Feedback

I just received an email message notifying me that my paper proposal for the Library Research Seminar IV was accepted. But don't worry, this isn't a "yay, me" post.

The message mentioned that in a couple of weeks I'll receive feedback/responses from those who reviewed my abstract. This is awesome! Maybe I'm just young and inexperienced, but I've never had this happen before. It is something that I would expect more from Comp/Rhet conferences than Library and Information Science.

So, have I missed something somewhere? Are there any comp/rhet conferences that provide feedback from abstract reviewers? Other conferences within English Studies? Do other disciplines do this regularly? It seems like something Comp/Rhet should be inclined to do - maybe not for the huge conferences like CCCC, but maybe the smaller ones.

What do you think???

Spring Break

Technically, it starts Saturday. I've already left town. I conferenced with students last week, but took time off this Wednesday and Friday so that I could leave early, and so that I don't have to listen to student excuses for missing class the day before Spring Break.

Of course, now I have to try to get work done while I am at my parents' house. Today I'm spending the day with my niece and nephew, so I probably won't get a whole lot done. This probably shouldn't be a pattern.

Apparently I Spoke Too Soon

I should know by now that the academic world doesn't always operate "on schedule."

About a week and a half ago, I whined about rejection. I spoke/wrote too soon. I just received an email to let me know that I have been accepted to the Library Research Seminar's Doctoral Student Workshop.

I'm sorta happy now. Almost giddy, really.

And Now, A Word From Our Sponsor

"At the meeting of the Second British Birth Rate Commission, a few years ago, there were certain members who, for one reason or another, were anxious to find some justification for a further increase of the population of Great Britain, and they maintained that a greater population could be supported off the soil if people were to eat potatoes instead of beef. But, as Harold Cox says in his admirable book on "The Problem of Population": "What kind of race would England produce if her population were to be fed on potatoes alone? The Irish tried that experiment a century ago. In their squalid hovels they produced children without limit and expanded the population of their small island from about 4,- 500,000 in 1801 to over 8,000,000 in 1841. Then nature stepped in and the potato famine of 1846 swept away hundreds of thousands of these wretched peasants who had been living all their lives on the verge of starvation. Races with a larger view of life will never be content to degrade their existence to this level....But men who value life for all the physical and mental possibilities it presents, will rightly answer that it is not worth while to come into the world at all, or to bring others into it, merely to plant potatoes, to eat potatoes, and to die." "

Knopf, S. Adolphus. "Birth Control - A Social, Religious and Medical Issue." Medical and Eugenic Aspects of Birth Control. Volume III Ed. Margaret Sanger. New York: American Birth Control League, 1926. 195-226.

I laughed so hard I cried. I really love research days.

My Day O'Research

Today I was at the library from 11.20 am to 8.10 pm. I took breaks totally about 1/2 an hour. I am brain dead.

But, I came across this fabulous article title in Wisconsin Library Bulletin, circa 1918: "Is Your Library A Slacker?"

I have scanned it. I think I will make a poster for my office, my love for it is that great.

It was a great day, though. I found some fabulous articles and essays, none of which needed to be read off of evil microforms. My love for the slis library knows few bounds.

I should go to bed, but...

...I saw this over at Profgrrrrl and felt the need to try it out too.

You Are Emerald Green

Deep and mysterious, it often seems like no one truly gets you. Inside, you are very emotional and moody - though you don't let it show. People usually have a strong reaction to you... profound love or deep hate. But you can even get those who hate you to come around. There's something naturally harmonious about you.

What Color Green Are You?

Well, it isn't quite right about the not showing the moodiness. Of course, that comes out more frequently on this blog than in 'the real world.' I can't speak to the strong reactions about me. Gotta love the last line, though.

Update: While I was at it I decided to try out purple.

You Are Grape

You are bold and a true individual. You are very different and very okay with that. People know you as a straight shooter. You're very honest, even when the truth hurts. You are also very grounded and practical. No one is going to sneak anything by you. People enjoy your fresh approach to life. And it's this honesty that makes you a very innovative person.

What Color Purple Are You?

And because I am a dork....

You Are a Pegasus

You are a perfectionist, with an eye for beauty. You know how to live a good life - and you rarely deviate from your good taste. While you aren't outgoing, you have excellent social skills. People both admire you - and feel very comfortable around you.

What Mythological Creature Are You?

Last one, but it seemed strangely appropriate:

You Are Midnight

You are more than a little eccentric, and you're apt to keep very unusual habits. Whether you're a nightowl, living in a commune, or taking a vow of silence - you like to experiment with your lifestyle. Expressing your individuality is important to you, and you often lie awake in bed thinking about the world and your place in it. You enjoy staying home, but that doesn't mean you're a hermit. You also appreciate quality time with family and close friends.

