Another Reason Why Librarians Make A Difference

Last week I spent a considerable amount of time in waiting rooms at MD Anderson Hospital waiting rooms at the Mays Clinic Breast Cancer Center. Anybody who has been through a big hospital like this knows to expect waiting, and I was well prepared with gizmos. I was witness to a very compelling little drama at one point. I kept noticing a young boy who looked about 10 and was wandering around, appearing a bit lost. I thought maybe he was with one of the volunteers because he never seemed to be talking to anyone who was seated in the area. Finally he concentrated his wanderings to the area where the volunteers had a plate of cookies and some heart shaped pillows, which they give away to patients. One of the volunteers smiled at him and said, "Would you like a cookie?" I could not hear what he said but it was clear that they then engaged in a conversation, and that he was worried about his mother, who was back in one of the rooms. The lady was offering him some tips on how he could help her by cheering her up, giving her support, helping out with chores, helping her with healthy diet, etc. Then another lady came up and started talking with him too. The librarian in me could not be restrained. I went up to the first lady and said, "I see your friend has questions." She said yes. When she asked him if he wanted a cookie he said "No, but I have a question...How can they make my mother's cancer go away?" I said, "You should tell him to talk to his school librarian. She can find him books on his level that help answer his questions and also help him deal with his mother's illness." She did ask him and he said that he did know and like his librarian and that he would do that. Then one of the ladies took him downstairs to the Learning Center for some written information. He had been researching on the Internet, but clearly wanted to TALK to someone who could give him the information he sought. He was 9 years old. I commented on his maturity and spunk for coming up and asking them questions. She laughed and said he told her, "I may be little but I have a BIG HEAD." She said, "Are you trying to tell me you are smart?" and he said YES. She told him that she was sure he could help his mom just by being himself and being there for her. If you are a librarian you know that children of all ages come in with questions about their loved ones' health issues, and about their own health as well. They need and deserve to have a caring adult who will not only hand over the right book but also be there as someone to listen and give support. This is one of the many things school librarians do very well.

My Spring Break

Here I am in a lovely hotel with every amenity you could imagine...nice restaurant and bar, snack cafe, Starbucks, free chair massages, pool, exercise center, lovely gardens, and more. Some of the people staying here are very rich and powerful. There are some sumptuous suites upstairs, or so I have heard. Yet I am paying a bargain price. And I am here with mixed feelings. I would much rather be home in my crooked little house. So where am I? Well, I am in Houston. And while I have a nice view out my window there are drawbacks. What I see is Texas Children's Hospital. And St. Luke's, and MD Anderson, Alkeck Building. So maybe you know where I am...The Rotary International Hotel at MD Anderson Cancer Center. I will be having tests tomorrow and then will see my surgeon on Wednesday and, I hope, set a date for surgery. The sooner the better. I have had the best bad news a person could want, because I have very early detection and a good prognosis. I expect to be around for a long time.

Anyway, here's the technology tie-in. MD Anderson has a killer website! Oops maybe that's a bad choice of words. It is a really great site with all kinds of services. There are step by step instructions for everything, including walking directions INSIDE buildings to help you find your way. All kinds of FAQ's...I appreciate that stuff because it is really helpful and also because I know how hard it is to do all that. We try to tell students what they need to do in our program, and yet never seem to anticipate all the questions they have. And their online social network is great. You get all your appointments there, get your forms to fill out, check on prescriptions, and access support groups. The user-friendly factor gets a 10.

So overall I am going to do my best to enjoy my stay. Unless they add to my schedule I will be free tomorrow afternoon and have promised myself a treat. maybe a museum trip or the zoo. I do like this part of Houston. And truly, MD Anderson is a hopeful place. People come here from all over the world to get the very best care. I was in the elevator with a couple from France. I parked next to an Escalade with Michigan plates. I feel lucky that all I have to do is get in my little Honda Fit and tool down the road from Huntsville. But I will close with a bit of editorializing that I cannot resist. Suppose I didn't have health insurance. Suppose I was under 65 (well I AM under 65) and I ran out of insurance. Then, I could not come to MD Anderson. I would be sent to the charity hospital, Ben Taub. Ben Taub has a great ER, but it is not the place for cancer treatment. So even though I could SEE MD Anderson from Ben Taub, I could not be treated there. People who think we don't need health insurance reform have never had to face a situation like the one I just describe, but it happens every day. Here. Today. Think about that while our "representatives" embarrass themselves and us with their childish behavior in DC this week.

