It'll All Be Over Soon

I have several deadlines coming up in my life:

April 24th: Data Curation Research Paper Presentation
May 2nd: Data Curation Research Paper due, Digital Library Project Presentation
May 9th: Digital Library needs to be finished
May 10th: Python Final Due
May 15th: I walk!

Yup- I thought I was going to do an extra semester to finish the Data Curation Specialization, but I simply cannot do it anymore.  I do not think I can go through another fall semester.  I will blame this on the fact that I went to graduate school right after my undergraduate career ended.  I have been completing homework for the past 20 years, and I want a break.  I think I would go back to school at some point, but not within the next five years.

To finish my degree, I still need to go to summer school, but I'll be able to walk before completing it.  Funny how that works, huh?  Summer school will involve taking two courses at the same time- Descriptive Bibliography and Reference Sources for Rare Books.  With those, I'll be able to say that I finished the Certificate in Special Collections.  Here are the course descriptions:

590DB-Descriptive Bibliography:

The main purpose of this course is to teach students to understand and to prepare detailed bibliographical descriptions of printed books. In order to prepare an accurate bibliographical description, it is necessary to have some knowledge of the physical components of the printed book (paper, ink, binding materials), as well as an understanding of the processes used to produce the book (typesetting, imposition, presswork, etc.). Will cover the methods of producing books (especially during the hand-press period), as well as the organization and preparation of bibliographical descriptions.

590SR-Reference Sources for Rare Books:

Reference Sources for Rare Books is an introduction to the vast body of reference literature used in cataloguing and reference work in special collections libraries and the antiquarian book trade. Emphasis will be given to major bibliographies, catalogues, and other reference works in the fields of early printed books, British and American literature, historical Americana, voyages and travels, science and medicine, maps and atlases, the book arts, and the antiquarian book trade and auction market. The course is intended for those who have not yet had a systematic introduction to the reference literature of rare books, as well as others who would like to refresh or update their knowledge of the reference works in these fields. The course will cover approximately three to four hundred printed and electronic sources. The instructor will discuss the background of each source, as well as its strengths and weaknesses.

I am hoping that one of these classes will take a field trip to the Rare Book and Manuscript Library.  That place almost makes me wish I lived in the cornfields.

That brings me to another topic.  For personal reasons, it looks like I'll be moving within the next year or two.  The thought is very daunting, and I do not even know where to start on how to look for a good place to live.  It makes me feel like I'm getting older (surprise surprise!).  Jobs for starting librarians are pretty hard to find in general, which is yet another source of pressure in my life.  In short- man, it's hard growing up.

Coming soon- some homework from the fall semester.

507 Cataloging Woes and On-Campus

These were my thoughts on cataloging written during the on-campus visit....

I like organizing things.  I do, really.  Send me to an Officemax and I will reorganize your life!


But sometimes, certain cataloging practices make me confused.  I am sure there are really good reasons for why it is like this, but I am still a total "n00b" in MARC so bear with me.


I understand why you would want to transcribe information exactly as it is in the book.  In the end, the cataloger could misinterpret information and write something totally different.  But then, there are times where you don't have to write it as it is in the book, like the title.  Where does the line get drawn?  

Well, so now you know.  Cataloging makes me frustrated!  I don't want to say that I hate cataloging, but I feel like we are got off on the wrong foot  :D

OTHERWISE, the weekend was great!  Unfortunately, I just realized that my card reader for my camera is somewhere I can't get to for a long while, so no on-campus pictures yet. 

Anyone who was there could say that the weather was perfect.  Even when it rained it was perfect!  I am very ready for spring to come, my body is tired of sitting in front of the computer.  I mean, I love reading and surfing the net, but nothing beats being outside and moving around (or reading, or surfing the net). 

Before I can scamper off into the sunlight, I have a lot of projects coming up.  Digital Preservation is keeping me very busy- there was a good reason to warn me about this class!  Let us hope I can keep up with it....

In the Cornfields!

It's that time of the semester- I'm in the cornfields!  It was absolutely beautiful outside, I wish we could somehow have had class outside.  For Digital Preservation, that would've been hard.

Hopefully I'll get some photos from this weekend, hopefully the weather will stay this way through the weekend.  Cannot wait to report all of the LEEPness of the weekend....

I'm a Liar Too

What can I say?  It happens to the best of us.  I think I wrote down that I was going to try a weekly/biweekly blog, but its been about a month since my last post.

It's week 8 and depite the online factor I feel almost exactly the same as last fall in undergrad.  I do what I have to do, I read the materials I believe are the most important, and though I am not the biggest participator, I attend and listen. 

The thing is that this semester is different than other semesters.  For once, I am actually pursuing my hobbies.  I am mass producing handmade greeting/holiday cards in order to sell at a couple of craft shows, so that is my nighttime activity.  I am taking a "class" on Ukrainain embroidery, so I try to put a little time into embroidering and designing every day.  And then, of course, I am in a long distance relationship- its hard, but I can't help it!

In short, I'm genuinely busy.

It's the LEEP weekend, and I am having a lot of fun.  The Rare Books and Special Collection day was especially AWESOME.  We were able to looks (and sometimes even touch) some of the objects in the collections.  Here are some of my highlights:

- manuscript with a doodle of a bird on the margin (I guess a Medieval reader got bored?)
- one of the first engineering books ever created
- a book of encyclopedia plates which had directions for everything, including building your own boat
-gloriously old and beautiful maps
-Irish political cartoons that make no sense to me, but must've made sense back in the times of the Land Acts
- a book with beautiful hand painted pictures of homes and cover of inlaid leather.
- "So Long, Hot-Metal Men" by Henry Morris: a book of his own typesettings, from Bird and Bull Press
- letters from Joseph Conrad to H. G. Wells, showing his creative process in writing books
- the manuscript for "The Time Traveler"
- story boards from Citizen Kane

and the motherload of motherloads: the Book of Genesis, from a Gutenburg Bible.  The amount of text lines increase thoughout the book, which makes people assume that this might've been from one of the earlier prints of the Bible....wow

As for today, the 501 presentations in Preservation were so enlightening.  There were four different preservationists/conservators talking about the different materials they deal with: general collection, special collection, a/v equipment, digital files, and musical instruments.  I learned about how they fix 100 year old horns, backup files, freeze/bake cassette tapes, and how they decide to chuck a book into the dumpster.  I had no idea that these librarians had disaster plans, and how they accept their imperfect environments and work with them.  I have a growing interest in digitization, so it was really cool to hear about all of these different problems conservators have trying to fix and/or put these objects on the internet.

This weekend is really turning out great.  My group for the 501 project is filled with wonderful people, its great to see everyone from 14.1, and meet people from 14.2.  It's been fun  :D  I can't go to the dinner, but I am virtually saying "hi" to everyone!