The View from the Leslie Library Windows

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Last Day

Got all my stuff taken care of today along with a couple of kids that came in. Worked on barcodes for the rest of the stuff I had put aside for that and got those all done, then went back and added in comments exactly what the item was (since I lumped them all together under 'Teacher Resources') and now if something is missing, I can look at the comment and say 'that is a Reading supplement book about 100 pages long' or 'that is a Teacher Express CD'. I think things look really good and feel good about leaving! Turned in my keys and badge, turned off the lights and closed the doors. Namárië

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Two More Down

Whoops! Forgot to post yesterday, but spent most of the day shifting books in the teacher materials section. There was no way that there was room for all the returned resources with the shelves the way they were, so I started in Business and got through Math before I left for the day.
Today I finished up shifting shelves and also went through old resources (for more room!) and put them on a cart to see if Mrs. H will let me surplus them out when we get back in the fall. Processed in 3 teacher magazines and 10 for the library. They'll be put out when we get back. Then I started to barcode the materials that came in and didn't have any barcodes. I will clean all that up tomorrow and things are looking pretty stored for the summer.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Last Monday

Today we finished up billing, glad that it's over! A book came in that was checked out to a student and we were glad to call and say it was in and she was now all clear! Prepared all the magazine orders for next year and Mrs. H took them to our office manager for July. Started to clean up the back from all the teacher materials that came in - wow, there's a lot!

Friday, June 17, 2011

Billing

Worked on billing this morning until the meeting and then went to the assistant meeting. After that - to the dentist to pull a cracked tooth. Back on Monday for four more days.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Empty Tables

Had our last staff meeting this morning and I just worked on getting things boxed up from teachers bringing their stuff in. Mrs. M did a nice recognition of Mrs. H and all the hard work she's put in this year and Mrs. H recognized us for our efforts. Withdrew old teacher books, boxed them up, signed out teachers. Went to the final Library Media meeting today and recognized all the Librarian teachers there that were retiring - a lot were only retiring since they no longer had jobs. Then we recognized all the Librarian teachers that were leaving because of job loss. As name after name was called, I watched the tables empty. Even with a group that didn't come because it was too much to handle, it was still disconcerting to see more people up at the front than still sitting at the tables. I must admit I cried a bit. These amazing people are so passionate about their jobs and the kids they work with it was very hard to say goodbye. Then back to Sprague and continue digging out the books.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Last Student Day

Today was our last day of students and we got in 1500 books, but still have 2000 out! Hopefully it is mostly staff. We just collected textbooks all day and had some wonderful help and they got them all put away! I think we have about a half a cart from what we collected after school was out, but I am so impressed with our helpers! They were amazing!

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

3500 To Go And Only 1 Day Left

Didn't get in as many books as I hoped today, but had some good help. We will be swamped tomorrow! Culled through teacher stuff and packed up a lot for surplus and Mrs. H and I looked through and will keep some nicer things. Processed in five magazines and just filed them. Made some room for teacher materials and got some of that put away. Signed teachers out for the year. Took billing off the Main Frame. In early again tomorrow!

Monday, June 13, 2011

From 2005???

Took in books all day today, but funniest moment was when a teacher was cleaning out a room and turned in some very old books, and one was a world history book that was still on the billing from a student in 2005! Can't believe that it was found! Took in more books today. Processed in the last (I hope) of the magazines for this year (7) and had a volunteer bring in all the magazines from out in the library and we worked on getting them all put away. Checked out staff on their paperwork. We only got in about a thousand books, way below what I hoped we'd get in. A student had issues with a book she said she never ever checked out and so took the print out and went off to the office to get it taken care of. Ten minutes, really, just ten minutes later a friend of hers turned it in. She said she'd let her friend know that she had it and it was now in. A parent called and was happy to hear that her child's books were all in. I ran reports for seniors with textbooks still out and a volunteer was going to check the stacks to see if any had gotten put away without being checked in. That will be a great help. He had two books already on my desk before I walked out the door.

Friday, June 10, 2011

Awesome help!

