Disappointment and Endless Possibilites

So I found out a few hours ago that the assistant branch manager position I applied for I did not get. I am disappointed? very...but I am very hopeful for the future. I let it be known that I feel that my immediate interest and thus my primary focus will be on library programming. My boss was kind enough to mention to me that she would look into getting me into programming on a more offical and permanment basis. I very much look forward to this. On another note, I was encourage by the interviewer to keep applying. This I will also do. But for now, I want to focus on my weakness that cost me this position. Supervisory experience. I understand that I have limited supervisory experience, but the problem enlies with how I can obtain more? Its times like these that make you wonder was getting a masters degree worth it? When employers are forever harping on wanting experience workers. Well how can you gain experience If no one has ever decided to give you any? I am not mad about this, more like frustrated. But at the end of the day, the position wasn't meant for me. Better things are coming, of this I am sure. For now I will continue to put my energy into my everyday duties and expand my horizons in the field of programming. Whether it be children, teen, or adult, doesnt matter. I AM GAME! Wish me luck. :-)

Ronica Carpenter, MLS

Ok so it has been forever since I have been on here! But I am proud to say that I graduated from Texas Woman's University with a Masters in Library Science!! It was very long 2 years, but I know it was well worth it. I am still early into my career as a librarian and I think by taking the high road and get the necessary education first I did a great service to myself. If I would have waited later, say after I became a manager, thou it still would have been doable it would have been harder. So I must pat myself on the back and also say that I look forward to the next chapter currently unfolding. I want to try to update my blog more often with my personal thoughts on my career. Currently I am working as a audiovisual and assistant children's programmer in a public library system. I recently (just yesterday) turned in my resume for an assistant manager position. Though I am very optistmist, and anxious, I will wait and see how things go! :-)

Top 25 most famous librarians in history

Top 25 most famous librarians in history I found this on another blog and thought it was interesting. I never knew that Mao Zedong was a librarian! go figure!

The beginning of a new semester

I am just now beginnng the fall semester of my library science classes. This semester I am taking Cataloging and Classificaton and Information Sources and Services. The latter is the last core class, I have left to take. Cataloging is something, I dont really plan to ever do as a librarian, but I figured what could be the harm in knowning more about. It the job of the librarian to be a source of information, and in order to do this, librarians need to have knowledge on a variety of topics. Bibliographic records are the foundations of all library material. Each item has its on invididual record. How these records are created serve as one of the fundementals of librarianship as a profession. In this sense, I look forward to cataloging. As for the other class, information sources and services also represents a vital function of a library. In order to better serve patrons, in any given library environment (public, school, academic, or special) the first and most important occupation is providing for the informational needs of patrons. In taking the class, I hope to learn more methods of information discovery, that I can use daily at the public library I work at. As always, I will continue to do my best in updating my work and progress. Wish me luck! :-)

More work updates

So yea, I know its been awhile since I put more of my masterpieces from library school on here, but the wait is finally over. Here is the blueprint for a project proposal im doing for my public libraries class: The project is called Bouncing Books for Babies. (I admit maybe not the best title, but it was the only one I could think of so Im rolling with it lol) -BBBP is a storytime program that incorporates music, movement, and education designed for infants and toddlers ages six months to 2 years.

-Project will use a variety of formats including but not limited to print, audiovisual, and computer software.

-The program is targeted at the undeserved age group of babies and toddlers. Thus the program will need the participation of adults with very young children in the surrounding community.

-Project goals include the introduction of educational elements such as colors, alphabet, words, and reading along with an introduction to library services and materials to both patrons and their children.

