This semester is looking to be a doozy. I’ve taken on a few programs that happen in the next couple of weeks, launched a student advisory committee, and taken on social media for the Knowledge Center. All in addition to my liaison and instruction duties to my (growing) departments and a severe need to get my research agenda
kicked into high gear (there’s a data survey that needs to be finalized and IRB’ed, and an article about outreach that needs to get out of my head and onto paper, and submitted somewhere before Dec. 31). In addition, I go to ICPSR bootcamp in a few weeks, and have two programs at Internet Librarian to prepare (end of October).
Yesterday was a whirlwind of 5 hours of back-to-back-to-back meetings and workshops and insane reference desk hours. Today has been, so far, about keeping a thousand tiny balls in the air.
Here’s how it’s unfurled today:
- Call dad to wish him a happy 75th birthday on the way in to work
- Arrive at word at 9:40
- Get coffee
- Talk to supervisor of our onsite robotic storage about the student committee’s hopes for making a music video in that area; agree to have a meeting later in the week to work out what needs to worked out
- In office, boot computer while handing in sign-in sheets for yesterday’s workshops and making paper to-do list off of memory
- Listen to three voice mails, one by one, stopping between each to return the call
- My cell phone number to visiting author next week
- Problem solve IRB needs with a secure ICPSR data set
- Proof sheets ready to sign off on for Burning Inquiry lecture and exhibit.
- Request some changes to digital display signs for Constitution Day digital monitor slides
- Publish Burning Inquiry site; make notes about what needs to be updated before the marketing goes out (i.e. this year’s event!). Make notes to self about pulling an article together about Burning Inquiry and community outreach
- Block off 3 hours tomorrow to work on Internet Librarian community engagement preconference
Without looking at the rest of my email, set off to do a few tasks
- Return the PCard I had used to pay for the student committee lunch on Friday (5th floor)
- Sign off on postcards for Burning Inquiry (1st floor) Make sushi plans for lunch tomorrow. Talk tips for poster design – I have a Poli Sci class doing posters this year, will be doing a session for them on effective posters
- Head into secure stacks in Special Collections (3rd floor) to measure and count mats and frames for the artist whose work I’ll be displaying in Burning Inquiry. Answer: way too many sizes, way too few of each if you want mats….
Back in office
- Ponder the issue of non-traditional students and the effect of computer illiteracy on my teaching style (this came up int he two classes I’ve taught this week). This will be in the back of my head for a while, until I can resolve how to address it.
- Nuke (and eat) breakfast biscuit
- Write this list so far (10:48)
Next up: read through email and rejigger today’s plan to accommodate
- Email the first: request blank graphic for Burning Inquiry. Add to to-do list: make it poster size, compose Burning Inquiry blurb. Also, get head shot of artist and bio, plan a poster around that info for the lecture & exhibit as well; make sure I have the marketing plan ready to execute
- Recall that I was told this weekend about another prof on campus research Burning Man, to-do that I should contact him about Burning Inquiry and possibly presenting his research as our lecture next fall
- 11:40 – email is all caught up and responded to. Display images are signed off on for announcing NVivo, and for Constitution Day.
- add to to-do list: launch NVivo PR, list channels to get the word out
My to do list for the afternoon:
- Check-up on using Mendeley with Word before my workshop this afternoon (I’m a Zotero gal. But it’s important to be able to use of each of the tools we support, and I freshened up my EndNote skills yesterday…)
- Teach workshop on reference manager tools
- Follow up with student committee about kicking their ideas into actions
- Look over syllabus for proposed course and get approval back to prof
- Contact new prof about meeting for coffee tomorrow morning
- Check another prof’s list of book requests against holdings and submit for ordering
- Craft 10 Facebook posts; schedule them
- Schedule my training (from the student library committee) on Instagram and Vine
- Determine if I really am not doing anything techy enough to say yes to invitation to do a tech talk radio call-in show?
- Try to get NVivo announcement out
- Reference desk 5-7
- Head to Trader Joe’s for some staples and a kale salad for dinner. And mango gummy drops.
So, that’s today! I’m going to warm up lunch and play with Mendeley before my workshop. What’s your day like today?
Deepening the Conversation 