Mrs. Manager

I made it through the ILF conference in Indy. It was a blast. Yes, there was some homework, and I got lost; however, I made a new friend and I learned a lot. Conferences are great. Plus, the free breakfast at the hotel wasn't too shabby. And did I mention the lunch buffet? Oh, well, that's not the point of this blog post.

In the past, conferences meant meeting librarians, attending sessions geared for youth services, and getting tons of free stuff. This year, I sought knitters, management courses, and free chocolate!

As a librarian, there are a few credentials one must meet: you have a cat, or you knit. Sure, you can do both, but we know how cats are with yarn. Anyway, in previous conferences, I saw many knitters, which sparked my interest in knitting. This year, I brought my cowl (seed stitch) to work on while listening to presentations. During a seat shuffle, I dropped a stitch. A generous knitting librarian helped to find the issue and all is well with the cowl. My new friend laughed at this theory, but it turns out she cross-stitches. Needlework is needlework. Perhaps I should modify my theory.

Now that I'm a manager, I thought I would attend a few sessions that would beef up my confidence. It's not that I can't say "no", it's just I don't have a problem working with people. One session was called "Shooting Yourself in the Foot". Mind opener!! One volunteer didn't fall for excuses and stuck to his guns. Many of us in the audience were thinking of alternatives, but the speaker said that the volunteer was doing everything right. (Note to self: their problem is not my problem.)

Oh, I can't forget about my quest for chocolate. It seemed that every booth had chocolate. One booth offered whole Crunch bars! I was tempted to grab one, but the guilt of not engaging in conversation prevented me. (Otherwise it's stealing?)

Moral of the story: I love conferences!! I will take what I learned and apply them in the field. My goal for the next conference (whenever it may be) is to present. Kitchen Creations at ALA Mid-winter? Vote!! http://connect.ala.org/node/230704