Day 1. No fires.
My first day at the library went well. My morning was spent learning about the children’s and young adult sections, and poking through my desk. Luckily, the last librarian left me a lot of info, so I’m not starting from scratch.
In the afternoon, after school let out, I met a bunch of the Fairhaven kids. Lots of 4-6th graders. There’s a sign above my desk that has my full name, but they’ve decided to call me Mrs. G. I didn’t have the heart to correct them, although I will tomorrow. As my sister advised, if I’m going to buck the patriarchy, I have to take on the little things.
The moment of the day came when a 6th grader asked me to help him find the authors of the constitution of Jordan. As in, Kingdom Of. We found the constitution, in English, with all the signers’ names, but no information about the authors. The CIA World Factbook wasn’t working, and none of our print resources had that much information. I forgot what it’s like to think so literally about school assignments. The point was that this kid learned about a new country, and found where to find information. He was so concerned about finding the right answer, and he left with the scrap of hope that if he can just call a Jordanian embassy …
I’m so so so exhausted, in a way I can’t describe. After work, I had to take a nap. Then I went to the trustees meeting, which was actually quite fun and informative. I now know what the annual budget looks like, and I know that one of the trustees used to date a girl from Iowa. Back in the 40’s.
I’m feeling full of optimism for this job. I think there’s a lot I can do to make the collection better, and that’s a good place to start with, as I get my bearings and start to figure out the community and the library.
The gyne instructors send their best. They sang happy birthday to me, and I brought home half a bottle of red wine.
I just wanted to send you a hearty congrats on your first day. I’m friends with a real, live librarian. That’s so cool!
(Regarding the whole “Mrs. G” thing — are you going to remain a Green after you and Jason tie the knot? Or will it be some groovy combo name? Or shall you become a Wadsbone yourself?)
Yay, no fires! Although it is cold enough here now that a fire would be most welcome. And kudos and W00t! to sticking to your guns on the mrs/ms thing. It’s hard at times, but totally worth it. Same goes for keeping your last name, if you go that route. I know of where I speak. I’m still trying to correct a credit report that shows me with my ex-husband’s last name, which I never used, legally or otherwise. Bastards.