Free-wheeling it

The Daily Image 2011 challenge – it was a challenge and I am glad I took part in it, thank you Kathryn for initiating and inviting me to join.  The premise of the challenge is simple:

1. Take a photo that has you or part of you in it, every day for one year
2. Upload it to Flickr
3. Tag it with “dailyimage2011″
4. Add it to the group “Daily Image 2011“
5. Optional extra: post to twitter with hashtag #dailyimage2011

I followed a number of colleagues based in Australia, started following them on twitter and met some of them in Perth in September when I presented at the ALIA 2011 Lib Tech Conference.  I’d like to think that I’ve made friends with a couple of them too.

As Kathryn mentioned when she sent out the invitations to join in the challenge, she had tried it in 2009 and found that she was,

really confronted by the choices I had to make about how I presented myself.  Did I always want to show myself as a healthy, cheery sort of person?  How much of the ugly and everyday was I prepared to show?
- http://www.flickr.com/groups/dailyimage2011/

I managed to come up with 195 photos myself.  Out of 365 days in the year that’s more than half of the year in photos – woop!  I think that was alright for my first try and finding out I was pregnant three quarters of the way through!

I had quite a bit of fun doing it and found that yes, I did want to portray myself as a little manic and full of energy and life.

I found getting further into it that I was opening up a bit.  I let people know that one of my favourite pastimes is sleeping and I think that I am very much like my cat.  I even took a photo of myself crying – it was February the 22nd, the day of the major Christchurch earthquake where 180+ people died.  I also found that I had to make a conscious decision not to identify my workplace in any photos.

Well here they are – My Daily Images of 2011 – Enjoy!

A few colleagues have started again for 2012 and I said I’d like to join in, so keep an eye out on the right-hand side for another flickr widget of that set.

Thanks guys, it was fun.

Over the past few years I have been heavily involved in my own personal professional development, and generally trying to contribute positively towards the profession in New Zealand and moving us forward.  I thoroughly enjoy where I am at the moment in my career, and the collaborations and relationships that I have established and continue to nurture.  I also revel in my day-to-day experiences and learnings from my volunteer roles with LIANZA, and my role at my place of employment.

However, I’m nearly at a cross-roads, and it’s crunch time.  Something, sooner or later will have to give.
(Mums, Dads – does it? Will it?)

Over the past 6 months or so, my musings here have definitely subsided with the occasional squirt of a thought making it to “publish”, along with tweets and other miscellaneous tools for social interaction, including the odd coffee or yumcha lunch date.

It’s getting to the crunch time and I’m a wee bit nervous.

Years later, I’m probably going to look back over this and think, aahhh those were the days, when I worried about retaining my professional identity while raising some kiddiewinkles.  Well yeah, I can’t wait for that day when I look back.  But right now I have to look forward into wholly unfamiliar territory.  People tell me your world changes.

Don’t get me wrong, I will make it clear now, that I am really looking forward to this new journey in my life.  I’m excited about that new world.

I have read, talked, asked, enquired, read, chatted, laughed and mused about what it will be like post-children.  I am now getting to wonder what it is like specifically as a “new-generation” Librarian, who aspires to be LIANZA president one day and possibly even an LJ Mover and Shaker.

What spurred me to draft this post was reading Bobbi Newman’s (LibrarianbyDay) tweet for a request to an article about how Movers and Shakers were treated after getting the award.  Someone found it and Bobbi said she’d seriously like to see a follow-up article.

This is what I learned from reading that article:

Time is the most valuable possession.  If you don’t have time, then you can’t do these things.

I am very much looking forward to this new phase in my life and I look forward to the journey and where it will take me.

I will find time to explore, experiment and think.

As a prominent volunteer for the Library and Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa as editor of it’s fortnightly newsletter for it’s membership, a small part of me bleeds each time I see a new tool, service or technology being advertised to give you the most up to date news on developments in learning, education, literacy, libraries, whathaveyou.

I bleed.

Why do I bleed?

Because I feel that something that I spend a lot of my spare time working for is being done elsewhere, and I feel my efforts are futile.

No one individual or institution can hold or share all the information there is to share that is of relevance to any one industry.

Why do we continue to work where we do then, in libraries, the archetype institution of collections of various things?

Are we working for the same cause?

