I'm done!... Oh, wait...

Winter break is always such a tease!

Think about it. You've just made this huge push to finish up the semester, you've poured all of your energy into writing papers, studying for exams, and collaborating with lackluster group project colleagues. And then, all of a sudden, it's all over. Your last paper has been turned in, your grades are posted, you have sold back your books and recycled a ridiculous amount of paper. You're beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, you can relax, but just as you close your eyes.... you realize that next semester is approaching alarmingly quickly!

This is the phase that I am currently in; my grades are posted (a very successful semester), I have one last day of work (tomorrow), and.... a looming mountain of things that need to be accomplished before next semester can descend upon me. And I'm all too aware that the tenth of January is simply not that far off. And so, panic has begun to sink in.

First, I am working with a group on a paper that we are hoping to publish; I need to do some research and writing for that. (Or else I'll be one of those lackluster group members!) Second, I need to prepare for the internship upon which I am about to embark; this is going to require copious amounts of reading, and I'd rather not be trying to do it all at less convenient times. Third, I need to begin the job search. This is perhaps the most challenging task that is on my plate, but, given that I will be done with graduate school in mid-June, it is certainly something I should be considered, especially since I am geographically constrained.

As if all of this school- and career-related stuff wasn't enough to keep me from safely backing away from the verge of a mental breakdown, there's the holidays, and the challenge of finding the perfect gift for all of my loved ones. This is a daunting task, and one that I am beginning to believe I am not cut out for. It was like pulling teeth to get a decent gift idea for my future in-laws. I still have no idea what I'm going to get my own father. And I still need to get something more for my darling betrothed. Christmas is in two days.

So really, where is my break? Why can't I just sleep for a little while? And since when are there only 9 days left to this year?! Certainly, it can't be 2011 already, I swear it was New Year's Day yesterday... ! There's gotta be some auxiliary time laying around somewhere...

Six Months Post-Grad

Six months ago today, I graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor of Arts in History. Today, I am more than halfway through graduate school to get my Masters in Library Sciences. Today, I am engaged to a wonderful man. Today, I have two jobs in the Indiana University library system. Today, I feel as though I have accomplished a lot in the past six months. I am proud that I have well-defined goals, which, at this point, seem attainable.

I absolutely love both of my jobs. I feel like I learn a lot through each of them. At the Lilly, I get experiences dealing with rare books that I could not get otherwise. I learn a lot about the care of them, a little bits about preservation and management. With my position at the Herman B Wells library, I learn a lot about using WorkFlows, OCLC Connexion, and cataloging both monograph and serial Federal Government documents. Today, at the Wells, I started looking at a bunch of records which had been recataloged from monograph records to serial records, and have begun to learn about the complex world of serials cataloging. This is something I am particularly excited about.

My classes are also going very well. While I have at times struggled to fully understand the material covered in my cataloging class, I think I am finally getting it. This week, we had a homework assignment where we had to locate authority files for all of the access points from the bibliographic records we constructed for last week's homework. For any access point which did not have an authority file on OCLC, we had to create our own authority record. Fortunately, I only had to create one authority record. However, it was not as challenging as I thought it would be. For the second part of the assignment, we had to construct an authority file from all of the records we had found and constructed, so that it would look like it would in an OPAC. We had to include any and all "search under" and "search also under" references. At first, I had trouble grasping the difference between the two, however, I now I understand it very well. One would use a "search also under" reference for an author with multiple authority records for different names. One would use a "search under" reference for an author with multiple names all located in one authority record. For the third part of the assignment, I used Meg Cabot as an example of a "search also under" reference because she has multiple pseudonyms each with their own authority record.

This week, in my Library Management class, it is my turn to give a presentation on a reading. I have already written out most of what I want to say, and constructed a powerpoint to go along with the presentation. I feel good about it, so far. I am a little nervous about speaking in front of my peers, however, this is not the first presentation I have given as a graduate student, and I feel that I will be well-prepared.

This end of this semester and the start of the coming semester is looming upon me, and approaching ever faster. I have three final papers to write, and I'm beginning to get rather stressed about all of them. With my busy schedule, it has been difficult to find extra time for extra reading and research. For my final paper in Library Management, I am planning on writing about communication in the Library. For my final paper in Rare Books Librarianship, I am planning on writing about ephemera; the collection of it, cataloging and description, care, etc. I am yet undecided on what I will write my final paper for Archives and Records management, but I must decide soon, because I have to write about what I want to write about by Wednesday afternoon, and include a list of articles and resources I plan on consulting for my in-depth research of this topic.

This all seems rather daunting, but not terribly compared to the onslaught of Academic strain I face this coming semester. I am planning on retaining both of my jobs, taking three classes, and working as an intern at the Monroe County Public Library. For my internship, I will be keeping a blog, so all of my experiences through that position will be available on a different string of posts. I am really excited about my internship, because I believe it will expose me to a bunch of things (such as digitization and working at the reference desk) which I have not yet had much experience with.

These past six months have been busy, but overall smooth. I can only hope the next six months sail by so smoothly!