You Can't Always Get What You Want

As a librarian, I always hope that attendance number will remain high and consistent throughout the entire summer.  Last week was amazing and I had hopes that we would maintain those numbers.

I guess my hopes were too high.

On Monday, we had 14 teens signed up to dissect owl pellets.  Now, that's not a huge number but I was happy with it because I scheduled it because I was hoping more boys would come.  A few hours before the program, however, the township switched our picnic grove.  With the confusion, only six teens ended up coming.  What a let down...

Then last night, I had 25 kids signed up to make glow-in-the-dark t-shirts.  That's a big number and glow-in-the-dark paint in that quantity is not cheap.  Well, seven cancelled within the hour before the program, which is fine because it became a more manageable number since my volunteer wasn't coming either.  It turned out that only eight showed up.  Where were the unaccounted for 10?

I don't know if it was the weather - not wanting to leave the pool or air-conditioning but it was frustrating.  Every teen gets a reminder call to, so they knew about it.

Here's to a better week next week, which actually starts tonight with a sleepover of 30 tweens at the library.  I'm feeling tired already.

The Music of My Life

Recently, I read somewhere about coming up with 10 songs that define different periods of your life.  At first, I thought this would be really easy but it was actually quite hard.  So many songs came to mind, but did they really define my life at that time?  Some did, but others were just the first song that conjured up memories of my teen or college years.

Here are my picks…

Birth – Preschool: Christ Came Walking Down by the Water, If I Were a Butterfly, White Coral Bells

When I was little, most of the ones I sang or come to mind from my childhood were mainly songs I learned at church, especially Bible school.  One of my favorites was Christ Came Walking Down by the Water, which according to my parents I used to sing while I walked up and down the beach at Stone Harbor.  Apparently, I thought I was Christ…  The last song was the lullaby my grandma sang to me.

Elementary School: Jesus is the Light, Pharaoh, Blessed Be, This is the Day

Do we see a pattern here with the church songs?  Whether it was church camp, Sunday school or Bible school, I was singing my heart out to one of these songs.  Those experiences and these songs did define my childhood. The last song was special because it was the first song I remember learning at Lakeside in God Squad.

Middle School:  Peaches, Gangsta’s Paradise, Wannabe

Ah and the tables turn…  These songs definitely did not define my middle school years but are the first titles that come to mind when I think of those years.  I remember singing these or listening to them on…wait for it… a Walkman on the bus ride to school.

High School:  Because I Got High, Graduation, Big Pimpin’

Again, these didn’t define high school but I always think of them when high school comes to mind.  My aunt hate the last one and I remember her turning the radio off when it came on.  Ha ha!

College: Hot in Herre/ Unbroken/I Would Walk 500 Miles

Hot in Herre was the song I remember from my first frat party at Mount Union.  The priest at La Roche used the lyrics from Unbroken for his baccalaureate homily.  It was pretty interesting.  And I Would Walk 500 Miles was on our mix CD for away tennis matches at Mount Union.

Annapolis: Jesse’s Girl

I remember blasting this on the way to the beach on Saturday mornings with the windows down and the warm air blowing through my, at the time, long hair.

Lakeside: All Summer Long

This was the song that we sang and played over and over during my two summers at Lakeside.  I will always feel blessed to have had those two summers with my sisters and summer sisters. 

And now…I’m not really sure what song defines my life at the moment.  That my friends may take some more time but for now these 10 (OK, I listed a few more) were hard enough.

Try it…see if you can come up with 10!  Do you have any suggestions for my list?  What did I miss?

Isn't it awesome how much of a role music really does play in our lives...

We all scream for ice cream!

It may come as a surprise but I am not a huge ice cream fan EXCEPT in the summer!  There is nothing I enjoy more than a bowl of ice cream, a good book and the front porch on a summer evening.  I can't deny tho that an ice cream cone from the Patio at Lakeside followed by a walk on the dock or an ice cream cone from Springer's in Stone Harbor followed by a walk on the beach sounds tempting right now as well.

Ah, the fabulous treats of summer...

All in a week at the library...

People often ask what a typical day in the life of a librarian consists of and the answer is that every day is different, which is one of the reasons I love my job so much.  Each week is no different.

For instance this week, we used our creativity, practiced relaxation and learned crime scene investigation skills.  What a week!

On Monday, the girls made magazine picture frames by rolling colorful pages from magazines into tubes and gluing them on to a shoebox lid.  I was worried they might have trouble but the frames turned out awesome.  They are pretty expensive to buy in the store.

Then on Tuesday the tweens relaxed and learned some new yoga techniques. It was the first time for many of them and they all had a great time, especially during the wall hands, which even the librarians did!  We were supposed to try it outside but it was too hot.

And finally on Wednesday, all of the teens went to PTI to learn crime scene investigation skills from one of the department instructors there.  They learned how to match fingerprints, analyze handwriting samples and determine what evidence was used for a break-in.  I learned that I have a rare fingerprint, which only 5% of the world's population has...interesting.

It was a fun week and I'm excited for next week - owl pellet dissection lab in the park and glow-in-the-dark t-shirts!

Summer Kick-Off: Tie Dye and Paint Party!!

Last Tuesday, the teens officially kicked off summer reading with the annual tie dye program.  This year I added some other colorful elements, including squirt gun painting and crayon art.  The weather was perfect, so the teens were able to work on their projects outside. 

Some of the teens made tie dye shirts first...

...while others used squirt gun and paint to decorate a sheet.  It turned out awesome!  The original idea was to hang the sheet in the teen department at the new library but the teens were so attached to their masterpiece that now I have to very carefully cut it into 20+ squares.

