dissect: v., to separate into pieces

today four 9 and 10 year old girls showed me how to dissect a pig. I have never dissected anything in my life. Not even in college bio. but today one little girl showed me a ventricle and another let me hold an eye and another told me about how the tongue is a smooth muscle and another said "HEY IF YOU TOUCH RIGHT HERE YOU CAN FEEL ITS BRAIN" (reader, I touched it). this is just a small thing. I did one new thing today.

but I thought of Elizabeth Warren's remarks this morning as she suspended her campaign: "But I refuse to let disappointment blind me — or you — to what we’ve accomplished. We didn’t reach our goal, but what we have done together — what you have done — has made a lasting difference. It’s not the scale of the difference we wanted to make, but it matters — and the changes will have ripples for years to come."

small things matter. one new thing in a day matters. the small change is I've felt pig brain. the bigger change is that I realized I didn't have to be invited to learn something; I could just show up and do it. the bigger change is that I realized fourth graders can be teachers. 

the super tuesday results triggered flashbacks of every time I've been in a room repeating myself at increasing volume until a man says what I said and then people listen, of every time I've run myself into a frenzy during coed sports yelling for a pass while watching some guy try to take on three defenders at once, of being told "you're smarter than I thought you would be when we started this conversation," of people crediting a man for something I planned and organized, of telling a man "no" and then hearing "but...," of being told "follow me women" and being called bitchy, bossy, and mean. 

but I refuse to let all those experiences blind me to the changes and accomplishments I see every day. I refuse to sit down or dumb myself down. I refuse to stop shouting for the things I want. and I refuse to lose hope in the fact that the small things we do today will positively affect our communities in the time to come.

Elizabeth Warren ran for president because that's what girls do. These girls dissected pigs because that's what girls do. These girls taught me because that's what girls do. These girls encouraged each other because that's what girls do. These girls worked together because that's what girls do. These girls made a difference -- to me, today -- because that's. what. girls. do.

the difference they're making will ripple. and ripple. and ripple. and ripple. I can't wait to see what these girls do when they're grown up.

July!

Y'all it is AUGUST SECOND. July came and went in a blink!

Something I did (at work): Okay so I am ridiculously proud of my baby book club. It's a program I started just for SRP and once week I have anywhere from 12-25 kids in Kindergarten-2nd grade come for an hour. I have a little activity sheet for them to do while everyone arrives, signs in, and makes name tags. Then we do this get-to-know-you song-and-dance that involves a lot of jumping around and telling each other facts about ourselves and they all love it! Then we read and do a related activity. Sometimes the book is short (like Elephant and Piggie or Mercy Watson) so we read the whole thing and sometimes it's long (like Magic Tree House or Junie B. Jones) so we just read a few chapters. Sometimes we play games or do a craft or do an experiment! I am planning to actually write a post about each week detailing everything we did since I love it so much and think everyone should have a baby book club at their library! Every week afterwards I'm so cheerful and my coworkers are like, "Why are you so extra happy right now?" And I'm shouting "BABY BOOK CLUB IS GIVING ME LIFE!!" It's really just great.

Something I watched/listened to: Guess who has two thumbs, a Netflix account, and finally decided to give Queer Eye a chance? ME. I kid you not when I tell you that I teared up at the end of every single episode in season one. I flat-out sobbed throughout a good portion of S2E1. I'm now partway through more of season 2 and, y'all: it just delivers. The tagline is true: it's more than a makeover! I was definitely hesitant because I thought it might be shallow or silly or dramatic or overly played-up, but it is honestly just so refreshing to see a group of friends truly care about each other and the hero in each episode and work to build each other up, encourage one another, support each other, share their failures and successes and only want the best for each other.

Something I read: Is Summer Reading the best time to re-read an 800 page novel? I couldn't tell you but I can tell you it's possible! It's also possible that The Goldfinch was even better this time around. There were a lot of details I had totally forgot about, and the ending is still so beautiful. It was so worth it!

Something I cooked: Would you believe that I made stir-fry?! I did!! It was kind of involved and ridiculous and I ended up with a ton and it got way spicy the longer it's been sitting in the tupperware so that's been an exciting adventure!! But I have recently learned how to blanch vegetables and I also recently bought a giant bag of rice, forgetting I already had a giant bag of rice in my pantry, so WIN-WIN. Plus did you know you can make a good stir-fry sauce out of just bbq sauce, soy sauce, and maple syrup? Plus seasoning, obviously (I had to buy ginger and sesame seeds but again -- worth it!).

Something I did (at home): Ramsay and I have been working on obedience training! Anyone who saw her photos may be overly confident in her abilities, as there were actually no graduation requirements for her obedience class. BUT she did pretty much learn how to heel (on a short leash) and we're now working on Stay with distractions (she can stay just fine) and she's actually almost laying down on command now, as long as I have cheese! So for four weeks I think that's not bad. Plus it was really good for her anxiety to just be in a new environment with other dogs and new people and not totally freak out. She was actually calm enough by the last two classes to lay down when we weren't working on anything. Progress > Product. Plus we still got some cute pictures.

