Sabbatical

Talked with a faculty member (who has had books published) to discuss the publishing process. She advised me to simply submit proposals to publishers without adding more “framework” in to the manuscript, and to stick with my vision of the book in journal/diary form, not to re-write it in chapters or essays. Also advised me to take suggested changes from publisher editors/readers.

Dec. 25

Merry Christmas everyone! Wishing that you may have the ability to give up hope for a better past, find forgiveness, and from there create reconciliation and peace.

Blizzard Tantrums

I am having a tantrum-y day. Our driveway plow hasn't come but the garbage & recycling still had to go out. At 6:45 a.m., it was still ok--about 4." I carefully placed the bins well out of reach of both the street & driveway plows, I thought. Later I looked out of the window from my "control center" as I was working, and saw that both bins were tipped over into the driveway & recycling was scattered. So I bundled up & went out. The garbage bin had filled up with snow & I had a struggle to right it & move it to the other side of the drive, even farther out of the paths, I hoped. The recycling was worse, as bits were everywhere & picking them up with thick mittens was difficult, & trying to cram it all back into the bin.... Later, I saw the garbage picked up. Watching the grabber arms come out of the truck sides gave me an idea about how far apart the 2 bins need to be in the future. About 11:00, after I prepared some correspondence to be mailed, I bundled up & went out. The recycling bin had been sent flying yet again by the street plow, I guess. I had a full-fledged tantrum out in the blizzard, trying to pick it all up & beating the junk into submission. Pulling the garbage bin back to the garage was a several-minute hike in heavy, wet snow now up to my knees. I wonder where our driveway plow is? Good thing I decided not to go to campus today. To work off my tantrum, I shoveled the sidewalk & path to the utility boxes, then righted the squirrel-tipped bird-feeder. Soon I'll go back to work on my annual activity report. I am not good with feeling cooped-up.

Still, this has given me a chance to do a "dry run" on using my new desk & office space. I need a mousepad, & for warmth, my fingerless gloves, felted hat, & thick slippers over wool socks. I need a small container for pens & pencils. I'll be glad to have my office computer set up at home, with the separate keyboard & monitor for ergonomic comfort. Otherwise, I feel ready to go!

Annual Query from Lake Erie Yearly Meeting

Am I open to the other? What keeps me from connecting with those who are different from me? What fears cloud my vision of the Light in all beings? How can I listen with my heart, willing to be vulnerable?

I wish I were open. Anger and fear keeps me closed and clouds my vision. I am not willing to be vulnerable yet.

Still, I am going to Meeting, and meeting new people. I am willing to acknowledge that there is that of God in all people, whether or not I can perceive it. Isaiah 45:5-7 “I am the Lord, and there is no other…. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.”

I'm reading Evelyn Underhill, an "ordinary" English woman who was also a mystic. She struggled with these queries, married and living in the world while all the time wishing she was able to live as a solitary, in perpetual retreat. She suffered from her perceived failings, from depression, from illness. And yet she was able to convey the idea that a mystical connection with God is open to the ordinary lay-person, not reserved for prophets or saints.

MLA Conference & more

This week I attended the Michigan Library Association's Annual Conference. At the MEL update, I learned that (kid's) InfoBits will read articles out loud. MEl has a section on Content Expectations for K-12 Teachers in MI, and under LearningExpress News, there are practice tests for the ACT, along with the new citizenship test and Grad school entrance exams. The NoveList database had a "describe a plot search" that I would like to try, and I want to explore the "Michigana" tab.

WMU is moving to an product which sits on top of the Voyager catalog called VuFind (like the Encore product for III?). This seems to make it easier for students to find library resources. They conducted usability exercises & will modify the product based on the results.

Of course I went to Amy's talk on the future of cataloging, posted at researchrangers.com. She did well, especially for a first-timer. Bottom line is that she doesn't think that RDA will come about any time soon, that libraries do have to take advantage of other info producers' & consumers' data (like Amazon.com, user tags, etc.), and that no matter what, catalogers will find ways to "muddle through."

