fall registration

Quick Update: I registered for classes this afternoon, and I got into everything I wanted for fall. Hooray! It was actually rather tense this afternoon, as I managed to snag the very last seat in the section of 440 that I wanted. The alternative was to have yet another Saturday class, and that was not happening again!

So this fall I'll have LIS 440 - Archival Access and Use on Tuesday mornings, LIS 442 - Establishment of Archives and Manuscripts Programs (Management) on Tuesday evenings (hopefully I'll have a WC shift between them to make the best use of my time on campus), and LIS 439 - Preservation Management on Thursday afternoons. I'm trying to leave Fridays or Mondays open for doing my required internship for 440.

The best part of this schedule? I won't have Saturday class anymore! Finally, I'll be free on the weekends to either sleep in or actually get out and do things. I'm very excited for that part. And for my classes, actually, though not in the same giddy way.

-Kim

Soundtrack of the day: Superchic[k]

a day for me

Today I took care of myself. This semester has been incredibly stressful, and lately things keep popping up that demand my attention, which is already spread too thin. And it's not going to get better until May, so there's not much for it but to keep going.

But today was different. I've been feeling below par for a while now, and today I did something about it. Not too long ago I found a coupon online for a half price massage at a totally legit place--it's actually inside a Harvard clinic. I've had a lot of tension in my neck and shoulders lately, so I figured I would give it a try (one thing I seem to be missing in my new group of friends is someone who can give me a neck rub). I'm so glad I went! Lili at New England Medical Massage is incredible. The experience itself was enormously relaxing, and when I left an hour later I was way more energized than when I went in. The price without a coupon would be well out of my range (though they do offer a 25% discount to students), but I would definitely recommend her. She also gave me a few stretches to do to keep my muscles from getting that tight, which is great.

After I left Lili I wandered a few blocks further downtown to Quincy Market and was immediately sorry I hadn't brought my camera. A men's acapella group from Oxford was performing in the square outside the market. They were really good! (I have a definite fondness for men that can sing--especially acapella groups) They sang the most random material, but with their level of talent they could sing nursery rhymes and we would be impressed. I took pictures on my phone, but sadly, that means I can't share them with you--sorry!

When the singers dispersed, I wandered to the other side of the building and encountered another street performer. He was dressed in orange and hopping on a pogo stick. Apparently he does "extreme pogo sticking" and was on America's Got Talent a while back. He also thinks he's funier than he really is, but I still enjoyed watching.

Oh, and the Big Apple Circus is in town for the next three weeks. Oddly enough, it's right in the middle of downtown Boston. The tent is set up less than 100 yards from the Government Center T stop, right by all the government buildings. I guess I'm just used to circuses setting up in a field right outside of town, but you really can't do that in a city like Boston. That I should be able to go get a proper picture of before it leaves town.

And on the way back I stopped at the art store to pick up a frame and ended up winning a free tote bag. There was a prize wheel just inside the door, and when I spun it landed on that instead of a coupon for a percentage off my purchase. Then there was real ice cream in the cafeteria--all in all a good day.

And now, quick before the good mood all this induced slips away, I need to make a list of things to accomplish in the next few days to keep up with all the things that are due and happening next week.

Oh, and my friend Tierney, who I took to the emergency room last week, had emergency gall bladder surgery yesterday. As far as I know she's doing fine, but her parents are taking her home to Connecticut until the middle of next week, and this is a bad time of the semester to be missing class. Prayers for her--and those of us who are supposed to be working on projects with her--would be appreciated.

-Kim

"There is no substitute for paranoia"

My Rare Books prof was a fountain of great quotes today as we discussed proper training and security measures for special collections departments of libraries. Also of note was "digital preservation is an oxymoron." That one can lead to quite a debate on my campus, one that I don't feel like getting in the middle of right now.

