Update 2/1/2012
So, I changed the name...
I was cheerfully blogging away during a break at work, when one of my favorite colleagues peeked over my shoulder. She saw the name of the blog and asked me "How do you even SAY that?". Well, I completely stumbled over the name of my own blog. That was, perhaps, the moment when I realized that I really needed to change the name. If I can't even say the word consistently, then there's no way other people are going to be able to say it (let alone, you know, discuss it amongst themselves). So, I switched it from Liberoriate to Library Miscellanea. The definition of 'miscellanea' by the way is "a collection of miscellaneous objects or writings". I collect a ton of random (but useful!) things under my 'Resources' page and there are the perhaps equally random writing that I do for the actual blog. In short, people can pronounce the name of the blog AND (even better) I get to be "Lib Miss" when I'm typing in the web address. Wins all around. Happy reading!
What's the meaning of 'Liberoriate'? How do you even say it? (my best guess is LEE-bur-OR-ee-ate) What prompted you to use it in this manner? Read on, dear reader, read on.
There was a time, not so long ago, when everyone knew exactly what librarians did. They sat behind a giant, wooden reference desk in state. Their gimlet eyes surveyed you as you crossed the room towards them, like some kind of ancient ruler awaiting a subject to beg a favor. If you phrased your question in a way that pleased them, they might point a commanding finger in the direction you must go to attain your goal. If you were really lucky, they might remove themselves from their throne and actually show you the treasure you sought. You would leave, having attained whatever document it was that would save your psychology paper from being, at best, a well worded but unsupported argument. Above all, you would be awed - nay, grateful beyond measure - that the supreme guardian of information had actually given you a few moments of their time and helped you find something.
Fast forward to my last dental appointment. I'm just finishing my final year in school and am very close to completing my Masters in Library and Information Science (MLIS). I also had been feeling the need to get my teeth checked. Having been asked the inevitable question (You need a masters degree to work as a LIBRARIAN?) that every library student across the globe has been asked countless times I had felt myself more or less prepared to answer and defend my profession whenever I met someone new. However, at this particular time, I was at a distinct disadvantage. My mouth was propped open with something that tasted nasty and the nice lady who was cleaning my teeth was plying her instruments with what I can only describe as unholy enthusiasm. It was the moment when my mouth was being rinsed that she chose to proclaim "I don't see why we even need librarians anymore - I mean, we have Google, right?". She chattered on, oblivious to my gurgles of outrage and slit-eyed, glaring visage (I suppose she could have put that down to the light she was shining in my face). It wasn't until later, when the (one-sided) conversation had moved on and I was again able to close my mouth that I gave some thought to what she had said.
The general public doesn't really know what librarians do. Indeed, before I went to library school, I didn't really have a clear idea of what librarians did. They just got to play with books all day, right? I was thinking this over when I posted a question to my circle of Facebook acquaintances. "You know what I just thought of? Librarians don't really have a verb. I mean, teachers teach and actors act but librarians don't exactly 'library', you know what I'm saying?". My friends and colleagues came to the rescue (as they always do) and offered alternatives (made up words) as well as several actual verbs. The made up word you see at the top of the blog here - "Liberoriate" was my favorite. The actual verbs were many. We refer, we teach, we acquire, we catalog, we find, we liberate, we direct, we help, we read, we suggest (or recommend), we organize, "or if we're really lucky, we tell stories" (thanks Scott!). So, for my own peace of mind, I decided to start a blog where I could practice my awesome (my own word) librarianship degree and present myself as an approachable and capable librarian (that's the 'portfolio' pages you might glimpse). I'll store my favorite web and print resources here and practice the fine art of reader's advisory, which I'm always trying to improve. This is my craft and I hope as you watch me practice it (dear-non-existent reader) that you'll come to understand what it is that librarians do. Liberoriate away!