Goldfinches and Dragons!

The biggest reason for this blog entry is to demonstrate the Dragon speech recognition app that available on iPhone -- I am talking into my phone right now. Then I'm going to send the text that appears, and e-mail it to myself and then post at my blog! I'm very excited that I finally took time to try out this app, Dragon Dictation.

And by the way, what a great day I'm having! First of all two of my favorite people are withme this weekend--that would be Dr. Laura Sheneman and Dr. Joanna Fountain, and they're staying with me over the weekend because of a faculty meeting tomorrow. It's sort of like a nice house party! The other thing I wanted to say is that my goldfinches are thriving. I put extra seed and feeders just now, including the thistle sock that goldfinches really love. I'm watching the goldfinches crowding around my feeders right now. I have a regular congregation out there in front of my house! I hope everybody else is having a great day, and I think I have one coming to me!

OK...What you read just now is the edited version of the speech to text file that I emailed myself. The original version is posted below. You will see that a good deal of editing was needed. Still, I think I will be using the app, and will probably buy the more sophisticated version for my computer. It claims to be 99% accurate, regardless of one's accent or dialect. I really think it can help my productivity. If you want to read the unedited text, keep on reading below. Some of it is funny. The app evidently had trouble the word "goldfinches" and turned it in to girl friends at one point and then claimed the goldfinches were driving. There are some other funny phrases too--the best is about us all "suffering together" which seems a bit Freudian and hauntingly accurate. I would love to hear from other Dragon product users. Here goes the original text:

The biggest reason for this blog entry is to demonstrate this Dragon
speech recognition app that available on iPhone because I am talking
into my phone right now then I'm going to have that appears text and
I'm going to e-mail it to my seven posted at the blog posts what a
great day. I'm having first of all two of my favorite people are with
me this weekend that would day Dr. Laura Sheneman and Dr. Joanna
fountain and their staying with me over the weekend because of the
faculty meeting tomorrow and working all have suffered together so
it's sort of like a nice house party and the other thing I wanted to
say is that my goldfinches are driving I put out extra stage at the
associate and I have on my way great day. I'm having the girls, ages
are crowding around my theater and I just adapted so as well and we
have a regular congregation out there and from my house so I hope
everybody else is having a great day and I think I have one coming
first time for me and I have to say I'm very excited that I finally
took time to try out this app that more I wanted to just say what a
great day

And About Time...

This morning I went from the depths of dismay and disappointment to the hyper high of exultation all in the space of about an hour and a half. OK I overstate. But when I read this morning that Wordle was down "indefinitely" due to a trademark dispute, and then went to the site and saw the message to that effect, I was sad and a little concerned. I had made it the centerpiece of an assignment for my Internet for Librarians class and then BLAM! It was gone. The original alert was posted to LM_NET or TLC (forget which), and this article was shared as a help in finding alternatives. You might want to mark it in case of anther Wordle disappearance:

http://philbradley.typepad.com/phil_bradleys_weblog/2010/02/wordle-closed-alternatives.html

Anyway, I had not had a chance for my stages of grief to move from disbelief to anger, much less all the way over to acceptance, when I received a tweet that Wordle was back! And it is! So I went from mourning to celebrating in a very fast turnaround. Such is the way of the wild and wooly Internet. And...welcome back Wordle. Reports of your death were greatly exaggerated. And I wonder if they were actually exaggerated by you, Oh Wordle, in your efforts to generate concern and better your case for your dispute. Ah whatever. I am just glad Wordle is back. Tag on, geeks and cloudies!

It's About Time

Yesterday I my friend and hero, Dr. Teri Lesesne, posted a short video of herself talking about this year's Newbery winner, When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. This struck me as a neat coincidence because I was just thinking about that book and the theme of time. The reason time was weighing heavily on my mind was because I just finished ANOTHER book about time yesterday, also set in NYC, and also appealing to kids about the same age, Antsy Does Time. What a great pair of books!