Jeffrey Trzeciak, dean of libraries at McMaster University (in gorgeous Hamilton, Ontario) spoke at lunch about the innovations during his 2 years there. Amazing, interesting. See the ACRL website for details in the documentation for the award they got. Also watch Library Journal for a column by McMaster's gaming librarian.

Attended a session on digitizing the Great Lakes Maritime collection which includes the NOAA Sanctuary in Thunder Bay: see www.alpenalibrary.org and www.greatlakesships.org. Fascinating project/s...huge amounts of materials digitized, which took tons of grant money & staff time & other collaborative resources.

Fun final keynote speech Jim Van Bochove on "Laughing in the HOT Seat: Living Life with Extreme Enthusiasm and Extraordinary Service!"

The other important meeting I had was outside of the conference, with an independent information professional/entrepreneur, Liga Greenfield, CEO of BioMedPharmaIS. The funny thing is that she was my 1st babysitter, 39-44 years ago! The last time I had talked to her was 20-22 years ago, when I was interested in both the Upjohn Co. libraries (where she had worked) & the Upjohn Institute library (they aren't the same company!).

I was fascinated at this meeting to hear Liga's insights on working alone, working with a spouse, working from a home office, how different working alone & from home was from working in a group in a large company, the state of the info business in the current economy, competition, pricing, approaching potential customers, specialization, associations to join & meetings to attend for solid support, etc. I went with Amy so I can better understand and support her business, and of course because I wanted to catch up with Liga. That was great.

Molded or molding? Or just moldy?

Yesterday, some of the Grand Rapids Friends joined the Holland Meeting for worship and a worship-sharing facilitated by Mary Ann Downey, a traveling minister from Atlanta. Spoken ministry during worship centered around being willing to be molded by God (submitting to God's will) and/or molding oneself according to the leadings one receives from God. I believe in a combination of the two. I can mold myself again & yet again according to the principles of integrity, equality, simplity, and peace. Yesterday, I made a resolution to apply the principles of nonviolent communication & conflict management. Listen, affirm (find common concerns), respond, add. Define the issue/s, identify stakeholders, draw them into the conversation, get the history (if need be--sometimes people can get stuck in negativity on this step), brainstorm solutions, evaluate possible solutions & choose one to implement, define who/what/when/how of the implementation, lay out to evaluate it, and follow up with the evaluation and discussion of the process. These are also the ways of dealing with diversity. Following these principles means waiting rather than jumping in with emotion. Really, really hard for me.

Let the adult self comfort the inner child. Don't let either personality get moldy.

Life Cycle of a Church & Government

I'm reading If I Were the Devil: ... Contemporary Challenges Facing Adventism, by George R. Knight (Review & Herald Publishing, 2007). In chapter 4, he wrote, "In many ways, if not most, the early Sabbatarian Adventists would find themselves distinctly uncomfortable in Adventism as we know it today" (43). Makes me wonder how George Fox would find the Liberal Friends (Quakers) today -- perhaps comfortable with our silent worship, but wondering why we aren't traveling around the world spreading the word? I know others have written about the stages of church development and church history as applied to Friends...so why did Friends stop evangelizing? And perhaps one response to the often-expressed feeling that we are diminishing in numbers relative to the world's population is reflected in the Convergent movements?

I'm also thinking about an analysis I read that said that Pennsylvania didn't survive as a "Quaker state" despite being an ideal model for government in many respects, because its citizenry was threatened by Native American, British, and French violence. The pacifist Friends refused to deal with this issue--leaving the settlers unprotected and being decimated--and also refused to allocate funds for a militia. The non-Quakers in the government went ahead and formed the militia....

Since this particular book is a brief history of religion in the U.S., I'm left wondering what peace-making measures were taken, if any, by Pennsylvania Quakers?
More to research when I have the gumption to take me past idle curiosity.