What Time Of Day Are You?

No Longer Cranky

Which is amazing, considering it was not a good basketball weekend for me.

Things that cheer me up:

• Using a segment of the Malleus Maleficarum with my students during a style lesson. We clarified Chapter XIII - "How Witch Midwives commit most Horrid Crimes when they either Kill children or offer them to Devils in most Accursed Wise," making it more concise than the original. All in all, much more exciting than our style text. I do have to wonder what people walking by our classroom thought if they heard my students talking about grinding down babies' bones. But, the students and I all had a good time - there was a lot of laughter.
  
• Cleaning and organizing a closet. Really!
  
• Planning my baking for next week. I'm in charge of organizing breakfast for a panel discussion during our grad student recruitment event. I'm thinking about making a blueberry buckle and some sort of crumb cake. Naturally, there will be healthy items, too.
• Putting together an informational packet for our prospective students. Sounds tedious, right. Well, I totally geek out when given the opportunity to format and arrange documents/brochures/etc. I worked out my own style sheet. You can decide for yourself what this says about me.
  
• More cleaning. It really does leave me feeling better.
  
• And, of course, all of the sunshine this weekend. It certainly wasn't warm, but there was sun.
  
• I did no dissertation-related work. I feel like I can go back to work on Monday.
  

On Rejection

I think it is safe to say that my proposal for the doctoral workshop at the Library Research Seminar was not successful. Successful applicants were to be notified by today. Considering that I haven't heard anything and there is only an hour and a half left of today (and half an hour in the coordinator's time zone). I would say that I have now been rejected.

Have I mentioned that this is my first rejection for an academic conference. My conference paper hasn't been rejected yet (I'll know more by the end of the month), but I feel a bit down. I worked harder on this proposal than I normally do - and I normally do work hard. I know that the fact that my phd will not be in LIS isn't a plus (as part of the application essay, I had to discuss my LIS background). I might have written it in a way that made it seem more comp/rhet than LIS, which I suppose it is, seeing as I am enrolled in an English department, but I hoped that the library history/print culture angle was strong enough to push me through.

Of course, since they only accept 15 people, I probably shouldn't be too upset. I'm nowhere near confident enough to think I am one of the top 15 dissertators in comp/rhet, let alone library science.

It's just been one of those days when I feel significantly less than brilliant, and this didn't help. I'm a little overwhelmed by my dissertation 'data' right now. I'm finding much more material than I realized was there. I know that this is a good thing, but I keep thinking about how it could push my timeline in the wrong direction.

I'm tired of being a student. I need Spring Break. I'd like to regress to my teenage self and call my parents, but with the basketball tournaments, the opportunities are limited. Phone calls are not allowed during basketball games. If one calls, one better be close to death or involved in some sort of emergency. My mother once hung up on my sister b/c my sister (unknowingly) called while she (mom) was listening to a high school basketball game on the radio - this was long past any of us were in high school. Yes, we are from Indiana.

Cell Phone Etiquette

To the young woman in the public restroom yesterday:

It is not cool to talk on the phone while in the ladies' room. It is really not cool to talk on the phone while you are in a stall, utilizing the facilities. Based on your conversation, I know that you are a student in a creative writing course. I hope this doesn't mean I will run into you on a regular basis - I'm not sure I could keep myself from rolling my eyes or laughing.

Car vs. Moped

I think we all know which will win.

On Friday, one of my students was hit by a car while he was driving a moped. He has a broken wrist and has some nasty bruises and cuts. One of his good friends is in the class too, so he filled me in on what is going on, and sent me photos*, including this one:

I guess he's lucky - it could have been much worse. Moped riders have no protection. But I'm still concerned. Maybe I'm just over-cautious, or maybe I just remember how worried my dad always is about these type of vehicles, including motorcycles. As a mortician, he's seen more than his share of mangled post-wreck bodies.

*Note to any current and future students: While I appreciate the compulsion to send photographic evidence of injuries to help explain why class was missed, it isn't necessary. It really isn't necessary to send shirt-less photos.

Recently Read - The Devil's Arithmetic

Yesterday, I read Jane Yolen's The Devil's Arithmetic as part of my recently declared Children's Lit. Friday event. Ok, not really an event as much as a way to concentrate my children's and ya lit reading to one day and to resist the temptation to read it when I should be working on my dissertation.

