This Reminds Me...

Two short articles.

From NPR's Picture Show: "Find Me A Dodo...". (This reminds me of a few requests I've gotten...)

From NPR's On The Media: "Librarians Gone Wild." (I can relate!)

More Free Books!

Resouce of the Week — A Freebie for Info Pros from ebrary « ResourceShelf

More free books!!!

Resources of the Week: A Never Ending “Virtual Stream” of Digitized Text « ResourceShelf

Resources of the Week: A Never Ending “Virtual Stream” of Digitized Text « ResourceShelf

Awesome! Online books!

Socializing

I was out last night for a typical Thursday happy hour with my boyfriend, some of my softball team friends, and some of their friends. I met about half of them for the first time. I was the first archivist (or "librarian") any of them had ever met (outside of a library). One girl thought that was a little odd, and I said it's because I was one of the very few social ones. People don't know what to make of me...

Not only is it shocking that I go out for happy hours, it was totally surprising to all of my co-workers that I was on a softball team this spring and summer! But I digress...

Hard Times Cafe's chili is awesome (though their "hot" jalepeno poppers aren't that hot)! I love the Claredon's location new upstairs sports bar! Very fun!

Being the only archivist in a group has its benefits. In DC, most of the people I know work in politics, or as lawyers or government contractors, though last night I was also hanging out with a dentist, too. Once you're past the initial conversation and they realize you aren't boring, you get to talk about what you do because no one knows about your world and they can't wait to escape theirs. And if you say something weird, well, you are an archivist afterall (and only one person commented on the knitting needles sticking out of my work bag last night)!

(And when I arrived home, my new ARSC journal was waiting for me!)

Prerequisites

What are the prerequisites for going to library school and getting your MLIS?

1) Cardigans
Different styles, different colors, different closures. Yes, these are all mine. No, these are not all the ones I own.

2) Glasses
Preferably chunky!

3) A Sense of Humor
My favorite blog: Cake Wrecks

4) The ability to rock all three!
(Archivist, Records Manager, and a Librarian)

*Cat(s) are optional, though preferred (or prefurred)!
Meet Aslan!

Defining Your MLIS

What can you do with an MLIS? Librarian, Archivist, Records Manager, and if you tweak it just right, Curator. You've decided which direction you want to go based on your specialization, but how do you explain this to the world? That's they first step in explaining yourself to anyone else, making it sound like library and information science is an actual career (not a career to be snubbed), or even keeping your job.

When most people think "librarian" they think of the little old lady with a tight, gray bun, a cardigan sweater, and sensible shoes. There's also the hot librarian. I think we have all seen the "She blinded me with library science" T-shirt (from TopatoCo), which has been posted and re-posted on so many library-related blogs:

And then there's The Librarian, my own personal hero:

(Don't forget that there are three movies now!!! )

People know you work with books, can help them research papers, and if their knowledge is a little broader, they'll know you can help them with databases, new research technologies, and media far beyond books.

And if you're a curator or archeologist professor, there is Indiana Jones to live up to, but people know you work with old objects and create exhibits.

Archivists aren't as lucky to have a sterotype or "hero" so that obviously means no one has heard of us. I live in Washington, DC, the city where what you do is more important than your name. When I introduce myself, I say, "Hi, I'm Robin. I'm an Audio Visual Archivist."

They answer, "A what?"

"An Archivist."

"What?!"

"A Librarian, for old stuff."

"Ohhh..."

My boyfriend is an aspiring politician who works for the government affairs office of a defense contractor so I meet A LOT of people and have had this conversation MANY times. Only one person I've met outside of my field has known what an archivist is, and that's because he was a guy in politics that volunteered for his local museum.

When no one knows what you are, how do you define yourself (without boring someone and killing the conversation)?

Step 1. Start with a reference point of something they know (librarian), and explain what you do as an archivist within that context. It's easier if they know history, which they should if they're in politics, or if they work for a corporation, they understand records management. It sounds too simple, but if you really break things down into overall concepts, it's a lot easier for most people to grasp.

Step 2. Please act normal (not like a normal anti-social archivist).

And you're in. Conversation flows from there. Just don't get into metadata...