May 15! Graduation was last week and the summer activities have begun. Librarians go to conferences and work on projects during the summer. Our Staff Development Day was a time of fun with colleagues at Frankies Fun Park in Greenville. We had a great time playing mini golf, riding go-carts, and winning or not at the arcade games galore! Eating out at the Longhorn Steakhouse was a treat :-)

I just found this post I started long ago and never posted. This is still a blog I've neglected and should keep it going. I've neglected this blog for too long! We are working on new versions of LibGuides and LibAnswers and having fun with new widgets. I love being a librarian in an Academic library. Students will be returning soon and the fun begins. 

Be sure to be a friend of BJU Mack Library on Facebook.  http://www.facebook.com/BJUMackLibrary/

Flags at Half Mast

American Flag

Mack Answers

Mack Answers

Get Fluffy is a delightful book for dog lovers who appreciate their best friends. I was glad that I read Desperate Housedogs and met Caro, Melinda's cousin, before reading Get Fluffy.  Melinda and Caro and their cousin feud helped carry the story along. The dogs were pampered and adored by their owners and helped to solve crimes by being alert to their surroundings. The books were fun and quick to read.

Phoebe

What a week! Phoebe Mae was born on Wednesday, 11-9-11 and now home with her sister and brother. She's being pampered by lots of family locally and at a distance. We are farther away than we like, but with technology we can see her from afar. Our plan is to be all together at Christmas with our children, their spouses, and our grandchildren! What an anticipation :-)

Database Basics Workshops

Each semester our library provides research training for our English 102 students preparing to write their required research paper. This semester we created an online sign-up form that made contacting the students much easier. Communication with both students and faculty has been superb. Introducing the wealth of information that our students have available both on and off campus is one of the enjoyable duties that I have each semester. We set aside time for 28 workshops over a 2-week period and staff the sessions with librarians who enjoy the challenge. We are now down to the last 2 days. Fall 2011 has been a success and I look forward to recording the stats. The next added value will be a rubric to track use of resources used in the papers. Maybe next semester.

Steven James

I've been reading Steven James: The Pawn, The Rook, The Knight, etc. He writes thrillers with cutting edge information.

http://www.amazon.com/Steven-James/e/B001IU0RQS/ref=sr_tc_ep?qid=1313680965

The Road from Coorain

On the recommendation of my daughter, Tricia, I'm reading Jill Ker Conway's book, The Road from Coorain, about her growing up years and schooling in Australia to be followed by True North, her memoir in the academic world of America. I borrowed both books via PASCAL, our academic library consortia in South Carolina.

LibGuides

Up early on a Sunday morning working on a LibGuide for a class workshop I'm presenting on Monday. I'm always looking for ways to make the information easier for the students to access. Welcome to the life of an academic librarian! Love it!

Snow

Snow in Greenville, SC is quite the event. We just received an emergency call saying that the campus is closed! Woohoo! We can enjoy the 6+ inches from our warm apartment :-) In a city that rarely gets more than a dusting, this is quite the snow emergency. Even though we as northerners think we know how to drive, we don't want to be on the road with those who don't!!! I just saw a semi stop on the side of the road. The snow is now coming down heavy again; I'm curious to find out how much we'll actually get.

Christmas Food Court Flash Mob, Hallelujah Chorus - Must See!

Too funny

Here we go again!

Weekend

Ahhh the weekend before school begins on Wednesday. Students and parents have been arriving nonstop filling the campus with life once again! Our Saturday is consumed with laundry and preparation for the coming week and an occasional excursion away from Greenville. We live in a gorgeous area of the country. In South Carolina the mountains beckon us to visit. In Minnesota it was the expanse of blue sky and the Twin Cities; we often said when driving to the Cities that our "lines had fallen in pleasant places." Now we live that life virtually through our children and grandchildren who live in the north while we enjoy the south.

I'm listening to Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, an amazing story that my daughter suggested I read. Our freedom in the USA takes on a whole new meaning when contrasted with the oppression in Iran.

We're looking forward to a good year with new challenges.

LibGuides

I'm working on a LibGuide presentation to demo all the neat ways to share information and websites for teachers and librarians.

Librarians and Conservatives

Comment on Will Manley's blog by me: "My experience in Minnesota as the Library Director of Pillsbury Baptist Bible College was always positive and gracious with my librarian friends at SELCO (Southeast Libraries Cooperating) and MINITEX at the University of Minnesota. They may have had liberal viewpoints and I certainly had conservative viewpoints, but that was never an issue in our relationships. The state librarian and I regularly shared ideas on a number of occasions. We benefited from a grant to bring us into the regional system that would have been a win-win for us and the state, but we closed at the end of 2008. They were just as disappointed as we were."

Let me also add on my blog: In 2005, I was given a grant to attend the ACRL Conference in Minneapolis. The leadership of ACRL certainly recognized that I was from Pillsbury Baptist Bible College and still granted me a scholarship to attend for the week. My conservatism was not an issue. Yes, there were comments made from the platform of a liberal nature, but I knew that would happen and expected it. My hosts for the conference were always gracious and wanted my input at the sessions I attended. I would attend another ACRL Conference in a minute. I always take the beneficial ideas, and ignore the less helpful ones.

I miss my colleagues in Minnesota and the camaraderie we had together.

Lunch Break

We're halfway through July and getting ready for another school year. The summer is going too fast, but we're having good times with friends and family. Oscar is now 6 and Peyton will be 12 in September. Cynthia celebrates her birthday on Sunday and our anniversary is the next week. It's hard to believe that we've been married for 40 years.

Our car is getting a much needed bath and vacuum at Canopy - they do an excellent job!