-Project will work in conjunction with local daycare facilities for marketing/advertising purposes in addition to future co-affiliated programs

My Review of Patricia McKissack's The Dark Thirty:Southern Tales of the Supernatural

Author Patricia McKissack's 1992 Coretta Scott Award Winning book, The Dark Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural is one of five books I reviewed and analyzed written by McKissack. As our final project in my children's and YA literature class, we were given the option to write a profile of a living author that would include a lengthy biography, reviews of five books and an annotated bibliography of all children's and YA titles written by the author. Here is my review of one of Mrs. McKissack most well known works. It is a collection of African-American ghost stories. The "dark thirty" is the half hour before sunset. This is the time of day where evil in its many forms comes out to create chaos and keep you awake at night. Or so goes the urban legend. Typically Im not a huge fan of scary books, or really scary movies because Im a scaredy cat! lol So needless to say, I read this book during the daytime hours. Though its nowhere near Stephen King horror or even R.L. Stine suspenseful, its intriguing enough to keep the reader wanting to read the next story. At the beginning of each story, McKissack gives a brief summary of the historical background of the story, given the stories a touch of realness. Here is my review, enjoy! :-)
McKissack, Patricia. The Dark-Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural. New York: Alfred A. Knopf Inc, 1992. Ages 8 and up
Summary: A collection of 10 southern ghost stories. The Dark-Thirty is the half hour before sunset. It is at this time that monsters would come out. The stories are rooted in the African-American oral tradition. “The Legend of Pin Oak” is the tale of runaway slaves that turn into birds after jumping to their deaths to avoid slave catchers. “Justice is the story of a Klan member’s mysterious comeuppance after he murders an innocent black man. The “11:59” is an urban legend native to black train porters. The “Gingi” is an African folklore inspired ghost story. The last story was a “semi-autobiographical” tale of the young Patricia facing down a chicken coop monster.

Analysis: As with most urban legends, these tales have a basis in some truth. They were inspired in part by the stories told to McKissack by her grandparents. In her author’s notes she encourages readers to read these stories during the dark-thirty when it is “neither day nor night and when shapes and shadows play tricks on the mind.” The stories are written in such a way as to convey suspense. “Nothing was clear anymore. It didn’t matter, because it was daylight. He could set, maybe open the station. Where were the keys? It was so hard to remember. That’s when he saw the curious hazy substance on every windowpane in his bedroom.” (From: “Justice,“ pg. 29-30)

Potential Use: This book would make an excellent Halloween display item, and it could also be used in a classroom discussion on African-American oral tradition its components and origins.

Reader’s Appeal: Children who like ghost stories will enjoy this book. The black-and-white illustrations are lively despite the absence of color, and portray a sense of foreboding and fear. See the paranoid Hoop Granger washing his window, over a black shadow. (pg.31)

Value-added information: This book received both a Newberry Honor Award and a Coretta Scott King Award.

Review excerpts: “Each tale is told in a simple, lucid style, embellished by a few deftly inserted macabre details and by one of Pinkney’s dramatic, swirling scratchboard illustrations.” Kirkus Reviews Oct. 15,1992

Review:Jump at the Sun: A Novel

Jump at the Sun is the story of a woman trying to define her life as a mother. Motherhood and the sacrifices that result is a theme throughout the novel. Grace's mother Mattie was abandoned twice by Gracie's grandmother Rae. This abandonment causes Grace's mother to try to "buy" her mother's love at one point,at the cost of her, Gracie and her other children's well-being. Mattie tries her hardest to be the best daughter, but comes to the conclusion that in the end "{Rae} was a terrible mother." For Gracie, her two daughters make up the sole of most of her existance, but she feel trapped and is suffocating under the constant stress. She plots throughout the story to find her grandmother and then possibly leave her family, before she "dies" mentally from the pressure. Unlike her mother and other family members, Gracie can relate to her grandmother Rae and how she must have felt when she left Gracie's mother. "She had no other choice," saids Gracie. Gracie is a socologist. She tries several times to validate on a social-science level her feelings toward motherhood. At times, she loves being a mother, at other times she wants to leave and never come back. The novel make me think about my own feelings toward motherhood. I wonder how different my life would have been had I not had my daughter at 19. Who's to say? Through the help of my own mother, I was able to finish college so I did not become a statistic like so many girls that leave college because of pregnancy, never to return. Are the sacrifices we make as mothers suppose to "pay off" at some point? Both Grace and her mother Mattie felt this way, but Rae did not. The only thing Rae understood was that she lived her life and did what she had to, to survive. No more, no less. Isnt that really what any of us can hope for? As mothers do we desire some type of pay off? or watching our children grow into their own reward enough? It is an interesting and complicated enigma. I highly recommend this book. In fact when I get my shelving together for my personal library I will be purchasing it. Thanks Portia!!!