That's all for now! On to our last eight days of Summer Reading!

June

I'm sorry how is June already over? With summer came Summer Reading and y'all -- I'm tired. But here we are. So a few things I did this month --

Something I did (at work): It is SRP so we are doing ALL THE THINGS. But a few highlights --

• we moved out (mostly) from our programming location and are now all working again from one library (YAY)!
• we finished (mostly) the shelving install so our books aren't all crammed together anymore!
• we had SRP Kickoff at the park! I haven't counted recently, but my best guess at this point is we've registered at least 500 kids from at least 30 different schools in our area.
• my weekday morning storytime has doubled in size for the summer
• I started a book club for Kinder-2nd grade and it's the most precious, life-giving program I'm doing
• I started a baby playtime that seriously gives book club a run for its money in the cuteness department. last week SIXTEEN kids came and we had a blast.
• we're trying a Saturday storytime for the first time and it doubled in size from the first week to the second!

This is just scratching the surface. It's been a lot and it's been exhausting and we still have six more weeks left to go. We are busy basically all of the time. But the new spaces are beautiful and we are so glad that people in the community love the library as much as we do!

Something I watched/listened to: Okay I know I am late to the party but Killing Eve is SO good, y'all. I got Season 1 from the library and watched it all in two days. And then I put it on hold for my mom so I could watch it again with her! You've probably picked up on a theme here but I really like shows with strong female leads, some dark and twisty humor, and crime. Killing Eve obviously ticks all the boxes, plus phenomenal acting, cool cinematography, and fantastic soundtracks in each episode. I'm so looking forward to getting my hands on Season 2!

Something I read: For as exhausting as work has been I've actually done a lot of reading and listening to audiobooks. I knocked out the first two Harry Potters (Jim Dale is just a wonderful reader) and just finished listening to Night by Elie Wiesel which was honestly one of the most horrific and moving stories I've ever encountered. And though I'm telling my patrons every day that listening to audiobooks is real reading!! and please track the time you listen on your reading logs!! because all reading counts!! for anyone concerned about the technicality of what I actually "read," I enjoyed Disobedience by Naomi Alderman. I don't think I've ever read a book about an Orthodox Jewish community before, so that in and of itself was new and interesting. Additionally, I kind of loved the narrative style and the emphasis on storytelling through the inclusion of traditional Jewish passages/stories at the beginning of chapters.

Something I cooked: I ate a lot of food that other people cooked or bought or left at work, because what are coworkers for if not for feeding you at desperate times?! But also, I did make a breakfast casserole. I got the recipe from a friend at church when I was at The Abbey and have been making it on the reg since then, actually! It's basically grits, cornbread mix, eggs, sausage, and cheese -- and on top of being easy to make, it's also easy to pack into containers and tastes just as delicious reheated as it does straight from the oven. Win-Win-Win!

Something I did (at home): I bought Ramsay a pool and she loves it!! And I love that she loves it!! So if anyone wants to see a video (or six) of her swimming in a kiddie pool just let me know and I'll hook you up!!!

until next month!

May

Did I think April was a whirlwind? WELCOME TO MAY, SON. This month I worked. And worked. And worked more. So this month I'm starting with....

Something I did (at work!): I did 10 school visits this month promoting Summer Reading. I also made a few videos about SRP and shared them with other schools in our area to play during their morning announcements. I went to a city council meeting and got approval for the library to use the city park twice during Summer Reading. I recruited volunteers for our kickoff party and other SRP events. I finalized my part of our proposed budget for the next fiscal year. I covered Preschool Storytime to give our regular Storytime provider the month off. I'm honestly really, really, proud of some of the things we did in ST, but those will have to make it into their own post sometime! I finished up the last few weeks with my Young Scholars. I decided to interfile all our Nonfiction, Graphic Novel, and Biography sections (because I had plenty of time...). And I helped move furniture, books, shelves, carts, and more furniture all over the library. In the past week my desk has been in four different locations. But we are making it work! And our new shelving has arrived! And the expansion/renovation should be done soon! This is the home stretch, and will be well worth the exhaustion.

Something I watched/listened to: I've basically just been coming home to crash on the couch, so I watched lots of TV this month! Y'all: go watch Dead to Me on Netflix. It has everything I like in a show: suspense, murder, female friendship, dry/dark humor... what more do you want?! Also, you know how you can just tell when a show is created/written by women, because the female characters seem so real, like you know them? That's Dead to Me.

