss. All these ideas have been highlighted for me in readings this week for a class I'm taking. But they're nothing new. I'm not a particularly change-oriented person. I like adventure sometimes, but often I appre...
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There's nothing quite like sitting on an airplane, looking out the window as it flies through an extended region of clouds. You can't see anything. Can't predict anything. Unlike darkness with stars, or an ocean with waves, there's nothing to give it definition. You have to take it on faith that you're still heading in the right direction, and that the pilot knows enough to get you back to the ground safely.

Sometimes I'm not sure where my life is heading. I've set the course, and I'm walking ...
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How many times this week has the important taken a back seat to the urgent? In my life, the answer is "far too many times."

When someone asks us how we've been doing, the standard reply is, "I've been SO busy!" Those four little words magnify our importance to the world: everyone needs me, and I must run like crazy to keep up with all the requests. It's as if Busy-ness is a virtue. In reality, I believe being busy is often the exact opposite of a virtue. It's our way of keeping at bay all the ...
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Perspective is a precious commodity. When it's lost, everything collapses into itself. Things with little importance seem unmanageably huge, and the truly important is often overlooked.

I will be on an airplane headed for Billings, Montana next week. I'll fly in for a four-day meeting with my grad school cohort; we'll learn and socialize and get to know each other better. Airplanes allow me a particular type of perspective. I can look out the window, down through the clouds to the mountains be...
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As I near the end of my MLS training, I begin to see the threads of learning make patterns as they are woven into a coherent whole. Stories. Collection Development. Reference. Information literacy. Cataloging. Management. Each makes a unique contribution to what will eventually be a colorful tapestry of skills and interests.

While a personal website may not add much to that tapestry, I offer it as a window into who I am and what I propose to work on. As C.S. Lewis said in The Last Battle, "Fur...
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