Twelve year old Hannah is sick of spending Passover 'remembering' the past with her relatives. During the Passover Seder, she is transported to 1942 Poland, where she becomes Chaya (her Hebrew name), the girl she was named for. In this time, she is eventually sent to a concentration camp, where the bulk of the story takes place. Throughout the book, she struggles with memory - which memories are real (the future or the now), remembering anything b/c of the trauma of the camp, futilely trying to use her future-memory to warn those around her, etc.

The story is chilling. And it is beautiful and sad. And it is an amazing combination of historical fiction and s/f.

Some of my favorite quotations:

"Passover isn't about eating, Hannah," her mother began at last, sighing and pushing her fingers through her silver-streaked hair. "You could have fooled me," Hannah muttered. (4)

But as the scissors snip-snapped through her hair and the razor shaved the rest, she realized with a sudden awful panic that she could no longer recall anything from the past. I cannot remember, she whispered to herself. I cannot remember. She's been shorn of memory as brutally as she'd been shorn of her hair, without permission, without reason...Gone, all gone, she thought again wildly, no longer even sure what was gone, what she was mourning. (94)

"We all have such stories. It is a brutal arithmetic. But I - I am alive. You are alive. As long as we breathe, we can see and hear. As long as we can remember, all those gone before are alive inside us." (113)

The days' routines were as before, the only change being the constant redness of the sky as trainloads of nameless zugangi were shipped along the rails of death. Still the camp seemed curiously lightened because of it, as if everyone knew that as long as others were processed, they would not be. A simple bit of mathematics, like subtraction, where on taken away at the top line becomes one added on to the bottom. The Devil's arithmetic." (146)

Peeps!

Since it is that season, and since I think we could all use a laugh, I direct you to this fine example of the research behavior of Peeps conducted by librarians at Millikin University in April 2003.

Facebook Picture

This is my current facebook picture:



I'm thinking about changing it to this


this


or this


So, which should it be?

The Hazards of Research

Today I settled in at the slis library for 6 1/2 hours of research.

First hazard: Crumbling leather binding on old bound journals. My allergies attacked, and I spent the first few hours in misery sneezing as I read and photocopied. My hands were stained that nasty yellowish-orangish-brown color - when I later washed my hands, I could see the stain coming off in the water. It was foul. I felt like I should be working over a drop cloth. I will be washing the clothes I wore very soon.

Second Hazard: My fellow library patrons. The slis library is not a quiet library and normally I am fine with that. I like a little bustle. But, from approximately 4.45 to 5.30, it was unbelievably loud. I was in one of the "quiet" sections. A group of slis students decided to hold a meeting there. A very loud meeting. I glared frequently. People in the non-quiet area were talking very loudly. Not library-voice, not normal-voice - their voices were raised. I couldn't believe it. I felt like I was in a high school cafeteria. Sadly, I couldn't leave because the materials I need to use don't circulate. I did see other people who had been trying to study leave, though.

My Monster Name

As seen at schizzes and flows:

If I use the name my parents' intended:

Get Your Monster Name

If I use the name that half my family uses b/c I was named after a Kate:

Get Your Monster Name

This is almost as much fun as the Captain Underpants Name Change-O-Chart from Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants. My name is Flunky Pizza Chunks. I'm a little jealous of my sister, though. Her name comes out as Snottie Toilet Tushie.


Oh, and if I were to abduct any kitties, it would only be to give them a good home!

Defense Success

The defense of my diss proposal was successful and really fairly painless. I just need to add someone to my bib who I cited but apparently forgot to place in the references. I think this must have happened the one time I worked on my proposal at a computer other than my own, and thus didn't add it through Endnote.

But the committee said that it was an 'excellent' proposal, so I'm pretty happy.

One Less Proposal

I decided not to write a proposal for MLA. My Library Research Seminar proposal needed more work, and that paper will be more important in terms of my dissertation. Plus, since I plan to be on the job market next year, I probably shouldn't be potentially planning a presentation and thinking about interviews (yikes!) at the same time.

On that note, while I can't wait to finish my PhD - I really hate living like a student - I am very nervous about the job search. I'm trying to work on my teaching portfolio now (when I'm not working on my dissertation, that is). I hope to have a digital version completed by the beginning of August. I know the basics that should be included: statement of teaching philosophy, sample syllabi, sample assignments. I don't want to include student papers and evaluation materials in the digital version, for what I suspect should be fairly obvious reasons. What else would you like to see (either in the print or digital version)? Should I include a link to the online resources I created during my library practicum? Should I mention/how much should I discuss information literacy workshops I've taught? It is a very very different type of teaching.

It just began to rain - very hard.