In case you have not read either or both, When You Reach Me is a wonderful story about friendship. It does take place in NYC though back in the late 1970's so a bit different from today's NYC. The major things going on are a story of a very special friendship, time travel, coming of age, and mystery. It is a little difficult to read this book without being reminded of Time Traveler's Wife because of the time tricks involved.

Antsy Does Time takes place in Brooklyn and NYC. The book has a serious side despite the humorous events and dialogue. Time is again a major theme, though without the supernatural elements of the previous book. Instead Antsy tries to cheer up his pal Gunnar, who confides that he has a terminal illness, by "giving" him time from his own life and enlisting others to do the same. Good-hearted Antsy is a very likable protagonist with his smart mouth coupled with a generous and altruistic nature. By the end of the book he has learned some hard lessons about friendship, honesty, death and the importance of family.

If I had to choose a favorite between these two, I could not do it! I will admit I read both these books with my ears. Neal Shusterman read Antsy himself, and When You Reach Me is well presented by Cynthia Holloway.

Oh and...I think the covers are somewhat similar too. They are both cartoony with elements of the plot featured in a composite. Teri thought the cover of When You Reach Me was off-putting and so did some of her students, but I liked it from the first. Give yourself a nice winter treat and enjoy both of these books!

One Thing Leads to Another--Musings About Leadership

The link from my title leads to a You Tube video that touched me just now. Take a look if you haven't seen it. It is the one about Johnny the Bag Boy and how he transformed his store. It made me remember something from Super Bowl Sunday. I stayed tuned in for the following show where the CEO of Waste Management went incognito and took the most menial jobs related with his company. He was clearly a very nice guy with a good heart. But he discovered that there were many practices in his company that needed change. There was the draconian rule for a very short lunch hour with pay docked for taking just one extra minute. There were the time constraints on truck routes that did not even allow for restroom breaks, which were disproportionally hard on female drivers. There was the overworked and under-appreciated office manager about to lose her house because of her low pay. The manager went back and changed many policies. He said his life was completely changed.

All this is very interesting to me because suddenly I realized that at this time I am more of an administrator than anything else, though I do still have teaching duties. I never really wanted to be cast in this role but accepted my present position because I thought it was the right thing to do. I want learn to treat people in my department with respect, honor, and fairness. I think of the woman who drove the truck and found the joy she brought to her job was diminished by the unreasonable demands imposed upon her. Taking people's joy is a serious mistake. There have been a few times in my life when I have worked for administrators that diminished their staff's joy and productivity by humiliating people, setting impossible standards, showing favoritism, and otherwise demeaning the people in their charge. I hope I can learn to be a bit like Johnny's boss and the Waste Management CEO and "get it right."

Oh and, the name of the show is "Undercover Boss," and the next episode is about the CEO of Hooter's. I am not usually a fan of reality shows but I will probably try to catch this one. Plus you can watch the first episode here: http://www.cbs.com/primetime/undercover_boss/video/?pid=O98wbTmuvSiD95oR1Vnw1EIRQMrHhUnL&vs=Default&play=true

School Bullying Program Worth a Listen

Thanks to Barbara Fiehn for recommending this broadcast via LM_NET. It is about bullying, both face to face and cyberbullying. In particular the story of Phoebe Prince, a beautiful 16 year old high school student who moved to Massachusetts this fall from her childhood home in Ireland. While there were some efforts to deal with bullying at her new school, South Hadley High, but not enough. The bullying never stopped, and the perpetrators were unrepentant even after her death. Even now her Facebook page is being defaced and the culprits are making light of her death. The striking thing about Phoebe is that she was beautiful, smart, and very unlike the sort of young person you might expect to be bullied.

We all know this happens. I have uncomfortable memories of my own. First, I remember as a child standing by as a classmate was ridiculed about her size. She was overweight and the kids were calling her "elephant." She was also my next door neighbor. I did not join in, but I did nothing to stop the taunts. I still feel ashamed of this many years later. Also I remember being aware of bullying in the schools where I used to work. I certainly stepped in and put a stop to such behavior, and I worked especially hard to create a safe and safe zone in the junior high library where I worked. I allowed students who were particularly targeted to eat their lunches in a back room. School cafeterias can be terrible for victims of such harassment. But could I have done more? Absolutely yes. We all could do more, I suspect. This program is well worth the 16 minutes that it takes to listen