Had some amazing help today and we are down to 5,651 textbooks to go! And they are all put away and lots of empty carts for Monday! Huzzah!

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Senior Awards

More books in again today. Though I spent the first part of my day putting away everything from yesterday that hadn't been done yet. Then Mrs. H and I went to the Senior Awards ceremony in the stadium. The weather was perfect and it was wonderful to see everyone there. We have a lot of kids from the library who are graduating, so it was good to see them. An exciting time! Then we cranked in the books and we just got under 7000 books to go. Mrs. H and I stayed late to put away as much as we could, but finally, we were just done and went home.

What I'm Reading

The Butchering Art by Lindsey Fitzharris was a great non-fiction read! Love a good non-fiction! Joseph Lister worked hard, studied hard, never gave up on his ideas that something outside was causing untold numbers of people to die after surgery. His quest to find the answer was long overdue and he was the one to craft it and make it a medical standard. Brilliant!
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Boy by Emmanuel Acho was so good. I liked it even better than Stamped. His honest and open look at what is was like for him growing up really brings the issues into focus. Highly recommended!
Verify by Joelle Charbonneau - what if everything went digital which gave the government and people in power a way to change history, past and current. What happened to some words, like the word 'verify' that is no longer in the digital dictionary. Meri has lost her mom and her dad drowns sorrow in liquor. Meri is entranced by her mom's last art pieces and is given a slip of paper (the horror! what about the trees? recycling?) and on it is the word 'verify'. Atlas gives her a dictionary, a paper one and an old history textbook. Meri jumps on the train with him so they can change the world.
Kalahari by Jessica Khoury - what a ride! I even took this home one night to finish! Sarah lives with her dad doing research deep in the Kalahari. A group of students are sent to see if they can qualify for a grant and when her dad goes missing when he heads off after poachers, she is left to take care of them. Her dad doesn't return and the poachers are after them. They come across a white lion stalking them, but wait? It isn't white it's something else. They come across a lab and realize there is a virus, that has been let loose on the Kalahari that could destroy the whole world. So exciting!! Great ending as well!
The Year of the Buttered Cat by Susan Haas with Lexi Haas - Okay. I have to admit that I got this book because of the title. Buttered cats, what an intriguing thought! But the real intrigue is the persistence, the optimism of Lexi. Because of jaundice, she was disabled and this story is about her decision to take a chance on ground breaking surgery to try and get some mobility, speech and live her gifts. She has five she had to find. Read it for Lexi (and maybe to find out about that buttered cat).
Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram. There are spaces only you can fill, and Darius learns this as his family travels to Iran to see his grandfather who is dying. Along the way he deals with his depression, makes a friend, has innumerable Star Trek references and also learns that it's okay, to not be okay. I must admit, I had to look up some of the places he got to visit. What a rich heritage. I thought Zoroastrians were long gone, but no, they are still practicing today in Iran. Great book, totally okay.
The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin - perfect book lover tale of a woman captivated by a man and a bookstore and how she made more impact on her fellow book lovers and the man who got her to read than any bomb that fell during the Blitz. Very lovely!
The Girl From the Channel Islands by Jenny Lecoat - Lovely WW2 story by Jenny who actually grew up on one of the Channel Islands. Hedy fled Austria only to find her island haven invaded by the Germans. And though she is wary, she falls in love with a German officer. The twists and turns of German occupation test them both as each find a way to help the allied forces win.
Ancestor Approved edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith. I loved these short stories that all center around a modern day Native American Powwow. My fave was Rez Dog and they were all a great window into culture that I have rarely seen. I watched some videos on Fancy Dancing because of this and I would love to attend one, but feel a bit like a looky loo if I did. Fun, eye opening and full of information. Loved it!
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams Loved this fictionalized tale of the daughter of one of the lexicographers of the first ever Oxford Dictionary. As Esme goes from hiding under the sorting table, to one day being a lexicographer herself, we see her story unfold along with the people attached to the dictionary. It was really wonderful as we glimpsed her life and how the words she found and rescued formed the backbone of this novel. Really well done. It will stay on my shelves.