Or are we institutionalized, oblivious to the futility of our efforts?

note: I last edited this on August 22, 2011, possibly started the draft earlier than that even.  I appear to be cynical and depressed, which is not my usual self.  Just thought I’d publish this to let you know that I do have my down days.  It’s a pity that I’ve recently attended two conferences and one symposium and haven’t managed to write something positive about those.

And on that note, may I announce my first professional speaking appearance at …

the ALIA National Library and Information Technician’s Conference
Back to Basics – Perth 2011

Monday 12 – Friday 16 September

Sooo excited!  I am going to be visiting my friends and family in Perth and presenting a paper that a colleague (the highly regarded and respected Alison Fields) and I have written together titled,

“Writing Basics: Choosing the right media and the right audience to deliver your message”

I cannot speak more highly of Alison.  One of my tutors/lecturers from the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand for approximately 5 years, she asked me late last year if I’d like to write a paper with her for the bi-annual ALIA Lib Tech conference in September 2011.  I literally jumped at the chance.

A bit of history

Back in 2008/2009 approximately 3 years ago when I was living in Perth, I put my hand up to speak at the, ALIA Lib Tech 2009 Conference: Technology Technique Unique.  I wrote an abstract titled “Aotearoa and Australia: my experience so far“, based on the differences in the library and information industry I’d observed so far in my career.  It was accepted. And it would’ve been good.  But I didn’t present it.  In between having the abstract accepted, and the actual conference, I’d left employment in Perth to returning home to Wellington and finding myself unemployed.  Thus, no funds to attend the conference.  Mmm I didn’t totally think ahead on that one.

Alison Fields, one of my Open Polytechnic tutors, e-mailed me to say hello and that she’d seen my name on the programme – she was also speaking and was looking forward to catching up in Adelaide [at the conference].  I was too, until I realised I didn’t have any money to get there to present.  I told the conference secretariat (and Alison) that unfortunately I could not attend due to lack of finances.

A ray of light

A year or so passes and Alison drops me a line. Would I like to write a paper with her for the next ALIA Lib Tech conference, they’ve just called for abstracts.

“Would I ever?!”

I thanked Alison for thinking of me, a slowly emerging information professional and current Open Polytechnic student.  And I have been thanking her ever since.  I will continue to thank her for inviting me and taking me on this journey of my first conference paper and speaking appearance.

Reality dawns

I’m presenting our paper in Perth in just over two weeks!

Will you be in Perth mid September?  Are you attending ALIA Lib Tech 2011?  The New Librarian’s Symposium #5?  Or Library Camp Australia?

I could go on. But I won’t.

Programme is here.

Highlights today (in my opinion):

Donna Watt: “Strategic planning for school libraries: Choosing a destination and planning the journey”
11am – 12.40pm

Happy following!

 

Again, programme is here.

Highlights for Day 3 (In my opinion):

• Joyce Valenza, the first keynote at 9.30am and also at 11.55am and 3.45pm
• Robert Baigent, of AnyQuestions (National Library) speaking at 11am – 12.40pm on “The Fearless Librarian” with Anne Morgan and Lisa Oldham, also of Natlib.

Rob also happens to be a writer for Librarylife  Hey, I’m allowed to promote my mates!

I hope you’re following this all!

The full programme is available here.

Happy following!

In that sense, I’m running a fine line between my professional identity and my personal identity.  It gets very blurry and I’m sure others experience this too and come across the same dual/multiple identity ponderance.

Do you the reader, ever find yourself advocating in your off-time?  Do you have off-time?  What about those late night chats on Twitter where someone poses a thinly veiled reference query and you jump at the chance to flex your searching skills outside of work hours??

Oh I know you’ve done it before.  I have.

I am such a geek.  But geeks do love to collaborate and advocate with their peers.  And they utilise any opportunity.

If we ever meet, online or in real life, please don’t shy away from the opportunity to create something magical and share our learnings with the wider community, even if it is outside of work hours.

xx

Below are photographic examples of my personal and professional identity.  Tell me which is which

One day I am going to have to evaluate my presence on the web and whether or not I should (should’ve – past tense) go about it in a different, slightly more thoughtful and professional way.

In the meantime, isn’t this lovely?

Does this make you want to start studying library and information science and get more involved in the profession?