Notes from a Corporate Life: Thoughts on information and libraries in corporations, music and other things.

Just a short entry to wish everyone a wonderful and relaxing holiday!

Though there's a lot to do during the holidays, I do like to take the time to reflect on where I've been, where I'm going and where I'd like to be. I usually take this time to write out exactly what I want my life to look like: financially, emotionally, intellectually, socially, spiritually, etc. Any part of my experience is open for consideration and for inclusion in this writing. I'm looking forward to doing that over the next week!

I also wanted to share something I discovered about myself this morning. Despite the tough year that it's been in the economy, despite all the "bad" things that happen, even when I've been sick or depressed or unhappy or injured in the past, what I realized this morning is that my core state - what is deep inside me - is happiness. This is my true core - the state that I've faithfully returned to despite my best efforts For me, this realization feels like a significant shift in perspective going forward - and a wonderful way to start the new year.

I wanted to share this with you during this holiday season, because all of you who read this, and merely the fact of my writing this, are important parts of my realizing that my core state is, indeed, happiness.

So - thank you.

It really has been an amazing year in a lot of ways - even if you only consider the historic US elections. It's such an exciting time to be where we are. I look forward to continuing the journey with you all!

All the best to you all in the new year!

I'm getting ready for a presentation for class on Saturday, outlining my own development through at least eight theories of development (Piaget, Jung, etc.) What I'm trying to do, to push my own envelope, so to speak, is to tell the stories entirely through images. Well, perhaps not entirely; I'm planning on having the name of the theorist on the slide, but other than that, all images.

Parts of this are easy, but parts of it are hard. What I'm enjoying about the process is that it's making me really think about what I'm going to say, and how I'm going to weave my stories.

It's a great learning experience for me. Let me share one of the stories here (though I won't link in the theory piece for you):

When I was six, my parents decided (through some process that is still unknown to their children) to move the family to Alaska. I was terrified because I truly believed we'd be living in an igloo (remember, I was only six). I wasn't sure if I was really correct in that assumption, so I tellingly went to the school library to get a book on Alaska.

Unfortunately the librarian came back with a book with drawing of a kid on a dogsled on the cover. In my six-year-old mind, I thought, "Oh...my...god...it's all true."

There's more to that story, but I wanted to give you the outline so you had it in mind.

Now, based on that, which presentation slide is more effective? Which is more likely to stick with you as I'm relating this story? Which is going to resonate more, on different levels?

It's a fun exercise. As a side note, it's a wonder I became a librarian after this experience.

Be sure to vote today! We're making history today, folks.

http://www.vote411.org

I am having a great time today. Why is that?

I'm listening as we speak to an in-studio version of The Hold Steady's "Stuck Between Stations" (along with a variety of other songs earlier, including Stars and Sons by Broken Social Scene and The Song Remains the same by Led Zeppelin):

There was that night that we thought John Berryman could fly
But then he didn't so he died
She said "you're pretty good with words but words won't change your life"
Yeah, and they didn't, so he died
And he was drunk and exhausted but he was critically acclaimed and respected...

I also just found, I'm not sure how, a link to Randy Pausch's last lecture before he died of cancer. I haven't even watched it yet - I saw the first two minutes - but I can't wait to look at it, because it seems to be along the lines of what I'm thinking about lately. Not death, no, but life, and following your spirit, and defining exactly what it is that you are and want to be. Exploring the self and then defining the self - that's where I'm on my journey today.

What I haven't told you up to this point is that I'm going back to school, as of this past January. I'm not going to school for an MBA, or a PhD in library science, though those would certainly be worthy goals to further a career in information. I'm going back to school for a Masters in Counseling. An interesting shift in focus, but really not falling too far from information work.

Information work is ultimately a helping profession. You are helping people navigate the sea of information out there to get what they need: the data point, the full picture, the view of the future, the relevant and seminal information that they need. It's the wisdom of the information interview, right? You talk through with your client/requester/etc. what they're trying to accomplish, and you essentially broaden their thinking about their information needs. Ideally, you kind of reframe the question for them, and so reframe how you move forward from there.

Counseling is just like this - it's about reframing, it's about helping someone who has hit a roadblock somewhere. It's helping remove barriers to moving forward. A lot more personal, to be sure, but not a dissimilar process.

The great benefit is I also get to do my own work through this - part of which I illustrated above - and I think this is why I'm in such a good place right now.

Maybe I'm just in tune with everything today. Maybe I'm willing to tap into it for all its joy and sorrow and excitement and disappointment and, finally, the sheer amazement of it all.

That said, I have a wiki training to go prepare for

I don't typically like just putting up a link, but this one is so compelling that I need to share it. Artist Steve Powers has installed “Waterboard Thrill Ride” at Coney Island.

The ongoing use of torture by the US seems to stick in my consciousness. I think Powers' piece is just fascinating because I love art that pushes my buttons in some way, and this one does. It's graphic,  it exposes an air of sordidness, it's real yet unreal at the same time, it calls to the forefront the veneer we put on reality much of the time, especially around things that are inherently highly disturbing. It's just a piece of genius, I think.

What's even more interesting to me in this article are other people's comments and reactions to the piece. One Navy veteran says, “I feel (waterboarding is) a good idea,” he said. “I feel more strongly about that, yes, having seen this.”

Wow.