10 Random Things About Me...

When Helene challenged us recently to continue with Learn and Play by posting 10 things about ourselves that few people know I was a little daunted. I'm new to CML so there are LOTS of things people don't know about me. That part is a little overwhelming. On the other hand, what in the world would be interesting enough about me that would be worth sharing? I finally decided that I needed to stop viewing it as the "10 Most Interesting Things About Me" and just go with 10 that pop in my head. So, here we go:

1. I collect unicorns. In any form. Figurines, pictures, tee shirts, coffee mugs, whatever. I have collected unicorns since I was young, elementary school age. My collection has grown too large and my house too small so adding pieces has slowed down tremendously. One of my favorites has always been The Unicorn in Captivity.
2. Which leads me to..... I am fascinated by all things from the Medieval and Renaissance periods of European history. I have attended Renaissance Fairs (including the one in Harveysburg, Ohio). Yes, I have a costume and it is a serving wench. No, I am not posting a pic of it here. Not because I won't share. I simply don't have one of me in the garb.
3. My family calls me the Pied Piper of Pets. Animals just come to me. Literally. For example, I was walking one day with my mother in a local park and we decided to take a break for her to rest. We found a bench and sat down. A cat came out of no where, jumped on my lap, curled up and went to sleep. Mom asked me if I'd ever seen the cat before. No, I hadn't. Odd. And it isn't just cats. At the moment I have seven animals in my household. Two dogs and 5 cats. Only 3 of them are original to me. The rest belonged to someone else before I took them in. I blame my maternal grandmother, who lived in the country. People from miles around would drop off unwanted pets, some of them in burlap sacks, on her walk up to her house hoping she'd take them in. She always did. Maybe it runs in our blood.
4. I have been called a "black sheep" in my family for two reasons. First, I am the only one from my paternal Grandfather on down who has not worked for Ma Bell. Seriously, all of them. Except my Mom. I guess they didn't include her in the comparison because she didn't work outside the home. Apparently, being a Librarian is thinking outside the box. ;-) Second, I am the only immediate family member (not sure about distant cousins) who does not have a tattoo. I have thought about it. But I haven't figured out what I want yet, and don't want to set it in ink on my body until I know what it is I want to put there permanently. I do know it will not be visible to anyone while at work, only to those I choose to show it to.
5. Although it is not my favorite season (that would be autumn) I am one of the few people I know who loves winter. Not just tolerates it, or likes it, but loves it. Not so much the Ohio winter, with gray dreary skies and snow that's here, not here, melted, slushy, now frozen.... I want snow on the ground all winter with bright blue clear skies. Apparently I live in the wrong state. I have friends who used to live in Idaho. From their discussions of winter there, it is where I need to move.
6. I tend to be very friendly and outgoing around most people. I think my job does that for me. I can approach just about anyone to ask them if they need help or to say "hello". I'm one of those people who others approach in the grocery store to ask where something is on the shelf because I smile and make eye contact. So far, no dates, so they must just think I work there. ;-) Outside of work I tend to be an introverted shy person, especially around people new to me. It's something I'm working on....
7. Speaking of friends, I have known my BFF Keri since we were both 2 years old. Keri's husband David is my next closest friend (convenient that they are matched up like that) who I've known since freshman year in high school. Oddly enough I met him before she met him. We are so close that our kids call each other Aunt, we have keys to each others houses and have taken vacations together. They tease me about being the "oldest" of the three of us. I am a whole 3 days older than her and 9 days older than him.
8. As my blog info suggests, I love to travel. I have been to several countries in North America, Central America and Europe. I hope to someday visit all 50 states. But I have never lived outside of central Ohio. It isn't that I wouldn't live elsewhere, but up to this point in my life family commitments have kept me here. As my kids are becoming more independent adults, who knows?
9. One of my favorite wild animals in all the world is a manta ray. I love how large and graceful they are. I have never seen one in the wild. I hope to be able to someday.
10. And last, some people around here have already figured out that I like Tinker Bell from Disney. But I am fond of another charater, this one from Warner Brothers. Marvin the Martian. If anyone remembers the Warner Brothers store at City Center Mall, in the back of the store there used to be Marvin's spaceship. It was designed for kids to crawl into and play with the instrument panel, see a running stream of cartoons of the adventures of Marvin and K-9, and generally get lost in space. I loved that ship! My own kids would hunt me down in there and ask "are you ready to leave yet?".... "Just a few more minutes, please?" ;-)

So what have we learned with Learn & Play?

Wow! We are at the end. It is finally here. I see others who are still catching up, and know of many who will still the next few weeks to complete the 23 Things. But is only just dawning on me that I am done and feeling a little let down. It has been wonderful to participate in an activity like this with lots of other people involved. I think that it is exciting that CML to is behind this initiative to educate the staff about Web 2.0 tools, if for no other reason than for them to be aware. I know I heard some frustration from people about how much time it took to do each of the tasks. The time involved really varied, depending on either the persons familiarity with the tool (if you knew nothing it might take longer figure the basics out) or their interest level with the tool (if you were just checking it out, you could get it done fairly quickly but if you really wanted to understand it, it might take longer). I do not think it is necessary for people to continue using all or even most of the Web 2.0 tools. If you have found some gem in the pile, that's great! At the very least, when our customers talk about one of the tools we have a clue what it is they are talking about.

CML's Tool Box

Wow! Has it really been that long since my last post? Today I spent time exploring CML's Tool Box of Web 2.0 tools. I feel good that I recognized all of the items listed, even if I didn't always use them. Played around a little on Boing Boing, already subscribe to the RSS feed for MAKE, and spend WAY too much time on Twitter already. Thinking about downloading the Library Toolbar at home. Good jumping point for those who are new to the whole Web 2.0 thing, but not necessarily interesting for anyone already living it. Wish there was some note on the page, however, indicating to newbies that this is only a sampling and not necessarily the full experience.

Learn & Play @ CML

Two posts in one day.... The library system I work for is encouraging staff to Learn & Play with Web 2.0. I am very excited for the opportunity this presents to staff to be able to actually dive into some of the things the web offers, especially the ability to practice (ie, play) at work. No feeling guilty just for trying to keep up with new developments in technology. It's been really cool to see so many staff creating blogs, searching for pictures on Flickr and learning what an RSS feed is. More than anything I am exciting to see the seed of curiosity that has been planted. Visit the website at columbusmetropolitanlibrary.wordpress.com/.