It can be so difficult to manage the different personalities and the perception of needs in the different branches of a single organization. It’s amazing (and understandable) how defensive people become when a perceived outsider comes in to try and promote a new idea or offer some critique on the current services. Some of this, I think, comes from the general tone these organization-wide initiatives adopt. In order to speak to everybody at once, and create a sense of consistency, they have to smooth over some of the differences between different departments and different branches. I’ve seen first-hand in basically every job I’ve ever had how this ruffles some feathers. I think acknowledging the limits of this general tone can go a long way in making the more skeptical members of the staff feel less defensive because they tend to mistake it for dismissiveness or even a complete failure to understand the differences between departments or branches.

Bethany-

Libraries have always been a place where people could go when they had no place else to go. I think that creating programming – easy to join programming- that anyone could join is wonderful.

Loneliness is such an all encompassing feeling. It can be so hard to reach out when feeling lonely. Maybe library programming would be able to help out with that.

I really enjoyed this post, and I believe that libraries are great for mental health. Libraries have helped me a lot, especially with my anxiety and not being able to focus. I also love your analogy with the Willy Wonka song.

Cat,

I love your post and all of the different topics you explored! I especially loved reading and learning about the Young Chautauqua program. I have never heard of this, but it seems like a really fun and interactive way to get immersed in history. I would have adored something like this when I was younger. It also seems like something that will stick with them, so they will never forget that information or that experience.

Thanks for reading and for your comment, Sara, and for sharing the information and link about Humanities Washington. I explored the website a bit and it looks like an amazing community resource! Have you personally participated in any of their programs? The Prime Time Family Reading is a program that especially piques my interest!

Lilia,
These memory labs are so cool! My husband works for a moving company and they oftentimes come across older people, moving into smaller spaces, and they do not know what to do with all of their photos and videos. I wish this IMLS opportunity was still available as I think we need memory labs in so many places.

Thanks, Sara

I love the idea of a memory lab. I was just thinking about how sad I was because I lost all photos from the time my daughter was born until she was about 3.5. I wish there was a way to recover and go back to that! I also often think about what will happen in the future when the technology for these photos / photo storage goes away. You have a great idea here!

Terry, I was first struck by the photo of your journal. My mom does a lot of water color journaling and I love that you do it also. Your handwriting is gorgeous also.

Having a combination of both written word and painted art combine to make very powerful storytelling, bringing you back to a moment in time with both imagery and thought. And the retelling of journal entries at https://www.heresaystorytelling.com/ is amazing. I will have to check that out. 🙂

Thank you so much, @saraschwan!

Work in progress! https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExd2c2bnNkNGlraW5mdG9wd2hkbWkyajJ1ZHpqZDZha2tia2JhYXByYiZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfYnlfaWQmY3Q9dg/nuufztgCvyJZIuSkgd/giphy.gif

@michael Oh my goodness… that picture is so ridiculous and cute

Working on my Inspiration Report… Norovirus shut our house down on Wednesday for about a week! I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy!

Hi Millicent,

First of all, I love the design of your presentation! It’s so on-theme! I second your idea how a permanent gaming space would be awesome. Speaking from my own experience, my library does provide plenty of cool programs, however, there really is a lack of a permanent “attraction” so to speak, outside of the book collection and computers. This would just be amazing!

@inabookbind I’m honestly blown away by your presentation design! Adding the animated text was a great touch for the video game topic–I felt like I was unlocking new lore as I scrolled. I like your point about the library gaming spaces helping regulate time spent playing, though I agree about the positives of gaming as well. A close relative has met some of her best friends that way, and, as someone who struggles with chronic conditions, it’s her favorite and most feasible means of socializing regularly. Great job!

AdriAnne,

I love your summary of Professor Stephens’ golden nuggets on what it means to work in a library, be a librarian today, and to make an impact. While we can ignore the technology and how it has impacted our profession, at the end of the day it is all about people and relationships. I love this about our work.
Sara

Hi Adrianne,

Thank you for sharing, this was a great post and made me reflect on my day-to-day at work. Reflective practice is crucial to making the best out of patron interactions!

@Michael Yes, please! I was not able to attend the last two Zoom class chats, so I would love to attend a session. I think offering two sessions for that weekend is more than accommodating.

@michael Saturdays work so much better for me! I will come to the one on the 7th. : )

@michael Those two dates sound great, Dr. Stephens! Thank you so much for being so accommodating for us!

@michael I’d appreciate the Saturday as a possibility! I work my full time job during the week but also work a shift on Sundays at a private school so haven’t been able to make the other meetings.

@michael Like Monica, I also want to make it to a Zoom chat since I missed the previous ones. Saturday works for me!