June 2004

From the Bartlesville Sunrise Reporter:

“A Bartlesville couple is charged with felony child abuse for allegedly locking a teenage boy in his room. Terry and Angel Barrows are accused of repeatedly locking the 16-year-old boy in his room for up to 16 hours at a time. Authorities say the door was locked with a sliding bolt and a chain and the windows were screwed shut. The couple told police the boy has attention deficit disorder and oppositional defiance disorder. They said they were advised by a counselor to lock the boy in the room. Police say the counselor denies telling the couple to lock up the boy.”

First of all, if I was left without parental supervision at the age of 16 for that amount of time, I would probably have a pretty bad defiance disorder too. Second of all, if my kids behavior was so bad that I had to bolt his bedroom door to keep it closed, I think I would realize that he needed some serious help that I can’t provide him with at home. Thirdly, Mike was rather appalled to find out that Terry Barrows, the father, actually works the same shift as him at Central States Business Forms. There’s nothing like socializing with your local child abusers without being aware of it.

Didn’t we have a previous discussion on this blog somewhere about licensing people to have children?

Had to find this for a co-worker today. This shows a election contributions by county for the State of Oklahoma. We live in Washington County
Contributions by County

Our friend Beth volunteers for the Heart of Town Market every Saturday morning. It’s a really neat produce market/crafts/activities thing. Last Saturady the booth she was in charge of was supposed to feature a local artist and asked Mike if he would volunteer. Although she made it seem like we were helping her out more (she had just gotten back from holiday and didn’t getting around to working on this until last minute) she really provided Mike with a wonderful opportunity. The booth was free, for one thing and he could keep all the money for whatever he sold. Although he didn’t sale anything Beth said he did get a lot of really nice compliments from people. It’s really nice to hear that so many people enjoyed his work.

Our mid-term last week was a nightmare. Blackboard had trouble uploading the exam so we didn’t get started on it until 30 minutes after we were supposed to. I was already nervous enough. I’m not very confident about what the results will be. I always tend to do poorly on essay exams anyway. I can’t seemed to organize my thoughts and write under the time limit. I always end up running out of time and rushing the end which is what I did this time. Keeping up with all the studying and readings continues to be a bit of a challenge. It’s not so much the time factor than the focus factor. I feel so lethargic and tired lately.

In our ever-lasting battle with images, here’s another attempt. This is a picture of my Grandmother with my Uncle Dennis

There’s a girl at the library sitting at a computer in front of my desk with a sweater on that reads “Operation Iraqi Freedom” on the back. This reminds me of something I’ve always wondered about when it comes to “naming” a war and what the criteria of a war has to be before it is called a “World War”. Right now, we are having a War on Terror. When you think about it, this is a rather strange and obscure title. In this case, terror is supposed to be synonomous with “terrorism”, but really if we just say terror then we could technically claim war on anything that instills fear into people. Spiders, snakes, possums, men driving big trucks, my old history teacher.
Then there’s this idea of an “operation”. Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom. Is this supposed to be a kind of pre-war title? I can just see the president: “Let’s just go in and operate first, just to see how things go, then we can declare war.” I don’t mean to sound so sarcastic. It’s the name of the war that people will remember. Sometimes the name itself seems to cause so many misperceptions.

Broadcast featured on NPR titled Information Overload. They interviews some professor form University of Washington’s Information Science program.

http://www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=1916988

Where I work if someone is running an easy job the people there say “You’re running gravy tonight.” This has always been a bizarre term to me. Most of the rest of the english speaking world say “Cake” as in: “That job is a piece of cake.” But not here in good ol’ Oklahoma. They gotta confuse everything. I told my wife about this phrase and she said, “That’s weird because gravy isn’t that easy to make.” So why gravy? Personally I like cake more than I like gravy, actually I hate gravy, but even if I liked it I think I’d like cake more. Why do I spend time trying to dissect the intracacies of the Okie mind? I just don’t know.

