Readerly Rambles: July Reads and August's Book Pile

July was an okay reading month for me; my ultimate goal is to read at least 5-7 books a month and I read 5 in July so I guess I'm okay.  I'm hopeful that August will a bit more readerly.

What I read:
The Collected Stories of Elizabeth Bowen
Interlibrary Loan Practices Handbook edited by Cherie L. Weible and Karen L. Janke (for work... bleh)
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath  (I think this is reading number 11)
Giving Up by Jillian Becker (an okay interesting book length essay by a friend of Sylvia Plath)
Uncle Silas by Sheridan LeFanu (expect a review on Sunday!)


Exciting Times:
Yay!  Onto a new reading adventure.  I've ditched most of my reading challenges and promised myself to not sign up for any new reading events until September (although I was sorely tempted by Austen in August). For August I have some books from my stacks (2), a few ILL items (2), and a pile from the public library (5).

August Reading Pile:

• Famous Ghost Stories edited by Bennett Cerf
• Oddfellow's Orphanage by Emily Winfield Martin
• Ghost Hunters: William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death by Deborah Blum
• The Marriage Plot by Jefferey Eugenides
• Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
• Mythology by Edith Hamilton
• Beyond the Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way by Mayim Bialik
• Less Than Angels by Barbara Pym
• The Children by Edith Wharton

Currently Working On:
I'm working my way through Famous Ghost Stories here and there.  The collection isn't too big -- 16 stories -- and I think it will make a nice before bed read.  Well, if I don't get too spooked.  I started Oddfellow's Orphanage and it is a pretty adorable book.

SOPA and PIPA HURTS LIBRARIES!

Today marks the day that the Internet goes black to protest SOPA(H.R.3261) and PIPA (S.968).  I had considered blacking out my blog in support, but to be honest I am not that tech-savvy and I feared loosing my blog altogether.

I'm hesitant to write about these "anti-piracy" bills, because I'm afraid my arguments and explanations will be unable to properly express how Fahrenheit-451-like these bills are and how the implications of these bills -- as they are written -- could ultimately censor our rights to free speech.

Okay so instead of writing eloquent tirades against SOPA and PIPA I'm just going to spill out the stupidity of these legislative bits of ignorance by writing my impressions. (i.e. this is an opinion piece, don't cite this in your papers, LOL). 

First of all, you must know that I am a hardcore copyright follower and I think every librarian and library assistant should be invested in protecting copyright.  At my job I AM the interlibrary loan department.  Interlibrary Loan is basically resource-sharing among libraries.  If a patron at my University needs a book on Sylvia Plath and Cold War Politics then I may request to borrow that book from another library and, in a reciprocating fashion, if another University needs to borrow an article from a journal we carry then we will lend them the journal article.  All of these transactions occur under very strict and meticulously written guidelines.  We have a limit on the number of articles we can request per year per journal, there are embargoes, and licensing agreements... Everything is stamped and emails are sent with copyright guidelines/warnings.  The collection development librarian keeps an eye on my statistics and orders materials in areas that have heavy requests to keep our collection current with student needs.  I am acutely aware, everyday, of my need to be a good steward of our libraries resources and of the intellectual property and copyright rights of the creators, scholars, and researchers who write these books and articles. 

This attention to copyright extends to other areas at my library:  course reserves are truly only for supplementary reading and no required texts are put on reserve.  The librarians teach students (in classes, online, and in library interactions) the importance of evaluating, using, and properly citing resources.  We abhor plagiarism in all forms.  Copyright signs are mounted near the computers and copy machines.  We educate faculty.  Our online databases and subscriptions are under strict licensing agreements and have protections in place to prevent use by non-University members.  In short, libraries like mine seek to ensure that copyright and fair use guidelines are followed and we are most certainly anti-piracy. 

So what's the big deal?  These bills are anti-piracy and libraries are anti-piracy, but I think piracy means something vastly different in these proposed bills.

