Social Networking: Changing the Ways Families Communicate

I had my Facebook profile first--before any of my kids. I remind them of that fact often. "Your mom was cooler than you BEFORE you became cool!"

But now all of my daughters and my daughters-in-law have Facebook profiles. It's a great way for us to chat, tell stories, share pictures and have fun. And since there are several miles separating all of us, Facebook has become the new way for us to communicate. I didn't realize how much our communication styles had changed, though, until last week.

My daughter-in-law Jessica let the family know she's expecting. She didn't call us. She didn't tell us over dinner. She posted a message on her Facebook profile that said, "Jessica is feeling pregnant." WHAAAAT? The next morning, she had changed her "Flair board" (the place where you can post virtual buttons) to show only buttons of obviously pregnant silhouettes and a center button that said, "I'm pregnant!" Yup...the news was out. And now all of her friends and family--and my friends and family, and other friends who can view those friends' profiles--know that Jessica is expecting.

The neat thing about having Jessica post her good news this way is that I (and all of the other family/friends) can read the various reactions and posts to her news. Through a social networking site, it's as if we're all rejoicing with Jessica at the same time. I've got to admit that it beats a phone call!

Google's LIFE Photo Archive

I just discovered Google's newest feature (I think it's the newest one): the LIFE photo archive, available from the Google Images page. According to Google, you can "search millions of photographs from the LIFE photo archive, stretching from the 1750s to today. Most were never published and are now available for the first time through the joint work of LIFE and Google."

I'm wondering what kind of photographs were available in the 1750s. Guess I'll have to sneak a peek! With "millions of photographs," there's got to be something there for everyone. What a great resource for students, teachers, librarians and anyone interested in some great photography!

http://images.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

Are Gamers Readers?

I know this seems like old information to post, but I thought my original comments (included below, although somewhat tweaked) might have been published as an editorial. Since it wasn't, I can now talk about this on my own blog.

In the September 15, 2008 issue of Library Journal, Joseph Grosso wrote "Mission Aborted?" (p.34) in which he questions if libraries have "aborted" their mission of promoting reading and have instead adopted a culture that embraces and promotes “multimedia” materials—especially gaming (materials and programs). Grosso admits that he will likely be “derided,” and indeed he was in the November 15 issue of LJ. I’ll try to be gentle in contradicting Mr. Grosso.

While I at times lament the fact that patrons aren’t always in the public library to get a literary classic, I must assure Mr. Grosso that gaming in the public libraries has promoted more reading—at least as I observed among the teens with whom I worked in my previous position as a teen specialist librarian for the Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library (EVPL) in Indiana. It was there that teens were not only offered electronic gaming events at least twice a month, but also given the opportunity to oversee those programs. Teens assisted with these programs by setting up, monitoring and cleaning up. They also developed new and highly creative ideas for spin-off programs (which kept spinning off from each other). These spin-off programs covered everything from non-electronic gaming events to a reader’s theatre where the teens presented children’s stories to younger children’s groups at the library.

As the teens realized they could take an active role in the library, they also began to view the library as their favorite place to “hang out” (in a good sense) even when no gaming events or other programs were offered. Of course, it was during those times that the teens perused the stacks and began checking out large numbers of books. In fact, at EVPL’s Central Library, where the bulk of teen programming occurred, circulation of teen (YA) reading materials (NOT electronic materials, mind you) increased over 18% from 2006 to 2007, the time period in which the gaming events b egan. Was the increased circulation of teen literature a direct result of the gaming events the library offered? I believe it was. Gaming brought the so-called “reluctant readers” into the library—a place they might not otherwise have visited. I also believe that gaming events allowed the teens to develop a special love for their library, and I am confident that the leadership these teens assumed there and the special social interactions they experienced within the library will convince those students to remain library users and supporters well into their adult years.

Readers are Happier

My former colleague, Marilyn W. (a reference librarian) shared this information with me.