Then others worked on making crayon art with old crayons and a hair dryer (thanks Pinterest).  It was a bit messy but the canvases looked fabulous.  I wanted to keep these for the teen department too but we raffled them off to three lucky participants.

The teens I work with continue to surprise me with their creativity and eagerness to try new things.  Today we made magazine picture frames (I will write a post about this later) and many of the girls had their tie dye shirts on or said they turned out really well and were going to wear them to the next program. 

Summer 2012 is off to a great start at the library!



Go be a light in the world.

Twelve years ago I had the opportunity to attend the Southwestern Pennsylvania Lutheran Synod Assembly as part of the Youth Convo.  It was an amazing experience.  I learned about how the church worked, served at worship, paged during business sessions, met new friends, grew in faith and of course had lots of fun.  The weekend had such an impact on my life for three years that I wrote about it for my college application essays.

Then it became a memory...

...until last year.

Eleven years after I attended my first Youth Convo, I returned as one of the leaders. It was a new experience but just as special as being a participant.  On Wednesday I left for my second year as a Youth Convo leader.  Last year was at Cal U and this year back at Thiel.  Being back at Thiel, brought back so many memories of my time at Youth Convo.

It was during this time that I truly realized the importance of faith in my life and my role as a member of the Lutheran church and my home congregation, as well.  I met other young people, who became dear friends and one my boyfriend.  I prayed; sang; played a lot of truth or dare and four square; learned about the church; and came to the conclusion that I would never attend college at Thiel!

(Twelve years later and we were still laughing as hard at lunch as we were when we were teens.)

As one of the leaders, I could not have been more proud of the 20 young adults who represented their churches at Youth Convo this year.  And for the first time, they were able to attend as voting members!  It wonderful to see a new generation so interested in the internal workings of the Lutheran church.  It was a privilege to watch them learn and grow in their faith.  They were an inspiration.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A LIBRARIAN!!

Today I read in my Self magazine the following career advice:

 "Find a job that brings out your favorite childhood memory and you will be happy."

This made me smile because I can honestly say I am fulfilling my childhood dreams.  OK.  I am fulfilling my realistic childhood dreams.  I wanted to be the first woman president or the first lady but yes, I wanted to be a librarian.

When most kids were playing school, I played library.  I checked books out to Annie and Meg.  I made my own cards for my books.  And I loved to read, so much so that I missed a lot because my face was in a book.  There were many times when my famous words were..."after this chapter."

Right now is my favorite time to be a librarian - summer reading, which programming begins Tuesday with a tie dye and paint party!

I am so thankful to be a librarian.

One of my favorite quotes about librarians:

“Librarians are the coolest people out there doing the hardest job out there on the frontlines. And every time I get to encounter or work with librarians, I'm always impressed by their sheer awesomeness.”
― Neil Gaiman

I think I need a bigger library!

Since October, the library board and staff have been waiting patiently to hear about the possibility of a new library.  Its actually been a 21-year process for some of the staff, since we have continued to outgrow our current space every year.

It's a good problem though when you have a collection that no longer fits on the shelves and programming rooms that are too small for the amount of people attending.  However, after some setbacks in recent years, my coworkers and I have learned deal with these issues.

When I was in graduate school, we learned in some of the classes about moving a library collection or designing a library space but I never dreamed that as a librarian in this economy I would really ever have that opportunity.

Well, after nearly nearly nine months of anticipation...

WE GOT OUR NEW BUILDING!!!

It was official last Friday - May 25.  We will be moving sometime in the near future to a much larger space (three times the size of our current facility).  It is exciting to beginning "a new chapter" and thinking about the possibilities will now be able to offer the community.

I am thrilled to actually be able to offer programs without limits on participants; get my own work space (I finally have a desk, so I'm not really complaining); and have an actual teen department with display space, couches, study tables, etc.  The architect said we can dream big to start!

The new space is a former office/industrial building, so major renovations are needed to make it usable as a community library but even minor updates will be a big improvement to what we are currently working with.

I am so thankful to be a part of this "new chapter" and hope that the youth services department (we are pushing for a combined children's, tween and teen) will be able offer bigger collections, provide better programming and continue to make a difference in the lives of our young patrons.

So here's to a "new chapter"...

I would be lost without my volunteers.

Sometimes, I forget to say thank you but I am blessed with a dedicated team of volunteers at the library who help with programs.  I say I need help...they sign-up; never asking what they will be doing.

Yesterday was no exception at the summer reading kick-off.  The board, staff and teens graciously stepped up to assist with the event.  It would have been impossible without them.

They made cookies.  They registered participants.  They montiored program sign-ups.  They painted faces.  They served pizza.  They watched the moon bounce.  And they dressed up as a character.

With no complaints!

It's not just last night either.  Those same volunteers help me periodically throughout the year and the teens volunteer all year.  Libraries would not function without volunteers.  We are so lucky.

Those who can, do. Those who can do more, volunteer. 

~Author Unknown

Happy Summer Reading!

June 1

For many, this date is insignificant but for me is the start of an event that defines the next three months for me. 

TEEN SUMMER READING!

For the last six months, my colleagues and I have been planning for summer.  We have experienced a range of emotions from stress to excitement.  We have anticipated June 1 since January. 

The evening went well overall.  We expected a bigger turnout but the weather, graduation and another major event in the area prompted different results.

Now, that it is over I'm met with those same emotions - stress and excitement for three months of three-four programs a week. 

Let the summer begin!