Something I read: Okay, there's a lovely new little book of essays called The Anna Karenina Fix; it's by Viv Groskop and holds wonderful reflections on major Russian classics, complete with wit and personal anecdotes. Jojo told me about it, which inspired me to get it from the library and I loved it! I'm also inspired to read more Russian literature and have now checked out some of Anna Akhmatova's poetry (Groskop calls her the Russian Virginia Woolf, so I am hopeful...). For those wondering, no, I did not read any more of my own books, but yes, I may next month (should it count if it's a re-read?).

Something I cooked: hey remember when I said I was really busy working this month? I honestly have no idea what I ate. Probably sandwiches. I heated up a frozen lasagna last night?

Something I did (at home!): I'm honestly just really proud of this tweet.

Only two weeks until Summer Reading begins!

April

April was a whirl. wind. Let's do this.

Something I read: I've been reading lots of Tess Gerritsen this month. My good friend Curran recommended the show Rizzoli & Isles to me, and when I found out it was based on a book series I thought I would check out both from the library! I took the first title, The Surgeon, with me to a conference and was definitely awake into the wee hours of the morning finishing it by the hotel light. I'm now working my way through the sixth title in the series... they're not my favorite books, but they lean heavily on the thriller/suspense side, which I do enjoy. Also, the first book came out in 2001, and I find the cultural references, though made in earnest, often have a way of providing some comic relief to otherwise rather intense stories.

Something I watched/listened to: Okay, this has been a month of Rizzoli & Isles! Best friends homicide cop and medical examiner? This show is literally right up my alley. I've been getting the DVDs from the library and am already on the fourth season. Also, I do think the show is better than the books -- the characters are less abrasive and more likeable, and the storytelling is more dramatic and relational and less about actual medical and forensic details, which is fine by me.

Something I cooked: I didn't cook that much since I was traveling quite a bit this month. But, I did contribute homemade bread and roasted asparagus to our Easter party and both were a hit. I let the bread rise for less time this time around, so it didn't flop over the sides of the pan :) And I've actually been making that asparagus every week and I do not kid when I say that straight out of the oven they're practically as good as fries (if you know me at all you know how big of a deal this is). But also they're 400* so maybe not straight out of the oven.

Something I did (at home): I changed my air filter? Because apparently that's something you're supposed to do? So now the air coming into my apartment is cleaner, which is good.

Something I did (at work): I met lots of cool authors and illustrators in Hattiesburg! I spoke on a panel at TLA in Austin! I demonstrated online resources for teachers and students at a local school's faculty inservice! I raised butterflies with my after-school program! I got our SRP fliers approved for electronic distribution through the ISD! I ordered all of the books our local schools need for Summer Reading! And more! April was a very busy month and it is just the beginning of the snowball!

Something I want to do next month: This is a work thing, but I really want to visit every school in our district to pitch Summer Reading. I have about half of the visits scheduled already, but I still need to sort out the rest! It will be a lot of driving around and a lot of early mornings, but I really want to get as many kids and families as possible into our new building this summer.

March

Um, is this me, blogging on time for two months IN A ROW? It really, truly, is. What did I do in March, you may ask? I'll tell you.

Something I read: the first week of the month I read Listen to the Marriage, which I actually kind of loved. I found the beginning a little slow, and it took me awhile to get used to the narrative style. The book is told from the marriage counselor's point of view as a recently separated couple comes in -- individually and together -- over the course of a year. It fascinated me because it's primarily dialogue, and the reader won't know anything about the characters' lives unless they choose to share it verbally in the session. It honestly kind of reminded me of reading a screenplay. I head about this book from the Modern Love podcast and it did not let me down!

Something I watched/listened to: I've been listening to audiobooks almost all month! I saw the trailer for Where'd You Go, Bernadette? and remembered how much I loved the book -- I read it at Christmas in 2017 (I think) and so enjoyed it! Jojo had listened to the audio version and recommended it to me before she knew I had read it, so I thought this would be a good way to refamiliarize myself with the book without *technically* checking out more library books. Y'all, it's so much fun. Just, wonderfully, dramatically, delightful. The release date is August 9 so I will report back if the movie is equally delightful!

Something I cooked: Y'all. I MADE BREAD. WITH MY HANDS. I specifically googled 'easy bread recipes' and picked one with explicit directions and pictures and this blogger promises in another post that her nine year old was capable of making this bread, which I found encouraging. Anyway, I think my loaf pan was a little small because the top got a little flat, but it was totally delicious and I ate like half of the loaf in a single day. I will be making it again!!

Something I did (at home): I read two books I actually own!! I am MEETING GOALS, PEOPLE. Also, it's Mandy's birthday (today!!), so we spent last night out for dinner and drinks with a friend of hers and had a lovely time.

Something I did (at work): We had a whole slew of Spring Break programs, including a family-friendly Antarctic-themed escape room of my and a coworker's own design. In the words of one third-grader, it was "totally wicked!!"