It’s been a tiring week. I fell behind on the readings for class (not for the lack of trying) and didn’t even finish my reaction paper until last minute Wednesdy right before it was due. Our topic for this week was Information Infrastructure. It took me awhile to get used to the word “infrastructure” and how it’s used. I’m definitely learning a lot of new vocabulary words in this class.
A great deal of our readings focused on improving imformation infrastructure on a global scale and “closing the digital divide” by providing better information technology to underserved communities and lesser developed countries. Basically, they’re trying to help the poor people out. When I told Mike about this he was rather repulsed by the idea and I have to admit that I am rather at odds with it too. Many of my classmates also showed some concern. One classmate likened it to a kind of “digital manifest destiny”. What right do we have to try and transform whatever remains of these indigenous cultures just so we can say that everyone in the world is “connected”. There’s this strange sort of enthnocentricicty going on, forcing a technological culture on those who are probably more interested in having access to food and water then they are with broadband internet connection. I have this bizarre image in my head with men and women in suites, waving computer manuals in the air, just like Christian missionaries with their Bibles “Save yourself, get connected!”
Obviously, I wouldn’t be in this profession if I didn’t think technology was a good thing. I have my complaints and a also many fears. However, I am a passionate believer in the code of my profession, in intellectual freedom and free access to information, etc. I realize the lack of knowledge leads to an oppressive society and if technology can help combat that then I am all for it. I just think we need to tread carefully. I have a feeling that those who are involved in this movement already have an understanding for this in the back of their mind. I was just dissappointed that none of the readings so far have made much mention to some of the negative implications of technology, socialogically speaking. These are things I have always been concerned with and are probably what will make me more of a “traditional old-fashion librarian” then a future informational specialist. Hopefully, I’ll find a medium somewhere.

I’ve provided a link to the website for the World Summit on the Information Society which met last December in Geneva. You can download their Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action where they outline some of their plans for global information infrastructure. I did my reaction paper over an article that summarized the event and expressed some concern for the Summits plans for internet governance. You can read that article here.

I have the day off tomorrow so technically today is a Friday for me. Thank heavens. I need a break. I think I’ll watch a chick flick and drink a nice cool cape cod. I might even do the laundry if I feel motivated enough.

We recieved a postcard in the mail at work today. It read:

“Hello! Recieved my inter-library loan book from you, “Annals of the Former World” by John McPhee. Thanks so much. I appreciate being allowed to read your books. I suppose if I had spent more time using the Public Library, I wouldn’d be using the prison library today…:)”

Take that, Steve Brown!

So I have finally gotten around to reading the Harry Potter Series. I went to see “Prisoner of Azkaban” a few weeks ago and that movie finally sunk the hook in me. I’ve finished the first one and I’m working on the second. I know now why it’s so popular–I’ve never smiled while reading so much in my life. Such a facinating world Rowling has created. I love it.

*sigh* what else….I know there was more…We’re having another party at work for July 4^th. Great. I have to sit through another one of my boss’s speeches about how great we’re doing (flat out lie) and how much he appreciates what we’re doing (oh really?? coulda fooled me). And we’re being served Buffalo Burgers. Aren’t buffalo protected? or is that just a term, like Buffalo Wings? I know the Buffalo Wing got it’s name cause it was originated in Buffalo NY, but I don’t know where Buffalo Burgers come from. Maybe we’ll all be eating our Buffalo Burgers and the EPA and PETA will raid our warehouse and we’ll all get arrested. I’ll have to ask about that, not that eating Buffalo disgusts me, I’ve tried reindeer (really good), it’s just I’m a bit (a lot) of a liberal and I’d have a serious problem with eating a protected animal.

I’m so loopy, I know there was more that I wanted to blog but it just won’t come to me. Oh well. I’ll try and remember it this weekend.

The library and informational science profession is in flux. It has been for years, pretty much ever since the invention of the internet. This has been a tremendous focus during several of our recent class discussions. What is the future of our profession, what will are roles be in society, where does the librarian start and the informational specialist begin, how do they co-exist and is there really a difference, is one really just the modern evolution of the other. Many of my classmates show concern and confusion for their future profession. There are many of us that feel more like “librarians” and less like “information specialist” and many of us who just can’t quite grasp what exactly an information specialist is really meant to do.

