I’ve enjoyed my two sessions so far. I thought I was going to blog about this conference, but I have to tell you, after spending well over an hour typing up just my preliminary notes last night (I finished up after 11pm), I realized:
- I don’t really have the time
- I don’t have the energy
- My notes were filled with ideas of how to improve my website, which I don’t really feel like sharing with the world (”Exactly how my company’s public website sucks, by Vera Giles”)
Actually, what I realized today is that I should also write up for my boss what our website is doing well, especially because we wouldn’t want to lose ground we’ve already won whenever we do a site redesign! Despite the inevitable tendency to criticize my own website ruthlessly (especially at the end of a day where we’re asked continuously, “OK, so what’s wrong with this page?”), we’re doing a lot of things right.
I’ve been doing remarkably well (given past experience) networking with other folks at the conference. After attending a few ALAs and SLAs, I’ve realized something important: while I was always a bit shy and hesitant to strike up a conversation with anybody, whenever anybody started talking to me, I was secretly glad. As I started initiating conversations, I almost always found that the same seemed to be true of the others I talked to. After all, librarians in particular (especially reference librarians) are often used to waiting for someone else to approach them, but they’re happy to help.
So I’ve decided to stop waiting around for someone else to make the first move (although sometimes it still takes me a few minutes to work up the nerve). I say someting really basic, like “How many days have you been at this conference?” (it’s more modular than most conferences I’ve been to) or “So, where are you from?” or the slightly more interesting “So, what are you hoping to get out of this conference/this session?” and we start chatting. Almost never do I end up with someone so introverted that they want to flee.
Also, I’ve developed a rule of thumb at cocktail parties, which I used to loathe and still dread (Aaron always has to remind me, “You always end up having a great time at these things.”). For some reason–I’m rusty? I have bad luck? God is laughing at me?–my first cocktail party conversation ends up being awkward and awful. I don’t know what to say, the other person looks bored, I want to ask interested questions and I can’t, who knows. Maybe it’s because I tend to drift up to someone who isn’t already involved in a conversation. Anyway, once I get past that person, the rest of my evening goes well. Sometimes I even learn later that the person has this really fascinating background that I completely failed to uncover. Oh well! It’s like when I make crepes–the first one always falls apart, and after that I know how to adjust the recipe and it’s all good.
Despite all this excellent networking, one thing that I think has helped me to stay sane during this conference is that every day for lunch, I’ve been dashing over to Grace Cathedral to meet with my former coworker and friend Mary Wood. For the past two days we’ve been having a fabulous time catching up on all the old gossip (she’s a good-hearted woman, so it’s all of the positive or tactful variety). It’s so good to see some of the other people I worked with there as well. Tomorrow, I may grab a sandwich and walk the labyrinth, which I’ve been itching to do since I got here. (Yes, that’s what my ill-fated library blog from 1-1/2 years ago was named after.) The Grace Cathedral coffee and gift shop is apparently open 7 days a week, and they serve Peet’s Coffee and sandwiches and salads. Mary and I ate there today, but I had no time to browse–I’ll go tomorrow. Aaron is nervous I will go crazy there–please pray for our finances. 
Had a long, fun dinner and a surprisingly quick wander around Green Apple Books (I think it might be information overload) with Anne. We didn’t see all that much of each other when I lived here, either, but we at least got together once a month. Boy do I miss it. Even with a cold she was fun to talk to. Get better soon!
I also got my first chance to sit in the cockpit (would that be the co-pilot’s seat?) of Anne’s Prius. I guess she just gave up the cult from Tennessee for a newer, hipper religion. The large screen with the constant updates on energy consumption does explain some things about the whole smug concern. But I should stop ragging on the car because its owner did give me a very quiet and speedy ride back to my hotel–I didn’t even have to climb Nob Hill with a bag full of books.
By the way, usability experts would be dinging me for the last two links, since the descriptions don’t really indicate where they go, which “makes users nervous.” I’ve noticed that it’s something of a hip blog convention to attach links to non-descriptive text. I generally think it’s overdone, but sometimes it’s part of the fun. Trust me that both of them explain themselves in a work-safe manner!
Time to go to bed. The light has been waking me up every morning too early, but it gets dark here a good hour and a half or more earlier than it does in Seattle, so I should take advantage of that fact! (I was really bummed to miss the Summer Solstice in Seattle this year, but the night before that it was still light at 10, and not fully dark at 10:30pm).