Sociologists at the University of Maryland have concluded from a lengthy study that people (it seems the study focused only on Americans) who watch television are not as happy as people who "spend more time reading and socializing." While television seems to allow for escapism and gives the viewer an immediate sense of happiness, the feeling is not long term. As quoted from the report posted on the University of Maryland's website, " the researchers found that self-described very happy people were more socially active, attended more religious services, voted more and read more newspapers." No mention about people who read other materials, but it's always good to know that reading is a key to happiness. I think librarians have always known this fact.

View the story at the following link:
http://www.newsdesk.umd.edu/sociss/release.cfm?ArticleID=1789

Occupations with Happiest Results

I spotted a story/article when I was checking an email account I have on Yahoo. (I don't check that account too often, so I don't know how long this story has been posted.) It's titled, "Where Do America's Happiest People Work?" I thought it was going to list locations--cities or states or regions, but it doesn't. Instead, it includes the top 10 jobs that supposedly bring the most happiness. Reasons some of the people cited for their happiness in these top 10 jobs include "helping people" and "being creative" and having employers who help expand the employee's experience. I anticipated seeing librarians listed somewhere on the list. Really, I did!

Imagine my disappointment when librarians weren't mentioned anywhere. I know that I am VERY happy as a librarian. I find that the job brings a lot of satisfaction for many of the same reasons other people listed in the article. I am able to help people find answers to their information needs. I help people learn and grow. I have had ample opportunity to be creative in whatever position I've had within the field of public librarianship. From creating and presenting programs, to teaching information literacy...from creating displays to writing articles--I've had plenty of creative opportunities. I also believe that librarianship is a field where employers not only want their employees to expand their experience, employers actually expect it and routinely offer training and educational opportunities.

Other reasons I'm very happy as a librarian include the fact that I serve a wide variety of people, including those of all socio-economic backgrounds, races, and ages. I also like the fact that each day brings something new, and I constantly have the opportunity to learn something new. I also work with some fantastic people!

Oh...and another reason I love being a librarian is that I can read on the job and no one thinks I'm goofing off!

In case you're wondering, the number one job that makes people the happiest (according to the Yahoo article) is clergy.

You can read the Yahoo article and see the other top nine jobs from this link:
http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/career-articles-where_do_america_s_happiest_people_work-569;_ylc=X3oDMTE5YjNiaWdhBHRtX2RtZWNoA0JpekRldiAvIFBhcnRuZXIEdG1fbG5rA1UxMTAxNzAx

Irritating Phrases and Words

Oxford University recently published its list of "top 10 irritating phrases." The most irritating phrase, according to Oxford is "at the end of the day." (Hmmm...I've not heard anyone use that particular phrase around here recently.) You can read the other nine irritating phrases at the following link:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/debates/3394545/Oxford-compiles-list-of-top-ten-irritating-phrases.html

After reading the above article, I did a Google search for "overused American phrases and words" and got 156,000 results (one of which did include the word "got" on it--so sorry!).

If I were composing an American version of most irritating phrases and overused/abused words, I know that it would look something like this:

1. "you know"
2. "like"
3. "you know what I mean"
4. "there's" (used with plural objects instead of using "there are") Example: "There's a ton of
people who don't realize they mean to say 'there are' at the beginning of such a sentence."
5. "importantly" (used instead of "important")
6. "freakin'" (as in "that was so freakin' fun"--which, I suppose, is better than its obscene
cousin, although I've never figured out how the word became an adjective)
7. "wazzup"
8. "24/7"
9. "omigod"
10. "my bad"

Other irritations, although not words or phrases, are abuses of there/their/they're, similar abuses of your/you're, and overuse of apostrophes (using them with plural words instead of possessives).

Evidently, I'm not the only librarian who gets a bit frustrated with "irritating" words and phrases. View a list of overused words that were "retired" by a group of librarians at Hester Memorial Library at North Greenville University at the following link:
http://media.www.nguskyliner.com/media/storage/paper284/news/2005/04/27/News/Library.Staff.Retires.Overused.Words-938580.shtml