In essence, I believe they are both the same thing, or at least the goals are the same. We are here to provide free access to knowledge and to help our community find and filter (as in disgarding what is not needed) information. The more I have become aware of this the more I realize that our customers are also confused about our roles. Back in the good old days we were here to find them a book, to provide a nice quiet atmostphere to do research, to read stories to kids, to offer them programing, etc. In my experiences working in the reference section of the library this past year, I have found that people either have no idea how much we can offer them or have no idea what exactly we are supposed to offer them. For example, some people expect us to be able to instruct them on how to rebuild their hard drive over the phone. One lady today came in and wanted me to change her flight itinerary to Paris for her. She literally believed that I was supposed to be able to access American Airline accounts and change her flight for another date.
Another lady called in to ask about a fax number she had. She knew it belonged to a Kansas City realestate agency. She wanted me to search through the Kansas City yellow pages under realestate agency section and locate a phone number similar to her fax number, thinking that this would mean that the fax number then belonged to that agency. “I’m sorry, but I don’t see anything similar ma’m”. “You’re looking for the same prefix, right?” “Yes, ma’m. I don’t find anything similar to it.” “Do you even know what a prefix is, dear.” (biting lip, clenching fist) “Yes, ma’m.” “Ok, well, I’m just checking because I know they don’t really train librarians these days.”

So, whose fault is this? Ours. If I didn’t work in a library, I probably wouldn’t know exactly what a librarian was capable of either. Part of our role is to educate people. We can’t just wait for the rest of the world to catch up with our profession. How are we supposed to best serve our community if they don’t know what we have to offer them.

Ok for a week, or however long I feel like it, I will only be posting happy blog entries. I’m hoping this will get me out of whiny mode. So in happy news, we bought some new vinyl tiles for our sunroom today. Having carpet in an area where two dogs spend a good portion of their day is — messy. So we’re thinking the tiles will be easier to keep clean, and should definetly look nicer. We also checked out how much it would cost to redo the kitchen with tongue and groove laminate wood flooring — over $400. Now I’m trying to decide if that’s worth the expense or if we should just go with vinyl tiles. Hmmm decisions decisions.

In other news my Horror blog is up and running, I’m really excited about this, it should be fun. I don’t think anyone who reads this blog (that I know) is into horror movies, but if you’re in the mood for a good one, go check it out. Just click the link in the “Family” section to the right.

How come whenever I make a post like my previous one i always end up sounding whiny? I meant it to sound sarcastic/funny, but when I re-read it it sounds like I’m whining. I think that’s why i don’t post very often, what I write never sounds like it does in my head. I read all these great posts by everyone else and theirs are so flowing and clear, it really impresses me. Then i sit at the keyboardI get a mental traffic jam. The good thing is I know that writing is not in my future. And that’s one more career I can eliminate.

I hate my job. It’s really that simple. Sometimes I think I’m depressed or angry or need psycho-therapy, but no, I just hate my job. Case in point: I am not getting paid for Memorial Day, a paid holiday. Why? you ask. Apparently there’s this rule, if you don’t work the day before or the day after a holiday, you don’t get paid for that holiday. Well I called in the day after Memorial Day because I got home from NY so late in the day. Mikey runs heavy machinery. Running heavy machinery while tired is not a good thing. I felt I did what was in the best interest for everybody concerned, so of course I get the shaft. Everytime I do something that I think is the right thing, bads things happen to me. Needless to say, I’m dusting off my resume this weekend. I’m sure I’ll take a pay cut wherever I end up, but it just doesn’t matter anymore.

Today is Mike’s birthday! He’s a quarter of a century old. For about a month we’ll be the same age until I turn 26 in July.

Happy Birthday Mike!

Poor Mikey has the flu! He’s feeling little better today but was real miserable over the weekend.
There is a natural remedy that my aunt told us about once (she’s one of those natural medicine type people). Something about eating a spoonful of crushed garlic and honey. Mike tried it a few times when he was sick with a bad cough during our honeymoon. It seemed like it helped a little, but he had garlic sweating from his pores for a looooong time.