Something I want to do next month: Honestly, I am traveling for conferences twice next month and will be gone seven working days, which is kind of a lot, and I just want to stay healthy and get all my work done since we are waist-deep in planning for Summer Reading. (I feel compelled to add that I did make and freeze a casserole so when I get back I won't even have to cook lunches for the week between trips. Meal. Prep. QUEEN.)

PS: I actually read a lot this month and wanted to share a few titles
Blink is a fantastic nonfiction read about implicit bias and snap decisions; it captivated me.
Sophie Kinsella is one of very few contemporary authors who makes me laugh out loud, and her latest, I Owe You One, is no exception.
I've been meaning to read Silence and Beauty ever since it came out in 2015 (incidentally, when I was reading Silence for the first time), and I finally finished it this month -- a really fascinating study of art, beauty, trauma, and faith.
Lastly, I'm sorry to disappoint those who love these titles, but I didn't think either The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society or Salt to the Sea lived up to the hype. The characters felt flat and indistinct from each other. As a reader who loves character-driven stories, they were rather disappointing.

More next month! And more books read from my own shelf!

February

oh, hello, I would first just like to draw everyone's attention to the fact that I am blogging ON TIME. please hold your applause and continue reading.
For being the shortest month, February certainly felt long! The library got even smaller with the addition of another (thankfully, the last!) temporary wall. I took a quick trip to Denton to visit Mandy over President's Day. And I've been working through some really bad allergies for the past week now that Spring is actually coming! But onto the things I did!

For February:
Something I read: Becoming by Michelle Obama. I'd been on the waiting list even before the book arrived at the library, so I was eagerly anticipating the arrival of this one! It was perfect timing at the beginning of the month since I am going with friends to hear her speak in Austin tonight (the 28th)!
Y'all. It's so good. I just love her so much. I actually read it kind of slowly, because her story is so much to take in and I wanted to savor it. This probably sounds cliche, but it was so real and honest and humanizing, yet inspiring at the same time. There were times it made me so sad I just had to quit and take a break, because I miss the Obamas' public presence so much. But there were also times -- many more times -- when her passion for the work she did and the initiatives she started jumped off the page and brought me so much joy. Get it from your local bookstore or library and read it!!!

Something I watched/listened to: I'm going to cheat a little bit and do both for this one because I couldn't choose!
watched: Season 3 of One Day at a Time on Netflix. I watched the first and second seasons because Mandy recommended the show to me, and I thought it was alright. Then I read this article extolling the virtues of the third season and y'all -- it's not wrong. I LOVED it. They have found their footing and I enjoyed it so much. I mostly just really love shows where kids act like kids and parents act like parents, and I think the family dynamic in One Day at a Time is truly wonderful.
listened to: The Friendship Episode of Truth's Table. I started listening to this podcast when it first came out and I lived in Austin and loved it from day one! I didn't listen regularly in Dallas, though, so I've recently been working my way through Season 2 on my commute. Y'all, take 35 minutes and listen to this episode. I was inspired both by the fact that Ekemini, Michelle, and Christine became friends as adults, and by the active steps they take to preserve and invest in their friendship. I've listened to it more than once! (also while you're at it just subscribe and listen to all the episodes...)

Something I cooked: I believe this is technically baking, but I made some delicious banana bread this month! I also made blueberry muffins twice, and both times they grew mold by day 5, so that was kind of a bust. They were good the first few days though, and made quick easy breakfasts when I was rushed before work! (also if anyone knows something I could do to make these last longer --besides freezing them -- please hit me up because having them in an airtight container is not cutting it!)

Something I did (at home): I scrapbooked! I am almost ten years behind in my scrapbooks, but it's a hobby I love and just don't usually make time for. My friend Megan suggested it, so we got together with our friend Maggie for a day of crafting. It was a total joy -- and I got a lot of pages done! I'm inspired to keep it up now that I have more time for hobbies, so maybe I can actually get less years behind...

Something I did (at work): Did I tell y'all I'm on a task force?


via GIPHY
It's actually just a fancy name for me and two other librarians meeting to discuss problems related our rapid growth and write new policies and procedures to fix those problems. It can be time-consuming and cause a bit of a headache, but after about six weeks we finally solved some of our problems! We instituted our new policy and procedures for when library materials are overdue, damaged, missing, or returned incomplete, and so far it seems to be working! It sounds tedious and nerdy to care about policy, but I'm very proud of the flowchart I contributed, so. My coworkers also love the flowchart, which I think means I'm definitely working with the right people.

Something I want to do next month: Okay so I didn't read any of my own books. I just... keep putting things on hold. I'm trying not to! I think I have three library books out now? Somehow only one less than this time last month, though I've read five books this month.... so: the same goal! I'm feeling more confident for March!