Circus Act

"What's new?"

"What are you up to?" 

I get these questions a lot, and let me tell you, everything. I've started my rotation in Reference and Instruction and am just putting some final touches on a few projects in Technical Services. In addition, I got a poster proposal accepted for the National Diversity in Libraries Conference for this coming July.  My topic will be regarding minority librarians and student loan debt.  I'll do a survey and then show my findings at the poster session during the conference. (If you see my survey, please fill it out!)  I'm also pondering doing a non-library related presentation for an internal multicultural conference here at Towson themed Intersecting Identities.  I think the work and lives of writers James Baldwin and Charles Chesnutt would be great historical examples of complex individuals that embodied many different characteristics.  I think it would be really fun to pluck them from the past and imagine what their lives might be like today.  I haven't worked out the details of that yet.  I'm also beginning to spend some time in Cherry Hill where I hope to be doing work on my Capstone project during my second year. (Oral histories! Yeah!)  The students and adults I've met there have been really fun to meet and talk with, so I think my project will be really rewarding. And then there's also the Marketing Committee and an E-Newsletter we're working on, and the Diversity Action Committee.

All that and the game has changed! I'm no longer at my desk with a strictly project focused agenda as I was in Tech Services.  Now I have reference desk time, professors to meet, classes to construct and students to help.  It's pretty exciting and scary at the same time just because there is so much to do!  So if you see me around, instead of asking "What's up?", it might be more appropriate if you hold on to a few of my juggling pins for a second while I grab a cup of coffee. And, if you have any juggling tips, I would love to hear them!