See libraries follow a set of core beliefs called The Library Bill of Rights.  I'd like to focus specifically on the third part, "Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment."  ...the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.  See that's the catcher.  Information, knowledge, enlightenment... are things that should be available to everyone no matter age, income, race, gender, location, etc..... The library provides a place for people to gain knowledge.  Whether it is an article for that sophomore level English paper, a novel for a grandmother, well-researched information on Autism for the concerned mother, an aria for the budding opera singer, or an online book on accounting principles for the distance education students these items are for private study, scholarship, and research.  They are to assist individuals into becoming better, wiser, more knowledgeable individuals.

Piracy denotes robbery, unauthorized use, and/or reproducing copyrighted material.  Not reading, citing, and engaging in the material.  Piracy means that the "pirate" wants something for nothing.  To obtain a commodity without purchasing (hey libraries, public and private, purchase or subscribe to their items!) or sell/make a profit from another person's work, or they want to pass something off as their own that they didn't create.  And this is why we have copyright and Fair Use.  To make sure that libraries and library users are using these materials for education and enlightenment and not to make a dollar or prevent others from making a profit.

The scary thing is that SOPA and PIPA have taken things like infringement, the definition of wilfulness, and the commercial purposes  and apply it in broad general terms that lump everyone together.  The online distance student using an article obtained via Interlibrary Loan for a research paper?  The same as someone who illegally distributes copies of  the Twilight movie on Ebay.  And the researchers, actors, writers, painters, etc... won't be making more money or have a firmer grasp on their respective intellectual property because of SOPA and PIPA.  Rather, the large corporations -- the people/machines with the financial means to engage in rampant litigation -- will effectively shutout and shutdown libraries, obliterate opposition on the web, and otherwise use this law in ways it is not intended to be used.  The language is broad, sweeping, and can be manipulated for other purposes.  Purposes such as shutting down whistleblowers, dictating opinions, and -- yes -- whatever -ism or government in office (left-wing, right-wing, religious or not) can take this vague punitive bit of legislation and shut you up.  Most certainly un-American.

If you'd like to read more about SOPA, PIPA and the potential impact of your ability and right to information, knowledge, and enlightenment you can check out the letter from The Library Copyright Alliance, American Library Association, Association of Research Libraries, the Association of College and Research Libraries here. 

To tell congress to "End Piracy, Not Liberty" visit here.

A Day at the Library: A Love Your Library Week Post

[caption id="attachment_674" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="This is where the library magic happens...."][/caption]

Hey guys, its Love Your Library Week.  As a library worker bee, I thought I'd use this opportunity to describe MY typical workday at the library.  First some background:

• I work at an academic library at a small, private college in Georgia


• I'm not a librarian, but a library assistant.  To be a "for real" librarian you must have an MLS or MLIS (graduate degrees in library science).


• My title is "Research and Instruction Assistant".  I actually don't help much with instruction, my main function is running all of our Interlibrary Loan and Item Delivery functions.  I also have a few office manager duties (that position was cut a few years ago) and I handle all of our patron account maintenance (i.e. I'm the fine collector).

Okay, on to my day, Thursday 04/14/2011:

7:55am -- I arrive to work nearly 10 minutes late (I called and let the librarian know).  Atticus was having a bad morning.  He cried when I put him down, so everything took longer to accomplish.  BTW -- it is impossible to put on your pants and hold a baby at the same time.  After dropping GrumpyPants at daycare, I whooshed to the library -- luckily it is very close by.

My first task was to fix a cup of coffee.  Then I discussed yesterday's meeting with a coworker -- especially the graduation schedule changes.  Then coworker and I stared at the schedule.  We have to use all our vacation by July 1st -- the start of the new fiscal year -- so lots of people are out.  Our library is open over 80 hours a week and staffed by 5 librarians, 3 assistants, and nearly a dozen student-workers.  We also have four regional campuses in addition to our main campus and an online program.  We work hard and one person out makes a huge difference.

8:21am -- Game plan.  I quickly jot down several things I need to complete today.

8:23am -- I start by checking my personal email, our Interlibrary Loan email, and our Library Inbox (patrons can email library questions to this box).  I forward a reserve request to another assistant, print out some Interlibrary Loan requests from patrons, and note some emails that need attending to.

8:29am -- Schedule changes.  I put my name down to cover a dinner shift in late April.

8:31am -- Patron account clean-up, this involves removing unnecessary notes from patron accounts.  Then I replied to a few staff emails.

