Why I wanted to be a librarian

I recently read an article entitled So you think you want to be a librarian? , which, despite being very American-orientated, raised a number of few good points about what it is like to work in the information industry. Among those listed include:

- The face that no one outside the information industry has any idea what we do

- The amount of tertiary education required (in the US, you are required to have a Masters. Australia only requires a Bachelors)

- The changing face of libraries, and technology

- The constant “ Aren’t libraries/books obsolete?” questions

Posted by suzieday. Categories: LIS students. Tags: career, FPWA, information services, libraries, MHLC (WA), passion. Leave a comment

Apr. ’13

The best part of getting a new job

If you have been reading my last few blog posts, you will know that I have been job hunting for the last five months or so. The uncertainty of my coming financial situation has been weighing down on me for a while, and as a result, I have been pretty stressed. Well, this week I finally got a new job. I am now the librarian at the Mental Health Law Centre WA, and have been charged with the task of turning a whole pile of boxed donations into a functional library. Not many librarians ever get the chance to start a library from scratch, so it is pretty huge that I have been given this task before I have even graduated. Sure it is only a six month contract, but that will bring me close to the end of the year, and by that time I will have the piece of paper that says I am qualified, and I will be able to start applying for all those lovely jobs only available to New Grads.

Posted by suzieday. Categories: LGBTQ. Tags: employment, identity, job hunting, lesbian culture, self-image. Leave a comment

Apr. ’13

The power of a diagnosis

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have mobility issues, and regularly use a combination of crutches, a cane, or a wheelchair to get around. This is because if I was on my feet for more than a few minutes, my hips, knees, feet and lower back would start complaining, and then start screaming at me. In other words, it is painful for me to stand for more than a few minutes at a time. And the worst part of it was? I didn’t know why. Every GP and orthopedic specialist I had seen could not explain why. I even once had this doctor insinuate I was faking it, just so I could use a wheelchair.

This week, after months on a waiting list, I saw a rheumatologist. Nice lady too. And within 15 minutes she gave me a diagnosis. Benign Joint Hypermobility, also known as Hypermobility Syndrome.

Posted by suzieday. Categories: Disability. Tags: chronic pain, diagnosis, disability, hypermobility, mobility, specialists. 3 Comments

Mar. ’13

PLWA Conference, 2013

On the 8th of March, I attended the biannual Public Libraries WA Conference for the second time. Not only do I find it very interesting, it was also a good opportunity for me to schmooze with some of the library managers (after all, when my contract at FPWA ends in two months, I will be once again out of work).

The day started with a lovely surprise, when I saw my old manager from, Kalgoorlie, Debra Hodges. Debra has known me as a child, as I used to spend many hours reading (and sleeping) on the library sofa as I was growing up. When I was a teenager, she employed me as a library shelver, which I worked after school while I completed my TEE studies. I left town after graduating, but regularly go back to visit the staff there. The last few times though, Deb hadn’t been there, so it was quite a surprise for her to see me with my wheelchair!

Posted by suzieday. Categories: Conferences, Uncategorized. Tags: ALIA, Conferences, library services, PLWA, storytelling. Leave a comment

Feb. ’13

Corporate records and Uni Prac

So for the last two and a bit weeks I have been doing my practicum placement for my degree at Curtin University. Although I am a librarian, my degree is in Information Management. That umbrella term includes libraries, as well as historical archives, and corporate records management. Archives is pretty fun, (what can I say, I am a history buff), but corporate records bores me to tears.

Posted by suzieday. Categories: Uncategorized. Leave a comment

Feb. ’13

Nerdy cosplay for PAX

I recently finished playing the Mass Effect trilogy, and I am so completely enamoured by the glorious Commander Shepard (the female one of course), that I decided that I wanted to make some FemShep armour for when I go to PAX in July (Sam and I are going there for our honeymoon….we are total nerds).

So today I spent a good few hours researching online how to make the armour, and see how other people made theirs. While it was going to take a lot of time and effort, it is something I really wanted to do. For those who have never played Mass Effect 3, this is the armour I want to make, only in green.

Posted by suzieday. Categories: Costuming. Tags: cosplay, disability, fantasy, FemShep, MassEffect, PAX, science fiction, StarTrek. Leave a comment

Jan. ’13

Guest post: Autism in adults, and why you should respect us

Hey all,

Today I am going to turn my blog over to my partner, Samantha Davies, who has more than a few things to say about disability and mental illness, and the way it is regarded by our society. Sam is 28, and has high functioning Autism and Bipolar Disorder.

As librarians, all of us have had clients with physical and mental disabilities come through our library, whether we realise it our not. Some are obvious (like my wheelchair), but some are much more hidden. It might be the girl who never looks you in the eye (only at your left ear), or the man who takes a few too many sick days off work due to anxiety, or the child who screams his way through Story Time no matter how hard his parents try to shush him. Disability in libraries needs to not only be acknowledged but catered for, and respected.

Posted by suzieday. Categories: Uncategorized. Tags: Autism, client services, disability, information services, mental-health. Leave a comment

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