Writing

Sometimes writing is hard.

I haven’t written in a while and despite the fact that I was never an incredibly prolific writer, I kind of miss it. Writing for fun wasn’t a thing I really did but I did enjoy the different written assignments I had to complete during school. Most work assignments that include writing don’t require that much creativity on my part since it’s mostly dealing with facts. I do have to tailor my writing for different audiences but I don’t have as much variation in topics so it’s not entirely the same.

Still, I do feel that I need to figure out some way to try and pick it up again at least to practice in case I want to get something published. Having your skill atrophy isn’t very good if that’s a goal and an important part of my interpretation of a way I want to contribute to my profession.

People say that blogging is a good way to practice these skills, since it’s like journal-ing so I figured I’d put some words down. Don’t know how much I’ll commit to this but it’s a start.

Self-Care: Job Search Season Edition

Self-care is super important.

HLS

Yet another post regarding the job search process! They say looking for a full-time job is a full-time job itself. Knowing this beforehand helps, but you might not fully understand the breadth of it until you’re in the midst of the storm itself.

One thing that caught me by surprise is just how emotionally exhausting the process can be. You’re inclined to devote a lot of time and energy into each and every application. This is a time where you’re being confronted with a lot of factors and you have to make decisions. There are a lot of great tips on how to strategically apply to library jobs (like getting your materials ready before the season, creating the spreadsheet, etc.), and there are helpful articles on practicing self-care during library school, so how about a post that offers insight on how to practice self-care while navigating the job search…

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Gross Misconception

“We’re under some gross misconception that we’re a good species, going somewhere important, and that at the last minute we’ll correct our errors and God will smile on us. It’s delusion.”

– Farley Mowat

How LIS (and really all) Diversity Initiatives Fail

Hint: it’s because of no change in the work culture and disinclination to change that.

Brilliant article on the need to address how the concept of ‘whiteness’ affects LIS work, careers and potential employees of colour.

White Librarianship in Blackface: Diversity Initiatives in LIS

Distrusting Advice

“I distrust any advice that contains the words ‘ought’ or ‘should’.”
– King Jonathan IV of Conté

Tamora Pierce – Immortals: The Realms of the Gods

Deaf Friendly Games for Children

These games introduced in an infographic by Wooden Toy Shop are suggested to be played at children’s parties but I bet they would be a hit in early literacy classes in public libraries too. Wooden Toy Shop Deaf Friendly Games

 

In Regards to the U.S. Election and the Voters

“It was much better to imagine men in some smokey room somewhere, made mad and cynical by privilege and power, plotting over brandy. You had to cling to this sort of image, because if you didn’t then you might have to face the fact that bad things happened because ordinary people, the kind who brushed the dog and told the children bed time stories, were capable of then going out and doing horrible things to other ordinary people. It was so much easier to blame it on Them. It was bleakly depressing to think that They were Us. “

– Jingo, Terry Pratchett

So You Want to Wear a Safety Pin

This is an excellent breakdown of what it means to wear a safety pin to be an ally. To visually identify yourself as a person who aligns theirself against oppression. It speaks to the dangers and consequences of what it means to wear a safety pin. If you are not able to bear the consequences there is no judgement in that but that also means you should not wear a safety pin because people will look to you for help and find none.

“Great. This is a necessary behavior in the face of the election of the most overtly racist, sexist, xenophobic, anti- gender and sexual minority candidate in the history of the modern United States…”

Source: So You Want to Wear a Safety Pin

The Cinemax Theory of Racism

You do not have to be a bigot to benefit from systems that are bigoted.

Source: The Cinemax Theory of Racism

On Not Knowing

On Not Knowing

This is an excellent post on the media coverage of murders of black people and other minorities at the hands of the state due to systematic injustice and oppression, how that related to information access and library school; specifically the voices we hear from the readings chosen and protection of our own mental health regarding the finding of information about these atrocities.