I will be taking two classes this summer, although not at the same time. The first one, which I started last week, is title Information and Knowledge Society and is an online class using a course management system known as Blackboard (widely used by universities nowadays). I’m much more excited about my second class in August which is in conjuction with a trip to New Mexico. I’m not completely sure what the topic is but I believe it has something to do with Special Libraries, i.e. Native America Libraries. All I know is that I’m gettin’ outa’ town for a week.

Information and Knowledge Society is proving to be a very challenging course, not only because of it’s format but also because of the rather deep and philosophically oriented readings we are assigned each week. Although I find them stimulating, it is also incredibly straining for someone who has always had difficulty understanding the more philosophical side of things. We have also had a few technical difficulties. Originally, our class was supposed to be a virtual online course. We were meant to use an onine chat system to discuss topics and I think we were also supposed to be able to listen to our professor’s lecture online. However, come class time last week, the virtual chat was down and our class attempted to proceed using the discussion forum. Well, you can imagine what a disaster that was. With 50 people in a class, there was just too many ideas being exchanged at once. Within 30 minutes we had altogether posted over 200 messages to the discussion board and there was no way we could all keep up with each thread. So, our professor canceled class until he could figure out a better system. It doesn’t look like the virtual chat will be in working order anytime soon so as of now, we are still going to use the discussion forum, but we will be assigned to groups and the group leader will lead the discussion for that group rather than having everyone discussing everything at the same time. Honestly, after emailing some of my group members, we’re still not exactly sure how this is going to work. In addition, unfortunately our professor had a family emergency over the weekend and will probably not be able to make it to class this week so we will be left to try and hold the class ourselves. From what I can tell, we’re all responsible graduates in this class so I still think it will be worth while. The whole thing is just a bit awkward, especially considering the trouble I’m already having digesting the assigned readings.

Carleen recently showed me an article about Bill Cosby’s guest appearane on one of the late night talk shows. The article talked about some comments that Mr. Cosby made about the education of young black underpriveliged students. It essentially sounded like he was attacking ebonics and the general poor grammar of black students today. Personally I feel I’m right there with him on that issue, though I wouldn’t stop at just black students, but high school students as a whole. I mean, have you ever talked to a high school student lately? As Mr. Cosby said, “You can’t understand a word they say.” And I’m not just talking slang. It seems the whole sentance structure has disinigrated.

Mostly though i just find the fact that anything Bill Cosby says being controversial, very hilarious.

My mothers father. Still practicing pictures.

With Mike gone all week, I had made up my mind that I was going to use my time alone to clean up and organize several rooms in our house. This was supposed to be a week long project but I didn’t actually get started until Saturday when I woke up at 5:30 and worked pretty much straight through until Monday afternoon when I went to pick Mike up from the airport (I did stop to sleep and eat). There’s still some things to be done but I’ll probably be doing this until the day we move out and move up to New York where we’ll get another house and I get to start all over again.
It was kind of nice having some time to myself this past week. I’ve always been a real solitude seeker. Mike’s presence is usually pretty quiet, however, we do require a lot of attention from eachother. We’re probably what most people percieve as clingy and lovey dovey but that’s just our personalities. Before we were married we were often seperated for long periods of time, over summer or winter holidays, that sort of thing, so I didn’t think one week would be that big of a deal. But I was surprised at how much I missed him so I was glad to have something to do to make the time go by faster.
My summer class starts tomorrow. I’m already frustrated with the whole process of buying text books and orientation, blah, blah. Our student store is crap and never has anything. I always relied on my student store as an undergrad an because we weren’t assigned readings until the second week of school we always had time to buy them last minute, which you usually had to not because you were disorganized but because the store always ordered things late and your professor’s understood this and planned for it. But alas, in grad school they actually expect you to read and prepare discussion material for the first day of class (can believe the nerve) so I’ve been scrambling to buy the necessary texts which our student store, as I said, doesn’t have so I’ve had to order them and pay a whooping $19 for Next Day Air. At any rate, I’m looking forward to the new class and the new experience of online learning.