8:36am -- Time to help thesis students!  I have a student who is writing a thesis and needs books out for an entire semester.  Lucky for her, we're able to do that for Thesis Students.  I update her account and email her enhanced due dates for her books.

8:41am -- A little bit more coffee and I check my mailbox.  Next I chat with coworkers about some work stuff and some non-work stuff

9:00am -- I look up some information on our university's flex spending account for child care and make a note to talk with our HR person about it.  While I'm at it, I print update my timesheet.  Then I email my supervisor that Hope has a doctor appointment in the morning.

9:20am -- Bridal shower planning for a non-library coworker.  I great an evite, answer several emails, discuss gift selection with my party co-planner, and start a gift donation envelope for the office.

9:57am -- bathroom break and I grab some water and two clementines.

10:03am -- I text the daycare teacher that I'll be over to feed Atticus in a bit

10:11am -- I finish up a Library Account Hold project.  I go through a list of all people with graduation/registration/transcript holds (folks with egregious overdue fines and lost items).  I check each patrons account and note which folks need holds removed (yay) and changes in amounts.

10:30am -- I write a note to my boss about the Library Account Holds project.  She will go through the list and remove/update holds on our university system.

Next I talk with my library director about the continuing problem of devising a way to cover the glass wall of my office so I can pump.  Currently, I'm hijacking unused study carrels and offices.

10:52am -- I'm appalled that I'm humming a Ke$ha song.  I check the library email box to make sure no new items have arrived

11:00am -- I head to the daycare to nurse Atticus

11:13am -- I arrive back at the library.  Atticus was sound asleep and I didn't want to wake him.  I heat up my leftover baked potato, porkchop, and broccoli in the microwave and catch up on reading Interlibrary Loan listservs.

11:45am -- Atticus is awake.  I head back to the daycare to feed him.

12:34pm -- I'm back!  I have a note about a patron with erroneous fines.  I correct her account and email her back immediately.

12:40pm -- I look at some lovely books with my supervisor on sustainable clothing design

12:58pm -- The librarians are clearing out for a faculty meeting.  It is just me, another assistant, and a work-study student.  I make my to-do list for Interlibrary Loan

1:00pm -- I open up several packages of books on my desk.  I take a stack of articles up to the front desk for a student to scan and email to me.  Then I'll forward the articles to the patron's who requested the material.

1:14pm -- Time to handle lending returns.  These are items that my library has lent to other libraries across the United States and they are now being returned.  I'll spare the technicalities, but there is some online system updating, a bit of paper work, and some re-filing.

I check to see if any libraries we've lent to need renewals.  None today!

1:22pm:  Lending requests, I check out Interlibrary Loan system to see what US libraries need materials from us.  I find two items we can fill (one book and one article).  A few of the things we couldn't fill because the items were already checked out or we are unable to lend them (i.e. someone requested a really rare book from our Special Collections)

1:31pm:  Okay!  Time to take care of our Interlibrary Loan patrons!  First I go through our Interlibrary Loan System to see what items came back as unfilled.  There's two:  one item is embargoed and the other is a book I requested :)  I notify the patrons and then update our stats.

1:40pm:  Answer a few staff email

1:43pm:  Time to place interlibrary loan requests!  I have only 14 today, but several are for international items that are difficult to obtain.  I place the requests, update the paperwork, and then update our stats.

2:27pm:  Holy filing cleanup Batman!

2:40pm:  I deal with another schedule change.  Then I send back items our library patrons have borrowed via Interlibrary Loan.  This includes checking the item in, deleting it from cataloging, updating our Interlibrary Loan system and corresponding paperwork, and printing out the mailing labels so a work-study can package them items and mail them.

3:10pm:  pumping time

3:20pm:  Finish up processing returns.

3:35pm:  The student-workers come back from the mail.  I open up the new packages and sort them.  I'll deal with them tomorrow.  They are all returns from other libraries.

3:41pm:  Bathroom break.  Hunt for my keys.  Clear a path on my desk.

4:00pm:  I leave for the day.  I'm off to hug the kiddos!

We'll there you go.  I didn't SHELVE OR STAMP A SINGLE THING!!!