The odd thing about today was how slowly time seemed to move. For the past few weeks we've been meeting for an extra hour in order to make up for a session he had to miss because of a misunderstanding and a rare books festival in California. But today we were back to only 3 hours of class, yet it felt just as long as last week. For the first half of class I had trouble staying awake and focused, and after break I just had trouble staying focused. From my seat I could see out the window, and a series of white trolleys driving by stole my attention.

The other thing that distracts me in class is the presence of the interpreters for our deaf classmate. There are two women who sit in the front and translate everything our professor says into sign language so that she doesn't miss out on any class content. Well, the women who do this are incredibly expressive. Sometimes I catch myself watching them instead of the professor, just to see how they will communicate the tone of his sarcasm and jokes. I'm even picking up a few signs, including, today, the one for "invasion." It involves bringing the right hand down on the left with fingers splayed, kind of like an alligator action mixed with spirit fingers. I almost giggled out loud when I saw that one, and committed it to memory in case it should ever prove useful. You never know what the next story idea will develop from.

-Kim

Bollywood

My new friend Xavie is introducing me to the wonderful world of Bollywood films. Tonight we watched one called Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, and it was great. The plot is somewhat like the movie Definitely, Maybe, only much better.

I'm becoming a fan of the genre. The music is great and makes me want to get up and dance, and the plots are always convoluted love stories (and I mean seriously convoluted--one I've seen involved reincarnation before the hero could finally rescue/get the girl, and tonight's took at least ten years to bring the couple together. I wonder if they all take decades for the happy ending to finally develop?). And somehow they walk the fine line between serious and pure farce. One moment you can't believe they take themselves seriously, the next they have you bawling like a baby. The one we watched tonight was also fun because part of it took place in the 80's, so the costumes were hilarious. Yeah, there's plenty of traditional sarees, but that's not what they wear when they're at school! And the huge dance numbers--amazing.

The only downside to a Bollywood flick is the need for subtitles. Although, there are plenty of phrases used in India now that are taken directly from English, that fairly often a character will suddenly shock me out of reading by speaking English. Oh, and the movies are long. They're intended to be watched with an intermission (which is even built into the DVD), so if you don't take a break you're in for a long haul. But this one didn't seem all that long. Either it was just that engrossing, or I've really built up my stamina from the Lord of the Rings films!

Bollywood is a great place to spend a Friday night. You should try it sometime.

-Kim

COF Orchestra spring concert

Last night was my spring orchestra concert. It went very well, and I am now sad that I don't have a group to play with again until September. Katie came into town for the concert like she did last semester, and the photo and videos are thanks to her.

The first video is the third movement of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake," for which we were joined by two members of the COF dance troupe.

The second clip is from one of the chamber groups, an especially impressive French horn quartet. Katie plays the horn as well, so she was especially excited about this.

Our final piece was music from "Jurassic Park." John Williams writes such good music. Again, Katie was happy because the horn part is so good. As she puts it, John Williams actually likes horns, while other composers seem to think of them as a percussion instrument. The Williams piece was easily everyone's favorite, so we ended the concert on a high note.

The room was packed--I couldn't believe how good a turnout we had. In fact, many of the people who came later had to stand in the back or along the walls. Next time around they'll have to find more chairs for us to use.

It was an odd day to have so many extra people on campus, though, especially in the dining hall. In the past week there have been 6 cases of norovirus reported on the residence campus, and the school is taking drastic measures to keep it from spreading. The measure they took was to eliminate self-serve food items from the dining areas. Well, that's not too hard at the main campus dining facility, since only the soup and salad bar were self-serve anyway, but on the residence campus, at Bartol, it made a huge difference. Most of the food there is self-serve. They ended up calling in extra staff to stand by the buffet lines and dish food out for us, wearing gloves. Maybe that will stop the spread of germs, maybe not. It's enough of a pain that I intend to avoid the dining hall as much as possible for a few days and hope they get things straightened out. My room is well-stocked, so I should be fine.

-Kim